daughteroftitania

[daughteroftitania]

There’s a reason all the Tumblr girlies/lads/theydies get seriously unwell about Dangerous Tekkers. It’s one of the great wrestling love stories.

10/10 review, no notes. ❤️👏

Late as hell because I wasn't online when it happened, but here's why Taichi vs ZSJ from the NJC on 3/15 is so devastating. I'm very normal about this match. I'm normal about these two men and I can be trusted around matches where they're in the same ring /s.

Long so it goes after the cut.

(Btw I will say this here once but it goes for the entire post so please keep it in mind: it's irrelevant to me what's work or what's shoot. At the end of the day this is an art form, so if it was said in a tweet or on stream or backstage I'm taking it as absolute truth for the characters. If it made you feel something it's real enough, the rest is just a footnote.)

So, the mise-en-scène is that everything fucking sucks. Suzuki-gun is no more, Dangerous Tekkers are no more, Taichi was just hanging out with a literal pack of Just Some Guys in a casual work only relationship so that he can avoid getting hurt again, and yet he still gets hurt (btw you will burn in hell for this, Sanada). Sana-yan and Taichi go way, way back, so this latest betrayal brought to you by Action Comics The Amazing Always Lose Everything-man hurts especially deep and sharp. On stream he's been wondering, does this promotion even still need me? Does the wrestling business even still need me? Things are fucked, there's a reason he abandoned love, you know the spiel by now.

This is how we go into the NJC. I don't know about you, but when the participants and rounds got announced, personally I wasn't feeling particularly enthusiastic. Last year Tekkers didn't meet for their fated matchup, and this year it seemed even more unlikely as I assumed the Kidd push would continue (thanks, Kenny /s). But that's not how it went. Of course Zack wins his match, but in a surprising turn of events, so does Taichi. It's via count-out, but he wins nonetheless. Thus he will meet Zack on 3/15, with a preview tag set for 3/14.

He's absolutely miserable about it. He's so frustrated at the repeated interferences, the repeated setbacks, his own shortcomings, his lack of tangible achievements, but he's especially sad and embittered about the way this all came together. On stream he says that him and Zack have been wishing and waiting for a singles match ever since Suzuki-gun disbanded. Understandably, Taichi wanted it to be a big deal. So much does even the chance for matchup mean to him that anything but the main event of a big show is unacceptable. The way he got here makes him feel wretched. Wretched in front of himself, and wretched in front of Zack. Backstage he asks the cameras, and thus us, the audience, as well as the company, how the hell he's supposed to stand across from Zack and look him in the eyes. He, who has nothing to show for it. He's here by sheer luck. Even before the Kidd match he already sits awake all night, feeling awful. Even when Zack had the World belt, Taichi wanted to win the Global first so he could face Zack on somewhat equal footing. He even contemplates just withdrawing from the tournament altogether. It means that much to him.

What about Zack? Of course he's also distraught and irate deep down, but where Zack and Taichi differ in this, is that Zack has a clear goal: his goal is to motivate Taichi to come out of his moping shell. So yeah, it wasn't what they had wished for, but they can, as he says, control what they can control. We don't know what exactly they talked about as they find each other beneath the apron after the preview tag, heatedly making eye contact like two lovers outside a club in the morning hours, as far as they are concerned the only people in a ten mile radius. But we know that it resonated with Taichi, and he recounts some of it on stream. That this is still, in spite of everything, their match. It's only about how wins or loses (and not-so-secretly Zack is hoping Taichi wins, because he wants to see him at the top of that mountain where he knows he belongs). They'll wrestle this for themselves. It's fate. They're the best, they'll steal the show. "He said to me, 'How long have we waited for this match? How many years? Not the fans, not the company, how much have we waited? That's what matters most'." Zack knows it, and so does Taichi, even if he still claims his lack of talent and accolades is the reason it never happened sooner.

And backstage on 3/14 Zack practically yells at Taichi to wake up, shake off the misery and face him in the ring with all he's got. Because it also means that much to him. It's tough love, but it's love. "I will force the Taichi that I know, the man who should've already been a main eventer a decade ago. The only person that doubts you, Taichi, is yourself."

That tough love goes a long way, because once Taichi sees said comments, he's struck to his core. Who has ever treated him that way? "For as long as I live I will be proud of having tagged with you and having won the Best Tag Team Award." If you got some déjà-vu, it's because Taichi, much like myself and I wager to guess many of you, keeps coming back to this. No matter what happens, his life keeps coming back to Zack. But the thing about Taichi is that he has, in fact, that dog in him. No matter how many times he's pushed down, no matter how bad his luck is, no matter how many times he contemplates quitting, somehow, he always gets back up. And so, while still frustrated and sad, he goes into the 3/15 match a little bit more motivated, thanks to finding that inner fire and thanks to his former tag partner (or tag partner for life, according to Zack). They set out to steal the show and blow the main event out of the water, and boy, did they.

How do I even describe this match? If you haven't seen it yet, I aggressively implore you to (and the preview match, bc it's a very good and very emotional primer). You'll probably need a metaphorical cigarette after. They went out there that day to lay themselves bare-naked in front of the fans and the cameras and everyone else. The second half of the match made me yell like I haven't yelled at pro wrestling in a long time (the good kind of yell). If you're still somehow on the fence, take a look at these wonderful gifs to get a taste of a fraction of what you're gonna see in the match.

There's one spot in it that I can't stop thinking about, and I think it's because it embodies this whole encounter and story to me. After wisely escaping Zack's Cobra Twist and applying his Holy Cross Mausoleum (the name, ofc, comes from Fist of the North Star, but the moves is modeled after Kawada's dragon sleeper, the Stretch Plum), he has Zack trapped in the middle of the ring. But Zack just eggs him on. "More, harder," he seems to say with his hands and the patting of Taichi's head, even while he himself is already turning purple (I know you can "fake" it, that's not the point). He didn't care if he was gonna pass out in the middle of the ring at that moment. He didn't care if he was gonna lose (you can make a strong argument that he didn't even want to win), as long as it meant that Taichi got to a place where he could show the rest of the world what Zack has known for so many years.

So Taichi digs a little bit deeper still (altho arguably Kawada represents his very roots). He whips out a beautiful Emerald Flowsion and an even more beautiful belly-to-back ("LIFE IS A CHALLENG, SEIZE YOUR CHANCES" indeed), Zack whips out a beautiful Gotch-style piledriver in his own way to refer to back to their shared past, comms and the crowd and I scream and have been screaming for the past several minutes. What is the finish, you ask? A Zack-style Taichi-style Gedo Clutch. If that ain't love, I don't know what is. A move that can only exist because they met. "Thank you for coming into my life," Taichi says in a tweet after the match, something he has said before but will probably say until his last breath. As Zack himself puts it, he wouldn't be here without Taichi, and maybe this was his way of paying him back.

There's so much from Taichi's stream after the match as well, but if I had to pick one thing, it would be this: "I have all of these friends, I'm blessed with all of these friendships, people who support me and push me, but that was the first time someone has ever said something like that to me. I've always told myself that I'm not made to be champion, that this is all I can do. No wonder I couldn't get ahead."

He doesn't feel like he lost that day, and he's right. He didn't. Zack gave him what he needed to get back the most important love of all: the love for yourself. "Maybe," he muses, "I still have what it takes to love myself again." It's a new dawn.

Brother I need to lie down. Dangerous Tekkers forever.

(Also immediately after the match Taichi said Zack told him that this isn't over. The finish might have been smart (and a bit emotional), but it wasn't the end of this. I hope that, whenever they do get their next match, it comes in the shape that they've been hoping for, and it blows whatever else is on the card out of the water once more.)

(Also also this has nothing to do with anything, but later on stream someone comes along with the usual "are u really hitting each other" and it made me laugh as Taichi rolled up his sleeve and showed them Zack's FOOTPRINT on his shoulder lol. Wrestling fans are gonna wrestling fans.)

In summary, it's kinda funny that the guy is so obsessed with gacha because his luck is notoriously bad, but he's a trooper. Every time NJPW actually lets their story breathe again, I can't help but throw my fists on the ground in frustration. Not even at the company (though I will have Gedo's heart on a stick and then eat it). It's frustration at the "maybe in the next life" of it all. THERE'S STILL TIME YOU MORON. You already pulled the SSSS Ultra Rare ★★★★★★★ waifu!!!! THERE'S STILL TIME!!! I HEAR KYOTO IS BEAUTIFUL THIS TIME OF THE YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!

[daughteroftitania]

I will never get tired of this clip. Never.

I fucking love them both.

Shooter and Ospreay went to pride together?!?!!?!

[daughteroftitania]

Mate.

Swansea is Paul Heyman.

Mouthwashing Wrestler Fancast

Jimmy as CM Punk (wwe)

Curly as Hangman Adam Page (aew)

Anya as Rhea Ripley (wwe)

Daisuke as Shota Umino (njpw)

[daughteroftitania]

Uh oh - I hope ‘your new best friend’ Will didn’t hear that, Kenny…

[daughteroftitania]

I miss him too…😞

But then I remember what his April schedule looks like - we gonna be FEASTING next month. 🎉❤️

[daughteroftitania]

Can confirm. It also gives us a sense of what’s working/what we’re good at.

I mean, authors should write the stories/pairings THEY want to write, rather than worry about what plays well to the reading public - that was never in question. However, the comments and kudos do help to banish that little voice in our ear saying ‘your writing is a bit shit, no one actually wants to read your stuff’.

It’s like plants and water - some plants do ok without regular watering (kudos/comments), but most plants will fail to thrive (less writing/stories/updates), if not outright die (stop writing altogether).

Case in point: I had a patch where I got comparatively little feedback (granted, the stories were shorter because Fluffbruary, but still) and I was thinking “well, damn.” Only got halfway through Fluffbruary this year - kind of lost interest, you know?

Fixed up a WIP that had been languishing in developmental hell since January (‘Confessions’), and HOLY SHIT that one blew up, relatively speaking.

Granted, it was somewhat spicier so that may have had something to do with it (damn, the people in pro wrestling fandom are a THIRSTY bunch 😂).

However, my point stands - watching those little numbers tick up reinvigorated me, got me writing again (hello, Fandom Trumps Hate ‘25 auction listing!), and made me realise that hey, maybe I CAN write worth a damn.

Reasons people may decline to comment or kudos on fanfiction they enjoyed:

They consider comments and kudos transactional compensation to the author, and they don't feel that the work was good enough to deserve compensation, or they don't believe they owe compensation to fan authors in general.

They consider comments and kudos as feedback, and they don't feel that the author wants or needs feedback from them.

However, comments and kudos aren't compensation, and they aren't even necessarily feedback either.

Comments and kudos for fan authors are:

encouragement to keep writing

reciprocation of a bid for connection

interaction with your community

confirmation that they're not the only one interested in their story

Please don't consider comments, or especially kudos, purely transactional or purely a form of feedback. Comments and kudos are a way to show authors in your community that you're glad they're there.

Authors aren't "entitled" to kudos or comments, but readers aren't "entitled" to fic, either.

Fanfiction is a community, and when an author repeatedly reaches out to their community for connection only to receive silence in return it is very discouraging and can result in the author withdrawing from the community altogether.

[daughteroftitania]

El Desperado has one of the most gorgeous smiles on the NJPW roster.

And there’s some strong competition in that regard (Robbie Eagles and Yota Tsuji come to mind…)

And because they were trying to fill up time, please enjoy a round of kissing between Despy, ELP, Tanahashi and Goto.

[daughteroftitania]

BABYYYYYYYY 😍😍😍

*squeeing noises*

Opened YouTube and was BLESSED with this video. I think this is now the earliest match I’ve seen of Jay. I couldn’t get through this without screaming about how cute he is every two minutes. https://youtu.be/6G5YeWiAU6k?si=BWRZY2gRQ-XitmiZ

[daughteroftitania]

Fucking THANK. YOU. 👏👏👏

Omega, Ibushi, Takeshita - all DDT guys.

When people talk about wrestlers needing to spend time in Japan, they usually mean nooj or Noah.

Realistically it should be fucking DDT. Learn how to be silly with it and have a character. Also learn to show your ass. Literally.

[daughteroftitania]

Where might I find such videos?

You know, for science.

Watching back some old Schadenfreude stuff from FCP and man. Chris and Kyle rlly were just. All over each other huh

[daughteroftitania]

My turn - I’m Verenestra on AO3:

https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verenestra/works

wrestling fic writers!!

i have decided to be the change i wanna see, so lets do a nice little thing for each other, as a community full of incredible and talented writers. yes this is writer specific only, but thats cause thats where the main problem of people not interacting with creative works lies in this fandom as far as i can tell and have seen people talking about it especially in the last couple of months

if you read this, please add links to your written works. it can be just a single fic youre really proud of, your writing blog, your writing tag, your ao3 account, anything where your works can be found

and if you leave your link here, PLEASE check out someone else that has left their works, and interact with them. leave them a comment, even just a kudos, REBLOG their fic, etc. interacting is the keyword i want to emphasize here, along with building a sort of a masterpost of where to find people writing in this fandom

and if you are not a writer, youre still highly encouraged to interact with this post and share it and show love to the writers in this fandom, obviously!! i think that should go without saying, but adding it in anyways

a bit more about my vision and resources and such under the read more, but thats the gist of it. happy linking and please be kind and supportive to each other!! 💜

nobody is too big or too small to add their things on this list. if you write and post anything in this fandom whatsoever, be it fics or drabbles or headcanons, any companies or any kind of ships or reader inserts or any content whatsoever no matter how 'dead dove dont eat' or hell even if its just meta, we welcome all here and nobody can say that one thing is less valid than another. just please tag your content accordingly, especially if theres content warnings, and feel free to mention what you write, who you write, any info you wish to leave that would help people before they click on your links. but even so, that should not and hopefully will not deter people from interacting, no matter what it is. someones trash is another ones treasure, i promise you

and unless the amount gets really overwhelming, im personally going to be checking out everyone that leaves something here. unless it squeaks me out, but even then, i'll spread the word. and i just wish as many people as possible will do the same, and not just use this as a potential board to only get eyes on their stuff. ofc thats also the point, but you should give as much, if not more, than you get. we need to be kind and supportive of one another (besides, from personal experience, if you show love to someone else, they are more likely to do it back than without you taking the first step, so... pay it forward)

as for resources, heres a few links that should be helpful in leaving comments and feedback. of course everyone does their own thing and no comment is too big or too small to leave, but for those who need them. if you have anything you'd like added to this list, dont hesitate to get in touch or drop it in the post yourself!!

101 comment starters

ao3 floating comment box

kudos html

dont know how to comment? easy solutions

a quick hot guide to commenting (by yours truly)

an overall guide to appreciating fanfic writers

and just in general.. leave people comments. leave them asks about their projects. just go over and gush about their work. i know it sounds embarrassing but writers love nothing more than to hear that someone likes what they are doing. if you find a fic that hasnt been updated in forever, comment on it. it might just be the spark the author needs to continue. while kudos and likes are nice, and just as valuable to some, its definitely in the words the people leave for them that matter the most. im not saying this to put pressure on anyone, its just how it is, and i feel like unless people are writers themselves, and even then sometimes, thats just hard to grasp, especially if the writer is a smaller and less popular one who doesnt get a lot of traffic in the first place

i think thats all. just be nice and considered to everyone, reblog peoples works, this post with others add ons and so forth. and if i find anyone talking shit here or at other writers for something they share, you'll be blocked and im probably taking your kneecaps. be fucking nice. we are all struggling here and we need to stick together

happy sharing and commenting 💜💜

[daughteroftitania]

Me explaining to my partner why the Zack/Taichi match earlier this week was so important…

dangerous tekkers + marriage proposals

[daughteroftitania]

So I finally finished that AEW Kinkmeme prompt fill…

That was…rather fun, actually. 😁 Maybe I should do more prompt fills/requests…

[daughteroftitania]

About bloody time Mark made it on the show. 😍

[daughteroftitania]

Can we get Chris Brookes in BOSJ?

(Last I checked he was still under 100kg…just. 👀)

Can we get Hirata in bosj?

[daughteroftitania]

I am a simple woman. I see Zack Sabre Jr, I reblog. 😁❤️

[daughteroftitania]

Ooooh.

Dealing With Executive Dysfunction - A Masterpost

The “getting it done in an unconventional way” method.

The “it’s not cheating to do it the easy way” method.

The “fuck what you’re supposed to do” method.

The “get stuff done while you wait” method.

The “you don’t have to do everything at once” method.

The “it doesn’t have to be permanent to be helpful” method.

The “break the task into smaller steps” method.

The “treat yourself like a pet” method.

The “it doesn’t have to be all or nothing” method.

The “put on a persona” method.

The “act like you’re filming a tutorial” method.

The “you don’t have to do it perfectly” method.

The “wait for a trigger” method.

The “do it for your future self” method.

The “might as well” method.

The “when self discipline doesn’t cut it” method.

The “taking care of yourself to take care of your pet” method.

The “make it easy” method.

The “junebugging” method.

The “just show up” method.

The “accept when you need help” method.

The “make it into a game” method.

The “everything worth doing is worth doing poorly” method.

The “trick yourself” method.

The “break it into even smaller steps” method.

The “let go of should” method.

The “your body is an animal you have to take care of” method.

The “fork theory” method.

The “effectivity over aesthetics” method.