Welcome to Fan Vid Friday, our weekly present to you to keep you entertained during those last hours in the office before your summer weekend. Last week, I pondered in our Avengers Post as to whether or not we could fill an entire post with videos to Mulan‘s “I’ll Make a Man Out of You”. Whoops, we doggone gone and done it. This song is perfect for any sort of sprawling ensemble epic, as you will soon see. And let’s be real, who DOESN’T love the gusto with which Donny Osmond sings this? If you don’t finish this post ready to take on the Huns (what ever the Huns may be to you), then you did it wrong.
The Disney Men
Sage: Yassss, starting off TOO strong. Disney princesses get a lot of love, and rightfully so. But let’s give it up one time for all those Disney leading men who ruined for real boys. Real boys who never ONCE started singing me a love duet of which I intuitively knew the other part.
Kim: Aladdin, ruining my life since 1992. What can I say? I’m a sucker for those diamonds in the rough. Also there’s not NEARLY enough Prince Eric in this video. And finally, I have a new appreciation for Shang’s collarbones and it’s just really confusing being attracted to animated characters, okay?
Sherlock
Sage: Well, there’s no shortage of footage of Sherlock yelling at people, so that’s good. Also, since Molly is playing Mulan and Sherlock is Shang, this video is also honorary Sherlolly.
Kim: I love how this video is basically Sherlock telling everyone to GET ON HIS LEVEL. Also got to love the on the nose comparison of the Huns to the villains from “The Blind Banker”. (Undoubtedly the weakest episode of the series, yes? Yes.)
Star Trek
Sage: “Tranquil as a forest” = Spock. “But on fire within.” = Kirk. What makes this song so adaptable for fan videos is that the definition of masculinity (or heroism in general) is really the dealer’s choice. And the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise have all those bases covered, from intellect to brute strength to selfless leadership.
Kim: I love the use of Captain Pike in this video. He really was the shepherd of this crew of misfits as they grew towards becoming a united crew. What made Star Trek work SO WELL was that it was essentially a coming of age story for characters that we already knew. It was familiar but different all at the same time. The casting is spot on, with Chris Pine’s rogueish charm and Zach Quinto’s even-keeled intensity leading the way. I am SO READY for Star Trek: Beyond even if that is a dumb name.
PS I am still so hot for Karl Urban after AwesomeCon.
X-Men: First Class
Sage: Okay, the layers in this, because Charles wants his students to embrace their powers but also cherish their humanity. Be a MAN.
Kim: I don’t know if I will EVER be over the Cherik scene where Erik moves the satellite dish and they both CRY. This video COULD have used more Fassy, TBH. He’s so perfect, especially in First Class.
The Lord of the Rings
Sage: I’m honestly surprised some Kiwi producer hasn’t tried to peddle a LOTR musical over here. 10/10 WOULD SEE.
Kim: There was some sort of ridiculous LOTR musical in Canada and London in 2006 (thanks Wikipedia) but it never came to America because it was three and a half hours long and had a cast of 65. ANYWAY. I’m emotional over this video. I love these movies, I love the cast, I love the characters and their relationships, I LOVE IT. It is a MASTERPIECE and I need to watch it RIGHT NOW.
Also PERFECT use of Eowyn’s arc in this vid. SHE IS NO MAN.
Torchwood
Sage: STOP. STOP. This is so damn apt, because Torchwood is the isle of misfit fucking toys. Jack collects these broken people and makes them into a team. They are all FUCKED UP in their own ways, but they are also good and strong and willing to be the first line of defense between humanity and alien threats. They don’t have a TARDIS or the Doctor, but they are out there doing the damn thing. For no credit, by the way. God, I love Torchwood.
Kim: Do you remember how I punished Torchwood for YEARS because of “Doomsday”? Why did I do that? I’m so glad that Eve, Burn, Naoko, and Barrowman’s appearance at Gally 2015 finally made me take the plunge. And I’m so glad all of YOU have told me to never watch the 4th season. Everything Sage said is DEAD ON, I have nothing to add.
The Hunger Games
Sage: “I used to be a baker.” – Peeta Styles
Kim: Needs more Haymitch, but then again, so did the whole movie franchise.
Harry Potter
Sage: Know how you know Kim picked this video for HP? Because Snape gets to be Shang and she is a KNOWN SNAPE APOLOGIST. 😉
Kim: Okay, sure, I love Snape. I can admit his enduring love for Lily when she had no interest is problematic and that he treated Harry like shit but I am HEAVILY SWAYED by the late Alan Rickman’s performance. BUT ALSO the other video in contention for this really only focused on the DA in Order of the Phoenix and I wanted something that had more of the scope of the series. THE REAL PROBLEM HERE is that there is no video to this song that SOLELY focuses on one Neville Longbottom which is what I REALLY WANTED. Get on that people. Matt Lewis’ transition from chubby and awkward child to bonafide hottie IS this song. I’m just imagining the moment where Neville crawls out of the portrait hole in Deathly Hallows 2 scored to that last “BE A MAAAAAAAAAAAN” and IT WORKS.
The Hobbit
Sage: I weep for the potential of the one good movie that’s surely trapped in this bloated franchise. Anyhoo, this is SUCH a Bilbo song. He’s going on an adventure.
Kim: Seriously, re: the bloated franchise. EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS SHOULD HAVE WORKED. The cast is fantastic, there’s a TON of pretty boys buried underneath all that dwarf make-up, and the whole thing is homoerotic as hell. So why didn’t it work? BECAUSE IT PALES IN COMPARISON TO LORD OF THE RINGS. LOTR did everything first and they did it better. Thank you and good night. Sweet video though.
One Direction
Sage: Look at these little shits. Who would give them a recording contract?
Kim: My idiotic sons who are also international pop sensations. SO MUCH SHOVING AND DICK PUNCHING AS A MEANS OF EXPRESSING LOVE I DIE.
Doctor Who
Sage: Ten’s whole “army” is 90% ladies, bless.
Kim: I have to shout out the AMAZING Rory video to this song, which we previously used in our Doctor Who Disney post. But YES, Ten loves his strong ladies. Everything about the Doctor’s relationships with his companions is about helping them discover the most extraordinary sides of themselves, so this song works so well to illustrate that. Also using the Daleks as the “Be a Maaaaaaaaaaaaan” chorus is AMAZING.
Pride and Prejudice
Sage: Bahahha, “the Huns” are social interaction in this scenario. Also, this is for sure an AU, because the real Darcy has no time or interest in teaching anyone (who isn’t Georgiana) anything. He’s also in no humor to give consequence to young ladies who are slighted by other men, but that’s another story.
Kim: You can thank my OCD in regards to having an even number of videos for this one. I had found a few for other fandoms like The 100 and Flash/Arrow that I didn’t LOVE so I just kept looking. And then I stumbled on this when I typed in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. And then I laughed for a good half an hour afterwards.
Any good “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” videos that we missed? Let us know in the comments.
Oh my. I hadn’t seen the P&P one before (I had no doubt y’all would include the X: First Class one because Classic.), and I’m sitting in my shared office, cackling silently. It’s perfect. (Full Disclosure: Intellectually, I understand the hate toward the Kiera Knightley P&P, but I can’t hate it. Plus: Matthew McFayden? Unf.) But this one also makes me sad no one has apparently set one for Lizzie Bennet Diaries to this song because LBD!Darcy is perhaps the most socially awkward Darcy to ever grace a screen.