#zevlogofamiserable

It stands out to me not only the fact that it’s actually based in Paris and that it adapts current socially and politically relevant elements from France to its story, but also that the story interpretation seems to derive from a specific reading of the Brick (sometimes a critical one) rather than an adaptation that considers fanon accepted general ideas as a basis for its setting, which tends to be something permeating a lot of amis-centered webseries, and it isn’t a bad thing at all, just a product of the Les Mis experience in the post internet sphere situation that we’ve all become used to. 

I mean, I could write a dissertation on how the Les Mis fandom compares to other fandoms in how many layers of interpretation there are, depending on not only the source material of choice but the way in which someone accessed it, fandom-wise if you will, and the moment they did. To make it short, I feel like most webseries come from a different fandom place that is very noticeable in their interpretation choices (Bakhtin’s chronotope and all that). I mean, you can tell when an adaptation is centered on the musical, on the brick with fanon elements, on the movie musical with fanon elements, on a specific interpretation of the brick but uses fanon for elements that won’t have space to be depicted in the story, etc times a million. And with this one, the more I watched the more I felt there were directions I hadn’t expected, including characters being replaced for others and specific political choices for how some characters align in modern day Paris. 

Reading the Meta on the blog, I started having a better idea of some of the choices, which I abstain from having opinions on because I’ve said time and time again that I’m as far from a Hugo/Les Mis expert as you can get, especially in this fandom which has intimidated me for years (even if I keep making posts like this one and probably making a fool out of myself for my ignorance), and also because I’m a Latin American so I have reservations on how and why to allow myself to get involved in European political discourse. But I find it exceedingly interesting, especially taking into account how much specific political standpoints change in different cultures and countries, even if labeled similarly, and how much the theory on specific philosophies can differ in application, depending on the place where you’re studying them and the field you apply them in. I’m learning a lot comparing my personal and cultural reality to this, and I’ve been missing the social and political stances being defined specifically in les mis adaptations, if that makes sense. I mean, every adaptation uses that the way they feel it’s best for their ideas, but it’s been a while since I’ve seen one referencing specific elements relating to current real life events in this way. 

I’ve seen people drawing parallels between the “revolution” in Les Misérables and the situation in Chili (many Latinx Americans in my modest following and in the Les Mis fandom in general, from what I see; that’s very interesting. Also I saw a great art on @domedomini​ Instagram about it) or to Hong Kong protests (some protestors sang Do You Hear the People Sing) and before, the Tiananmen Square events in China. (Here are nice art works and posts about it). I bet there are many more parallels drawn with other countries (tell me about them!!) and I think it says a lot about what resonates today from the novel. And what is tragically ironic is that… … what happens in Les Misérables isn’t so well remembered… nor is it so important in French history. I mean… it was more or less a FAIL. And as Grantaire explained in their vlog “Vive les Révolutions”, we have a big history of FAIL in terms of revolutions but like, this one in particular… my friend who studied insurrectional literature of the XIXthe century calls it a “fart”. (And it’s in between two other revolts which had more results… it’s an ironic or romantic choice from Hugo, people probably wrote very well about it. I dunno).

Well, when it comes to France, we have this imagerie of LA REVOLUTION (1789) which happens before Les Mis, well… yes it’s recent and the imagery is everywhere, yes, but still. Most of the characters weren’t born at that time, right? And then, if you’re a leftist, you’re obviously super into LA COMMUNE DE PARIS (1871) which was hella bloody and happened way later and Victor Hugo actually hated it (bleh), while it’s a very interesting moment in history. That’s why the characters of ZeVlog mention it more (well, Grantaire especially, but they also mostly sing songs of La Commune… just because… There are more! And they’re prettier to be honest. Try singing Dansons la Carmagnole (a 1789 song)... it kinda sucks).

The latest song of a Misérable by Grantaire and Prouvaire

There’s also Mai 1968 which is very important for students although it wasn’t only a student movement but a massive social movement in France. All of this happens way later. And is way more widely remembered than the bloody “fart” that happens in The Brick.

Literature is so random.

I also have to tell you that we know so little about the Brick’s revolution in France that when the musical movie came out (which is actually widely despised because French people have no taste and don’t like musicals that much ahah), everybody thought these bloody Americans were appropriating and shitting on our 1789 revolution.

AHAHAH. Ah.

So our imagery of it… well… Obviously there are reasons why it’s all mixed up… like Les Mis fashion with blue red white “cocardes” and stuff is very 1789, but still… we don’t know much about it, that’s all. It’s just not something we study a lot and I find very ironic it’s this moment that inspired… well the most iconic revolution in French literature. Written by a dude who later hated La Commune. ...  Blergh.

Victor Hugo being a Commune hater

When I rediscovered Les Mis myself, it was after having heavily studied Russian literature, and thus, the very heavy nihilist, anarchist discourses that run through it. Russian literature as we study it is mostly composed of XIXth century/XXth century books and a large part of it is all about revolutions and terrorism and resistance and all that. And, to be honest, I recognized that spirit when I reread the ABC parts in Les Mis. It’d be apolitical to say it’s “universal”, and situations widely change the meaning of a revolution, but this “revolutionary idealist youth” spirit is running through all these books and echoes in real life. I don’t think Hugo is a good inspiration for a revolution as a man. There’s really propaganda in France about his work and point of view, making him seem like a highly leftist, revolutionary man for his time while he wasn’t that hardcore/badass/leftist BUT…

I feel like what the fandom gets from his work, queering it or racebending his characters with postcolonial discourses in mind, is way more important now than what he wrote.

Hello, let's have a last meta before I wave goodbye (there might be bonus materials, but I'm gonna take a break because I'm HELLA tired lol).

About Remus: As I said here, Ficus, who portrays her, is the one who questioned the « racebending » of Hugo's characters and it's because of her remark that I decided to include other novels’ characters in ZeVlog. Remus comes from Stella, a novel from 1848 written by Emeric Bergeaud. Ficus recommended it to me and told me that she could only portray someone lightskin or mixed and so the character of Remus fits the requirement. Stella is a retelling of the Haitian revolution in the form of a myth. What made Ficus uncomfortable is the use of a white woman, Stella, as a symbol of freedom, which was a strategy for Emeric Bergeaud to gain legitimacy and... reassure our white asses, I guess (there are nice white people we can identify with yeaah.... erh). But well... awkward ? I guess. Not for me to comment. Besides that, the book is a very interesting reading and, as Remus said in the 23rd vlog, you have everything typical of Haitian literature : praising of the landscape which appears as a paradise, revolution, and classical references (Remus and Romulus).

I considered another book written later by a « Francophone » writer, La Grève des bàttu by Aminata Sow Fall, which is an amazing read with complex layers about class struggles, but maybe it was less relevant because it was about conflicts whose seed came from colonizers and capitalism, but between black people and also it was written way later while Emeric Bergeaud was alive at the same time as Hugo. In any case, there are many badass women in this book and it's short and nice! Go read it.

Due to scheduling (the video with Ficus is the last I shot), this episode wasn't scripted and thus... is the longest one and the penultimate. Symbolically, I think it works. It actually anticipates or echoes some stakes of the last video.

In any case, I hope you enjoyed this... mess ahah. I know my production value wasn't high and we had some technical shit (the sound on episodes 17 and 22 and light on episode 23) which drove me to despair, but it's coherent. I think my ambition to have a « realistic feel », a real « DIY » punk feel at all cost made it a bit hard to watch at first and also it made it hard to advertise the series properly... like Grantaire wouldn’t make a trailer for their series on their channel while everything is not supposed to be shot already, etc. But like, I feel like I'm coherent at least. Lol. This looks leftist. Definitely not a neoliberal series with a pseudo-progressive agenda.

The only choice I regret maybe is to have made the series in English although it allowed me to challenge myself by writing like 50 pages of script and more than a hundred pages of fic in English, which I hadn't done yet because it alienated me from part of my original audience and people who could directly relate to the themes of the videos.

But also, thanks to English, I was able to reach some international viewers. You're few (I think I'm really not in phase with the overall fandom of les Mis which is all about emotions and not so much into politics which isn't bad in itself! And I didn't manage to reach a « leftube » audience which was my original intention) but very supportive. Thanks especially to @scarabsi for his steady support and art and to @starberry-cupcake​ for the long review. >< It meant the world to me! I'm comments/feedback starving so don't hesitate bros!

Thanks to Jamesina for the subtitles on the vids. I bet you made our French accents more understandable ! I still have to validate the French translations of many episodes. I lacked time. But it will be done. If you wanna translate the episodes in other languages, feel free to do it!

Thanks to @creepikat​​ for the memes and feedbacks on the videos as I made them !

Thanks to @goodguyjean​ for rereading the chapters of the fic and the scripts, checking my English mistakes! And for her feedback and encouragements.

Thanks to all the people who participated with the shooting: Laure and Ax, with acting and writing and even music: Peter Cock (Enjolras), Dee (Marius), George le Renart (Hamid Saraj), Aaliyah Xpress (Bê), Madame de Grognasse (Lesgle), Ficus (Remus), Loubna (Musichetta), Calvin (Gavroche), Monplaisir (Prouvaire), Mx. Cordélia (Courfeyrac), Silane (Combeferre) and Radek (Eponine). Special thanks to both our cat guests, Pamela and Calypso.

The real stars of this show

I have ideas for bonuses for this series; first, bloopers, which I couldn't include because of the supposed realistic/spontaneous nature of the vlogs (except for the last episode, I managed to make them fit), then maybe a more historical video with Ficus about the history behind Les Misérables, and then I also want to review the other Les Amis webseries I discovered when starting ZeVlog (so MANY and so diverse! It's really surprising. I'm thinking of writing an article about it, also, since I'm a PHD student).

....

And this is the last vlog.

You’ll have one more video with a song, a meta and two chapters of the fic but... this is the last vlog. I hope you’ll enjoy it and that you enjoyed the series :) Feedbacks are welcome!! And... voilà. Thanks for your support. Have a great day.

Hey, this meta is not gonna be very intense historical, literary, or what; it's just gonna be about clothes! The only indication I gave most of the participants to ZeVlog was : put on something that fits the situation in which you're comfortable. I think I wanted to convey this idea that the videos were shot spontaneously (which, to be honest, I struggled to believe about higher quality projects such as TLBD or Carmilla because they're all just so weirdly put together all the time lol... I dunno, is it American ? I like natural ><) and I wanted the bros to be at ease (so some of them wear makeup, some don't). Little stories about the costumes : during the shooting of the seventeenth vlog, George/Hamid Saraj received several compliments by randos in the street because of the Yuyu Hakusho shirt they're wearing. Several people noticed and commented on Madame de Grognasse/Lesgle's amazing dress in the fourteenth vlog. There's also Aaliyah Xpress’ drag appearance, and someone also complimented Marius' eyeliner, and I have to say Dee is an amazing makeup artist even with things as « apparently basic » as liner.

Clothes wort talking about!

But overall, I have nothing to do with their display of stylishness and fabness. My bros are just fashion icons don't @me !

Buut I made some decisions when it comes to the three characters that are more heavily involved in the fictional side of the story, that is to say Grantaire, Enjolras and Marius.

First, Marius, I told Dee : bourgeoise who doesn't have money anymore so we settled for a pseudo preppy hipster thriftshop look with pieces that mostly cost like 1 or 2 euros, but worn in a pretty conventional way overall (which is not Dee's usual style, she likes to customize her clothes and is a cosplayer and drag queen/king, so conventional is not her everyday life).

A little story about Marius : Dee cut her hair and dyed them pastel pink between the beginning and the end of the shooting, and like I had already shot some late vlogs (with so many people involved, we didn't shoot in order), so Dee had to hide her hair in some other videos. Hence, her adorable little hat in the ninth and sixteenth vlogs.

Then, for Enjolras, the only thing I told Peter was : RED ahah. I think I got the character's signature color right. In the thirteenth video even, it looks like Enjolras is only wearing black but there's a bit of red on their shirt. Peter is an incredibly stylish person IRL, so we got a very stylish Enjolras but... I mean... it all goes back to the musical. What the fuck is that amazing looking red waistcoat that makes him a living target? Visual codes! Well, I guess as long as style doesn't get in the way of the revolution.

We also had a hair « accident » with Peter who momentarily had longer hair for the Red and Black video. We also used a hat to hide it!

“Hair accidents” covered by hats

As for Grantaire, I decided three things for them : first, to use my military coat. It's a piece of my « garde robe » that I’ve worn since High School and I got several of them so I could keep wearing it as long as possible. It's an airplane pilot coat, you can find it for very cheap. And it's the first male piece of clothing I owned, so the roots of my transness are there lol. I just thought the military style gave Grantaire a little punk aspect and the shape of it is pretty intemporal. I gave Grantaire my old, used coat with stains and stuff. I currently wear another one that is less used.

We started shooting in June though... that thing was HoT!

Second: messy is the word. They're never put together and often have their shirt half out of their pants, too big clothes, and overall maybe they don't look dirty, but they look messy. The short-shorts also made some of their outfits look less put together and also it allowed me to show my hairy legs! Hairy legs for the win!

The essence of Grantaire’s style

Third: I know, from the musical, people got that Grantaire's color was green. Well, with the coat I settled for more of a red/blue opposition with Enjolras, which echoes many famous Franco-Belgian comic duos (Spirou and Fantasio, Alix and Enak, etc.) But I got a detail from the musical and it's the stripes because musical Grantaire wears a kinda striped waistcoat. In ZeVlog, Grantaire often wears stripes. I think to me it was like an echo to prison, as like Grantaire is in several layers of mental prisons and that shows on their clothes.

(Fun fact: most of ZesongsofaMisérable were shot the same day, so I just brought all my striped clothes ahah).

Another detail, after the tenth vlog; did you notice that Grantaire started wearing Enjolras' color ? In the eleventh vlog, they wake up in a red shirt (a Divine Comedy (it's one of my fav bands) shirt which echoes Napoleon's symbol of a bee so it was both musical, as the eleventh vlog is about music, and French :P) and after that Grantaire often wears red. They're trying to communicate with their crush through clothing? Or maybe they're just influenced by Enjolras without being aware of it.  Also, in the eighth vlog and in ZeFic, I adapted the domino scene from the chapter Enjolras and his lieutenants and replaced the Robespierre red waistcoat Grantaire wears to impress Enjolras with a communist red scarf... Well... the red scarf has still a part to play....

Have some shamelesse Enjoltaire you all. This week the video is half song, half vlog, lotta improvised. Thanks to @loyaltyfreakmusic for their work here and on all the other covers. It was amazing to work with you bruh!