(no subject)

[skygiants]

Twice recently rymenhild has brought joy into my life. The first time was when I found out that there was a Valdemar ficathon scheduled and emailed her about it. She explained to me that the Valdemar fandom had experienced a small explosion, and the ficathon was in fact the celebration of a victory won by an anonymous fail_fandomanon person, known only as Vanyel's Campaign Manager, who after much successful lobbying and quoting of Mercedes Lackey's loving depictions of Vanyel's tragedy at last saw Vanyel Ashkevron crowned the Woobiest Character Ever.

This is so appropriate that I don't really have words to express it. The nineties have returned -- the once and future nineties -- and Vanyel reigns enthroned, as always was destined, from the beginning to the end of time, below a banner that says "Saddest of all the medium-length* tales ever told."

*you know, the ones appropriate for a three-volume novel in mass-market paperback form

The second time was today when she told me that Frank Wildhorn -- my favorite-least-favorite composer of musical theater, author of such enduring works as The Scarlet Pimpernel: The Musical, Jekyll and Hyde: The Musical, and Death Note: The Musical -- just got married to takarazuka actress Yoka Wao, known for playing such roles as the Phantom in Phantom of the Opera, Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights, and Dracula in Wildhorn's own Dracula: The Musical. That last one isn't even a takarazuka show! They just cast her as Dracula anyway, I guess because she's just that good at incarnating seductive evil in a tuxedo.

When Andrew Lloyd Webber cast his girlfriend as Christine, that was creepy. This? This is AMAZING. Frank Wildhorn is a man who is living his dream, and I have never liked him better.

Comments

[brownbetty]

I didn't even realize there *was* a Death Note musical, so my life is enriched.

[jothra]

I was so flabbergasted when she told me about it. I had to go and listen to some of it.

L and Light are pretty good, Misa doesn't sound anything like I imagined she might.

[skygiants]

I never even READ Death Note and it is still a deep sorrow of mine how unlikely it is to come to Broadway anytime in the near future.

[evewithanapple]

And it stars JEREMY JORDAN!

[sovay]

Frank Wildhorn -- my favorite-least-favorite composer of musical theater, author of such enduring works as The Scarlet Pimpernel: The Musical, Jekyll and Hyde: The Musical, and Death Note: The Musical -- just got married to takarazuka actress Yoka Wao, known for playing such roles as the Phantom in Phantom of the Opera, Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights, and Dracula in Wildhorn's own Dracula: The Musical.

I read about that last night! I wish them all happiness and will be tremendously entertained to see what they do next.

(I didn't know about Death Note: The Musical. I am . . . impressed. I'll go with impressed.)

[skygiants]

My dream is that he goes the full Tim Burton and casts her as the Count in a big-budget cinema release of Count of Monte Cristo: The Musical.

[st_aurafina]

So excited about 21_days!! Yay, Valdemar fic!

[skygiants]

I just remember that Yuletide a few years ago when someone requested a Tylendel/Vanyel high school AU and all of a sudden there were, like, SIX of them, fulfilling a niche that had always seem to exist. I don't even like high school AUs, but I hope it's exactly like that.

[bookblather]

...to be fair I literally can't think of a character more woobified than Vanyel.

[skygiants]

NOBODY COULD. My favorite comment in the whole FFA thing:

"I just want to let you know that Vanyel is currently up against the character I had previously written a lengthy campaign post for. That's a character who was canonically tortured to death, then resurrected and tortured to near-death, mutilation, and blindness. And then stabbed nearly to death by his idiot true love.

I just voted for Vanyel. Well-played."

[rymenhild]

*beams at you*

I made only one useful contribution to the ffa discussion of Vanyel Ashkevron, to suggest that Vanyel and fellow woobie finalist Elsa would have a great time living platonically and antisocially in an ice palace together. Of course, a later commenter capped this with Frozen!Vanyel.

[skygiants]

OF COURSE THEY DID.

Honestly, I'm kind of surprised Frank Wildhorn has not yet written Vanyel: The Musical.

[silveraspen]

I want you to know (both of you to know) that I just choked on my coffee and am laughing helplessly at the screen now.

[metaphortunate]

Oh my lord, that Woobiest Character competition is giving me life.

[skygiants]

Whoever wrote the Vanyel posts: well played, sir/ma'am. WELL PLAYED.

[thewickedlady]

I don't even understaaaaand! Tho, Wildhorn and Wao seem to be kind of adorable. Shine on, you crazy diamonds!!

I swear, between all the theatre shows and the talk of the new King Arthur movie, you are trying to kill me. With laughter. Or tears. Tears of laughter as I start having Swan Lake ORANGE flashbacks.

[skygiants]

THE NEW KING ARTHUR MOVIE. Oh god, I knew there was something that was laughorrifying me that I forgot to post about here! RAISED BY THREE PROSTITUTES.

[scintilla10]

Oh my god, FRANK WILDHORN. My youthful obsession with Linda Eder introduced me to the wonderful world of Frank Wildhorn musicals. In college, my friend and I used to drink wine and watch J&H -- the one with David Hasselhoff, of course. GOOD TIMES.

What amazing news, gosh!

[skygiants]

Of COURSE the one with David Hasselhoff! Only he can truly embody the beauty, the sorrow, the agony and the ecstasy that is JEKYLL AND HYDE: THE MUSICAL. I used to come home from school and watch it repeatedly on PBS (I don't know WHY it was always on PBS) and fall over laughing every time.

[lnhammer]

Death Note: The ... Musical? Whaaa?

[skygiants]

FEAST YOUR EARS.

[ranalore]

Vanyel Ashkevron crowned the Woobiest Character Ever.

This, right here, encapsulates so much of what I love about fandom. Because of course this happened. Of course it did.

This encapsulates another thing I love about fandom:

"Saddest of all the medium-length* tales ever told."

::cracks the hell up::

Less a thing I love about fandom than perhaps a cautionary fannish tale: despite not actually caring about the musical qua musical, and not really being able to get into the manga, I find myself weirdly defensive about the Death Note musical, simply because in Korea, L is being played by an artist of whom I'm a fan. At least the mediocre songs will be sung beautifully?

::icon is self-directed, and also an image of the artist in question::

[skygiants]

Hey, this is fair and valid. I really, genuinely, unironically love Wildhorn's Scarlet Pimpernel musical, despite the fact that it sounds EXACTLY like all of Wildhorn's other musicals. Nonetheless, it's my favorite and I will defend its quality to the death!

And, like. Let's not lie: if the Death Note musical was coming to the States I would be in one of those audience seats SO FAST.

[jinian]

I basically accept all of this amazing as my due, and go to read the Valdemar ficathon page during a boring stats lecture.

AND THE MOD'S ICONS KILL ME DEAD. Mornelithe Falconsbane with ANGRY KITTY ICONS.

*suffocates trying not to howl with laughter*

[skygiants]

Again: never has anything in the world been more appropriate. I am so grateful to whoever decided to fill this gap in a.) fandom b.) the universe.

(I would also accept Mornelithe Falconsbane with Mr. Cat from Princess Tutu icons.)