#(although there is a fair bit of overlap)
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
traaanskimkitsuragi · 1 year ago
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
inner circle
257 notes · View notes
thethirdromana · 3 months ago
Text
Mostly I'm doing Farscape reactions a few episodes at a time, but last night I watched DNA Mad Scientist and that is an episode that needs a post all on its own.
Sometimes Farscape is sexy. Sometimes Farscape is kinky. Those two things overlap less than you might expect.
I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall when they decided to put NamTar in full fetish gear, is what I'm saying.
You know you're in for quite an episode when it begins with someone getting a needle poked into their pupil.
(Headcanon: NamTar could have taken a DNA sample from anywhere, he just chose the creepy eye thing to filter out people who would stand up for themselves, like how scammers make obvious mistakes in order to identify easy marks).
The fact that Zhaan is all-in on stealing Pilot's body parts is fascinating to me. I expect that kind of thing of Rygel and D'Argo but not of Zhaan. Having previously grumbled about how little the passage of time is marked in this show, I very much like that we are directly and immediately seeing the consequences of her turn to sadism in That Old Black Magic.
The way that she used her powers to take Pilot's pain while mutilating him was fucking chilling.
I described Farscape as Blake's 7 with muppets, and it's not not that, but in this episode - as with a fair few others - there's also an early-season TNG vibe, which I'm very much into.
For instance learning that Rygel is "not a body breeder" feels very akin to TNG taking all of two episodes to inform us that Data is "fully functional in every way". It was important to learn that the android did fuck and it is equally important to learn that the puppet does not fuck. Despite Zhaan's best attempts.
Although I'm a bit concerned about what that implies for the imperial succession. Would Rygel - had he not been deposed - just have released some reproductive materials into the air like pollen? Or are his species all test tube babies?
Crichton/Aeryn continues to do its sweet slowburn thing, which is fine, but I also very much hope for some more chaotic love interests for each of them.
Was this too early in the 00s to hope that they might not all be straight? It suddenly occurs to me that I would really enjoy queer!Aeryn. (I am normally all about avoiding spoilers but feel free to let me know a yes or no - no details - on this one).
I'm generally not finding D'Argo that interesting relative to all the other characters, but the ending of this episode - where he plays music when Pilot expects a weapon - is an interesting nod to possible hidden depths.
Pilot though. I can't wait for that Pilot-centric episode you've all promised me will come up eventually. What a fascinating character! Who I also very much want to hug.
Just think how cuddly all the arms would be.
30 notes · View notes
gammija · 4 months ago
Text
Passing through
Sam was nowhere and nothing. No sight, sounds or senses entered his mind, no feelings of pain, no need to breath, or digest, or pump blood. It felt relatively peaceful, which was strange. He had the vague notion that he had been struggling, fighting something, something evil, something watching, and then...
Shattering, falling.
And now he was here, in the nothing behind everything.
"Ah. Hello, Sam."
If he'd had eyes, he'd had groggily blinked them open. As it was, he fuzzily found his awareness of the space around him... expand. He reached outside of his own thoughts, and felt a presence near his. The contours of a personality. Something a bit prickly, though soft underneath. And the voice that had spoken - if it could be called a voice, when there was no sound - felt familiar. He couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"Don't worry, we're going to try and get you out of here soon."
Sam startled. A second entity had been there, besides the first, he realized. Whatever sense Sam was using to interpret the non-space he found himself in, it was slowly getting sharper. This second personality seemed smaller in some ways, and kind, though with a surprisingly rough core.
It spoke again. "Would you, uh - would you like some tea?"
In spite of everything, the essence of a perfect cup of tea sprouted near Sam. It felt steaming, steeped for just the right amount of time, exactly what he'd want a cup of tea to be.
Something in him bucked at taking food or drink from strangers in strange places. He tried fruitlessly to shake his head and decline the offer. The concept of "No," seemed to make it across, despite having no mouth to speak with.
"That's alright," the first entity said. Sam felt its attention lift from him to address the identity besides it, sighing. "Wherever we send him, I- I'm afraid that that," it gestured at something, though Sam's awareness didn't reach far enough to tell what, "will end up in the same place."
"Yeah, I know." The second entity hesitated. "I, uh, I've got an idea... but you won't like it."
The first seemed to get what was being implied. Sam vehemently did not.
"No," it replied, although its tone was resigned. "We're not going to, to just send them to Georgie, so she can clean up someone else's mess. She's got enough to deal with, after..."
"I'm sorry. You're right, it's not fair to her. But you've got to admit, it makes sense: she's already monitoring entry points, and," the second chuckled ruefully, "she might be literally the only person in existence who has both the knowledge and the resources to be able to actually help, here."
"Or, you could... send me back?" Sam tried to get across. He felt strongly that going back home would be a much better option than whatever it was that these two were discussing.
They ignored him. He wasn't sure if they didn't care, or if his thoughts hadn't actually survived the journey to theirs.
"Yes, you're... you're right." Sam wondered why a creature in a realm without physical bodies would perform the act of sighing, which this one seemed to do often. "But I don't like... I don't want to keep haunting her life like this. She- they were supposed to be free of all this. And now... What was the point?"
The two entities had already been quite close to each other. Now, they started to overlap. Sam started having trouble telling the first from the second.
"Hey. We did make it better."
"For one world, maybe, after I ended it," one muttered. "And even they are almost worse of now, than before."
"Yeah- Well. At least now, they've got us to help? It's not all terrible Powers and Fears, anymore. I think that counts for something."
A scoff. "They had us before-"
"Hello! Uh, you, uh... you... beings?" Sam tried again. Finally, he felt something escape beyond the confines of himself, across to the other identities. "Weren't you going to... let me go?"
"Oh! Right, sorry!" The smaller entity peeled off from the first one. "Sorry, didn't mean to keep you this long. Last chance for that tea?"
"Martin-"
"Yeah, yeah, no time," it told Sam apologetically, and turned back to the other. "So, which one is it, exactly?"
The first entity indicated to somewhere far, far beyond Sam's awareness, the pair reached out to him as one, grazing his presence, and with a light push-
-he was falling-
-shattering-
-and crashing into real, muddy soil.
For a moment he was aware of breathing air, and seeing sky, and hearing something click, before his eyes fell shut, and Sam lost consciousness.
25 notes · View notes
fluffydeoxys · 4 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
need to stop being like "shut upppppp" to myself and treating this like my space (which it is) so! My thoughts behind my 2BD design + how it's changed in the ~3 months since I first did it.
Firstly I reevaluated how I see 2BD as a character. Obviously very grouchy and grumpy in this particular, sort of emotional sometimes subdued way. He's been alive for a while, has seen and endured many things, and has been tempered in the fires of this world. Older than Sanmos, not as old as Hank (although I attribute Hank's existence to a different kind entirely). This contributed to the shape language I decided: primarily stocky, rectangular shapes with the occasional rounded feature.
Edit: oh Ratchet from Transformers also helped/guided a lot of these thoughts and choices as well. Some overlap between the two in my mind.
He's muscled but not overtly, it's more out of necessity to defend himself and enact his goals. He prefers to do things from a distance and ends up a little more sedentary from extensive computer work, whether hacking or researching. Plus I think it's endearing in this gruff old man way. There is a softness (a roundness) that is particularly notable when he is vulnerable (dressed down, without the jacket and gloves in particular, wearing lazy clothes and especially with his mask off) so many don't get to see it.
The choice to give him a jacket that's rather ornate and cropped was partly self indulgence, but it was a conscious choice to make him look a bit... cooler? A bit of a crude way to say it but it's like "casual swag." The casual part is primarily in his pants, which are just plain and baggy with simple boots. Additionally I think I would lean more into this casualness when he's not working. When working, his mindset is different. Focused, in control. On his own, he cares a little less, and is a little more open.
As I described in the tags of a previous post, I think he has a lot of sentiment for personal details and enjoys mending and personalising clothes, albeit it has waned nowadays cus there's not much downtime. The jacket is something he's had for a long time. It's been beaten, cut, ripped, and each time he's filled it in with a new patch. Much like his own body.
The armband was subconsciously inspired by Persona 3, but it more explicitly came from the real world. Armbands usually signify some kind of occupation and rank, and I think it's a fun, cute detail. 2BD considers this operation important and I think he would take it seriously in that way, whereas everyone else kiiind of doesn't. Least I can't imagine Sanford or Deimos willingly putting on an armband to represent their allegiance. I don't know why they're working with 2BD tbf (I mean so the world doesn't . Die is a fair reason), but I guess its a messy and perhaps partially personal reason.
The cane is relatively self-explanatory in the original post, but I was quite happy with my idea that it has practical and multi-tool applications. 2BD is resourceful and proactive, almost to a bit of a pedantic degree. Plus I imagine it's 2BD supplying all those gadgets and implements when retrieving Deimos and Sanford, aside from the shit he probably steals as well.
The gloves were complete self-indulgence. I like claws. BUT I think it conveys his weird "doctor" occupation quite succinctly and gives him another cool point. Albeit I imagine I will switch to bare forearms and fingerless gloves whenever he's handling his VSS Vintorez, because they wouldn't really work well with a gun.
His colour palette ended up leaning into warmer tones sort of "accidentally", but I think it works well. Red in Nevada is a prominent, reoccurring colour that I think symbolises life (and death), and the Other Place. Zero, Hank and 2BD all have very strong ties to these concepts, so reds are prominently featured in their designs in different ways. 2BD, in my interpretation at least, is the most "human" in contrast to ZeroHank specifically. Those two are beings "beyond this world", and 2BD is the "mortal" between them.
The key on his neck is practical and symbolic, with a hint of being cute. It's just his house key, but it "represents" the idea that he is the key to open all secrets in this world. He's the one in control, the one in power, the one with answers. Plus I wanted a little piece of him that Zero or Hank could tug on.
I still think the monoeye goggles are cute, but they end up being a bit too cute for the intent of my "main" design. I will absolutely still draw him with them (especially for simplifications) but it ends up losing the intimidating quality a bit.
Also I saw that comment abt 2BD having burn scars and yeah I think I will experiment with adding those, I like the idea of them being on his face and forearms and that's why he has such prominent coverings on them. I'm not as experienced with depicting/stylising scars like that though so I might need a lot of practice.
I am pretty content with giving his scars more "story", in that a lot of them originate from being tortured during or shortly after his dissension (which is a circulating headcanon I personally liked).
Oh and here's his height difference with Zero.
Tumblr media
Guy gets perfect eye level with Zero's chest like okay man. I'm also quite pleased with their contrasts because Zero is imposing and huge in this detached, almost cold way (additionally supplemented by her monochrome palette), whereas 2BD is imposing in this stout, grouchy way. Straight lines and curves and angular points.
Zero is still warm inside, but it doesn't reflect outwards. They're not human, they're not an existence that belongs here. Conversely, 2BD is warm, and full of "life" in this specific way. They don't quite covet 2BD's humanity, but they certainly feel something for it, like cradling a flame in a lantern.
I may revisit Zero's palette but I think I like this strict monochrome but who knows. I've always ascribed the windblown Nevadean desert to her, the desert wanderer, hellbound ghost, buuuut who knows. Maybe that could be reflected more strongly in her Magiturge form. The true self. I imagine I'll revisit it someday + perhaps create a version where her temporary "ascension" is contained in her physical form, letting it last longer at the cost of power.
Oh and I do still like 2BD's with long, soft mohawks but since I draw his fur collar in a particular way, doing the mohawk in that way felt like doubling up. Plus I love how it looks like a scratchy rough broom, it adds to his grouchiness. Pick him up and sweep with him
53 notes · View notes
smallpapers · 3 months ago
Note
Hey you made a short comic about the owl house and hunger games crossover a bit a go, is there more, or like a rant or something you could do because that was really cool and I would like to know more. What would change? Would magic still be a part but to a smaller extent? or is it just the characters in that world? If there is magic and only some people have it would they bind or prevent people from using it when they are in the arena to add more drama to it or would they make it so they can only use it some times or for a certain number of times? It might be under the guise of making it more fair to the people who don't have magic but really just for the drama. And would the glyphs still be a thing that hasn't been found before because people who have magic would be the wealthy people and the people who don't are the lower class people so there isn't much or any overlap so when amity and Luz get closer she finds them, and they've probably been discovered before but everyone could have "disappeared" before it got out, could be a another reason for district 13, and how much would they freek out when Luz starts using it when in the arena, or before she gets in if she and amity get close before it. Sorry for the long rant mostly about the magic, it was really cool and I would like to know more please.
Hi anon! Sorry for the late reply haha
I will be honest, I haven't thought much of how magic would fit in! But I think that there are so many exciting ways to execute it. Each 'district' could relate to a 'coven' - in this case D12 would specialize in Abomination magic if we're following Amity's main powers? Although I think Bard coven is more suitable for the D12 vibes.
D1 - luxury/ Oracle cvn
D2 - masonry+weapons/soldiers/ Construction cvn, Abomination cvn
D3 - technology/ Potions cvn
D4 & D10 - fishing & livestock/ Beast keeping cvn
D5 - power/ ???
D6 - transportation/ ???
D7 D9 & D11 - lumber, grain & agriculture/ Plant cvn
D8 - textiles/ Illusion cvn
D12 - coal/ Bard cvn??? but this is only cuz I'm tying it to the covey's influence lol
Not sure where the healing coven fits into this, but it doesn't have to anyway.
Or we could go the other route with glyphs as you've mentioned! Maybe the 'district' folks don't have access to magic? So they are given some form of glyphs in place of weapons at the cornucopia.
No worries on the long rant!! it makes me really happy and appreciative that my silly drawing and idea tickled something in your brain!!!
16 notes · View notes
merge-conflict · 20 days ago
Text
20 Questions: Writing Edition
tagged by @ghostoffuturespast and tagging @lemonlilactea and @clockworkvenus (no pressure!) and anyone else who happens to be reading and wants to play :3
How many works do you have on ao3?
20! Which feels sort of insane. It feels like I've both written much less and a lot more.
What's your total ao3 word count?
155,384 which feels absurdly low. 285,984 is the word count in one (1) of my Scrivener projects so there's a lot which is not making it to the end of the pipeline.
What are your top 5 fics by kudos?
no promises
the damn things overlap
An Exchange
everything where it belongs
come back wrong
What fandom do you write for?
Mostly Cyberpunk although in the previous question you can see that I've gotten more attention in various other video game fandoms I've written for (fe3h/pathologic 2/Prey (2017)). I've also written plenty of fics that have never seen the light of day for Outer Worlds and Dragon Age 2 and a little bit of BG3.
Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?
Yes! Unless the comment is weird. Sometimes it takes me a while because time isn't real, but I always appreciate someone taking the time to actually leave one of any length because I know how much effort it takes. As a long-time lurker I know it's tough to make that jump from reading something to interacting with the creator. It's always nice to feel like I'm not just chucking my passion project into the void and I hope folks aren't too disappointed if it takes me a while to work up the courage to reply. Sometimes I like to keep things in my inbox for a while so I can enjoy them. :3
What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?
Hard to pick between you and me and the devil makes three but that one is so short it doesn't feel as much as a punch to me as a pair of open graves. Even though Valentine is being cared for by the people who love her most, it's extremely hard to think about the fact she's slowly losing her mind and doesn't want to admit it, and the fact that she was actively concealing the fact from Goro and to some extent herself. Something about her surviving everything and having a few good years and then declining quickly because of the damage from the Relic while Johnny himself is doing fine... T-T I'm fine, actually.
What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?
everything where it belongs is 100% feel good smut and I guess has a few happy endings. not a lot of competition with all the cyberpunk fics though lol
Do you get hate on fics?
I've gotten a few odd comments which are sort of back-handed, but not too bad and I like to assume good intentions. By far the worst is when someone reblogs my writing on tumblr and misgenders a character. Makes me yearn to pack it in and move back into the woods.
Do you write smut?
Oh you betcha. If I want the dynamics that really get me going, especially with a nonbinary and/or trans character I gotta write it myself. Dutifully contributing my work to the sparse "Other" category on ao3 like a good soldier.
Do you write crossovers?
I haven't recently but I have in the past, mostly in my youth. It's hard to stitch two disparate worlds together, at least with the stuff that I like. I did semi-recently think about Viago Dragon Age in the cyberpunk universe. I think he'd love having access to spreadsheet software and industrial grade stimulants.
Have you ever had a fic stolen?
I mean probably scraped from ao3, but whatever. Once you put something on the internet you never know where it'll end up and I'm at peace with that. Nobody is getting any more recognition off my work than I am lol.
Have you ever had a fic translated?
Nope! Think that'd be pretty neat though.
Have you ever co-written a fic before?
Yes! I've written a fic with @slayerdurge with our V's, which was a blast. In the distant past (i.e. middle school) I've also written a fair number of fics with my friends which can be chaotic but also fun.
What's your all-time favorite ship?
I'm not really a person with all-time favorites, things come and go with different strengths. After having spent some time writing a lot of datv fic for my own gratification and having fun with a friend, I will say I'm really glad to get back to Valentine/Goro. dog4dog 4ever.
What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?
All of them. I have so many! My one hope is that I can finish at least the damn things overlap even if I never get fully around to writing all the other stuff I'd like to write.
What are your writing strengths?
I like to think I can keep a story moving, and by far my favorite step of writing is editing. Taking a wild thorny draft and slicing and cutting and rearranging until it's tight and has good mouthfeel. I do also think I do a good job of keeping canonical characters in character, or at least once I've had some time with them, making their changes make sense according to what's happened to them and the context they're in.
What are your writing weaknesses?
Plotting, organizing, executive function. I struggle to write things linearly, I've never written an outline I didn't wildly deviate from once I actually got down to it, and I can't tell you the number of times I've done some skimming over early chapters to make sure I've kept things consistent only to find I'm trying to do something I already did and take it out. Writing with ADHD can be frustrating and sometimes I'm at peace with it and sometimes (lately) it makes me want to wail and gnash my teeth– why doesn't my brain just work? Why can't I fucking remember?? Why do I remember feeling the warm glow of an idea and not the idea itself? It's gone forever!
Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in a fic?
I generally avoid it, because I don't have the skill or resources to write dialogue in other languages naturally. If the POV character knows the language I will just write the gist of what is said in another language in English and note what language they're speaking (if relevant) and if the POV character doesn't know, then they just note someone is talking in another language along with what they do notice about tone & volume and similar. I feel like often the best I can do is try to make a bit of the underlying language come through in the English translation but if I can't do that then I can at least get out of the way and not bungle the original language.
Favorite fic you've ever written?
My darling thread-safe. I've said it before and I'll say it again, it's probably some of my best writing, it's a punch to the gut, and yet I still couldn't resist putting a bit of hope into it. It's got Valentine and Goro on opposite sides, and yet still stupidly in love and clinging to each other. It's got all of Valentine's fractured pieces, including Johnny. It's about everyone finally having to face the options in front of them and wishing they could go back and do things differently, but they just have to keep moving forward. It's about Johnny's loved ones helping him stay free, and Valentine's loved ones making her prison tolerable. Agh!
8 notes · View notes
colorful-white-ideas · 3 months ago
Text
I got this message from littleegle16 sharing her experience on interacting with Valter
it's long so that's why I share it like a post so you decide if you wanna read it or not. It's well written so the reading flows nicely.
" Ok, I've decided to just go for it and share my experience(s). This might be quite long but I want to get/share as much as possible. deep breath I had my first exposure to a Skarsgard during the years of True Blood (who didn't). I LOVED Eric and thought he was much better for Sookie than Bill or Alcide. I was upset by the ending of the series bc according to the books Sookie and Eric actually DO end up getting married.
Anyway, years after the series finale, I was living in my first apartment and decided to put on some Netflix and I kept seeing this show in the top 10 but never watched - until I got bored and decided to give it a go. Which led to my introduction to Bill through the show Hemlock Grove. At first I didn't know anything about him or his family. After a couple episodes I saw his last name and thought, "why does that name sound/look so familiar?" Of course, I did the research after that and started to familiarize myself with this beautiful acting family dynasty. (Not sure if I said that right? Would it be "beautiful FAMILY acting dynasty" or was I correct the way I had it?) Moving on…
I realized I had already seen Stellan in a few things but wasn't as impressed as I was in his sons so far. Although I admit, I could stand to watch more of Stellan's work to gain a more balanced and fair perspective. Gustaf - I started watching Vikings and Cursed but wasn't impress as there were some inaccuracies regarding religion in both. I want to watch his Swedish films. I feel he'll be more genuine(?) bc it's his own country and language, if that makes sense.
Then, I began watching and comparing films and acting between Alex and Bill. As of right now, they both give each a run for the other's money. I think it comes down to the story and character they both choose to sign onto. I see Alex chooses a lot more roles that are deep and even have a psychological element to them (i.e. Mute, Hold the Dark, Big Little Lies [abuse can be categorized as an aspect of psychology], Melancholia, The East). Bill is more of a physical and very dark character-driven/building actor (i.e. Pennywise, Count Orlock, Erick [The Crow], Castle Rock, BKW). Yes, sometimes their movies overlap in physical, psychological, character-driven aspects (Tarzan, Simple Simon, The Devil All the Time, The Kill Team, The Northman) but in general the movies and characters they choose present a bit of a pattern between the two.
Valter - everything he was in prior to Zebrarummet was horrible imo. He always had the same facial expression and demeanor. It's like he played the same character in every project he ever did. I won't lie, I thought he was so cute, so I would keep looking and watching his films. Mostly to see if there would be any change in his technique but there wasn't. What kept me from turning off the movie was the talent of all the other actors and the storyline. Zebrarummet is when his acting really started to take a positive turn imo. He admitted in a Swedish interview that he took acting lessons in NY for awhile. I tried to find the link to it but can't find it, so don't quote me on it until we have the link for that - unless I'm mistaken. Katla has been my favorite so far in terms of story and of course, I saw him in Bjore and thought he did a wonderful job. I HAD to watch this bc my brother played ice hockey for most of his life and therefore, we've always been a hockey family.
*Side note - I went to school for Theatre and music so when I watch movies/TV shows, I don't just want a good story I pay attention to acting skills/talent and the soundtrack. Yes, I can be THAT person. Sorry it's been long so far. I wanted to give a little back story to my interest/appeal/attraction/first exposure… (whatever word you want to use) to the Skarsgard family. As you can see it hasn't been THAT long since I started to really follow them and their projects. But I also don't consider myself a die hard fan, either. I haven't seen ALL of their movies and TV shows they've all been in and refuse to do so unless I find the description interesting enough and so far, I've been pretty picky regarding Stellan, Valter, and Gustaf. Alex and Bill seem to choose projects that really pique my interest. Then again, they're both more Hollywood than Stellan, Valter, and Gustaf. So, most of their projects are going to gain the attention of, and resonate more with Americans.
So - now we get to the nitty gritty of my interaction(s) with Gustaf and especially, Valter. I will also preface this section with - I understand there will be some who will call me all sorts of names for "bashing" their favorite actor(s). I also understand that SOME of my actions were… a little over the top and maybe even to some degree, crossing the line or boundary. However, I look at it as proving I'm not addicted to these people and see them as just that - people.
This was probably sometime in 2018. I created an IG account for the first time in a few years and started adding friends, people who had similar interests and some of my favorite celebs (not just Skarsgards). I think at this point Valter was the only Skarsgard who had an account. I never commented on his posts aside from "liking" them. I remember when he started dating Jade and thinking how cute they were. Then I saw how fast they were moving and thought, "my goodness, that was fast." Still, I said nothing; at first. Eventually, I thought I'd do something nice for them. I messaged Valter and asked if I could send him a gift. I was shocked that he actually replied and said, yes! Although, I didn't actually know what I was going to send. I decided that since he mentioned on his IG that Jade's bday was coming up that I'd send some flowers.
*Another side note - at the time this was going on, I was working for a fraud prevention research department for a multi-million dollar company. We were taught how to verify people's information by using certain websites and a specific program to look up some of their private information. We use their information to form security questions to ensure that the people who call in are the real customer. I hope it made sense in the way I just explained it.
I googled a Stockholm flower shop and chose the cheapest one I saw. I then used my research skills that I acquired from my job and entered his physical address so the flowers would get delivered. I got the purchase confirmation email but never received a delivery confirmation. After a week I went back to the website and chatted online with a worker at the shop. They told me they didn't see my order anywhere. Which we both thought was strange seeing as I had an order number to give. I decided to try again and placed another order. Same thing happened, no delivery confirmation email. So, I decided to reach out to Valter to see if they received it already. I didn't think he'd respond to me again via IG message so I went on Twitch (yes, I created a Twitch account for this. I spent quite a bit of money and wanted to make sure it was delivered). I asked him point black in the chat section, while he was answering questions from people, if Jade received flowers.
Valter - "What flowers?" Me - "I messaged you on IG asking if I could send you both a gift and you said yes. I chose to send flowers to you guys especially bc of Jade's bday." Valter - blocked me I was then hounded by people who told me I was delusional, weird, a stalker etc. I heard it all. I was so confused and frustrated. First, he gave me permission to send him a gift and then when I ask if he/they received it, he blocks me. I didn't understand at all. I quickly deleted the Twitch account AND my IG account as well. I felt like he slapped me in the face just because I wanted to perform an act of kindness. Blocked over flowers. My boyfriend at the time (who's now my husband) called him a douche for treating me like that.
After a couple weeks I realized it was mostly my fault. I didn't consider CULTURAL DIFFERENCES. In the U.S. when we receive gifts, even from acquaintances and strangers, such as flowers or simple letters/cards, we accept and appreciate those little acts of kindness. We think of it as, "this person took time out of their day to do something for me in the hope that it would bring a smile to my face. Or if I was going through a hard time they hoped it would brighten my day." In a world where so much tragedy and trauma are everywhere, these little acts of kindness and compassion are beautiful to the average American. However, I imagine you have to get permission to do this in Sweden. Like you have to know the person or perhaps they don't do this at all unless it's a relative, close friend, or partner/spouse. So, yes, I take most if not full accountability for my momentary lack of judgement here. If I could apologize to him directly, I would.
This still brings me to his reaction, though. I still feel he could've responded in a more mature way. I hoped he would've said, "Look, I appreciate the gesture you were trying to make but in the future, remember for me and my culture, it's inappropriate to do that, but thanks anyway." Or something along those lines. I felt like his reaction wasn't just cold but emotionally immature. Just because you come from a different culture doesn't mean you can't be nice, or at least TRY to be.
I didn't pay that much attention to him for like a year and a half or so. I focused on work and just did me. Then 2020 came around and I started to check on his IG but I never opened up another account. I was able to see his posts via google search and started to see his posts were very anti-American. I knew this was mostly because of the 2020 election coming up. Normally, I don't care how ppl vote or what their views on politics are however, I felt Valter was going way to far. Bashing, mocking, criticizing, and ridiculing millions of ppl who are different from you and PRETENDING to know what's best for a country that's not even yours was too much for me.
It wasn't until the end of the year I put aside any ounce of mutual understanding and respect for cultural differences I gained from the flower fiasco and decided…..to write a handwritten letter to him myself. I'll generalize it - i basically told him he was being ignorant and extremely arrogant. I told him that it's one thing to ask questions, which is good. It shows you want to learn and have a mutual understanding of other people's differences but all he was doing was labeling people from 1,000's of miles away about a country he clearly knew nothing about. I told him to do better. I gave him my email but didn't expect him to respond, which he didn't. I'm not upset about it; I said what I said and did what I did. Although, not long after I sent it, he stopped posting anti-American rhetoric. I don't know if he actually read it or not. He could've said, "I don't know anyone from the U.S." and immediately chucked it into the trash. Either way, I won't apologize for this one. *Sorry for the slightly political implication, but it's kinda part of my experience of why I chose reaching out/interacting with him. After that, I only occasionally checked his account and kept up with my own life, moved into my sister's house and saw my nephews everyday, got married, we moved into our apartment and celebrated our first year anniversary this year. Recently, I saw that most of his posts were so pessimistic and he even posted a story on IG about being in despair. I went on Twitch again to ask if he was ok/how he was holding up. I didn't hear his reply so I said something along the lines of, "based on your posts you seem a little down lately…kinda reminds me of my brother…" Now, the reason I stated that last sentence was bc my brother went through something where he also became very pessimistic and depressed. To be honest, he still isn't 100% after what happened to him. So, whenever I see someone in a state of pessimism or very negative mindset, I'm the kind of person that's going to reach out and see if I can help or if that person is ok. Well, you would've thought I punched Valter in the face. His moderators practically bit my head off for comparing him to my brother and called me parasocial. Me - "It's parasocial for expressing concern for another human being?" moderators - "…we know what he does and doesn't like (to be asked) now cool it" (I'm generalizing a little here) Me - "geez. moderators are brutal" moderators - "rather be brutal than parasocial." Me - "Am I not allowed to express concern for another human being?" moderators - "no" (to be fair, they didn't @ me when I saw this response so not 100% sure they actually responded to me or someone else but it came seconds after I sent my last post. I then found out he already answered my question and he even responsed again and said, "I mean, I'm alright but just like, chill." sigh once again, I was frustrated. I left Twitch and….that's where I'm at now. That was my last interaction with Valter Skarsgard.
A few things to wrap this up:
1) I understand this is mostly a Bill (and Alida) blog but celebrity tea is the best tasting beverage when you're out of sweet wine.
2) I understand many people will say that it SEEMS parasocial of me to have reached out to Valter this many times, especially after the flower fiasco. However, I've looked up the traits of this diagnosis: a: Positive information learned about the media persona results in increased attraction… - clearly I haven't seen much POSITIVE attributes in his behavior and speech. b: It also talks about the "loyal follower" losing their own identity and conforming their lifestyle, the way they dress and even changing their opinions and perspectives on issues. - To which I respond with an emphatic HELL, NO. I disagree with him on most things he talks/posts on social media. There's other traits but when I went to multiple websites to read them, I'm soooo NOT parasocial. 3) I understand many will also not believe a word I say. Afterall, I admitted to deleting my account(s) and knew this would also be an issue when sharing my experience(s). Just like 'rose anon' I've added some intrigue and speculation to your blog :)
4) I understand people might also wonder why I continued to engage with him after the flower fiasco. It's a legitmate question and one which I've been asking myself as well. I mean, it was easy to reach out bc of how engaged he is on social media compared to his other family members. I also feel it's just bc that's part of having a social media in the first place. To engage, share ideas, perspectives and views on a plethora of issues and topics. Even from total strangers from all over the world. 5) Just like 'rose anon' I don't care what anyone believes or doesn't believe. This was my experience(s) with Valter Skarsgard and though I believe he's great at what he does, I'm not going to slobber all over and idolize him. I won't hang on his every word OR support and agree with everything he says and does just because of who he is. Or any celebrity for that matter.
I also have many things to say about his contradiction in dating Melina but perhaps that's best for a separate ask. My interaction with Gustaf was just one time and it can be categorized as having to do more with politics. So, not sure you want to post that one. There you have it, folks. I did my best and if you don't believe me I hope I at least entertained you for a good while. "
11 notes · View notes
finnlongman · 7 months ago
Note
You’ve made a few silly posts about your agent having to deal with your genre-hopping body of work and I wanted to ask on a more serious note if that’s been an issue at all. I and do everything from literary short stories to YA fantasy to thrillers to experimental horror, and I’m aware that a lot of agents and publishers discourage working in so many genres; it’s better for marketing to have Your Thing. And plenty of writers use pen names for different genres, but I was just curious about your opinion as someone who doesn’t do that and who publishes several genres under the same name.
It hasn't been an issue with my agent, but it's something she knew about me going in. When we had our first call and she offered representation, that was one of my key questions: she's a children's books agent, but I write adult books as well as YA; would she be willing/able to represent my adult books as well, or would I need to find another agent to do that? Although she doesn't typically represent adult books, she was willing to do so for an existing client, and has agency colleagues she can consult for guidance. (Because, obviously, as a children's books specialist she doesn't have as many contacts in the world of adult books, or as much of an idea who to submit to.)
Having said that, we were on sub with The Wolf and His King for eighteen months. Would we have sold it more quickly if she were an adult agent, with the contacts and experience to go with that? I don't know. Quite possibly not -- the editor who ended up buying it, Bethan Morgan at Gollancz, wasn't at Gollancz when we went on sub. When we first approached her (after I'd met her by chance at a friend's book launch), she was working at another publisher in another genre, and asked us to hold on and submit to her in a few months because she was moving somewhere that might be a viable home for the book. And then we accidentally sold three books instead of just the one we were trying to sell!
I think there are pros and cons of using different names. I sometimes wish I published my academic work under a different name to my fiction, but it's slightly too late for that now. I do have some projects, such as the paranormal postgrads series, that I intend to use a different name for if they're published -- not secretly (given that I've posted about them a fair bit), but just to provide a degree of separation from my academic work in particular, especially given the overlap of my characters' research with my own. This would also provide more separation from my YA work, which I think would be valuable for these books. It's a shame perhaps not to have that separation between my YA and adult books already, but that's how things have worked out.
I have so far only sold in two genres/categories: YA dystopian/thrillers, and adult fantasy. I don't know what other barriers and challenges I might face if I branch out into more areas than that. However, a major advantage of writing in multiple categories and genres is that, if you're a fast enough writer to be producing more than one book a year, you can publish in multiple categories at once without cannibalising your own audience and without running into non-compete issues.
The main challenge my agent faces is that every time she turns her back I've run off and written something else I wasn't supposed to be writing (because I write very fast), and that, crucially, many of the ideas I come up with are not remotely marketable. I have discussed with her several ideas that, while I love them enough that I'll probably write them eventually, we've both acknowledged are extremely unlikely to ever sell, at all, because the audience is just too small. She's open to the possibility that I might move to being a hybrid author in future and self publish some of these niche books alongside more conventionally marketable trad pub things, but that's very much only an idea at this stage, since nothing is anywhere near being ready for that.
Anyway, basically, my agent is fine with it, but that doesn't necessarily mean she can sell everything I throw at her, or that I'm expecting her to.
14 notes · View notes
cowboys-tshot · 6 months ago
Text
A Beginner's Guide to Epic: The Musical - FINAL Version!
Are you new to Epic: The Musical and overwhelmed by 5 years worth of content to go through? Yeah, that's fair. Although Epic: The Musical is now complete, there are many things that new fans may be confused about or just completely unaware of. This is a helpful guide for the influx of new fans coming in, or just people that are still a bit confused about some parts!
*There will obviously be some spoilers in this! The Odyssey is thousands of years old, but Epic: The Musical is a retelling, meaning many things have been changed. I recommend listening to all the songs in Epic before reading this - or at least before reading the 2nd and 3rd sections - as this guide is intended to clear up misunderstandings/confusing moments and provide context (as well as some fun tidbits). But hey, you do you!
**All of the underlined words are links to whatever it is I'm referring to. I've done my best to include sources for everything or at least indicate where I got certain information I can't find a direct link. Although Jay is most active on TikTok, I've used YouTube links in case TikTok actually gets banned in the US (there was one video that I couldn't find elsewhere unfortunately).
This list will cover (1) General Information, (2) Music-Related Information, (3) Explaining Unclear/Vague Moments, and (4) Fun Facts. This post is long as hell, but so is the musical, so... sorry! Enjoy my endless yapping and let me know if I missed anything <3
General Information
This is some basic information about Epic: The Musical as a whole. This includes where to find new information and content, some context, BTS stuff, etc.
First of all, here's a quick rundown by the creator himself. There'll be some overlap in terms of what I cover here.
Here is a link to the official Spotify playlist for all of the albums/sagas in order.
Epic: The Musical is created by Jorge Rivera-Herrans, often referred to as "Jay" or "Mr. Jalapeño" by his fans. This is who writes the songs, makes the music, casts the characters, and voices Odysseus himself (and also Polyphemus)! He's a very silly, creative guy. :)
Epic: The Musical was originally produced under Blair Russell Productions, but Jay has never been paid the royalties from the songs released under them (and they have yet to give back control of the Epic social media accounts last I checked), so Epic is now produced under Jay's own company, Winion Entertainment LLC (source). The Troy Saga and The Cyclops Saga were re-released under this new company, which included new vocals, music, cover art, etc. It's preferred that you listen to these versions of the songs, and NOT the originals, because Jay only gets royalties from the current ones.
Jay is most active on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter. All videos that he posts to these platforms are generally the same, so don't worry if you can't follow him on all of them. He talks about several Epic-related things, including release dates, BTS, animatics, details about the music/story, snippets of released and unreleased songs, and also plenty of funny videos. He is very active within the fanbase, and you're likely to find him (and other cast members) leaving comments on posts by fans!
Here are Jay's other links, including the Epic: The Musical Discord server. In my experience, the Discord server and TikTok are the best places to get information as quickly as possible. He also has a Patreon for early content!
Epic was just completed in December 2024. There is no stage adaptation, as Epic is still technically a concept album. There are many things in the works (video games, stage adaptations, etc.), but nothing has been completed and a lot of it is still up in the air.
Jay takes many creative liberties with The Odyssey for the sake of this retelling. He even made a video saying to NOT use Epic as a basis for your knowledge of The Odyssey. Many of the things that occur in Epic DO NOT occur in the original story, and many parts of the original story have been cut out. Here is a video where Jay explains the purpose of Epic as an adaption and goes over some key differences between the two stories.
Jay held live listen-throughs for new saga releases, where he'd start at the very beginning and naturally transition into the newest saga. I believe only three of these are still available on YouTube (The Wisdom Saga, The Vengeance Saga, and The Ithaca Saga). These are where you can find all of the official animatics, animations, and artwork, all of which provide insights into character design and events within the songs. The lyrics shown during the streams also detailed events happening in the story that may not be clear just from listening (though I will go over these later just in case). You can just watch the premiere party for The Ithaca Saga here, as it includes all previous sagas and their animatics.
Music-Related Information
I'm not musically adept at all, and this is post is already very long, so I'm not going to list every specific detail - just some common themes and examples of them.
If you're having trouble understanding the lyrics and/or the meanings behind the lyrics, Genius Lyrics has the entire album and is full of helpful notes about the context within the musical, as well as details about the music itself. A lot of lyrics get misheard, so even if you think you understand what's being sung, I'd recommend checking just in case lol.
Many characters have their own musical motif(s). There are also other motifs that are more general, like the "Danger is Nearby" motif.
Many important characters have their own instrument that plays an integral part in the songs they're in. You can typically tell which instrument accompanies each character by listening to what is most prominent in a song that focuses on that character. (examples, examples, examples)
If you hear a character's musical motif or associated instrument in a song they don't play an integral part in, that can mean a few things (listed below). With the more general motifs, they have their own separate meanings outside of the characters.
A character's motif or instrument can indicate that this character is present, even if they're not singing or even mentioned. (ex. Hermes in "Puppeteer," signifying that he's listening to Odysseus' speech, which is brought up at the beginning of "Wouldn't You Like")
That character is related to whatever event/conversation is occurring. (ex. the same musical motif in "Ruthlessness" and "Storm," signifying that Poseidon is the one that sent the intense storm)
The kind of instrument being played can indicate the emotion or tone of a scene. This is scene primarily with Odysseus, where the use of a nylon or acoustic guitar indicates that he is not being ruthless, while the electric guitar indicates his ruthlessness. (source)
When background vocals are accompanying a mortal, there is always a physical, in-universe source for those voices (ex. Odysseus's crew as background vocals in most of his songs in the earlier sagas). When background vocals are accompanying a god or other powerful being, there does not have to be a physical source for those voices—gods can basically summon a choir of voices at will (ex. "Ruthlessness"). (video explanation)
Explaining Unclear/Vague Moments
Some of the plot points, characters, and events in Epic can be confusing at first, especially without the visual element. Some things have been depicted in animatics, some said by Jay in videos/comments, others were detailed in the lyric videos during livestreams, and others are just commonly misheard or misunderstood events. I'm just going to explain everything regardless, and I will go in order of the songs to make it as coherent and cohesive as possible. I've tried not to compare Epic to The Odyssey too much, as Epic is a retelling, but The Odyssey provides a lot of context.
This list will have MAJOR SPOILERS, obviously.
Throughout Epic, several characters are named in the lyrics but never referred to as such within the musical. I won't list them all here for the sake of space, but they should all be listed on Genius Lyrics whenever they have singing roles.
Generally, the gods don't really work the same as they do in Greek mythology. They are closer to "immortal humans with superpowers" than actual gods.
As far as character design goes, most characters look physically similar to their respective actors, and their attire often takes more inspiration from anime and video games than Greek clothing (at least for the gods).
The deep voice at the end of "The Horse and The Infant" is Zeus, voiced by Luke Holt. Zeus shows Odysseus a vision of Astyanax, the infant son of Trojan Prince Hector, and tells him to kill the infant because the boy will grow up to avenge his father (who had been killed by the Greeks). After a lot of deliberation, Odysseus drops Astyanax from the walls of Troy at the very end of "Just a Man."
"Warrior of the Mind" is quite confusing without context. It begins with Athena's ability Quick-Thought, which lets her have telepathic conversations with someone within milliseconds by pulling their mind into another dimension. The rest of the song is a flashback to a younger Odysseus, when he first met Athena and took her as a mentor.
Polites dies at the end of "Survive." He is the voice weakly saying "Captain..." after being hit with Polyphemus's club, and he is killed after the cyclops hits him a second time. (I didn't realize this for a good while when I first started listening to Epic.)
The lil' guys in "Keep Your Friends Close" are called winions (which are also the Lotus Eaters in "Open Arms", and they appear again in "Dangerous"). Jay describes them as "little wind creatures that dance when they get excited and then float away uncontrollably." They don't actually exist in The Odyssey, but they're pretty cute!
At the end of "Ruthlessness," the line "remember me" is said/sung by Poseidon (Steven Rodriguez), not Odysseus - he's basically sending his voice through the ocean fog, since Odysseus is very, very far away from him at that point.
In "Done For," the yelling and roaring you're hearing in the background is essentially a Pokemon/Yu-Gi-Oh battle. Circe summons a chimera, and Odysseus summons a cyclops using the moly plant given to him by Hermes. There is an animatic by mircsy to serve as a visual aide, which I find very helpful!
In "There Are Other Ways," Circe is holding a knife and planning to stab Odysseus as she tries to seduce him. When he pulls away and rejects her, she quickly hides the knife.
In "The Underworld," shades (souls) are in a constant loop, repeating whatever they were thinking when they died (which we see with Polites and Anticlea, Odysseus's mother). Tiresias is an exception to this rule, seemingly because of him being such a powerful prophet. (confirmed in "The Underworld Saga" LIVE listen-through)
In "No Longer You," there's a LOT of foreshadowing (for obvious reasons). The line "I see your wife with a man who is haunting / a man with a trail of bodies" refers to Odysseus, not any of other suitors. I won't go into the rest of the foreshadowing in that song, as I think it's fairly clear and you can find other posts explaining all of that.
The sirens in "Suffering" and "Different Beast" are not the same as Greek sirens - they more so resemble our modern interpretation of them. Here is a video explaining their powers and how they work within Epic.
Scylla is a monster with six heads on serpent-like necks, with each one only eating a single man at a time. This is why Odysseus tells Eurylochus to light six torches. In the official animatic, Eurylochus is shown to hand off his torch to another crewmember during the chaos, only to realize too late that he has doomed his own brother in arms.
In "Mutiny," after Odysseus is stabbed (in his side, I believe), he is tied up and knocked out before the crew sails to the nearest island. Right before he says to get to the boat and row away, he manages to untie himself.
The statue of the sun god in "Mutiny" is depicting Helios, not Apollo. They are two separate gods, and I won't explain further because that's its own post. The cows are Helios's cattle.
Zeus completely destroys Odysseus's ship at the end of "Thunder Bringer", but Odysseus somehow washes up on the island of the goddess Calypso. She immediately falls in love with him and traps him there with her for seven years until Hermes, at the command of Zeus, informs her she must release him (though this confrontation isn't depicted in Epic, only mentioned). In The Odyssey, Odysseus sleeps with Calypso (unwillingly, mind you), but this part seems to have been cut out of Epic.
There is a seven-year time skip between "Thunder Bringer" and "Legendary." Telemachus is around 20 years old at this point. The suitors have only been in the palace for around 3 to 4 years.
In the "Legendary" animatic that depicts Telemachus growing up over time, a dog is shown walking alongside him. This is Argos, Odysseus's hunting dog, and it is the only time he's depicted in Epic. In The Odyssey, Odysseus sees Argos lying in a pile of manure outside his palace. He has been severely neglected over his owner's 20-year absence, unable to walk and covered in ticks. Upon hearing Odysseus's voice, Argos wags his tail, although he can't stand and go greet him. Odysseus, in disguise as a beggar, can't greet his dog and risk revealing himself, but he does cry a bit before he enters the palace. Argos then dies. (I cried while typing this)
The gods' powers in "God Games" are explained here. Athena is seemingly killed at the end of the song by Zeus. A lot happens in this song, so I'd recommend watching the animatics.
Charybdis is a monster opposite of Scylla in the same strait of water. She is a monster that remains beneath the waves, gulping up water three times a day to create intense whirlpools that kill anything and anyone that gets caught in its current. In Epic, Odysseus essentially maneuvers within the whirlpool by surfing on his raft until she inevitably has to spit the water back out.
In "Six Hundred Strike", Odysseus manages to reach the wind bag just before he drowns. He straps it to his back and opens it, using it like a jet pack and having a mid-air anime-style battle with Poseidon where he, powered by the souls of his dead crew, strikes Poseidon 600 times in quick succession (absolutely none of that was hyperbole). His eyes are now glowing red, and they will be this way until The Ithaca Saga (they're always red from now on, but they eventually stop glowing). They both land on a small rocky island, where Odysseus proceeds to pick up Poseidon's trident and repeatedly stab him until he stops the storm.
That wet sound in "Six Hundred Strike" is a trident being stabbed through Poseidon's throat, not kissing noises.
A lot of people (including myself for a while) get confused about the “shoot through 12 axe-heads cleanly” bit in "The Challenge". It's possible that the suitors were meant to shoot an arrow either through (1) the holes that the axe handles would go through or (2) a hole through the middle of the axe-heads - honestly I'm unsure at this point. If they were double-headed axes that were lodged in place in a straight line, the holes would align and could theoretically be shot through.
The part with the axe-heads honestly doesn't matter because Penelope knew the suitors wouldn't even get that far - Odysseus's bow was a particular type of bow, referred to in The Odyssey as palintonos (translating to "bent," I believe). It's mostly speculation because Homer wasn't super descriptive about it, but here is an article detailing the bow and how it would be used. Needless to say, not only would it have required immense strength to string and draw it, but the suitors likely wouldn't even know how to in the first place - which is exactly what is depicted in the animatic at the beginning of "Hold Them Down".
At the end of "Hold Them Down", Odysseus shoots an arrow into Antinous's throat and kills him. It's assumed that Odysseus has been in the palace the entire time (at least for the duration of this song), and none of the suitors noticed him stringing his bow without any trouble as they started getting increasingly rowdier.
At this point, you may be wondering why in the world no one just kicked the suitors out before it got to this point. For that, I ask you to research the Greek concept of xenia - there are many posts explaining this in relation to Epic as well. Basically, Greek hospitality rules prevented Penelope from simply kicking the suitors out. It was only once they threatened to kill Telemachus and sexually assault Penelope that Odysseus got the all-clear to deal with them himself without violating xenia.
There are 108 suitors in total, though only a fraction of them have singing lines and only a few are named in the lyrics. The first is Eurymachus ('Old king, our leader is dead...'), who in The Odyssey was second to Antinous and was very much an asshole. He is accurately depicted here as being a manipulative liar. The second is Amphinomus ('Damn, he's more cunning than I assumed...'), who is actually a fairly decent guy in The Odyssey. Odysseus warned him to stay away from the castle that day, but Athena urged him to stay and he was killed. Lastly, there is Melanthius (the one that encourages the capture of Telemachus) who is actually Odysseus's goatherd but was seemingly rewritten to be a suitor in Epic. In The Odyssey, he's a disloyal asshole that is so accommodating to the suitors that they let him hang out with them.
Odysseus first stabs Melanthius from behind, then beheads him right after he says 'this will be your fate'. This may seem pretty brutal (or ruthless, you could say), but I guarantee you it was far, far worse in The Odyssey! :)
At the end of one of the animatics for "I Can't Help But Wonder", when Athena says the line "very well," she turns her head to reveal that the right side of her face is scarred, and she appears to now be blind in that eye. The shape of the scar pretty much confirms that this is a result of what happened at the end of "God Games."
Penelope's request for Odysseus to move their wedding bed in "Would You Fall in Love With Me Again" is both a test and a way of circumventing Odysseus's identity crisis. It's first a test to confirm that this man is, in fact, her husband and not an imposter - only her husband would know that moving the bed is impossible because it's built into a literal tree. This request also serves to convince Odysseus that Penelope still sees him as her husband - only her husband would know that, therefore Odysseus must be her husband.
Fun Facts
Circe is voiced by Jay's girlfriend, Talya Sindel. They met when she was cast as Circe and began dating a bit later. They are horrifically cute together.
When Poseidon kills off most of Odysseus' crew in "Ruthlessness," he says that there are only 43 men left. But in "The Underworld," the souls of his crew say that 558 men died under his command. Considering Odysseus started off with 600 men ("Full Speed Ahead"), this math doesn't add up. This is because in The Odyssey, when Odysseus and his men party with Circe for a year, a man in his crew named Elpenor woke up drunk on Circe's roof and proceeded to walk off the roof and die from the fall. He actually has a cut song.
Jay messed up the amount of years in "There Are Other Ways" - it had only been 10 years, not 12. This mistake is referenced in "Different Beast" with the line "We've been away from home for / about 12 years or so."
All of Jay's family play characters in Epic - his mother plays Odysseus's mother (Anticlea), his father plays Hephaestus (because he helped Jay build his sound booth/recording studio), and his sister plays the Princess Winion in "Dangerous"!
If you see people commenting "rawr rawr rawr" or "🦖" on Jay's videos, they're referencing his April Fool's prank before the release of The Underworld Saga.
16 notes · View notes
asordinaryppl · 1 year ago
Text
A3! Backstage Story Translation - Sakyo Furuichi SR: Secret Return Gift Talk - Part 2
Tumblr media
Sakyo: (Now I see why the Director was in such a good mood. Today’s curry really was delicious.)
Kazunari: Hey, hey, everyone! Can I have a bit of your time before you return to your rooms?
Tsuzuru: What’s gotten into you all of a sudden, Miyoshi-san?
Kazunari: Our gifts for Director-chan shouldn’t overlap, so I thought it’d be nice if we exchanged information!
Sakyo: (Exchange information…? Sounds useful, maybe I should listen.)
Masumi: I don’t really care to know.
Kazunari: But you’re definitely thinking of something awesome for your return gift, aren’t cha? I really wanna know!
Masumi: I’m thinking of something, but I won’t tell you what.
Kazunari: You’re so cold, Massu!
Kazunari: I can’t really force it out of you, though.
Kazunari: BTW, can I ask about your plans, Furuuche-san?
Sakyo: I haven’t decided on anything.
Tsuzuru: There’s lots to pick from, it really gets you thinking.
Tsuzuru: Although not for the Director, I bought some cheese cookies for my coworker at my part-time job. 
Sakyo: (I see… So that’s why Minagi was looking at them on today’s fair.)
Kazunari: Cheese cookies are swell! Nice choice, Tsuzurun!
Tsuzuru: But I still gotta find something for the Director. You started all of this, but how about you, Miyoshi-san?
Kazunari: I’m going down the chocolate route! I found some limited edition chocos that look real delicious~!
Omi: I’m also thinking of giving some sweets, but I haven’t decided what to make. Maybe macarons or financier…
Kazunari: Whatever you decide on, since you’re making it yourself, it’ll be delish and it’ll make her happy! Woah, homemade sweets are actually a double-kill!
Kumon: I was thinking about giving the Director something soothing, ‘cause she’s always working so hard!
Izumi: You all look like you’re having fun.
Masumi: Director…
Kumon: Eh, Director!? When did you get here!?
Izumi: Hm? Just now.
Masumi: Did you come to see me?
Izumi: Well, not really. I could hear everyone’s excited voices from the hallway, so I got curious…
Omi: Is that so… Did you hear what we were talking about, then?
Izumi: No, I couldn’t make out what you were saying. What were you talking about?
Sakyo: We were talking about how delicious today’s curry was. …Right?
Kumon: R-Right!
Kazunari: Thanks for making such delicious curry, Director-chan!
Izumi: You’re welcome! I’ll make it again any time, so feel free to let me know whenever you’re craving it.
Omi: Whew… We somehow got out of that.
Tsuzuru: I didn’t expect the Director to suddenly show up. I thought my heart was gonna burst.
Sakyo: If you’re going to continue this conversation, consider lowering your voices.
Kazunari: You heard him! Everyone, let's lower the volume a bit!
Kumon: Got it!
Masumi: Still noisy.
Sakyo: (For now, I’ll listen to what they’ve got to say…)
Sakyo: (The more I listen to them, the harder it gets to pick something…)
-
Sakoda: Good work today too, Aniki!
Sakyo: Yeah…
Sakoda: Aniki… You sound real tired, y’know? I can rub your shoulders! 
Sakyo: No, I’m not that tired.
Sakoda: Eh? But you kinda seem more tired than usual. Actually, it’s more like the wrinkles between your eyebrows are deeper than usual…
Sakoda: Ah! Are ya still trying to find what to get Big Sis for White Day?
Sakyo: … You got that right. No matter what I choose, I feel like it’ll end up being something similar to the others’...
Sakoda: So that’s how it is… Then, how about making your gift something only you can give?
Sakoda: Like, your time!
Sakyo: What’s that supposed to mean?
Sakoda: Exactly what it says on the tin! I’m super happy to get to spend time with you, Aniki!
Sakoda: Just goin' somewhere with you, havin' dinner with you, feels like some kinda special present!
Sakyo: (... Give the Director my time?)
Sakyo: (Go somewhere with her, eat whatever she wants with her… Something like that?)
Sakyo: …
Sakoda: A-Aniki?
Sakyo: … That sounds like a good idea. Thanks, Sakoda.
Sakoda: Aniki…! No problem, this is nothing!
Sakoda: I hope Big Sis likes it! I’ll be rootin' for you!
Sakyo: Yeah, thanks.
part 1 | part 2
NOTES:
(1) i wasn't sure if i should use the eng version's nicknames for sakyo and tsuzuru, so i just went with what i'm most familiar with, out of personal preference, sorry!
(2) i'm not sure if masumi is telling kumon to be quiet or is just complaining about the noise, lol
36 notes · View notes
nerdgatehobbit · 1 month ago
Text
More of my thoughts on Gwen & Arthur’s conversation in the second part of “Beauty and the Beast”, where Gwen tries her best but Arthur does stay somewhat uneasy.
Gwen’s efforts at reassurance aren’t helped by the fact that Arthur is somewhat (but understandably) contradictory in wanting to be seen and valued as 'just' Arthur but also wanting to take his responsibilities as crown prince seriously and to be taken seriously as such by his father and Camelot. Even Gwen and Merlin, who do genuinely care about Arthur as a person, can't entirely separate Arthur from his status as future king- Gwen because she has to hope things will get better and Merlin because of the dragon's words about destiny.
To be fair to all three of them, they grew up in a classist system which has only been more and more reinforced in their eyes that people need to work within that system to have any hope of positive change, as anyone who runs afoul of Uther's decrees, however slightly, is deemed irrevocably evil. The Complete Guide (which actually only talks about series 1) says that Uther's allied kingdoms went along with the magic ban to shore up their own status-induced power. Gwen and Merlin want to believe things would improve under a less vengeful king, although their idea of 'things' is more overlapping rather than a single circle.
There is also a rueful element that Gwen's own kind heart gets quite bruised and even a bit harder by the start of the fifth season, which probably wasn't intended by the show beyond her being more 'regal' but can be taken as Gwen learning that unfortunately, there's less wiggle room to be kind and forgiving when an entire kingdom's welfare is at stake compared to one outsider.
4 notes · View notes
never-say-neverwhore · 1 year ago
Note
for the ask game. eulalie. go
Tumblr media
yessma'am!
How I feel about this character
Overall, I really like Eulalie's character, and her vibes! I love how she's almost doll-like, and manages to be graceful while also a bit clumsy when it comes to socializing (mood). However, it does sort of bug me how most of the time she's written as only an addition to Berenice (and vise versa), and specifically the less useful of the two. The only time she's really been able to be of help to the group OUTSIDE of the group (/ teaming up with someone (Berenice)) was the end of the first season, where she puts in her two cents about the theory of the afterlife and her support of Lenore, which serves as a tipping point to get the others on board. (10/10 scene btw I fuckin loved it)
I wish she got more time to shine, and really show her strengths more than just a helper / secondary to other characters. Other than that, I do have one more thing that sort of bugs me, which is, funnily enough even though I quite like her design... Her design. Her design is nice, don't get me wrong-- I love the vibes, she's one of my favorite characters to draw. However, considering she's supposed to be Japanese, and comparing her to other characters, it really feels like she sort of just got the anime treatment...? She has these big wide eyes, purple hair (although it's apparently just a stylistic choice, but something that affects her specifically and no one else), and her eyes and eyelashes are more stylized than most the rest of the cast. While that's not bad as itself, I just wish she was given more actual Asian features, or made so that it's a bit clearer that she's Japanese rather than just her Spectre and her last meal (which, to be fair, while it's a Japanese meal, it's a little funny to assume ethnicity based just on foodstuff imo)
Even with all of this, though, I love love LOVE Eulalie, she's probably one of my top 3-4 Nevermore characters, and I'm excited to see how she grows next season!
All the people I ship romantically with this character
Oo fun stuff. Let's see...
Pluto
I find their interactions fun, but honestly what I ship them for is more of what they could be rather than what they are. I like how Pluto's an absolute mess lol, then Eulalie just being the embodiment of :)? I think they could be fun, they deserve to bond more like how they sort of did at the end of the season. Pluto loves etymology, Eulalie loves the afterlife and mythology, there's a large overlap between etymology and mythology, so they should have an autism off about that I think. And smooch a bit maybe.
Berenice
I honestly haven't thought much on them, but I find them really cute! I love how they play off each other, and how just casually affectionate they are with each other. Rather than them being completely whipped for the other (sort of like how Pluto is an absolute mess crushing on Eula), I see them as very down to earth and casual about their relationship, not too flustered over it most the time. They can just casually cuddle and talk about their day, and that's good for them! Honestly talking about them for the first time and yeah. I should draw them, they're cute :]
Annabel Lee
Random curveball, ha! Again with my sentiment with Pluto but blown to the extreme, I like them for what they could be rather than what they are. Seeing as they have a total of 1 tiny interaction lol. Honestly I got drawn into this by some friends on discord, and like... hear me out.
Annabel constantly is on guard, and people only sees what she wants them to see. Everything she does is an act, and she finds being seen in truth by other people terrifying. Eulalie, on the other hand, doesn't hide who she is at all. She's completely honest, almost to a fault, and earnest too. She says what she thinks, and genuinely thinks what she says. She's not afraid of how people think of her or judge her, and as such, she's much less afraid of people than Annabel is. I feel like Annabel, as she's around Eulalie more, could come to really respect and even admire that about her. At first, she's certain, something's going to happen to "make her see reason". However, even when Eulalie's harassed a bit, she bounces back, and she doesn't take it to heart. That really makes Annabel see... wow. She's stronger than her in that way. Yet maybe instead of viewing her as a threat, she finds herself wanting to get closer to her, and see just how she does it.
Eulalie, on the other hand, is simply a curious critter, as one might say. She sees Annabel and goes oo! She seems neat! She has no qualms about talking to her (and apparently messing with her hair lol), and overall is just genuinely curious of What is Up with this lady. She finds Annabel strange, to be honest, in her demeanor. She seems so reserved, yet perfectly put together at the same time. It's almost uncanny, really. She finds it sort of fascinating. As they get closer and closer, maybe Annabel starts to lower her guard a little, and Eulalie goes !! Wow... that's the real her. She's spectacular. I want to see more!
My non-romantic OTP for this character
Another hear me out...
Will!
After the manor arc Eulalie is sort of just like... Will, hon (/p), Blink twice.
No but in all seriousness, again, Eulalie is very close to her friends and wants to protect them. She feels obligated to help them, but not from fear or guilt, but because they're her friends and she wants them safe. Will, meanwhile, likewise feels obligated, and yes, does care about Montresor, but it's more out of fear (both of him, yes, but also abandonment in general). So while Lenore can yell at him till the cows come home about Montresor not actually caring about him, I think Eulalie can help make him realize that friendships should support both sides, not just one, and overall like... man help this man. Free my mans. I find his and Montresor's interactions fascinating don't get me wrong, and he's guilty too Will is not innocent but please. separate these two a little . Except Eula I feel would actually be able to explain it not in a "montresor is using you and is a terrible person" sort of way (even if she thinks that), but in a "this friendship is hurting you more than it's helping" sort of way. Idk
My unpopular opinion about this character
,,,she actually has one of if not my least favorite spectre designs,,, (I love her powers though they're so pretty though) im sorry girl 😭
One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.
I fucking WISH we had gotten a flashback or scene of after Will kinda got um. impaled numerous times by Eulalie lol. Like- since he was in spectre form, he didn't die from that, but since Eulalie's powers iirc allow her revert malevolent spectres, and he's neutral, I dunno if she would've been even able to let him die??? So like... best she can do is remove the lances lol, I'm just curious on how that went down,,, cuz she clearly felt bad, Berenice did too, and then there's Will being self deprecating and also impaled so like. Fun times. I wish we had seen more of what happened there.
19 notes · View notes
wormytoast · 1 year ago
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
2.3 graphic! 2.2 graphic here
as always this post is leak free but my blog DOES contain leaks and spoilers, so please mute "#hsr spoilers" and "#hsr leaks" if you don't want to see that stuff <3
Trailblazer will not be considered in these stats because they are a null character.
TYPES
Fire: 7
Ice: 8
Lightning: 7
Wind: 6
Physical: 8
Quantum: 8
Imaginary: 6
Fire is now in the middle of the pack with Lightning while Quantum is boosted to the front with Ice and Physical.
PATHS
Destruction: 9
Erudition: 7
The Hunt: 7
Harmony: 8
Nihility: 9
Preservation: 4
Abundance: 6
Destruction is, once again, tied for most populous path with Nihility (who could've guessed? LOL). Erudition gained one more unit.
RARITY
Limited 5-Star: 23
Standard 5-Star: 7; Overall 5-Star: 30
4-Star: 21
For a second version in a row we did not receive any drip marketing for a new 4-star! I think the absence of one in 2.2 is fair considering the hinting they did with Trailblazer's hat in the live, but what's the reason in 2.3? It's not a big deal regardless but still strange.
OVERLAP
There are now 9 overlaps of unit path/type combinations. Neither Firefly nor Jade are new type/path combinations, although both are new rarities for their combos as well as the first overlapping combos for their respective types. The only type without an overlapping combination is Imaginary.
Fire/Destruction- Hook & Firefly
Quantum/Erudition- Qingque & Jade
Physical/Harmony- Hanya & Robin
Physical/The Hunt- Sushang & Boothill
Ice/Preservation- March 7th & Gepard
Ice/Destruction- Jingliu & Misha
Lightning/Erudition- Serval & Jing Yuan
Lightning/Nihility- Kafka & Acheron
Wind/Nihility- Sampo & Black Swan
Unfulfilled combinations:
Erudition- Wind & Imaginary
The Hunt- Lightning
Preservation- Fire, Wind, Lightning, & Physical
Abundance- Ice
MODELS
F child: 2
F short: 9
F med: 11
F tall: 11
M short: 3
M med: 4
M tall: 10
Wow, two more women in a Hoyo game? I'm so surprised! Seriously though, Jade is the first Quantum unit that has a tall model (all Quantum units up until this point have been F med or F short). Of course this is assuming that Jade has an F tall model but, realistically, her proportions are that of most F tall models so I'd say it's a safe bet. We already know Firefly is an F med model. No love for the boys or the children this version.
I don't feel like repeating old info so I'll try to be quick: Quantum is all women while Imaginary is all men except for Yukong. We have not received a new F child unit since launch (happy one year HSR!).
OVERALL + OTHER THOUGHTS
Not much to say about this update in terms of statistics or units. I'm REALLY hoping we get Sunday by 2.4, but there's also a good chance 2.4 will take us to a previous location to give players a breather from Penacony, so we might need to wait a bit longer for Sunday 🫡
I'm also surprised that we didn't get Screwllum for 2.3 considering they mentioned updating the Simulated Universe in 2.3! Very unfortunate for Screwllum enjoyers.
After Penacony... maybe a Japanese-themed location? We've already got hints of one from both Sparkle and Acheron (although Acheron's home is probably unreachable now...)
Thanks for reading this far if you did! Maybe consider following this account? Or not since this is basically a gacha ramble account LOL
18 notes · View notes
icebrooding · 6 months ago
Text
Something I've been thinking about and kind of realised I played around a tiny bit with in the latest Wildflowers chapter; what exactly does it mean for a sylvari to be a 'twin'?
I imagine the term and social connotations of what 'twins' are came from the other races, due to how rare they are in sylvari culture. I could easily see two sylvari coming from the same pod, the elders consulting other races on it out of curiosity, and coming to share their understanding of what it means for them; two siblings of the same family.
...It's just that sylvari families are not like other races' families at all, so there is probably a fair bit of confusion on what it actually means for them. Is a sylvari twin always going to feel a familial bond to their pod-mate, or is this something that's kind of externally imposed on them by others due to what twins are in other societies?
Regarding Wildflowers, Chapter 7 had a rather small reveal that one of the sylvari characters, Sunny, was actually a sylvari twin. But their pod-mate was a sylvan hound instead of another humanoid like them. While not mentioned in the chapter itself; due to this massive discrepancy between them, the two are rarely acknowledged as proper twins, and they themselves have a relationship more like best friends than siblingship as being a twin would imply.
So again my question is; what does being a 'twin' mean to a sylvari?
We only really have Arlon and Pellam as examples. For them it seems like their bond makes them practically inseparable despite all their differences and arguments; finding themselves at a loss and aimless when the other isn't around. Their relationship seems like it's one where they simply cannot be without; that's how strong their connection is. They refer to each other as brothers, and so do the other sylvari, so it's assumed their bond is siblingship.
(Although the linguistic complexities of the terms 'brother' and 'sister' in sylvari culture is something I could make a whole other post about since these terms have two vastly different levels of meaning.)
But what about other possible sets of 'twins'? Supposing that, societally, all sylvari from the same pod are automatically thought of to have that familial bond... well, what if some just, don't?
I can easily see two sylvari coming from the same pod where their dynamic was more like romantic soulmates or lovers, instead. The two most notable things about sylvari twins is, obviously, that they shared their pod, and that they also shared their Dream. But with how large and complex the Dream is, I would find it hard to believe only the tiniest fraction of sylvari would ever share their Dream with another. While not the same, Dagdar and Eladus 'dreamed of each other', which to me at least implies some overlap with their individual Dreams.
But then, if all pod-mate relationship dynamics are broadly considered 'twins', does this put them in a different category for how they're allowed to interact? Are sylvari twins held to a different standard when it comes to relationships between each other, in a society where for everyone else family is entirely a choice??
Do sylvari twins have to deal with the complexity of having other races' understandings of a concept affect how a similar concept occurs within their own people?
Or I wonder if sylvari culture is just as relaxed on this as they are with other relationship dynamics amongst their people; that this unique status ultimately has no effect or social repercussion on what the two sylvari themselves interpret their deepened bond to be.
5 notes · View notes
ohblackdiamond · 1 year ago
Note
Hi there!
I am getting into the Kiss fandom and I was wondering if you answer some questions.
No.1 What are the biggest memes of this fandom?
No.2 What are some things that are universally known to the kiss fandom but to anyone outside the fandom is complete bs
No.3 What are some things about the people in the fandom. From what I gather yall are horny af
No pressure btw :)
hello! i'd be glad to!
i don't know that there are really big memes if only because kissblr is relatively small, but here are some of my favorite funny posts: the random fanfic, why kiss will never get along, losing it, virgin paul vs. chad ace, virgin gene vs. chad peter,
i don't know about the complete bs part, but as close as kiss fandom gets to universal truths that outside of our sphere, no one knows much about, i guess, would be: eric carr is a good boy who deserved better, the only things anyone that was ever in kiss can agree on is that they were in kiss, and gene has herpes. well, i guess his thousands of women are probably aware there, too.
i'd say the age range on kissblr is broader than what you'll see on tumblr in general with a fair amount of people skewing 30+, although i'd estimate the average person on kisslbr is probably closer to 20ish. it is a pretty horny fandom! the dominating ships are OGs-- you'll see more ace/paul, gene/paul, etc. (paul is the fandom bicycle, followed, probably, by ace), but there's a pretty fair smattering of non-OG ship content around, too, which is nice. you get outside of kissblr and there's ao3, which, honestly, has a huge amount of overlap with kissblr (it's basically the same people on both sites). get outside of kissblr/ao3 and you find, well, youtube, kissfaq, reddit, etc., which veer much, much more critical. people definitely have their favorites on kissblr and while there's analysis, it tends to be more to do with relationships and sexy pictures than with guitars or what-was-the-band-doing-here or is-gene's-hair-real or anything like that. to this day, no one's done a serious thesis on paul's pants-stuffing and whether it's like skirt hemlines and rises and falls with the economy, which saddens me.
i hope that was at least a bit helpful! let me know if you have any other questions, i love to talk about kiss.
10 notes · View notes
degloved · 1 year ago
Text
we're never getting reputation (taylor's version) and here's why:
1. the color-coding
taylor's discography is very obviously and deliberately color-coded, each album strongly associated with a particular color or shade. although there is some overlap (1989's light blue vs midnights' dark blue), the variations are distinct enough to avoid any confusion between them. in that sense, b&w is an extremely inflexible color assignment, on account of not being... well, not a color. b&w is b&w (not to be confused with folklore's grey; monochrome ≠ b&w), there aren't exactly many (or any, as it were) ways to stretch that palette to the extent it'd successfully take on an identity (album) of its own. which i believe blondie is aware of, and on that basis i believe it was a deliberate choice. and why? it's not as though she'd exhausted all of her options. there are colors she has yet to use, as well as different shades, tones, and tints of already used colors that would've been just as viable. why take this extremely particular and inflexible palette and, essentially, risk shifting that association from one album to another? unless she wasn't risking anything.
2. the pre-ttpd announcement period
as is customary for her, in the weeks before the official announcement of ttpd, all of taylor's social medias began taking on a b&w color scheme. the same had happened with purple and speak now (taylor's version), with light blue and 1989 (taylor's version), so on and so forth. a kind of unique mass-hysteria ensued as all signs pointed to reputation (taylor's version.) as it turned out, every last one of us was wrong in that assumption. if reputation (tv) were to drop, she'd have to go the b&w route again—which, for one, would in this case be predictable (we got bamboozled once, no way is it happening again) and that's very much not her style; and for two... there'd be no novelty. doing the same bit twice, really? not her!
3. the themes of reputation
reputation centered two core concepts: joe & falling out of public favor. a "good" thing and a "bad" thing. this would remain true for several years after the fact, yet no longer is—instead having turned into two "bad" things. i would not blame her if she chose not to return to this notably awful period of her life by way of re-recording, especially given the fact that the thing—person—that was once a shining star in all that proverbial darkness simply blends into the void with the way things are now. and while, yes, she had re-recorded songs about her exes, she'd only done so after a long while has passed. not only was this the longest relationship she's ever had and therefore likely uniquely devastating, the breakup itself is also very recent.
4. the contrast and the timing
and continuing the last point, only last year she'd dropped a couple devastating songs about this relationship on midnights, followed by more than a fair share of them on ttpd. doubtless she's still moving on/healing (judging by ttpd); i simply do not see her delving into an album that'd dredge up all those memories of the good times, the better times—not to mention that ttpd and rep are as antithetical to each other as it gets. if she'd recorded lover any earlier and had no ownership of it, for very similar reasons i wouldn't believe she'd re-record that one either.
4. the ttpd logo (NOT!!! my finding!)
Tumblr media Tumblr media
now i never put much stock into this when i first saw it, as whoever had found it had taken it to mean "yay reputation (tv) soon!" and i simply did not agree. i actually thought it was a really freaky coincidence. bc, c'mon. let's be serious. however, i did realize it sort of fits remarkably well into my "ttpd is replacing rep because ttpd is reputation (taylor's version) in fewer words."
5. thanK you aIMee
kim? we're talking about kim now? who was maybe relevant around the year 2017? around the release of rep? oh. okay. i'm sure that means nothing
but that's just a theory... a game theory.
8 notes · View notes