#❖ | So you're interested in me; Meme Response

[emdotcom]

I have a wild, new, & bold suggestion for a tumblr feature:

When a tag is recommended or trending. & It previews some posts IN that tag, (showing you thumbnails of art, for instance,) then maybe.

Clicking on that post. Should show you that fucking post.

[sysig]

An ask! Idk what to talk abt though. How are you? What you want more asks abt? Characters? Life? Some other obscure interest?

(In reference to this I think hehe)

I'm doing well, thank you! I hope the same for you!

As for asks I'd like, I'm up for pretty much anything! If there's something that piques your interest - a take I put out but didn't elaborate on, "Defend that argument!" Lol ♪ I've also had people ask how I do certain things which is always fun to explain :D

Emoji gifts/silly back-and-forths are always fun to doodle to as well! ♫

Or if there's a fandom I haven't posted in a while and you miss it - I have no idea how many fandom transitions people here have hung with! Even if it's been a while, I still love my blorbos hehe ♥

Becoming a psuedo-ask blog with my characters answering directly is still totallly on the table btw :) Something remind you of me/them? Interest!

And while it's not quite Requestober-time-of-year again, next month is the start of when you should be thinking up what you might want 👀

I'd just like to chat! :) Asks are such a casual way of interacting, I like them :D

[necrotic-nephilim]

as a Helena fan who's witnessed this whole bit go from silly jokes/memes to genuine vitriol, it's been utterly bizarre. from what i noticed, the root of the comparison came from people fanonizing Jason to the degree of saying "he has Catholic guilt (bc of the Flashpoint priest!Jason) and he'd be an English school teacher (bc i'm assuming, his taste for classic lit) and he's female rage-coded and he would adopt/protect children" which, are canonical traits of Helena. so at first, it was sort of a joke lamenting the fact ppl would rather force unrealistic headcanons onto Jason than consume content with a woman in the Batfam. because it's sort of a tad ironic/painful to see fanonized Jason Todd who's being called all these things he isn't, when there's a canon character who *is* all of those things right there. like if that's the character you want, why wouldn't you want to read about Helena. the issue started with frustration against fanon Jason, from my experience anyway.

but then, it spiraled out of control to become a comparison of their lethal moral code and their disagreements with Bruce suddenly making Jason this stupid boy clone of Helena. which isn't true and is an insult to both of them to claim they're at all the same. they kill for different reasons, they're at odds with Bruce for different reasons. a well-written Helena and a well-written Jason really have little in common. though their interactions could be interesting, i don't even think they'd get along tbh.

i think in recent months/years, the Batfamily fandom suddenly became self aware that they grossly ignore the women of the Batfam. and now they're trying *too hard* to course correct for that. to an extent, i get why Helena isn't in the majority of fanon content- she hasn't really *been* a Batfamily member since pre-Flashpoint. the New-52 and Rebirth versions of her character are arguably not even the same character and certainly not a character as important to the Batfamily as she used to be. so why *would* a fandom mostly pulling from modern comics know who she is aside from the couple WFA episodes she's been in. (which did her *no* favors for people understanding her and also whitewashed her before the art was fixed.)

but, i think everyone's now trying to prove how woke their fandom content is (i hate using that word, it sounds very republican but i can't think of a better one.) by including women and characters of color to prove they don't just care about the boys. and sure, it's cool and all if you want to pick up Huntress comics bc you're sick of reading about stories only featuring Bruce and his "sons", but now it's like. almost a competition to prove how much more you know about the Batfam than other people when you make these jokes. i've seen the same thing happening comparing Steph and Jason recently. yes, it's important to care about the more diverse characters of the Batfam as much as you care about the boys. but now they're put on this ridiculous pedestal of being the "more cool alternatives". an organic push for content about the underrated characters is one thing, but it's another thing entirely when it's born out of a performative nature, which is certainly what this whole... thing feels like.

and the irony is, you can *really* tell the people doing this the most haven't actually read much of Helena's content outside of Gail Simone's Birds of Prey. and my hot take is, i don't think Gail Simone does a *great* job with Helena and she's often pretty sexist toward Helena (making other characters slut shame her, making Helena very promiscuous which isn't something she has a history of, etc) so, while it's important content for Helena, it can be a shallow reading of her. where all you really get about her is "pro-murder Batfam vigilante with a crossbow and a sassy personality" which sure, feels a *bit* like a shallow Jason. but that's the whole point, you have to make them both *incredibly* shallow to compare them. bc it's not about actually liking the women, it's about getting the shallow brownie points of saying "look i know who she is and i think she's *totally* cooler than Jason he's a dumb copy".

tbh even with the Jason Todd headcanons that are more egregious in feeling like "oh that's just Helena Bertinelli but a dude", it's not like it's being done on purpose. none of these fanon-only fans know enough about Helena to be purposefully stealing her traits and it really isn't that deep aside from sometimes, people just have bad headcanons that kinda make you wish they would read about characters aside from their main blorbos. but hey, they're not *required* to, and no one is an evil misogynist for having some OOC headcanons. you suck the fun out of fandom when you require people to interact with characters they aren't interested in. and depending on why someone likes Jason, they honestly might not like Helena. they're wildly different and have very different dynamics with everyone around them.

and i get it, Jason has had *wildly* inconsistent writing and there's debate upon debate of what's in character for him, what comics you should consider when trying to make fan content about him, and so on. i'm in the "anything past pre-Flashpoint isn't in the version i prefer" camp, but the whole mess of it scatters the fandom on how to write him. which i think is the actual root of him getting fanonizing beyond recognition, *not* people stealing from Helena. is it particularly headache-inducing to see Jason fans say "he's girl coded" or "he's female-rage coded"? yeah. but even those fans aren't ever going to be convinced out of their bubble by vitriolic comments made about how Jason's a total loser and Helena's so much cooler than him. and then the more canon-based fans who might *actually* like Helena and probably would read her comics if just given an honest recommendation of her character are *really* not going to want to be interacting her content/fandom. painting a broad stroke of the Jason fandom all seeing Jason as this cartoonish fanon version of himself does you no favors with anyone.

like i used to find the silly jokes/memes that were solely calling out bad fanon enjoyable as pure lighthearted "oh i wish more people liked this character the way they liked that character bc the fandom for this character is so small" vibes, but you're right about it getting out of hand. it's become the only thing people seem to talk about in the Huntress fandom space. i'd much rather discuss Helena for who she is then talk about Jason. because isn't it just a *little* ironic that in attempting to make this fandom more inclusive of the women, we still just *have* to make it about the men? you don't make Helena, or Steph or Cass or Onyx or any other underrated woman sound cool by comparing them to Jason. you just make it sound like you don't know how she stands as a character on her own. she's a cool character with a cool history (both in-universe and the meta history of the Huntress mantle) but this whole weird hate boner for Jason permeating the fandom space for her just makes people hate her instead of not know of her. and really, i can't blame anyone for that.

Like. Where and when did Helena vs Jason thing start? It's so fucking annoying and makes me think that I'll never want to interact with the Huntress fandom if/when I read more stuff about her. Which is a bit how I avoid interacting with the Nightwing fandom at large despite liking his stuff.

[ozzgin]

I really hope you continue the eldrich God story. I may or may not have become obsessed with the idea, and i think it's actually really funny and I also just love the idea of a God being in love with a human.

Also, I love your writing and art! I hope you're doing well!

Yandere! Eldritch God x Detective! Reader

Based on this prompt and this meme. You're sent to a remote island to investigate a string of murders, and end up with a horde of cultists and their Lovecraftian God who is very much obsessed with you. Don't worry, he just wants to help you with your case!

Content: gender neutral reader, monster romance, tentacle tomfoolery again

[More Monsters]

The island checks all the boxes for a stereotypical shady place: the grimy boat captain who talks in riddles and vague warnings, the constant fog, the tavern filled with rumors and fears, the bizarre statue of a creature with tentacles. You were expecting most of it, save for their patron God being a literal monster.

Soon after your arrival, you discover that you’re being followed by men in dark robes. Could it be related to your case? A little alcohol-aided interrogation, and the locals confess to you about the existence of a cult. The dots begin to connect.

Unfortunately for you, whatever theory is cooking up in your mind couldn’t be further from the truth. The patron Beast of the land has been watching you from the moment of your arrival. He’s rather intrigued by your nonchalant city attitude, your stubbornness, your lack of any sense of danger. Thus he demands that you’re brought to his lair.

A game of cat and mouse. You are now convinced this said cult is responsible for the murders, so you delve deeper into their secrets. At the same time, the men put all their efforts into chasing you down. The Lord's wishes are their command; for how long can you outsmart sheer numbers?

At last, they succeed. You’re dragged over, cocooned in thick rope. “My Lord, we’ve brought you the sacrifice”, one cultist proclaims victoriously. Sacrifice? The ancient creature gazes at the men with utmost confusion. He frees you from your restraints with a mere point of his tentacle appendage, and proceeds to lecture his devout following for treating his special guest with such shameful brutality. Everyone blinks in disbelief, you included.

What the hell is this, some beastly romcom? Once everything is cleared up, you dust your knees, stand up unceremoniously, and tell the cosmic deity you’ve no time for idle gossip. “There’s a criminal running free and it’s my task to stop it”, you bark. Aha, that’s the very same attitude that got his nebulous heart pumping with curious desire. He cannot explain the maddening interest he’s taken into you. The monster releases a monotonous hum, causing you to jolt in surprise. The cult leader gasps. “He…he wants to help you solve the case”, the man concludes, defeat in his voice.

“Does it have to be all of you?” You whine, clicking your tongue at the sight. It’s the morning after the godly encounter, and you’re greeted outside your room by the cult leaders and their monster. “I can’t be discreet with a dozen monks after me. Not to mention…” your eyebrows furrow. “What on Earth is he wearing? Is that a detective hat and a mustache? Are you mocking my job?” You demand, glaring at the eldritch beast and his ridiculous disguise.

“Excuse me, I’ll have to ask you to quiet down”, an employee suddenly interrupts. “You and the gentlemen over there.” You stare at him incredulously. Can he really not see he’s facing an enormous, tentacle monstrosity? You swear you can discern a grin forming across the creature’s amorphous, unholy features. Alright, you’ve been convinced. What now?

As a child, Sherlock Holmes was one of your favorite books. You'd flip through the pages and daydream about your own future as a detective, though your little fantasies never included Watson as a cursed entity of a thousand tentacles. The eldritch creature seems to be more interested in you than the case itself. Eyes always fixated on your movements, tendrils creeping around you, never leaving your proximity.

Why would he need to look elsewhere? He can already tell how things will unfold. He is, after all, the God of this land. He knew your wanted culprit had been hiding in a sealed room right under your nose, as you dusted for footprints and scribbled hurried notes. He knew the underground tunnel had deadly traps, which would have normally put your investigation to a swift end. "Kind of suspicious to leave his trail unguarded like this", you mumble in deep thought. The cosmic God smiles.

He wouldn't dare ruin your fun. Consequently, he only interferes when your safety is involved. As annoyed as he is by the criminal's persistent attempts to kill you, he doesn't want to steal your grand capture. Besides, he is very much content with the current circumstances.

As the two of you follow along the dark passageway, you clear your throat, lips pursed awkwardly. "Uh...Thank you for dealing with the obstacles", you finally say. The monster pretends to ponder your words. "Hey now, don't play dumb with me. The conveniently deactivated bombs? The mutilated guards clumsily stuffed behind the door? I am a detective, after all."

You feel a thick tendril wrapping around your arm, and you turn to glance at the creature. His eyes of spiraling depths regard you intensely. A voice suddenly echoes in your head; is he trying to communicate with you? Deep, resounding, and imposing. "I am looking forward to our next case."

"Next case? Sorry pal, I work alone-" your throat clenches involuntarily. Somehow, your innards are flooded with a particular kind of certainty, dictating an ironclad truth: you do not have the option to refuse. You sigh, exasperated. "Fine! Have it your way. At least skip the fake mustache", you beg, then pause. You slap a second tentacle that has made its way under your shirt. "And avoid groping me when I'm thinking. You interrupt the little gray cells at work." You tap your temple to prove your point, and the eldritch God bows lightly. Of course.

He'll refrain himself until you're off work, Detective.

[echantedtoon]

A Lovers' Circle (Poly Haishira x Reader) Ch15 Setting Hearts A Blaze

(There'll be a small time skip as things will be repetitive until we cut over to the Rengoku household.Plus a funny meme I made for fun.)

Taglist: @shadyd3ar @jcrml

@tengensangel @miniverse-zen @mysteri0uz @jjamsbangtan

@the-unknown-fandom

@lavenderdropp @mimisweetz. @purplesoulsapphire

@kksmush @denkpanda18 @whomisi @lessthanimperfect @silver-rin

@rotting-alone @namis-noodlebox

@k1ttyluverz @akiramente

@rascalraccoon @ravenclawkae1

@gilded-sunrays @crescent-blades

@yukari1k

Remember if you want to be added to the taglist lemme know

The sounds of traffic and wheels on the road was all that filled the early morning air as you stifled a yawn threatening to leak out of your mouth. It was rather early but you promised to drive your Aunt to the airport the day after Halloween. You hadn't gotten much sleep the night prior staying late at the party and spending a lot of time removing glittery make up on your skin. On top of that you were going to be a little late for work because of said trip you had to take.

"Thank you so much for dropping me off, Hun. These late night readings are killing my posture," your aunt said stretching out an arm. "Now I know why women my age get grey hairs! HAHA!"

You rolled your eyes at her joke before slowly coming to a stop at a stop sign. A giant suitcase was behind her in the passenger seat and you were ninety nine percent sure it was mostly packed up with fliers and other business promotional things. Not something you thought would be taken to a wedding but then again you  were talking about your aunt here. Nothing she did ever made sense.

"It's not a problem. And I did promise I would." Turning on your turn signal, you turned left going on down the road where you could make out the airport just a little bit aways. "When are you coming back?"

She waved a hand. "Two or three days from now. I'll call a taxi when I get back don't worry. I just appreciate you being nice enough to take me." She then smiled at you before reaching out to ruffle your hair like a kid. "You're a good kid. Now I can see why that big teddy bear likes you so much!"

"Not while I'm driving," you waved her hand off but smiled. "But I guess so. I feel so lucky to have him after everything that happened. It was like life finally decided to stop making me it's punching bag ....At least when it comes to dating."

The older woman smiled more. "He's a good one. I predicted a happy healthy like for you two."

"You mean when you read his palm without asking him first?"

She shrugged. "He didn't mind and everything I saw was predicable anyhoo- You still haven't let me read yours."

"Because I don't believe in those things no offense. Besides the last time you read my palm, you said I would 'be so beautiful many men and women will fall for me'." You rolled your eyes again putting on your turn signal again before slowly turning into the air port's parking lot. "And that was five years ago get it still hasn't happened."

"Give it time! My foresights always come true sooner or later." She smiled despite you sighing in response. "WHELP! Looks like I've got a date with the skies! See you in a few days!" She had just grabbed onto the car and was about to open it and step out-

"Wait!" In question she turned back around with a raised brow at you as you started patting down your clothes and frantically digging around in your pockets until you eventually pulled out something. Well a lot of somethings. "I need your help with something."

"Oh?" What she thought was a deck of cards, was actually..a deck of cards but not the playing card variety. It seemed to be a stack of business cards that was held up to her.

"There's someone who's loosing business really badly. He runs a dojo somewhere around here and I feel like I want to help him. I know you're pretty good at networking and know everyone there is..Do you think you can help?"

The softer eyes of the older woman eyed you in interest before glancing at the business cards. Taking them with a hum and eyeing the words inked onto their flimsy cardboard bodies... Before she smiled. 

"I think I can do something with these. I'm surprised you want to help a stranger so badly."

You shrugged. "I don't know why I want to...it just feels like the right thing to do. Plus he's one of Gyomei's friends. It might be good to try and get along with them."

Your aunt hummed again and you flinched as she suddenly grabbed your hand. Looking at the palm very closely and her brows rising in some kind of realization. "Interesting."

"What is?"

"Oh, nothing.~" She giggled dropping your hand and waving you off. "Don't worry about a thing honey. Just leave everything to me. By the end of this month, everyone is gonna flock to ya!"

Your face turned to confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh you'll find out soon enough. Oh. Look at the time! I better go before I miss my flight. You better get going before you're late too."

You hadn't the foggiest idea of what your eccentric aunt was talking about but shrugged it off as her being eccentric again. With he out of your car, you just made the long drive back home and to the college where you were unsurprisingly late and trudged yourself into the daycare tired and sore. Hopefully the children behaved especially good today so you wouldn't have to worry about anything else other than being scolded by your boss. 

"You look sleepy, Ms. Y/n," one little girl pointed out as soon as you slowly walked into the large playroom trying to tie your apron in the back.

....Yeah. Today might be a very long day for you. 

Unluckily the comment made by the little girl, whom you gently shooed to go listen to a story someone else was reading to other kids, was not missed by your boyfriend who looked up from where he was wiping glitter glue off a toy someone dropped on top of the arts and crafts table. You couldn't help the tired sigh that escaped you as Gyomei was quick to walk on over and you felt his form practically loom over you as his head tilted.

"You're tired." It wasn't a question, it was a statement that you winced at. 

"A little bit."

"I thought I asked you to stay home if you didn't get enough sleep."

You waved him off despite the fact that he obviously couldn't see you. "I'm not gonna pass out. I'm just a little bit tired, and I have things to do today."

"Such as?"

Working? Getting today's notes from Giyuu, the project you have with him, and you promised to bake a few things for everyone.  Not to mention grocery shopping, bills, cleaning up your house-

You jumped as a large hand suddenly tilted your head back up towards the staring white eyes. "None of that." He spoke as if he could literally read your mind. "After work I want you to go right home and rest. I'll inform Shinobu and Tomioka you won't be able to make the appointment today."

"W-What? But I promised them I'd do it with them not to mention that I also-"

A warmth presses against your head making you instantly turn red and a few little kids gagged and closed their eyes at the sight. One pointed at you both with a disgusted face.

"Ew, Mr. Mei! That's cooties!," she accused him to which he chuckled at her and smiled 

"Perhaps so. But I meant what I said." You were wide awake now as he patted the top of your head. "Go home and rest. If you don't I'll just take your keys and carry you home myself."

"Yo-Yo-You're bluffing!"

He hummed. "Am I?"

You decided against wanting to see if he'd actually do that and quickly scurried away when one of the younger toddlers cried out in frustration at his building blocks falling over again and again. His chubby little hands and waddle walk keeping knocking over the blocks he did stack up again and again. You'd have to console him and played with the little guy to make sure he was having a good time. 

Things weren't really too much different for the rest of the day. You did your job and helped to start clean up and check out the kids as their parents started arriving. However you didn't see Sanemi turn up. It wasn't even Kanae. Or Giyuu or Shinobu or even Mitsuri whom you were pretty good friends with by now. Instead you were treated to the sight of a tall and visibly muscular man whom walked in through the doorway. Orange hair framing his brightly smiling face and just as fiery eyes blinking around until they settled on you.

With a beaming smile he walked right up to you and you blinked as he stood before you. "HELLO, Y/N!!"

You winced at the high volume but still smiled. "Hi, Kyojuro." You greeted the positive man. "What are you doing here?"

"I've been sent to fetch Koto!," he proclaimed hands on his hips, "Sanemi's running late with his tutoring classes so he asked me to come get Koto for him!"

You blinked. "Really? I don't remember Sanemi telling me this and it's policy to call ahead of time for alternate pick ups."

His head tilted like an owl. "Really? He told the front desk lady this morning."

Oh right. You weren't here that morning. You held up a hand. "Let me go ask real quick. No offense. It's just part of the job."

"NO OFFENSE TAKEN!!"

You still chuckled despite yourself and left for just a few minutes. Confirmed with a coworker who was there that morning. And then returned a moment later with Koto on your hip and his daycare bag Sanemi always dropped off with him slung over your shoulder. The toddler was fiddling with a little car but let out a happy gasp upon seeing the red haired man.

"Ren-Ren!," he cheered throwing up his hands excitedly, "Hi!"

"Hello, Koto!" He greeted holding out his arms to the toddler. "Did you have a fun day?"

Koto was happily accepted into his arms with a nod. "Uh huh! Miss Toji reads us Beauty n da beast."

"Ooh. A fun story."

"Where's Nemi?"

"He's late, but I'm gonna take you to the park while we wait."

"YAY!!"

You chuckled at the adorable sight of him holding  up the bag. "Here. You'll be needing this. How's Mrs. Shinazugawa by the way?"

"Thank you!" The bag was taken away from you before he again tilted his head in question. Like he seemed to be studying you for a second. "She is doing better. Still a little stressed about paying back everything, but eventually she will and everything will go back to normal for everyone involved. However I believe that you had a hand in her soon to be relief."

You blinked at him. "Oh. You mean the money." He nodded and you hummed. "Well like I told everyone else, he just needed it more than me."

"A thousand dollars and free food for an entire year are a hard thing to give up for most people..and yet you have it all away to a at the time complete stranger."

You winced. "That's not totally true. I-..I didn't really think about giving it to him at first. Really I didn't think of anyone else but myself at first but-.."

"But?," he asked raising a brow in question as you sighed.

"I dunno. I didn't really have a mom growing up so-"...You looked down fingers drumming on the countertop. "So I guess seeing him trying so hard to help his mom made me feel really sorry for him. Maybe it's something I'd wanna do too if my mom was around y'know..Uh.." You stopped when you saw him intently staring at you Koto mindlessly toying with his toy. "Uh. S-Sorry. Didn't mean to ramble on."

"Please. Do not apologize for the honesty. It's rare for someone to have an honest heart and even rather for them to admit things we may not be proud up." His smile got even wider if that was possible. "I can now see why you were able to make such great friends with everyone. You're a good person!"

Despite yourself a small pink appeared on your face, hand waving at him. "Shucks. Stop it. You're embarrassing me. Oh. That reminds me. How's your dad doing? Anything change?"

He shook his head. "Not yet but a few of Senjuro's classmates have shown interest in the dojo! We just have to remain optimistic and keep working at it!"

Ah. So your aunt hadn't worked her magic yet. Makes sense. It hasn't even been a whole day yet...Eh. you really shouldn't expect results to just happen like that. It was as unrealistic as her predicting that men and women would fall for you like some badly written fantasy story.

You nodded. "We gotta look on the bright side of things for sure! Anyways it was nice to see you again, Kyojuro. I hope to see you again sometime."

"INDEED! And thank you again for those delicious cookies! Everyone loved them!"

"Cookies?"

"Not for you I'm afraid!" In one movement the energetic man turned on his heel towards the door. "Now come! The swing sets and slides await us!"

"Yay! Swings!"

You couldn't help but laugh at the goofy man as he left with the giggling child. He certainly was a bright fellow. Everything would be ok. You were sure of that. Even if your efforts did nothing, surely the Rengoku's would be able to get by well.

Days passed by. 

The October fall being kissed goodbye slowly as the leaves still fell and gave way to that weird time of the months of November where the cool of fall was merging with the soon to be cold of winter and snow. Jackets, scarfs, and mittens were already being seen on so many walking around. 

It was on one of these days that a slow miracle was creeping up to its unsuspecting gift-y. Not quite a Christmas miracle but it'll do in a pinch for what was to be taken place that evening. A hot bowl of soup and a little bit of rice was always a quick and nice meal for a cold night like this. The kind of meal that'd help to cheer him up and reminded him just how much he loved his wife's cooking when the tray was placed in front of him and a warm kiss was pressed to his lips for a second.

Smiles were always his favorite part of her. Couldn't get enough of it as she smiled at him. "Here. I made some miso soup today. It ought to help you warm up after all the work you did."

Hard work? If you can call cleaning a barely used dojo and moping around all day hard work. He would've laughed at himself if he hadn't felt so frustrated with himself right now. Instead he kept quiet and pulled the bowl closer to him muttering a barely audible thanks. Her smile slowly gave way to a sad frown before she sighed and turned away. Slowly allowing herself to start preparing her own meal and a second tray for her youngest boy. She'd take him a meal as he was busy studying for a few exams before the Christmas break. 

The scooping of hot soup sloshing around in the pot was only paused when the distant sounds of a familiar beeping noise cascaded through the air. Catching her attention and only making her husband grunt again.

"Are you going to answer that?"

She didn't answer him. Letting the ladle spoon plop back down into the soul with a watery noise and quickly making her way towards the den where no doubt the home phone was ringing out for someone to answer it. It was not too long before the cold plastic was picked up from the receiver and help up to her ear. 

"Yes?"...Red eyes blinked. "Oh? I wasn't expecting a call from you. Is everything alright?" Her head turned around back towards the man still lazily picking at his soul with a spoon and not eating it. "Yes....Alright then."

Pitiful eyes didn't look up from the sloshing liquid of the soup even as footsteps approached back softly or even when he saw a pair of legs stop at his side out of the corner of his eyes. But he did blink as something was held out to his face. Took him two seconds to realize that it was a phone, and it took him one more second to look back up to his wife in question.

"Dear, it's Mr. Ubuyashiki."

A blink. "Who?"

"He's the chairman of Senjuro's school." The phone was nudged closer to him. "He wants to talk to you."

What? He grunted looking annoyed. "So? What does he want? If Senjuro's done something then-"

"Dear, please just speak to him."

There was a small three second pause before with an annoyed look the phone was taken from her and reluctantly held up to his ear. "Yes?"

"Ah! A different voice!" The voice of the phone was a man's. Clearly one he's never heard before. "Am I to assume that this is the husband of my wonderful calligraphy teacher?"

"What do you want?" He wasn't in the mood for the cheery bull that this voice seemed to have.

"Straight to the point then I see! Then I won't beat around the bush." The voice chuckled but gained a more professional feeling with it. "I heard that you are quite a coach!"

...Another blink. "What?"

"Recently I attended a little celebration of a good friend's son. Your name happened to be on a little business card handed out to me and I was reminded of your son. Polite young man he is."

"What is the point to this? Either spit it out or I'll hang up!" He REALLY was not in the mood to be talking to a man that liked to make random small chit chat even with the stern frown his wife was giving him.

"Of course," the man remained polite and patient despite his annoyance. "It reminded me of the petition Senjuro presented to me a little bit ago to start a kendo club. Usually I wouldn't mind clubs but one of our biggest school sponsors thought it would be a great idea to have an official kendo league added to our school. Frankly I couldn't agree more."

Huh. So his youngest finally did something worthwhile huh?...Guess that was good for him but-

"What does that have to do with me?"

"Well naturally if we're to add kendo to our track and other sports teams we'll be in need of a coach to teach said sport." He completely froze at his words. "But unfortunately we have none."

The world seemed to slow down as the silence continued to stare off at nothing. His throat suddenly felt dry as he swallowed thickly in order to not let his neck to become a desert. "What..are you getting at?"

"Mr. Shinjuro I've heard quite a good deal about you from your wife and others. I'd love to hire you as one of our new sports coaches starting next semester! And have you coach our new established kendo team if that's an option for you."

CLINK. CLI-CLINK.

Ruka blinked as the spoon dropped from her husband's hand and clattered to the table flinging small droplets of miso soup around the oak wood surface. Her brow rose higher at the wide eyed stare he seemed to have. Like he just saw a ghost.

"Honey? Are you ok?"

[antimony-medusa]

Anyways, prompted by nothing in particular (lies, prompted by a scroll through the tag this morning, that was bracing), I think it might be good to remember the things we like about other people in the community.

For example:

BBH fans are some of the most consistently hilarious posters on this sight. Absolutely fantastic mpreg posting, and the art is incredible with your guy on the whole spectrum from creechur to in drag. He has the range. I hope your guy gets pregnant in canon for you, you deserve it.

Tubblings, you post some of the most interesting meta concepts out of moments I have sometimes been in stream for and entirely missed. You are always watching and always ready to take a throwaway line and go "let's unpack that" and bring something heartbreaking out of it. I love getting out of stream and checking up on what Tubbo is up to and finding a) hilarious clips of the creator being out of pocket, b) some new analysis of a tubbo moment that turns me into the crycat meme.

Wilburians, your ability to take like nine streams and *continue to make content out of it* is inspiring. Your guy may not stream, but by god you are keeping the flame alive and you will be ready when he comes back. Please come back, Wilbur, there are so many men you could flirt with here. Leave New York alone, Wilbur, come back and talk to your daughter.

Mariana fans, not only do you have simply fantastic photos to share of your guy looking like a butch lesbian, those enrich my dash every time, but also I have laughed at jokes in a language I don't speak because your guy is so funny and the clips you are make and share are so good. The "mariana unpacks period products" is sincerely one of the funniest things I've ever seen, thank you so much for sharing it.

Etoiles fans, your art is SO GOOD. Like oh my god the Etoiles art is like 100% a banger EVERY TIME. Which is as it should be, your guy simply is that cool, but oh my god, the art is so good. I don't have more words here I am just flailing at the camera. The art is SO GOOD.

Bagi posters, your cubito is one of the most compelling actors on the server, for real, and you are so generous with translating whole speeches done in languages I don't speak. I sat just transfixed during that whole conversation with Cellbit after they discovered their relationship, because the emotion in the argument was so real, and then I scrolled down and found a whole translation and went oh thank you, now I know what people were saying. I'm sorry Empanada lost a life, but your creator's response to it was one for the record books in terms of emotional reaction, and I have seen some fully incredible animations made of it. You take amazing content and make something even cooler out of it, and I'm always so impressed but what you're up to.

Now you go. Tell me something you appreciate about another sub-community.

[eiralunaire]

It was a quiet day in Dick Grayson's apartment. He had returned from a grueling mission and decided to distract himself with one of his favorite activities: looking through magazines related to interior design and photography, his side interests outside of hero work. He had bought a pack of magazines at a store, trusting that the cashier had understood his instructions, and was excited to flip through them.

However, upon opening the first magazine, what he saw perplexed him. They weren't interior designs or stunning landscapes. They were women in lingerie.

"What the...?" Dick muttered, frowning.

He flipped through the pages quickly, thinking he had chosen the wrong magazine. But then, his gaze stopped. There, on one of the center pages, was Reader.

"It can't be..." he whispered, leaning toward the image to make sure he wasn't hallucinating.

Reader was posing in a black lingerie set, with an air of elegance and confidence that seemed completely opposite to the cold and distant woman he knew from Damian's descriptions. Dick couldn't help but let out an incredulous laugh.

Determined to find out more, Dick looked through the rest of the magazines. To his surprise, Reader appeared in several of them: swimsuits, evening gowns, even in a special edition of wedding dresses. In each of them, Reader posed with the same intensity and professionalism, although some photos showed a more relaxed and playful side, as if she were enjoying the job.

"So this is 'the girl who drives Damian crazy'," he said to himself, with a smile.

But his curiosity didn't stop there. He decided to take photos of the covers and some pages and send them to the Wayne family chat group, which was usually a space to share memes, jokes and casual updates.

Dick: *"Is this what Damian calls 'a potential threat'? Because honestly, she doesn't look that dangerous."*

(He attached several photos of Reader in different outfits.)

The response was not long in coming.

Jason: *"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. Damian, you've been found out! Is this why you're not sleeping at night?"*

Tim: *"Who is this? Wait... is this Reader? The same girl Damian's been keeping an eye on for years?"*

Bruce: *"Grayson, why do you have those magazines?"*

Dick: *"It was an accident. But hey, I couldn't keep this gem to myself."*

Jason: *"Jewelry? Damian's probably got a whole collection in his room."*

Damian, who was in the Batcave going over some reports, saw his phone explode with notifications. Upon opening the group, his face went from confusion to absolute anger.

"Grayson!" he growled, suddenly standing up and beginning to type an angry response.

Damian: *"Shut your mouth, Grayson! This has nothing to do with me."*

Dick: *"Relax, little bro. I'm just saying you have good taste. Although, honestly, I'm surprised you haven't done anything about it yet."*

Jason: *"Damian? Doing something romantic? I don't see it."*

Tim: *"This explains a lot... but it also raises more questions."*

That same night, as Damian tried to ignore his brothers' taunts, Dick decided it was time to step in. He knew Damian was too stubborn to admit his feelings for Reader, but he also knew that if no one did something, Damian would end up losing any chance with her.

"I think it's time to give him a push," he muttered to himself, with a mischievous smile.

He grabbed his phone and started scrolling through his contacts until he found Reader's name. Years of working on the Titans and the Hero Network had left him with an extensive contact list.

Dick: *"Hi, Reader. I'm Dick Grayson, Damian's brother. I know this may sound strange, but I think it would be good for you and Damian to talk. There are things that need to be cleared up. I can arrange a neutral meeting if you're interested."*

A few minutes later, Reader's reply came through.

Reader: *"Grayson? Is this some kind of joke?"*

Dick: *"Not at all. I just think you two have unfinished business, and as someone who's seen too much already, I think it would be good for both of you to work it out."*

Reader: *"I'm not interested in talking to him. But thanks for the offer."*

Dick: *"Not even to clarify why he knows so much about your modeling days? Because, believe me, it's given him a lot of... 'inspiration.'"*

Reader's silence was enough for Dick to know he'd hit a nerve.

"This is going to get interesting," he said, preparing himself for the chaos he knew was about to unfold.

[crownmemes]

Advice; Everyone Should Be Making the First Move

There's been a trend within the rpc here for years now where nobody is willing to make the first move. The problem with this is that if nobody ever makes the first move, then nobody is ever going to write anything. Considering that, everybody should be making an effort to be the first one to reach out to their writing partners more often.

Examples of making the first move:

Sending an IM to say hi, then suggesting a plot

Sending a meme to start a new thread

Responding to starter calls and open starters

All of this is just as valid for old partners as it is for new. If you haven't written with someone in a while, maybe it's time to reach out to start a new thread?

The most common reason I see for people not making the first move is social anxiety. I'm going to give you all a bit of tough love here: speaking as somebody who once had crippling social anxiety (and still does in irl settings), the best way to overcome it is to push yourself to try the things that make you anxious.

Communicating with people is a really important part of rp because it's not a solo hobby, therefore you are going to have to talk to people at some point. It's unavoidable. Here are a few reminders to help you feel a little less nervous:

If somebody follows back, they're doing it because they're interested in writing with you. They are not going to be upset if you send them an IM with plot ideas

Most people are friendly! In 12 years of rping on this site, I can count on one hand the number of people who I've talked to that were actively rude to me

It's okay if someone says no to you! People have different styles and not all of them will work together. If someone says no, say thank you for the consideration, then move on. There are more people to write with out there

If somebody is nasty to you, you can block them. Don't be afraid to do this; you don't have to explain yourself, and you wouldn't want to write with someone who's rude to you anyway

If you're not sure what to say, I usually go with a version of "Hello! Thank you for following/following back! I've looked through your rules and about pages. Would you be interested in plotting something for X and my character, Y? I have an idea already, if you would like to hear?"

Don't just say "Hi!". Cut to the chase and tell them why you're messaging so they immediately know what the conversation is about

Reasons why it's good to message first:

You look actively interested in writing. This is a huge boost in your favour when it comes to asking to write with someone

It makes it a lot easier to get new interactions

It makes you appear more active

If you're a new blog, you won't have a lot of examples of your writing on your blog yet. People will be more willing to give you a chance if you approach them first

If you don't message first, you are likely to be waiting a long time before somebody messages you

It's easier to make friends if you have an active conversation!

Some other thoughts on messaging first:

You have followed the person because you are interested in writing with them. Think about why you are interested, and suggest this as a plot idea

Make sure you read through the rules still. It's very obvious when you haven't. Also, look through the muses on offer so you can suggest which you'd like to write with

If the rules say they're not mutuals only, or that you're welcome to IM to introduce yourself if you want to plot, don't be afraid to message. They wouldn't have put that in their rules if they didn't mean it

If someone is reblogging memes, it's because they want to write responses to them. Send them in! If they didn't want them sent in, they wouldn't have reblogged the meme

IMing to plot is often a better idea than liking a starter call or sending memes if you have never interacted with the person before. It gives you a chance to work out what kind of thread would work well before you start something, so the resulting thread has a lower chance of fizzling out quickly

However, all that being said, it's not just up to the person messaging first to make all the effort. If the receiver doesn't put any effort in in return, then the person making the first move is going to think they aren't interested. Eventually, they may give up messaging people at all, because what's the point if it never goes anywhere? Some tips for not seeming uninterested:

If someone IMs you, try to reply to them in a timely fashion. Especially try to reply to them if they sent you a plot idea. You don't have to agree to do the idea - it's just very annoying to be ghosted the second you actually start plotting

Suggest your own plot ideas in return, or build on the idea that the other person has given you

If you agree to write a starter, or one is written for you, follow through with it. Write the starter, reply to the thread. If it's going to take a while, let your writing partner know that you've seen it but you're going to be slow for a while

Similarly, if you post memes, reply to the ones people send you. If you never reply, people will pick up on this and eventually stop sending you things

If you go on hiatus, message your writing partners directly when you get back to let them know you'd like to write again. This will demonstrate that you really are active and ready to write again

[itsclydebitches]

RWBY Recaps: Vol3E1 "Round One"

Hello, everyone, and welcome to a new collection of RWBY Recaps!!

This is a unique project in that instead of writing purely for my own entertainment, these recaps are part of the Fandom Trumps Hate auction (you can check them out here if you're interested in learning more). Specifically, these recaps are a gift for the lovely Kae who requested some meta on the earlier Volumes, or work that focused on Ozpin and/or Ironwood. I figured that Volume Three would touch on all those requests and, frankly, it's an era of RWBY that I was already interested in covering. Volume 3 was a turning point for RWBY's tone and overall mythology and I'm eager to see what I think of it in 2024, after six additional seasons and a rather chaotic overhaul.

(If anyone is reading this from the future, one of the reasons why it took me so damn long to get the first recap out is because finding official streams of RWBY has become a fool's errand as it changes ownership. Fun!)

Anyway, the game plan is simple: cover all of Volume Three at an undetermined, though hopefully steady-ish pace from here on out. Technically, the deadline for our FTH fandowrks is at the end of 2024, however, I absolutely plan to continue this series past my 5k promise. As always, this will be a RWDE-focused meta (though I'm eager to see how much nostalgia carries me through the season), so if you Don't Like; Don't Read.

Everyone got that? Great!

Now, indulge me for a moment and cast your mind back. It's October of 2015. Pizza Rat is a tumblr icon, Left Shark still reigns, and everyone is arguing over whether a dress is gold and white, or blue and black (it's the former FYI ;). Amidst such quality memes RWBY begins airing again on the 24th, presumably bringing with it another season of stellar choreography and simple, if entertaining conflict. Team RWBY has just helped contain a massive breach courtesy of Cinder's machinations, Torchewick is in Ironwood's custody, the White Fang is falling under Salem's puppeteering, Penny has revealed her android identity as well as her supposed fate to save the world, the girls are beginning to acknowledge the responsibility of their chosen career path, and the mysterious Raven has been identified as Yang's birth mother. All in all, RWBY has a lot to play with going into its third season.

It's notable then that we open peacefully. The viewer is treated to a number of environmental shots to set the scene, including one of the forest with its iconic falling Fall leaves. Ruby is positioned at the edge of a cliff with her signature rose petals drifting behind her. Stylistically it fits the scene, though from a literal standpoint it also implies that she used her semblance speed to get here. Given the momentary reveal that she's speaking to her mom, that's a rather heartwarming detail.

Sidenote: has anyone given any thought to cliffs in this series? It only occurred to me recently how often they show up, often during character milestones. Here we have Ruby talking to Summer for the first time, her (bodiless) grave situated at the end of a cliff. The Beacon initiation involves chucking the kids off a cliff and seeing how they fare, an action that is the catalyst for the group's introductions/growing dynamics. Shooting Oscar off the edge of Atlas solidifies Ironwood's turn from anti-hero to outright villain. Though I'm far from a fan of this scene, Ruby's (ridiculous) near-fall off the cliff during the fight with Cordovin preludes her (supposed) growth in leadership as she stands up to Qrow. Penny lets herself fall from Amity after sacrificing herself to get it up into the air. Then, of course, we've got the girls falling off of Ambrosius' bridge, taking them to a world where - execution aside - the intention was for them all to go through major developments: Ruby is literally reborn, Jaune experiences a lifetime of struggle, Yang and Blake finally admit their feelings, and Weiss... gets over her whole country being destroyed?

Idk, we'll have to come back to that one.

I clearly don't have a big takeaway here, just the acknowledgement that this is a visual RWBY gravitates towards. Might do a whole side meta on it some day...

Anyway, as said we realize quickly this is Summer's grave with her name carved into the headstone along with "Thus kindly I scatter." Notably, she also has her rose motif there and it's likewise prominent on Ruby's belt in this scene. Looking back, we can see how RWBY did a better job at the start of sprinkling in these significant character details before, you know, dropping them completely and then attempting a rapid-fire resurrection. Meaning, I would have bought into the emotion of Ruby giving her pendant up in Volume 9 if we'd gotten these moments consistently throughout the story's run. It wouldn't take much, just a reminder every couple of episodes to maintain the momentum. Give Ruby a scene where she explains that this rose was left by Summer before she disappeared and she's treasured it ever since. Show a flashback where we learn that it was really left behind for both girls and Yang handed it down to Ruby when she was old enough to keep track of it. Give us a minor conflict where it's lost during battle and Ruby unnecessarily endangers herself in an attempt to retrieve it (perhaps in Volume 8, setting up that the object itself is not as important as the intangible love it represents). Hell, keep it lighthearted where Yang gets Ruby something rose related at the gift shop, Nora tucks a Rose into her hair while wandering the wilderness, Qrow gives the pendant a cheeky flick while talking about how Ruby's as stubborn as her mom. My point is there are a million ways the show could have built towards that scene in Volume 9 - ways like showing us that rose on Summer's gravestone - but the show dropped the ball halfway through.

Here and now though, Ruby begins catching Summer up on everything that's happened to her since she started Beacon, which serves as a useful way to catch the viewer up too - both those who, for whatever reason, may have started RWBY with Volume 3, and those who just need a hiatus refresher.

Ruby is delightfully awkward here, a personality trait that I think becomes more forced as the series goes on. She jokes that she hasn't gotten kicked out of Beacon yet - while doing that cute little rock on her heels thing - and says that she's able to "keep [Yang] in line" by being on the same team. She follows that up with, "...that was a joke" which is just quintessential Ruby to me. Love it.

She recaps that Yang has grown a lot as a fighter since Summer left, the rest of their team is made up of Blake and Weiss, together they form Team RWBY and yes, that's as confusing as it sounds. She's stopped bad guys and met some "odd" teachers, including Ozpin.

(THAT'S MY BOY!!!)

Looking back, this is actually a fascinating couple of lines. At least, I think they have the potential to be fascinating if RT had followed a clear writing path. Ruby wonders again why Ozpin let her into Beacon early, but shrugs it off under the assumption that he'll tell her one day. "You know how he is."

Yeah, I do, Ruby. Do you?

We already knew from their initial interaction that Ruby knew who Ozpin was - she recognizes him on sight - though him posing the question implies that he never visited Patch post-her birth. At least, not recently enough for Ruby to have formed a memory of them meeting. I can only assume then that she's heard enough about him from Tai and Qrow to a) be sure of his identity (any promotional material/news about Beacon would have helped with that too) and b) believes strongly that her impression of him formed since entering Beacon aligns with what her parents presumably said about him: "You know how he is." The fact that this is in reference to Ozpin's secret keeping makes me wonder how often that came up around the dinner table. Did Tai ever express frustration, a la Ironwood, that they're clearly being kept in the dark about things? Did Qrow ever dodge the girls' questions about where he's been because he can't be honest about his spy activities, aligning Ozpin's reputation with secrecy by virtue of working for him? The casualness with which Ruby shrugs off Ozpin's secrets to Summer heavily implies that Ozpin's cagey history is both well known to the family and accepted.

Honestly, I would have loved to see this woven into Ruby's core characterization, perhaps even an extension of her "simple soul." Give me a girl who is intrinsically accepting of people, including their need to keep certain things close to the chest. Teammate deliberately kept her faunus identity under wraps? Friend hides the fact that she's an android from the whole world? Ruby accepts them. Ruby gets it. The fact that Ruby does, canonically, accept their duplicity without so much as a blink is, I think, one of the reasons why I expected her of all people to be more sympathetic towards Ozpin's hidden identity. We can argue about the girls' right to the truth via participating in this war till the cows come home, but at the end of the day Ozpin's secrets are intrinsically tied up in his family, his history, and the trauma surrounding both. Let the others get mad, prioritizing information over personal motivations (that does fit their characterizations well, with Blake perhaps being an exception), but Ruby? The show has never been willing to commit to the kind of dark story that would result in a 180 character growth - endlessly forgiving protagonist becomes jaded and cynical as she experiences The Horrors - and little moments like this one further emphasize to me that Ruby, specifically Ruby, is uniquely suited to helping Ozpin not just fight, but finally finish this war. It should never have been (just) about her talent with a scythe, or even the rarity of Silver Eyes. The Gods wanted Ozpin to unite humanity and here's a young woman who unabashedly loves everyone that the world tends to despise: secret keepers and drunk uncles and faunus and Schnees and scary androids. Ruby should have been the emotional bridge!!

Okay, I swear I'm not going to make this series a rehash of my issues with the later Volumes lol. Inevitably some things are going to crop up though.

Moving on, Ruby mentions that Tai is here too and the viewer gets to see his avatar for the first time, albeit from a distance. In keeping Summer updated on her... husband? Wait, were they married? Well, in keeping her updated on her partner, Ruby says that, "He's, you know... Dad," which, unlike the Ozpin line, is just plain funny. Sure, most of her talk is very exposition-y and absolutely functions as a soft lead-in to new content, but that's not to say a story should ever put absurd dialogue in a character's mouth simply for the sake of the viewer. That is, Ruby should never say, 'Oh, Tai is here! You know, my Dad?' because the person she's talking to, Summer, knows damn well who Tai is. Television has actually gotten better about this as a whole. Once upon a time a medical drama would have the doctor yelling, 'Her skin is turning yellow - she's jaundiced! Her liver is failing!' to ensure that the viewer understood precisely what 'jaundiced' meant, never mind how absurd it was for a professional to be shouting that among their peers. (Granted, medical dramas as a whole are absurd. I say that with love.) Despite RT's general inexperience, RWBY belongs to an era of televised storytelling where leaving certain things unsaid is par for the course.

Here, the unspoken information is what it means for Tai to be, you know, Tai. We don't really know who Tai is yet- personality-wise, I mean - so Ruby's comment functions more as a way to set up our expectations rather than to connect with us in agreement. We now expect Tai to be the kind of guy who does things to make his teenage daughter sigh and go, 'That's Dad...' and we, presumably, look forward to seeing that.

Granted, the three things we do know about Tai at this point in the story consist of:

He's a fellow Huntsmen (which is an insane job)

He let his daughter join Beacon two years early to also become a Huntress (also kinda insane but I support him)

He maintains a relationship with said daughter and daughter Sr by sending them their dog in the mail (do I really need to say it?)

Based on that I suppose we can guess as to what Tai is like lol.

He calls Ruby away so they're not late for the match and she sends a last message to Summer over her shoulder: "It was good to talk." As we transition, a murder of crows flies across the sky. Or is it an unkindness of ravens? I can barely tell in real life, let alone when they're animated blobs, but either option works well enough given the upcoming revelation about the Branwen twins.

Cutting to the arena a little time in the future, the viewer is treated to some establishing shots that, while simple, are honestly pretty cool. I believe this is our first introduction to Atlas' floating environments and showing a bit of Beacon Academy in the background helps give us a sense of scale.

This event is clearly popular, with the stadium absolutely packed with people (even more are trickling in from ferrying ships) and, to RT's credit, they did a bit of work to convey diversity in this world. We see a decent variety of skin tones as well as faunus characteristics, to say nothing of the cool designs many of the competitors will get. Beyond the main cast still being overwhelmingly white, I'd say the biggest issue here is the lack of body diversity, what with everyone having the same, stick-thin figure. Yeah, RT is clearly using the same base model copied a hundred times and I'm very aware of their previous status as a small, independent company, but such visuals nevertheless stand out in a series that's been pushing a minority plotline for three seasons.

The camera swoops down to follow Team RWBY in the midst of a battle which, again, is staged in a way that's clearly meant to catch up/invite in new viewers. It's very trailer-esque as each shot lingers on Weiss, Blake, and Yang for a moment before finishing with Ruby, complete with a twirl of Crescent Rose. This is the show visually reminding you of what it's really about. Sure, we might have started with Ruby speaking peacefully by a grave, but at the end of the day RWBY is the story of a team engaging in combat situations.

Oobleck and Port are announcing the event and Oobleck throws out his standard "Doctor" when his title goes unacknowledged.

You know, I started RWBY nearly a decade ago. Four years ago I secured a PhD, so I feel that now.

Port provides another handy info dump for those "just now joining us." AKA the viewer who has no idea what a Vytal Festival is, but this is as good an excuse as any given that people are still entering the stadium. Simply put, all the Kingdoms' huntsmen schools are competing as teams first, then as duos, then as individuals to determine the final winner who will have achieved "victory for their kingdom!" Age and year are irrelevant, which makes perfect sense given the nature of RWBY's combat. You've got young prodigies like Ruby and people who sneak into Beacon like Jaune, and though the other schools/years probably don't have as much drama going on, the variety of semblances, weapons, dust use, and personal experience really makes this anyone's game. A first year might easily beat a fourth year if they won the genetic lottery with their semblance, or a student from School A might trounce someone their age from School B, depending on how much their school has sent them into real combat situations.

Given all that, I kinda wish the Festival had developed the other Kingdoms more, given that it's the perfect opportunity for the cultures to learn from one another and/or butt heads. In a perfect world, one where RT had some sense of where their story was going, I would have loved to see:

Strong development of Vacuo's citizens, especially given that it will be the focal point of Volume 10 and possibly the end of the series (if we ever get that...).

Though the gag that Weiss excepts strict, militaristic fighters from Atlas only to get Neon is funny, that 'Don't judge a book by its cover' lesson really doesn't align well with what Volume 7 and 8 try to push. Better, perhaps, to set up Atlas' dictatorship tendencies before swinging hard in that direction (and I'll get into how what we do see doesn't make the cut).

How Remnant's racism gets displayed in a highly public competition. Do Blake and the other faunus face more discrimination now that they're in the public eye? Do asshole citizens challenge wins because no way did a faunus beat that human?

How different schools approach training their huntsmen. Specifically, everyone seems to abide by the four-person team structure, so why would this competition eventually highlight duos and individuals? It seems counter to what Beacon, and by extension all the other schools, are trying to promote. This setup would make more sense if we were shown that different schools have radically different curriculum. Maybe it's eventually 1v1 because Vacuo's individualist, survival-based culture teaches huntsmen to fend for themselves; teammates are just another liability. Maybe Atlas, being militaristic, prizes safety in numbers and has students train in groups of six rather than four. Maybe Mistral is incredibly semblance-focused (a way to develop Neptune's phobia rather than just making it a gag; a fighter who can't or won't use their semblance is considered effectively useless) and if you can negate that aspect of their style somehow, you find they're lacking severely in weapon-based combat.

Again, I know that RWBY, particularly early RWBY, only had so much time per episode, but looking back it feels like there are a lot of missed opportunities in this world-watched event. None of this is even taking into account Cinder sneaking into the school, or Penny being outed as an android. If any RWBY rewriters are reading this, the Festival is a potential goldmine of characterization and cultural development. If you're going to write random RWBY books, write some about that!

One moment of cultural significance that is shown though is the Atlas security hovering around the arena. They mostly keep to the background, without any single appearance being obtrusive (yet). This is one of those moments where (some) fans look back and say, "See? Ironwood was always a controlling, military-obsessed bastard," but the reality is that this is incredibly tame by real world standards, to say nothing of the realities of RWBY's fantasy world. Regardless of how you feel about the, uh... motivations behind the security in your country (because that's a whole other conversation), you expect there to be some level of professional oversight when that many people are meeting in one place. That's a reality we have to work with, which includes all the potential pitfalls, biases, manipulations, and accidents that come with any large-scale endeavor. Toss in the fact that RWBY's security is designed to defend against man-eating monsters and I'm honestly surprised it isn't presented as dystopian here. Meaning, we easily could have been given a story where people are comparatively safe from grimm in modern day Remnant and the security functions primarily as outside control and/or a fear-mongering tactic. It's not that security is inherently unnecessary, but those walls have done a damn good job for the last generation or so, so why is James so insistent on populating this festival with his probably not-needed robots? Seems sus 🤔.

As it stands, grimm DO attack people on the regular (that was kind of a big part of last Volume's finale), security IS necessary (according to many other council professionals once James raises the issue), and it's arguably MORE necessary now - during the festival - because there are so many potentially negative emotions just waiting to crop up. Instead of "Seems sus," the reaction to having defensive robots around is more, "No duh." At the very least RWBY might have had the characters react to the security with suspicion/fear, even if that doesn't totally track with the rest of the worldbuilding, or better yet, demonstrate that there are major issues with AI leading the charge (robot mistakes kid in grimm mask for real grimm and fires a shot!). Granted, we get that through the hacking at the very end of the Volume, but here and now the Atlas ships seem to be used primarily for transporting viewers, the crowd is fully at ease with these guys, and — as we'll see later — the prospect of additional security in the form of AI is greeted with enthusiasm, not wariness, simply because it will keep real, breathing people off the front lines. Those are all important things to keep in mind when you consider whether a) The show took a very sharp turn in Volumes 7-8 or b) The show capitalized on a long established, slow burn plotline.

(Psst the answer is 'B')

ANYWAY, Oobleck is yelling about the "Spectacular spectacles on which to speculate on!" and I love him all the more. While he and Port narrate we get some non-animated shots of people viewing the Festival from around the world, though frankly it doesn't do much to help RWBY's worldbuilding. Some people watch the fights from a camper outside, others are in a minimalist apartment, still others are in what's basically a bar... if you're looking for intriguing backgrounds to drum up interest in the world outside of Beacon, you're not going to find it here. The presence of various faunus individuals is really the only thing that distinguishes these settings from a show based in the real world.

Onto the fighting! (It's about time :p) The girls are facing off against Team ABRN (pronounced "Auburn") from Haven and they're decent for a couple of one-off characters. I like the design of the girl with the skateboard - Reese - and how her weapon, the board itself, gives her a lot of flexibility in battle. Since it functions as a hoverboard she has a lot of maneuverability, she can use the board as a shield, a projectile, adapt its abilities via Dust, and - of course - she can pull both sides apart to duel wield the guns. Looking at all that flexibility, it is a little lame that she 'loses' that particular encounter with Blake by slipping on the ice, but then we're not really supposed to care about these characters. They exist solely to get us hyped for the battles to come and give a quick primer on how those battles will work. AKA, now we've learned that the battlefield itself has hazards the girls must circumvent.

Blake is cute here though. She's so concerned and I'm like yeah, girl, that looked like it hurt 😬

This whole exchange has that same vibe: one of casual playfulness, which makes perfect sense given that this is supposed to be a fun competition. They're exhibition matches, not real attempts to take the other team out (which is why Yang's supposed act later in the tournament will be seen as so heinous). The guy with the pink hair (Nadir) full on pouts when Ruby successfully traps him in a block of ice and, of course, we have the classic "Got your back!"/"My BFF!" lines in response. The girls are enjoying themselves and that's so damn wholesome to see after all the tragedies - plot and writing-wise - of the later Volumes.

Team ABRN are able to make a bit of a comeback and - *gasp* - the girls have to actually think creatively/combine techniques in order to get the upper-hand. Blake successfully tricks Reese with a clone and catches her in the midriff with a quickly timed ribbon, cleanly knocking her out of the ring. It's here that we learn a team member can be eliminated via leaving the bounds, or having their aura dip too low (remember when that was a thing?) I know I just said there's teamwork, and there absolutely is here, but it did stand out to me how Blake just like... disappears after this moment? I mean she comes back, but it's clear RT wanted each girl to have her moment in this battle, despite the fact that any member who successfully defeated their opponent would be rushing off to help the others. That should be a near defining win condition - defeat one opponent and suddenly it's a 2 vs 1 situation for someone else - but that expectation falls by the wayside until the fight's final moments.

It's a good fight though. Not the greatest by RWBY standards, but it was no hardship to rewatch for this recap either. Weiss pulls out an epic ice hand that ensnares two of the members, now rolling chaotically across the arena, and clearly she thinks this is the end of the fight. However, Arslan — the monk-type who favors hand-to-hand combat (or the one with the "Eastern martial arts influence" according to the RWBY wiki...)— simply rolls her eyes, plants her feet, and shatters the ball with a single hit. Gotta admit, it's pretty cool.

Of course, Team RWBY still comes out victorious in the end. With all of Team ABRN now in one place, the girls have one of those lovely mind-reading moments and pull off a coordinated attack, allowing Yang to sucker-punch them all out of the ring. Again, it's nice to see that kind of teamwork, as well as the adorable way they all stand there, mildly shocked that they won.

I'll take that over the brazen, cocky confidence they've gained any day.

The only thing I'm kinda iffy about regarding this fight is how Team ABRN feels a little less like a full-fledged team to me, and more like a faint Team RWBY echo. It's most noticeable in the Yang vs. Arslan sections where you've got two yellow-coded, hand-to-hand snarkers facing off. Blake and Reese both feel like the cool, alternative style members of their teams, and then you've got the Weiss-Ruby duo trying to overtake the Bolin-Nadir duo. It's admittedly a subtle familiarity that lessens with each example, but it stood out to me in the re-watch; like Team ABRN only exists to give Team RWBY someone vaguely similar to overcome. Which, granted, they do. These are not characters we're going to follow as the series progresses, so in most respects they've done precisely what they needed to do and in a way that looks cool and feels entertaining. So this isn't a criticism, really. More an acknowledgment that RWBY is a series with limits and if we want to know more about these characters/flesh them out beyond their paralleling characteristics, we'll have to do that ourselves in the fanfic.

As Ruby jumps into the air in a victory celebration, we PowerPoint slide cut to the festival later that day where she nearly collapses, asking if anyone else is starving.

Yeah, child. You just made it through a physically intensive battle in front of an audience while existing as a teenager. Of course you're hungry. Blake's stomach gives a giant, embarrassing growl in response and Weiss sarcastically bemoans the fact that there's nowhere to eat at the food-focused festival. Good times, good times.

Ruby: "It's okay, Weiss. I forget about the fair grounds too."

Before they can grab lunch though Weiss declines a call from her father and an old 'acquaintance' suddenly shows up.

Emerald.

You know, kudos to Katie here because Emerald's laugh and, "Good to see you, Ruby" sounds so fake to me now. It just oozes, 'I secretly hate you but am pulling out all my acting skills to convince you otherwise' energy. Obviously RWBY has a host of villains/antagonists that have done a plethora of heinous things, but there's something particularly skin-crawling to me about seeing Emerald in retrospect. Part of it is the deception. I don't know about anyone else, but I personally would prefer a villain who's upfront about their nature from the get-go, rather than one who pretends to be my friend before stabbing me in the back. The first scenario just lacks the same emotional punch, you know? Though the other part of it is, of course, knowing where everyone ends up. Beacon will fall. Ozpin will "die." Pyrrha will actually die, and our heroes will be sent out into a war they're in no way ready for. Yes, Salem is our ultimate Big Bad, yes Emerald has her sympathetic moments and does a heel-turn into "good guy" territory four Volumes from now... but I think the fandom often forgets that she willingly and actively participated in this horror show. This isn't someone just along for the ride because their crush manipulated them, this is someone with a working brain between their ears who has PLENTY of time to consider the ramifications of this and still went, "Yeah, I'll lie my way into orchestrating a massacre."

All this hindsight angst is interrupted by the joke (and I use that term with great reservation) that Ruby must have dropped her wallet because "Girl pockets are the worst!" Sorry, but that has such cis-guy-trying-to-relate-to-women-and-failing-miserably energy to me. Like yeah, I also hate the super small/outright fake pockets that they often sew into women's clothing and I too have smiled at women promoting pockets as part of their independent brands... but somehow hearing the RWBY writers reference it just doesn't land. It's not #problematic, just cringy.

Emerald butters them up a bit by complimenting their fighting and Weiss notes that they haven't seen Emerald's teammates in action yet. We cut to their battle where they dominate the other team, complete with a disguised Neo showing her real eye color before she knocks the competitor out. "[They did] really well," says Emerald in the fakest humble tone ever heard.

Ruby invites them all to lunch and Emerald - clearly horrified by the prospect - dodges by claiming that her teammates are too socially awkward for a meetup. In her defense, Mercury is in the process of randomly sniffing a boot, so although this is absolutely just an excuse, she's also not wrong. Like, at all lol.

Fishing for more info, Emerald asks who's moving onto the doubles round and it turns out that Team RWBY voted for Weiss and Yang. There are three things that I love about this moment:

They voted. Yes, Ruby cheekily tries to make it sound like this is all coming from her genius as team leader, but at the end of the day they decided as a team who would represent them. It's a small detail, but those stand out so much more now that we have Ruby vocally and angrily calling the shots.

(This is a ridiculous side-note I'm 99.9% sure I've mentioned before, but every time I talk about Ruby's intense form of "leadership" in the latter Volumes, I'm reminded of Rick's, "This is not a democracy!" in The Walking Dead. If you know, you know.)

They chose Weiss and Yang. From both an in-world and meta perspective, it's actually a little surprising that Ruby isn't representing them. As established, she's team leader. The team is named after her. She's the protagonist of the show. She's also, canonically, a prodigy wielding an insanely deadly weapon. Yet it's refreshing as a viewer to have a new duo taking the spotlight and within the story-world this choice reinforces Point #1: They're a team and no matter how individually talented any one member may be - or even what titles they hold - they are, at the end of the day, all on equal footing. Why shouldn't Yang and Weiss represent?

The way they both respond to this reveal is dang cute. Weiss' "I will happily represent Team RWBY" while curtseying to Emerald vs. Yang's "Yeah! We're gonna kick some butt!" while slamming her fists together. It's a great contrast and shows why these two might have been chosen. Though powerful on their own, their styles and personality are different enough to compensate for any flaws.

With all that out of the way Emerald rejoins Mercury and her smile immediately drops. She's disgusted at having to get all buddy-buddy with them, but "Orders are orders." She has this classic villain moment where she expresses shock over how they're just so happy all the time and I'm like oh, honey. Darling. Morally misaligned baby girl. Just give it a few Volumes.

We cut to Team RWBY at lunch and aRE THE BOWLS SUPPOSED TO BE THAT BIG?

I recalled that they were big as a visual gag, but not half the girls' size. Honestly? Great choice. I too want to live in a world where you can get insanely giant noodles a millisecond after you order them.

Deviating from the others, Blake nods at the seller dude and receives an equally giant bowl filled with fish. You know, I really wish RWBY had done something with the faunus' animal traits rather than turning them into an endless joke. The concept of a god merging humans with literal animals and then, generations down the line, cat-people being influenced by cat instincts as well as human instincts (because remember, we're animals too) is actually really interesting to me... but navigating the racial implications of that takes a level of nuance that RWBY was never interested in exploring. So we're just left with a Blake who is fish obsessed and chases laser pointers and hates dogs and we're supposed to laugh at all that, rather than buying into her teachings that many people use these traits to dehumanize the faunus.

Anyway, Weiss shows off a bit and pays for all their food. At least, she tries to. Turns out her card has been declined, which is more than a little confusing to her given that she was "barely into [her] monthly allowance." Hmm, could that possibly have anything to do with her ignoring her father's phone calls? Surely no one knows.

Luckily, Pyrrha shows up and offers to pay instead (it's nice having a famous BFF, huh?), but like... what were the girls' initial plans? None of them were expecting Weiss to pay, yet they act like Pyrrha is saving the day by showing up, implying that they don't have the money to cover their meal. The shop guy even takes Blake's fish away, leaving her despondent. So what? Were they planning to eat and just worry about the bill later? Actually, that sounds exactly like something these chaotic preteens would do lol. Yang especially. She was introduced while "buying" a drink before destroying the whole dang bar.

Speaking of teenagers, they all finish their bowls with the kind of appetite only seen in 14-71yos. Although, it was a near thing for Jaune. He's very close to barfing (callback!) and Nora encourages him to "aim it at the enemy!"

She continues ragging on him for a bit, failing to come up with any compliments while hyping up her team. Pyrrha is a world-renowned fighter, Ren is basically a ninja, she can bench five of herself, and Jaune is... Jaune. Nora also doesn't include him in her secondary list which implies that Jaune a) hasn't trained as much (or, more realistically, hasn't gotten as much out of it) as the others, b) doesn't possess an "awesome" weapon, and c) is still frequently yelled at by Glynda.

Poor Jaune. I don't say that very often anymore, but he's going through it here lol.

All of this leads to Nora spiraling at the possibility of them losing. This includes the oh-so-causal drop that she and Ren "have no parents and no home left to go to" which is a HELL of a thing to throw out in a comedically framed breakdown. I mean, being orphans is sad enough, but "no home left to go to" won't be explained until we learn that their town was basically wiped off the map, so damn.

Team RWBY reassures them that a fight with actual rules is nothing compared to what they've already been through. You know, the murderers, extremists, and sociopaths. "Oh," gushes Ruby, "imagine what it'll be like when we graduate!"

As Port and Oobleck call Team JNPR to the arena for their match we cut to Emerald and Mercury settling in to enjoy the festivities. In retrospect, this right here is a really nicely composed shot:

It tells us that Emerald is serious about going through with this destruction (again, she's no manipulated damsel), but she's not getting the same personal enjoyment out of it like Mercury is, as showcased by the smirk. The focus remains on them with Team RWBY framed in between. This is the villains' Volume. They're going to win. Our eyes follow the soon-to-be champions not of the festival, but the battle, while our heroes are literally and metaphorically trapped between them. Finally, Yang is the only one who looks back. We won't know this for several episodes, but she's at the heart of their plan and has every reason to cast the almost-but-not-quite-worried glance over her shoulder. Subtle foreshadowing, how I love thee.

It's shit like this that makes my brain go, "It used to be good! RWBY used to be fun AND occasionally insightful! Those overworked animators were uplifting a mediocre story and the result was good!!!"

As they take their seats who should show up but Cinder, casually using her semblance to pop a kernel of popcorn (power move). "Even if you know how a story ends," she says, "that doesn't make it any less fun to watch." True that! I mean, she's talking about knowing that Team JNPR will be moving on because they need Pyrrha to murder Penny, but I agree with the sentiment outside of that context.

Actually, do they ever explain how they manipulated the fights? I mean, they obviously entered and are winning their own battles and we know that Mercury will be staging his injury with Yang... but here Cinder makes it sound like she's pulling strings in every match. Toss that onto the list of development I would have liked for this Volume: what precisely are they doing behind the scenes? I'll have to pay careful attention going forward to make sure I don't miss anything because right now all I can recall is them looking at Penny's blueprints (presumably obtained via Watts).

Team JNPR's area is randomized into a forest and mountainous land before the battle commences. We end on that cliffhanger, complete with the superhero-esque freeze shot.

And that concludes the first episode of Volume 3! As well as my first recap in a long while. If you've followed me at all you'll know that work has been my personal Big Bad the last two-ish years. Given the scope of my responsibilities and the energy they extract, I simply don't have the time or means to write the way I used to. However, I feel like if I can muster up the willpower to finish this on tonight of all nights (people reading from the future: check the posting date and you'll understand), then I must be getting a little better at carving out writing time in my hectic schedule. All hail self-improvement!

On that positive note, everyone have a wonderful night. Or at least try to. Seriously. Text a loved one, treat yourself to a favored snack, do something that feels fulfilling. Take some deep breaths and I'll see you for the next one.

~Clyde❤️

[pawberri]

This may be odd, but as a kinky individual who is constantly curious on other kinks, and others opinions/values, how do you feel about fauxcest?

I’m not into it personally, but I like hearing other people’s opinions on any and all kinks. I’ve been seeing it on the tl some recently and I’m not too sure how I should feel.

Incest tw

Its a nuanced question that basically entirely depends on context to me... like I respect it as a kink between adults, your private sex life isn't anyones business and if you're being a responsible & looking after u and ur partner thats fine. Afaik most therapist support that it can be therapeutic for survivors. I am even in theory fine with people like running blogs where they talk about it if they moderate it and such. But I think making art about it (even or especially horny art) is like supremely difficult to do well at best. It takes a lot of thought and care. Which is why I find it un-ideal that it's so popular with really reactionary people who hate tagging and trigger warning and believing art has implications and stuff. This also is inconvenient for me as someone who gets PTSD from like specifically online incest content lol

But it does feel like it's 50 different topics with a lot of different outcomes... like there's trans girl survivors coping and doing their best to be responsible or just making slight mistakes and getting the brunt of online hate VS like 4channers who straight up make memes mocking the idea of having a little sister who hates being abused and collectively egg each other on to become fucking Kaliacc nazi groomers VS the mainstream porn that's not interested in abuse as a real thing or a real issue and just wants a cheap thrill VS joseimuke gacha games baiting sibling couples for fujoshi money harder than other ships but also not gafing abt abuse VS people calling hot people mommy or daddy . All of these warrant their own essays to me because they're all communicating completely different things

Basically I'm glad we're transitioning into an era where the people who like it actually think about it and the implications of it unlike when I was a kid where the norm in fandom was just to introduce kids to random incest ships and not gaf about anything ever . Please please please warn for it tho. Why is it the thing people get mad at u for asking to warn 😭💔

[gwenpoolsaesthetic]

Deadline Extended!!

The deadline for my dissertation project, Affirmation/Transformation, has been extended! This project asks fans to get inspired by one of 14 pieces of fine art and create... ANYTHING! Write a story, write a song, design a cosplay, create a fancy manicure, make a meme, make a stop-motion video, choreograph a dance, make a SuperWhoLock gif fic, or anything else your heart can dream up. Fanworks are submitted digitally, so you don't have to actually send me anything, and all kinds of fanworks from all fandoms are welcome!! You can find all the pieces and sign up for reminders HERE.

I'm not going to lie, I haven't gotten quite the response I was hoping for. I have enough submissions to put the show on, but not as many as I would like for my research. If you're interested in supporting my project, but you're not sure how, please reach out to me! I'd love to see as many different kinds of fanworks and as many different fandoms represented as possible. Submissions will be accepted through the end of the exhibition (December 22, 2024) but, if they're made after August 1st, I can't promise they'll be in the exhibition on opening day. The exhibition will be available both in person at Marquette University's Haggerty Museum of Art. and online.

[burningcheese-merchant]

Little thank-you post!

I have over 100 followers now! Don't really know why any of you are here, I am not funny nor am I interesting, nor do I actually post anything cool lol. But regardless, I'm really grateful for you guys and for your support! (As well as all the anons that reach out to me! Thank you to you all, as well! I enjoy when people actually talk to me, nobody wants to feel like they're rambling into a void lol)

As a sort of mediocre, I'm sorry thank-you, I want to outline what I've got in store for you all next:

Gonna release the BurningCheese playlist soon, it's over 30 songs long now lol. I want you all to jam with me. Rock out to the BurningCheese vibe. (And send me more song recommendations if you want, a lot of what I have now is thanks to homies making suggestions)

PART 2 OF "Mine Forever More" IS COMING VERY SOON! Now that I've played through episode 6 (and had a massive meltdown because BURNINGCHEESE IS CANON OMG /jk), I know what I want to do for the story now. Expect it to be posted within the next day or two! (And also look forward to more short stories, I have a lot planned)

Remember those BurningCheese fankids I've mentioned more than once before? Get excited, you're gonna see and hear about them again soon 👀👀👀

I've gotten asks about my "Reformed Beasts AU" that I've been tinkering with. I promise there will be a masterpost on the subject in the future. I kind of want to iron out my thoughts on the Beasts in general first, and how I headcanon their corruptions (like that "a thought about Burning Spice" post I made). Will probably write about Shadow Milk next, or maybe Silent Salt (I've made up a whole ass character for this guy that I've gotten attached to already lol)

I know I have a bunch of asks in my inbox I still need to answer. I'm sorry for the delay, I promise I will get to you all. I inhabit the real world and have real-world responsibilities like everyone else, unfortunately haha

Gonna remind you all again that my AO3 username is sleeping_mouse_1011, because people have asked me that, too. Do be careful, a lot of my works are NSFW to some degree (that's where I indulge in Yandere Spice lol). I encourage minors to stay here and enjoy my SFW stories instead.

Got a bunch of meme edits to make now, hope those make you laugh. I gotta cope with having no artistic talent somehow

I have thoughts and headcanons I'd love to share about other characters and ships besides Burning Simp and Pretty Cheese Lady lol. I'm actually NOT entirely insane, I am capable of rational discussion about things other than BurningCheese, I swear

Thanks again to everyone who takes the time to rifle through my nonsense posts and read my stories. It really means a lot to me that my works bring people joy. I know I'm still just some nobody on here, but even so. I hope I somehow manage to put a smile on your face. Even if it's more at my own expense than anything else.

That's all from me for now. Merchant out. Later, haters

[mcflymemes]

8 IDEAS FOR GETTING MORE ROLEPLAY INTERACTIONS remember to always be respectful and read rules before reaching out!

cater your space down to the most active, most interactive blogs on your dash, and always try to follow new people to broaden that group. if someone isn't liking your posts or sending memes, maybe it's time to part ways! that's all right! it's okay to softblock them and find others who are more engaged and more interested in your blog and your character/s.

memes. reblog them... and dear god, send them! if you see a blog on your dash reblog a meme... send some in! send a handful! especially if the two of you have never interacted, sending memes shows them you're interested and want to create some fun dynamics! please don't be nervous about doing this - you know how excited you get when you receive memes... and they'll probably feel the same way!

send spontaneous headcanon questions, asks, or compliments. everyone loves a good (not anonymous) message in their inbox. ask about their character! ask where their ideas came from! how do they write so beautifully - what books do they read to help inspire them? what music do they listen to when they write? maybe compliment their graphics! compliment their writing style! this is a fantastic way to create connections and show an interest in others, who will then in turn show an interest in you.

follow your mutuals' mutuals. if you keep seeing a certain blog writing with your mutuals... follow them! see what happens! they've probably seen you on their dash, too, so you already have something to bond over. maybe you can incorporate your dynamic with a mutual into one of your new threads?

send an IM. this is the one that rarely ever gets used, but i find it the most effective way to start something fun. if you follow a new blog and you've got an idea for a plot with them... send them a message! "thanks for following me back! i love your blog already! would you be interested in plotting?" start a chat with them and come up with something fun!

do not put all the burden on the other person. too often people are so excited to plot... and then expect the other person to do all the work. when you plot with someone, have ideas. come with options. offer to send them memes to start something off. ask questions about their character. would your character even like mine? what dynamic will they have? should we do a pre-established relationship and avoid the awkward first meeting threads? have ideas ready!

don't guilt. "no one wants to write with me." "no one likes me." "i don't have any threads." "no one ever sends me memes." "i guess all my followers hate me." "i'm just gonna delete my blog." these are not fair to say. these statements are harmful, both to you and to your friends, and i can guarantee that these statements push any potential interactions away. these are normal feelings to have, and it's terrible that you feel these things, but posting about them to guilt your followers does not create an environment conducive to creativity and harmony.

most importantly, remember that people have lives. people have jobs, families, pets, responsibilities, health struggles, and other irl things that might prevent them from putting all of their enthusiasm or time into writing with you. if plotting or interactions don't work out with one person, move on to the next.

[anniesilverl2]

CHARACTER STUDY: Megavolt, the representation of insanity or of a person with a disability issues?”

INTRODUCTION

Good morning, good afternoon, good night and dawn, when you know you should be sleeping, but you're on the internet to read creative and extremely specific texts from fans — ANYWAY, welcome everyone! My name is Lauanny, you can call me Annie, today I wanted to try to present an idea that It had in partnership with my dear friend (Beatriz, applause, please). This means that it will have to restrain myself a lot so as not to give away some spoilers, but someday it will do that when everything is ready.

It would like to initially warn you that this is a blog about character studies while also considering factors in a more serious tone of the character's actions, with that, there will be mention of attempted murder. Night terrors and psychological and health problems. The reflection here is about some ideas that may be more closely linked to future representations of the character. If you disagree or want to add, feel free to do so, I'm not the type who will be upset to hear your point. Just politeness and respect between the comments, that's enough to deal with the mistakes It may make. Please let me know if there are any grammar or information errors in the translation. With that, HERE WE GO!

IMPORTANT WARNINGS ABOUT SENSITIVE CONTENT: POSSIBLY MENTIONING VIOLENCE AND PSYCHOLOGICAL/PHYSICAL ISSUES.

DARKWING DUCK SERIES - Taking everything the show SAYS for itself

“Darkwing Duck” is a television series produced between 1991–1992 by Disney's main channel, being a spin-off of its classic show, “Ducktales: the adventure hunters” telling what we already know from the show's trajectory. Simple in its genre, but interesting information to the most attentive eyes can easily question how much the script was treated as just a comedy, superhero, and adventure animation.

It is a fact that proves this point by treating the past of the character, Megavolt / Elmo Sputterspark, with more serious eyes. In the show, his true character is introduced in Crash Reunion, episode 10, third season. In this episode, Elmo Sputterspark is presented as a typical intelligent student with a promising future, however. It turns out that, among so many days of bullying, a few weeks before the prom, the young rodent is trapped in his science project by his recurring bullies, Hamilton Spring and his girlfriend Preena Lott. Remembering that the project consisted of using the electric current from the treadmill to light a light bulb, the character spent indefinite hours running until he freed himself by burning the motor. When he touches a doorknob, he awakens his electrical powers and slowly begins to thirst for revenge. He follows those responsible for this event at the prom, fortunately stopped by a younger Darkwing Duck (who very ironically was Drake Mallard, a classmate of his from some year in the 70s). In the present of the episode Megavolt, the current Elmo Sputterspark, after surrendering to crime. Has a memory trigger and decides to have revenge for his first plan, and along the way discovers the identity of his enemy and even gains an advantage. However, he is defeated by being stuck with oil (I hope so) and when he tries to threaten the hero duck, he has a complete crisis of forgetfulness, and his router's battery runs out.

DARKWING DUCK FANDOM - Building everything that was formed for the fans together with the most indirect interpretations perceived in my participation when writing or drawing with lore

Megavolt, as you would imagine, is one of the super villains in the main cast. The affection for the character is so great that there are from the creator himself to the smallest fans attracted by his charismatic and considerably eccentric personality. There is an extreme variety in what fans are used to doing, fanart, fanfiction, blogs, memes, stickers, interactions with their own characters (family relationships, friendships, dating). And it is an important point to add because the character has passed through countless hands and will continue to do so. From my knowledge many agree that the character is a rodent, intimate interactions with the Fearsome Four (I know that some are romantic as it could be just Platonic). It does not write five because his interaction with Negaduck is turbulent like 99% of the characters in the show. Some observations are the indirect references to the character that range from his name to references that relate to his memory problems. And, what if I told you now that this is much deeper than you think at first glance? Okay, follow me below, and you will hear everything, well, almost everything because there is a story to write about AU.

IN DARKWING DUCK appearing in the episodes:

“Duck Blind” (Season 1, Episode 8)  

“Comic Book Capers” (Season 1, Episode 9)  

“A Revolution in Home Appliances” (Season 1, Episode 13)  

“Just Us Justice Ducks, Part 1 and 2” (Season 1, Episodes 20–21)    

“Ghoul of My Dreams” (Season 1, Episode 30)  

"Up, Up and Awry" (Season 1, Episode 34)

“Life, the Negaverse and Everything” (Season 1, Episode 35)  

“Planet of the Capes” (Season 1, Episode 36)  

“Darkwing Doubloon” (Season 1, Episode 40)

"Twitching Channels” (Season 1, Episode 42)

“Dead Duck” (Season 1, Episode 47)  

“Time and Punishment” (Season 1, Episode 52)

"Stressed to Kill (Season 1, Episode 53)

“Inside Binkie's Brain” (Season 1 Episode 55)  

“Whirled History” (Season 1, Episode 58)  

“Jail Bird” (Season 1, Episode 62)  

“Negaduck” (Season 2, Episode 3)

“Inherit the Wimp” (Season 3, Episode 2)  

“The Frequency Fiends” (Season 3, Episode 6)  

“Clash Reunion” (Season 3, Episode 10)  

IN DUCKTALES 2017 appear in the episodes:

"Beware the B.U.D.D.Y. System!"  (Season 1* Episode 11)  

"The Duck Knight Returns" (Season 2, Episode 16)  

"Let's Get Dangerous!" (Season 3, Episode 12)  

IN COMICS (Boom! Studios and Joe Books):

"The Duck Knight Returns, Part 1" 

"The Duck Knight Returns, Part 2" 

"The Duck Knight Returns, Part 3" 

“The Duck Knight Returns, Part 4" 

"Crisis on Infinite Darkwings, Part 4" 

"Dangerous Currency, Part 1" 

"Dangerous Currency, Part 2" 

"Dangerous Currency, Part 3" 

"Orange Is the New Purple, Part 1"

"Orange Is the New Purple, Part 2”

"Orange Is the New Purple, Part 3”

MEGAVOLT/ELMO SPUTTERSPARK - Story adapted without extreme spoilers, just adding the changes, ideas on his biological identity and influence:

Elmo Sputterspark/Megavolt has always been of special interest to me. I won't lie that eccentric characters don't immediately steal my attention. The adaptation I used had no references at all. In the version, I tried to create an interpretation that was a little more appropriate to more serious series and work only a few references within the Fandom's ideas. Despite everything, It still consider each part that is presented throughout his appearances (and when I say each, It MEAN EVERY DETAIL). Crash Reunion has a more serious and considerably possible approach in my notebook in the course of the characters' development. Especially when the fact that brought the plot of the episode is exactly the mistakes that Drake Mallard makes influencing his heroic persona. Some events that It warn you still maintain are the concept; the differences would be in the time given for the accident to affect the character (much more time than you can imagine than Elmo spent running in the flashback). Another important change is that Darkwing Duck failed, unlike the first heroic action he defeated the villain, this would not have happened because it extends the timeline between the 1990 and 2017 versions. The truth is that the first time he had to seriously face Megavolt in a risky situation, he ENDED UP LOSING and this had consequences for the others as well. This time, Megavolt was responsible for the death of a considerable group of some former students of the old St Canard and Hamilton and Preena are among the main targets (for now it is directly stated that it was MEGAVOLT who committed the crime).

Another thing It consider is to reformulate exactly the information about the two visits to the electric chair, he would only have gone ONCE. However, It does not disregard the second time in the sense that he still wants to use it to work on what happened in his mind after the second OVERLOAD. Exactly, a visit to the electric chair and an overload in this version. An interesting and somewhat silly fact is that I considered that the character would be a mix between animals, half dog and half rat. It seems silly at first, but considering how much some mutations (whether genetically, individually good or bad, disability, how can I explain it) influenced the mutation of his superpowers. In some drafts, despite some ideas of family origin, the final result is that the character is a mere American, with influences in his more distant relatives from indigenous to European. I would bet on a member of the Iroquois people as much as a Russian immigrant (or some nationality from Eastern/Eastern Europe). In truth, I haven't fully defined it yet, so it serves as a suggestion for you in your own notes.

MEGAVOLT/ELMO SPUTTERSPARK - Character Design

Concept art Vs Final Design

Light Redesign  

DEVELOPMENT: 

There are three topics that I can mention that I will be working on throughout my writing in LYG (and also my participation with PU, Beatriz's AU). The first is to work on social change from the 1945s. Elmo Sputterspark, as confirmed, was a typical genius student, fond of exact sciences, good grades, curious and politely cute, but vulnerable to bad people. One fact that I consider is to work on the difference between American and Brazilian bullying. Many say that it refers to a type like this or type like that, however. It considers it to take exactly the social classifications and behaviour according to some readings that It has already done through blogs and Reddit (if you delve deeper, you will see that it is no small thing even today). An example that I think of in some concepts is when the character had suffered from hair loss, which came mainly from the trauma of when in childhood Hamilton cut his hair until his ears were visible. It's a cruel example, but this type of situation would continue over the years, until at some point it resulted in the actions at the reunion of the old students of the main academy of Saint Canard. However, it's not just pain that would come to the character. Have small blocks to add, someone to help him during the most difficult days of summer, especially to give a flying kick to specific bullies that fans are interested in. One fact that was pointed out that could be seen as differences is in the way that the writers can bring back the villain's superpowers. It varies a lot according to the way they want to fit it into the story and the interpretation of the AUs together. Beatriz and I put forward to consider the impacts of the accident to the rodent, which, regardless of whether it was, perhaps a project that gradually became overloaded. An abnormality, special equipment or reference to other characters, the issue that brought the powers that we know, is exactly THE OVERLOAD carried out during the event. When Elmo wakes up from it, regardless of the form, it is exactly the aftermath of the artificial electricity acting on the tiny portion of the brain's electricity. Gradually becoming so much that it would hinder the bearer's ability to remove it from his limbs (yes, this small logic is broad for anything that wants to add or rewrite its origin, and, unintentionally, there was a clue as to how it happened in the main story).

CONSTRUCTION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC AND ELECTRICAL POWERS

Talking comes, talking goes, won't beat around the bush, just adding to the organization. The main fact is exactly to remember in the post that, considering that in the main version (used in Purple Union and Little Yellow Girl AU) the electricity that came into contact with Elmo during the accident is both organic and artificial. Over the time he was in contact with the charge it gradually came into contact with his energy waves until at a certain point the process and storage of neurons was completely broken (if you want to research in depth, you will understand that this is exactly what I say next). When Elmo's brain came in, in short, the artificial electricity kind of altered the waves of his neurons, which gradually. In addition to giving him incredible electrical powers, it would also gradually eat away at the few functional cells in his brain and influence his thirst for revenge. > 

CONSEQUENCES

Among all the factors that I have heard or read according to fans or based on research abroad, there are four factors that I think can be used to address the difficulties and changes in Megavolt/Elmo's life. Remember that this is data that I found on websites and official documents by health professionals, even so I am not a professional. I am presenting references for something small that can be added and provide recognition of these conditions and if familiar, seek out a health professional nearby.They are popularly known as:

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder — PTSD

Alzheimer's

Dementia

Epilepsy

> POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER — PTSD 

Known as "Post-traumatic Stress Disorder" here as PTSD, the disorder is recognized as the difficulty after a high-stress event. It can last for months or years, and many people with this disorder may try to avoid returning to the event as much as possible, whether due to memories, triggers, or having spent time with the person or place. Many things can result in PTSD, and one of the main ones that raised the point for the character to carry this condition would be his exaggerated reactions when the subject is about some event from the past. Depending on what it is, it can even bring positivity, however, for those who have the condition, any trigger that has brought pain into their life tends to have strong consequences for their safety. 

In a certain rewrite, the thought of remembering school days would not simply have only the good times. Megavolt is essentially forgetful and with the temperament of a threatened bull. In consideration of this, he may initially not present fear until slowly the memories try to remember what brought him there. From social isolation after the abrupt end of their plans to the future, from the repetition of what would be expected to never be seen again, the consequences of years of bullying, verbal, social, and physical. One thing to consider is that some symptoms vary, but they present the same traits, and for a moment of transition of their enthusiasm. It could easily be exchanged for a panic attack mixed with thirst for repressed fury for so many years. Aggressiveness and emotional indifference are some visible signs, and can be broad or on a smaller scale, varying according to the symptoms in the sufferer. The possible additional symptoms include: Physical reactions such as stress or fatigue:

Hypervigilance:

Panic attack:

Anxiety attack:

Nervousness:

Distrust:

Hopelessness:

Indifference / Emotional Detachment:

Headache:

Agitation:

Hostility:

Aggressiveness:

Irritability:

Hallucination:

Insomnia:

Sleep Deprivation:

Unwanted Thoughts:

> ALZHEIMER'S DEMENTIA

Alzheimer's disease is recognized as a progressive disease responsible for the degradation of brain cells and is caused by genetic factors, such as an abnormal gene in the predominant trait of ancestors. It is commonly believed that the disease consumes the brain's strength until the individual is completely unable to perform their activities due to damage to the area of the body known as the hippocampus and the cerebral cortex (and there are other similar diseases, such as neurodegenerative diseases: Alzheimer's, Dementia, Korsakoff Syndrome, Huntington's, stroke, Head injury or tumour, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, Creutzfeldt-Jakob, multiple sclerosis, normal pressure hydrocephalus, hypothyroidism, high blood pressure, depression, and ADHD…). One factor responsible for the genetic abnormality of Alzheimer's is some lipoproteins in the cholesterol in the bloodstream. There are three types of lipoproteins:

Epsilon-4: (Leads to earlier development of Alzheimer's)

Epsilon-2: (Leads to a decrease and some safety in Alzheimer's)

Epsilon-3: (Leads to neutrality between developing or not). An important part that I will highlight from the sources (everything will be at the end of the post) is that it is not in any way a routinely recommended test. As any disease in the field of cells and brain can lead to having it, it is commonly done in middle-aged individuals.

In some rewrites, Alzheimer's is one of the most popularly known diseases and is often reviewed in some indirect way among characters who have had their past taken away. Whether by force or by chance, the main consideration is demarcating that Elmo will not have it completely. However, he would gradually go through some signs as he would lose connection with his reality. A significant fact to mention is that Alzheimer's disease is commonly targeted at middle-aged people, and a fact that could point to the approximation is exactly the character who originally is in his 30s to 40s (I read the Reboot notes). Even though, it is not completely impossible for the disease to be present in younger people. However, in a headline a century ago from “the Journal for Alzheimer's Disease”. Reported in Beijing, China, a case of gradual memory loss lasting two years in a 19-year-old from Beijing, China, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Becoming the youngest patient to have the condition in the world and being treated by finding beta-amyloid in his brain in the hippocampus. I could mention the age that the character would have during the course of the story, however, for now I will say that he was born (in this interpretation) on 09/16/1964. The main fact is that he would present considerably signs of a little of each of the conditions mentioned. However, one fact is not directly linked to another so easily, each reference influences in some way to itself and the additional possible symptoms are from:

People may experience:

Disorientation (partially):

Forgetfulness:

Difficulty concentrating:

Difficulties and Loss of recent memory (there is an additional point that your implicit or declarative memory has recovery points at an average level):

Agitation/Restlessness:

“Personality” changes:

Difficulty performing functions:

Lack of or wandering aimlessly:

Apathy (significant on average):

Mood swings, anger or loneliness:

Hallucination:

Paranoia:

Rhythmic muscle contractions:

Disorientation:

Slurred speech (rare signal):

Limited social skills:

> DEMENTIA IN GENERAL 

Dementia is recognized as not being a disease, but rather as a group of cognitive and social symptoms that interfere with the individual's daily activities. Characterized by dysfunction of at least two functions, such as memory and discernment, in the brain. This suggests that Alzheimer's is a type of dementia and a term used to describe poor function in the area of the cerebral cortex. With treatments that help deal with the progression of cells, there are medications to treat the symptoms brought on by the passing of the years, perhaps not preventing them completely, but helping to improve the health of the body.

In this part of the post, in the rewrite, I confirm with a green flag that the problem in question that I would mark as total would be dementia. As it would be the field that would most encompass a behavioural analysis of the character's day-to-day difficulties. It would also represent some possible consequences for the aftermath of the genetic mutation in the character. At this point, I mention an important fact that developed over the years. Megavolt's thinking contains, to a certain extent, temperament issues. Considering that certain occasions of indifference and raising of the voice with triggers are not necessarily wilful, but are partly caused by a short temper, poor communication and low tolerance in moments of mild to serious stress. This consensus caught me when I was remembering Quackerjack's mentions with the nickname “Sparky” and that somehow it seemed very much like he repressed as much as possible the impulses of verbal threats to violence. Which, contrary to what normally happens in crises/anger attacks, tends to lead to impulsive choices at the time and then accommodated by a dose of guilt and shame (something that I will try to present directly in the future via text, stay tuned).

> EPILEPSY  

Epilepsy is recognized as a disease in which there is a disturbance in the activity of nerve cells, gradually causing temporary convulsions, which can present as a crisis or epileptic fits. It can occur both generically and due to injuries, lesions, trauma, or substance abuse that affect the cerebral vascular system. An epileptic fit occurs with the contraction of muscles, or rather, as a switch from voluntary to involuntary contractions or muscle paralysis. Among the signs throughout the body, there may be loss of control of movements, incomprehensible speech, tremors, chewing on the tongue (or even rolling it up), intense salivation, panting, and this will result in what the individual's gaze does. Often, because it can occur for a short period of time, it is often not noticed by family members, caregivers, or even teachers. At the end of the recurrence, the person does not remember what happened during or before the involuntary seizure, called a partial seizure (consciousness is not influenced) and a complex seizure (consciousness is impacted). Generalized seizures define those that affect the person in a generalized manner, as the name suggests. There are some types of generalized seizures:

Absence seizure: characterized by the behaviour of staring into space, spaced out, and may make subtle movements, such as blinking.

Myoclonic seizures: characterized by sudden movements, such as sudden jerks or spasms in the arms and legs;

Atonic seizures: characterized by loss of muscle control, which can lead to sudden falls or uncertain movements.

Atonic seizures: This type of seizure causes loss of muscle control, which can lead to sudden falls.

Tonic seizures: characterized by muscle rigidity, generally affecting the muscles of the arms, legs, and back. They can also cause falls;

Clonic seizures: characterized by causing rhythmic and repetitive movements. Tonic-clonic seizures. In this type, there is loss of consciousness, rigidity, and tremors throughout the body, and in some cases, loss of control of the bladder and tongue. This is the most well-known type of seizure, when the patient struggles.The symptoms in addition to your profile:

Fainting/Fatigue:

Tingling:

Visual or sensory symptoms:

Amnesia:

Mental confusion:

Seizures:

Headache:

Temporary paralysis:

If we are now referring to the representation of Megavolt/Elmo, he takes on a considerable role in the situations in which he lives together and, many times. It is the result of a physical overload of electricity running through his veins. Furthermore, in reference to one of the actions that occurs when he pushes his body's energy limits, and one of the reasons for merging with his crisis episodes. And one of the factors that led to this connection came from the character's defeats, in which Darkwing Duck or company used water, or an overload of their powers to defeat him. With the change in tone, it is possible to direct that this was one of the reasons for considering the influence of the development of these symptoms on the character. Another fact that is considerably open to work on his psychology within his arcs until his last appearance in the AUs. It will still be studied a little more to improve the writing of the subject, even though it already contains its own notes on PTSD. It is essential to make progress to improve and find a way to show the individuality in the rat

An important fact to mention is that, despite the differences, the relationship between the Fearsome Five has undergone some considerable changes. However, the essence between the four members carries a considerable essence, even with the relationship problems and threats caused by Negaduck. An essential piece of information to be said is that as Megavolt's experience progresses, health issues begin to appear that influence a considerable dependence to treat some negligence, difficulty remembering and performing simple activities. More information and it's a bucket of unintentional gossip.

CREATIVE WRITING: What ideas can be worked and how can each one fit in? 

Relationships with the Fearsome Four:

A great approach for the group of villains is to explore how interactions work, their development. Mainly, to address how they can help their little friend with his difficulties in everyday life and how sometimes he can have both good and bad days in relation to trying to be his emotional support. Negaduck is also a good placement, he could work on how both good and bad relationships can affect his personality. If it is thanks to this or that he can give in to crises or because he is someone trying to deal with everything alone for fear of being dependent. However, who can gradually show again that support in some way is essential to give him independence of his identity.

Relationships with family members:

Every character in Darkwing Duck, unlike the protagonist who has a daughter and frequently interacts with the audience, there are few characters who have any affinity with their family members, even with some small mentions. For example: Liquidator has already mentioned his cousin, Morgana has a large family, Drake has his ancestors and his adopted daughter, but what about other characters like Megavolt? Well, I say that here, it would give writers and artists total freedom to play with the concepts. They could give the same country, brothers, uncles, cousins, grandparents, even adoptive purposes that were built from friendship and relationships of consideration for a negligent environment, in the same way as giving a romantic partner. However, the point I'm getting at for now is about the certain almost coming of working a possible son into the character. Of course, the artists could even swap it for a daughter and even the fans themselves with OCs, the point is that this fact would give an influential sequence to the character. A child in their care could have countless origins, the focus on their presence would be the changes it would give to the character's personality. Would this kid be a joy for him? Just a bait? An emotional support over time, together? A line between sanity and domestic life? Or how could little Isha (Arcane) end her days to give the total loss of hope? Well, I don't tremble at all with the hands of a person committed to a message. 

Non-intimate relationships and relationships with strangers:

Now let's get to the comment that would cause the most confusion among the common citizens of the city and the lawyers of the lunatic gentleman. Would there be a way to work on this without disregarding his crimes and the terror he caused to ordinary people? Would this influence his emotional indifference if it came back to haunt him? It could open up many ideas, perhaps the rodent's going to a reformatory, a psychiatric clinic or even moments of his monitoring sessions with a psychologist or therapist. Maybe there would be someone who could be a helping hand to show him other sides. Would giving him a future if he is at the end of his line of conscience or lack of security for others open up space to debate Megavolt's redemption? Well, the numerous answers are all valid, and it would be interesting to hear from each one what would be in their argument. This also applies to the relationships of enemies like Megavolt with Darkwing Duck and how much this influences his development. Whether there is variation, resentment, or that it brings some small sense of morality regarding his opinion to the hero's companions. It would be possible to play with the other topics in the smallest interactions. Such as a possible neutrality that would lead to leaving LP, Honker and Gosalyn alone or even that there would be no sense that would prevent him from hurting the hero emotionally.

INTERESTING REFERENCES FOR YOU TO PICK UP FOR THE CHARACTER 

Pearl of Steven Universe;

Fiddleford Hadron / Old Man McGucket of Gravity Falls;

Doctor Two-Brains of Word Girl;

Ice King / Simon Petrikov of Adventure Time;

Junk rat of Overwatch 2

Powder / Jinx of Arcane: League of Legends;

Damian Wayne (Batman #655) and Dick Grayson (Detective Comics #38) of DC Comics

CLOSING

I thank everyone who had the patience to listen to some ideas of my anxious personality, I continue trying to have something that can be recognized and that can interact with the other people present. And probably some, coming from Instagram, must have thought of the original characters that Beatriz and I made, and that includes Isabella and little Vanna. Recently, I will try to help in the return of her main universe if I don't go back to writing the fifth chapter of LYG's story for 12/26. However, well, if you want to participate in throne-year anniversary of progress by sending questions, I would love to draw them while I'm helping in the Purple Union AU. So, if you want to help us with support or questions, we will try to answer them without spoiling the fun. I hope you enjoyed it, see you soon!

BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES:

Darkwing Duck - Fandom Wiki. Epilepsia: Conheça os diferentes tipos de crise - por Maiara Ribeiro, DRAUZIO 06/05/2020.

MANUAL MSD, Versão para Profissionais de Saúde - PorBola Adamolekun, MD, University of Tennessee Health Science Center.

Manual MSD, Versão Saúde para a Família - Doença de Alzheimer, Por Juebin Huang, MD, PhD, Department of Neurology, University of Mississippi Medical Center.

Healthdirect Australian health advice you can count on - Memory disorders

Epilysis Foundation - What is Epilysis?

Alzheimer's Association  - What Is Dementia?

Psychiatrist.com - A 19-Year-Old Is Youngest Ever to Be Diagnosed with Alzheimer's

Mayo Clinic - Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

[soulrph]

what is force-shipping? (a PSA!)

what force-shipping IS:

guilting a partner into agreeing to a ship after initially declining the offer.

sending romantic or otherwise inappropriate (inappropriate because THEY SAID NO TO THE SHIP) memes despite them saying no.

writing a romantic or shippy starter/reply to a thread after they said no to the ship.

(listen this list will not end, let me finish this up with a very firm final remark:)

NOT RESPECTING YOUR PARTNER SAYING NO TO YOUR SHIP REQUEST.

what force-shipping is NOT:

asking your writing partners if they'd like to plot a romantic ship with you.

listen. forcing a ship is a conscious effort. if you're not able to respect your writing partners' decisions and choices when it comes to literal role play, then you need to step back and re-evaluate until you're able to do so.

BUT. you are NEVER forcing a ship simply by asking someone if they'd be interesting in shipping with you. it might be scary to ask. but once you respect their rules and boundaries, you're fine! there's never any harm in asking! just make sure you respect and honour their response, regardless of whether they say "yes", "no", or "maybe once we test their chemistry".

[papermariosuggestion]

So... here's The Situation™

First of all, if you're new here, welcome! Thank-a-you so much-a-for to enjoying my blog.

If you're not new here, and I haven't welcomed you yet, then belated welcome! Thank-a-you so much-a-for to enjoying my blog.

You probably remember a- uh- "brief" period from mid-2020 to mid-2024 where I didn't post very much on here, and I wanna say that I appreciate you sticking around through that. I haven't really explained what happened then, and I think it's important that I do that, especially given what's happening now.

I'm a filmmaker by trade, and I've always (for over 15 years now) wanted to create my own YouTube channel- not for any kind of fame or clout or anything like that, but simply because I enjoy creating videos that matter, that make a positive difference in some way, and despite my profession, that's not something I get the chance to do very often.

Considering that I have a ton to say about the Paper Mario series, it would make sense to create a channel dedicated to that subject. There's only so much that can be said using existing meme formats, and quite frankly, a majority of the formats I've seen since 2020 have been too political, too explicit, too redundant, or otherwise useless for inspiring entertaining, safe-for-work, and meaningful Paper Mario content.

I've been making an effort to start creating Paper Mario videos since 2018, and going far out of my way to eliminate the obstacles standing in my way since 2020, but unfortunately, all these years later, it still seems that I just... can't. It's not for any lack of knowledge or skill, but simply due to my circumstances.

I'm disabled. I won't get into the details, but I have multiple disabilities and several debilitating medical conditions that I can't do much (if anything) about. I've been repeatedly trying to find some kind of treatment and/or management that would enable me to create the kind of content I want, but to no avail. Fifteen years ago, this wouldn't have been as much of a problem, but my situation then doesn't help me now.

I don't want it to seem like I don't enjoy making the kind of content I create for this blog- I do- it's just not sustainable to continue posting as often as I have been, especially when the future (for me and for Paper Mario) is so unclear.

In general, people seem to be losing interest in Paper Mario, and I don't just mean on Tumblr, or even just on the Internet. The Switch remake of TTYD sold a little over half as well as The Origami King. That might have something to do with TTYD being a remake released toward the entire of the Switch era, but regardless, I highly doubt that sales like that are convincing anyone at Nintendo we need a new Paper Mario game like the first two or three.

As of writing, the latest RPG news we've received is that, surprisingly and fortunately, despite AlphaDream going out of business, we're still getting a new Mario & Luigi game in early November (Mario & Luigi: Brothership). I'm really looking forward to playing it, and if I'm able to, I might do a livestream of it, like I did for the TTYD remake.

Nintendo has also sent out multiple surveys to random My Nintendo users concerning Mario RPGs, which suggests that they intend to make more of them, but aren't sure exactly how they should go about doing so. I would hope that the survey responses push them to create a Paper Mario game more like the first two or three, but looking at the actual sales data, that seems extremely improbable.

TL;DR: I'm gonna be posting less often/more sporadically on here, but I'm not going anywhere, and also, I'm looking forward to Mario & Luigi: Brothership.