Eyrianone

They TALK to each other and communicate. Seriously man, my #1 gripe with onscreen couples is that they never communicate with each other. But these two? Brooooo. Communication abounds.

Jonathan listens to Jennifer’s opinion on things, and she in turn listens when he becomes her voice of reason.

In that vein, Jonathan is usually the voice of reason, but he never disregards Jennifer. If she overhears a husband planning to kill his wife and wants to stop it, he’ll be skeptical, but he’ll still go, because he doesn’t ever doubt that she’s lying.

They almost never argue???? Seriously, I’m still waiting for an episode where they get into a huge, explosive argument. Still hasn’t happened.

Deadass the only episode where they are shown arguing, IT’S A PERFORMANCE.

They have their own lives outside their marriage. Jonathan has his company, Jennifer has her writing career, they both have friends—their marriage isn’t their entire life.

They’re so faithful that they would NEVER doubt how faithful they are.

They’ve been married for at least five years, and they still act like they’re in the honeymoon phase. Seriously, they could have just fought off a killer and they’re still flirting with each other.

They both go out of their way to surprise one another with romantic things.

They FONDLY BANTER. (Sue me I’m a sucker for affectionate banter lol)

The way they’re always so close—like they’re always holding hands, hugging, arms around each other, etc.

They’re practically a unit with how well they work together!

In conclusion, they’re the best TV couple I’ve ever seen. The bar has been raised too high. I love them so much.

Get excited Sherlollians - a new appreciation week is on its way! This will be our ninth year in a row of celebrating our favorite science nerds. I am so glad you are all still here to keep celebrating with me!

This year we are embracing AUs for our little morbid pair. Each day has a Basic AU prompt and a Fairytale / Princess AU prompt (motivated by @lunaflowerlight’s idea of books/myths). Please feel free to use the prompts however you are inspired – it does not have to be an exact reflection of the original prompting universe. I want to see all of the GIF sets, photo edits/manips, fan art, and fan fiction pieces you can create!

Keep an eye out for the tag: ‘sherlollyweek2023’. I will post any updates or news about the appreciation week under that tag! That will also be the tag that you use when you post your response to the daily prompts. Can’t wait to see what you lovelies come up with!

This lavish live-action musical is surprisingly underrated given its starry array of talents. Besides a cast filled with distinguished names from British film and theatre, it features songs and a screenplay both written by the legendary Sherman Brothers, who provided the music for Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Jungle Book, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and other childhood classics.

The first and foremost way this adaptation stands apart from other Cinderellas is by making co-protagonists of Cinderella and her charming Prince Edward of Euphrania, rather than focusing chiefly on her. (Apparently this explains the film's title: the royal family's crest features the image of a rose, so "the rose" symbolizes the Prince, while of course "the slipper" represents Cinderella.) From the beginning, the film alternates between scenes of the royal court, where Edward chafes against his lack of freedom and resists his parents' attempts to foist a loveless political marriage on him, and scenes of Cinderella's hardships in her stepfamily's home... which are soon alleviated when she kindly lets a road-weary woman rest by her kitchen fire, and the woman turns out to be an unusually human, quirky Fairy Godmother.

This version's other distinguishing feature is its emphasis on realistic socio-political concerns. The royal court scenes constantly emphasize – in a satirical way – the importance of tradition, protocol and duty, while a minor subplot involving the Prince's valet John's love for a lady above his station highlights the rigidity of social class. All of this foreshadows the story's final act, which continues after the traditional fairy tale ends. The King is reluctant to let his son marry a commoner and thus lose the chance to protect his kingdom from war with a marriage alliance, so he and his Lord Chamberlain secretly send Cinderella into exile. It takes more intervention from the Fairy Godmother to save Edward from an unwanted wedding and reunite him with his true love.

All of the above details, plus the Sherman Brothers' love of long, sophisticated words in their lyrics, make this more of a grownup Cinderella than a children's version. (There's even a dark comedy song in the royal crypt, where the Prince and John sing about terrible past kings while literally dancing on their tombs!) But that's not to say there's any lack of magic or charm. The elegant settings and the luxurious 18th century costumes are gorgeous, and as a whole, the film strikes an excellent balance between comic satire and dreamy fairy tale romance. And while the Shermans' score might not quite be as memorable as their famous work for Disney, their array of songs ("Why Can't I Be Two People?" "What Has Love Got to Do With Getting Married?" "Once I Was Loved," "What A Comforting Thing to Know," "Protocoligorically Correct," "A Bride-Finding Ball," "Suddenly It Happens," "Secret Kingdom," "When He/She Danced With Me," "Position and Positioning," "Tell Him Anything" and "I Can't Forget the Melody") are still appropriately tuneful and winning.

The filmmakers chose to pair an unknown Cinderella with an established star as her Prince, yet they both give appealing performances. Gemma Craven's lovely Cinderella blends classic fairy tale innocence and feeling with inner strength and dignity, as well as a sweet soprano voice. Richard Chamberlain's Prince Edward likewise sings with a handsome burnished tone and strikes the perfect balance between the sarcastic humor with which he voices his frustrations and his romantic tenderness in the love scenes. The leading couple's chemistry and the genuine heartbreak they convey at being separated saves the last-act plot extension from seeming like filler. Annette Crosbie's Fairy Godmother excellently combines warmth, eccentricity and no-nonsense wit, Margaret Lockwood is an appropriately hateful Stepmother, Sir Michael Hordern contributes further humor as the anxious fuddy-duddy King, and the rest of the supporting cast (including Dame Edith Evans as the Prince's senile old grandmother the Dowager Queen, Kenneth More as the Lord Chamberlain, and an adorable little dog who helps the Fairy Godmother to help Cinderella) are excellent all around.

While not the definitive screen Cinderella, the Sherman Brothers unique and colorful spin on the story is still worth seeing, both for fairy tale lovers and for fans of classic, sumptuous movie musicals.

This lavish live-action musical is surprisingly underrated given its starry array of talents. Besides a cast filled with distinguished names from British film and theatre, it features songs and a screenplay both written by the legendary Sherman Brothers, who provided the music for Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Jungle Book, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, and other childhood classics.

The first and foremost way this adaptation stands apart from other Cinderellas is by making co-protagonists of Cinderella and her charming Prince Edward of Euphrania, rather than focusing chiefly on her. (Apparently this explains the film's title: the royal family's crest features the image of a rose, so "the rose" symbolizes the Prince, while of course "the slipper" represents Cinderella.) From the beginning, the film alternates between scenes of the royal court, where Edward chafes against his lack of freedom and resists his parents' attempts to foist a loveless political marriage on him, and scenes of Cinderella's hardships in her stepfamily's home... which are soon alleviated when she kindly lets a road-weary woman rest by her kitchen fire, and the woman turns out to be an unusually human, quirky Fairy Godmother.

This version's other distinguishing feature is its emphasis on realistic socio-political concerns. The royal court scenes constantly emphasize – in a satirical way – the importance of tradition, protocol and duty, while a minor subplot involving the Prince's valet John's love for a lady above his station highlights the rigidity of social class. All of this foreshadows the story's final act, which continues after the traditional fairy tale ends. The King is reluctant to let his son marry a commoner and thus lose the chance to protect his kingdom from war with a marriage alliance, so he and his Lord Chamberlain secretly send Cinderella into exile. It takes more intervention from the Fairy Godmother to save Edward from an unwanted wedding and reunite him with his true love.

All of the above details, plus the Sherman Brothers' love of long, sophisticated words in their lyrics, make this more of a grownup Cinderella than a children's version. (There's even a dark comedy song in the royal crypt, where the Prince and John sing about terrible past kings while literally dancing on their tombs!) But that's not to say there's any lack of magic or charm. The elegant settings and the luxurious 18th century costumes are gorgeous, and as a whole, the film strikes an excellent balance between comic satire and dreamy fairy tale romance. And while the Shermans' score might not quite be as memorable as their famous work for Disney, their array of songs ("Why Can't I Be Two People?" "What Has Love Got to Do With Getting Married?" "Once I Was Loved," "What A Comforting Thing to Know," "Protocoligorically Correct," "A Bride-Finding Ball," "Suddenly It Happens," "Secret Kingdom," "When He/She Danced With Me," "Position and Positioning," "Tell Him Anything" and "I Can't Forget the Melody") are still appropriately tuneful and winning.

The filmmakers chose to pair an unknown Cinderella with an established star as her Prince, yet they both give appealing performances. Gemma Craven's lovely Cinderella blends classic fairy tale innocence and feeling with inner strength and dignity, as well as a sweet soprano voice. Richard Chamberlain's Prince Edward likewise sings with a handsome burnished tone and strikes the perfect balance between the sarcastic humor with which he voices his frustrations and his romantic tenderness in the love scenes. The leading couple's chemistry and the genuine heartbreak they convey at being separated saves the last-act plot extension from seeming like filler. Annette Crosbie's Fairy Godmother excellently combines warmth, eccentricity and no-nonsense wit, Margaret Lockwood is an appropriately hateful Stepmother, Sir Michael Hordern contributes further humor as the anxious fuddy-duddy King, and the rest of the supporting cast (including Dame Edith Evans as the Prince's senile old grandmother the Dowager Queen, Kenneth More as the Lord Chamberlain, and an adorable little dog who helps the Fairy Godmother to help Cinderella) are excellent all around.

While not the definitive screen Cinderella, the Sherman Brothers unique and colorful spin on the story is still worth seeing, both for fairy tale lovers and for fans of classic, sumptuous movie musicals.

When I first started writing fanfic, back in the mid 1990s (yes! the late twentieth century!) one of the discouraging things about it was that people treated fanfic as if it was disposable. It seemed like what most readers wanted was a constant stream of new content, whereas I tend to produce one big work every 6-12 months. It made me sad that people seemed to think there was no point to re-reading or saving old fic. There is no sell-by date on fiction! It does not get out of order! It can still work even years or decades later!