More Writing and Reading Habit Changes, and Over the Moon

[davetheanalyzer]

So, I changed some of my writing and reading patterns again. I discovered on 2 days where I read my library book in between writing that I write more or it’s at least not as much of a slog. This also left me more wiggle before bed, so I decided to switch this to everyday. I was losing interest in the other book I read while writing anyway. For fanfic writing, I’ve finished the plot outline rewrite and will wait 6 weeks before touching it again. In the meantime, I’m doing a bit of Digimon Tamers freewriting, doing scenes that have lingered in my head for a few years now. There isn’t exactly a plot – I just follow where my whims take me. I do think of grafting the first few scenes I wrote on an old outline. I don’t know if anything I’ll write here will be posted but I’m enjoying it and I think that’s good with my focus on completing my mon-inspired original story. With around 20 fanfic writing days left to make up, I decided to shift to once a week so when I run out, it won’t be as jarring to just writing fanfic on weekends. I did miss an original fiction writing day, which I could use when I briefly switch to fanfic writing on weekdays to review and post the final chapters of We Will Hold On Forever. That’ll start on 9/10. I found making up for a missed writing day with the same story I just looked over earlier that day overwhelming. 

I decided to watch Over the Moon on Netflix. I heard it was made by the same studio as Abominable and I watched Xiran Jay Zhao’s video about its cultural references but it’s been long enough that I could go into it fresh. It was alright. It’s about a girl called Fei Fei having to deal with her father falling in love with another woman, when she still greatly misses her late mother. The film does well to show the mother long enough that we’d also feel mixed when her father sees Ms. Zhong. She feels her father’s abandoning his first wife and thinks she can make him remain loyal by getting proof that Chang’e actually exists, which her late mother believed in. She also has a rabbit called Bungee and having a pet rabbit myself, I was surprised they allowed it to crawl on food preparation areas since rabbits leave droppings everywhere. Fei Fei seems smart enough to build a rocket. But it fails and I suspect there were more problems than her prospective younger brother Chin and his frog sneaking aboard, though they probably didn’t help. They’re saved from a deadly fall by flying glowing lions who take them to the moon.

I did love the scenes with Lunaria, so bright and colorful with raised roadways, platforms and large rooms. This extends to the beings who live there, including chickens, living moon cakes, and other creatures. They meet Chang’e who would let them take a photo in exchange for getting the “gift,” which she refuses to elaborate on (apparently makes more sense in the Chinese-language version where she seeks the “memento”). Chang’e’s obsessed with this so she could reunite with her love Houyi and so’s not considerate of her people or guests’ feelings. The themes about grief and acknowledging the people around you are weaved throughout the story. Chin tries to help on behalf of his prospective sister. Bungee helps Jade, Chang’e’s, rabbit with the potion/medicine to bring back Houyi. Gobi’s a bit of a typical annoying cartoon sidekick but he serves the role of being Fei Fei’s soundboard regarding her feelings of loss and having new people come into her family. It turns out the gift/memento was inside one of Ms. Zhong’s moon cakes the whole time and they give it to her. Chang’e manages to get Houyi back but only for long enough for them to embrace before Houyi fades away saying she should move on. Understandably, she breaks down and shuts down the city with her despair.

I did like Fei Fei tries to reach out to her but when thoughts of her mother get her down, Chang’e gets out of herself to try and reach out to Fei Fei to tell her to let go and move on. It’s interesting she can see that’s necessary for someone else before Fei Fei returns the message, since Chang’e had Jade and her fellow Lunarians giving her support. The film ends with the siblings returning to Earth no longer needing the photo, Bungee the rabbit staying with Jade, and their parents marrying. I did like the closest antagonists were some literal biker chick Lunarians. For many Chinese cultural elements that might be unfamiliar from a western perspective, you can watch Xiran Jay Zhao’s video here. This is made by the same studio that had an imperialist map of the South China Sea in Abominable and the film has English speaking Korean actors voicing some of the Chinese characters, which might understandably rankle some since they didn’t get English-speaking Chinese actors for the roles. With that in mind, see it if it sounds of interest to you.

That’s all for now. Free Palestine, and release all hostages and political prisoners. Until the end of September, see you!