I have been given a gift, and I have abused it :)

look at that fucking gleeful "oh ho ho" shit face Ralsei makes if you turn off Flowery's voice clips

nightmares

Fat Horse No. 20

It’s the year of the horse and I’ve always been a horse girl at heart, so I’m finally taking advantage of the excuse to fill the world with fat little horses! These felted friends are about the size (and shape!) of an apple, and if you happen to have any apples to share I’m sure they’d help you out! You know I had to make a pigeon once I decided to do a pegasus. The chest features Angelina sparkle fiber for that flash of iridescence!

Blanc picks up the Jesus figurine - the last piece of the box they haven't dismantled to search. And he looks up at Jud, almost asking permission—

—which Jud gives immediately, because he sees where Blanc is going with that (it's hollow, there could be a clue inside).

and at first I was like. oh haha Blanc looks at the priest to get permission to smash the Jesus figurine. and then I was like. oh. Blanc looks at the priest to get permission to smash the Jesus figurine, and the priest doesn't even hesitate.

yeah, it's a cheap trinket, of course it doesn't really matter if they break it. but look at the context of the scene! Jud is getting swept away in the mystery, in Blanc's game of crime-solving, and forgetting his real priorities. As he puts it later:

Jud: IT IS A GAME! ... And by using me in it, you're setting me against my real and only purpose in life! Which is not to fight the wicked and bring them to justice, but to serve them and bring them to Christ. Otherwise I'm just as bad as Wicks, making it about me and not Jesus.

Because as we all know, the scene immediately after smashing the figurine is when Jud calls Louise. And he's impatient. He's rushing her. He's trying to get the answer, to solve the crime, and Blanc is there in the background urging him on. When Louise says, can I ask you something? his answer is if you can make it quick.

and then.

It shocks Jud out of his impatience and focus on the crime. Where before he was talking quickly and speaking over Louise, he now stops and takes his time, actually considering what to say and, more importantly, listening to her.

As she talks, Jud looks at Blanc, who is still like ?? but who, to his credit, doesn't try to rush the conversation when he sees the look on Jud's face. And then he looks at the Jesus figurine.

Which he allowed, and encouraged, Blanc to destroy. Just like he's allowing and even encouraging Blanc to destroy the members of his church, who he is supposed to serve. Making it about him and not Jesus.

road to Damascus moment.

this scene is masterful for so many reasons, but I love the use of the Jesus figurine to symbolize Jud's relationship to the church, and how Blanc interacts with that relationship. Because Blanc asks!! He doesn't just break the figurine, he waits for Jud to agree. None of this is on Blanc (aside from perhaps his characteristic flippancy about murder), he's just doing his job. As an atheist, he has no qualms about dismantling religious systems and bringing people to justice instead of extending grace, and he's not the bad guy for that! We have two whole movies before this where it's clear that Blanc's methods work and are the right thing in certain circumstances!

It's just that in this circumstance, they fundamentally conflict with Jud's core beliefs, and it's on Jud to hold himself to those standards and set that boundary with Blanc. Once he does, Blanc reassesses his methods and respects Jud's wishes.

even though it's well established that Jud not only has a past in boxing, but we've seen that he is physically very strong and can throw a damn good punch, he makes himself smaller. Which has multiple meanings to me, which i see as: trauma response, him knowing that he is a tall and sometimes physically intimidating person and compensating for that, and also just some personality

Wicks is almost ALWAYS shot in a low angle. (also known as a worm's eye view). This is an angle used to make the subject look larger than they really are (think, a person looking down at the ground). This is used in film to convey power or presence in a scene. This angle conveys authority, power, who's in control in the scene. Now, it can also be used in reverse, but this is not the case with how it's used to frame Wicks. And if he is not in a low angle (rare), he is shown to be in control in other ways, be through other framing devices, or the fact that he is yelling or physically moving towards someone. Even in the scene where Jud is UP ON A LADDER, Wicks is positioned in frame as bigger than him. Wicks is always bigger. (AND WICKS IS SMALLER THAN JUD. JUD IS 6'1".)

And by contrast, Jud is, for most of the film, while interacting with the flock, shot in an level angle. Even if the angle has a slight high or low tilt, he is almost always equal in height or positioning with the other characters in the scene. While yes, he has authority and power over them via his position in the church, he does not abuse that power over them like Wicks does. He is trying to stay on their level. He is equal to them, and sometimes, he's shot in a way that makes him SMALLER than them. Jud is not a short character, and his past would imply he should have power over other characters if he wanted to. But he is small. He does not take up space. (which is another great element to characterization but that's for another post).

Blanc to Helen: I’m sorry, I am still held liable by police and the courts, I can’t lie for you even if it’s the right thing to do