LNYE VID: Isobel, for terajk

[whitelotusmods]

Title: isobel
By: kaydeefalls
Recipient: terajk
Music: "Isobel", Björk
Rating: PG
Characters: Azula, Toph
Content Notes: none
Summary: to raise wonderful hell, like me, like me.
Notes: terajk requested "Azula and Toph together in any capacity." Hell yeah!

password: isobel

Isobel from white lotus on Vimeo.

Comments

[chagrined]

Oooooh that was SO COOL. Wonderful job highlighting so many facets of those characters I'd never thought about in connection with each other before! This makes me want to read fic of them too, hee.

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you so much! Azula and Toph have quite a lot in common, actually -- I was surprised by just how MANY parallels I found while making this. :)

Contains: CAPSLOCK!!!!!!! and other improper grammar

[terajk]

OMG I LOVE IT.

I loooove the transition from Azula bending lightning to Toph metalbending. Not only do I love the colors, but also that you chose the first time the audience sees anybody do either one. And how Toph-in-the-dark dissolves to Azula's doll that looks like Toph and then back to Toph again. And EVERYTHING EVER from 02:02 to 02:22. And "In a tower of steel/Nature forges a deal," and the wanted posters and....and...the wee montage of annoyed/pouty/vulnerable faces from 03:44 to 03:46! And also OH WOW WITH THEIR PARENTS at 00:4:48-52! (I never noticed, but they make the same face!)

And at the end, when Katara and Aang reach out to Toph and Azula is all alone on the cliff. OMG.

Oh, mysterious vidder, you managed to fit everything I love/wonder about Azula and Toph together here! How did you do that? In conclusion, aslkffhfihgfiuhgtjhfkljfCAPSLOCK!!!!!!!

♥ ♥ ♥

Re: Contains: CAPSLOCK!!!!!!! and other improper grammar

[kaydeefalls]

I am so glad you enjoyed this! Thank you for the marvelous prompt. There are so many parallels between Azula and Toph -- but as Toph gradually learned to connect to other people, Azula pushed everyone else away.

[lizbee]

I AGREE WITH terajk! This is amazing! All the parallels you've spotted, and the doll, and the wonderful, wonderful editing! And the way their parents try to destroy them, and Azula's ultimate isolation compared with Toph's found family.

AMAZING. I was wondering just the other day if it was possible to make a Toph/Azula vid, since they hardly interact in canon, but NOW I KNOW!

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you so much! And they interact far more in canon than I expected -- I always think of Azula as fighting only Zuko and Aang, but she and Toph face off quite a few times over the course of the series.

[loligo]

Awesome! I love the transition from Azula with the Earth Kingdom doll to Toph, and I love the part where they each switch to the other nation's clothes, and so many other clever parallels!

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you so much! I kind of giggled maniacally a lot when I realized how much bb!Azula's doll looked like Toph, no lie.

[unjapanologist]

This is awesome! I think I require an Azula vs. Melon Lord episode now, though.

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you! Azula vs. Melon Lord would be the MOST EPIC OF BATTLES, this is the truest of facts.

[sqbr]

This is amazing. I love all the parallels, though there's even more I didn't notice until reading the comments then watching it again.

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you! I was surprised by just how many parallels I found while clipping this, they really have very similar origin stories. It's the paths they choose later that change them.

[sophia_gratia]

This is fantastic. I love how the choice of 'Isobel' lets you do a kind of abstract character-study, nicely structured by the movements of the song, without getting too overdetermined about direct parallels with the music or lyrics. It had never occurred to me to think of Azula and Toph as similar before, but this wonderfully draws out the comparisons, from their shared tomboyishness to that uncanny (and very cleverly executed) parallel-smirk moment. I especially like that you've shown us a sympathetic, powerful Azula, as well as the difficult side of Toph. Thanks for this awesome vid!

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you so much! I was wavering between a couple of different Bjork songs -- her music is just so eerie and a bit strange, which suits Azula in particular quite well -- but this one just felt RIGHT. So I'm glad the song choice worked for you! And, yeah, there are a surprising number of parallels between Azula and Toph, it was a lot of fun to explore.

[eruthros]

This is lovely! So beautifully cut, and I love all the parallels and differences you've illustrated.

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you! I'm so glad it worked for you.

[ladysorka]

Okay, this is just plain awesome. I love the parallels you've drawn. Like others have mentioned, I especially loved the doll. This is fantastic.

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you so much! I cackled a lot when I realized how closely the doll resembled Toph, no lie.

[januar]

This is wonderful! I especially love the parallels between the two of them.

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you so much!

[sophinisba]

This is really great!

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you!

[livrelibre]

That is wonderful!

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you!

[kiki_eng]

The motion in this vid is so engaging and the parallels between the characters are evident without having seen the source material. This is great. :)

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you! I'm so glad it worked for you.

sending love

[littlecatk]

thanks for making and sharing this video.
its such a beautiful thing, and a real conversation starter (like ith myself - is there a word for that?) i have not spend much throughs on Toph/Azula and the conection/parallels they have before, so thanks for making me get into that!
i feel that i cant say something that hasnt been said before but: i love the part with the doll, and the way you use the fire nation/earth nation clothes, the bit with their family near the end, "lives a creature called lust/it surprises and scares" with azulas face as she watch the fire lord, because she is so hungry for power. and the way the whole video is full of this relationship to power. attack as the best defense.
i also really really love that the last shot with toph is her holding the hands of her friends while azulas is her alone, i kind of wish there would have been a bit more built up in that direction,
but anyway, this is a really really cool and unique fanvideo that i love to revisit again and again.

Re: sending love

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Drawing out the character parallels between Toph and Azula was a fascinating experiment for me, so I'm glad it worked for you.

[mengu]

I really liked this.

[kaydeefalls]

Thank you!