Hey, everybody! Antoni, here, with another Powerpuff Girls fanfiction recommendation. I will be taking a look at No Matter What They Say written by dark lil’angel2be, published on July 1, 2014, and was based on the fan-animated music video (ANIMATION) Blossoomer – My Immortal created and uploaded by StarRainerGirl on February 1 of that same year. It’s rated T. It’s in English. It’s Romance/Hurt/Comfort, and if it were not already obvious, the main pairing is Boomer/Blossom. Other characters involved are Brick and Butch. Based on the fan-animated music video and the fanfic, the characters are between 14 to 15.
Before I talk about this fanfic, I would love to spend a few moments to talk about Blossoomer – My Immortal, which as one can tell is a Boomer/Blossom fan-animated music video created, uploaded and published by StarRainerGirl, also known as xahCHUc on Deviantart, and used the ballad, My Immortal, sung by Evanescence’s very own Amy Lee. I caught this by complete chance and after watching it in its entirety I was thoroughly blown away. Not only did StarRainerGirl do an amazing job with the animation and designs for both the characters and the settings but she was also able to use the song to its advantage to convey the emotions that Boomer and Blossom have for each other. Every time I watch this video, I would easily well-up because My Immortal is one of my most favorite tearjerking songs of all time and I happen to be a fan of Evanescence, especially where Amy Lee’s unparalleled and flawless vocal skills are concerned. I’m sure some people will look at this melodramatic. As for me, I certainly had a feels trip with this one and I salute StarRainerGirl for everything she did to make this come to full fruition.
Going to the pairing of Boomer/Blossom or Blossoomer itself, I find it kind of plausible. Sure, I always love shipping Brick and Blossom, Butch and Buttercup, and Boomer and Bubbles on a romantic level, and out of all these couples, I would say that Boomubbles has the strongest chemistry, most stability, and most trust. However, when it comes to Boomer and Blossom, it is a cute and innocent pairing on a platonic best friends forever level, as I can see a great amount of mutual respect that these two have for each other, which stands in stark contrast to how Brick and Butch would usually treat their youngest brother. I assess this as Boomer being the misunderstood, misguided, simple, jovial, gentle and artistic soul who is well-meaning on the inside and Blossom being the diplomatic, well-versed, intrepid, upright, compassionate, and bookish intellectual who does not judge a book by its cover. She will be the person who can see beyond Boomer’s trying-hard-to-be-tough shell, see that he is hurting inside because of how much of a butt-monkey he is to his elder brothers, and show mercy and compassion towards him. Therefore, Blossom will eventually break through his walls and help him become a better person not only to her but also to her sisters, especially Bubbles. Moreover, there will be a healthy synergy between the two, thus leading to a really beneficial relationship complete with letting go of any bitterness, being very appreciative of each other, and having each others’ backs through thick and thin. Blossom can help Boomer stand up for himself and tap into his creative and artistic side and Boomer can help Blossom chill out, not take everything too seriously, and not beat herself up about any issue she has. With that said, let’s get on to what I thought about the fanfic and how well it complements the fan-animated music video.
It is a dark day complete with a rainstorm and Blossom is all alone in her room completely depressed, as she has had another nightmare of a failed rescue mission. She wakes up from it and sees an inscription on the mirror, “No matter what they say <3 – Boomer”. With that alone, Blossom remembers all the times she was there for Boomer from comforting him in his time of sadness to protecting him from his elder brothers’ taunts. Boomer is in a similar situation, as he too is in deep, depressing solitude. He too remembers those he comforted Blossom and even helped her in battle. The inseparability that these two have made them realize that they can’t live without each other, in spite of Brick’s and Butch’s discouragement on Boomer’s part. My word, if you want to get the full emotional experience of the story, you must watch the video and read the fanfic, they actually complement each other and both of them flesh out the main characters of Boomer and Blossom really well. Even more so, these two installments will make you want to grab some tissue after the entire shebang. Trust me when I say that if you did not cry after watching the video or reading the fanfic, something must be intrinsically wrong with you. There were some differences found, as the fanfic was not a copy and paste of the video. In the video, Blossom spots the inscription on the window, not on her mirror and Boomer had two cases in which he remembered Blossom comforting and defending him. To the fanfic’s credit, in terms of the latter case, I am very sure the author did not want to make Boomer go through so much turmoil than he already has with his elder brothers, thus ensuring diversity between the two with Boomer giving Blossom comfort from her sadness and protection against the villains she fights. After all, one good turn deserves another. I dare not spoil the ending, but let’s just say that it made me love Boomer so much as a character, I was blissful to see these two together and being there for each other, and it was sweet relief to an otherwise nearly depressing dirge of a tale. By and large, the story is simple, sweet, yet heartwrenching and you owe it to yourself to watch the video and read the fanfic. I know that the story is also meant to continue with other chapters, but as a single chapter story, it more than served its noble purpose. Plus, the quote said by both Boomer and Blossom, “No matter what they say”, almost killed me inside, as I genuinely felt for their hardships, rooted for them to find their happily ever after, and can see the pure respect, love, and admiration they have for each other, in spite of them being really different people.
Talking about the characters is talking about Boomer and Blossom. Though Blossom maintains her elegant, ladylike, and lovely nature, it’s also complemented by her vulnerability and yearning, which make her all the more human, as she is essentially a 14 or 15-year-old girl in both installments who found the very person she is not only compatible with but who is undyingly loyal to him. The absence of her sisters and Professor Utonium emits that vulnerability, which makes Blossom feel alone, as she has nobody else to talk to other than Boomer who lives far from her. Even more so, as the leader of the Powerpuff Girls, she still maintains the responsibility and burden she bears in terms of her job, which is the reason why she had that nightmare. It is all because she might end up being accused of a failed rescue mission and she does not want that fatality to fall on her head. On face value, it’s easy to turn Blossom into a whiny, simpering teenage brat when it comes to writing fanfics about love that has yet to be rekindled. However, I can relate to her anxiety, her yearning, and her compassion, as I have been rooting for this girl from beginning to end. For the record, at least she is not portrayed as shallow and air-headed, unlike certain shows that stereotype teenage girls.
I indubitably felt so much compassion for Boomer in the two installments he was in. Among all the Rowdyruff Boys, Boomer comes off as the one I feel sorry for the most. While Brick and Butch can have their moments of being badasses, Boomer is actually one I would love to see just break away from his callous shell and be more than he can ever hope to accomplish. On the surface, Boomer does come off as the simple-minded butt-monkey. However, you have to give artists StarRainerGirl and authors like dark lil’angel2be credit for fleshing his character out with flying colors. Here, Boomer is a sensitive, misunderstood, loving, lonely, and loyal 15-year-old boy. He deeply cares for Blossom, as she is the only who can see beyond his shell and has actually helped him turn for the better. I dare not spoil Boomer’s resolution but it is a major highlight, which, in turn, made him someone I can thoroughly root for.
Brick and Butch were very much in-character, in terms of being Boomer’s bullying, condescending, and dissuading elder brothers, even at 15 years old.
While I did enjoy reading the fanfic, as I had a good cry, there were sadly some errors, which kind of dampened the overall quality of the story. There are missing words like “started cry”, which should have been “started to cry”, awkward word placing like “Don’t know if it’s because of how cold he must”, which should have been “He did not know if it was because of how cold he must have been” or “He did not know if it was because of how cold he is”, some words that do not even need a capitalization in the first place, a few that do need capitalization, wrong wording like “Every since that day”, which should have been “Ever since that day”, a case of repetition like “the toilet in the bathroom”, which should have just been “the toilet, and some awkwardly-placed punctuations. It is a real shame because I loved the story so much. Though to be fair, the layout was actually good. My personal advice to dark lil’angel2be is to go back to this fanfic, in spite of the fact that it’s going to be four years old in three months, hire a Beta-reader, proofread your work and correct all of the mistakes, and finally post an updated version. That will certainly make your readers tune into this story a lot more. I know dark lil’angel2be is not a Native Speaker, as this person comes from Belgium with Filipino descent, but at least I can tell there was some effort being put on here.
Overall, No Matter What They Say by dark lil’angel2be and the fan-animated music video complementing it, Blossoomer – My Immortal, was an absolutely fine experience, when all is said and done. The story in the fanfic was well-told, poignant, and lovely, even though the technicalities need a fair amount of work. The music video itself managed to leave me in tears, as I felt for both Boomer and Blossom. With that said, I give this fanfic a grade of B+. Do not think that I would go easy on this fanfic, despite having a great emotional roller-coaster ride with this story, the technical errors certainly bogged the rating down a bit. If the errors were to have been fixed before publishing, I might be more forgiving. However, as it is, it is still a commendable effort by dark lil’angel2be to have written this story and at least there was a lot of heart to be found in the fanfic.
I also want to suggest subscribing to StarRainerGirl’s YouTube channel. Not only did she do fabulous work with the Blossoomer fan-made music video, but she also has some other fan-made videos on her channel, which in turn have pretty good animation. Mind you, her channel focuses more on the mixed RRB/PPG pairings like Brick/Buttercup (Brickercup), Butch/Bubbles (Butchubbles), Boomer/Blossom (Blossoomer), Brick/Bubbles (Brickubbles), Butch/Blossom (Blossutch), and Boomer/Buttercup (Boomercup) with a hint of Mitch/Buttercup (Mitchercup). Before you ask, I actually enjoy these mixed pairings, as the good fanfic authors and the fan artists can bring out more of the six superpowered kids’ personalities to the limelight without or with scarce titillation and see how well they can work off of each other, whether as a couple be it platonic or romantic, though I prefer the former if you ask me about mixed RRB/PPG pairings, or, in the super aggro long run, as a legitimate six-member superhero team on par with the Justice League, the Teen Titans, and the X-Men. Plus, diversity is always key when bringing out the best in these six superpowered characters, thus bringing out more emotional and collaborative depth. I’m not going to mince words here. Please support StarRainerGirl by subscribing to her channel and even following her on Deviantart as xahCHUx. You will feel very enthralled when checking her stuff out.
Well, that’s all for now. Be sure to tune in later for my review of Verdi’s Aida live from the Kungliga Operan starring Katarina Dalayman as Amneris and Christina Nilsson as Aida. So, until then, enjoy the Spring season. Take care.
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