#(man if I had a nickel for every time I liked a game where a POC man was called boring by fans because he didn't do ''bad enough'' things

[butwhatifidothis]

Do people really not see the inherent disconnect of the claim that Houses Claude is genuinely an amoral opportunist when his dream is to break down barriers to foster unity and peace? Like, is there not a fundamental incompatibility in having a desire for everyone to get along yet being a backstabber that throws people under the bus for their own benefit? From a personality/character standpoint, all that does is make Claude look like a ginormous ignorant hypocrite, and an idiot even though he's supposed to be smart. Because if his end goal is to create a diverse and harmonious community, how is he going to bring people together if he constantly betrays every side? And from a writing perspective, it makes no sense to have a character's actions and goals be completely contradictory and never address it.

Also for someone who is amoral, it sure is interesting in Balthus' Classroom QA Part 2 that Claude likes "ensure the fewest casualties" and dislikes "do anything to eradicate the enemy" when the question was "the war has been dragging for long so let's end it quickly". It's kinda like he has some principles or something.

Like, the idea of Claude being an untrustworthy backstabber who opportunistically takes advantage of everyone without ever growing close to them is just Hubert minus Lady Edelgard could be an interpretation of his character that aligns with at least his initial showing, or a surface level understanding of him. He calls himself the embodiment of distrust, he never fully opens up to anyone, he can in fact be fairly manipulative and callous; the crumbs are there, for sure.

But it also has to ignore how far he's willing to go to protect his people (putting himself in high danger when he is not sacrificial like, say, Dimitri is), or how he supports others having dreams for themselves (Goddess Tower), or how open he is to criticisms against what he thought (Cyril's support), or how he tries to be there for his friends (Marianne's support), or how he's open-minded enough to listen to people he initially thought needed to be his enemy (Rhea), or how violence is not just not something he considers but is something he actively rejects as a means of getting what he wants (The Alliance Leader's Ambitions, near the end), or how putting the people's lives in danger is something he is adamantly against (as you point out, Balthus' classroom question). A staggering amount of Claude's character has to be deliberately ignored in order to come to the conclusion that he's just a backstabbing opportunist who does anything to get what he wants (who magically gets fixed by Byleth's mere presence), because a backstabbing opportunist who does anything to get what he wants who magically gets fixed by Byleth's mere presence does not describe Claude.

Even if one were to take the game's writing failure of properly presenting Claude tackling racial issues (like never addressing Petra's situation despite having supports with her) you can't really deny that Claude is, in fact, a caring person after taking everything in his character into account. For all his flaws, he never abuses the trust people have in him to the extent that they are actively put in danger, nor is it ever the case that the "doesn't truly tackle racial issues" ever translate to anything so drastic as "which means he'll actively worsen relations between two countries." And, well, yes; you still do have to take into account that his dreams are of bringing people together and disregarding past bad blood. He never stops trying to achieve this dream, and he wants it to come true so badly that he is willing to let other people that he trusts rule Fodlan to work together with him to achieve it, shown in VW and even AM. That means a lot for someone like Claude, who is otherwise pretty slow to trust other people so deeply.

That's not someone who would use Leicester's bad history with Faerghus as fuel to violently invade it. That's not someone who would use Almyra's navy to make it look to Sreng like Faerghus tried to invade it. That's not someone who wants to conquer other nations and make his own come out on top. Those things describe Hopes!Claude, which 3H!Claude is not.

It's like. You know how some 3H's fans see 3H as "Edelgard, Dimitri, and the third guy that justifies my fave"? How a lot of people in 3H's fandom don't really see Claude as his own character with his own perspective and ideals and beliefs and morals that are unique to him, and only see him as a battering ram to try and knock down one of the other two lords? And so don't really care how he's characterized in other things (like fanfiction, fanart, meta, or in this case spinoff media) because they never really cared about him as his own character? But then get really, really, really defensive when you point out the flaws in their perception of him, saying that you're the one who never understood or liked Claude, because if you did you'd "realize" that he was always [insert vague, bland description that happens to prop up the lord they actually like]?

Yeah that's basically what's going on here. Most people who prefer Claude as their fave lord do not like Hopes!Claude, some of the loudest voices in the JPN Amazon reviews were of people who hated Hopes!Claude and were literally trying to warn Claude/GD fans away from Hopes as a game because of how awful their writing is, while nearly every Hopes!Claude fan that I've seen vastly prefers Edelgard as their fave lord and are - you guessed it! - very defensive when it comes to Claude fans venting their frustrations over Claude's shit-end-of-the-stick treatment he got in Hopes.

So like, yeah. It's less that people aren't directly computing that Claude's ambitions and character don't match how he's depicted in Hopes, but that they just don't care that it doesn't since 1) it justifies their fave and 2) they never really gave a shit about Claude anyway

[supercap2319]

Clark rode the glass elevator up to his penthouse in Metropolis. He could never afford a place like this on a farm boy allowance, but he didn't need to thanks to his alien physiology. He was loaded with money that he stole from banks. Night after night, parties. Guys. Girls. Sex. Drugs. Whatever he wants, he gets.

He frowns unhappily as the elevator dings, and the door opens. Clark sees his best friend from Smalville, Y/N L/N, outside his penthouse door, looking in the window. He turns to him when he hears the elevator. "Clark, I need to talk to you about ..."

The words die in his throat as Clark comes toward him, backing him against the railing and towering over him as he growls. "Y/N, I told you to never come back here again! Who else knows I'm here?"

"No one. Your secret's safe with me, but we need to talk."

Clark walks past him and opens the door into the penthouse as he tries to shut the door on him. "I'm busy." Y/N stuck his foot in the door. "Well, I'm coming in. Now, what's your deal? You come to Metropolis, and you're a completely different person."

"Maybe it's the real me." Clark said.

"Well, if it is, then I definitely prefer the farm boy version. Now... how did you afford all this?" Y/N looks at the expensive looking clothes and shoes. The silky bedsheets and bunch of elegant wine and booze. A new stereo, strobe lights, a gaming system, and a giant TV screen.

"Why, Y/N? Gonna tell all the rednecks back in Nowheresville? Maybe that's why you kept my secret."

"I kept your secret because you asked me to. I was hoping that if I left you alone, you'd get a grip and come home. Now, there are people in Smallville that still haven't given up on the search."

Clark rolled his eyes at that. He could give two fucks about Smallville. Living like a poor man, always wanting for something. "I'm tired of worrying about every nickel and dime. I figured it was time I had all the same cool stuff everyone else has. Besides, I've erased Smallville from my past." He sat in a chair.

Y/N eyed the red stone class ring on Clark's finger. "Really? Is that why you're still wearing your school ring?" Clark touched his ring and frowns. The red Kryptonite was making him into a different person. A person he didn't recognize, but he didn't care. He liked being Kal of Metropolis.

"You know, sooner or later, someone else is gonna find you."

"You were lucky."

"Maybe so. But what are you gonna do if one day Lana shows up on your doorstep, or your dad? How are you gonna explain this to them?" Y/N asked.

"I'm through explaining myself to anyone, Y/N!" Clark shouts.

"Clark, Lana is a wreck, and your parents are losing the farm!"

Clark stood up and walked across the room to pour himself a drink at the small bar. "What do I care? I'm never gonna go back anyway."

"Clark, you were not forced into exile. You ran away from your problems. You are not being noble. You're being a coward!" Y/N shouts out after him.

Clark's eyes flash a dangerous red color as he struggles to control himself. His anger and urges as he walks back to Y/N, grabbing his shoulders, pushing him to the door. "Y/N, get out! If you tell anyone where I am, I'll go so far away from Metropolis that no one will ever find me!"

"Get your hands off me!" Y/N pushed him back. "I don't even know who you are anymore."

Clark got in his face, lips close enough to kiss. "Get out!"

"Make me, you selfish bastard!"

Clark crashed their lips together in a heated and passionate kiss as Y/N tugged at Clark's hair before the Kryptonian lifted the human boy up in his strong arms and carried him to his bed.

[janearts]

Has Roisia yet had those strange dreams from the use of the tadpole? Of the beautiful, elusive figure that whispers sweet nothings if only you would let it in? Of its soft touches as it promises a future where they both reach their potentials? What does her dream companion look like?

I can't remember my original intentions for her canon experience... I think it was that Roisia would be too suspicious and too wary to use the tadpole? In any case, Roisia would dream of Eustace, an unrequited love of hers. UwU

Additional details under the cut.

Roisia started out as my Source Hunter from Divinity: Original Sin—(another excellent Larian game that I would highly recommend, by the way)—and I'm continuing her story in BG3 even though it's a completely different universe.

The premise of D:OS is that you have two buddy cops who are trying to solve a murder, and everything spirals wildly out of control the moment they're shipwrecked on a beach. (If Roisia had a nickel for every time she's been shipwrecked on a beach, she would have two nickels. That's not a lot, but it's funny that it happened twice.) If you're playing the game on your lonesome like me, you actually create not one but two player characters.

Roisia and Eustace (aka Roy & Stacey) started as joke characters as a way for me to test out the game. For Eustace, the man was built like an ox—(the game has only one body type and that's MUSCLES)—and I gave him a high-pitched nasally voice because I found the contrast hilarious. In D:OS, you can choose to pilot both characters or you can assign them an AI personality. I assigned Eustace the “Judge” personality and let the AI do its thing. It was an incredible gaming experience because Eustace felt "real" and I enjoyed roleplaying with the AI as I piloted Roisia's character. Eustace, courtesy of the AI and the parameters I set for it, ended up becoming this cantankerous, stubborn, contrary academic with a heart of gold who wanted to do the right thing... so long as the right thing to do was also the lawful thing to do. (Following the law to its every letter is very much not Roisia's MO. I suppose that would make Eustace lawful good and Roisia chaotic good.)

Anyway, after completing the game, the epilogue mentioned an unrequited love between the two—(‘saviour the second merely clapped saviour the first on the back and rode away’)—and I have since made that epilogue a canon part of Roisia’s story. She had fallen in love with Eustace, Mr. Saviour the Second, over the course of their adventure and those feelings were not returned.

In BG3, I think that Roisia is not quite over Eustace. She drew up a list of lifelong goals for herself as a way to "cure" herself of heartbreak and is on the lookout for a spouse for herself, but I think she still misses the easy camaraderie of Eustace, his endless snark, and his steadfastness. He'd definitely be the one she'd dream about.

[shiningshenanigans]

If I had a nickle…

For every time I shipped a guy and a girl…

Where the guy comes from a semi-privileged background and stable home life (albeit with a very dysfunctional family who is kinda mean to him)…

and the girl is a scavenger who has been fighting to survive her whole life because of a totalitarian regime…

and they’re forced into a situation where they have to work together and kinda start getting attached to each other…

and the guy is HOPELESSLY head-over-heals besotted and in love with the girl and, like, doesn’t even try to hide it… 

and the girl… kinda likes him back? But like it’s hard to tell? Because like I said, Girl has been fighting to survive her whole life, and is still very much in survival mode, and her fight-or-flight response is so through the roof right now it’s hard for her to feel that way about anyone at the moment…

also there’s kind of a rebellion/revolution going on against the totalitarian regime I mentioned earlier, and Girl is very focused on killing The Leader of said totalitarian regime, so romance is kinda the last thing on her mind…

but also their love is like this weird powerful force that’s fueling said rebellion, so she can’t really get away from it?

And she acts super cold and indifferent toward him but the second he’s in any kind of danger she immediately throws herself under the bus to save him…

(by the way they balance each other out really well, because Guy is not really much of a fighter, but he’s super charming and good at negotiating with people so he helps Girl grow in that area, cause she’s really bad at it)…

and they’re being mentored by a slightly cynical middle-aged man who “loves a good drink”…

(who totally has a crush on his cute-but-brainwashed-by-the-badguys female superior)…

oh yeah and remember The Leader of the totalitarian regime I mentioned earlier? He’s, like, weirdly invested in their love story and has been watching it unfold this whole time…

(and we don’t really know why he’s so obsessed with them, other then that they remind him of a situationship he was in ages ago, which ended really badly because he was paranoid, so now he’s living vicariously through them while at the same time scrambling to maintain the fragile power of his regime or something like that)…

and he keeps using his power to make them play weird games where he constantly tries to pit them against each other and get one of them to kill the other… 

(he actually does almost brainwash the guy into killing the girl at some point, but Guy wakes up and is like “Naw man, I’m in love with her, I will endure endless psychological torture before I do that.”)

and don’t forget, “This series is actually incredibly profound and thought-provoking and has some really deep things to say about freedom and government control and the value of human life, but for some reason nobody wants to talk about those things because all they care about is shipping drama (even though shipping should be a non-issue because the narrative makes it 100% clear who the cannon romance is)…”

…I’d have two nickels.

Say it with me kids…

[allykakamatsu]

Playing XC2 if you played Torna first is a very different experience

Aka, a rough list of all my reactions to things that I shouldn't of reacted to on a first run cause I played Torna first-

(Note, I played both games for the first time years ago, this is just a recreation of my reactions.)

(Chapter 1) Aww Azurda has new adopted human and this one calls him Gramps that's adorable!

meeting new Torna for the first time Aww it's a cute Gormotti girl-! Why is Malos here-?! JIN WHY ARE YOU WITH MALOS WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!

Okay so Malos has a blade now, checks out given that his core is probably wrecked after what Mythra did to him but I guess Aegis's can be Drivers now.

JIN WHY DID YOU STAB A CHILD WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!?!?!

Oh, so Pyra is Mythra's new self. She seems sweet but I want my sassy girl back.

(Chapter 2) Yay Gormott! Glad to see it's not burned to the ground anymore.

If I had a nickel for every time Brighid attacked us thinking we were criminals I'd have 2 nickels. Which isn't a lot but it's funny it happened twice.

Why isn't Pyra's fire affected by the water- oh is it cause of Mythra?

Oh, so Mórag is Brighid's new driver. Should've figured that out sooner but they're a cool looking pair. Wonder where Aegeon is though.

(Chapter 3) Hey Cole's scar kinda reminds me of Minoth, wonder what happened to him.

In between my tears over what just happened MYTHRA'S BACK FUCK YEAH!!!

(Chapter 4) Addam why the hell are you wearing a cloak you weren't wearing it in that scene.

MYTHRA I GET THAT YOU'RE UPSET AND PROBABLY STILL DEPRESSED OVER MILTON I AM TOO BUT I'M SORRY!!!

Wait.... COLE WAS MINOTH?!?! Jeez man what happened? I know you said you were a failed Flesh Eater but I didn't realise that meant this...

Also Minoth man, I love you but I think old age has made you senile why the hell are you sending us to Amalthus?

get's control of Mythra YES!! And omg her specials are her old arts that's adorable!!

Oh so this is the 'Evil Tifa' I've heard people joke about- wait.... MIKHAIL?!?! MY SON?! Okay this means you survived whatever the hell Amalthus did that's good, but it's been 500 years how are you still alive regardless? Also he's evil now which is bad but at least he's with his dad Jin.

WHY ARE YOU MAKING ME FIGHT MY SON GAME?!?!?!

Okay upside, Brighid's back at least and yup she's still awesome. And her specials are her old arts too that's still adorable.

Haze my babygirl you're back-! Wait, Fan la Norne? I'm with Mythra on this one when did that happen? And why is half of your core gone?

(More under cut)

(Chapter 5) Okay yeah I'm doubly with Mythra something happened to Haze and I am concerned.

Okay I can see why Addam picked this place for the Tornan refugees this place is beautiful.

Wait, Zeke's the Prince of where? I have not heard of Tantal before, is it new or am I forgetting something? (it was in-fact, relatively new)

in the same tone of 'Dinkleberg' Amalthus..... I can't prove it yet but you're the one behind Haze's missing core aren't you?

YES!! REX!! AMALTHUS WAS MALOS'S DRIVER DON'T TRUST HIM!!

Jin, I again ask what the hell happened to you?

Empty Moment- OH GOD THAT'S HIS LEVEL 4 I DID NOT WANT TO KNOW WHAT THAT FELT LIKE AAGGHH!!

Jin what are you doing- HAZE NO!!! JIN I KNOW HAZE HATED AMALTHUS AND HE PROBABLY DID SOMETHING TO HER BUT WHY DID YOU DO THAT?!?!

after I'm finished crying Oh, hey Aegeon, was wondering when you'd show up. And that's the Emperor of Mor Ardain? Aww, he looks like an even more baby Hugo-! Wait... Hugo.... oh no.

(Chapter 6) Niall what are you doing no no no-! NOT AGAIN!!!

Okay, Nia, thank you for stopping history from repeating itself.

The Tantalese are descendent from Addam, that can't be right Addam went to Leftheria-! Zettar started this, didn't he?

No tier lists I don't care if Aegeon sucks I'm gonna use him anyway because I am biased.

'Cadet Branch of the Royal Family' Yup, Zeke is descendant from Zettar, RIP my man having to be in the same bloodline as him.

GAME WHY ARE YOU MAKING ME FIGHT MY SON AGAIN-!! WHY DOES MIKHAIL HAVE A CORE CRYSTAL?!?!

Pyra Mythra no no no you two aren't just made to destroy don't go with them no no NO!!!

(Chapter 7) Ah, so this is where Addam hid the third sword. 5 minutes of gameplay later I can see why he hid it down here, this place would drive anyone mad.

Is this what it feels like to be on the receiving end of Addam's talent art? Cause all these reinforcements have to be equivalent to being perma toppled and launched with how long this takes.

Addam drop the hood already.

Malos you fucking bastard when I get my hands on you....!! Jin you can stay but you're on think fucking ice pardon the pun.

YES!! REX GIVE THOSE GIRLS THERAPY THEY NEED IT!!!

(Chapter 8) You know, I'm pretty sure most people picked Pyra here calls Pneuma Mythra but I am not most people

YAY!! I can play as Jin again! And he is somehow even more overpowered than before!

Jin why are you lying to Brighid, she's more mature but she's otherwise the same.

Jin... ate.... oh... I should've.... figured but.... oh god.... I just thought loosing Lora messed him up but having to eat.... yeah between that and Amalthus no wonder he's like this.

Torna......

Aww, nice Jin's still in there, he let us go and told Brighid the truth.

(Rest of the game cause I love it but I forget the chapter markers) So.... um.... Jin I'm glad you were able to find love again after Lora but why did it have to be Malos? Like this is weirdly sweet but this is a weird progression.

AMALTHUS I KNEW YOU WERE THE ONE WHO MESSED WITH HAZE MALOS YOU ARE OFFICIALLY PRIORITY 2 THIS BASTARD DIES FIRST!!

Okay that's how Mikhail survived this long so I guess Amalthus was good for one thing.

No no no no no no no- MIKHAIL!!!!! Why.....?!?- Oh god they're showing the scene where he met Lora and Jin again GAME WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME?!?!

Okay I wanted to help Jin and stop Amalthus anyway but now I'm doing it for my baby boy.

Don't worry Jin I've got your back. THIS IS FOR LORA HAZE MIKHAIL AND EVERYONE ELSE YOU BASTARD!!!!!!

...... J... Jin...... chapter 9 is living up to it's name because I was a rainstorm of tears after this

Malos for Jin's sake I don't want to kill you anymore can you please stop- damn it!!

Never thought I'd be sad to see Malos go but, here we are.

Pyra, Mythra, what are you- no no no no NO!! POPPI I KNOW YOU'RE KEEPING YOUR PROMISE AND WE HAVE TO LEAVE BUT LET ME GO I HAVE TO SAVE THEM!!!!

bawling crying until the two come back and the tears become happy tears Heh... thank god....

[yougavemeyourheartyouknow]

Love me or hate me, both are in my favor (Miguel O’Hara x Fem! Reader [HS Academic rivals AU])

Hiii! I can’t believe I haven’t updated this series since last year! ( I hate myself too don’t worry) hope you all have a good 2024! Hope you enjoy the new chapter! Not proofread.

(Y/N)- Your name.

Cursing, villains villaining, reader almost dying (she doesn’t tho don’t worry)

Word count: 1.8k

Series Masterlist Series Playlist

Chapter 7: this world is only gonna break your heart

—

If Miguel had a nickel for everytime you had been attacked by a monster-like man creature, and had to be rescued by him, he’d have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot but it’s weird it happened twice.

The police had made quick work for once and had evacuated the area, making sure to keep up when the scene moved from the aquarium back over to Coney Island. News choppers keeping a distance from where they flew in the air, capturing live footage of your capturer dodging police, using you as a human shield in an attempt to keep bullets from being fired in his direction. You would have squirmed against the blue tentacles that wrapped around your body, if it weren’t for him holding you hostage on top of the wonder wheel, one wrong move and you could slip off, or worse, he could drop you off it like you were nothing more than a piece of trash.

Your pleas fell on deaf ears as you begged to be let go, to be placed back on ground level, but he wouldn’t even glance in your direction, instead opting to look out into the crowd, watching, waiting. He seemed to be getting impatient, you could tell by the irritated huff he let out, before you felt his limb tighten slightly before your feet began to be lifted off the narrow steel beams underneath themselves. Your hands instinctively go to grip the blue ampendage, you let out a screech, your throat raw as you begged for him to not let go, your tears cascading down your face as he waits. If you were thinking clearly, it would have clicked in your mind. You were acting as bait.

TWAP

The wind was knocked out of your lungs as you were suddenly webbed against the bright orange Farris wheel, a sob escapes your lips as you quickly evert your eyes from the floor that was at least 50 yards beneath you, praying to whatever gods would listen to make sure the neon red silk wouldn’t decide to snap underneath you, while you felt the octopus-man’s tentacle pull away from you.

“Spider-Man! I see my favorite insect finally decided to join us.”

“Doc ock.” Spider-Man grumbled as he began to scale the amusement park ride. “What do I owe the displeasure to this time.” Finally, he decided to move from his spot at the top of the Farris wheel, both men leaving you basically forgotten. Doc ock didn’t justify the remark with an answer, rather begins to weave himself between the teal metal beams, as Spider-Man went after him, attempting to trap him in webs as he followed. Like a game of cat and mouse. “Let’s get this over with doc, we both know how this is gonna end.”

You had no idea what was happening behind you, but you did know that every time they gripped onto the metal of the wheel as they used it like a jungle gym the whole thing would shake, it was utterly terrifying. You were never partially scared of heights before, but now you definitely were. The adrenaline rush was making your blood pump and your heart beat to ring in your ears, trying to take deep breaths as you bit your lip to keep your whimpers and sobs low. Why couldn’t one of those damn news hoppers grab you?

You have no idea how long you’ve been stuck against the Farris wheel, but it feels like an eternity.

Finally, you let out a gasp as you heard one of the webs begin to rip from beneath you, feeling the thin silk brush lightly against your ankle as it slowly begins to unwind. Instinctively you grabbed onto one of the webs that was a bit higher on your body, one that seemed thicker, more sturdy, just in time for the unwinding of the web on your lower half to pick up speed. You let out another yelp as you finally felt the webbing snap and fall down, letting out a sob as it flowed away in the wind, as you tried to hoist yourself up higher on the neon red webs.

“Help! Spider-Man help!” Your pleas reached Miguel’s ears faster than anyone else’s would have, he quickly glanced up and saw you were quite literally hanging from a thread. If he wasn’t quick enough, you’d surely plummet and be severely injured, or worse… “I’m gonna fall! Please!” You interrupted yourself with another scream as you watched in horror as the sting of web you were depending on to keep yourself up, starts to slowly rip away due to gravity. Miguel let out a frustrated huff, as he stopped for a second to catch his breath, he could throw that nasty octopus in the slammer another time, he couldn’t let you get injured again. He wouldn’t.

“I’m coming!” Doc ock was quickly dropped from Miguel’s mind as fast as the octopus fled the scene. Miguel begins to quickly climb back up to your level, unfortunately, his strength and speed shook the metal structure as he climbed back up, leaving small claw marks as he re-ascended the Farris wheel. The shaking only sped up the deteriorating of the web you were holding onto, until-

Snap.

You were screaming but you couldn’t hear anything but a ringing in your ears that was getting more intense every inch you got closer to the floor. The watching crowd could only let out a collective gasp as they watched your descent, mothers covering their children’s ears and eyes, teenagers recording on their phones, your teachers that were supervising watching in horror knowing that this was going to be a PR nightmare for the boarding school despite if you somehow managed to get out unscathed.

You were so petrified and out of it that you didn’t even realized that Spider-Man had jumped off after you until you felt his arm cling around your waist, pulling back out of your deer-in-headlights-like state, causing your arms to instinctively around his neck before using his free hand to shoot a web onto the wonder wheel, stop you both only 20 feet or so before you would have hit the floor. Your hearing slowly started to come back to, hearing the sounds of the crowd of onlookers clapping and cheering on the masked vigilante.

“Hey.” Your head snapped over to him once he finally spoke, both of your chest heaving rapidly.

“Hey.” You smiled.

“We need to stop meeting like this.” He joked, and you didn’t have to see his face under his mask to know his smile widened when you let out a shaky laugh at the quip.

“Can you put me down now Mr.Spider-Man?” You asked with a small giggle, readjusting your arms around his neck, now he was the one who let out a shaky chuckle.

“Right , right…” he mumbled before he started to lower you both down, gently helping you to your feet, expecting him to do the same, but instead he just flipped himself upside down as he hung from the red web in front of you.

And you weren’t sure if it was the post-almost dying adrenaline rushing through your bloodstream, or if it was your mind being clouded by the utter most gratefulness at the fact that he had saved you from death’s clutches more then once, but you did something you’d never do if you were thinking 100% correctly, knowing you’ll probably be embarrassed by the actions when your replaying the memories late at night in bed, but right now, that wasn’t gonna stop you. The crowd or the news choppers watching you wasn’t gonna stop you either.

So, taking in a deep breath for courage, you go to bring your hand up to his face and dip your finger under his mask and lifting it just above his nose. You had paused for a second once your hands traveled to rest on either side of his still covered temples, just to give him the ability to recover the lower half of his face and pushed you away if he wanted, and you were really expecting him too. But instead, you watched as his plump lips pulled up (down?) into a small smirk, taking this as your greenlight, you leaned forward, letting your lips meet.

You finally understood what authors meant when they would write about feeling fireworks. You finally understood why rom-com movies would play grand music during the main characters sharing a kiss. Your heart swells as your eyes closed, you felt like you could kiss Spider-Man forever. You really want to.

“Get it spidey!”

“That’s (Y/N), isn’t it?”

“Oh my god it is!”

The comments from the still watching crowd brought you down from high, cheeks redding as you heard a random stand-byer let out a whistle. Suddenly reminding you of your shameless act as you pulled away from the upside down spider, who only let out an amused chuckle as he pulled down his mask again, it coming out a bit breathless due to him still recovering from the kiss/fight.

You go to whip your mouth as you finally turn away from him, and you immediately spot Mj and Pete at the front of the metal fence that the police had placed to keep the crowd away from the whole ordeal. Your embarrassed smile only widens when you say his hand resting on her waist.

—

Miguel’s smile had never been wider when he walked back into his shared room, his brother already sprawled on his own bed as he fumbled and fidgeted with a rubix cube. Glancing at his brother when he heard the door click close.

“Wonder what’s got you all smiles? Would it happen to be a certain kiss from a certain girl?” Gabriel teased, his smirk causing Miguel to roll his eyes.

“I don’t know what you're talking about.” Miguel quipped, pulling his windbreaker off and tossing it in the hamper.

“Don’t play dumb Mig, it’s all over the news and the internet.” Gabriel scoffed as he placed the incomplete cube on his chest, before propping himself up on his elbows. “What happened to hating her?”

Now it’s the elder of the two to scoff. “I still do.”

“Then why didn’t you stop her?”

“Well- I didn’t want to embarrass her! There was a crowd and news crews-“

Gabriel fully sits up on his bed. “Just admit it Miguel! You don’t hate her! Hell, you're probably in love with her!”

“I’m not taking this crap. I’m going out for a walk.” Miguel grumbled before getting up from his seat on his own bed, his brother only rolling his eyes at his dramatics. It wasn’t until he closed the door after stepping out of his dorm that it hit him like a freight train.

Gabriel was right. He didn’t hate you as much as he liked to lead on…

Fuck.

—

Taglist: @famouscattale @oharasfilipinawife @mxltifxnd0m @loser-alert @homewreckingwreck @dumb-gemini @cowboylikeevie @thedevax @codenameredkrystalmatrix

[bluestarjay]

Kind of a part 2 of genius/"chronically online" deku 💀💀

Idgaf about the timeline/setting of the show, so in my head, he was a typical weird kid. When he wasn't doing quirk analysis stuff, he was drawing creepypasta fanart. He was watching Markiplier play fnaf and stuff, yk? He was a Tumblr kid.

His queer awakening was probably Eyeless Jack or Ben Drowned 💀💀 And Shinsou was fs also into creepypasta, but he was more into Jeff the Killer and Smile Dog.

I love that so many people have agreed that deku writes/reads fanfic bc that's actually so funny like ik that when the bullying at school got too bad he'd start daydreaming about being taken away to the slender mansion 😭😭😭 tbh that's really sad ik but it's trueee

"Sorry for the late upload for this chapter, guys!! I actually broke both my arms, including my fingers, and fractured my leg :( Im all better now, tho!!" And then later on, "Heyyy, sorry again about late updates, I actually had to infiltrate a Yakuza organization and save a little girl :) lmk what you think of this chapter!!!" And everybody is like HUH

When he first found out that fanfic was a thing, he read a lot of x reader stuff ❤️❤️

Ohhhh, he was probably a gacha kid, too.

He watched a gacha video with "I Kissed a Girl" by Katy Perry and was like, "Girls can like girls???" And found himself down a rabbit hole of queerness 💀💀 he watched the "Little Game" by Benny glmvs, LMAOOO AND "Stand Out Fit In" BY ONE OK ROCK yk the ones where everybody was like, yeah, I'm a girl, and I skateboard. What about it?? 🤨✊️🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈" THE PRIDE MONTH SPECIALSSSS LMAOOA

Edit; I'm reading a fic rn in which aizawa and deku watch Iron Man (fairly minor, not a huge plot point or anything, but I can still give link 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️) and I'm realizing that like,, holy shit he would love Marvel. He would resonate with Spiderman SO MUCHHHH and he n Sero can be buddies who talk about the MCU together and he'd start crying bc Peter and Tony are literally him and All Might (If I had a nickel for every time an older rich guy adopted a teenage boy who was (somewhat) poor I'd have two nickels <33)

[ai-the-broccoli]

(so I was reminded of this by @kiyomitakada's post about Sayu potentially liking girls, but it's off-topic and I didn't want to derail it entirely so)

if I had a nickel every time there was one scene in a piece of media I love where:

a teenage character (who I'll call T) is shown coming home very late to their family, and -- because they were actually doing something very unusual which they cannot reveal to their family --

either claims that the reason for the late return is that they are actually in a heterosexual relationship with someone (a lie),

or is asked by a family member as to whether the reason for their late return is that they are actually in a heterosexual relationship with someone (a wrong guess),

when actually, the real reason is that T has been engaged in unusual secret activities with a group of people... but also most especially specifically with a certain person with the same gender as T, with whom T has a legendary, intense, obsessive homoerotic rivalry (I'll call this rival R).

R -- a manipulative schemer with noticeably eyebags and a characteristic fondness for sweet food (including or especially ice cream) -- has a relationship (general meaning of "relationship"; not as in they're canonically dating) with T that is not known to these family members in question.

and later in this scene, T also makes a remark (in relation to the "girlfriend/boyfriend" matter that is brought up) at one of their family member, which was definitely not at all meant to imply that said family member is queer, but could be taken that way if you wished to

...I would have two nickels, which isn't a lot but it's weird that it's happened twice considering how specific this description is

for context:

Juri’s Father: …By the way, you ain’t staying out late ‘cause of some man, right…? Juri: Why would I bother with men when my old man ain’t finding women? -- Juri Ooba MSS (video / script), from Magia Record

(note for DN fans:

Juri is very gay and has like... a basically canon relationship with Yuna, with whom she has a very homoerotic rivalry going on. Like... remember the Japanese version of Playing His Game? Imagine that, but with heated physical duels between two magical girl gang leaders, instead of two supergenius' tennis match. Yuna and Juri basically do that like every time they fight each other. A lot of other stuff too, though.

No matter how gay you think they are, it's probably even gayer. The extremely suggestive dialogue aside, they have stuff like y'know. canon neckbiting and "you're going to be mine", and by now they have canonically lived as a married couple raising a child together for 14 years. No, really.)

as for the scene in Death Note, I'm referring to the post linked prior about Sayu here, in which the below panel is shown:

(note for MR fans: ...well I mean. DN is rather well-known so chances are that you probably already are familiar with Light Yagami's alloheterosexuality or rather the lack thereof, and you probably also have heard about his rivalry with L and/or the fact that it is an extremely popular M/M ship, so. I don't think I need to explain much lol)

but anyway yeah. now same as with Light's comment towards Sayu, I'm pretty sure that Juri's words were not intended to suggest that she's calling his dad gay, but rather more of a "no bitches" thing, but I mean. this whole scene and by extension this entire character side story is about how Like Father, Like Daughter they are -- AND this extends to Juri's father also having a rival (<- a guy) that he has had a grudge on for a long time (<- you know what they say; "it is a truth universally acknowledged that someone entangled in a passionate and obsessive rivalry must be gay". I can confirm there's truth to this statement because it happened to me) and is going to fight against at the same time Juri is fighting Yuna (<- cinematic parallels), etc. and we know for sure that Juri is very gay as far as rivalry is concerned, so well, honestly, who's to say that her dad is definitely straight?

[bettsfic]

A few years ago—god, i must have still been in college. 2018? 19? You made a master post of all your fic up until then. Would you be able to make another post, with all your fic from 2019ish-now?

sure! i've been wanting to do this for a while but the question becomes - how to organize? i write in too many different fandoms to do it by canon. so we're just gonna go by the myriad ways my id is on full display.

i skipped a few fics that i didn't like so it's not *everything*. also many of these are locked down so you have to log into ao3 to see them.

masterpost of my fics, 2019 - 2023

key:

personal favorite

you don't really need to know the canon going in

VERY NSFW

diet cottagecore

there's a house. somebody is sad. chores.

rest in grace - violet evergarden, violet/gilbert, canon divergence - 20k, complete

float - breaking bad, jesse/OMC, post-canon - 19k, complete

good bones - star wars sequels, reylo, modern au - 12k, wip

stray - genshin impact, razor/lumine, canon divergence - 6k, complete

"i don't remember you" to "let's pretend to be in a relationship" to "oh you've been in love with me your entire life?"

fake dating via trauma-induced amnesia and chronic illness

a standing engagement - the hunger games, odesta, canon divergence - 57k, complete

wind of the new world - the hunger games, odesta, sequel to ASE - 10k, complete

digging for orchids - tgcf, hualian, modern au - 43k, complete

a brat and the guardian she desperately wants to fuck

and the guardian who is trying desperately not to give in

huaycan - the gray man, six/claire, post-canon - 16k, complete

in water falling - the clone wars, rexsoka, dystopia au - 14k, complete

a long way - game of thrones, jaime/myrcella, canon divergence - 18k, complete

so obsessively in love that their life is upended and their identity irrevocably changed

romance with repercussions & codependency ever after

free ride - tbosas, snowbaird, modern au - 24k, wip

patronage - painter of the night, nakyum/seungho, modern au - 11k, complete

lemon - star wars prequels, anidala, modern au - 73k, complete

organic chemistry - the clone wars, rexsoka, modern au - 57k, wip

"i will kill for you" (literal)

murder as a love language

acquittal - tgcf, hualian, modern au - 10k, complete

the bluff - barry (hbo), sally/barry, canon divergence - 9k, complete

if i had a nickel for every fic i've written where an unstable marriage is saved by an adrift third burdened by the guilt of their society-ruining decisions

i'd have two nickels, but it's weird it happened twice

before the suns rise - star wars prequels, obianidala, canon divergence - 30k, wip

renovations - frozen, anna/elsa/kristoff, modern au (no incest) - 47k, complete

"whoops, i was trying to kill you but i fell in love with you instead"

villainfucker city rise up

the truth of time - rurouni kenshin, e/k, canon (live action) - 6k, complete

penitence - star wars sequels, reylo, canon divergence - 17k, complete

porn, but also healing from atrocity

honestly every fic i write could fall under this category

reclaimed - star wars sequels, reylo, omegaverse - 14k, complete

light - saezuru, yashiro/doumeki, canon divergence - 30k, complete

sick part of a sick thing - stranger things, hellcheer, no upside down au - 45k, complete

let ruin end here - tgcf, hualian, modern au - 8k, complete

the art of scraping through - the 100, bellarke, modern au - 18k, complete

porn, but also righting the wrongs of decades past

boys with big regrets and even bigger—

dirtbag - stranger things, hellcheer, no upside down au - 60k, complete

moderation - the 100, bellarke, modern au - 40k, complete

always be closing - mdzs, wangxian, modern au - 32k, complete

femdom tsundere (ft. pegging)

grouchy women and the submissive men who adore them

black-eyed - mdzs, chengqing, modern au - 16k, complete

not if, when - original fiction - 12k, complete (the pegging is there in spirit)

ghost in the pearl - westworld, dolores/caleb, canon divergence - 7k, complete

the innate comedy of abject pining

"i'm so in love with you it's killing me lmao"

no certainty of doors between us - mdzs, wangxian, modern au - 6k, complete

the beach episode - tgcf, hualian, modern au - 20k, complete

shut up and kill me - original fiction - 5k, complete (not really a romance)

if you dig my stuff and want to support me, you can

subscribe to my newsletter

buy me a coffee on ko-fi

thanks for the ask, anon! this was fun.

[siffrin-enthusiast]

uh I can't find the post so you get an ask‼️

so a fact about my favorite game, huh? JOKE'S ON YOU YOU'RE GETTING TWO‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️ First about Rain World: Slugcats, right? cute little guys. But why a mix of a slug and a cat? The slug half doesn't even show that much. Turns out, when the game was early in development (and I mean early in development) the player looked pretty much the same as survivor does now, but didn't have a name. The devs would refer to it as a little bear creature or something. A comment left on a Rain World devlog uploaded to youtube simply led "Slug Cat!!!" and the devs liked that name so much that they just stuck with it.

but there's a chance you already knew that so in an attempt to tell you something you didn't know: So. Splatoon. Sillay goofy paint-based shooter by Nintendo, right? By now, it's fairly well known that it's actually a post-apocalyptic shooter, taking place 12 thousand years after the downfall of man. But did you know that in Splatoon, it wasn't World War Three that took us out, nor was it World War Four, but World War Five? Yeah it took us five whole World Wars to nuke ourselves to death lol. If I had a nickel for every time a shooter game was (semi-)secretly a post-apocalyptic shooter where humanity wiped themselves out after an unexpected amount of World Wars, I'd have two nickels. Oh yeah, in Ultrakill humanity doesn't even make it past World War One. it just keeps going for 200 years till everything is dead lol. SURPRISE BONUS THIRD FUN FACT‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️

YEAAAAAAH I KNOW THE RAIN WORLD YOUTUBE VIDEO YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT

also damn. nintendo has a LOT of faith in humanity i think? AND YEA ULTRAKILL REAL!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE YOU GUTTERMEN ULTRAKILL SAVE ME GUTTERMEN ULTRAKILL

[uglyduckling339]

KY'S LIFE IS STRANGE DOUBLE EXPOSURE NONSENSE LIVEBLOG: Episode 3

(as always, spoilers ahead!! don't read unless you've played the game or watched it bc otherwise none of these will make sense)

Tutorial Episode 1 Episode 2

LETS FUCKING GOOO IM SO EXCITED i actually really like this game ngl

(fun fact: this episode alone took 103 drafts to liveblog, and i actually shortened the amount by combining some into a list. without the list, it's about 150 drafts lol)

WOLF SQUAD HOODIE 🗣🗣🗣 AND PINK TIPS 🗣🗣 BEST OUTFIT COMBO AROUND FR

bruh max is ALWAYS sleepin in the beginning of ep 3 lmao

the best part of max's dissociation is there is no way she could be 100% confident that she DIDN'T kill safi. even she is getting slightly convinced by the photo and its prolly bc she knows theres days she wakes up and she doesn't feel real; days she forgets completely. she will NEVER be certain she didn't kill safi bc she'll never know if she just forgot it and erased it from her memory.

oh um, ik i was just yapping abt dissociation but i just remembered that it could be a future version of max instead😭 so idk

if i had a nickel for every LiS game i've played where the main character is accused of murder and wears a wolf squad hoodie, i'd have 2 nickels.

highkey i forgot safi and vinh fucked. they're both so real ngl

LMFAO MY BROTHER SAID MAX IN THE PIC WITH THE GUN HAS A LEAD PAINT STARE

cheetos toes?? max?? girl??

AH EW ALDERMAN KYS I HATE U

max. the picture. girl. u forgot the picture.

why would u walk to open the door with very explicit evidence against you js chilling in plain eyesight u freak

love her "oh fuck" + the face she makes lol

YO WHAT THE FUCK??

WHAT

FUCK YOU DUDE

he mentioned arcadia bay?? holy shit

my fav draft in here is: "girl js eat the photo atp"

okay what was alderman even tryna do. piss max off??

her instant breakdown :( poor max

OH MY GOD

OH MY GOD

MAX PHOTO JUMPED AGAIN ??????

shes js hella rusty but damnnn omg

hey! so what the fuck was that.

why was the storm in the background?

was it a diff universe maybe?

istg it's like her nightmare never ended fr

also MAX IS STILL FINE AS HELLLLLLLL IN THAT STORM EVEN AFTER 9 YEARS daymn

omg :( her collapsing tryna use her powers

the music in this episode is so good btw

is this the first ep in DE where we get 'sits' back or did i just miss them all last time

now i love you max but yk DAMN WELL ur talking straight out of ur balls with that whole "disappearing" thing. we dont know if u vanish or not 😭

okay so luckily she DOES disappear. unluckily i have SO MANY COMMENTS now:

what abt the dozens of kids she vanished in front of last ep then? did they just not care? does this mean that when she time travelled she DID teleport around? and people js didn't say anything? hilarous 10/10

goddd this might be my favorite ep so far. the amount of references and stuff added is insane.

max's trauma peaking through ily

she's like edging a breakdown but thats not quite enough tbh. i need to see her js COLLAPSE. let her hit her lowest. suffer ♡

actually i think i just wanna see max have a super reasonable reaction to this chaos she lives through ngl

okay so i looked away to liveblog and when i looked back up a diff universe alderman was there?? and moses could see him??? huh??

obvi i saved him. max wouldnt let him die

"i could've saved him!!" "no, you couldn't have." OH MY GODDD

highkey, the random extras in this game fucking SUCK. why is one british. who tf is kim. why do i care abt changing "photo guy"'s grade. i miss the tiny cast in LiS 1

stupid ass game making me google words

quick shout out to my dad for playing the whole Yasmin scene for me. he didn't have to, he js insisted bc "i paided 85$ for this game; i wanna try it"

okay so i actually hate Living World! Vinh ngl

VICTORIA?? GIRL?? DAMN??

talking mad shit on my pink twt page man.

also max's glitchy hair in this is so interesting !!

i forgot in which world Vinh owes me a favor so i've decided to not use any favors ever 🤩

"my door is always open" sounds familar...

lucas is the only person to be like slightly consious of max wandering around his room lmao

yup lucas is supposed to be jeffershit coded

AHH direct jefferson mention 😰

yk what. i dislike the loading screens. why r they so often

safi :( no :( y r u so mad :(

OH MY GOD IT'S COURTNEY'S BDAY </3

MAX IS SO SAD AND LONELY I LOVE HER

i think at first these liveblogs were more detailed but now i just say words lowkey

dude shes like so sad rn its insane. ily girl

SMASH OR PASS LMAOOOOO:

pass moses, smash gwen, didnt even get a choice w amanda (i think thats fucking WEIRD btw; i'll elabrote in a min), pass lucas, Kiss vinh

OH MY GOD I FORGOT TO ADD THAT SHE NEARLY CALLED CHLOE. BAE WAS SO UPSET SHE ALMOST CALLED HER OLD BAE

guys i make Max kiss Warren and Chloe is LiS and now i wanna do that again with Vinh and Amanda. #PolyamorousMaxineCanon

amanda's scene gets bisexual lighting okk

LETS THRASH SHAKABRAH !!!!!!!!!

okay so going back to the Amanda 'no choice' thing, at first I rejected her (bc the first interaction in the game with her is the game borderline shoved us onto her??) and now i've grown to kinda like her.

I like rhat she does listen to our boundaries and doesn't push on now but I feel like we missed alot of chances to learn more abt amanda bc of the romance being cut. Like i'm almost certain if I had chosen a romance with her we could have gotten a way better conversation from it.

anyways !! max almost crying :(

all lesbians like gwen bro

OH?? OKAY B&E

MY CAT?? IS MY CAT OKAY?? IRIS?? BABY??

this is the first time idk who coulda done this. i have so many guesses but i have zero clue fs.

I FOUND THE BABY DONT WORRY GUYS

poor sweetiepie is so scared :(

oh thats a lame reveal. its js another max

MUSIC SLAPS THO 🔥🔥🔥🔥

so im hearing that alderman was just a lil bitch

so the 'dopplegangers' are actually a shapeshifter??

THE SHAPESHIFTER IS SAFI????? WHAT??

okay i'm going straight into Episode 4 rn cuz i'm hooked but that was fire. it felt more like a Life Is Strange episode then the other 2 and yall know i LOVE characters showing any emotions ever lol

[yc-shiya]

danganronpa universe dashboard simulator

💔 monoslayy Follow

rlly it’s not “pretentious” to not find the newer seasons better?? listen i love the new ones as much as anyone else (ESP DANRON 48 UGHHHHH WTFFF) but to act like the junko twist is still subversive is just WRONG

😈 junkosgirl04 Follow

Literally who said that lol this is not an unpopular opinion at all

💔 monoslayy Follow

are you biased maybe “junkosgirl04”

☠️ the-sauna-scene Follow

they did him so dirtyyyy 😭 we do not talk about this hair ATROCITY!!! its not even funny

🌟dangan-wrongpa Follow

I find it really interesting that you so-called “sympathetic” Danganronpa fans are always harping on about the tragedies of the characters played by *REAL LIFE ACTORS* rather than the later seasons when the showrunners recruited and killed *TEENAGERS* for money and views. It’s one level of wrong to be a fan of the show and still acknowledge its problems, especially with the newer releases. It’s something else entirely to still be talking about seasons one, two, three…and completely ignore the ongoing human rights violation that is modern day Danganronpa. You people disgust me. I sincerely wish you could take a better look at the media you consume, because it’s actually, LITERALLY killing people.

☠️ the-sauna-scene Follow

not reading that

🌟 dangan-wrongpa Follow

wow! posting fetish art of REAL LIVING PEOPLE too! literally nothing shocks me anymore with you freaks!!!

🍬 kimurasgf Follow

hey wait arent you the guy who auditioned for season 53 pitching yourself as the ultimate vtuber? lmfao?

🧈 death-by-balls Follow

If i had a nickel for every danganronpa man ive loved who was executed and turned into butter, i would have three nickels, which isnt a lot, but its weird that its happened thrice

#in 1 then 13 then 39 #they were cooking tho ngl 🔥🔥

🍀 hopefulservant Follow

listen i can be fucked in the head sometimes but we srsly gotta take a step back and consider how the series is exploiting mentally ill people for content. i mean, whens the last time we had a double or triple murder where the killer wasn’t already, or eventually revealed to be, mentally ill? What is that saying, exactly??

💣 togamicorp Follow

more👏neurotypical👏serial👏killers👏

🔪 chapter3sweetheart Follow

OP i have some news about your best boy

🍀 hopefulservant Follow

….agh…….my worthless talent…….

🎹 warriorsofdope Follow

okay can someone tell me why im seeing ship discourse about danganronpa 48 again? i thought we all played the same game and came to the consensus that the optional romance event with the whole class was universally canonical

🔮 30-percent Follow

Some of us didn’t get it on our playthrough 😒 also Sorry but I don’t like some of the cast of danganronpa 48. I don’t want them all shipped together.

🎹 warriorsofdope Follow

I can’t forgive you . Im gonna have to kill you for having that opinion.

🌟 dangan-wrongpa Follow

you shouldn’t ship the cast of danganronpa 48 because half of them are confirmed clones of Junko. go through chapter 5 again if you forgot.

🚀 femmesakura Follow

SHUT UP ABOUT THE JUNKO CLONES SHUT UP ABOUT THE JUNKO CLONES SHUT UP ABOUT THE JUNKO CLONES SHUT UP ABOUT THE JUNKO CLONES SHUT UP ABOUT THE JUNKO CLONES SHUT UP ABOUT THE JUNKO CLONES

THAT THEORY WAS DISPROVEN IN DANGANRONPA 49 STFU STFU STFU HOW ARE PEOPLE STILL THINKING THIS?!?!?

🐹 gundamwenttohell Follow

dont bother with him hes the vtuber guy

[brainsforbabyjesus]

I'm on a Marco kick now. Here's the start of my Marco Animorphs playlist I'm now apparently putting together (songs are grouped together thematically). 90s only for that extra animorphs vibe.

General Marco Vibes

Never gonna say I'm sorry (by Ace of Base) - "I'm never gonna say I'm sorry for the essence of my soul."

Ironic (by Alanis Morissette) - "And life has a funny way of helping you out when you think everything's gone wrong and everything blows up in your face."

Flexy Boy (by Merrill Nisker (Peaches before she was Peaches)) - "Flexy boy! Flexiable! Changes shape!"

Burning Rubber (by Mr. Mirainga) - "When I'm drivin' my speed demon machine, flyin', three digits, man. Nothin' you've ever seen. Cam and crankshaft turning. Smell the engine burnin'."

Girls and Boys (by Blur) - "Girls who are boys who like boys to be girls who do boys like they're girls, who do girls like they're boys."

Clever (by Jill Sobule) - "I can be clever, I can be clever. I can charm your pants off, I can be clever. I can be funny, I can make you laugh."

I'm gonna be rich and famous

Supermodel (by Jill Sobule) - "And my hair will shine like the sea. And every one will wanna look just like me 'cause I'm young and I'm hip, so beautiful."

Perfect World (by Liz Phair) - "I wanna be cool, tall, vulnerable, and luscious. I would have it all if I'd only had this much."

Throw My Name (by Merrill Nisker (Peaches before she was Peaches)) - "I want to walk into a room and not have to explain who I am or what I do because people will know my name."

I'm not always easy to be around

Have You Ever (by The Offspring) - "Have you ever buried your face in your hands 'Cause no one around you understands Or has the slightest idea what it is that makes you be?"

Basket Case (by Green Day) - "Neurotic to the bone, no doubt about it. Sometimes I give myself the creeps. Sometimes my mind plays tricks on me. It all keeps adding up. I think I'm cracking up. Am I just paranoid?"

Answers (by Goldfinger) - "That's when I realize, that I see what I'm really selling. You tell me where your skeleton's hiding. Tell me all and I'll tell you. You think you have a real good fucking answer, a fucking answer I'll give you."

If I had a nickel for every time I tried to kill my mom, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice

Walking On Broken Glass (by Annie Lennox) - "Since you abandoned me, my whole life has crashed. Won't you pick the pieces up, 'cause it feels just like I'm walking on broken glass."

Disarm (by Smashing Pumpkins) - "I used to be a little boy, so old in my shoes. And what I choose is my choice. What's a boy supposed to do? The killer in me is the killer in you."

The Climb (by No Doubt) - "Although many failed I must now prevail with no questions. Have no time to stop, onward to the top of the mountain. I can't turn back now."

Wish (by Nine Inch Nails) - "Climbed up real high, now fall down real far. No need for me to stay. The last thing left, I just threw it away. I put my faith in God and my trust in you. Now there's nothing more fucked up I could do. [...] I'm the one without a soul, I'm the one with this big fucking hole."

It's Not That Serious (by Jennifer Lopez) - "It should concern you, that I'm always one step ahead of you. So that should let you know that what you do I have done before, it's nothing new. So run those games on someone who can be fooled."

Come Home (by Placebo) - "Come home, come home, come home, come home, come home, come home, come home, come home."

[seerofmike]

mike 2023 year in review

whats up, this is something i started last year where i decided at the end of the year i would talk about 7 movies + 7 viddy games i enjoyed this year (the movies will be 2023 releases, the games will be all over the place). this is so i can look back on the future on the things i enjoyed this year but since im posting it publicly most of these will be written as recommendations i guess

also i did not have a lot of money to see movies this year so most of these will be IP movies :( sawi. also also 2023 was a mega good year for gaming. or so i've heard. most of the big 2023 games this year either came out on consoles i don't own (nintendo + sony releases), are next-gen only as far as xbox goes or unable to run on my dinky little laptop (AW2, the finals, re4, etc) or are just games in genres i dont really give a shit about (bg3, starfield, sea of stars). significant 2023 games i did play this year were dave the diver and dredge but not enough to be on the list. maybe next year hehe

anyways without further ado. my top 7 movies and top 7 games this year, in alternating (movie/game/move/game/etc) AND alphabetical order:

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

yeah you knew this shit was going on here. i saw this movie 8(eight) times in theaters. the first two times were because of the audio issues with the first cut but the rest was because the movie fucked babeeeeey. you don't need me to tell you how good this was

The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood (2023)

ok listen before i recommend this game i have to be mean to make a point first. if you know anything about me you know i think tarot is stupid as fuck and i think witchy nonsense is. well. just that. nonsense. it makes me roll my eyes especially the particular brand of like. r/WitchesVersusPatriarchy stuff. man i just dont like any sort of spiritualism or religious stuff. with that being said this game fucks tremendously and i cannot recommend it enough

you get to design your own tarot deck and each card will be unique and have meanings based on the templates you're given. you can then use these cards to tell your friends' fortunes. except it goes way deeper than that but i dont want to spoil the twist for you. also it kind of becomes a different game midway through but i like management games so its fine. anyways good game and very repayable with all the card designs you can make and fortunes you can read. art style is also very nice.

(more under da cut)

Barbie

man i know a lot of people dont like this movie after the hype wore off because its Baby's First Feminism. and that's fine. i don't really think it was trying to achieve some uber deep commentary. but the set design and costuming was great and you could tell the actors and crew were having so much fucking fun and as someone who wants to go into movies i will always like movies where the people making them are having fun.

The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog (2023)

i like the visual novel where everyone dresses in a funny costume and sonic fucking dies ok. it was so cute and had very good characterization for people i didnt think would ever be in the focus of a game again like espio ........go play the murder of sonic thee hedge

Bottoms

this one is probably my 2nd favorite movie of the year tbh. i need more absurdist gay comedies. i wish i could go on about how hilarious this movie is but i dont wanna give away all jokes but anyways go watch the lesbian incel movie and have a good time

Potionomics (2022)

if i had a nickel for every gay witch game i played this year with significant card and management mechanics and appealing art i'd have two nickels. which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

anyways potionomics is absolutely my favorite game that i've played this year. it's not all that similar to cosmic wheel sisterhood despite the basic concept and some gameplay elements. CWS is more like a visual novel. potionomics is a fucking nightmare and i love it SO much.

you brew potions and then sell them by haggling with customers using cards. customers can haggle back and it can get VERY difficult. everything you do takes up limited time slots such as gathering ingredients and brewing potions and visiting your friends and btw you can visit your friends and all of the characters are incredibly charming and i had trouble picking which one to romance. (roxanne my beloved <3) (also the white haired character in the screenshot above is a nonbinary goblin :) ) (this game has CAT PIRATES)

the game also rewards you with befriending the characters and gives you cards the deeper your relationships become and new gameplay mechanics open themselves up to you until the last couple stretches of the game. it's very fun, very stressful, but very rewarding once you figure out how to maximize your profits and use up your time slots effectively. i had a fucking blast.

also the animation is so good. literally the best animation on this sort of stylized 3d model in a game i've ever seen. PLEASE play potionomics.

Guardians of the Galaxy 3

god man. i just love the guardians so much. tbh this is my least favorite movie of the trilogy but all three of them are easily better than nearly every other marvel movie regardless. i love nebula and rocket so much and seeing small moments between them like her choking up when she hears he's okay fucking Gets To Me. i loved me asshole mercenaries who become a found family and try to be good people.

Prey (2017)

prey is not my favorite game this year nor my favorite survival sim but the first five or so hours of this game were the most engrossed i was in a game this year. towards the middle and ending portions it starts to lose me a little bit (the game is still good!) but the beginning was absolutely the best part.

being trapped in space with aliens that can mimic items in your surroundings leaves you extremely paranoid, and combing through the station finding recordings and notes and evidence of the lives of the people who were once there, knowing that most of them are probably dead--while monsters lurk around the corner ready to fuck your shit up--was deeply engrossing. i wish i could erase my brain and experience those first hours again being terrified of everything that moved before i got a shotgun and figured out how to win fights pretty regularly lol

Killers of the Flower Moon

if you're gonna watch a 3 hour movie this year about atrocities committed in the past i'd recommend this one over The Other One tbh. i found it deeply engaging and thought lily gladstone gave a great performance that easily outshone leo. the events of the movie are deeply harrowing and i think there is definitely some discussion to be had about how the movie centers on the white men despite scorses's intentions but the technical work was great and i think it really does a good job of showing just how deep this shit went in the community as opposed to being 'just a couple of bad whites' or w/e other narrative people will try to spin.

Psycholonials (2021)

im gonna go ahead and say right now i don't really recommend this game unless you are familiar with andrew hussie and HS/their other work. i think the game was fine but tbh it probably would not have been on my list if it was made by anyone else. that's not to say it's bad, just like. nothing mind blowing.

that being said i did very much enjoy this game in the sense that, as someone who DOES know a thing or two about andrew hussie, the way they feel about their work (especially HS in the years afterward), it was interesting seeing them make a game about starting a cult by accident, with all the gender fuckery and feelings of paranoia about being cancelled and how out of control its become feeling like a little glimpse into them. watching how manic and obsessive the protag gets with several years of Hussie Context(tm) makes this way more interesting than the game itself if im being fully honest.

if the game truly sucked it wouldn't be on here but do take my word for it that you'd probably appreciate it way more if you were a HS fan LMAO

Skinamarink (2022)

ok so technically skinamarink came out in 2022 BUT it got a theatrical release in january 2023 which is when *i* saw it so i'm counting it as a 2023 movie. anyways skinamarink is simultaneously very scary and also boring as shit and i could never actually recommend this movie to anyone but the fact that it was made at all and made a PROFIT is outstanding to me and i'm obsessed with it as an aspiring filmmaker. an hour and fourty minutes of staring at a dark corner to build atmosphere. fuck yeah

Venba (2023)

this one's very short but i found it very compelling despite how short it was. it almost felt TOO short but i like it for what it is. as the son (and grandson) of mexican immigrants who often regretted migrating for cultural and language reasons this really connected with me and the cooking puzzles were fun but i really wisht here was more of them. it's less about the puzzles though and more about the narrative and i thought it was really smart to make the throughline food. very good game. buy it.

TMNT: Mutant Mayhem

look at my fucking sons. everyone say thank you spider verse for changing the animation industry. i love how the boys' VAs were just goofing off and having fun and bouncing off each other it was great

This War of Mine (2014)

this one is a survival management game where you have to scavenge for materials somewhere in war-torn eastern europe with some stealth mechanics. some of your characters die very easy and some characters have 'negative' traits like being unable to sneak out or fight or drink up all your alcohol and it's not like the best in its genre but i did spend a ton of time in it. i still need to finish like a single scenario and not a custom game LMAO

[letsgomaybe]

Doctor Who The Giggle

60th anniversary in the bag!

I enjoyed that the whole thesis of this is the Doctor finally reckoning with all the pain he has. Because it's true, he usually runs away or if he does take a break, it seems like he takes the first excuse he can find to distract himself.

The episode did enjoy bringing up loads of past stories, which did get a little tiresome toward the end. But the summary of the Moffat-era companions for Donna was quite good. "Well that's all right then!" Lots of companions had not-quite-deaths.

It was interesting that the two games that were played were extremely simple. I like it. The Doctor knew that he couldn't win by being "the smartest man in the room." So while imo the catch game was a little weird and anticlimactic, it made sense.

I'm surprised that the revised bi-generation leak didn't end up being accurate. The one where 15 was pulled from the moment of 14's actual regeneration in the future. Maybe the leaker got that from 15's line that he's mentally healthier because 14 ends up doing the work, and that therapy goes out of order.

For some reason I'm more okay with bi-generation having actually seen it. I think it's because they made it look like mitosis lol. And THIS is why 14 wasn't wearing 13's clothes; they were weird special clothes that would split along with the bi-generation! Maybe! Also this means that 14 was going commando for the entire last act.

I'm still super cynical about how they probably did this so they could get another show with Tennant. Hopefully that never happens. But I still wonder what will happen when 14 dies? It'll probably be that 15 took all the regenerations lol.

Someone on reddit pointed out that they used the "Last Christmas" score in Wild Blue Yonder when the Doctor and Donna were talking about if he was all right. And they used it again here!! Ugh, I love that score. I haven't watched Last Christmas since it first aired but I've listened to that track many times (I should watch it again this Christmas!). If I remember, the story was about slowing down and appreciating the relationships you have, which is what The Giggle is about too! "Every Christmas is last Christmas" :,)

I said somewhere that I would do unspeakable things if they used the Heaven Sent score again. Which they didn't (yet), thank goodness. I thought I heard a few notes of it as they were arriving at UNIT, but it was so few that it was probably just a passing similarity.

I felt so vindicated when 15 pointed out that the TARDIS needs a chair!! Yes, it always needs chairs! But I don't see one in your TARDIS yet, 15, only a jukebox!!

If I had a nickel for every time a mysterious hand picked up a small item that contained the Master, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice. And where is that hand even coming from, it's right on the edge of the helipad!

David did a great job at portraying the Doctor as someone who had the extra ~1000 years (or billions, depending on who you ask) after 10. I think the face came back because 10 was the one who lived for the shortest amount of time, and 10 was the most scared of change and "letting go." If the Doctor's going to heal, it's this personality that needs to do it. Or else it won't stick.

I'm so excited for Ncuti Gatwa. The Giggle was the ending to the 2005 show, which is so weird to think about. I didn't expect it to do that--I thought that the "season 1" renumbering would be pretty arbitrary. But I like that it ended. I never expected feel a sense of closure from Doctor Who, but it's there.

On to Christmas!

[mortuarywriting]

📚 🧚‍♀️ Just one or both if you'd like 👉👈

I can do both!! These were super neat to think on!! the second one is absolutely why this gets a read more. I went off the shits. So sorry about that.

📚 how do you come up with the fics you write

Hmmm sometimes it's seeing the right prompt, sometimes its seeing ideas being tossed around and thinking on it, sometimes its taking the canon and seeing how a seemingly small but significant shift would impact it and how that would domino effect! I love playing with worldbuilding sandboxes so much that sometimes the fics themselves fall to the wayside ">>

🧚‍♀️ favorite characters of all time

OUGH this is such a hard one!! How do you choose a favorite child!! I'll scoop from the top and be read for filth for it I think but. Worth it i think. Anyway you get them alphabetically

Auron - Final Fantasy X

This is it. This is your story. It all begins here.

I. boy I am really not immune to Dark Knights in the FF franchise the more I think about it but! Auron has always been such a good character and I associate him so much with a song I LOVE... Auron is just one of my favorite companions, I love the insight he brings and how he was a Guardian for Yuna's Father as well as her. He's also one of Two Nickels I realize I'd have for Dark Knights in Final Fantasy Game who [REDACTED].

Death - Darksiders 2

All who live know my name, all who oppose me shall know Death.

Caaan't find a decent pic of him and I don't really wanna go and redownload the whole game for screenshot purposes yet. Aywho-

Darksiders 2 is all about Death, the oldest of the Nephilim/Horsemen of the Apocalypse proving the innocence of his brother War (seen lower in the list) for the crime of allegedly starting the Apocalypse early. Between this game and the Abomination Vault book preceding any of the games I really appreciate these two, Death being a ridiculously smart but also an apathetic asshole who only cares for a small handful, plays things close to his chest... He's a neat character and I appreciate just how far ahead he seems to plan and the lengths he'll go to make sure it all goes as he wants it to. Metal as hell.

Because War has his I also have to show Death's horse so this is Despair

And this is his Reaper Form

Fray Myste - Final Fantasy XIV

Bastard of the Brume, Fray was taken in by Ser Ompagne and became trained in becoming a Dark Knight with Sidurgu. By the time we meet them Ompagne is long dead, and Fray has just been defeated in a duel.

We find Fray, pick up the Dark Knight Soul crystal from where it had fallen beside him, and he becomes your mentor upon your waking up. You touched something that would hurt yourself and others along the way and BOY HOWDY does he have excellent threats of violence. Will follow you around on your job quests and heal you while you're being a dumb tank. He writes your quest journal entries and is such a sassy bloodthirsty shit

Fray is the other of the Two Nickels I realize I'd have for Dark Knights in Final Fantasy Game who [REDACTED].

Jarlaxle Baenre - Forgotten Realms

I am Jarlaxle. I have been everywhere.

Lets start with Jarlaxle was born the third son of the Highest House in Menzoberranzan- a city where the houses are constantly trying to kill the house ahead of them for status and do so to not get caught, their goddess Lolth favoring those who get away with no evidence to damn themselves. To that end there's a firm rule enforced by Lolth- every third son is to be sacrificed to her- two male children are expendable and acceptable but any further are sacrificed after birth.

Jarlaxle's mother, ruler of the highest house and having kept that seat for Ages, went to acquiesce with that upon Jarlaxle's birth.

Lolth told her no. Jarlaxle was to live, he was too interesting.

He has since made this an everyone else problem. Man has connections in the underdark and surface, everything he wears is in some form enchanted, he's proficient with just about everything, and he is so fascinated with various things and just wants to see what happens next and how it can help him get ahead. I love him. I wanna study him under a microscope. Every character that's been in a campaign he's turned up in has vibe checked him and decided they want out of the room right now immediately. Most notably my dude who was sometimes part moose said "I'd like to leave, actually"

Urick - Drakengard 2

A masked man who lives a life haunted by the curse of death. Three years ago, after a tragic incident, he made a pact with the Reaper, although the price he paid for this pact is unknown. At first glance he appears to be a carefree, lively character who could never bear a grudge. However, on rare occasions, his jovial facade can't quite conceal the truth...

To preface the significance of this-

A Pact, also known as a Contract (契約 Keiyaku?) in the Japanese version, is a contract system in the world of Drakengard between a human (or other humanoid race) and a beast. By merging their souls together, the human gains supernatural powers, and both participants gain a second chance in life should either or both be close to death. The human must pay some price for the pact, and if one should be fatally injured, it means death for both unless the pact is broken. Beings who have formed a pact with each other are referred to as "pact-partners".

Urik's pact is his mortality. Straight up he does not have a heart in his chest anymore. He's just a generally chill guy and while I haven't gone through Drakengard 2 in years (thanks playstation for 0 drakengard or drakengard 2 rep) I remember him fondly. I forgot how much I loved him and that his wiki trivia describes him as "Urick is good at playing dead." The game quote they chose for him is "Just because you can't make any friends, doesn't mean you should take it out on the rest of us" which is what he says as he's about to save your character's life.

plus lookit this smile

War - Darksiders

You can look me in the eye when I kill you.

Darksiders is a game about oops, the apocalypse started on earth! Heaven and Hell start duking it out in the streets and humanity suffers for it. Humans die out, earth is in ruins, and all of it is conveniently laid at the feet of War - youngest of the Four Horsemen who has gotten in trouble for fighting with humanity before (please see left arm being fuckoff huge gauntlet. That's a prosthetic. Death cut his arm off for that bullshit in the comics).

Now, War is a man of his word and high code of honor- he said he'd leave humans be and he did. He's been framed and the Council- those in charge of keeping the balance and the bosses of the Horsemen- gives him a shot to prove his innocence and find the actual culprits with a Watcher keeping tabs and reporting back.

This is his horse, Ruin

This is his Chaos Form

War is voiced by Liam O'Brian and the Watcher is voiced by Mark Hamill. so that's fun. Samael in game could also get it but that does not a fav make.

Also fun lore fact: all the horsemen's horses are the same species. The horse just reflects the rider once they've bonded. Fun magic shit.