So thankfully, we didn't really need a new modem. Something was wrong outside. A technician came out and fixed it! Things have been fine since then.
I rented Frozen 2 on Amazon, as per Crystal's suggestion, and watched it three times during the rental period. My feelings are ... mixed. I still don't like the ending. I don't think it had to be that way. But ... aside from the ending, I found it a beautiful film and I loved the songs. It was a much higher quality film than the Wreck-It Ralph sequel, as I expected and hoped.
The reasons why I have problems with the ending are as follows.
1, Elsa's powers separated her and Anna for most of their lives. They had only had three years together finally bonding again before the Frozen 2 ending separated them again. At least they're going to visit, but it's not the same.
2, It's Anna's mother and culture too, and she should also get to explore and learn about the past. Of course, somebody has to watch Arendelle, but I think it would have been much more satisfying if Elsa and Anna stayed a bit to learn about their mother and mother's family and Elsa learned more about her powers and then they both went back to Arendelle. Maybe Anna could still be queen so Elsa could be "free," but Elsa would mostly live in Arendelle and travel to the forest when she felt like it or if there was trouble. The four spirits are the guardians of the forest, so it doesn't seem like Elsa has to be there. Elsa does seem to have an adventurous side, understandable when she was cooped up so long, afraid of her powers. But that shouldn't have to equate living apart from Anna.
3, One reviewer on YouTube commented that she thought Elsa had to live in the forest so she could unleash her full powers without hurting anyone. That would just be sad if that's the reason. And it goes back to what I said about her learning to control them even better while there, but not having to stay there. Elsa does love the forest and seems more at home there than in the city, but then that's because the writers wanted it that way. Maybe some of the fans would have different images of Elsa or feel like she would be happy in the city getting to be with Anna and not be afraid of harming her. Or maybe everyone decides to move Arendelle closer to the forest so everyone can be more connected to each other. That would have been satisfying too. But basically, Elsa learning the full scope of her powers should really make her feel free, and how would it make her feel free if she has to live apart from the city for fear of harming them with said powers? That is not a happy ending. Of course, it's just that reviewer's opinion that that's why Elsa decides to live in the forest. I don't think that was what Disney intended.
Really, though, the original Frozen had the perfect ending already: Elsa learning how to start controlling her powers and the kingdom realizing she isn't a monster and them all being accepting and happy together.
All that said, the Show Yourself sequence is just incredible and my favorite part of the sequel. And I thought Olaf's sequel song was better and funnier than In Summer. I liked that they toned down Olaf falling apart. Waaay too overdone in the first film. I think I loved all the songs in Frozen 2, whereas in the original I was enthusiastic about maybe three or four. Frozen 2 was also less crude. So ... a mixed bag. But definitely worth seeing. I'll probably want to own it someday. I definitely want the soundtrack.
I've thought a lot lately about how much I can relate to Elsa on some things. I love both girls, but I definitely find Elsa the most relatable, struggling with herself and what she is and worrying about concealing her true self. (And also relating to having a bit of an adventurous side, although at the same time I wouldn't be comfortable doing anything risky, heh.) I know a lot of lesbians gravitate to her and wish that Disney would make her a lesbian, but I wish Disney would make her asexual. :) Oh, one of my favorite lines in Frozen 2 is in the childhood flashback. Anna is obsessed with romance and Elsa's reaction is, "Anna, kissing won't save the forest!" ROTFLOL. I love it. I would love to have a Show Yourself moment and finally feel free to reveal my complete self to everyone.
Gansley did indeed come on the day I was thinking he would! It's pretty awesome to have all five members of the Big 5 in G. I. Joe form now. I wish I could think of stories to act out with them, heh. Mostly I play with them by picking them up and moving them around. There are lots of cute hugs with Lector and Nesbitt.
(Also on that day, which was Dad's birthday, my brother wanted to get him a birthday dinner. He ordered KFC. Yuuum! I'm having a lot of trouble with tomato intolerance, which is really frustrating me lately. Of course, the most upsetting thing is when it affects my pizza intake. I'm considering having fried chicken for my birthday this year.)
The price of the Wreck-It Ralph Elsa and Anna dolls finally came down on Amazon, so I bought them with a gift card. They came on Monday. They're slightly disproportionate, sadly, and hollow plastic instead of solid, but they're very cute and I'm happy to get them at last. It's fun seeing them in modern clothes. LOL, Anna's shirt has a sandwich.
And my three-foot Elsa arrived on Friday! It was an amazing day and really felt like Christmas, heee. I woke up just before the delivery and was able to immediately get her inside. I needed more sleep, so I got her out of the mailing box and brought her into my room. I thought I'd be too excited to sleep, but I finally dozed off, and I had an amazing dream, one of the haunted house dreams I have such fun with. And it plunnied me for a fic at last! I hope I'll be able to develop a whole plot from it. I'm thinking that Noa buys a house because he wants a big one for him and his mother to live in. But weird things start happening and they end up calling the Big Five and Yugi and company for help. Then they have to try to solve the mystery of what happened in the house and why the ghosts are angry. I suppose that unlike Evangeline's house, which will always have some mysteries, I'll need to try to solve this one. My house dreams never do solve the mysteries, though. Lol. There's lots of wandering through all the rooms, and there's bedrooms with all of the past tenants' stuff and the feeling of ghosts lingering and being angry. In the dreams I always want to take some of the neat stuff and use it myself, but I never feel free to because of the eerie feeling. This dream had a huge bathroom with spa and a room with a stage, and rooms filled with stored furniture that felt haunted. And all of this stuff was on the basement level. Usually it's higher levels.
I probably won't try buying much of anything for a while, except a picture here and there by ElfBean. I'm pretty happy right now and want to play with all the lovely things, hee. I feel like I've been having my birthday shopping spree since April.
I finally finished my interview fic and got it all posted. I hope it looks alright. Johnson's was the hardest for me. He's my least favorite member and it's the most difficult to get into his mind.
I also kept being pestered by my original Purple Avenger plunnie, where Lector becomes a vigilante because he feels betrayed and abandoned by his friends. I finally had to pen it, and I wrote it as taking place in another verse. But it's a misunderstanding created by Dartz, who was hoping someone would give into their inner darkness. Everything gets resolved and there is squee.
Frozen 2 also provided plunnies. I love the line in Kristoff's song "You're my True North, because without you I am lost in the woods." I had to adapt the line for a squee scene with Lector and Nesbitt. It may or may not be part of my next mystery fic. It looks fine as a stand-alone, but I know I get a bigger audience for the ensemble fics. I'm not sure it fits the tone of this upcoming house fic, though. So I'm still thinking about placement for that.
Then Anna's heartbreaking song The Next Right Thing, where she thinks Elsa is dead, provided inspiration and I had to draw a heartbreaking picture:
http://meromeroyui.deviantart.com I'm planning to color it, but haven't yet.
I also want to draw Lector swinging on his grappling hook as the Purple Avenger. I love that concept of Lector as a vigilante way too much.