#<— directed at the fandom outside of this website

[fairy-writes]

I read your 'Young Prodigies' fic I could help feeling softie reading this. Could I request what if the twins have a baby sister? The baby inherited her father's a cheerful personality.

How would the twins and papa soshiro interact with the little girl?

LITTLE HANDS, BIG HEART

Reblogs and Comments are greatly appreciated!!

__________________________________________________________________________

Fandom(s): Kaiju No. 8

Pairing(s): Hoshina Soshiro x Reader

Word Count: 0.6k

Genre(s)/Tag(s): Gender Neutral!Reader, Original Child Characters, Fluff, 

Notes: So this starts in the hospital when the little girl is born. This implies that a: reader gave birth or, b: you adopted her, or c: you had a surrogate and picked her up at the hospital. Either way, I tried keeping this gender-neutral. 

The names I picked and their meanings are as follows (pls lmk if I got any meanings wrong, I’m using a website for said names)

Katsuo: Victory and/or hero

Osamu: Discipline/study

Sachie: Happiness and/or good luck

The twins call you “Poppy” in this :)

__________________________________________________________________________

The hospital nursery was quiet this time of night. 

Soshiro held Katsuo and Osamu’s hands in his as the little trio made their way down the hall where you were waiting. 

“Dad? Where’s our baby sister?” Katsuo asked and tugged on his father’s hand. It was a cute gesture for the ten-year-old. One he had never quite grown out of since he was still a toddler. Holding their hands was also a habit that Soshiro never grew out of. 

“In the nursery. We’re almost there.” He said simply, spotting you outside the window to what he assumed was the nursery.

“Poppy!” The twins shout in unison, letting go of their father’s hand and scampering to your side. You turn and spot them, your face breaking out in a grin, and you kneel to give them both a tight hug. 

“I hope traffic wasn’t too bad?” You direct your question to your husband as he approaches at a more leisurely pace. 

“Not at all. It’s like midnight. How’s the little tyke?” He said, leaning in to kiss your temple as you stood up. You hum and pull his lips in to meet yours in a quick kiss. 

“She’s wonderful, sleeping right now, but she’s good.” You say against his mouth, only pulling away when Osamu gets your attention by waving a hand in your general direction. 

“Which one is she?” He asks, face pressed against the glass separating the sleeping babies from the rest of the world. Katsuo joined his twin, and together, they squinted at the names written on the little bassinets. You approach the boys, your hand in Soshiro’s, and you point to one on the second row away from you. 

“Second row back, third one from the left.” You say gently. Soshiro looks and sees a little pink blob swaddled in a pastel pink blanket and a matching hat over a soft head of curls. 

The twins chatter eagerly and babble excitedly about all the things they want to teach their little sister when they get to bring her home. You smile warmly as you watch your sons and ruffle their hair. 

“Do you want to go in and see her?” You ask, and it’s like a record screeched to a stop. They stop dead in their tracks and stare at you with wide eyes. Soshiro can’t help but grin as he flags down a nursery doctor. 

“Can we go in and see our little one?” He asked, and the nursery doctor nodded happily. Your little family is given instructions and overgowns to wear before entering the nursery. The gowns drown Katsuo and Osamu, but they’re practically bouncing in excitement, so they don’t mind much. 

Inside the nursery was even quieter than outside. Inside was filled with the quiet cooing of babies or sleeping noises. There wasn’t a crying infant in sight. 

You lead the way, talking in soft tones to your boys as Soshiro watches on fondly. The gowns rustle as you arrive at the bassinet containing their baby sister. 

Her eyes are open now, and she’s cooing up at them with a wide and curious gaze. Her arms are swaddled to her sides, but Soshiro bet she’d be reaching up if she could. With the okay from the watching attending nurse, you picked up the little girl. You handed her gently to Soshiro as Katsuo and Osamu coo happily at their new baby sister. 

Surprisingly, Soshiro feels a pinprick of tears in his eyes. 

“Are you crying?” You ask and he turns his head away to scrub it on his shoulders. 

“‘Course I am. She’s adorable.” He said, turning his watery smile back to the cooing newborn in his arms. 

“Welcome to the family, Sachie.” He whispered, and she squealed in delight. 

[telomeke]

MY 2024 TUMBLR TOP 10

Yes I'm really late with this (totally on-brand for me 🤣) but that is the downside of waiting for 2024 to end before posting about it – and then taking too long to complete the task. Still, better late than never!

I was tagged to do this by @he-is-lightning-in-a-bottle at this post here. Thanks dearie! 🥰 (And if you'd like to play along too, there's no need to trawl through your posts manually, thank heaven. Just go to this website – Jet Black Code – and it'll list your Top 10 Tumblr posts in seconds. 👍😊)

So my activity on Tumblr (particularly writing about Thai BL) took a serious dip in 2024 (especially the latter half) for a number of reasons:

Work has ramped up in the post-COVID era, with work projects now coming onstream fast and furious. This has left me with a lot less time outside of work, which translates to less time for QL-watching, and (obviously) also less time to post about it.

My favorite queer auteur Aof Noppharnach Chaiyahwimhon has decided to step back from writing and directing (see these posts here and here), and in his absence I'm finding that non-Aof QL offerings are (perhaps unsurprisingly) disappointingly patchy in quality, which has turned QL-watching into a bit of a crapshoot (and less of a draw). With my short attention span I frankly need a show to be arresting in some way to stay committed – although I must add here that I don't need it to be highbrow art, just entertaining enough without being unduly insulting to the gray matter. So even a trashy series is fine as long as it's made clear to us we have to leave our loftier expectations at the door (memories of KinnPorsche flashing in my mind here – which also tells me my gray matter can handle quite a barrage of insulting if a show is entertaining enough 🤣). I was momentarily heartened by the promise of Khun Aof helming the GeminiFourth vehicle Ticket to Heaven in 2025 (such a beautiful trailer, a lush mini-movie almost), but I've come around to thinking this is more of an activist statement by him (commenting on the mainstream Christian/Catholic position vis-à-vis LGBTQ+ issues, remembering also that Khun Aof has a Catholic background). With this as the context, there's a high chance this show will never get made due to various sensitivities (but I live in hope nonetheless!):

With Khun Aof taking more of a backseat, my main feed for BL – GMMTV – seems to have pressed the pause button on more thought-provoking fare in favor of shows that are more formulaic and mass-market (read: vehicles for their branded couples, squarely aimed at the less discriminating and freer-spending sectors of the squealing teen audience). I've written more about it at these links here and here. And it's tough to keep watching GMMTV series when the plots don't deviate much from a well-worn template, rehashing narrative tropes because the formula is a proven money-spinner. A case in point: Kidnap the Series – never thought I'd give up on a show brimming with episode upon episode of a macho, shirtless, simping Ohm Pawat, but all that radiant manflesh still wasn't enough to keep me interested, which simply goes to show how dire the situation is. 😬🤷‍♂️ And with GMMTV enticing me less and less, I've been posting even less about BL as a result too.

Anyway, this explains why I have more original posts in the first half of 2024, while the latter half was mostly reblogs of other people's posts (and in keeping with the dictates of the game I'm only listing my own posts here, for what it's worth).

So after all that, on to my Top 10 for 2024:

✨NUMBER 1✨

My most popular post of the year was about a mysterious monk who inexplicably kept popping up in various Thai BLs: 👀

Appearing in Bad Buddy, KinnPorsche and The Sign, he was also sighted in non-BLs Pee Nak (still LGBTQ+ friendly), The Cave, Hemimeta, The Believers and The Murderer, resolutely a monk in all but the last one.

So working collectively, the BL fandom somehow managed to track down and identify the actor who plays everyone's favorite BL-friendly monk – he's Werawat Jumroensarn, not actually a monk in real life but nonetheless still a highly-religious Thai Buddhist who adroitly brings a sagely, monastic vibe to all his roles. The Thai BL fandom salutes you, Khun Werawat! 🙏💖

‌

✨NUMBER 2✨

This post was an explainer for the sudden flood of videos and GIFs on Tumblr showing Babe Tanatat all dressed up in traditional costume finery and performing a ceremonial dance somewhere outside Bangkok, while Billy Patchanon flapped about him gaily and garudaesquely in decidedly more normcore and less flashy garb.

The event turned out to be a worship ceremony put on by Idol Factory in faraway Nakhon Phanom, to honor the Great Naga of the Mekong even as The Sign deployed naga and garuda mythology in its storytelling, making waves here on Tumblr for fusing Thai supernatural beliefs with BL.

It was a highly respectful gesture from Idol Factory, thanking the nagas for allowing a representation of their story to be told as part of The Sign. Also respectful was the decision to have Billy abstain from the performance, probably because he was playing one of the garudas (who are mortal enemies of the nagas). All of which goes to show just how much belief in the spiritual and supernatural is woven throughout everyday life in Thailand. 👍

Babe, Heng and Songjet's little dance video at the link above is also breathtakingly beautiful. If I were the Naga being worshipped I'd certainly feel very honored indeed. 😍

‌

✨NUMBER 3✨

Ooh. 😵 This was one sex-drenched post, all about the visual rhetoric surrounding Tharn and Phaya's first time consummating their forbidden love and lust for each other (at least in their current reincarnations) as portrayed in The Sign:

So hot was the subject matter that despite my clinical descriptions and focus on the art direction, Tumblr's wonky algorithms (or possibly just some overworked backroom staff? 😂) decided that it was all too... too... (swoons into a deathly faint here) unseemly for the delicate constitution of the average Tumblrina in the BL fandom. (Yeah, right. Did no one survive KinnPorsche, Pit Babe or Playboyy??? 🤣)

And so they BLOCKED IT. Not once, but TWICE, which sent me scurrying to Admin with a flurry of appeals and explanations (that finally succeeded in getting the post reinstated, thank goodness). 😬

But really, all I was doing was noting how the lighting, colors, props and cinematography were working together to echo the breathless sensuality throbbing onscreen, when our two protagonists gave in to primordial desires much greater than themselves and attempted to unite their bodies as much as they could to counterbalance the heavily pre-ordained intertwining of their souls.

I think Idol Factory did a great job all around with this scene (both the players in front of the lens as well as those behind it). But was my post really all that raunchy though? I'll have to let you decide. 🤔

(above) The Sign Ep.7 [5/5] 19.47 – Phaya hungrily tops a gasping Tharn, even while a hard-working lamp from the Austin Powers range of home furnishings tries its best to do double duty: casting a sexy magenta light on everything while clumsily censoring any possible glimpse of Nagaruda penis and buttcrack 🤣

‌

✨NUMBER 4✨

Ah. Hmmm. 👀 Oops! Well, well...

I assure you, gentle reader and fellow BL fan, that I am not wholly possessed of a one-track mind – and yet somehow the next post here has also managed to turn all sexy and magenta while winking slyly at unspoken meanings hidden between the lines. Again. 🤣

Taking my Number 4 spot is a light-hearted post about Wandee Goodday nodding tongue-in-cheek at some legendary Thai porn, and this sideways jokery also shone as an example of WDGD's early charm, wit and intelligence. There was so much to look at and write about in the series, and I was especially taken with the lighting and art direction (all that yellow and magenta, standing in for Yoryak and Wandee) that I wrote reams about it.

But then… I decided not to post any of that, when the latter half of the show began to wander woozily about, punch drunk and semi-directionless, leading to an ending that turned out to be quite a letdown.

They squandered the obvious chemistry between the two leads and allowed a promising sexbuds-to-soulmates love story to meander to an unsatisfying conclusion. So many clever elements, but all set free to run wildly in a plethora of uncoordinated directions. This one disappointed me in the end, and it makes me sad to think of what might have been. But its fun moments were fun indeed, so I guess it's not a total loss. Inn Sarin really needs to start dialling back on the plastic surgery though. 😂

‌

✨NUMBER 5✨

Oh thank goodness there was 4 Minutes for us to lose our minds over collectively in 2024. Sleek, shiny, sexy – and that was just Great's car collection (the show itself, even more so 🥰).

Ah the mystery of it all! So convoluted was the Sammon plot that I found myself churning out post after post (work deadlines be damned) trying to guess at the underlying logic coursing beneath the spooky narrative onscreen, adding to the roiling cauldron of fan theories on Tumblr aiming to explain it all.

In the end Be On Cloud chose a more middle-of-the-road resolution, but there's no denying 4 Minutes captured the imaginations of so many. I remained impressed through to the end, and I will say it again: Director Ning Bhanbhassa Dhubthien is one to watch, especially if her sure hand is allowed to rein in the excesses of Khun Pond and Dr. Sammon's wilder imaginings.

But my most popular post about 4 Minutes wasn't anything to do with the screenwriting, cinematography or directing though. 🤔

As usual, a pithy take (only nine words!) is easier to like and reblog on Tumblr, and all I did was point out a cute detail about the merchandise – when you place the black and white cat plushies (standing in for Great and Tyme) side-by-side, the random color blocks on the side of each, marring the individual symmetry, form a perfect and symmetrical heart when it's cats à deux:

And of course this is signaling how each completes the other in GreatTyme's unconventional, multi-pronged love story. Big AWWWW here 💖, but then again let's not forget how DARK it all is so let's go in with a black-and-white color scheme to remind us we ain't in Hello Kitty World, but also let's not get too dark so it's soft soft kitties all the way, but oh dear that's too cute so let's give them grumpy, frowny faces and make them look as malevolent as can be. Oh! But how then did we end up with MALEVOLENT cat plushies, spawn of brooding kittenish evil, pets and pride of Chucky? Then again, why not malevolent cat plushies for the win? 🤣

I can't help thinking the constant push and pull between commercial considerations versus artistic vision in Thai BL will always follow a similar trackway, though Be On Cloud seems to have done a better job with 4 Minutes than GMMTV on most of their offerings, is my take on the subject. 😍

‌

✨NUMBER 6✨

OK, so I'm not watching The Heart Killers, nor have I ever seen The Taming of the Shrew (that one episode of Moonlighting and 10 Things I Hate About You don't count), but nonetheless it tickled me no end to see Shakespeare credited as a co-creator on My Drama List for this series, and my Number 6 post was a signal boost for that:

This wasn't just some editor at MDL having a lark, though I do approve. Willie Shakes is also credited on other Asian productions there (As We Like It and The Banquet) and he now has his own MDL page too. 😂👍

Anyway, credit where credit is due! 😍 (Move over Mr. Kaewpanpong, a new William has joined the BL fold. 🤣)

‌

✨NUMBER 7✨

If you've ever been mystified by the vagaries of romanized Thai spelling and pronunciation, my favorite Thai (and Canadian) chef Pailin Chongchitnant has a nifty little vid that goes some way to explain its complexity, linked in this post:

Prior to this, I had so many questions: 🤣

Why does Pat in Bad Buddy spell his name with an 'h'? Why does Google Translate spell his name with an 'r', and why does the Google lady pronounce it Pat-tara?

Still in BBS, why does Pran's mom call him (to my ears) Bprrraan when Pa calls him Bpaan? (Like, where did the 'r' go?🤷‍♂️)

What's up with the 'l' in Tul Pakorn's name sounding more like an 'n'? WHAT DO YOU MEAN Suvarnabhumi is pronounced more like Suwannapoom!? 👀😂

I now have a better understanding of the linguistic (and socio-political/cultural) contortions going on behind the scenes here after watching Pai's video, and I hold her encouraging words to heart (as dear @recentadultburnout reminded me in a comment on the post 🥰): "Whatever you do, it's just all various degrees of wrong." 🤣 Not a put-down, simply Pai letting us know that the language is far more complex than can be summarized with the puny 26 letters of the English alphabet. 👍🤩

‌

✨NUMBER 8✨

A little out of character for me, but this post has no images. And then it starts out with "There are no words..." when the post is all words. 🤣

It's really a short post about the whiplash we all went through when the arguably milk-and-water Last Twilight aired its episodes on the same day as the sex-forward Omegaverse-inhabiting Pit Babe. Really, there are no words that can do the experience justice. 🤣

‌

✨NUMBER 9✨

Are we descending into a pattern here? 🤣 Post Number 9 consists of a single image and no text (except for the subtitles):

Well I did caption it in the ALT Text though: 🤣

Wandee Goodday Ep.6 [4/4] 8.06 – Yoryak references the night it all began, when he rescued a trashy pile of a doctor outside a convenience store

‌

✨NUMBER 10✨

And rounding up my Top 10 was a signal boost bit of BL reportage, linking to the GoyNattyDream in-car interview on YouTube with Mew Suppasit and Tul Pakorn, BL royalty and officially a couple in real life:

Mew and Tul had soft-launched confirmation of their romance in the months preceding with tons of social media posts showing them hanging out and holidaying together, but from what I can gather this was the first time (or if not the first, at least one of the earliest times) they out-and-out confirmed their relationship, and candidly spoke about it, on the record. 💖

A big step for Thai BL, that paradoxically has to operate in an industry where people in positions of influence can sometimes be homophobic to actors who are (or even suspected of being) queer in real life. 👀

Congratulations to the happy couple, and congratulations to you too, dear reader, if you've read this post all the way down to here!

Not much else to do but tag others – although this is so late I figure everyone's already done it. But since I've not been on Tumblr much I've missed who's done it and who's not, so I'm just going to tag people at random, and if you've already done this please link me to your post so I can read it. 🥰 And even if I've not tagged you but you'd like to play please do so (and tag me too, so I can read your post)!

Onward tagging:

@bengiyo

@neuroticbookworm

@dribs-and-drabbles

@solitaryandwandering

@airenyah

@grapejuicegay

@waitmyturtles

@twig-tea

@rythyme

@respectthepetty

@relativelydimensional

@wen-kexing-apologist

@colourme-feral

@ranchthoughts

@chickenstrangers

@callipigio

@kattahj

@non-binarypal7

@starryalpacasstuff

@shortpplfedup

@hughungrybear

@pandasmagorica

@visualtaehyun

@inventedfangirling

@recentadultburnout

@dimplesandfierceeyes

@dudeyuri

@lovelyghostv

@dc-alves

@fiddlepickdouglas

@hapiestupid

@yinwaryuri

@writerwithoutsound

@randompens

@nihilisticcondensedmilk

@syrinth

@naniskys

@delesaria-blog

@narcissusneverknewme

@pokomumee

@suni-san

@belladonna-and-the-sweetpeas

@aroceu

@italianpersonwithashippersheart

Tagging @lurkingshan too – I already read and reblogged your post (linked here), but if you think there are others I should check out please do let me know! 💖

‌

[jeio-kimi]

Lost In Translation

A deep dive into the widespread misinformation of 19 Days (19天) prod. By: Old Xian (Old先)

Part: 1

Part: 2

Hello! 19 days readers! How many times have you and I seen this online?

"19 days takes place in the past when all of the characters are in middle school."

"I've been reading 19 Days online, and I just found out that they're all 15 year olds??!"

"What? They don't look like they're in middle school."

Many people within the 19 Days Fandom seem to believe in two important details about this story: 1. This story is a flashback. 2. The flashback of this story takes place when the characters are in middle school.

However, while it is provably canonical that the story we are reading is majorly in the past. The ages of the characters have never been specified by the creator of the web series Old Xian. In fact, there is more evidence directing towards an older age for the main characters than the one perceived by most readers. But why is this the case? If the story itself shows the readers what the ages should be assumed to be, why would so many people assume a completely different age? This confusion is mostly caused through the mistranslation of the readers.

Now, while it should be stated that 19 Days has no official English translation at this time. The fandom's appointed English translator, "Maomaozaii" (on Twitter), has never stated within the translation of a chapter, nor off script the canonical ages of the characters. So where is this "they're all 15 year olds" claim derive from?

Here's what I've fround:

19 Days: Chapter 45

In what is probably one of the most perplexing chapters of the series, Our main character Zhan Zheng Xi, explains that his best friend Jian Yi had disappeared after the second day of high-school began. Jian Yi explains in a "flashback" sequence that he was kindaped to an island by two strange men, which Zhan Zheng Xi has a hard time believing.

This has lead to the majority of the fandom assuming that the story of 19 days takes place before Jian Yi was kindaped. When the two boys would have been in middle school.

However this idea can be quickly debunked when continuing to the next chapter.

It is never stated how long Jian Yi was gone for, but what is stated is that both boys are still in high-school after Jian Yi returns.

After showing back up to Zhan Zheng Xi house, Jian Yi works on homework and expresses that he wants to attend the same university as Zhan Zheng Xi when he graduates. The chapters after Jian Yi's return continue with the two's daily life in high-school with no reference of taking place in the past. Due to this I can be assured that the story is taking place contemporarily.

19 Days Wikia

Now I'm sure most of us understand why "Wiki" & "Wikipedia" pages are not considered reliable sources, I will explain just incase. Fandom "Wiki" and "Wikipedia" itself are pages of a website that can be created and edited by anyone with a wiki account. These accounts are not moderated and not verified by the site owners. Meaning, any information released on the web pages are not from official or trusted sources, and shouldn't be taken as authentic. The 19 days Wikia, makes claims of canonical information that has never been specified by the creator, within or outside of the web series. Along with this, the web page itself is entirely outdated, only having coverage of the series up to chapter 210. As well as other false information.

19 Days: Chapter 122

This chapter introduces the infamous "3rd Year" label on the lockers next to He Tian and Jian Yi. Most people will see this and try to surmise what "3rd Year" refers too. So let's talk about the Chinese school system.

"3rd Year" in this instance can refer one of two Grade levels: "Chu-3" (9th Grade) or Gao-3 (12th Grade). The assimilation by viewers that believed that Jian Yi is still in middle school with Zhan Zheng Xi that the "3rd Year" label refers to "Chu-3" making all of our main characters 9th graders. However, as I stated earlier, it is shown to us that Jian Yi and Zhan Zheng Xi are both still in high-school when he returns. Which if the label refers to "Gao-3" or 12th Grade this would also make since. If Jian Yi gets kindaped the second day of 10th grade (second day of high-school), disappears for two years, then comes back, it would make him a 10th grader. Which would make the most sense following what is shown to us within the story. I will STRONGLY note; that neither, Jian Yi nor He Tian interact with the side the lockers labeled "3rd Year" are on. So, it's possible that it's not even in reference to their grade level.

So... what are their ages?

Continues in:

Part: 2

[twentythirteez]

SKZ LMB Poll Masterpost

This master-post contains links to polls to understand the opinions of Stays and ex-Stays on Tumblr, in relation to the new SKZ song "Lose My Breath". If you are a Stay or ex-Stay, I would really appreciate your input in these polls! Thank you in advance.

Starting with the initial question: Are you a Wavemaker Stay?

Depending on your answer to that question, please answer the following questions that apply to you:

If you are a Wavemaker Stay:

Do you like the version with Puth, or only the one without him?

Were you aware or Johnny Goldstein's participation before voting on this set of polls?

If you are not a Wavemaker Stay (can be Stay or ex-Stay):

Are you currently a fan of SKZ?

(If not) Main reason for leaving the SKZ fandom

(if not) What would it take for you to become a fan again?

Do you think SKZ have changed significantly since you first became a fan of them?

Regardless of if you are a Wavemaker or not:

When did you join the SKZ fandom?

----------

For various reasons, I have also included a few non-poll links that feel relevant.

For starters, the Gaza eSims website helps insure that Gazan civilians can stay in contact with the outside world.

gazafunds.com takes you to a GoFundMe page of a random Palestinian family in need.

A link to the PCRF (Palestinian Children's Relief Fund) is here.

Tumblr blogger @astraystayyh has made a helpful post with a fundraiser, as well as direct links to UNRWA and CareForGaza.

@bandzboy has made a useful k-pop Music Box with some convenient downloadable resources. Highly recommend it.

Thank you all so much.

[i-am-grell]

Abrupt Anime Poll Time

If this headache goes away, I will definitely finish Chainsaw Man tonight (keep watch for me being So Normal in a notes app reaction), so I'll start running the next poll.

If you're new here, I like anime, but I'm terrible at finishing and starting series, so I let friends, mutuals, and strangers control my life via the internet.

As always, propaganda* (*unhinged rambles) below the poll. You are allowed and encouraged to reblog if you wanna bully your followers into voting for your choice. Other people's followers and assorted users, you do not have to know me, follow me, like me, or like anime if you want to vote. Pick a button. Do it. Give into the urge to press it.

Propaganda:

How we handle long long series - When it comes to those billion-episodes-long series we all know and love, I'll watch a season/arc/naturally-divided-segment of the series. I'll always specify how much I'll be watching here.

Rambles

Free! - You are absolutely allowed to vote for Free! however (ignore this for your voting choices) the longer it stays in the polls, the more 50% Off! quotes I get to use.

Fairy Tail - I keep forgetting this is the Fairy Tail Webbed Site. (Also that bit above was a witty quip; Gray doesn't need clothes.) Anyway, this poll will cover a rewatch of season one because I don't know where I left off last time so I'm just gonna go around again.

Voltron: Legendary Defender - Before we get technical here, the Um, Actually home game has a question in the anime section about V:LD and if the pedantic nerd show says it's anime, I can put it in a poll. Anyway, I never finished it because a) what the fuck was that release schedule I'm bad with normal release schedules and b) yeah, I know from being on Tumblr that it goes in some unsatisfying directions, but completionist brain always meant to finish it.

Buddy Daddies - I think outside of the few it was paired with SK8 (though it did well there too), Buddy Daddies has been another consistent second place choice in these polls. So, I summon the Buddy Daddies fandom. Let's see if you can defeat the Fairy Tail fans on the Fairy Tail website.

Blue Period - Painting sure is fun! You know what else is fun? Killing your best friend. That doesn't sound fun at all, Haru. I think Haru's right. We should branch out in our hobbies. There. I got another 50% Off! quote in. Anyway, this is an anime about painting and I just bought the first vol. of the manga (haven't read it yet though).

Bungo Stray Dogs - Hi, I'm an English major-

[klanced]

Lance had literally no impact as a character if you weren't directly involved in the fandom. I had several Voltron- and Voltron-adjacent mutuals at the shows height, but all you ever really knew from the outside is that it was some people in space. Yuri on Ice was to a much greater degree about the characters--again, I never had direct involvement, never watched an episode, but through cultural osmosis I knew all about Yurri, his character arc, and his dynamic with the other guy (Victor?). Lance absolutely cannot compete, not in the sense of website blorbo. He's too specific, with no greater cultural relevancy whatsoever. He wasn't even gay.

[gffa]

hiya! long time listener, first time caller-- I'm writing a couple fics with Jedi protagonists (Shaak Ti, Mace, other Prequel Jedi) which is really fun so far except for the part where I "majored in" (read: hyperfixated on) Organization and Tactics of the GAR and don't actually know that much about the Jedi as individuals, *especially* anything that happened before TPM.

I was wondering if you know of any resources that organize/compile information about that era of Jedi? Things like lineage lists, who was on the Council when, typical schedules/roles/responsibilities, that kinda thing. Resources can be any format; other Tumblr blogs, articles, images, discord servers, archived websites, whatever works! Even the obvious stuff can be helpful (outside of Wookiepedia), since this isn't a part of fandom I've walked through much. You're the only big-name Jedi blog I know.

(If you don't have the spoons to respond, I understand, thanks for reading anyway!)

Hi! Congrats on writing your fic, I'm wishing you all the luck in the world! And here's where my brain starts spinning in a bunch of different directions, because here's the sticky thing about Star Wars "lore": there are three separate continuities and, while you are absolutely free to mix and match as you like and should pick out all the things that interest you, no matter the continuity, they do still exist in separate realms. You have Lucas' Star Wars, you have Legends Star Wars (the Extended Universe/EU under Lucas' ownership of SW, but he has explicitly said it's a separate world from his Star Wars), and you have Disney Star Wars. There is worldbuilding in each of them (though, often very thin on the ground at times) but what's true in one isn't going to be true in another--for example, in Legends there was an age cut off for Jedi initiates at 13, if they didn't get a Master. This limit does not exist at all in Lucas' SW (is contradicted by Ahsoka at 14 being said to be YOUNG for being a Padawan) and Disney Star Wars (there's an Initiate who is 16 and doesn't have a Master and will have to wait at least another year to try again, with no hint of them aging out). You pick which works for you! Just that I think it helps to be aware of what bits come from which continuity. There's also not a ton of pre-TPM content, at least not after The High Republic! Though, I've found THR stuff generally pretty helpful for prequel-era Jedi stuff, because they act and behave 98% of the same way imo! THAT SAID, I tend to collate as much of the Lucas continuity and Disney continuity (as they're the ones I generally prefer) and I have a bunch of resources if you don't mind some homework reading! 😂 I did at least make it as easy to browse as I can, though! - Jedi Culture and Teachings in Canon - A mix of Lucas and Disney content mostly, organized by sections for hopefully easier browsing for what you're looking for! Because 75k words of citations is a lot. orz This is going to give you probably the most of what you want, because I have been working to collect all of that kind of stuff--descriptions of the Temple and personal quarters, any rituals they have, how a Jedi's day is structured, what different paths and roles are common with Jedi, all the Jedi philosophy, what kind of pets they have, etc. It's in three (so far) parts, so you'll have to browse through each of them, but the set-up is the same in each one, so if you find a section that you need the info on, just Ctrl+F to find it in the next part or skip to the same chapter, they're the same template for each! - My "reference" tag - Which is a mixed bag of various posts and different continuities (primarily Lucas + Disney, though) that organize this kind of thing, like a possible in-universe calendar system [also here], a collection of worldbuilding bits specific to Padawan, which was pre-TPM, crossection of the Jedi Temple, a Jedi Council seating arrangement chart through the years, a list of the handful of Master&Apprentice match-ups that we know, a list of "what kind of swearing do people of the galaxy do?" because it's hilarious, a compilation of everything I could find about Jedi healers in ANY continuity, etc. I hope this helps and if you have any other questions (or anyone else wants to suggest other resources!), feel free to ask, I might be able to better steer you if you have a specific question--or at least tell you that I don't think we have anything on that. AND ALSO just remember: the books and games and comics are pretty low on the "hard canon" level, the movies and the TV shows are the highest level of canon, everything else is supplementary and you do NOT have to scour every inch of it if you don't want to! Relax and have fun with it as best you can. <3

[midnightsilver]

Tips for Spn Artists posting on Tumblr 😄👍🏻

I see a lot of new artists posting Spn art and it can be a struggle to get your art out there. Or you might be new to Tumblr and not sure how best to put yourself forward.

I post Spn art and do a lot of bangs when my health permits. And I have picked up some tips that I have found helpful for posting art tumblr 😄 so I thought I would share.

Please feel free to take any of these points or leave them as suits you!

✨Personalise your header and icon. Bots will often make posts with popular tags and stolen art, to try and gain followers before throwing out the spam links, but some clues the account is a bot is not having personalised headers and icons, not having a long history of posts (more than a few days), and not talking about their art or fandom. So make sure you don’t look like a bot 😄

✨Interact with accounts you enjoy. Like, comment and reblog your favourite accounts and they will likely return the favour and you will get more followers. The first way your post gets noticed is by your followers. Interacting isn’t always easy if one is an introvert or doesn’t have much time for social media, but do what you can where you can.

✨If don’t have many followers then the next best thing is to use tags more. People follow key tags to find new posts from blogs they are not aware of. I recommend using the ‘Spn fanart’ tag on all your art posts. Also be sure to include: common ship names, the character names, and key words like: cute, funny, angst, angel, wings, etc 👍🏻 😄 this will help people find your posts, so be sure to tag consistently!

✨Make a personal art tag, it could be ‘your name art’ or something as wacky as you like. But tag all your art with it! If someone sees your art post out in the Spn fanart tags and they like it, they can click your art tag to see the rest of your art posts.

✨Don’t include links to outside webpages unless absolutely necessary. If you are posting for a bang, reblog the bang master post for the story which has the links to ao3, but then make your own art post and only link to the tumblr master post. Tumblr often hides posts with links to outside webpages (so that the porn bots sending you to spam websites get minimised, but unfortunately this also minimises links to ao3 or shops 😔). Links to another post inside of tumblr are ok tho! So to keep your art post from being hidden from searches, only link back to the master tumblr post with the story info. If people want to read the story they can follow the ao3 link from there. But it’s better that they actually get to see your art (the ‘advert’ for the story) in the first place so that they know it exists!

Also keep this info in mind if you are linking to your shop or your other socials. Your direct followers will see your shop posts but because of the external links the post might be hidden from searches. Consider doing a mix of posts with direct shop links and ones that get the info out there but link back to a pinned tumblr post or bio post with the outside link.

✨Don’t crowd your art. Many people view tumblr on mobile so your pictures will look small. People can’t really see the details if you put 2 images side by side. Put one image on each line and consider making some cropped images to show close up details of your favourite bits. You need to catch people as they are quickly scrolling past, so be sure that you make it easy for them to see what you are offering.

✨And finally don’t be afraid to do reblogs. It isn’t rude to reblog your own work, it’s helpful. Dashboards can get very busy and even if people follow you, your post might be burried a long way down if they don’t get back online multiple times a day. Reblogs will give them a chance to see what they missed. As long as you are not posting on the hour every hour, most people appreciate 2 or 3 reblogs at different times to save them having to scrolled back for days! 😄 and don’t forget that tumblr is multinational. Time zone reblogs can be helpful.

✨oh I forgot one more thing! Don’t put yourself down! No piece of art is perfect! Ever! But Michelangelo doesn’t start off by apologising that the statue of David is out of proportion. And neither should you! Let your work shine where it shines and don’t bury it in put-downs before you even give others the chance to enjoy its triumphs! You deserve better and so do they!

Those are the main points my friends. If you have any other helpful tips that you want to share, feel free to reblog this and add on points. We were all new to this hellsite (affectionate) at some point. And life is already hard for us struggling artists so whatever we can do to help each other is a good thing 💛

Stay awesome my friends, and happy Arting 🙌🏼😄

[flfverse]

hihi this might be a stupid question but I thought I’d ask anyways: did you come up with the bdsm AU?

If not, do you have any fic recs with the same ‘verse?👀

If you did, do you have plans to write more fics in the same verse, outside of the ones you’ve written?

Sorry if this is overstepping at all, I just adore this AU and am a curious fellow🙈 No pressure to answer🫶

not overstepping! i am also a curious fellow, and you’ve given me an opportunity to Talk History.

see, i did not come up with the BDSM AU, but i’ve read it for years and became fascinated with how people played with it. i love fandom history, so i eventually started to wonder where it came from and how it evolved.

the first BDSM AU was written by Xanthe (who has a website you can read all her stuff on, xanthe.com, and it also has an faq about her original world, super interesting) back in 2006. now, it’s possible that other people independently came up with a similar idea earlier than this (indeed, theres an early 2000s fantasy book series with a Vaguely similar premise), but everything i’ve ever found cites Xanthe as the first to do it in fandom and the one to popularize it, so we’re going with that.

the fic series was Stargate: Atlantis fic (john/rodney, for those familiar) with the basic premise of “alternate universe where being bisexual and kinky is the default.” no biological factor! just a different balance of sexualities. i only read part of the very first fic because they’re quite long and i don’t all the way jive with Xanthe’s writing style, so take this with a cup of salt, but they also lacked the dystopian edge many of the modern fics have. let’s be honest—like many fic tropes, it was mostly an excuse to write smut :P.

now, while Xanthe was quite a big name, and did have people spinning off and writing their own versions of her world, it might not have gone anywhere was it not for Helenish. Helenish took issue with Xanthe’s spin on the world and thought that she hadn’t fully explored the worldbuilding potential. she wrote Take Clothes Off As Directed, which i’ve recced on this blog and in the notes of Free Falling, because it is PHENOMENAL. it kept Xanthe’s premise and used it to explore a sexism allegory, very very similar to my stuff and other current popular BDSM AUs.

people began writing in Helenish’s ‘verse, some minor drama broke out between the two writers and their followers (presumably minor—much of this happened on Livejournal, which famously and tragically had many accounts wiped in 2007-2008, especially accounts that posted queer stuff or nsfw stuff or, in cases like these, both. so it’s difficult to figure out what exactly was happening in fandom around then, especially if you’re me and never used LJ and don’t know how to effectively navigate it)

annnyway, the thing took off, made its way to other fandoms, more and more people wrote their own versions, etc. over time, people began combining it with Omegaverse fics, since the two are pretty similar; when those fusions were pulled apart later, they affected one another; this is where BDSM AUs became more biology-flavored, and where we get certain Omegaverse tropes like “omega drop.”

if it wasn’t obvious, i’ve done a lot of looking into this, and i hope to do more soon and eventually put all that info to good use in some form of project—not sure what yet. i’m also not at allll biased between Xanthe and Helenish…..genuinely, Xanthe did a good thing and wrote a LOT of influential fic, we’re just…very different writers.

but ANYWAY, yeah, definitely not my idea, i’m building on the backs of thousands of writers before me. and it’s awesome.

i DO have a fic rec list somewhere on this blog, but i’m actually in the process of updating it! the goal is to get around 40-50 fics on there and i’m pretty close, so keep an eye out (it’s just taking a long time because i have to read fics to know if they’re good enough to rec….and then i just read fanfic for 6 hours….and then i reread some of them because they’re just really good….)

not sure what you mean by the third question—i don’t currently have any plans to write an AU outside of FLFverse, like a different fandom or plot or anything. i’ve thrown around the idea of what i affectionately call the SLSverse (that’s “seems like soaring,” get it, synonyms?), which would be what-ifs or AUs of the AU, but not its own thing.

within FLFverse, yes, i plan to write more fic XD. 2024 has been the roughest for my writing since probably 2019, which really sucks, but what can ya do. in truth, when i started writing Free Falling and Cross the Line and all those in fall 2023, i was hours from home/friends, unemployed, borderline flunking college, and like, big depressed—i had a ton of free time! and FLFverse was approximately the only thing i cared about. now i’m home again and have a job and am doing More Okay at school (academia and i are not friends), and i have other big fun projects to split my time between. i’m pretty determined to at least finish FF, even if it takes me another 10 years, and along the way i’ll write whatever oneshots strike my fancy.

so, yeah! that’s what’s up. thanks for the ask and giving me an excuse to yap about this AU <3

[aresmarked]

hey, ive seen a lot of good stuff about project sekai and mizuki's character on your blog and others whose opinions i trust and im intrigued to see what the hypes about, but i also swore i wouldnt play anymore gacha games after i got into arknights. do you know if theres a resource or website where i can read the story without having to interact with the gacha game elements?

hey! i can def help with that (and may i say, i'm truly delighted my rambles and others have piqued your interest, I've always appreciated your own analyses for other fandoms we've shared).

For just reading the story, though without L2D animations: sekai.best. Event stories, card stories, even the mini-convos that the characters have in the various areas, you can read them here. I'm constantly cross-referencing here when writing. You can also change in the settings what server you're looking at, so you can look at EN's translations, or at the stories only currently in JP for example.

For watching events with their official TLs: the official EN channel's playlists. Weirdly hard to find the channel so direct link here. Currently way behind as well. Someone noted, i think it was proseka-facts? that recording for this seems to happen on someone's phone.

For the most complete record of the story outside of the game's internal archive: the JP channel playlist. One playlist unlike EN, and updated far more regularly/frequently, currently only a single event behind (only the most recent event is not yet uploaded). However, no subtitles.

For the next most complete record where you can watch that has subs: this utterly massive playlist where the creator, bless them, is trying to have links to all the event story in one list. A bit behind, but is in-between the official EN and JP playlists.

However, since some channels have been delisted, and there have been times in the past I've noted some events only get partially TL'd (bless the TLers doing this on their own time) what I'd recommend is using sekai best's event list to see order and if an event isn't in the list, trying to search it up on its own, to see if anyone made a 'backup' for that event.. or if someone's TL'd it but the playlist owner just hasn't had the time to put it into the master playlist.

Hope this all helps! And I do look forward to your thoughts on it; would love to discuss sometime :3

[mortmere]

One thing I haven’t seen much (or maybe at all?) in @ds30below is fanart recs! I get it, it's hard: I’ve tried compiling some themed art rec lists for the fest, but there are just too many wonderful things out there! So I thought I’d list some ways to find dS art at all, old and new, for the History week. Sadly, a lot of our fandom’s earlier art history is scattered all over barely functional old websites, if not lost completely. DeviantArt’s search has gone crazy - I can’t find the old dS stuff there anymore. A lot of the older (and even not that old) works on AO3 have broken image links, because image hosting has always been a big problem for fan artists (but not anymore: now there's https://images.squidge.org/). 

That said, where to find due South fanart?

Those old personal sites - if you can find them AND if the images aren't broken. Here’s an archived one where at least the wallpaper section still works (Nicci's art is F/K and some are NSFW).

Please, if you know other old or archived sites like this where the images still work, post about them!

The media files for the dS zines on Fanlore are a treasure trove, because there's a gallery view - check especially the files for slash zines, that image gallery has two pages.

Of course, the “Art” tag on AO3 has plenty of treasures (direct link below). I confess I haven’t probably looked through all of them myself yet! I recommend starting from the last page so there’s more new-to-you stuff unless you’ve been in the fandom for ten years or more. Don’t be disheartened by the broken image links, there are so many that do actually work.

Check out my sideblog, Due South Fanart Appreciation - there's also some older stuff there if you browse further. If you use Tumblr on a browser, the Archive is a nifty way to get a kind of a gallery view of the blog, though it only shows the first image in each post and does a disservice to artists with multipart works. The browser version also allows you to use the Tag list - it takes a while to load, but if you have a favorite artist/character/ship, you can find the relevant posts easily). 

I hope you enjoy the stuff you find in the above links - and if you find something you love, save the images, they might be gone tomorrow!

If you want to keep up with new dS fanart even from outside Tumblr, I also compile monthly art digests for the ds_noticeboard community on Dreamwidth:

I'll keep on trying to make those themed art rec lists! And more art, too. <3

[handweavers]

so so so so unbelievably annoying to see long angry Recent rant posts circulating that are clearly them STILL being angry about the consuming media post i made when i have said a thousand times til i'm blue in the face that the post was not written to be seen by people outside of myself and a few of my mutuals, & that it was directed At Myself as much as anyone else and this is not a moral issue no one is better than anyone here i am not some towering righteous asshole looking down on people who use escapism or video games or whatever to cope when i do the very same thing + i Did Not make the post based on how people post on the fandom website i made it thinking of myself and others in Real Life and felt that maybe a few of my online friends would relate or appreciate it. and i can say all of this again and again and again and still get you fucking jerks posting and circulating angry rebuttals accusing me of all these things that i have said REPEATEDLY are not what i think and feel and vagueposting about it saying all this shit about me that isn't true by and claiming i think all art is consuming media and i'm superior to everyone because blah blah blah you are making shit up!! you are fighting with someone who does not exist!! whatever opinions you are claiming i have are not real!!! i can say this a thousand times and you assholes will keep sharing and saying all this shit about me and it's driving me insane and it's so unfair you all suck so much it's unreal

[acourtofthought]

The Great Bambi Sweatergate of 2023 is pretty amusing.

Honestly, it's random things like this that keeps us entertained while we wait for news 😂

I won't deny, we're so starved for crumbs that anything looks like something at this point and while I do understand that, I think it's also important to remember to take a step back and look at everything we know.

We KNOW Elain is getting a book. There's basically a 50/50 chance the next book is hers since SJM has talked about her having a book since 2015 / 2016 and how she's done research and dropped hints for her story, how Feyre's bonus had the statement "let's focus on helping one sister before the other".

It's not some great mystery solved to say "Elain's book could be next!" and sure, if that's the case some can look back and use the sweater to say "it was a clue!"

But really, that clue could have also just been a coincidence, we're NEVER going to know unless someone asks Sarah directly and she confirms that was her intent.

It could just as easily be Az's book next and the sweater could mean nothing at all as it's one she has worn before during an interview for the Bookseller website. Or she could have worn it because she knew a certain side of the fandom would go ballistic and she's trying to keep everyone on their toes.

We don't know her and we have no idea what her thoughts were when making that post and whether it had ANYTHING to do with anything outside of HOFAS.

But even if there was intent on her part, the fact that some automatically jump to E/riel is a bit confusing. Has she ever hinted at an endgame ship in a post in her recent "Bloomsbury isn't letting me say anything about anything era"? At one point she talked openly of some ships prior to them ending up together, like Nessian, but now SJM won't even confirm a HEA for Bryce and Hunt, hanging his possible death over our heads. So why would anyone think she's going to hint at E/riel's endgame happiness with things like "Bread and Roses" and a Bambi Sweater on a black background (while completely ignoring the gold sunburst type ring on her finger) when we're not even getting that for the main characters her current series is about?

I also think people are REALLY forgetting the direction SF took us. I've seen some claim that Gwyn is no longer Az's new ribbon (not sure how they figure that one) while Elain is still his forbidden secret love but.....

There's no secret any more considering Rhys knows they were about to kiss. How can two people share a secret when the High Lord of the court is fully aware of the fact that his third in command was about to risk the safety of the Nigh Court and Prythian? Rhys might not read minds on a regular basis as he feels it's a violation of someone's privacy but if he feels that a certain character's actions will ruin the tentative peace that not only protects an entire world but now the safety of his sons future you can bet he'd have no qualms looking directly into Az's thoughts to see what he's up to and he'd have no issue using his HL dominance on him.

Also, Elain RETURNED THE NECKLACE. Why oh why do some belittle her strength in that action, her CHOICE in that action (when she refused to return Graysen's ring) by continually thinking she and Az have simply jumped right over him calling her a mistake and her walking away and now they're living in domestic bliss, confirmed by the author herself in another series and SJM is making sure we know the outcome of E/riel by wearing Bambi sweaters and leaving flower books around?

E/riel had zero interaction after Solstice. His only possible romantically coded interactions after that night were towards Gwyn after he felt something spark in his chest for her, when he was amused by her calling him Shadowsinger and when he was staring at her with admiration.

Can E/riel still end up together after some groveling on Az's part? Sure (though I don't think that's the direction she's headed especially not when Lucien's longing and suffering exactly mirrors that of Rhys and Cassian's for their mates).

But thinking SJM is giving the fans confirmation of any pairing ending up together especially after the way things left off in SF is asinine. Especially when she won't even guarantee Quinlars HEA.

[golden-fairylights]

Whiskey neat, Coffee black

Well, I might have had this idea last night while I was falling asleep and have now written this in a frenzy. I've not read this through again, so I'm sorry about any mistakes. I hope you'll enjoy it <3 Galex (2.5k)

Usual rpf rules apply! Please don't share this outside of fandom spaces or on any other websites.

“One Whiskey, please. Neat,” George orders his usual drink with a forced smile. He is tired from his day in the café and just needs a little drink before he goes home to relax on his couch. There have been too many people complaining today and George just needs some time to himself. Or at least a few seconds but his bartender keeps looking up at him while he is pouring his drink and George just doesn’t have the energy to talk to him right now.

“There you go,” smiles the guy behind the bar and George slides his card over the counter, glass already on his lips to take the first sip.

The bartender, who is more attractive than George would like to admit, swipes his card and hands it back to him with a sorry smile on his lips. George takes it but ignores him. He really doesn’t deserve the bad treatment, but George just can’t deal with other people today.

“Rough day?” asked the guy now and it takes everything in George not to send him an annoyed look.

Instead he answers, “Yeah,” and drowns half of the clear brown liquid in his glass. His throat is burning and he embraces the welcome distraction from his throbbing head. Maybe the alcohol will at least sooth his headache.

“Wanna talk about it?” asks the bartender. The bar is still pretty empty, only a few people sitting at the bar or at tables, way to little to break the four people behind the bar into a sweat yet. The bigger crowds will arrive only when George will already be lying in his bed.

“Not really,” he breathes out, spinning the tumbler between his fingers. The bartender nods and turns to a group of girls that has just walked in, takes their orders and gets to work.

George lets his mind wander while his eyes stay focused on the guy shaking up different cocktails and serving them to the girls. He notices the trained arms of the bartender, his muscles tight while he shakes the cup, his eyes trained on the bottles he throws in the air to entertain the girls, probably trying to get more tips out of them or get them in bed.

It seems to work too, one of the girls is already leaning on the counter, her boobs almost falling out of her shirt and George turns his head away. He understands her. Really, he does. The bartender is cute. If he wouldn’t be in such a bad mood today, he would go for him himself, or at least ask him if he is interested in guys.

He has brown hair, fluffy but not curled, his skin has a soft brown taint. Whenever he smiles at one of the girls, it seems to brighten up the whole room, white teeth showing, surrounded by a number of laughing lines that frame his mouth and eyes. He is beautiful. George is just in a really bad mood tonight and he doesn’t see that changing within the next few minutes, so he just turns back to his drink and sips on it absentmindedly.

With every sip he feels the tension drain from his shoulders and his back, his head is calming down too and George relaxes in the bar that is getting more and more crowded with ever minute.

He doesn’t drink often but after today he really didn’t know what else to do. He doesn’t have any alcohol in his apartment, so he simply went to the next bar he could find.

“Another one?” asks the bartender again and George looks down to his glass. He hasn’t even noticed he has emptied it and nods before he thinks about it. He hasn’t planned on saying for two drinks but he also doesn’t have any other plans.

“Thanks,” says George once his second glass of Whiskey is placed in front of him. “I needed this.” His tone is much nicer than when he first came in and apparently the bartender notices too. The smile that was directed at the girls earlier is now directed at him and George feels himself smiling back.

“I noticed. Wanna talk about it now?” asks the guy and George knew that it is probably just a line he uses on most costumers, but he actually thinks about the offer a few seconds longer this time. “You don’t have to, but I’ve got a couple minutes, I’ve served my part of the bar.”

That convinces George. “I work in this café and there just wasn’t going anything right today. When I came in this morning, the fridge was broken and we had to find a way to get two dozen cartons of milk either replaced or cooled until we would need them. Then the coffee machine broke too, and people get angry when they don’t get their coffee,” he says in a beat tone. “On top of all that we didn’t get the delivery of cookies we usually offer on Fridays, making even more people disappointed. So, all in all, today has been shit.”

“I’m sorry, that really does sound horrible. Did you at least find a solution for everything?” asks the bartender with a compassionate look on his face.

“We did,” says George while letting out a long breath. “The fridge was just unplugged, even though I don’t understand who would do that, the coffee machine had a bean stuck somewhere and we got it out, and the cookies were replaced by croissants by most peoples. It’s just been rough.”

“Tomorrow will be better,” smiles the bartender and George nods.

“Hopefully, I can’t take another day of this. Thank you for listening though,” he says, a small smile fighting it’s way on his lips.

“No problem,” says the bartender and leaves his place on the opposite side of the bar to George to go over to another guy, waking at him repeatedly.

George finishes his drink and leaves his spot at the bar. The bartender has been rushing from one person to the next after finishing their conversation and George feels like he is taking up space if he doesn’t order anything else, so he leaves.

But the smile of the bartender never leaves his mind and haunts him in his dreams.

~~~

It’s been almost a week since that horrible day in the café and George still hasn’t been able to forget about the bartender and his smile. Every day he thinks about going back to the bar but ultimately decides against it because he simply doesn’t know what he would say to him.

He wants to know more about him, but he knows how weird it is if someone comes up to the counter and asks about your name or starts up a conversation about their private life, so he has never gone back.

Currently he is working on exactly the same coffee machine that had brought him into the bar last week. It isn’t working again and George is seriously considering just breaking into tears and throwing it to the floor. He is alone today and there are no costumers in at the moment so he wouldn’t even be that embarrassed.

“Is that the famous coffee machine?” asks a voice behind him and George whips his head around, almost breaking his neck. The cute bartender is standing right before him, only this time he isn’t waring black pants with a dark shirt, but actually a soft looking knitted sweater and light loose fitting pants. He looks cozy.

“What? Yes,” stutters George, only now turning around completely and walking over to the counter. “Sadly, it’s broken again.”

“Oh man, and here I was, hoping to get a coffee,” said the guy with a pout.

“Sorry,” mumbles George, completely distracted by the plump lips of him. “I can try to fix it for you, you’ll just have to wait for a while,” he says quickly and is already turning back to the coffee machine.

“I’ve got time,” says the guy while George is already back to unscrewing the side part of the machine. Last time he had found the bean stuck there between two wheels of the mill and it had been quite easy to get it out, but this time it was properly wedged in there. The wheels weren’t even budging.

“Come here you little shithead,” mumbles George to himself. “Fuck.” The stick he has been working with has just broken and now there is a second thing stuck between the wheels.

“Can I help?” asks the guy calmly but George quickly shakes his head. He feels tears spring to his eyes but holds them back as good as he can. He really can’t cry now.

“It’s fine. I should get it,” he presses out but hears steps coming behind the counter and sees a hand resting on the counter next to the coffee machine now.

“Come on, let me see,” smiles the guy and George takes a step to the side. He can’t really make it any worse than it already is. “Do you have a knife?” asks the guy after taking a look.

George thinks for a second and reaches in one of the drawers to get out a small knife with a sharp edge. “Is that okay?” he asks.

“Perfect,” smiles the guy and George feels heat rise to his cheeks. The smile is even better than he remembers.

George watches the guy work on the coffee machine, his broad back, his tiny hips, his round butt sticking out, his long legs and fingers. Everything about the man makes George feel squirmy and excited, even though there really isn’t a reason for him to be.

“Are you getting somewhere?” he asks, his voice rougher than he wants it to be. He quickly clears his throat.

“I almost got it,” says the guy, shortly after turning around, bean and wood lying in his hand. “All out, there’s too much space between the two mills which makes it possible for things to get stuck, maybe they should get that fixed.”

“I’ll tell them. Thank you so much,” says George, barely able to stop staring at his rescuer. Today could have turned into another disaster if it hadn’t been for him. “What can I get you, now that you made it able for me to serve you,” he smiles.

“I’d like to have a peppermint tea, please,” smiles the guy back and George mouth hangs open.

“What?” he asks dumbly. He could have gotten him the tea without fixing the coffee machine. Now this has been a completely useless thing for him to do. Why has he he even helped if he doesn’t even want a coffee? “But why…?”

“I wanted to…” His eyes flew down to George’s chest where the pin with his name was at. “George. Don’t worry about it.” The smile on his face is genuine and George would be melting if he wouldn’t be feeling far too embarrassed for having made his costumer fix the coffee machine.

“Thank you,” mumbles George and turns to the kettle to boil water for the tea. He even boils some more so he could drink one too, calming his nerves and all that.

“So, George, is this your full time job?” asks the guy and George looks up from the tea bags he has been sorting through just a second ago, looking for peppermint.

“Yes,” he says quickly, reaching for a cup before remembering that he doesn’t even know if the guy wants to drink it here or have it to go.

“To go,” smiles the guy before George can even ask the question. “And you can write down that the order is for Alex,” he adds. George does so, as useless as it might be because there is no other person waiting for their drink.

At least now he knows that the bartender that hasn’t left his mind for more than five minutes over the past week is called Alex.

“And you are a bartender full time?” asks George, unable to think of another question to ask and keep their conversation, if you could even call it that, afloat.

“I am,” says Alex, the lines crinkling up around his eyes as the corners of his mouth get pulled up into a soft smile.

Behind them the kettle makes its usual clicking sound, noting George that the water came to a full boil and he turns around, to-go-cup in his hand to fill it up, the tea bag already hanging inside.

George pops on the lid and puts it on the counter in front of Alex. “There you go,” he repeats the first words that Alex has ever said to him and is met with a sly smile, Alex obviously remembering the moment too.

“How much is it?” he asks but George shakes his head.

“It’s on me. You’ve saved my day,” he says and quietly adds, “again.” Feeling his cheeks heat up.

“Thank you, George. I’ll have to think of a way to repay you then. Maybe I could take you out on Saturday?” he asks with a smile on his face and George feels his stomach flutter.

“Okay,” he breathes out and smiles shyly at Alex. “I’d like that.”

“Good. Where should I come and pick you up?” he asks, his smile growing with every new word and George is getting more nervous my the second.

With trembling hands he takes napkin and writes down his number on it. Checking again and again that he doesn’t write it down incorrectly and that it is readable. “Just text me where I should come to,” he says when he reaches the napkin over the counter and Alex takes it happily.

“I will, George. See you on Saturday.” With that Alex leaves the café and George’s eyes follow him while he walks along the windows down the street.

It takes another ten minutes for George to move again, his heart barely able to calm down enough because he is so nervous.

~~~

“Honey, would you look after the coffee machine again?” asks George who is currently hands deep in the new machine they had bought only a few months ago. “It’s not working again.”

“Of course, darling,” says Alex softly, pressing a kiss to George’s temple.

Their first date has been followed by many, many others, by two friend groups turning into one, by families meeting for the first time, by moving in together, by founding their own coffee bar where they served different alcoholic drinks on a coffee base, by a proposal from Alex and finally a wedding that has now been merely a year ago.

They are still going strong and George can say he is truly happy.

If only these coffee machines would finally work for him without any problems.

[vladdyissues]

That is SO COOL that you're doing your own gallery for your art. Very clever. I'd love if it caught on with other artists. Is it hosted somewhere, or are you building it yourself?

I've got my own website and hosting, and I'm using third-party software to run my gallery.

I would love to see more of the old school web galleries catching on, but the biggest hurdles today are 1) finding web hosting, and 2) knowing how to build a site.

Neocities is a superb place to learn, and they have generous free hosting and extremely affordable membership options, and no ads, ever. They're funded entirely by their supporters, rather like AO3, so they're not beholden to ad companies—which means they don't have to police content (apart from the typical "nothing in violation of state/federal/international law" as stated under the Offensive Material and the Lawful Use section in their Terms). It's actually a fantastic place for artists to upload their mature art*.

*But you can't hotlink without being a paid supporter. Hotlinking is embedding images on sites outside of where the image is hosted. So if you wanted to use Neocities as a place to upload your nsfw art so you could post it on AO3, you'd need to pay for that ability. But still, having a gallery where you can direct people to your art is pretty sweet.

The only drawback to Neocities that I've seen is that you're limited to doing everything with HTML/CSS and Java, and for experienced web devs who are used to managing their own databases and working with PHP and installing whatever software they want, basically having complete control over every aspect of their site, Neocities is a bit limited. But for new and intermediate web builders, this shouldn't be a problem. There are lots cool ways to build your own website and have a gallery and just play around and pretend it's 1997 again. (Again? For some, maybe.)

I've got a Neocities site that I occasionally tinker with. Who knows, maybe if enough people join up we can start a DP web ring or a Pompep Club like how fandom used to do back in the early internet days.

(I am not associated with Neocities.org or being paid to promote their services. I just really like what they're doing.)

[glitchlight]

Man this post really hits you with a one-two-three of "bad take, bad attitude, REALLY bad take"

Like fuck me imagine having such a limited view of what fan culture is that you are entirely removing the swath of films, novels, and video games from being valid expressions of fan culture. Imagine having such a limited view of what television can be -- and ignoring the plenty of shows still serialized (nearly every notable anime is still serialized) or the incredible successes of the season drop era. Stranger Things may be incredibly boring to the tastes of most sff fans or fandom and hasn't prompted half the attention on this website that the fucking Voltron reboot did, but it's a cultural juggernaut in the way of Game of Thrones -- it appeals enormously to normal people outside of conventional fandom.

There's something about a tenor of certain complaints about changes in society that can wrap a valid observation around a kernel of sourness that can go in a couple different directions while also sounding incredibly petty. Like, are we really going "Embrace Tradition" here for something as stupid as traditional format television? If we're being commies about it I'll happily be an angry commie -- give me a bit more to bite at and I'll be a good attack dog. But stuff like this strikes me as complaining about neutral change. The world turns whether you want it to or not: things change, and change and you're older. Sometimes change isn't morally good or morally bad it's just different.

But like. Bluntly: hideous take. Season Drops weren't actually some crazy industry trend where they were making money on deflating hype. If anything it was customer convenience and it only makes sense that the season drop is starting to fade away now as many streaming services become Cable 2: This Time It's Excruciating! and have ads plastered all over them. Returning to the kernel of the idea though like, yeah, some stuff's been less hype. People may not have something to pop off about for a couple hours every week for a couple months. I've done that, I was in the homestuck fandom, and as a Jojo fan the way Stone Ocean dropped was really boring. But the people I'd post about that with are mostly dispersed now anyways; we're in our thirties and got a lot more important shit to do than screaming in an irc channel about the latest updoot, and that kind of fandom zeal is kind of exhausting to look back on.