Vaster Empires

positive:

we got Alfie!! I was so scared that he'd be cut for time, but we got every Alfie scene and his portrayal was so good (although he stole my glasses. give those back)

this set of actors is amazing. so many times in my notes I was like, they are giving so-and-so two (2) minutes of screentime and yet they are Carrying this film. especially Elle (the only times I fully cried were during her monologue about trans rights backsliding and the final credits), Imogen, Tori, the teachers, and Biscuit (see below)

Joe killed it. he is such a good actor how on earth did they find him. miraculous

speaking of trans rights, I'm so beyond thrilled the HS team decided to say, loudly and boldly, that trans rights are human rights! especially in a moment when the zeitgeist in the UK is not there, this was so important (but also see below)

I thought the sex scenes were very well done, better than I expected. though the pier handjob smash cut to opening title really stunned me, I think I like it as a choice & the other intimacy choices made

Red Sox shirt = New Englander Nick Nelson confirmed

negative:

the pacing in general was weird & felt very rushed. I noticed this most in the breakup sequences - I didn't register they were doing a Journey-style rewind, and thought for a minute that Charlie's whole sequence was Nick's hallucination (wild!!!) until his own sequence started. but overall there were so many moments that were either rushed or cut for time that I wish had been given time to breathe

the above really affected Nick's arc. I'm not mad that they went with the breakup option, but Nick's narrative growth was sidelined/brute-forced rather than done in the subtle & meaningful way it is in the webcomic. I get the sense that at least some (unnamed to protect the guilty) people in the making of this movie do not understand Nick as a character in my unhumble opinion

in particular, Biscuit is crucial as a foil for Nick, and basically gets thrown away. Justice For Biscuit!!!

and the monologue Charlie gives about Nick in the pillowfort ("You're Nick. You feel things so deeply..." etc) was cut entirely. that scene is Nick's peripeteia!! of the whole series!! what the hecque

I won't be mentioning fake Sarah, this is a JKR-apologia-free blog 😊

neutral:

the fact the fans have had so many wild and varied opinions on this film (and yet everyone I've seen has agreed or disagreed very kindly and supportively!) I think is very positive. we are invested in this fandom in a way that I rarely see, and Heartstopper is a great piece of media

I liked the soundtrack mostly, a couple bangers added to my playlist, but not as strong as s1e3 or s2 in general (though those are hard to match)

David's new haircut makes him look so much better, though his character did not get the breathing space it needed either (see above). not sure how I feel about the fact this franchise now has a running "improve your haircut, improve your life" narrative tho

I've written 9k words of fanfiction in the ~30 hours since watching the film. this is in the neutral column bc it feels great but also oh good golly great heavens writing is a surreal experience

in the oeuvre of HS, I am officially a "webcomic-first" girlie. the webcomic is canon, the show and movie are prisms upon it. and I'm not planning to read the novellas