happysharkintensifies

[happysharkintensifies]

anyway in case you don’t know it yet

[happysharkintensifies]

Fuck yeah! Mastercard fucked themselves over by reaching out to their associates (namely Riot Games) to try to censor the backlash they're getting and now SI ESports press is reporting on them.

That is what I call activism building on itself-The calls scared them into making a dumbass move and now they've only put more of a spotlight on their shitty behavior, which only puts more pressure on them.

Keep it up! <3 (For anyone wanting to participate, this is a good guide with resources, as is this!)

[happysharkintensifies]

also do people in the armored core universe go to the emblem store and ask for as many layers of irony in their emblems as possible .. walter's

emblem is the hand of a doll holding all the strings, because he is still a puppet to his past, to something greater . okay we get it old man . calm down

[happysharkintensifies]

Booktok discourse is having a problem.

Hi, if you’re like me you’re the kind of snobby bitch who sees everything you hear about Booktok and think it’s dumb. And I do think Booktok is very dumb, occasionally quite problematic, and I think aspects of the culture around reading it’s created are unhealthy. I know what making comics into collectables did in the 90’s and seeing that happen with novels concerns me. But push comes to shove people are allowed to like trash. I have posts about liking the Crow, I don’t really get to go off on problematic media tastes too hard.

And also this asshat got me thinking about BookTok in a new way, and that should worry you.

Jayden Jeslo is a self-described conservative writer of his own fiction book, a handful of Daily Wire articles, and a YouTube channel where he talks about modern culture and politics. If you’re wondering how good he is at that, here’s a YouTube short of him just ignoring someone’s analysis of WALL•E to make a transphobic joke about their appearance:

Yeah I can see why the Daily Wire took him on.

He doesn’t just make shorts though, but also full videos where he takes slightly more time to get into subjects. It’s tempting to call these video essays, and in a structural sense of the word they are, but they’re primitive by the modern standards of the format. He’s trying to cover topics in roughly the same time Hbomberguy used to spend ripping into Alt-right internet weirdos, but not as funny or well thought out or cited. This man is out here barely citing a thing in a post James Somerton world, he’s middle school tier, embarrassing.

I discovered Jayden through his video How Toxic Feminism Destoried the Arts and then watched BookTok and the Downfall of Modern Literature because I sometimes enjoy watching a take I think I'll disagree with to see if I can understand it or at least why I don't like it. The reasons I don't like Jayden's videos are pretty simple; he's an asshole who seems to have no curiosity for perspectives outside of his own or anything beyond a gut reaction. The WALL•E short is a good example, but the videos are in general surface level and go to frankly nonsensical places like calling The Handmaid's Tale a "beach read" and "pure LARP." He over all comes across as very judgy and stuck up, which based on his community posts seems to be the goal.

Well on your way Jayden.

But on the subject of his Community Posts another one that caught my eye is this one:

This was after the BookTok video but before the one about the Feminists ruining literature, and I can confirm the comment section on the later video is mostly libs roasting him. And Jayden is not a popular YouTuber, you saw the sub count earlier, in 2020's YouTuber terms 1k subs is nothing.

If for some reason Jayden is reading this post, I think I know what happened bud. Your videos on BookTok were close enough to videos that are made by creators who are more appealing to the Left, at least in the eyes of the YouTube algorithm, that it sent it over there. And that should honestly be a shock in the system to everyone who claims to be on that side of the asile.

Jayden's videos are not very insightfull, and are very puritanical, but they're not entirely out of line with a moderate responce to BookTok. The second video is more so, but there's a problem with the general responce of "why is there so much smut?" Which frankly is not the issue with BookTok, the marketing of that smut is a much bigger issue, but people get really hung up about the content because sex makes you uncomfortable.

What I'm trying to say, is one that Jayden Jeslo sucks and someone should keep an eye on him in case he somehow gets popular, but also that if YouTube is confusing people who dislike BookTok with his audience, we need to rexamine our approach.

[happysharkintensifies]

It’s strange how engaging in critical discourses in this fandom is inherently seen as aggressive and that these readers are ignorant to the main issue that is the writer.

All (hopefully) critics are well aware that the characters are fictional and just devices to further the plot. Every choice of theirs is just one made by the author to dramatise her story.

It sure is hard to objectively criticise them when the author’s influence is blatantly obvious and her biases are interweaved with the narrative itself. She doesn’t care for the reactions of the situations she puts her characters in or their implications.

But I don’t agree with these ‘enlightened’ takes that you should abandon these serious criticisms of any nature solely because the author is the problem.

Getting horny and writing one fucked-up scene is understandable. But book after book, it’s the same tale. Women are torn down and abused and their strength is proven when they successfully endure it and survive.

Tamlin wasn’t turned into an abuser because SJM wanted to represent the survivors. It was the easiest way to dismantle Feylin she set up in the entirety of book within ten chapters so she could move on to hot sex with Rhysand and absolve Feyre for it in the same breath. Feyre was tortured UtM because SJM thought it was hot and being idly locked up in a cell in an enemy land didn’t scream hero enough. Cassian didn’t abuse Nesta because he was evil, but the IC couldn’t induct Nesta right away without any resistance after hating her for two books.

See, SJM isn’t a genius whose thought process is indecipherable. No one is criticising her because her ideas are too original. It’s because she is using the same old tactics men have been using for centuries when portraying women.

Consider the romances. The female leads bend over backwards to prove themselves and mould into ideal wives for their love interests. What did Rhysand do in two whole books while Feyre was running around proving she was a worthy warrior to stand beside a High Lord? What was Cassian doing while Nesta is torn down to her very core and rebuilt throughout the book to fit perfectly into the IC? What change did the men undergo to carve space for these women in their lives? It is a romance. Written for women for fuck’s sake. And these female leads are proving their worth to the ones who abused them that they are deserving of love while all these men offer them are good dicks.

I don’t see the appeal in Feylin, Feysand, Nessian, Elucien, Elriel. Literally none of the canon ships fascinates me. But other readers might enjoy a few aspects of it—maybe the banters, love bombing, the different sex kinks. Which is only a blip in the toxic dynamics among the characters, and this is where the problem arises.

Majority of the fandom glosses the entire relationship as black and white. Feylin is a pairing from hell because they fell apart while Feysand is the one to be aspired for as they are the endgame. As a result, every flaw in their relationship is turned a blind eye to as it doesn’t matter, and of course, the writer is terrible.

And since most discourses explore the nuances of abuse, I don’t believe it should be dismissed lightly. It’s one thing to be exposed to a medium, be fully aware of its problematic themes and be able to admit it’s not something you condone or want in real life, and you are merely experiencing it as an escapism, but there are people who genuinely want to recreate moments from these series because they are ‘romantic’ or ‘hot’.

In these cases, criticisms are absolutely necessary. Especially when sexual abuse is masked as necessary act to protect a woman, or that it’s acceptable for truth about her body kept from her, or that lying and cheating your way through everything is fine, or the deaths of innocents is fine as long as it’s by a woman on a rampage against one man.

When these are never approached as a problem or the narrative never holds the characters accountable for the wrongs, the readers are allowed to do so as and when it fits.

Saying a character shouldn’t be judged on their actions as they are poorly written is a bizzare take. The inconsistencies you see in Rhysand, Cassian, Feyre only come out with their good qualities, while they are very consistent when it comes to their cruelty and abuse. It’s like saying you should ignore every bit of personality they showcased in the books in favour of the ’good guy’ version the narrative intended to sell but failed.

I was tempted to read this series because of the raving on multiple platforms. I had never once come across one complaint before I picked these books. That’s how saturated this fandom is.

I’d understand if this kind of attitude came from the pro side since it’s their favourites being completely dissected into an unrecognisable specimen, but why are you on the anti side if you don’t want harsh takes? And as usual, there is one simple remedy. Tags. Use them. Block them.

The solution is not to eliminate any and all discourse but to have it in a healthy, conducive environment. If they dampen your enjoyment of the series, you always have the choice to disengage.

I don’t entertain fanfiction here anymore as my impression on the characters haven’t changed much even now. Similarly, some might want to indulge with parts they love and ignore the rest. And others might be content with rewriting as a means of justice to their favourites. All of them are acceptable modes of interacting with a literature you consumed.

It’s easier to create a version of the story in my head and walk away, which I have had many in this fandom (mostly writers) tell me, I also don’t need you to suggest me something so obvious..? I already do that. I write. I have been delusional for a long time. And I can just as easily move onto a better book worth my time.

I grew up in a very dysfunctional family, had multiple experiences with abusive, narcissistic people and for someone like me, toxicity was the norm. It took me exploring media, analysing it and questioning it is how I learnt a lot of what I was subjected to was unfair and traumatic. I am an asexual and I am uncomfortable with sex. And there had been times when I didn’t know if it was a ‘me’ thing or straight up assault until I read about them, heard people talk about them. It didn’t resolve all my issues or heal me right away but it helped me process my experiences way late into my adulthood and let go of some of the guilt.

When you are raised in a society where ‘families are just like that’ or ‘it’s how everyone feels about sex’ or ‘it’s not our culture’ or whatever tagline you’ve heard so far, you turn to outside perspective.

My engagement with this fandom I absolutely hate for a book I hate is for the same reason. This series single-handedly reversed most conversations about consent and abuse with its golden pairings. Rhysand abused Feyre, even if you don’t want to see it as sexual assault because the author didn’t intend to, it is a form of torture and his excuse is that he cared for her and he wanted her to survive. Cassian putting Nesta down every two pages only to use her for sex and punish her for others is seen as a caring, romantic gesture.

Imagine a woman (or man or whoever) who lived through similar instances in real life (it’s more common than you think it’s possible) and reading these books. It triggers negative emotions in her, brings up old memories, but it leaves her questioning herself and her situation since here is the fandom glorifying all this as the dream relationship every woman should aspire for. And she can’t open up about it as Rhysand and Cassian are the embodiment of manhood and chivalry.

I don’t know how to put it mildly, but being neutral on these books and saying you’d gladly ignore these issues isn’t the flex you believe it to be. Maybe you are too evolved to grasp this and be conscious of your choices, which I am truly glad you had a safe space to learn that so early no matter where you are in your life, but this fandom has proved me it’s not true for most. I'll admit there are some far fetched claims and rage on either side of the fandom, but do not discourage people from having conversations about these topics.

[happysharkintensifies]

Let me tell you guys what Armored Core means to me.

My first ever video game was Armored Core 2: Another Age. I grew up as a Power Rangers kid. So when I saw Wonder Raid on the box art on some bargain bin amongst some other discounted DVDs, I thought I saw a really cool Megazord so I told my dad "I want THAT one!" I grew up with the series. I even brought it to show and tell to school one time to talk about "the robots I thought were really cool." I was so disappointed in finding out that the barrel sticking out of the chest wasn't a gun.

Armored Core is who I am today and why I've made the choices I've made. Even before I entrenched myself more with the mecha genre with Gundam, Mazinger, and even the wider spread of tokusatsu, Armored Core was always there with me from the beginning. I only ever played Another Age to consistently lose on the first mission and get as far as I could before I grew up a little more and discovered what a memory card was. I've played every single AC at a young age -- first it was AA, then I played 3 and fell in love with it, then found the PSX titles and blew through those as well, getting used to how different those games felt. All this before there were even talks of a "new" Xbox or "Playstation 3." Once 4 and for Answer were in my possession, their simple presentation shaped who I am today.

One of my core memories are my parents watching the news in the living room and I'd go between that and my first time playing AC3. I had an issue back in middle school where I kept buying copies of AC4 and giving it to my friends with the hopes that we'd play the coop missions. Most of *my* time at home was playing AC4 over and over again. I met my best friend in high school when the conversation pivoted to Armored Core during home period during the conversation of mecha anime and games. We bonded over AC4.

Back in 2013 when Verdict Day dropped, so too did its banging tunes. This was on top of all the AC music I already grew up with. I was going through 10th grade at the time, and I remember flipping through covers of Day after Day. Giovansen did a cover of it, and it was *the* definitive version of the song for me. I'd listen to it on repeat while doing my AP Chem homework. Then the years dragged on, played some Bloodborne, appreciated how haunting the sound design was.

Years during AC's hiatus, I've enjoyed other games the years have had to offer, but year after year, I held onto hope for the next AC game. Since 2015, I had graduated high school, started university, and started hopping jobs busy to make something of my life. Dark Souls, New Vegas, yearly Call of Duty releases, whatever was there, I'd take it. But nothing could ever be a new Armored Core.

Then the TGA 2022. At that point, I had jokingly said online that "this is it, this is gonna be the Armored Core 6 reveal" on several gaming events, never actually expecting an announcement to be made. Even the slightest sliver of a mecha could have me point at the screen and have a giggle with my buddies. They'd know I was the big mecha fan, only ever caring about the giant 10 meter husks of robotics. Prior to the reveal trailer, various rumors started surfacing about Miyazaki and his team "working on a project they wanted to work on" and From Software listing job positions for a mechanical designer. The signs were there. It was no longer a matter of "if" there will ever be a new Armored Core during the adventure of From's massive success with what they've made a name of themselves with, but rather "when" they'd reveal it.

I was happy Elden Ring won GOTY. The Souls series, at that time, became something of a form of expression for me. Especially 2. Elden Ring felt like a realized version of Dark Souls 2 for me. All of From's hard work had not been for naught, and they'd take their success in strides.

Geoff announced that he was honored to make a global announcement. He does this all the time. Bandai Namco. Another anime game. The blinking red made me think of that Code Vein game I've never played. The burning structures were doused in flame, I couldn't tell what all that fire was about.

"Feed the fire. Let the last cinders burn." Ah, fire. Must be another Dark Souls.

The snowy field buffeted the mechanical wrecks. The junker's colder hand reached out for the scrap metal. I turned my head. "Is that... a robot?"

The camera pans out.

FROM SOFTWARE

I had started crying that night. At that moment, I couldn't believe it was real. We know it now as the Melander head, but it looked a lot like the Crest head unit. It was hard to tell with my tears getting in the way. Units mobilized, giant mechas wreaked havoc, and I was waiting for it. We've seen it, now the confirmation. Oh God, that visor is so cool. It boosts away.

Armored Core VI.

At that moment, my friends started flooding me with "It's here!" and "Abel! Abel!"

Memories of me coming home, turning on my PS2 to replay the final missions of 3, the first time I played AA, all the time I spent laser blading on fA, the prior 10 years suddenly caved in on me. It was real.

I'm about to turn 29. My best friend got me the Collector's Edition of VI when it released, she knew what the series meant to me, but due to Bandai Namco and USPS meddling, it got to my house later than the game's release date, but it arrived on my birthday. When I saw the box and started opening its contents, I started crying again.

It's September 26, a month after its release. I no longer have all the time in the world to play video games all day anymore, with my job for the city I live in and my pursuit of my Master's degree in Info Tech (a field vastly influenced by my time with Armored Core and mecha in general). But the only game I have been playing since it's arrival is Armored Core 6. I've long since gotten all the achievements, but even when the game has shown me all it has to offer after 10 years of development, it really is the only game I will play for the rest of the year.

Armored Core 6 is everything I've always wanted it to be. And I'm proud of it.

Fast forward to AC6 and the Disc 3 release, I saw snippets of photos taken in the studio and took a good look at the track listing before it dropped. Soon after, I fell in LOVE with Takes Me Anywhere. What do you MEAN the whole staff sung this? What do you MEAN it sounds so hopeful? When I saw the composer, I decided to look up "Shoi Miyazawa."

And when I saw his name online was "Giovansen," it was like the Ratatouille scene where the critic was immediately reminded of his mom's cooking.

I was suddenly back in 10th grade.

Miyazawa's early fan work, a fan of Kota Hoshino and Frequency's music just like us, is likely what allowed him to work his way through From Soft's sound team. Where he would end up working *alongside* Kota Hoshino, the person whose music inspired him to do what he does, on AC6 on all things, the franchise where it all started.

And then when Kota worked on Steel Haze, Miyazawa composed Where Truths Meet, where he and Kota worked on the song together, even doing vocals for it?

Takes Me Anywhere is a celebration, a song ten years in the making. It's a reminder that dreams come true, that there's always a light in the dark. It's a song *I* waited for for ten years.

So in 6 when you have to *fight* to earn your title of Raven, when Maggie talks about the Dark Raven and her determination to fight? It means something to me.

[happysharkintensifies]

SSC + HORUS frames done!

Lancer Tactics v0.3.3 is live — we've finished off implementation for all SSC and HORUS mechs. Almost there!

Also ft. a second blog post that I broke off of the update bc it ended up being longer and more technical than I expected. Titled BRING YOUR BALOR TO WORK DAY; my lab notes as I implement the Balor frame traits.

[happysharkintensifies]

Reblog to give prev the power to write their fanfiction

[happysharkintensifies]

GOG is taking a stand against payment processors caving to fundamentalist religious groups and is offering a bunch of "banned" games for free. (via Ashley Lynch on bsky)

[happysharkintensifies]

Pay attention to the particulars of Mastercard's responses, because this a textbook example of how to create plausible deniability.

"Mastercard has not barred any legal transaction" is, technically, a true statement – because Mastercard is not the one processing the transactions in the first place. Mastercard does not deal directly with any merchant, and in fact typically refuses to communicate with merchants at all; there's always a payment processing service sitting in between Mastercard and the merchant, whether that's Stripe or Paypal or any of dozens of other service providers.

Consequently, there are two layers of service agreements in place: the agreement between Mastercard and the payment processing service, and the agreement between the payment processing service and the merchant. That second layer of service agreements, between the payment processing service and the merchant, is where all of these content restrictions are being imposed. Mastercard can thus truthfully claim that they aren't barring legal transactions.

Now, if you've been paying attention, you've probably already spotted the issue: if the content restrictions are being imposed upon the merchants by individual payment processing services and not by Mastercard, why do all of those payment processing services seem to have exactly the same content restrictions?

That's where the critical sleight of hand comes in: while Mastercard's own terms of service do not require payment processing services to bar transactions of particular types, their ToS does require payment processors to bar transactions which could be damaging to the Mastercard brand. What constitutes damage to the Mastercard brand is not defined; it means whatever Mastercard wants it to mean. The payment processing services are thus in a position where they can be held in breach of Mastercard's terms of service for basically any reason, which gives them a strong incentive not to test any boundaries.

And that's why Mastercard can truthfully say they have never barred any legal transaction: they're never the ones doing the blocking. The layer of payment processing services that sits between Mastercard and the merchants are enforcing those content restrictions, based on a series of unwritten handshake agreements between the payment processors and Mastercard regarding what does and does not constitute acceptable content – and because the particulars of those handshake agreements aren't in writing, Mastercard can assert that their terms of service do not compel payment processing services to bar any legal transaction and technically be telling the truth.

[happysharkintensifies]

kids deserve so much more respect and it turns out that saying that is a great way to locate the horrible people in any community <3

[happysharkintensifies]

What really ticks me off when talking about ai is when people are like "it's unavoidable" or "you'll have to learn to use it someday" or "its going to be part of the future" like no it's plenty avoidable actually if you have a spine stronger than a dandelion. You simply say "no" and continue to use your own goddamn brain.

[happysharkintensifies]

Every day is a reason to celebrate 🥂🥳

[happysharkintensifies]

the only reason Feyre thinks Rhysand is a good high lord is because she's uneducated.

No good leader of a nation would focus all his energies on 1(ONE) city, allowing the majority of the population to remain corrupt, sexist, and violent to build a negative public image of the court as a whole in order to protect the one secret city he's actually invested in.

"permanent divide" as if he couldn't have spent the last 200-odd years working to incentivize honest work in the CoN, save the women from the abuses they suffer, rehabilitate those willing to change. put on his scary high lord mask and bring them to heel until they're willing to see a better way. be the truly morally grey high lord everyone claims he is and use those blasted daemati powers to manipulate the leadership towards better morals.

Worse, he uses their terrible reputation to keep every other court at bay. He's not even pretending to try to improve the lives of the unfortunate people who live there (you cannot tell me that everyone in HC or CoN or Illyria is evil beyond repair and that there aren't people desperate to escape). He keeps Velaris cut off from the world and sticks to dreaming of a better future for everyone instead of actually doing something.

(also isolating from the rest of the world is not good? just in general. The most isolated countries in the world [N. Korea comes to mind] are not wealthy, not well-thought of, and generally have corruption issues if they're forcibly keeping their citizen within their borders.)

What good is being the so-called "most powerful high lord in Prythian's history" if you can't even bring about change in your own court?

idk that i'm strictly anti-Rhys, because he has the potential to be an interesting character (and actually was interesting in acotar) but he kind of feels like a nepo baby who says he wants to do activism and stuff but is really performative about it.

[happysharkintensifies]

My Thoughts on the trip to Summer in ACOMAF

Part I

Everything that happened here was a multitude of bad decisions made by teenagers, not politicians, not people in charge of countries (courts but you get my meaning), and definitely not someone born and trained to be High Lord.

From the moment they arrive, things are simply bad...

Amazing! Simply amazing! The best thing you want to say to a potential ally about anyone! Simply amazing! Whoever taught Rhysand that needs a raise (if they exist, which I doubt, because anyone with a brain would've told him what a bad idea that was).

As always, Rhysand's words about Feyre have a sexual connotation. You know, all he did Utm wasn't enough. He had to continue. Showing so little respect for someone he claims is working with him not only in front of a potential ally but in front of another leader. You know, what he did Utm didn't degrade her enough in the eyes of his fellow High Lords (although it definitely should degrade him, as it speaks volumes of Rhysand's true character).

Really, Feyre? What exactly is Tarquin? A toddler?

He's a High Lord! Let's say he is not as powerful as Rhysand when it comes to magic (although, I think they all have power types of magic, just different), but he's still a High Lord. He might be inexperienced, yes. But, politically speaking, he has the same power as Rhysand. The High Lords are supposed to be equals.

Also, that's his own house! Where was he supposed to sit? On the table?

Another amazing idea! Let's insult our potential ally by threatening his people and his cousin!

Is he saying anything wrong? No, I don't think so. Like, what other answer should he give to a threat? Yes, Your Highness, me and my whole court will bow to your divine will? What else was the man supposed to say?

So, maybe, instead of lying and stealing, we're going to have a nice conversation? Any of you ever heard of communication? I don't know, taking the risk of telling him seems less risky than stealing from him and gaining a new enemy. Are the king of Hybern and Tamlin not enough for them? How many wars do they want to fight?

Very nice that you acknowledge it, Feyre.

Girl, Rhysand is a High Lord, Tamlin is a High Lord. Like, the guy is even fighting for class equality and you still think he's evil? He's offering you a family legacy! He's thanking you for saving their lives and not laughing at his revolutionary plans!

I get why she doesn't trust him, yeah. But it's not hard to contemplate the risks. In my opinion, better take the risk of being honest (especially gathering all they know of Tarquin) than risking making him an enemy in the future.

How exactly are you trying to do that, Rhysand? Let's see: by separating his court into 3 different cities (lands, whatever) and keeping those people separated. You can't even make 2/3 of those people listen to you! And, yet, he says he wants to make them equal. Assuming there are lesser faeries in Hewn City and Velaris, Rhysand is still trying to do one thing, and one thing alone. Keep them separated. He doesn't make differences just between High and lesser fae, but also between all of them, depending on the city in which they were born.

Really? Really? Are you serious right now?

So, the only ones allowed to have dreams are the inner circle and Feyre? Are they the only ones living in this world?

I absolutely, absolutely hate this paragraph. Because it makes it sound as if the only dreamers are those people, the only ones allowed to have a dream. Take Tarquin, for example. He has a dream. But he's not allowed to call himself a dreamer? And the people who suffered for fifty years under Amarantha's reign? Are we really expected to believe they never dreamt of a better life? All people, actually, from all times? Do we think the humans five hundred years ago didn't dream of being free? Isn't that what started the War? The dream, the desire of so many to be free?

I'll link Part II here when I finish it.

[happysharkintensifies]

[happysharkintensifies]

I miss makima she was always on that "hello yes I am normal human" shit she was so funny with it