Moddie

Rose-Colored Boy... You are my everything... I owe you my life... I will always and forever put my existence on the line 4 u...

AND WE WILL NEVER FORGET THE PERFECTION THAT IS THE LIVE MASH OF WHITNEY 'MOTHERFUCKING' HOUSTON - I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY. FOR THE VERY LAST CHORUS.

THEN MAYBE EVEN THROW IN A LITTLE CHEEKY TOM TOM CLUB GENIUS OF LOVE AT THE VERY END

WhatCHA gonna do when I get outta jail. I'm gonna have sOME FUN.

POOL!!

@paramoreblr

My birthday being a couple weeks ago actually meant it was also the 14th anniversary of my first Paramore gig!

Another piece to add to the larger story I've been working on but has been on hold for a bit while I keep up with the con and freelance life 🤙🤙

My birthday being a couple weeks ago actually meant it was also the 14th anniversary of my first Paramore gig!

Another piece to add to the larger story I've been working on but has been on hold for a bit while I keep up with the con and freelance life 🤙🤙

i love them i would die for them etc etc

baby come back 2 me appreciation post 

"Girl only know one pose" indeed, and I have a lot of very normal thoughts about it.

A bit ago I was actually discussing with some friends (who previously knew little to nothing of the band's history) about how the framing of the two most explicit and incredibly commercially successful love songs in their MVs, feel particularly icky to me.

Especially since BNE Hayley was finally "of age" for the entirety of the album cycle. It's now socially acceptable for her to be an object of sexual desire (and I hate it!!), she feels submissive, with big bedroom eyes (one literally on a bed), singing to YOU. She is the product for the audience to want and desir.

A girl in love is to be helpless. Apparently. And to suddenly be so hyper feminised in way we haven't seen her display before, conveniently timed...

QUICK EDIT: It's not a crime to love these MVs, theres a lot to love about them. My problem and criticisms lie with the marketability and expectation of the public perception/societal views

Two other videos I had totally forgotten about until I was looking for relevant pics and gifs for my original tweet thread that will become very relevant later:

Brick by Boring Brick - suddenly infantilised, framed with a childlike sense of helplessness (Funny that. On the album where she is trying to be marketed as an adult to be desired) that her dreams are a fantasy.

Now - Already having fallen, seeming as if she has already lost this battle, one of many (hi Self-Titled)

The other example obvious to many was indeed Hard Times, but I'd also like to bring up Told You So a bit earlier than in my initial thread. Even tho not an exact parallel of her signature pose, it signifies a similar set of feelings- also a convient MV for some other parallels later on...

Hard Times - Our girl loves a good falling metaphor. It's slow, it's agonising, as if going on forever, seeming as if she's doomed to repeat the fall to rock bottom again, and again

Told You So - Alone in an empty home (We'll be bringing THIS back later) wrapped in a blanket to gain any sense of warmth. Once again feeling helpless, and trapped. But this time the boys are comin'!!

Part of me also wants to say this is one of the first instances T+Z (or any ex-band member for that matter) have been shown to play an active roll in the greater Paramore narrative. Other than Now... which I immediately forgot even tho I literally just talked about it. I could maybe argue however that the boys are reactive to those events at play. Caught up in the war, H being the only target.

I'm sure I could easily talk about PFA MVs in addition but this shit is too long already, everything I've already spoken about here makes the points I wanna make.

Anyway I'm taking a quick break before I dig into TIW era

Before discussing Thick Skull, we must discuss the prequel (or is this the sequel 🤔)

This is Why makes it a very clear point that the camera is the one in control of the narrative. Which parts of their lives are chosen to be shared and the context of which it's framed in.

Building on the active roll T+Z are seen to make in Told You So (especially Zac having been co-director, there by having control of the camera) we finally see their own individual narratives being built upon.

They make a point of Zac having a seperate room having made himself a home while being away from the band for so long. The camera only seeing the final result where he seems to have it all- A home and the girl. Not the work, mundanity, and potential sense of loneliness leading up to rejoining the band.

Taylor's narrative becomes much more poignant in Thick Skull but the foundation of his is finally being laid out. He is longing and whistful for something, we don't necessarily know what that is at this point. It's made to seem he is at a much higher vantage point from what the camera actually sees, we as the audience might not see this as a particularly great height but it's what he clearly feels. Unable to see the ground beneath (or the pillar/home on which he sits upon)

As he was the one to put the band on hiatus this time around post AL, H+Z await patiently waiting ready for whenever he's ready to come down from that height, and then ready to leave the the seclusion of that house.

The "final" home is established, only with H seemingly about to descend into another bout of madness. Losing another fight with the expectations of femininity/womanhood/standards of beauty. Does using lipstick mean she's lost to vanity and the public expectation of women? Does the lingerie mean she's succumb to being an object of sexual desire? What colour is her hair and who is she meant to be without the context of the red (more specifically, that Misery Business bitch)

We see the inevitable decent and fall, but with two major differences from everything else we've seen up until this point-

And that would be the boys, the two pillars of love and security of her life to finally ready and able to catch her when she falls. Never having to climb up from rock bottom again.

I think that's everything I wanted to establish before finally getting to Thick Skull... also I need another break/am also lazy and use shitty iOS app where I'm capped with images so... brb...

THICK SKULL HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOOO

With two MVs in between and released over a year later to the TIW MV. We're reintroduced to the same home, now with T+Z seemingly having been apart of it the whole time, since this is before the fall/descent.

Newly introduced however is a crashed van, giving the reused footage of the fall a new context– to be discussed later on

The reuse of footage from TIW leads us to expect the following shot of T+Z catching her, which is eerily not the case. It still cuts to the boys, but it instead parallels their introductions in TIW this time around however obscuring their faces, a visual which continues on for the rest of the MV. They're not important, the camera says.

Her look for the rest of the MV I feel is a particularly important topic of discussion other than the fact it's meant to signify a much younger version of herself.

Her hair is by no means the shortest it's been, but its certainly the most "typically" boyish we've ever seen on her. Having to feel the need to hide or disguise her femininity in order to not stand out in the heavily male dominated emo/punk/rock music scene in the past, to have a chance to prove that the band can stand out based on their own musical merits alone, and to attempt to avoid any shame or ridicule that would come with being a young girl in this scene. However, despite how tied up that particular form of gender presentation and identity may be from that orginal feeling or need, its clear that this is still a comfortable way for her to present alongside the now comfort she finally seems to have in presenting far more feminine (particularly since PFA & FFV/D era)

How she's presented moving forward in this MV is potenatily a way she's choosen to visualise this version of herself, potentially even an idealised one. That we'll never know but what we do know is that she is back on the goddamn ground AGAIN.

Her fall from earlier was a signifier of going back to the past, and for the first time in any of these MVs we see her get up on her own. Even in Now, though we do see her get up, its not without help or being physically forced too. She is making an active decision, which in fact does seem to be THE first decision she made.

TO GET IN THAT VAN BABBYYYYY. THE MEANS TO BE ABLE TO TRAVEL OF YOUR OWN FREE WILL, PLEANTY OF ROOM FOR YOUR FRIENDS TO COME ALONG.

THE VEHICLE IS UNFORTUNATELY THE MEANS OF WHICH THE LABEL/CONTRACT CONTROLS AND TRAPS HER IN.

To have all her agency immediately stripped away after making the first active decision of her life, and the first we as the audience have ever seen.

Sandwiched in between the shots of H getting up and walking towards the van is this shot of T. A parallel of the TIW MV, and the only one to show him without guitar or in the van (Zac does not have an equivalent.) It's now clear that this is symbolic of the time at the beginning where he was not allowed to travel with the band and join the offical line up till much later, despite having always been apart of the home. T finally has a history established to the larger Pmore narrative.

SUUUUUUUPER INTERESTINGLY. He is the one drumming, in a strange contrast to his usual role and to Z sitting literally right next to him. But as the only individual to have never actually left the band in any capacity (Z having left for a number of years between BNE and AL, H having quietly left after the lawsuit then reconsidering on Parahoy 2016) so he became the constant heartbeat, the reason the band is still alive.

EDIT: motherfucker did NOT save my edit about wanting to quickly detour and point out T's role in Running Out of Time

The ticking clock, the clicking, the beat. The physical reminder H isn't alone. He's the wake up call that keeps her and Z grounded, the heartbeat of the band that is very much always alive regardless of where everyone is.

BACK TO THE VAN.

Z being shown in the drivers seat, hilariously feeling like a parental figure of sorts (especially with a childlike H still in the back) but more in the sense that he is a source of comfort and can be trusted in keeping everyone safe. Especially significant in that (as mentioned earlier) had left the band, but not necessarily of his own choice or with agency.

But now having grown up in his own space made the decision to come back. Told You So establishing the growth and maturity, being able to have his own car gave him the means to take control of his own life.

However the two of them being in the front seats of the van do not mean they have control of it by any means. BUT they are two individuals with agency, T having gained his when finally allowed to make the choice of joining the band, no longer in the house longing for the outside world, but managing to reach great heights within a vast open space even if he continues to find it scary. Z gaining his own agency when finally allowed the chance to grow as his own individual and unique self, away from the identity of his brother (the one who made him leave the band in the first place)

They are not presented in an infantilised or childlike manner, since neither are contractually or legally bound to the contract Hayley signed all those years ago. They made the very active choice to keep her company for the ride and to be there when she needs it most.

Only the more heartbreaking it is when the world only perceives the band to be "The Hayley Show." Paramore (The Home) only occupied by Hayleys, Paramore (The Vehicle) only with her at the wheel, despite once again establishing over and over she is very much helpless in this situation.

I swear to god if I don't finish this on my phone before I get to my dinner destination tonight, pleSe put me down.

THE ONLY POSE SHE KNOWS. WE FINALLY MADE IT BACK AROUND.

The image of H lying on her back with a sense of helplessness we've all become very familiar with, but the sequence of events suggests that this scene is after the fall of the present self we are shown earlier. BEFORE we see her make the decision to get up, implying she's already fallen. Doomed from the very beginning, so was there ever really a choice?

In a sense, no.

It would have been insane for anyone to turn away such an opportunity. Feeling almost destined (if destiny is something you believe in) to become the Fearless Leader of the band.

Seeing her consoling the teen is to finally accept and stand by the choice that kid made, in stead of resenting her for it.

After making multiple attempts to sever that connection, see BBBB:

(y'all remember this? Cause I didn't until about a month or two ago while making my pals go on a deep dive with me)

Only to realise she'd be lost without that original driving force, see RCB:

(Funny how the first time we see her blonde in BBBB she's trying to cut ties with the kid and her seemingly childish dreams, then for AL to commit being blonde as a way to wipe the slate clean and start again)

ANYWAY!! FINAL SCENE!! As established earlier, H is only ever made to seem she has control of the van. She's a big girl! An adult who can drive right? While at the same time already having taken away all agency, reducing her to being just a child. The blatant contradictions we have been presented, yet it'll always be her fault regardless! How convenient.

Despite the horrific accident it seems to be, H is still seen to be very much alive. The door and windows smashed open, there's finally a means for her to escape.

Anyway. All done. About this topic specifically for the time being...

"Girl only know one pose" indeed, and I have a lot of very normal thoughts about it.

A bit ago I was actually discussing with some friends (who previously knew little to nothing of the band's history) about how the framing of the two most explicit and incredibly commercially successful love songs in their MVs, feel particularly icky to me.

Especially since BNE Hayley was finally "of age" for the entirety of the album cycle. It's now socially acceptable for her to be an object of sexual desire (and I hate it!!), she feels submissive, with big bedroom eyes (one literally on a bed), singing to YOU. She is the product for the audience to want and desir.

A girl in love is to be helpless. Apparently. And to suddenly be so hyper feminised in way we haven't seen her display before, conveniently timed...

QUICK EDIT: It's not a crime to love these MVs, theres a lot to love about them. My problem and criticisms lie with the marketability and expectation of the public perception/societal views

Two other videos I had totally forgotten about until I was looking for relevant pics and gifs for my original tweet thread that will become very relevant later:

Brick by Boring Brick - suddenly infantilised, framed with a childlike sense of helplessness (Funny that. On the album where she is trying to be marketed as an adult to be desired) that her dreams are a fantasy.

Now - Already having fallen, seeming as if she has already lost this battle, one of many (hi Self-Titled)

The other example obvious to many was indeed Hard Times, but I'd also like to bring up Told You So a bit earlier than in my initial thread. Even tho not an exact parallel of her signature pose, it signifies a similar set of feelings- also a convient MV for some other parallels later on...

Hard Times - Our girl loves a good falling metaphor. It's slow, it's agonising, as if going on forever, seeming as if she's doomed to repeat the fall to rock bottom again, and again

Told You So - Alone in an empty home (We'll be bringing THIS back later) wrapped in a blanket to gain any sense of warmth. Once again feeling helpless, and trapped. But this time the boys are comin'!!

Part of me also wants to say this is one of the first instances T+Z (or any ex-band member for that matter) have been shown to play an active roll in the greater Paramore narrative. Other than Now... which I immediately forgot even tho I literally just talked about it. I could maybe argue however that the boys are reactive to those events at play. Caught up in the war, H being the only target.

I'm sure I could easily talk about PFA MVs in addition but this shit is too long already, everything I've already spoken about here makes the points I wanna make.

Anyway I'm taking a quick break before I dig into TIW era

Before discussing Thick Skull, we must discuss the prequel (or is this the sequel 🤔)

This is Why makes it a very clear point that the camera is the one in control of the narrative. Which parts of their lives are chosen to be shared and the context of which it's framed in.

Building on the active roll T+Z are seen to make in Told You So (especially Zac having been co-director, there by having control of the camera) we finally see their own individual narratives being built upon.

They make a point of Zac having a seperate room having made himself a home while being away from the band for so long. The camera only seeing the final result where he seems to have it all- A home and the girl. Not the work, mundanity, and potential sense of loneliness leading up to rejoining the band.

Taylor's narrative becomes much more poignant in Thick Skull but the foundation of his is finally being laid out. He is longing and whistful for something, we don't necessarily know what that is at this point. It's made to seem he is at a much higher vantage point from what the camera actually sees, we as the audience might not see this as a particularly great height but it's what he clearly feels. Unable to see the ground beneath (or the pillar/home on which he sits upon)

As he was the one to put the band on hiatus this time around post AL, H+Z await patiently waiting ready for whenever he's ready to come down from that height, and then ready to leave the the seclusion of that house.

The "final" home is established, only with H seemingly about to descend into another bout of madness. Losing another fight with the expectations of femininity/womanhood/standards of beauty. Does using lipstick mean she's lost to vanity and the public expectation of women? Does the lingerie mean she's succumb to being an object of sexual desire? What colour is her hair and who is she meant to be without the context of the red (more specifically, that Misery Business bitch)

We see the inevitable decent and fall, but with two major differences from everything else we've seen up until this point-

And that would be the boys, the two pillars of love and security of her life to finally ready and able to catch her when she falls. Never having to climb up from rock bottom again.

I think that's everything I wanted to establish before finally getting to Thick Skull... also I need another break/am also lazy and use shitty iOS app where I'm capped with images so... brb...

THICK SKULL HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOOO

With two MVs in between and released over a year later to the TIW MV. We're reintroduced to the same home, now with T+Z seemingly having been apart of it the whole time, since this is before the fall/descent.

Newly introduced however is a crashed van, giving the reused footage of the fall a new context– to be discussed later on

The reuse of footage from TIW leads us to expect the following shot of T+Z catching her, which is eerily not the case. It still cuts to the boys, but it instead parallels their introductions in TIW this time around however obscuring their faces, a visual which continues on for the rest of the MV. They're not important, the camera says.

Her look for the rest of the MV I feel is a particularly important topic of discussion other than the fact it's meant to signify a much younger version of herself.

Her hair is by no means the shortest it's been, but its certainly the most "typically" boyish we've ever seen on her. Having to feel the need to hide or disguise her femininity in order to not stand out in the heavily male dominated emo/punk/rock music scene in the past, to have a chance to prove that the band can stand out based on their own musical merits alone, and to attempt to avoid any shame or ridicule that would come with being a young girl in this scene. However, despite how tied up that particular form of gender presentation and identity may be from that orginal feeling or need, its clear that this is still a comfortable way for her to present alongside the now comfort she finally seems to have in presenting far more feminine (particularly since PFA & FFV/D era)

How she's presented moving forward in this MV is potenatily a way she's choosen to visualise this version of herself, potentially even an idealised one. That we'll never know but what we do know is that she is back on the goddamn ground AGAIN.

Her fall from earlier was a signifier of going back to the past, and for the first time in any of these MVs we see her get up on her own. Even in Now, though we do see her get up, its not without help or being physically forced too. She is making an active decision, which in fact does seem to be THE first decision she made.

TO GET IN THAT VAN BABBYYYYY. THE MEANS TO BE ABLE TO TRAVEL OF YOUR OWN FREE WILL, PLEANTY OF ROOM FOR YOUR FRIENDS TO COME ALONG.

THE VEHICLE IS UNFORTUNATELY THE MEANS OF WHICH THE LABEL/CONTRACT CONTROLS AND TRAPS HER IN.

To have all her agency immediately stripped away after making the first active decision of her life, and the first we as the audience have ever seen.

Sandwiched in between the shots of H getting up and walking towards the van is this shot of T. A parallel of the TIW MV, and the only one to show him without guitar or in the van (Zac does not have an equivalent.) It's now clear that this is symbolic of the time at the beginning where he was not allowed to travel with the band and join the offical line up till much later, despite having always been apart of the home. T finally has a history established to the larger Pmore narrative.

SUUUUUUUPER INTERESTINGLY. He is the one drumming, in a strange contrast to his usual role and to Z sitting literally right next to him. But as the only individual to have never actually left the band in any capacity (Z having left for a number of years between BNE and AL, H having quietly left after the lawsuit then reconsidering on Parahoy 2016) so he became the constant heartbeat, the reason the band is still alive.

EDIT: motherfucker did NOT save my edit about wanting to quickly detour and point out T's role in Running Out of Time

The ticking clock, the clicking, the beat. The physical reminder H isn't alone. He's the wake up call that keeps her and Z grounded, the heartbeat of the band that is very much always alive regardless of where everyone is.

BACK TO THE VAN.

Z being shown in the drivers seat, hilariously feeling like a parental figure of sorts (especially with a childlike H still in the back) but more in the sense that he is a source of comfort and can be trusted in keeping everyone safe. Especially significant in that (as mentioned earlier) had left the band, but not necessarily of his own choice or with agency.

But now having grown up in his own space made the decision to come back. Told You So establishing the growth and maturity, being able to have his own car gave him the means to take control of his own life.

However the two of them being in the front seats of the van do not mean they have control of it by any means. BUT they are two individuals with agency, T having gained his when finally allowed to make the choice of joining the band, no longer in the house longing for the outside world, but managing to reach great heights within a vast open space even if he continues to find it scary. Z gaining his own agency when finally allowed the chance to grow as his own individual and unique self, away from the identity of his brother (the one who made him leave the band in the first place)

They are not presented in an infantilised or childlike manner, since neither are contractually or legally bound to the contract Hayley signed all those years ago. They made the very active choice to keep her company for the ride and to be there when she needs it most.

Only the more heartbreaking it is when the world only perceives the band to be "The Hayley Show." Paramore (The Home) only occupied by Hayleys, Paramore (The Vehicle) only with her at the wheel, despite once again establishing over and over she is very much helpless in this situation.

I swear to god if I don't finish this on my phone before I get to my dinner destination tonight, pleSe put me down.

THE ONLY POSE SHE KNOWS. WE FINALLY MADE IT BACK AROUND.

The image of H lying on her back with a sense of helplessness we've all become very familiar with, but the sequence of events suggests that this scene is after the fall of the present self we are shown earlier. BEFORE we see her make the decision to get up, implying she's already fallen. Doomed from the very beginning, so was there ever really a choice?

In a sense, no.

It would have been insane for anyone to turn away such an opportunity. Feeling almost destined (if destiny is something you believe in) to become the Fearless Leader of the band.

Seeing her consoling the teen is to finally accept and stand by the choice that kid made, in stead of resenting her for it.

After making multiple attempts to sever that connection, see BBBB:

(y'all remember this? Cause I didn't until about a month or two ago while making my pals go on a deep dive with me)

Only to realise she'd be lost without that original driving force, see RCB:

(Funny how the first time we see her blonde in BBBB she's trying to cut ties with the kid and her seemingly childish dreams, then for AL to commit being blonde as a way to wipe the slate clean and start again)

ANYWAY!! FINAL SCENE!! As established earlier, H is only ever made to seem she has control of the van. She's a big girl! An adult who can drive right? While at the same time already having taken away all agency, reducing her to being just a child. The blatant contradictions we have been presented, yet it'll always be her fault regardless! How convenient.

Despite the horrific accident it seems to be, H is still seen to be very much alive. The door and windows smashed open, there's finally a means for her to escape.

Anyway. All done. About this topic specifically for the time being...

"Girl only know one pose" indeed, and I have a lot of very normal thoughts about it.

A bit ago I was actually discussing with some friends (who previously knew little to nothing of the band's history) about how the framing of the two most explicit and incredibly commercially successful love songs in their MVs, feel particularly icky to me.

Especially since BNE Hayley was finally "of age" for the entirety of the album cycle. It's now socially acceptable for her to be an object of sexual desire (and I hate it!!), she feels submissive, with big bedroom eyes (one literally on a bed), singing to YOU. She is the product for the audience to want and desir.

A girl in love is to be helpless. Apparently. And to suddenly be so hyper feminised in way we haven't seen her display before, conveniently timed...

QUICK EDIT: It's not a crime to love these MVs, theres a lot to love about them. My problem and criticisms lie with the marketability and expectation of the public perception/societal views

Two other videos I had totally forgotten about until I was looking for relevant pics and gifs for my original tweet thread that will become very relevant later:

Brick by Boring Brick - suddenly infantilised, framed with a childlike sense of helplessness (Funny that. On the album where she is trying to be marketed as an adult to be desired) that her dreams are a fantasy.

Now - Already having fallen, seeming as if she has already lost this battle, one of many (hi Self-Titled)

The other example obvious to many was indeed Hard Times, but I'd also like to bring up Told You So a bit earlier than in my initial thread. Even tho not an exact parallel of her signature pose, it signifies a similar set of feelings- also a convient MV for some other parallels later on...

Hard Times - Our girl loves a good falling metaphor. It's slow, it's agonising, as if going on forever, seeming as if she's doomed to repeat the fall to rock bottom again, and again

Told You So - Alone in an empty home (We'll be bringing THIS back later) wrapped in a blanket to gain any sense of warmth. Once again feeling helpless, and trapped. But this time the boys are comin'!!

Part of me also wants to say this is one of the first instances T+Z (or any ex-band member for that matter) have been shown to play an active roll in the greater Paramore narrative. Other than Now... which I immediately forgot even tho I literally just talked about it. I could maybe argue however that the boys are reactive to those events at play. Caught up in the war, H being the only target.

I'm sure I could easily talk about PFA MVs in addition but this shit is too long already, everything I've already spoken about here makes the points I wanna make.

Anyway I'm taking a quick break before I dig into TIW era

Before discussing Thick Skull, we must discuss the prequel (or is this the sequel 🤔)

This is Why makes it a very clear point that the camera is the one in control of the narrative. Which parts of their lives are chosen to be shared and the context of which it's framed in.

Building on the active roll T+Z are seen to make in Told You So (especially Zac having been co-director, there by having control of the camera) we finally see their own individual narratives being built upon.

They make a point of Zac having a seperate room having made himself a home while being away from the band for so long. The camera only seeing the final result where he seems to have it all- A home and the girl. Not the work, mundanity, and potential sense of loneliness leading up to rejoining the band.

Taylor's narrative becomes much more poignant in Thick Skull but the foundation of his is finally being laid out. He is longing and whistful for something, we don't necessarily know what that is at this point. It's made to seem he is at a much higher vantage point from what the camera actually sees, we as the audience might not see this as a particularly great height but it's what he clearly feels. Unable to see the ground beneath (or the pillar/home on which he sits upon)

As he was the one to put the band on hiatus this time around post AL, H+Z await patiently waiting ready for whenever he's ready to come down from that height, and then ready to leave the the seclusion of that house.

The "final" home is established, only with H seemingly about to descend into another bout of madness. Losing another fight with the expectations of femininity/womanhood/standards of beauty. Does using lipstick mean she's lost to vanity and the public expectation of women? Does the lingerie mean she's succumb to being an object of sexual desire? What colour is her hair and who is she meant to be without the context of the red (more specifically, that Misery Business bitch)

We see the inevitable decent and fall, but with two major differences from everything else we've seen up until this point-

And that would be the boys, the two pillars of love and security of her life to finally ready and able to catch her when she falls. Never having to climb up from rock bottom again.

I think that's everything I wanted to establish before finally getting to Thick Skull... also I need another break/am also lazy and use shitty iOS app where I'm capped with images so... brb...

THICK SKULL HERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOOO

With two MVs in between and released over a year later to the TIW MV. We're reintroduced to the same home, now with T+Z seemingly having been apart of it the whole time, since this is before the fall/descent.

Newly introduced however is a crashed van, giving the reused footage of the fall a new context– to be discussed later on

The reuse of footage from TIW leads us to expect the following shot of T+Z catching her, which is eerily not the case. It still cuts to the boys, but it instead parallels their introductions in TIW this time around however obscuring their faces, a visual which continues on for the rest of the MV. They're not important, the camera says.

Her look for the rest of the MV I feel is a particularly important topic of discussion other than the fact it's meant to signify a much younger version of herself.

Her hair is by no means the shortest it's been, but its certainly the most "typically" boyish we've ever seen on her. Having to feel the need to hide or disguise her femininity in order to not stand out in the heavily male dominated emo/punk/rock music scene in the past, to have a chance to prove that the band can stand out based on their own musical merits alone, and to attempt to avoid any shame or ridicule that would come with being a young girl in this scene. However, despite how tied up that particular form of gender presentation and identity may be from that orginal feeling or need, its clear that this is still a comfortable way for her to present alongside the now comfort she finally seems to have in presenting far more feminine (particularly since PFA & FFV/D era)

How she's presented moving forward in this MV is potenatily a way she's choosen to visualise this version of herself, potentially even an idealised one. That we'll never know but what we do know is that she is back on the goddamn ground AGAIN.

Her fall from earlier was a signifier of going back to the past, and for the first time in any of these MVs we see her get up on her own. Even in Now, though we do see her get up, its not without help or being physically forced too. She is making an active decision, which in fact does seem to be THE first decision she made.

TO GET IN THAT VAN BABBYYYYY. THE MEANS TO BE ABLE TO TRAVEL OF YOUR OWN FREE WILL, PLEANTY OF ROOM FOR YOUR FRIENDS TO COME ALONG.

THE VEHICLE IS UNFORTUNATELY THE MEANS OF WHICH THE LABEL/CONTRACT CONTROLS AND TRAPS HER IN.

To have all her agency immediately stripped away after making the first active decision of her life, and the first we as the audience have ever seen.

Sandwiched in between the shots of H getting up and walking towards the van is this shot of T. A parallel of the TIW MV, and the only one to show him without guitar or in the van (Zac does not have an equivalent.) It's now clear that this is symbolic of the time at the beginning where he was not allowed to travel with the band and join the offical line up till much later, despite having always been apart of the home. T finally has a history established to the larger Pmore narrative.

SUUUUUUUPER INTERESTINGLY. He is the one drumming, in a strange contrast to his usual role and to Z sitting literally right next to him. But as the only individual to have never actually left the band in any capacity (Z having left for a number of years between BNE and AL, H having quietly left after the lawsuit then reconsidering on Parahoy 2016) so he became the constant heartbeat, the reason the band is still alive.

EDIT: motherfucker did NOT save my edit about wanting to quickly detour and point out T's role in Running Out of Time

The ticking clock, the clicking, the beat. The physical reminder H isn't alone. He's the wake up call that keeps her and Z grounded, the heartbeat of the band that is very much always alive regardless of where everyone is.

BACK TO THE VAN.

Z being shown in the drivers seat, hilariously feeling like a parental figure of sorts (especially with a childlike H still in the back) but more in the sense that he is a source of comfort and can be trusted in keeping everyone safe. Especially significant in that (as mentioned earlier) had left the band, but not necessarily of his own choice or with agency.

But now having grown up in his own space made the decision to come back. Told You So establishing the growth and maturity, being able to have his own car gave him the means to take control of his own life.

However the two of them being in the front seats of the van do not mean they have control of it by any means. BUT they are two individuals with agency, T having gained his when finally allowed to make the choice of joining the band, no longer in the house longing for the outside world, but managing to reach great heights within a vast open space even if he continues to find it scary. Z gaining his own agency when finally allowed the chance to grow as his own individual and unique self, away from the identity of his brother (the one who made him leave the band in the first place)

They are not presented in an infantilised or childlike manner, since neither are contractually or legally bound to the contract Hayley signed all those years ago. They made the very active choice to keep her company for the ride and to be there when she needs it most.

Only the more heartbreaking it is when the world only perceives the band to be "The Hayley Show." Paramore (The Home) only occupied by Hayleys, Paramore (The Vehicle) only with her at the wheel, despite once again establishing over and over she is very much helpless in this situation.

I swear to god if I don't finish this on my phone before I get to my dinner destination tonight, pleSe put me down.

"Girl only know one pose" indeed, and I have a lot of very normal thoughts about it.

A bit ago I was actually discussing with some friends (who previously knew little to nothing of the band's history) about how the framing of the two most explicit and incredibly commercially successful love songs in their MVs, feel particularly icky to me.

Especially since BNE Hayley was finally "of age" for the entirety of the album cycle. It's now socially acceptable for her to be an object of sexual desire (and I hate it!!), she feels submissive, with big bedroom eyes (one literally on a bed), singing to YOU. She is the product for the audience to want and desir.

A girl in love is to be helpless. Apparently. And to suddenly be so hyper feminised in way we haven't seen her display before, conveniently timed...

QUICK EDIT: It's not a crime to love these MVs, theres a lot to love about them. My problem and criticisms lie with the marketability and expectation of the public perception/societal views

Two other videos I had totally forgotten about until I was looking for relevant pics and gifs for my original tweet thread that will become very relevant later:

Brick by Boring Brick - suddenly infantilised, framed with a childlike sense of helplessness (Funny that. On the album where she is trying to be marketed as an adult to be desired) that her dreams are a fantasy.

Now - Already having fallen, seeming as if she has already lost this battle, one of many (hi Self-Titled)

The other example obvious to many was indeed Hard Times, but I'd also like to bring up Told You So a bit earlier than in my initial thread. Even tho not an exact parallel of her signature pose, it signifies a similar set of feelings- also a convient MV for some other parallels later on...

Hard Times - Our girl loves a good falling metaphor. It's slow, it's agonising, as if going on forever, seeming as if she's doomed to repeat the fall to rock bottom again, and again

Told You So - Alone in an empty home (We'll be bringing THIS back later) wrapped in a blanket to gain any sense of warmth. Once again feeling helpless, and trapped. But this time the boys are comin'!!

Part of me also wants to say this is one of the first instances T+Z (or any ex-band member for that matter) have been shown to play an active roll in the greater Paramore narrative. Other than Now... which I immediately forgot even tho I literally just talked about it. I could maybe argue however that the boys are reactive to those events at play. Caught up in the war, H being the only target.

I'm sure I could easily talk about PFA MVs in addition but this shit is too long already, everything I've already spoken about here makes the points I wanna make.

Anyway I'm taking a quick break before I dig into TIW era

Before discussing Thick Skull, we must discuss the prequel (or is this the sequel 🤔)

This is Why makes it a very clear point that the camera is the one in control of the narrative. Which parts of their lives are chosen to be shared and the context of which it's framed in.

Building on the active roll T+Z are seen to make in Told You So (especially Zac having been co-director, there by having control of the camera) we finally see their own individual narratives being built upon.

They make a point of Zac having a seperate room having made himself a home while being away from the band for so long. The camera only seeing the final result where he seems to have it all- A home and the girl. Not the work, mundanity, and potential sense of loneliness leading up to rejoining the band.

Taylor's narrative becomes much more poignant in Thick Skull but the foundation of his is finally being laid out. He is longing and whistful for something, we don't necessarily know what that is at this point. It's made to seem he is at a much higher vantage point from what the camera actually sees, we as the audience might not see this as a particularly great height but it's what he clearly feels. Unable to see the ground beneath (or the pillar/home on which he sits upon)

As he was the one to put the band on hiatus this time around post AL, H+Z await patiently waiting ready for whenever he's ready to come down from that height, and then ready to leave the the seclusion of that house.

The "final" home is established, only with H seemingly about to descend into another bout of madness. Losing another fight with the expectations of femininity/womanhood/standards of beauty. Does using lipstick mean she's lost to vanity and the public expectation of women? Does the lingerie mean she's succumb to being an object of sexual desire? What colour is her hair and who is she meant to be without the context of the red (more specifically, that Misery Business bitch)

We see the inevitable decent and fall, but with two major differences from everything else we've seen up until this point-

And that would be the boys, the two pillars of love and security of her life to finally ready and able to catch her when she falls. Never having to climb up from rock bottom again.

I think that's everything I wanted to establish before finally getting to Thick Skull... also I need another break/am also lazy and use shitty iOS app where I'm capped with images so... brb...