#9 is my lowest in the Lucifer fandom

[amtrak12]

"Write for yourself! 💜" -- Actually no! I've been my self's best friend since I was born! I've spent 25 years annoying every family member and friend with my incessant rambling about my current favorite TV show! The second I developed formal thinking skills/hit puberty, it was over for those fuckers! My poor family hasn't known peace since the literal Y2K! And it took me all 25 of those years to finally, finally write fic I was proud of, so NO ACTUALLY! I am not writing for myself anymore! I am blasting that across the internet and I EXPECT MORE THAN CRICKETS IN REPAYMENT, THANK YOU!

[alastanor]

In less than a week my feed has been plagued by the "hot takes" of entitled fans of the Hazbin and Helluva universe.

As a result, I know I promised some analytical information regarding what we know of Hazbin's version of hell thus far, which will be included in this post. But there will be some other things added as well to address some of the more frequently expressed "concerns" I have seen being (rather rudely) expressed in posts.

Some of the things I will be talking about in these posts, so while I will be utilizing quotes or things said in @total-mal 's very well articulated response post, I recommend going to read that response post in it's entirety. Like... now.

The complaints I tend to see typically fall along these lines.

So in this post I will be addressing these things and other things I typically see.

Story

As was very well put in the aforementioned post, the series of Hazbin barely has an hour of content. Yet for some reason people complain that it's a mess. How?

The Pilot itself is meant to establish the setting, who the characters are, what their relationships to each other are, establishing dynamic, and establish the premise of future story that is meant to follow. All of these things the pilot did exceedingly well. A pilot is NOT meant to drop dozens of hours worth of world lore and future plot points in one half hour segment. It is supposed to hook people into being interested in and watching the follow up episodes. Which, considering the rather quick cult following that preceded the pilot debut, I would say it did that and more even without the world lore dump people are demanding.

No story is going to give you every facet of the characters and the world they inhabit in the first episode or the first novel. No story worth it's weight in salt, that is. Any good story teller will tell you that content needs to be put on an IV drip as the story progresses, or else you will lose the majority of your audience's interest.

Helluva Boss is it's own standalone project set in the same universe as Hazbin, but it's job is not to provide lore for Hazbin. The kernel of lore we got from episode two was great. But that is very likely not going to be the norm every episode. Nor should anyone expect otherwise.

The comics were also their own projects, meant to strengthen an already existing narrative with Hazbin and establish both Angel and Alastor's motives for joining the Hotel. They are not meant to expand on the lore. Their existence could also very likely be overlooked by fans who only pay attention to what is popping up on Youtube or on their Twitter feed.

As for Addict, that began as a fan-created song Vivzie liked enough to animate into a music video which expanded on Angel and Cherri's relationship. It was not meant to be an entry to any Vivziepop Hell lore.

Hazbin is a story driven by its characters. This is why the characters are the focus and take up the majority of any screen time given to any entry of Hazbin. Mal puts it very well:

World

So this is where we will be getting into what we know so far about the world of Vivzie's hell.

So Vivzie's hell is, from what we understand, loosely based on Dante's inferno with other inspirations and deviations mixed in. For example, there are only seven circles of hell as opposed to 9.

In Dante's inferno only circle two through five are after the Seven Deadly Sins. Whereas in Vivziepop's version of hell, every circle is for one of the Seven Deadly Sins.

From what we understand so far, Pride is the top circle, or Ring. Sinners, AKA those who were alive prior to becoming demons, are only allowed to exist in Pride.

We do not know what "can only exist" means. As this doesn't imply that sinners can't leave Pride. Simply that they cannot exist anywhere else.

And also from what we understand, the big marker that differentiates each of the circles is the colors of the sky.

Pride, from what we have seen thus far, has a red sky.

While Greed has a green sky.

This is further confirmed on Twitter, however whether it was confirmed by Vivzie or one of the other official Twitters, I cannot recall.

Now, I know there are quite a few who keep asking this question.

And there are many who seem to think that this little detail means that the fact dump from official Twitters means the story and lore are ruined. This is actually false. Especially when you consider that Sinners are not a finite population. Nor is their influx a small trickle. So expanding Sinners into other parts of hell is only a temporary solution to a more overarching problem. It may slow down the necessity for purges, but it would also increase the number needed to be purged each time a purge was necessary. Further, it is doubtful that Lucifer would be keen on the idea of angels traveling deeper into Hell just as it is doubtful that he sees a reason to be exceedingly merciful to sinners- the creation he detests and is more or less what brought him to Hell to begin with. It also would erase any place to escape for Hell-born demons.

So in this regard, no. Nothing is ruined. People just aren't paying attention. The devil is in the details, after all.

As for what the difference is between circles and rings, perhaps this will shed some light.

Rings seem to be segments of a circle that separate sinners by the subcategory of their sin in each circle. Whether or not Vivziepop's version of hell follows this, I personally doubt it. Ring and Circle, from observation, seem to be used interchangeably. So the two could very well be the same thing.

The other bits we know are lore facts Vivzie has given previously that may no longer be true as the world exists now. For example, previously Alastor was scared of dogs. But more recently, Vivzie said that is no longer true and Alastor simply just does not like them. So any older facts should be taken with a grain of salt until they are reconfirmed.

Switching gears on the world, there have been complaints popping up that Vivziepop's hell is not "hell-y" enough because there is not enough fire and brimstone.

To take a phrase from total-mal once more, there are countless alternate depictions of hell as hell being other people instead of the place itself. The phrase exists from Sartre's No Exit, but has been revisited numerous times in other media depictions of hell to display that the definition of "punishment" can be broadened to a much larger spectrum than originally imagined.

In the Hazbin universe of Hell, punishment is the constant threat of physical and emotional harm from those around you, not unlike being in prison or living in a ghetto. You have the increased potential to be abused or taken advantage of if you show a moment's weakness.

And while some in the demon hierarchy might have it better than others, there is still the constant threat of being killed or overthrown by someone stronger or someone just wanting to prove themselves.

In the Hazbin universe of hell, you wear clues to your life, your sins, and your death on the outside for all to see (and in some cases, manipulate). You are thrust into a demon hierarchy one wrung up from the lowest class, unless you are lucky and strong enough to become an overlord. In which case, then you are two wrungs up from the lowest class. And your punishment is living every day with the constant threat of those around you. Of always needing to have your guard up because someone will take advantage of you or worse. That isn't even mentioning the annual threat of the purge.

Livestreams

This is another one that I see get mentioned and awful fucking lot in the complaint/concern/hot take posts.

There are always complaints about how the livestreams are useless, serve no purpose, or are just "jerkoff sessions." Mind, these same complaints almost always seem to come from the same people complaining about having no information about the show or having no lore surrounding the universe or the story.

Nevermind that Vivzie and the cast are all under NDA and cannot disclose much that isn't already known about the show and, where VAs are concerned, cannot do any voice lines that go beyond what has already been said in the pilot lines.

The Livestreams serve SEVERAL purposes, however. One of those purposes is to drum up interest surrounding Hazbin and Helluva, as well as to advertise and to disclose any lore that they have permission to disclose to the audience. Something to whet their appetites as they wait for the small Indie studio A24 to finish production of Hazbin's first season in the middle of a pandemic. Because that last bit people seem to forget is still ongoing.

Without those livestreams done by Viv and the cast, many of the impatient fans in this fandom would be practically breaking down the door on Vivzie's DMs demanding to know where Hazbin is or why she seems to have given up on it. Or at least, more than what is currently going on now anyway.

People need to calm down, let the Devs do their job, and pay more attention to the details given in what we have thus far. Vivzie has done a GREAT job at eluding to the bigger picture in her details. Particularly where her characters are concerned. And I for one am here for it.

[fallensimeon]

I decided to do the Obey Me! Shall We Date? sort of questionnaire that @obeyme-confessions posted! Feel free to fill in the blanks yourselves as well! ✨

1. Favorite brother?

My favorite brother, by a long shot, has to be my baby Mammon. I wouldn't change that for the world. He reminds me of my boyfriend in the best ways possible, and his very cute looks are always a plus!

2. Least favorite brother?

My least favorite brother, no offense to their stans, has to be Beelzebub. I know he's a cute little cinnamon roll and really sweet, he's just my least preferred compared to the rest of them! Don't worry, he's still adorable!

3. Favorite minor character?

My favorite "minor" character is Simeon. He's just so pleasant to be around and is absolutely gorgeous.

4. Least favorite minor character?

I'd have to say Luke out of all of them. If we had more one on one interaction with him that might change, but I really just don't know enough about him to put him any higher than the others.

5. Which brother would you be if you embodied a deadly sin?

I would most likely be a mix of Levi and Belphie, but moreso Belphie considering I spend a lot of time oversleeping.

6. Favorite demon form?

Mammon may be my favorite brother, but my favorite demon form probably has to go to Diavolo for just how extravagant it is!

7. Favorite event thus far?

I have only been around for so many events, so if I had to pick a favorite so far, it would have to be the current circus one. It gives me The Greatest Showman vibes and picuring my character in Mammon's arms doing the aerial stunts sends my heart fluttering! I also like how it mocks the beginning of the game and stuff.

8. Favorite casual outfit?

Hmmmm... for my favorite casual outfit, Levi's outfit takes the cake! It's something I would wear myself, and I love his headphones!

9. Who is your main team?

My top two are most always Asmo and Lucifer, and the third spot always switches between Mammon and Beel. I'm trying to get the new Diavolo up just as high because his UR+ animation is a blessing!

10. Level?

My level at the moment is 74!

11. Favorite BGM?

Bonds! I love the noise due to it usually meaning a romantic or wholesome encounter is about to occur! I almost have it unlocked, just need some more pink skulls!

12. Homescreen demon?

My homescreen is usually filled by Mammon, but I have my other baby Simeon on there for now!

13. Favorite wallpaper?

I don't have it quite yet, but when I do get it, it will be Mammon's room or the Celestial Realm!

14. Strongest card?

Asmo's UR+ "Snowy Bliss" card, no devil flower unlock, level 101.

15. A UR/UR+ you have always wanted?

The one UR+ I'm dying to get my hands on is Levi's UR+ "Trick Quest" card with the witch animation. It's just so cute, I'm sad I wasn't in the fandom yet at the time!

16. A SSR you have always wanted?

I've always wanted is Mammon's SSR "Mammon the Butler" since I love that outfit so much!

17. How many cards do you have?

I have 224 demon cards and 84 memory cards currently!

18. Highest intimacy level?

My highest intimacy level is with Mammon at just under level 15, with Kucifer right on his tail.

19. Lowest intimacy level?

My lowest intimacy level is with Solomon, who I just got to level 8.

20. Favorite devilgram?

I really love Simeon's "Time to Paint" SSR story! Considering I like art, having Simeon as a model would be a DREAM!

Bonus: Favorite overall in-game outfit?

For me, it has to be a tie between Lucifer's human world outfit and Mammon's Arabian outfit!

What are your responses? Have fun with the prompt! I would love to see other users' game viewpoints and preferences compared to my own! 😈

[veliseraptor]

fic rec meme: 2019 edition

Rules: Post links (Ao3, ff.net, etc.); specify fandom/pairing/etc; don’t answer the same fic twice - spread the appreciation; tag other people; you don’t have to answer all the questions, but leave them in the list so the next person can answer if they want.

I was tagged by I think a couple people - @aphrodaisyacs and @aninfinitenumberofmonkeys. I’m going to try to keep this pretty short because I have a tendency to go on and then not finish these kinds of things because I overwhelm myself. 

I also cheated a bit on a few (a lot) of these because I read a lot of really good fic this year. And tried to include some recs I haven’t seen from others in my circle/fics I don’t see recced that often (though that’s not true of all of them).

I also shuffled things around so I didn’t repeat them, though a lot of these could be included in more than one category.

1. Favourite complete fic you’ve read this month (multiple chapters/parts): I did not read a single complete multichapter fic this month. Meant to, but didn’t do it.

2. Favourite complete fic you’ve read this month (one-shot): The mirror has a mirror in its teeth by deadendtracks. Peaky Blinders, Tommy/Lizzie, messy as hell in the way that I love.

3. Favourite WIP you’ve read this month: But I’ve read so many good WIPs this month. I’ll go with Contraction by NamelessDragon, MCU, Loki/Bucky, sequel to Compression (also amazing), which I’m finally catching up on after being stuck on reading almost everything for months.

4. One fic/series you’ve read which you keep coming back to again and again: (those yesterdays bleeding through by wnnbdarklord (MCU, time loop set during The Dark World) comes to mind, as, of course, does Bargaining by proantagonist (alas! for its vanishing), but to pick one that kept coming up this year I’m going to have to go with the nine in the tree by bereft_of_frogs, MCU, Thor & Loki-centric, post-Ragnarok AU.

5. Most underrated fic you’ve read this year: It feels like cheating to do this for a small book fandom, but you know what? My small book fandoms deserve more love. Based on lowest kudos I’m going to go with that he on dry land loveliest liveth by skyvehicle, Lymond Chronicles, post-Pawn in Frankincense. 

6. Most underrated fic you’ve read EVER: God, I don’t know. Again, it would be a small book fandom. You know? Because it deserves it and I love it and it probably is the most underrated fic, if only because it’s in a tiny fandom - In Memoriam by Tedronai, Malazan: Book of the Fallen, I love grief/mourning fic.

7. Favourite whump/angst fic of the year: This was tough since this is the genre I read most of in general, but because I managed to get a lot of fics on here via other categories, I’m choosing Into the earth I trampled it down by deadendtracks, Peaky Blinders, grief/mourning featuring Polly and Tommy. This fic was ouch all around, and beautifully written, and excellently characterized, and just...well, I’m clearly going to be reading everything that deadendtracks writes from here on out.

But I’m also going to slide In Cold Blood by NamelessDragon (MCU, Loki & Bucky, canon divergence AU) on here too, because it just updated and it really is fantastic, and I am so excited for more. It has all my favorite tropes written all over it, and promises some truly excellent whump based on the writer’s history.

8. Favourite hurt/comfort fic of the year: Again, a category with a lot of faves, but I settled on Walked In These Quiet Hazes by ratsats, MCU, AU where Loki comes back from the dead and is majorly fucked up, as is most everyone else. It’s rough, and it’s beautiful. And calling it “hurt/comfort” is probably...well, it takes a while to get to the comfort, I can say that, but it’s worth it. 

9. Favourite fluff fic of the year: Did I. Did I read any fluff this year? I suppose some of the Good Omens fic I read probably qualifies, though it doesn’t feel like fluff to me so much as...comedy? Wait, I’ve got one: Love Wounds Me With Soft Pillows by verbaepuchellae, Lymond Chronicles, Francis/Philippa, post-Checkmate.

Oh yes, after I wrote this I found another one: such surpassing brightness by Handful_of_Silence, Good Omens, Crowley/Aziraphale. Beautifully inventive, and fits into a very specific genre I can’t get enough of.

11. Favourite smut fic of the year: Shockingly, I didn’t read a lot of smut this year. I’m going to go with The Beast That Chose It’s Own Bridle by thespectaclesofthor, Doctrine of Labyrinths, Felix/Murtagh, post-series, (less than) kink negotiation, WIP. 

Oh, and also Chains of Gold by Anonymous, Lymond Chronicles, Lymond/Gabriel, hoo boy. My glorious Lymond/Gabriel fic I received for Yuletide. I can’t wait to find out who wrote it so I can lie down on their doorstep and beg for them to write more like this.

10. Favourite gen fic of the year: The Thanos Problem by Ranowa, MCU, post-Ragnarok AU. Okay, this is technically a series, so sue me. I especially liked When the Hammer Falls.

12. Favourite fix-it fic of the year/ever: This might be the hardest one. I read a lot of fix-it fic this year. I wonder why. I’m going with “the year” because otherwise it is just far too overwhelming and I couldn’t choose.

After a lot of debate with myself, and by eliminating other fic by virtue of sliding it into other categories, I settled on two: the only soul I’ve ever saved by valkyrisms, MCU, Loki survives Infinity War fix-it. I overall got pretty quickly annoyed with the genre of Loki-and-Peter Parker fics, but this one was just...so good. The Peter voice was amazing, the working with Loki’s Jotun biology as part of the whump was inspired, it was well written as all of valkyrisms work is, and just...so good. 

The other (I told you I was cheating!) is Keep It In Your Sights Now by LuckyDiceKirby, Shades of Magic, Lila/Kell/Holland, fix-it fic. I needed this fic in two ways - the threesome it involves, and the fix-it it involves. Delivered on both.

13. Favourite crack-fic fic of the year: I really don’t read crack-fic anymore.

14. Favourite sick-fic this year: Castaway by ariaadagio, Lucifer, Chloe/Lucifer, is me cheating again because “sick-fic” it is only loosely, but I want to include it because it was very good. Though I think technically I reread it this year. Apparently I didn’t read much sick-fic? Weird.

15. Favourite kid-fic this year: Another thing I don’t read very often, and apparently this year (at least based on my bookmarks) don’t have a rec for. 

15. Fic this year which you didn’t expect to love as much as you do:  Demonology and the Tri-Phasic Model of Trauma: An Integrative Approach by Nnm, Good Omens, therapy fic. Okay, so, in premise and everything this did have “me” written all over it. But I certainly didn’t expect to find it, and I definitely didn’t expect it to be as good as it was, right down to making me love an OC (which is rare).

16. Fic which convinced you to ship a pairing: This is cheating because technically it was another fic on this list, but since I wouldn’t ship it without it I’m going to rec As much what it is as what it’s not by deadendtracks, Peaky Blinders, Tommy/Lizzie.

17. Favourite AU you’ve read this year: I slid some of my fix-it fics over here, because canon divergence AUs are my jam and maybe that wasn’t the intent of this question but I don’t care. 

After some debate with myself, and rereading several favorites, I’m settling on my fearful trip is done by valkyrisms, MCU, the one where Steve runs into an unexpected child of Thanos in Wakanda. It’s real good, you guys. And yes, this does mean that I’ve put two valkyrisms fics on this list and I’m not sorry.

18. Longest fic/series you’ve read this year: This one’s easy! Eden!verse by ImprobableDreams900, Good Omens, Crowley/Aziraphale, the first fic in the series made me cry more than anything I’ve read in years.

19. The last fic you’ve read: The last new fic I read, since I reread a bunch of new things on this list while I was sorting through what I was going to choose, was to prove they are not dead by alreadybroken.

20. Wildcard fic you haven’t mentioned but deserves a shout-out + why: I waffled back and forth between two fics and what the hell, you know what, I’m going with both. The first is Miles to Go by josiepug, Peaky Blinders, which satisfied my desperate Tommy whump itch (for a time, it’s back now); the second is Where Is the Power That Made Your Pride? by Drag0nst0rm, The Silmarillion, aka the one where Celegorm lives and things are still bad. Not an AU I knew I wanted, but I guess I’m not surprised. 

Bonus Category: 

Best horror fic: dark underground//violent sky by bereft_of_frogs, MCU, I can’t tell you more than that because it would spoil it. I love horror fic and I have missed it since leaving Supernatural fandom. This one scratched that itch and I’m still thinking about it. Maybe it’s time for a reread.

As usual, I’m sure I’ve missed/forgotten some faves. I always do. 

I...lord, I feel like most of the people I’d usually tag have already been tagged for this? If you’re a mutual of mine and you haven’t been, go for it! I’m always excited to see more recs.

[titconao3]

Writing Meme

I was tagged by @turnerrs

1. How many WIPs do you have? None.  Well, to be more precise, i never publish WIPs, because i don’t read WIPs (been burned too many times ;-). However, i’ll admit to feeling a bit jealous when i see that publishing by instalments often means more comments by invested readers... if you’ve got any. (have i, she whispers into the void) But when writing i constantly tweak bits allt hrough the fic so that it’s more consistent, or for some foreshadowing, or because one particular word or thing will become important later, or whatnot; so i think it’d make me even more anxious. And to finish with, i am not currently writing anything. A couple ideas are banging around at the back of my brain, but nothing’s coalescing into more than a couple “huh. nah.”

2. Do you/would you write fanfiction? *coughcough*

3. Do you prefer paper book or ebooks? Contrary to all the answers i’ve read before, i really don’t care. Ebooks are perhaps more convenient for size / weight / ease of manipulation (to my tastes at least) and i can wipe them and no one else touches mine (yes, i hate library books because other people touched them and were their hands clean, did they eat something greasy just before, did they sneeze on it? i know, i’m ridiculous), but paper books make it easier to go back to look up a sentence, i guess? Honestly, i don’t really care either way, and i don’t fetishize one over the other. i grew up among paper books for family-related reasons, and i’m comfortable with both. i’ve also read entire books on a computer screen, no probs. Just gimme the words.

4. When did you start writing? i started writing fic in the very early 2000s, i think? & mostly didn’t write anything for years until Lucifer. Might stop again, might not. Who knows? Didn’t really write before that. Read a lot (except for the few years i was studying lit, which seriously made me hate reading for a few years because it’s a TREE on a HILL stop telling me it’s a PENIS on a BOOB, also no that character is stupid and i don’t like them stop telling it’s meaningful, and bloody hell it’s not always a dead white dude writing about writing, sometimes i just sucks!!!), and never thought i could produce anything that could be worthy of seeing the light of day. Reading a lot (A. Lot.) of fic meant i saw the best and the worst though, and i guess it felt less... daunting, perhaps, to try after a while. Full disclosure, i also wrote my first fics to promote a website i’d handcoded - no AO3 at the time, maybe a few webrings, and the fandom- or pairing-related archives were just starting, i think; most people posted their fics on their own website and some dedicated people had rec lists regularly updated.

5. Do you have someone you trust who you share your work with? Not offline, no. It’s fic. There are now, after so many years in fandom, a couple RL (”brickspace”, as @copperbadge puts it - a lovely word) friends who knows i’m in fandom but they don’t really get it, are not into it, and they just accept it’s a thing i do. i like came out once about it and try never to mention it.

6. What is your favourite place to write? Anywhere i can have a computer and an internet connection and peace.

7. Favourite book as a child? No idea. I read a lot, and anything i could find.

8. Writing for fun or publication? i only write fic, so nothing ill ever be published for realz.

9. Have you ever taken a writing class? No. It sounds terrifying. i'd be afraid to clash, have opinions, keep them to myself and seethe or speak up and be That Bitch; and / or to be told i suck and i do that very well on my own, tyvm). And then i’d go home and feel like the lowest shit ever. i probably need help with punctuation but there’s a logic to my madness there - it’s just really mad, i know. 

10. What inspired you to write? i think i got into the Lucifer fic pit because it was back then a tiny fandom (still not that big, but still) and not overwhelming and i’d read everything, but still wanted to explore my favourite themes (that i didn’t really see tackled then, and not often enough to my peculiar tastes now) such as how do you deal with death when one is immortal, finding your place in the world, coming to terms with who you are and who you thought you were and who you’d like to be and who you were told to be, and whatnot; with added myth stuff and some jokes and bad puns.

Tagging whoever feels like being tagged.