By Tay Carthon It’s a big day for 20-year-old teenage girls, Olivia Rodrigo has released her new album: GUTS . Olivia elevates her signature pop-punk sound for this new album. I’ll be going track by track to talk about what each song does well and what each song could use some work on (this is all an opinion and a pretty biased one, too, because I did listen to this album on repeat for a whole week). Olivia starts the album off with all-american b*tch . all-american b*tch sta

By Emma Friend, Editor in Chief Over the course of the last two years, starting in April 2021, Taylor Swift has been rerecording her old music. These rerecordings have been dubbed “Taylor’s Version” as a way to indicate that she now owns the rights to her songs, not her old record label (for more on this, click here ). Even without the rerecordings, Taylor has a huge discography, but these rerecordings have given her an opportunity not only to own her own music, but to releas

By Salma Zerhouane HallOUween, is arguably one of the biggest weekends in Athens, and the time is creeping upon us. Whether you’ve been in Athens for the weekend previously or this is your first time, I believe we can all agree it's part of the culture at OU. Discussions of costumes and which parties to attend are looming in the air as the weekend approaches. The holiday is a time to celebrate with friends and express yourself through your costumes, but it's also a time to s

By Libby Evans 1. Hocus Pocus (1993) Taking place in Salem, Massachusetts, this family-friendly favorite has all our classic Halloween essentials: three fashionable, eccentric witches, a talking black cat, teen romance, and a perfectly disastrous Halloween night. It might not be your first choice for an adrenaline-rushing scary movie, but you can’t deny the nostalgia of Halloween night these witches bring. 2. Halloween (1978) When an iconic horror film has the same name as o

By Joey Earley, Executive Editor As the fall semester starts, there’s much to look forward to: parties, seeing friends on campus, moving into dorms or new apartments, classes, new organizations, and for freshmen, starting a new journey in their lives. Even so, as we move into the semester, we should all be on alert for something very important. During the first semester, typically from August through November, there is a 50% increase in sexual assaults on college campuses. Th

Bekah Bostick, Associate Editor Nerd or not, “Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” is a hilarious must see. Directed by Jonathan M. Goldstein and John Francis Daley, the movie follows Edgin and his band of adventurers on a quest to retrieve a lost relic; however, like most action movies, things quickly take a turn when the group runs into the wrong people, causing a whole mess of issues they have to attempt to overcome. Just a note- it is not necessary for the audience

Jack Wilburn, head of makeup Hello, my name is Jack, and I am an avid fan of Melanie Martinez. Melanie saw success early in her career after a strong run on “The Voice.” Shortly after, her single Carousel was picked up by 20th century Fox to promote the fourth season of “American Horror Story (Freak Show).” Her success skyrocketed, leading to two successful albums. On March 31st, 2023, she released her third and newest studio album, “PORTALS,” with which I am undeniably smi

By Sophia Ball Photos taken by Nandi Gott Feature photo taken from the Athens County website The Athena Cinema is a historic movie theater located in Athens, Ohio. Formerly known as the Majestic Theater, The Athena opened in 1915 and has been ever-growing since. In the early 2000s, the theater was renovated and transformed into an art-house cinema that features independent films, documentaries, and other specialty programs. The theater includes three screens, 35mm and digita

Bekah Bostick, associate editor Shania Twain’s Queen of Me showcases her new genre that she’s moving into in a dissatisfying collection of 12 songs. Growing up, I remember my mom playing the 1997 hit “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” constantly. This album is anything but her past hits that brought the Canadian country star to fame. After a decade that gave Twain a son, a divorce, and an illness that brought the fear that she would never be able to sing again, she’s back and ready

Katie Johnson, Head of Styling 1. Anita Pallenburg photos Dating not one, but two members of The Rolling Stones was step one of becoming an It Girl. German-Italian actress and model Anita Pallenburg also had her own coolness about her that was independent from the rockstar men she dated. She had a bohemian-meets-rocker-groupie style that she smoothly flaunted. In the ’60s and ’70s, Pallenburg rocked power suits, chunky belts, big coats and scarves, disco tops, and platform

Emma Friend, Photo Chief Unless you live under a rock, you’ve heard about Taylor Swift’s new album, Midnights . Midnights is her 10th studio album (12th if you count the re-recordings), and is a re-entrance into what we know and love: Taylor Swift as pop. Those who became fans in 2020 after her releases of folklore and evermore are surprised by her seemingly sudden foray into pop, but pop is the genre Taylor is most comfortable in, as we see in 1989 (2014) , Reputation (201

Kate Tocke, blogger Here at OU we feel at home. Whether you live in the luxury that is Jeff Hall or the not as luxurious dirty south, we all have our ways of making our dorm rooms feel like home. You are either the person who scatters their wall with posters or you leave them barren. There is no in between. Recently everyone at OU – and all over the internet – has seen the familiar Ohio dorm halls on their TikTok for you pages recently, and that is because OU student Stuart

Aubrey Cline, blogger Sometimes keeping-up with your mental health is difficult. As college students, we all experience a range of ups and downs that affect our mental health at the end of the day. From the big class assignments we may have forgotten to turn-in, the quarrels we may have with our roommates or significant others from time-to-time, to the events of the long-awaited weekend rage; our mental health is at a cost. Now, that might sound scary to some – the cost of m

Abby Lindley, PR Director “It’s a pleasure to share one’s memories. Everything remembered is dear, endearing, touching, precious. At least the past is safe though we didn’t know it at the time. We know it now. Because it’s in the past; because we have survived.” (Sontag) I pride myself on having a horrible memory. I forget birthdays and meetings. I forget what my favorite song was two years ago and who I went to my freshman year homecoming with. I am self-aware of how unawar

Image taken from TENSPACE Max Abbatiello, Web Editor Hello everyone! My name is Max Abbatiello and I am the new Web Editor for Variant. I’m grateful to be a part of such an amazing publication! I thought I’d provide a little information about me to introduce myself to you lovely readers. I’m a junior at OU studying Journalism. I like to read, write, draw, listen to music, and play video games. I’d have to say throughout my time in Athens my favorite memory would have to be

By: Emily Squance , Blogger Located in Rising Sun, Indiana, The Red Wolf Sanctuary (RWS) preserves and protects a wide variety of animals. Even though each creature may come from all walks of life, they are all able to call this non-for-profit home.  The Red Wolf Sanctuary was founded in 1979 on the mission of preserving North American wildlife. They hope that with their efforts in protecting and rehabilitating a wide variety of animals, they’ll allow future generations to

By Emily Squance, Blogger Tucked away behind various trees on Shafer Street, there sits a colorful building with an eye-catching pink and blue sign. Upon first glance Beads and Things may just look like an ordinary bead shop. However, inside you will be immersed in a world of color and creativity. Founded in May of 1990, Beads and Things started out as a dream yet to come to life. Ohio University grad, Joe Merkle, opened the store on 400 dollars cash and few supplies on han

By Ashley Formani Curology and its College Ambassador Program are super excited to share an great opportunity for college students to get access to affordable and effective skincare through their Curology Access Program. Curology is a skincare company that provides personalized skin care treatments. A Curology provider works one on one with each customer to create a personal skin care plan. This may include anything from acne and blackheads to fine lines and wrinkles. Each me

By: Halle Dray Photos by: Madeline Melragon Katherine Jellison, Ph.D., is a U.S. and social history, and women and gender studies expert, who teaches at Ohio University. Jellison is a veteran of academia; she grew up as the daughter of a university administrator and has been surrounded by a collegiate atmosphere since childhood. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Iowa and immediately became a professor. Jellison has intensively studied and experienced various soc

By: Amanda White After the decision of Roe v. Wade , there has been a pattern of almost identical legislation put into place in states across the nation to restrict abortion, making access to abortion increasingly scarce. For over a century, women, and those with the ability to get pregnant, have been fighting for their reproductive rights in the U.S., through movements such as The Women’s March. In 1976, after the decision of Roe v. Wade , the Hyde Amendment was legislated,