#AND how the doctor is partially responsible for it... iconic

[thelvadams]

DOCTOR WHO Pyramids of Mars / Empire of Death

[bestanimatedmovie]

Choose your favorite!

Vote in the other polls!

What fans say:

Kung Fu Panda:

Honestly iconic. The progression of story, the message, the acting.

The way this movie balances tone is nothing less than astonishing to me. It's funny and lighthearted but also intense and dramatic and neither ever take away from the other. Every joke and emotional beat lands excellently. Not to mention. The fight scenes SLAP. And so does the score!!

It's just GOOD. I love how all of them were insanely genuine. Po genuinely wanted to be a Kung Fu master. The Furious Five genuinely wanted to be the very best like no one ever was. And Tai Lung genuinely wanted to kick the shit out of anyone that even looked at that dragon scroll. But seriously one of the best movies.

Treasure Planet:

The setting and focal relationship!

WHALES IN SPACE. Second best treasure island adaptation (#1 is muppets). The song The Song!!

Where do I begin with this movie? It blends CG and hand drawn animation beautifully. All of the backgrounds are gorgeous. There are so many cool alien designs. The score is absolutely perfect. The amount of detail put into the design and worldbuilding shines through. All of the characters are so much fun to watch, especially Long John Silver and Captain Amelia. This movie takes at least partial responsibility for my love of space/sky pirates. Also it was actively sabotaged by Disney so I need to vouch for it at every chance.

Space pirates in a classic novel. It's gorgeously animated with a blend of 2d and 3d. Also, LONG JOHN SILVER HAS A 3D HAND thats hecking impressive for a main character to be a blend of the two in 2002. Did I mention the twink protagonist and malewife for the rich halfwit son? The aliens are beautifully unique, and a mantis guy floats off into space. from a pirate ship. because they aren't just space pirates, they're aliens and cyborgs on pirate ships going through space. Which fucking rocks.

It's a genuinely creative adaptation of Treasure Island that has so much heart and incredible animation. It helped pioneer 3D animationa nd it was the first feature animated film to utilize both 2 and 3 D animation

The animation is so good, and the way that the antogonist isn't black and white, he genuinely cares for the protagonist <3

Pirate ships in space!

Watched this on loop as a kid, gave me solace for not growing up with a dad

It fucks

The ☆A n i m a t i o n☆!! And captain Amelia

It's so fun looking, cool character design. It's funny, it's emotional. I love it so very much please aaaaaaa

How this movie looks is absolutely amazing. A space-steampunk pirate story with fantastic visuals and (mostly) great characters. The vibes this movie has are off the charts. Jim is the bad-boy-good-heart kid, the doctor is a silly-goofy-but-oddly-competent support and Silver is a complex father-figure-who's-made-mistakes. Also MORT the cute little jelly that won me over in 0.5 seconds flat. I am also a slut for a good soundtrack and this one SLAPS. I will stand by my opinion that the Russian version of the song I'm Still Here did a better job of fitting the montage and the mood. That's a hill I will die on.

[variousqueerthings]

so on doctor who confidential they talked about how rose was meant to really appeal to young girls, partially because doctor who traditionally had been considered a bit of a boys club in the past (whether or not that was true, I don't know. certainly depictions of classic!DW fandom has been mostly men, but then, that tended to be true of star trek as well and we all know that women were running the fandom show there. however I digress) --

the point of this show from the get go was to appeal more to women and girls, deliberately, because rtd likes writing for women (chris eccleston also said that rtd was better at writing the companion and that was right and good)

so there was the fact that she was 19 (and how that made her really Grown Up and Cool to teens and kids who were tuning into the first ever doctor who for 17 years, which, as the age-group who saw rose as a kid, correct), the fact that she was getting into arguments with her mum and being rebellious and trying to figure her identity out, the fact that she was 2000s era fashion-forward but still dressed within a budget and in a way that seemed realistic -- and speaking of realistic, That. she was meant to really make girls feel like they could accomplish things, and in some ways grow up with her. I think that worked so well for those of us who started with her era at a Certain age (whether or not we still ID as girls of course....) and she really was the perfect first companion. her story was based in that joy of leaving it all behind and fear of the responsibilities of adulthood and growing up and the real pain of that. in many ways a bit of a wendy darling, but more relatable and from the estate. she was growing up and it was tough

it felt like rose really was the beating heart of the show, giving it life those first couple of seasons as it was allowed to grow from a new exploration of what its identity was going to be and into what came next. and of course then she haunts the narrative for ages afterwards, which is always fun (I mean heck, we've got a "rose" character coming up in 2023! nearly 20 years after she was there)

billie piper was such an iconic and important part of what made doctor who work. the companion now had this depth of feeling about her and you knew this person, you knew why she wanted to run away, because you did too. just cannot overstate how much I adored rose

[opbackgrounds]

Firstly - get better soon Sarc!! Secondly, a question - how about a rating of doctors/medical professionals in One Piece? Worst to best, and why =D

Worst to best, eh? Going to have to consult the wiki on this, but I’ll give it my best shot

Hogback: I considered putting him higher since he seems to be a competent surgeon—successfully transferring animal parts onto Absolom, among other things—but his utter disregard for ethics puts him at the bottom. Doc Q is a terrible human being, but he doesn’t claim to be advancing medical science. Plus, his supposed greatest feat isn’t even his own. Without Moriah’s devil fruit, Hogback’s “resurrections” don’t exist. He’s a fraud and a creep, -100/10

Doc Q: We haven’t seen him do much doctoring but considering his own health and that of his horse, I have my doubts. That, and handing out exploding apples and then blaming fate when they explode is generally regarded as bad practice. He’s caused much harm and brought no health, so -10/10

Hiliruk: An inspirational figure does not a good doctor make. Please don’t force feed children frog spawn in order to treat their broken bones 0/10

Dr. Blackbeard: we didn’t see his medical practice, but he seemed nice and probably didn’t deserve to be kicked in the head by an Emperor’s commander ???/10

Masked Deuce: I read both Ace novels and didn’t remember he was a doctor, but the wiki says he was a dropout with sucky grades so we’ll say 2/10

Aladine: Also did not remember he was a doctor, but unlike almost everyone else on this list he was sensitive to mental health issues. But without seeing him more in action I can’t give him higher than a 5/10

Nako: Don’t know much about him, but he gave Nami her tattoo and stitched up Zoro’s chest so 5/10 for being partially responsible in universe for two iconic character designs

Marco: Devil. Fruit. Hax. Seen more slapping on temporary (albeit effective) bandaid solutions than truly healing underlying conditions and hasn’t shown himself to be any great specialist or researcher 7/10

Crocus: He’s a doctor and a veterinarian, so he gets bonus points. Couldn’t heal Roger, but kept him alive for his last journey, and is a good enough engineer to hook Laboons stomach up with electric lighting without killing him 8/10

Kureha: If this were based purely on knowledge and expertise she’d win hands down, but we don’t see here treat the range of injuries and illness as some others, and her predatory business practices run the risk of causing real harm to her patients. Don’t through scalpels at your patients while robbing them blind. 10/10 doctor, -100/10 bedside manner

Law: Devil Fruit hax with legitimate medical genius is a dangerous combination in a man who literally steals hearts as a hobby. 10/10 doctor, but there’s a good chance he’ll just murder you instead

Chopper: Protagonist powers, and is the only upper tier doctor who is genuinely altruistic while conducting ground breaking research in the area of manipulating his devil fruit abilities with the power of SCIENCE. He was fifteen years old when he kept Zoro from dying at the end of Thriller Bark and reverse engineered viruses in the middle of a battle as the equivalent as a high school junior. 11/10 doctor, I will be forever mad that Oda never shows more off his efforts keeping these morons alive

Whitebeard’s nurses get a bonus shout out, because as great as he was as a person Edward Newgate was a shit patient and they all had to work in those ridiculous outfits. 15/10 for the lot of of them, I hope he at least paid well

[doamarierose-honoka]

As the first Flash, Jay Garrick has inspired generations of heroes — but the Crimson Comet has one more time travel lesson to teach his successors.

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Jay Garrick: The Flash #6

SUMMARY

▪️ Jay Garrick reveals he doesn't believe speedsters should use time travel in Jay Garrick: The Flash #6.

▪️ Past time travel mistakes, like in Flashpoint, still have consequences in the present-day of the DC Universe.

▪️ Jay Garrick will always be the North Star of the Flash Family, even after spending years in the Speed Force thanks to Barry's time travel mistake.

The Flash is a legacy that has been passed down through generations of heroes, but the original Crimson Comet – Jay Garrick – still holds a special place in DC’s pantheon of heroes. A surrogate grandfather to the Flash Family and to the hero community at large, when Jay speaks, his allies listen. And now, Jay has subtly spoken out against his successor Barry Allen’s greatest mistake – Flashpoint.

Jay Garrick: The Flash #6 by Jeremy Adams and Diego Olortegui sees the titular speedster racing against the clock to foil Doctor Elemental. Pushing himself to the limit to save his daughter, Jay knows he’s slower than his successors, saying that he can’t time-travel — before claiming that no speedster was ever meant to.

Concentrating, Garrick says, “We’re made to look forward. Good or bad. To face joy and defeat head-on.” And considering how Flashpoint spawned from Barry’s messing with the timestream, it’s hard not to read this as a partial rebuke of the second Flash’s greatest blunder.

NOTE

Flashpoint by Geoff Johns, Andy Kubert, Sandra Hope, Alex Sinclair, and Nick J. Napolitano is available now digitally and in collected editions from DC Comics.

Jay Garrick Knows Time Travel Is Always a Mistake

The Flashes Are Still Recovering from Flashpoint

Barry Allen is one of DC's iconic heroes, but the scars left by Flashpoint are still prominent in the DC Universe as a whole. The Flashes in particular have spent a long while recovering from the timestream’s alterations, only fully reuniting the Flash Family in recent years after the majority of speedsters – like Jay, Impulse, and Wally West – were trapped in the Speed Force for years. Having spent years out of time, it’s no wonder that Jay would still be a little bitter, but odds are his words are meant to be more inspirational than admonishing.

“The Flash Family are an iconic piece of DC Comics lore, and more so than many other corners of the DC Universe, these heroes play fundamental roles within the cosmic tapestry of their multiverse.”

As the first Flash, Jay Garrick has always been a signpost of DC’s hero community, racing towards the future with a wink and a charm that can’t help but inspire his successors. This Flash truly believes that it’s the responsibility of heroes to move forward, guiding the way for those they inspire, and his legacy within the Flash Family lends that belief a lot of credibility. To Jay, the legacy of the Flash is about facing tomorrow with hope, not getting tangled up in the past – a fact all too forgotten by many of the younger speedsters out there.

The Flash Legacy Will Always Move Forward

Nobody Inspires Other Speedsters Quite Like Jay Garrick

The Flash Family are an iconic piece of DC Comics lore, and more so than many other corners of the DC Universe, these heroes play fundamental roles within the cosmic tapestry of their multiverse. Whether it’s a crisis in time or the multiverse, a Flash will be there to help save the day by looking forward, not backward. And with the original Flash back to his place of prominence among the Fastest Family Alive, Jay Garrick will be there to keep his successors moving forward.

Jay Garrick: The Flash #6 is available now from DC Comics.

JAY GARRICK: THE FLASH #6 (2024)

Writer: Jeremy Adams

Artist: Diego Olortegui

Colorist: Luis Guerrero

Letterer: Steve Wands

Cover Artist: Jorge Corona, Sarah Stern

[deadliest-jellybaby]

@ Admin - Are you going to try to keep the art style you put up for the icon? And are you only going to post responses to asks, or is there some sort of unfolding story? Don't reveal too much now 😉

Admin Siggy here; Woah! I did NOT expect to see people sending asks already! I'm not gonna be self-inserting so I'll respond in text OOC. Yes on the art style! I think I'm mostly settled on how I'll pull it off. You may see it evolve over time, however! As I'm prone to experimenting... And no, it won't just be ask responses. I would hope that the questions are brought up partially as a result of what's happening... But until something starts occurring, I'm sure the Doctor won't mind general questions in his freshly-installed, using some junk parts, Interdimensional Communications Module! That's a mouthful so I prefer to call it the Inbox Module. Think of this as an interactive fanfic. I wonder what the Doctor is up to?

[maswartz]

The reasons behind the Vicestamps (as per TVtropes)

Apart from Ichigou and Zero-One, the mixture between Legend Riders and some completely random animals may seem odd, but there are possible connotations as to why:

Decade/Megalodon: Megalodons are extinct sharks; Combine that with Decade's aesthetics, especially the vertical lines on the helmet and you get something resembling a knight's visor. Now which Rider debuted in Decade and had a shark knight motif? Abyss. On that note, Decade could also be considered a card shark.

Double/Eagle: Both eagles and Double are associated with wind; the former needs air currents to fly, whilst the latter has CycloneJoker as their base form. Additionally, the Xtreme Memory used for CycloneJokerXtreme is bird-based, which are the type of animals eagles are. Also, this brings in mind the double-headed eagle icon.

Kuuga/Lion: A lion is often associated with courage; one of the lyrics in Kuuga's opening includes "No FEAR, No pain". Additionally, both Kuuga and lions have something to do with leadership; A lion is the king of the jungle, a leader, while Kuuga is the first Heisei Rider, with the numerical term often associated with leadership. The lion ears in the duo's Genomes echo Kuuga's horns.

Faiz/Ptera: Both are very skilled in speed, Faiz's antennas bring to mind of a pterosaur's head, and Vice ending up as a hoverbike echoes the Auto Vajin, the Jetslinger and a pterosaur's flying ability.

Den-O/Mammoth: Den-O's train track mouthpiece have a similar aesthetic to a mammoth's trunk, as well as the wedges somewhat resembling tusks and the peach leaves mirroring mammoth ears. It could also serve as a nod to how elephants, the modern descendant of the mammoth, have good memory, tying in to one of the themes of Den-O (people's memories of the past)

Fourze/Kong: Fourze often engages in hand-to-hand combat in Base States and has the Hot-Blooded personality to boot, similar with a gorilla's strength, Fourze's helmet resembling a gorilla's head, Base States' white color scheme plus a gorilla would also bringing mind to a yeti/abominable snowman, and the concept of space chimps in general.

Gaim/Kamakiri: Just as mantises have bladed arms, Gaim is often a sword wielder as part of his samurai motif. It may also be a subtle reference to Zi-O's Gaim Armor◊, who had extra limbs on his back resembling the raptorial forelimbs of a mantis.

Ex-Aid/Jackal: Jackals are closely related to dogs, which are often used to help people with disabilities, while Emu is a doctor who helped with physical disabilities. The jackal ears in Revi's Genome also echo Ex-Aid's Anime Hair. As Mighty, the protagonist of Mighty Action X is partially based on Sonic the Hedgehog, the jackal motif may be a Shout-Out to Infinite, who can generate pixel-like blocks with the power of the Phantom Ruby, which visually resembles the pixellation effect that Bugsters generate.

Zi-O/Brachio: On top of the names sounding similar, Zi-O's first episode has Sougo running away from a Tyrannosaurus, which, like brachiosaurus, are dinosaurs. The Brachiosaurus is also meant as a gentle giant, generally peaceful until you make it mad. Sounds a lot like Sougo given that as Ohma Zi-O, he's the most powerful Kamen Rider and will kill you if you press any of his Berserk Buttons. Appearance-wise, the brows on the duo's Genomes resemble Zi-O's clock antennas, with the watch strap bears in mind to the neck of a brachiosaurus, and Vice's Genome mixing elements of both the dinosaur and a Time Mazine.

V3/Turtle: Turtle Bazooka was one of the first two adversaries of V3 and the one responsible for (initially) killing the Double Riders. To a lesser extent, V3's helmet somewhat resembles a turtle's head.

X/Scorpion: Not only was Scorpion Geronimo Jr. the last monster X-Rider fought in his show, X also had his Ridol Whip which looks like a scorpion stinger, and some prehistoric scorpions were aquatic.

Amazon/Mogura: One of Amazon's allies includes "Mogura"/Mole Beastman, the first kaijin to ever ally with a Kamen Rider. Amazon is also notable for the digging speed of his claws, being able to easily dig from ten thousand meters underground to the surface.

Saber/Kajiki: Marlins have sharp, bladed noses, similar with Saber's sword horn. Also, "marlin" sounds similar to "Merlin", and Saber has a form themed after King Arthur. The combination of a swordsman and a marine species also brings to mind Saber's fellow swordsman Kamen Rider Durendal, who is themed after marine life.

ZX/Kujaku: ZX's helmet partly brings to mind a peacock, with the head edges resembling the tail feathers and his mouthpiece looking like stacked "beaks". A peacock is a species of bird and a Bird Dopant was a member of the Underground Empire Badan, which is the successor of the Badan Empire, the enemy organization of ZX.

Build/Kangaroo: Build's helmet somewhat resembles a kangaroo, with the Hop Springer in Build's left leg bringing to mind a kangaroo's hopping and kicking abilities.

Black/Anomalocaris: While Gorgom had no Anomalocaris monsters, Grand Mutant Darom, one of Gorgom's generals, was a monster themed after a trilobite, which Anomalocaris regularly preyed on. Anomalocaris fossils were also initially mistaken as three different species before a more accurate reconstruction merged them together, similar to how Black's evolved form, Black RX, has three different forms.

Hibiki/Hashibirokō: Shoebills are known for using beak-clattering as a communication method, similar to how Hibiki's powers revolve around drumming and music.

Agito/Tricera: Agito's main motif is a dragon, tying into the Dinosaurs Are Dragons trope, and his horns spread open before performing a finishing move, giving him a connection to Triceratops, which are colloquially known as "three-horned dragons" in Chinese. In addition, Agito has three normal forms and three super forms, and one of his Super Mode transformations is called Trinity, giving him a strong correlation with the number 3.

OOO/Buffalo: Cape buffalo are found in Africa, the same continent where Eiji experienced his Dark and Troubled Past which caused him to lose all his desire and become eligible for becoming OOO. Eiji's determination to save anyone he can reach has parallels to a bull's violently protective nature, while his willingness to protect others even at the cost of his own life echoes how bulls are used as sacrificial animals in some religions. Visually, the O Scanner resembles a hoof, while OOO' circle motif brings to mind a bull's nose ring.

Wizard/Crocodile: A crocodile resembles a dragon, and it may be a reference to the Leviathan of Revelations, a fire-breathing aquatic monster thought to have been based on the Nile crocodile. Also, many crocodile species live in freshwater habitats, and Wizard has two water-based forms: Water Style and Water Dragon.

Kiva/Hedgehog: Hedgehogs defend themselves with sharp spines, while Kiva is based on a vampire, a mythological creature that drinks blood with its sharp fangs. It may also be a reference to the Hedgehog's Dilemma, a metaphor about the challenges of human intimacy, fitting how Wataru was originally a shut-in with No Social Skills.

Ryuki/Komodo Dragon: It's pretty obvious, Komodo Dragon, especially since Ryuki is the closest Rider to having a direct dragon motif. note

Blade/King Crab: Crabs are known for their sharp pincers and tough shells, while Blade is heavily armoured and has a sharp sword as his primary weapon. The fact that it's a King Crab also parallels Kamen Rider Blade's King Form.

Drive/Octopus: Both have some association with the brain. Octopuses are known for their intelligence, which requires brainpower. Meanwhile, some of Drive's catchphrases are "My brain cells are in top gear," and "I'm done thinking about it!" Both of these are nods to him being a good thinker. Fitting Drive's car motif, an octopus with its tentacles spread open resembles a hubcap when viewed from below, while octopuses' ability to spit black ink brings to mind bitumen.

Kabuto/Oomukade: Akin to the Showa Rider-based Vistamps, likely this could be a nod to the centipede-like Geophilid Worms from episodes 23 and 24.

Ghost/Kurosai: Aside from both being associated with the colour blacknote and possessing a horn on their heads, both are associated with coming back from near death: Several subspecies of black rhino were driven extinct in the wild while some of them were recently reintroduced back into the wild. Ghost on the other hand was killed by the monster faction for his season, but was brought back as a ghost and had to gather the powers of 15 historical figures in order to be fully resurrected.

[maxwell-grant]

What are your thoughts on Jekyll/Hyde and his archetype of the human periodically changing into a monster ?

Jekyll & Hyde was the 2nd horror story I read following Frankenstein, I got it off the same library and it always stuck very strongly with me even before I got into horror in general. I even dressed up as Jekyll/Hyde as a kid for a school fair by shredding a lab coat on one side and asking my sister to make-up claw gashes on my exposed arm and paint half of my face, although in hindsight I think I ended up looking more like Doctor Two-Face than Jekyll/Hyde, but I was 12 and didn't have any Victorian clothing to use so I had to make do. The first film project I tried doing at film school was intended to be a modern take on Jekyll & Hyde, and I didn't get much farther than a couple of discarded scripts

Much like Frankenstein, Mr Hyde as a character and a story is something that's kind of baked into everything I do artistically. And it's not just me, as even in pop culture itself, none of us can escape Mr Hyde. I would go so far as to argue Mr Hyde may be the single most significant character created by victorian fiction, if only by the sheer impact and legacy the character's had.

(Fan-art by guilhermefranco)

Part of what makes Mr Hyde such a powerful and lasting icon of pop culture is that the very premise of the book invites a personal reading that's gonna vary from person to person. Because everyone's familiar with the basic twist of the story, that it's a conflict of duality, of the good and evil sides, but everyone has a more personal idea of what those entail. Some people make the story more about class. A lot of readings laser-focus on sex and lust as the driving force, and there's also a lot of readings of Mr Hyde that tackle it to explore a more gendered perspective, and so forth.

I don't particularly take much notice of the Jekyll & Hyde adaptations partially because the novel's premise and themes have become baked so throughly into pop culture and explored in so many different and interesting ways, that I'm not particularly starving for good Jekyll & Hyde adaptations the way I am for Dracula and Frankenstein. The Fredric March film in particular is one that orbits my head less because of the film itself (although I do recommend it), but because of one specific scene, and that's when Jekyll first transforms into Hyde on screen.

Out of all the things they could have shown him doing right that second, they instead took the time to show him enjoying the rain.

Just Hyde taking off his hat and letting it all cascade on his face with this sheer enthusiasm like he's never been to the rain before, never enjoyed it before, and now that he's free from being Jekyll, he gets to enjoy life like he never has before. It's such an oddly humanizing moment to put amidst a horror movie, in the scene where you're ostensibly introducing the monster to the audience, and it makes such a stark contrast to the rest of the film where Hyde is completely irredeemable, but I think it's that contrast that makes the film's take on Hyde work so well even with it's diverging from the source material, even if I don't particularly like in general interpretations of Hyde that are focused on a sexual aspect.

Because one, it understands that Jekyll was fundamentally a self-serving coward and not a paragon of goodness, and two, it also understands one of the things that makes Hyde scary: He wants what all of us want, to live and be happy. He's happy when he leaves the lab and dances around in the rain like a giddy child, he's happy when he goes to places Jekyll couldn't dream of showing up, he's happy as a showgirl-abusing sexual predator. Hyde is all wants, all the time, and there's not that much difference between his wants, his domineering possessiveness, and the likes exhibited by Muriel's father and Jekyll's own within the very same film, which also works to emphasize one of the other ideas of the original story, that Edward Hyde doesn't come from nowhere. That no monster is closer to humanity than Mr Hyde, because he is us. He is the thing that Jekyll refused to take responsability for until it was too late.

(Art by LorenzoMastroianni)

While many of the ideas that defined Mr Hyde had already been explored in pop culture beforehand, Hyde popularized and redefined many of them in particular by modernizing the idea. He was the werewolf, the doppelganger, The Player On The Other Side, except he came from within. He was not transformed by circumstance, he made himself that way, and the elixir merely brought out something already inside his soul. To acknowledge that he's there is to acknowledge that he is you, and to not do that is to either lose to him, or perish. Hyde was there to address both the rot settling in Victorian society as well as grappling concerns over Darwinian heritage, of the realization that man has always had the beast inside of him (it's no accident that Hyde's main method of murder is by clubbing people to death with his cane like a caveman).

I've already argued on my post about Tarzan that the Wild Man archetype, beginning with Enkidu of The Epic of Gilgamesh, is the in-between man and beast, between superhero and monster, and that Mr Hyde is an essential component of the superhero's trajectory, as the creature split in between. That stories about dual personalities, doppelgangers, the duality of the soul, the hero with a day job and an after dark career, you can pinpoint Hyde as a turning point in how all of these solidified gradually in pop culture. And I've argued otherwise that The Punisher, for all that his image and narrative points otherwise, is ultimately just as much of a superhero as the rest of them, even if no one wants to admit it, drawing a parallel between The Punisher and Mr Hyde. And he's far from the only modern character that can invite this kind of parallel.

The idea of a regular person periodically or permanently transforming into, or revealing itself to be, something extraordinary and fantastic and scary, grappling with the divide it causes in their soul, and questions whether it's a new development or merely the truest parts of themselves coming to light at last, and the effects this transformation has for good and bad alike. The idea of a potent, dangerous, unpredictable enemy who ultimately is you, or at least a facet of you and what you can do. That these are bound to destroy each other if not reconciled with or overcome.

You know what are my thoughts on the archetype of "human periodically changing into a monster" are? Look around you and you're gonna see the myriad ways The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde's themes have manifested in the century and a half since the story's release. Why it shouldn't be any surprise whatsoever that Mr Hyde has become such an integral part of pop culture, in it's heroes and monsters alike. Why we can never escape Mr Hyde, just as Jekyll never could.

It is Nixon himself who represents that dark, venal and incurably violent side of the American character that almost every country in the world has learned to fear and despise. Our Barbie-doll president, with his Barbie-doll wife and his boxful of Barbie-doll children is also America's answer to the monstrous Mr. Hyde.

He speaks for the Werewolf in us; the bully, the predatory shyster who turns into something unspeakable, full of claws and bleeding string-warts on nights when the moon comes too close… - Hunter S. Thompson

There is a scene in the movie Pulp Fiction that explains almost every terrible thing happening in the news today. And it's not the scene where Ving Rhames shoots that guy's dick off. It's the part where the hit man played by John Travolta is talking about how somebody vandalized his car, and says this:

"Boy, I wish I could've caught him doing it. I'd have given anything to catch that asshole doing it. It'd been worth him doing it, just so I could've caught him doing it."

That last sentence is something everyone should understand about mankind. After all, the statement is completely illogical -- revenge is supposed to be about righting a wrong. But he wants to be wronged, specifically so he'll have an excuse to get revenge. We all do.

Why else would we love a good revenge movie? We sit in a theater and watch Liam Neeson's daughter get kidnapped. We're not sad about it, because we know he's a badass and he finally has permission to be awesome. Not a single person in that theater was rooting for it to all be an innocent misunderstanding. We wanted Liam to be wronged, because we wanted to see him kick ass. It's why so many people walk around with vigilante fantasies in their heads.

Long, long ago, the people in charge figured out that the easiest and most reliable way to bind a society together was by controlling and channeling our hate addiction. That's the reason why seeing hurricane wreckage on the news makes us mumble "That's sad" and maybe donate a few bucks to the Red Cross hurricane fund, while 9/11 sends us into a decade-long trillion-dollar rage that leaves the Middle East in flames.

The former was caused by wind; the latter was caused by monsters. The former makes us kind of bummed out; the latter gets us high.

It's easy to blame the news media for pumping us full of stories of mass shootings and kidnapped children, but that's stopping one step short of the answer: The media just gives us what we want. And what we want is to think we're beset on all sides by monsters.

The really popular stories will always feature monsters that are as different from us as possible. Think about Star Wars -- what real shithead has ever referred to himself as being on "the dark side"? In Harry Potter and countless fantasy universes, you have wizards working in "black magic" and the "dark arts." Can you imagine a scientist developing some technology for chemical weapons or invasive advertising openly thinking of what he does as "dark science"? Can you imagine a real world leader naming his headquarters "The Death Star" or "Mount Doom"?

Of course not. But we need to believe that evil people know they're evil, or else that would open the door to the fact that we might be evil without knowing it. I mean, sure, maybe we've bought chocolate that was made using child slaves or driven cars that poisoned the air, but we didn't do it to be evil -- we were simply doing whatever we felt like and ignoring the consequences. Not like Hitler and the bankers who ruined the economy and those people who burned the kittens -- they wake up every day intentionally dreaming up new evils to create. It's not like Hitler actually thought he was saving the world.

So no matter how many times you vote to cut food stamps and then use the money to buy a boat, you could still be way worse. You could, after all, be one of those murdering / lazy / ignorant / greedy / oppressive monsters that you know the world is full of, and that only your awesome moral code prevents you from turning into at any moment. And those monsters are out there.

They have to be. Because otherwise, we're the monsters - 5 Reasons Humanity Desperately Wants Monsters To Be Real, by Jason Pargin

(Two-Face sequence comes from the end of Batman Annual #14: Eye of the Beholder)

For good or bad, Hyde has become omnipresent. He's a part of our superheroes, he's a part of our supervillains, he's in our monsters. He lives and prattles in our ears, sometimes we need him to survive, and sometimes we become Hyde even when we don't need to, because our survival instincts or base cruelties or desperation brings out the worst in us. Sometimes we can beat him, and sometimes he's not that bad. Sometimes we do need to appease him and listen to what he says, about us and the world around us. And sometimes we need to do so specifically to prove him wrong and beat him again.

But he never, ever goes away, as he so accurately declares in the musical

Do you really think That I would ever let you go...

Do you think I'd ever set you free?

If you do, I'm sad to say It simply isn't so

You will never get away FROM MEEEEEE

(Art by Akreon on Artstation)

[mikeshanlon]

i really enjoy the way young royals explores the theme of legacy and how detrimental it can be to have to live up to a legacy or be obsessed with reputation. (analysis and thoughts under the cut)

i think wilhelm resents the fact that he has to live up to the role of being in the royal family and yet is very afraid of ruining that legacy bc of all the pressure. before he was sent off to hillerska he went to a normal school and wanted normal people around him and was content with erik having to take on the responsibilities of crown prince. and when he does have to assume that role he says he can never be erik, that he’s always had to be compared to him and obviously doesn’t like that. but even before erik passed and he had to take on those duties he was afraid of fucking up the legacy of the crown, when he sees that sign in the hallway that says you are in charge of your own legacy after he holds hands with simon, his anxiety worsens. you can tell it’s been instilled in him for a long time that what is most important is the crown’s reputation rather than his own wants. in the scene where him and simon fight about alexander being caught, he obviously wants simon to stay, but he focuses on how him doing drugs will fuck up his family’s reputation if it gets leaked. as much as he cares for simon, his legacy and his duties are like this oppressive cloud hanging over him. 

i do think that wille cares for his family of course but to me it’s different that the sort of loyal unconditional care with simon and his sister/mom. erik and wille had unconditional love, erik understood how difficult being a prince in the public eye was, and wille obviously cared for him deeply and felt like he could to talk to him about issues. his relationship with the queen is much more strained, she wants a tailored, doctored representation of him in the media, he cannot be anxious and bite his nails, she makes all the decisions for him. family is important to wille partially because it has to be bc of how special his family is. he helps his family, he helps august pay his tuition, and then makes a point of disowning august after his betrayal as his new “brother”. but again, because of the royal status and expectations upon the family, that supersedes and colors all of their relationships with each other. it seems to be more a sense of “duty” than unconditional love. especially after erik’s death, wille always has to consider how the crown’s image will be impacted, even though he never wanted to have this responsibility, or even the responsibility of being the “regular” prince under erik. being a family unit that is under constant public scrutiny is going to strain relationships. the queen knows that the anxiety of fucking up his legacy will get to him, and she uses that to get wilhelm to back out of admitting it was him in the video and coming out. wilhelm has to choose between his own happiness and their reputation, is forced to think that denying it’s him in the video is the only way. he loves simon and wanted to live freely, but that pressure of legacy won out.

i don’t know if i think wille necessarily values the crown over his own personal happiness and relationships, like in the way maybe the queen does--i don’t think it comes from a place of “i’m lucky to be prince and owe my duty to the crown, so i do what i have to do to stay that way” (like how the queen said the crown is a privilege not a punishment), but from fear of destroying the legacy and his family. afterall, he still wanted to pursue a secret relationship with simon, i think if he fully valued the crown and uplifting legacy and fulfilling his duties he wouldn’t have tried that. he wouldn’t have made a point to tell simon he loves him. hopefully we get another season because i think with the iconic ending revolution rendition and him looking in the camera, which also parallels the shot of him being forced to apologize/go to hillerska, he is realizing that focusing on legacy is taking away what’s important to him, and he’s going to shake shit up.

august is definitely the most obsessed with legacy, wanting to carry on his father’s business, being persistent on befriending wilhelm and trying to social climb, wanting power and perfection with being prefect, rowing captain etcetera. he is so obsessed with perfection and reputation he gets addicted to drugs, he fucks with simon and makes him get stuff for parties he can’t afford because good parties will make him look better, he manipulates sara multiple times, he mostly wanted felice because of her nobility, he fucking films wilhelm and simon and OUTS him, his own cousin. he hates that wille has everything he wants but isn’t as interested in preserving and more importantly improving the legacy he’s inheriting. meanwhile august’s familial legacy is dwindling, and he holds on to the last bit of assets and names that he can.... v much sick and a weirdo that shows how harmful being obsessed with legacy is

the queen is of course v focused on legacy and it really breaks my heart and makes me angry that she doesn’t care about wilhelm’s happiness more than their reputation, and moreso doesn’t get august in trouble for literally leaking child p*rn of her kid for the sake of appearances?!?!?! like how is he even remotely trustworthy she is wrong for that! like i said earlier the obsession with legacy puts a strain on their mother/son relationship. she doesn’t even really say anything about wille’s sexuality or his relationship, and barely comforts him, mostly goes in with a plan she’s already concocted without him to fix everything. 

erik seemed to understand and accept his role as crown prince but obviously had issues with it as well, like when he makes the plan for him and wilhelm to run from the press, or when he tells wilhelm to enjoy himself while there aren’t so many eyes on him that care. erik shows someone who has more unconditional love and empathy but still has to focus on legacy and is much more inclined to continue his legacy, but we do see those glimpses over how even the most “ideal” attitude of preserving legacy causes issues.

felice is expected to live up to her mother’s legacy, of being an equestrian, of being the lucia, but she doesn’t want either of those things. her mother wants her to be thinner and straighten her hair, and find someone of nobility to be with. obviously she does find wilhelm attractive lol but i think the main reason she pursued him and definitely why she pursued august was because she was expected to social climb and have royal kids. felice feels the need to portray a false narrative of herself on social media to uphold a certain image of herself. it’s very fucked up that her mom wants those values instilled in her but i love that felice was putting up boundaries and pushing back against her mother and the narrative she’s supposed to live up to. her giving sara the role of lucia and focusing on supporting her friends more in the latter half of the season shows growth and i’m excited to see where her story goes. 

sara is interesting because she seems to want to reject the legacy of her family and being working class and to fit in with the elite of hillerska. sara hates micke, hates that simon contacted him because it’s bringing in this “shameful” and painful part of their past (which i mean is def fair). other than sara’s betrayal in 1.06, i think the scene where she tells her family that she wants to reside at hillerska really exemplifies where she’s at in her relation to legacy/class. after dining at hillerska and living amongst the elite she gets annoyed at eating around the TV, she blames her mother for not leaving micke sooner, she gets angry with simon for caring for her. she wants to lead her own life, be popular and wanted because people want her, not for pity (even though i think simon of course truly cares abt his sister she feels annoyed with his protection and care). felice says early on that she thinks sara doesn’t care what other’s think or having friends, and sara says she still wants friends though. i think sara’s biggest thing is she wants to belong, her and simon moved schools after she was bullied for being autistic so i think that definitely affected her even though she tries to act nonchalant about hillerska at first. we see sara’s longing to fit in in smaller ways at first, like her asking her mom for a better piece of her uniform because hers are “cheap” and already worn out. she gets annoyed at simon for chewing loudly, or her mother sitting casually at the table. as she gets closer to felice and madison and all the other students, the allure of the upper class and their lifestyle draws her in more. so much to the point where she gets very anxious and upset at the idea of her and simon leaving hillerska because he’s having his own crisis and doesn’t consider his pov. so much so that she effectively betrays simon and felice, the people she’s closest to, to make a deal (and make out lol) with august to room there and “be just like him”. personally i think sara’s attraction to august is mostly that allure of the elite and that he seemed to “desire” her when he kissed her because he was being a manipulative dickhead--again that want to fit in and be wanted. and  i think there is a really interesting angle of jealousy and competition in female friendships, even if it is really subtle or not intentionally insidious or anything, sara does slowly start to trying to assume all the roles/fashions/mannerisms of felice to live that life she wants. i do think felice and sara’s care for each other is genuine and one of my fave parts of the show, but i think a lot of people who experienced being a teen girl know how we are always pitted against each other even in our subconscious because of how society treats and values women.

simon seems to be the character that is least interested in upholding legacy and tradition or giving a fuck what anyone thinks (as omar said here lmao) and that makes him a really interesting foil to wilhelm. there could be something said about micke fearing that simon is following in his footsteps, but to me that plot more so reveals how the upper class (august) continually exploit the working class for their benefit, and the trappings of generational oppression. the other thing that can be said is simon signing up for private tutoring and rowing, but again i think that serves to further show that he is forced to “play” by the game of the elites because the school/society is corrupt, and also, that simon has further ambitions outside of where he’s at. he wants to get good grades because he wants to explore new places and avenues. to me simon’s biggest motivations are his passions, the things and people he loves--music, his family, wilhelm. he isn’t loyal to others just because he’s expected to be, or uphold a certain image but because he really cares. he doesn’t watch out for sara because that’s his expected role as her brother to do so, but because he cares. he wasn’t interested in knowing wilhelm because he’s a prince like everyone else, he makes it clear he thinks the royal family are privileged and exploitative, but he is interested because he saw the real wilhelm. he’s out and proud even though his elite classmates are more conservative, he doesn’t care about voicing his unpopular opinions, he has no problem walking away from august’s dickhead behavior or calling him out on his shit. simon doesn’t care if people don’t think of him in the best light. (the only exceptions ig are the drugs conflict and the video, though literally anyone would have a problem with that because it’s much deeper that public opinion and has ramifications and is deeply traumatic--but just adding that before someone is like “well actually!”) i also think it’s interesting that most of the songs simon sings has themes of pushing back against the societal norms, and being remembered in history, plus of course the revolution song motif, and how much those songs affect wilhelm, he seems to connect deeply, like he wishes he could do those things but simon is the one who gets to sing them and actually live them.

[princessfbi]

Ok I have got to know what happened with Oliver's character on that one show that makes you rage so hard every time you see him.

WELL NONNIE I'LL TELL YOU!

This is a warning for spoilers if anyone wants to watch this show because my rage cannot be contained.

OK SO...

This show is called Into the Badlands and Oliver's character is named Ryder. Basically the premise of this world is that it's kind of post apocalyptic/alternative universe where humanity got so caught up in trying to one up each other that it sort of imploded and now you have this society where either you're super wealthy (the Barrons), super poor (Cogs and Nomads), or somehow a ninja (The Clippers and whatever the hell MK was supposed to be). ANYWAYS....

Ryder is the son of Barron Quinn. Now the surviving land is either divided into like factions run by Barrons (who control a majority of major trade) or there's these lawless lands that are run dredges of society. You either become a Barron by killing another Barron (which is what Quinn did) or you are an heir apparent. Ryder is more an heir presumptive because Quinn won't outright name him his heir even though everyone just assumes it.

This is because Quinn is batshit crazy and thinks he can just live forever through sheer stubbornness and will alone. This is especially hard to do because he has a massive brain tumor that's dwindling down what little bit of sanity he has leading him to make questionable choices such as killing the only doctor they have in the lands who would've been useful pretty much for the rest of the series but go off Quinn. Ryder has a lot of resentment towards his father, which I will get into in a minute, and at the same time has gone out of his way to prove to Quinn that he's a worthy heir. Except Quinn keeps comparing Ryder to his second and regent, Sunny, and he's just all around a shitty person in general.

NOW HERE'S THE AMAZING BACKSTORY WITH RYDER:

So, when Ryder was a child, he was kidnapped by these nomads who were trying to blackmail Quinn. Ryder's mother begged Quinn to pay the ransom and save Ryder. Quinn... refused. So the nomads tortured Ryder and (Gross warning) like cut off part of his toes and disfigured his foot in the hopes of crippling him and scaring Quinn into giving to their demands.

Quinn, again, refused.

Eventually Quinn's regent at the time, Waldo, defies Quinn's orders and goes to rescue Ryder from these nomads. Waldo defying Quinn is a big deal because he's a clipper which is basically a soldier (often brought in from the slave faction called Cogs) and they take their oaths to their Barrons very seriously. Barrons trust no one but their regents because again you can become a Barron by killing them. But Waldo always had a soft spot for Ryder.

SO Ryder is saved and eventually nursed back to health but he always has a bit of a tragedy cloud hanging around him because from what we were told Ryder was a very sweet, bright child before he was kidnapped and was brought back as "a broken bird" and he's been doing everything he can to get rid of the broken bird image ever since.

Quinn resented Ryder for making him look weak and Ryder resented Quinn for... Well being a heartless dick.

But here's the crazy part... They both, in their own way, still kind of loved each other.

Now I won't bore you with my rant about how the best antagonists are often the tragic figures who have fallen from grace (Peter Hale, Draco Malfoy, Loki to name a few) BUT I will say Ryder had the PERFECT foundation of showing that fall. He was an asshole and hard and spoiled and super privilege but also soft and still a little broken. There's a whole other narrative involved too with his childhood love and how his dad planned on marrying her but we won't get into that.

ANYWAYS Ryder still had this desperate need to prove to his dad that he was a worthy heir but in his attempts to prove himself (and his dad's fall into madness) his dad started seeing him as competition. Competition and another objects (like Quinn saw with most other characters but especially Sunny). But Quinn has this weird kind of pride when it comes to things that he considers his and an attack on his property is an attack on him. There's a character named the Widow who lured Ryder out and tried to kill him slowly and personally as well as Sunny as an attack on Quinn and he went bananas (sorta).

Ryder was fine eventually but he realized that trying to prove himself to his dad was never going to work so he decides to try the other option: which is killing his dad. Partially because if he doesn't, Ryder is smart enough to know that Quinn's going to get him killed, but also because Quinn's descent into madness is spiraling faster and faster and Ryder wants to protect the legacy. Nothing to inherit if his dad burns the whole thing to the ground!

Long story short, Sunny turns on Quinn and stabs him and everyone thinks Quinn is dead and Ryder takes credit for it therefore succeeding his dad by becoming not only Barron of his father's lands but some other Barron that got murdered by another subplot that was pointless.

Now Ryder is determined to bring peace to the lands (not out of some noble obligation but because he just wants people to chill the fuck out). And for the most part... he's doing okay.

BUT THEN PLOT TWIST HIS DAD IS ALIVE AND CRAZIER THAN EVER.

Basically his dad storms Ryder's house, chases him down in the garden, and they fight. But Ryder's foot that was crippled when he was a child trips him up and the fight gets even messier. Ryder's sword breaks and Quinn points the sword to his own chest and tells Ryder to finish him.

Ryder hesitates and so Quinn takes the sword and stabs Ryder. You know like a rational father would do.

Quinn then asks Ryder why he hesitated and Ryder whispers "because you're my father" before he dies in Quinn's arms. Quinn is... horrified because he realizes that with the death of Ryder is the death of the last parts of his own humanity. He mourns Ryder but also like... takes no responsibility for killing him but neither did Ryder so he can't process it. Later on he's haunted by Ryder but again the man has a giant grapefruit sized tumor in his brain so it's all very reverse Hamlet if you will.

SO LOOK AT ALL THIS POTENTIAL!

THE REASON I RAGE:

Is because Ryder was set up to fail from the beginning. Which is great!....... If that had actually happened. The show worked so hard to tell us that Ryder was a failure and a coward but if you look at it from a story perspective... Ryder was the opposite of a failure. Every time someone told him he couldn't do something, he proved them wrong. Again and again and again. But that was never good enough for anyone. So that vicious cycle would've been amazing to see!

But instead of exploring any of that, we had to watch a storyline that was frankly ridiculous from the beginning that took up way more time than it should. There's a character named MK, who was supposed to be inspired by the myth The Monkey King, but if you don't know that story then you never would've figured that out. Hell, I knew the story and didn't figure it out until I had to google his name because I kept forgetting it. In comparison to everything else happening in the show, this magical mythical storyline just didn't fit and I'm not kidding when I say I watched a season and a half of this show and forgot about MK every time.

Now if you noticed my icon is Buck in a Box. That's an inside joke I have with a friend about this fucking show. The first scene starts off with Sunny stumbling onto a group of Nomads who go absolutely feral about this massive box they don't want him to look inside. Turns out MK was in this box for reasons that were too weak for me to even remember but again MK was entirely forgettable. My friend and I kept talking about how it would've been better if Ryder had been in the box because the Ryder and Sunny rivalry had so much unexplored potential that would've been incredible if we started from the very beginning instead of just being told over and over again that Ryder hates being compared to Sunny.

Sunny is the main character and Quinn, unlike with Ryder, was incredibly proud to have Sunny "in his possession" and Ryder hated him for it.

But did we get to explore that? NO! Did we get to explore the parallels of Sunny and Ryder chafing at being considered possessions by Quinn? NO! Did we get to explore the trauma Ryder was working so hard to shake off? NO!

Instead the show spent so much energy victim blaming Ryder essentially for being the son of a Villain and his Nonsensical Ambitious Mother who had the misfortune of being kidnapped by bandits as a child while telling the audience that Ryder was never going to succeed. That Ryder had no honor and was a coward and weak.

They spent way more time trying to tell us that we should hate Ryder and that he was a bad guy but didn't do ANY of the work to show the fall from grace to prove that. Ryder remained a tragic figure that didn't fall from grace but was rather pushed off by lazy writing because they wanted to focus again on this magical ninja boy with a penchant for getting in the way and ruining everything.

I rage because Antagonist and Villain are not the same thing. Ryder had the potential of becoming a villain and his death by the hands of his father would've cycled him back into the role of a tragic figure. But instead... it was just wasted.

THAT is why I rage. You had the material right there and yet you spent so long telling us that we, the audience, don't like Ryder instead of showing us anything that would make us not like him (besides the whiny white boy thing).

Instead I found myself rooting for Ryder. Like could you imagine if Ryder and Sunny went against Quinn together instead of having the weakest rivalry known to man? Could you imagine Ryder's fall from grace of wanting peace in the lands as it turned to greed? Could you imagine Sunny becoming actual competition for Ryder instead of being manipulated to do so?

WE GOT NONE OF IT.

THIS is why I rage.

[kitkatopinions]

You know, despite having read and loved most Sherlock Holmes stories and having once upon a time been interested in one of those bad Sherlock Holmes adaptations, I didn’t realize Arthur Watts was meant to allude to John Watson (my favorite character) until I read someone else’s post about how stupid the allusions in RWBY are and I think that’s telling.

In hindsight, his name alone is a dead give away, and I guess… Gun, fancy clothes with the three piece suit, moustache… The gimmicks were all there. But he was so far removed from anything to do with Watson’s character or story that I had literally never thought of it. This is one of my problems with RWBY’s Fairy Tale inspiration, they took away anything that made Watson Watson, left a couple of gimmicks, and thought that was good.

I read on the RWBY wiki that Watts was meant to be ‘John Watson if he’d connected with Moriarty instead of Holmes.’ Even if Watson had connected with Moriarty, he’d still be nothing like Watts. Watts acts like a twisted version of Holmes, with all of Holmes’s bad tendencies - showing off, being flippant, believing himself superior, prioritizing his work over others’ feelings, etc - and none of Holmes’s redeeming qualities of justice and righteousness. A Holmes without his better traits (and without his better half in Watson) is easy to imagine falling into jealousy, cold-heartedness, and violence in pursuit of recognition and in pursuit of his interests. Instead of using his skills to aid the world and stop the person responsible for the criminal underground, he uses them to attack the world and aid the person responsible for the criminal underground, staying where his skills are appreciated. Watts shows only a vague interest in Salem’s group and her end goals (if I recall correctly,) and it seems he’s only there to be able to better do what he wants, and has rivalries with other members of Salem’s circle, which is kind of reflective of Holmes’ interactions with Scotland Yard and its members, only without growth into respect and comradery. Watts even faked his own death and fell off the map, hiding out until the time was right and then making his return in a secretive way and even revealing himself to a friend before really getting started. Like…

And then they say he’s Watson? Are they trying to trick us? Watson, the military man? Watson, the loyal follower? The more social one? The ordinary one? Watson, who spent years of his life documenting others’ successes with little regard for his own fame? The one who balanced out Holmes because he was humble, at least partially understood and cared about physical and mental health, and wasn’t as gray, so was able to be a moral sounding board?  Watson lacked real brilliance, and his true qualities had to do with the depths of his emotions, like his bravery and love. He was open and honest and countered Holmes’ more secretive and sly tendencies (which are also more in line with Watts.) Watson was the one with a grounded life and stability. The only real reason Watson ever did anything criminal was either because he thought it was the morally right thing to do or because he was simply following and supporting Holmes. Watson thought it would be worth it to be wounded over and over again just because he saw that Holmes loved him during a time where he got injured. He was quite literally just an army doctor, who dearly loved and was there for his friend, and took it upon himself to document their adventures in pursuit of making that friends’ brilliance known to the world. There’s interesting things you could do to alter this kind of character into an evil villain role, but instead, Watts doesn’t connect with any of it.

Could you argue that Watts is a completely flipped version of Watson, where basically all of his traits are turned into the opposite? Yes, I guess you could, but it makes him seem pretty not Watson. Instead of being a military man and war vet, he hates the most military and war vet coded character in the series. Instead of having to mourn a death and continue his life, he faked his own death. Instead of being grounded and kind hearted, he’s an overly dramatic, remorseless killer. Instead of being humble and open, he’s arrogant and crafty. Instead of being a supportive, loving friend, he has no real friends, uses everyone, and is very selfish. Instead of being based on loyalty and what he could do for others (which might actually be doable, with Salem,) he seems only out for himself, and only seems to submits to Salem because it’ll get him what he wants. Most importantly, instead of being an everyman who lacks the talent of the people around him but makes up for it in other ways, Watts is a total genius who actually seems better than Pietro, who was just overlooked. 

Watts has no allusions to writing, no friend to help, no military background, no quality of character, seemingly no recognition of his flaws, no humility, not even Watson’s dumb ‘ladies man’ title, and he’s the opposite of anything Watson was. You could say he's the anti-Watson, but an anti-Watson actually isn't Watson at all. An anti-Watson is basically just an evil Holmes.

Even then, the 'Watson if he'd connected with Moriarty' line makes it seem like 'anti-Watson' wasn't what they were going for, either, so I don’t feel like I can even give them credit for that. Are they saying that if Watson hadn’t had Holmes, he’d have been an evil crafty mega-genius? It doesn’t connect to me.

Personally, I'd usually think that Watts not being like Watson at all was just unintended, and that they either did think they were doing something clever without taking away from the Watson allusion or they just gave their Watson allusion a couple of Watson gimmicks and then just built their own character around it. Except that Watts faked his own death, one of the most iconic Sherlock Holmes storyline things. I'm being totally genuine when I ask if they just said he was meant to represent Watson for some reason when really, he was meant to be Holmes with a dark twist, or maybe Moriarty, who already is basically Holmes with a dark twist. 

I mean, I’m not pretending to be an expert on the Sherlock Holmes works, I just don’t get how Watts is inspired by Watson.

[itsclydebitches]

In recent volumes (really 6 and 7) I find Ruby's the most unrelatable amongst the cast and that's partially because of what you've discussed before with the you vs them mentality and hypocrisy. The main reason is because she's basically the iconic Sailor Moon (or at least trying to be sailor moon) without the 14 year old girl Usagi or Spider Man without the boy Peter Parker.

In some ways Usagi and Peter contrast one another (to simplify their characters a great deal, especially with different incarnations). Peter is a brilliant, hard working, kind hearted boy who is given the tools to do even more with those virtues. Whereas Usagi is, on the surface, a dimwitted, lazy, at times callous (but mostly kindhearted) girl who is given the tools to be more. In her case, to re-discover who she really is, both metaphorically (the growth of a character) and literally (you’re Princess Serenity, taking reincarnation into account). 

For me, Ruby has always been much more of a Peter character. She’s already talented (scythe skills), already brilliant (made team leader), already has the drive of a hero (“I want to be a huntress”). In early volumes I absolutely understood the fandom’s claims that she had no character development because she started out with basically one noticeable flaw (reckless) that was seemingly solved by episode four or so. She’s already the “simple soul” who will lead them to greatness and as a result there are at least a few posts floating around my blog where I argue that her development exists, it’s just very, very subtle. Because Ruby is already that “perfect” protagonist. She’s someone whose conflicts are meant to test the hero she starts out as: to be tempted by darkness and pull back from it. Or struggle with how best to help others because we already understand that she will help, one way or another. She was conceived as a more classic hero, not someone who realistically reflects her age and experience, crying about how she doesn’t want to be in this fight at all. 

Ruby doesn’t whine about saving the world, she volunteers. Which is a fine and dandy kind of character to begin with. I have no problem with the Peter Parkers of the fictional world whose conflicts are things like “How do I make mature decisions that don’t endanger others, now that I’ve accepted this responsibility?” or “How do I deal with the death of a loved one, brought about by my lifestyle?” Those are the questions we should have seen Ruby working through after, say, Argus and Pyrrha respectively. Instead she’s become completely static. Ruby doesn’t need to be convinced to become a hero, but nor is she interested in questioning what her heroism looks like. Which would also be fine if her heroism was actually heroic. That might be boring perhaps, but fine. But instead Ruby does awful things that she then never realizes are awful, as Peter would. Ruby wasn’t conceived as someone who needs a Luna to prod her into doing the right thing, but that lack combined with a new tendency towards reckless, hypocritical behavior means that when she runs rampant, it’s up to the plot to make sure she doesn’t tip into obvious antagonism territory: miraculously no one in Argus is killed, Ironwood takes her lies in a stride, I doubt Salem will actually destroy all of Atlas and, if she does, I doubt even more that any of that responsibility will be set on Ruby’s shoulders. The story insists on re-categorizing every decision Ruby makes as “heroic” rather than challenging her as a hero. For any Doctor Who fans, the Ruby who stood before Cordovin reminds me of The Time Lord Victorious. Angry and traumatized, she knows she’s powerful now and she knows what she wants, so who’s going to stop her from getting it? Ruby needs that massive consequence to kick-start her into re-evaluating her behavior and I’m still hoping we get that, but thus far we haven’t seen it. 

[anangelicday-mrwolf]

Wolfsbane : Noblesse Fanfic (post-ending)

(previous chapter)

Chapter 48 – Much More Dangerous Than They Had Envisioned

“Welcome.”

The doctor greeted Tao and M-21 as soon as their shoes tapped past KSA’s front door.

The two men were donned in their signature black suit, the uniform of school guards and RK.

Yet unlike before, their shoulders were heavy with frigid atmosphere oh-so-visible-and-tangible.

The doctor felt nothing, although the situation was more than enough to make him feel disappointed that they are being icy to him.

He knew he was in no position to throw such emotional tantrum.

As for Tao and M-21, they could see.

They could see from the doctor’s superficially well-mannered attitude that he was very inclined to greet them with Taesik as well but could not.

It is late night, with most personnel of KSA back at home. However, words will surely spread once even a single soul spots how both KSA’s director and doctor are groveling at someone at the door, and it would be only a matter of time until every soul figures out that something is going on in their nest.

As much as they are ninety-nine-point-nine-nine-percent sure what the circumstances are all about, they did not want the lesser people to find out before the remaining 0.01% is completely mapped.

Also, in consideration of the weight of the circumstances, it was only natural for them to remain cautious until the very last moment.

“Would you like to go there now...?”

Usually he would have been referring to the director’s office. But this time he meant otherwise, and they did not need to exchange words to know that.

The purpose of Tao and M-21’s visit lay in Yuhyung’s lab.

Tao insisted they search the place before its owner returns to Korea, which gave them only a night to carry out the task.

For that reason the doctor did not wait for their response, although he did ask for it.

Which is why the waiting time inside the ascending elevator could not possibly be more awkward and stifling.

Which was only natural for the doctor to try to let in some air to the murky atmosphere expected only at the runway towards the battlefield.

“Uh... By the way, is there something up with Mr. Takio?”

M-21 started upon the name of his teammate, and Tao followed suit by rolling his eyes in a curious fashion.

Takio was tending to his duty outside during the time they were unveiling most of Yuhyung’s secret at company of Lunark.

When they decided they should head to KSA, he did not hesitate to volunteer as well.

To their concern and puzzlement, he was nowhere to be seen, but they could not afford to wait for him.

At last they made it to Yuhyung’s lab, enclosed by a new alloy door that replaced the one that Yeonsu stomped on.

The doctor unlocked the room with his employee key card, and Tao and M-21 held their breath as they directed their scrutinizing gaze into the dark lab.

Overall, it was basically a replica of the scenes the two men had familiarized themselves with during their times at Union.

But of course, there was a difference in size and magnificence, probably because of difference in resources.

Soon enough their hands got busy as they committed themselves in heated search through desks, drawers, and bookshelves for what they could spy with their eyes.

Which did not surrender anything, to nobody’s surprise.

“Yes, this happens to be an official research content we are running at the moment.”

They wasted their time asking for doctor’s confirmation with the documents, graphs, and printed screenshots they could pick up, to ultimately return them to their original places.

Naturally their eyes were drawn to the computer in slumber.

“Do you think he left something if anything in there? Based on the series of testaments, he may be a hopeless clown in daily life, but even you admit that he is no ordinary person when it comes to research.”

“He must have. Computer-friendly’s that practically treat computers as equal to their flesh and bones – yes, the sort like me – tend to leave in one way or another the most important data inside their computers. Partially because our pride depends on how well we build the firewalls and vaccine programs against potential thefts or leaks.”

Tao quoted with a voice close to desperation than confidence.

After he pushed the button to awaken the computer, they came to think that perhaps Yuhyung added a feature that automatically detonates his computer when it is turned on during his absence.

Which is why for the 3 seconds of waiting their heads whirred with thousands of scenarios, of which none was brought into reality, to their mild astonishment.

Notwithstanding, the very first screen that welcomed them froze them in their shoes.

“Password...?”

They could not understand how they could forget.

Even outside the industry of espionage or secret intelligence, in modern world personal information is held as valuable as a common gold mine, and it is only customary for people to lock their computers with personal passwords.

The fact that they were staring at none other than Yuhyung’s computer fanned their anxiety.

“...I think I’ve seen the similar kit at Union. No, this isn’t a repertoire exclusive to the Union. You know, the data are all blown up if anything other than the set password is input.”

M-21 diverted his enlightenment-seeking eyes towards Tao.

“I can dissect this thing if I want to. But in the meantime, he might receive an automated notification on the infiltration attempt on his ser...”

“Excuse me. One moment.”

The doctor finally broke his silence to step in.

Without even glancing at Tao, who was shoved to the side before he knew it, the doctor typed in three letters strange to Tao’s and M-21’s eyes.

The monitor blinked to give way to the screen plastered with a variety of icons, to Tao’s delight.

“How did you know what the password is?”

“...I chose the name of the colleague who used to be closest to Yuhyung. He was sacrificed during massive city destruction, the inception of Yuhyung’s dark ambition.”

The atmosphere sunk into the dark faster than light, and Tao warmed up the joints of his fingers and in less than a breath opened the file Yuhyung had most frequently rummaged.

“What in the...?!”

Tao moaned, skimming and comprehension over as anticipated from an expert, and the doctor and M-21 madly wiped the monitor with their eyes, to not long after unhinge their jaws in mimicry of Tao’s expression.

“...Why don’t we talk to the director now? I don’t think this is something we can handle by ourselves.”

“...Very well. This way.”

The three humans trotted across the hallway, their movements so swift and forceful that anybody could have seen that nothing could stop them.

They soon came face-to-face with Taesik, his facial profile petrified to maximum due to the fact that they entered before the sound of their knocks was completely gone.

“So, what did you find?”

Prior to their visit, he was already notified of the contents they deduced with Lunark.

And of course, his mind fried by utmost fluster, he appealed how much he did not want to believe them.

Which did not last long, given that they were from the RK and Lunark herself.

Nevertheless, it was obvious he could not throw away the last glimmer of hope, made so very pronounced by his fingers clutching the edge of his desk like a falcon, gaze precariously ghosting over their faces, and body crooked forward like a hunchback.

Feeling slightly guilty at how he must totally annihilate his meaningless hopes, Tao unzipped his lips for the testimony.

“Please listen carefully, sir. I am terribly sorry to say this, but... It looks like Mr. Jang has been in secret alliance with the Union.”

At then Tao and M-21 got to learn how a rapid cancer patient diagnosed with less than a day to survive would appear, seemingly every shadow and shade in the universe transported onto his face, his lips abruptly stupefied and unable to demand if they can swear.

The doctor, who had also seen through the change with his boss, added with a voice barely free from a quake.

“It’s true, sir. It’s more than a presumption. We just found from his computer contents available only once one comes in contact with the Union.”

“I-is that true? Just what did you find...?”

“We already heard from Ms. Lunark what Mr. Jang had gone through during destruction of Seoul. And this ideology he has come to harbor ever since.”

Taesik gave a tense nod, reminded of Yuhyung’s idea of mandatory body modification for all incoming agents, which never fail to give chills to every piece of his spine whenever his memories are refreshed.

“And Mr. Jang had not aborted his idea. He’s been proceeding with a secret study, based on his major and his specialty in KSA, with help from the data from Union.”

“S-so... What is this data from the Union...?”

“Simply put, it’s... It’s rapid body modification. Or should I say, rapid pseudo-body modification?”

“What do you mean...?”

“As you’d know, the amount of resources required for body modification is beyond any human imagination. Especially time. Even perfectly modified humans would often take time to stay under observations or experiments or sign up for multiple modifications. Personally, I’d say time is the most essential resource in body modification.”

Taesik kept attendance to Tao’s words, his countenance full of inquiries.

“Which is why Union in the past studied a way to shorten the amount of time needed for body modification. It happened before I found myself at the Union. And before the M-series project, of which M-21 was part. The Union wanted to find a way to induce rapid physical changes that will temporarily yield power somewhat reminiscent of those from modified humans prepared from lab tables and tanks.”

“Is it safe to assume it’s a mechanism related to how DA-5 used to enhance physical qualities with pills?”

“Precisely. In fact, D that DA-5 used to ingest is what Aris refined from this project after it was canceled. I figured it out while hacking Union’s past data for fun. The purpose of this project was to provide weapon for humans whose bodies are clean from modifications to exercise superhuman power, no matter how small.”

“Listening to you, there’s no doubt it’s a useful technique. But is there a reason why this project was canceled?”

“As Union agents formed this unofficial caste system among them that separated the modified from the unmodified, voices against blessing ordinary humans with powers of modified humans became dominant. Not to mention how causing physical changes begotten solely through body modification on unmodified humans as well was extremely unstable and full of side effects. So it was only logical for the researchers to shred and burn their papers and charts. No one before Aris managed to see the light in this study.”

“...I see. That reminds me of this gas that Mr. Jang had once been developing.”

Tao, M-21, and the doctor flinched as soon as Taesik nodded and quoted.

“...Actually, we have something to tell you regarding that weapon.”

“We found traces that prove he had been handling the file on that weapon until the moment he left for Lukedonia. And we found traces of edit and copy from the files on research on implanting artificial bodies with artificial intelligence.”

Taesik’s face turned pale, other faces just as pallid.

A Union study that sought a way to imbue unmodified humans with powers on par with those of the least qualified modified humans.

A study on a weapon that will work only on designated targets, from none other than a person who advocated obligatory body modification for prospective KSA agents.

The data on the former was discovered inside the computer that belongs to a person who pursued the latter.

To top it off, Yuhyung’s research files on artificial intelligence was edited and copied, when they all remember that Rael and werewolves had violent contact with Union weapons against heads of clans.

So there was no more reason for them to stick to suspicions.

“If only I had examined his USB... It turned out that the reason why QuadraNet failed to come to life lay in Mr. Jang’s USB, which was revealed to be the secret USB once used by the Union. There was network hacking program hidden inside, and I’m sure he planted the program himself as he was working at Lukedonia and the werewolf realm. A secret USB can bypass most of vaccine programs utilized nowadays because it’s too outdated. Though it’s partly because I trusted him too much and deemed usual check-up useless.”

“It’s not your fault, sir. We should have been more careful with...”

Nothing will change even if they exchange apologies and forgiveness; the best they can do right now is to prevent something that might happen very soon.

With conclusion drawn in gloomy acceptance, Taesik bobbed his head.

“Can you get him now?”

“We should. We must.”

“We’ll be counting on you two.”

Just like that, Tao and M-21 turned on their heels, to catch the man who turned out to be much more dangerous than they had envisioned.

*****

As KSA was staging a moment as fatal and vicious as the moment a bomb is about to fall onto ice, Yuhyung finally made it.

Once again riding Rael’s back in a comical way, his face however was not at all comical.

His shaking hand was grasping his personal device that was playing the footage sent from his lab, equipped with cameras that had been working just a minute ago.

(next chapter)

The rapid pseudo-body modification is my creation, of course. But I’d say it wouldn’t be strange to find out Union actually had such technology, given that DA-5 could enhance their physical capabilities by ingesting the D. Actually, I had forgotten about the DA-5 when I began composing this chapter, and I remembered what DA-5 could do in the middle of my composition lol. Anyways, now the RK know, and Yuhyung knows as well. All that’s left is for them to capture and pummel the cause of all this, but as you’d know, it won’t be easy. Yes, I’m saying the RK and their allies would have a really hard time following this chapter. Sorry, my beloved characters. :’(  I hope you’d stay tuned for more!

[hadestownmodern]

First Doctor’s Appointment

I screamed about our new icon for about three hours on Facetime the other night, so it’s only fair that it comes with its own soft fic. Someone asked what happened at the first doctor’s appointment? This is it. 

-Danielle

------------------------------------------------

              Eurydice looks up at the tall building, nothing special compared to the hundreds of other skyscrapers surrounding it. She opens the crinkled paper in her hand, folded and unfolded, shoved in her pocket with mitten-clad hands. With shaking hands she reads the address over again, comparing it to the one embossed on the window-they’re in the right place. Whether Eurydice is ready to address this, it’s happening now.

              From beside her Orpheus wraps his arm around her waist, kisses her forehead as they stand waiting outside. They’re half an hour early but the air is bitter, winter turning the skies grey and the atmosphere sharp. He tugs his own scarf off and wraps it around her neck, lingering with his hands on her shoulders. Eurydice, hidden beneath one of his knit beanies and an oversized coat, looks more her age than any day he’s seen her. The wall he’d seen and broken-the maturity of raising herself, of guarding her emotions-has shaken and left cracks in the unease of her stance, the pause of her feet outside of the building. The fear reaches to her eyes, a dark that matches the sharp grey, the downturn of the post-holiday season, the reality of what’s about to happen.

              “It’ll be okay,” he says, partially to himself. He’s frightened, too; they’re young, both still in school, working and trying to keep themselves afloat. Everything is new here, although neither feels the newness of the relationship in its entirety. In the frigid winter air, with Orpheus keeping the bridge of his nose against Eurydice’s forehead, the stillness is exactly what they need.

              It’s Eurydice who initiates movement-pulls back from Orpheus only slightly, just enough to wrap both of her arms around his. Looking down he can see the pull of her breath, deep and slow, before it lets its soft billowing warmth into the air. It’s not much, but it’s enough; Orpheus follows as she nods and makes way to the building, following Persephone’s carefully written instruction to the front desk. Her name comes out in a confidence riddled with a well-hidden waver in her voice, just enough for Orpheus to take note of.

              It isn’t until they’re directed to a tiny room down two separate hallways-until the nurse leaves them to wait for the doctor-that Eurydice’s exterior truly begins to crack. She sits with her feet kicking the side of the bed, arms folded neatly in her lap. There’s a wall of pamphlets, titles about birth control and thinking about your options that have her looking away. Eurydice doesn’t want an option; what she wants is to feel less fear.

              The absence of control is strong in this moment; it plays games within her head, brings her forcefully back to moments where she’d had none at all-the loss of her mother, the men that had tried again and again to tell her that she was useless. Their voices ring in her mind, the pictures of herself as a child; unsteady, unsure, unsupported. There is a split second where she sees that-paints a horrid picture of her future, alone with this baby and back in the ramshackle apartment with its sketchy neighborhood and barely-lockable door. The mere possibility of this walking nightmare sends a numb sort of tingling through her head, where it rests in the mask of her face and multiplies, trickles down through arms and legs she can no longer move. The room is silent-her head begins to spin with the weight on her chest, pushing down hard with its own insecurities.

              You shouldn’t be here. You’re irresponsible. You’re bringing a child into this world and you barely raised yourself. You can’t do it. You don’t deserve this.

              Orpheus’s hand finds hers just in time, settles itself in her lap atop her own. Wordlessly, he stands beside her for a moment-just long enough to gauge the change in her mannerisms, the way her eyes shift from glazed to upset and back again.

              “What can I do?” His voice is soft and tender, attempting to break through. It takes a moment to formulate a response, words tumbling with the thoughts that try and linger, the thoughts she’s trying to push away-to push Orpheus away, too. He stays beside her, keeps his hand on hers. He is patient; understanding. Eurydice looks up at him, pats the space next to her on the examination bed. Eurydice rests her head on his shoulder when he sits, shifts closer to him and keeps his hand tightly wrapped between hers.

              “I’m excited,” she’s breathless, in a way. Apologetic. She looks up at Orpheus through eyes that tear through him, exhaustion and fear and nerves all bundled around the love she radiates toward him, the love she tries so hard to push past everything else. “I’m sorry, I just. I am excited. I want you to know that.”

              “It’s okay. It’s okay to be scared. I’m scared too.” A wave of relief washes over her, and she keeps herself tucked close to him as she brings her attention to the wall of pamphlets again. Something about Orpheus, who’d exceeded every one of her expectations of men, who’d told her he’d loved her too soon, asked her to marry him too soon…something about the most optimistic person she knows showing his own fears brings an unexpected comfort to Eurydice.

              Making the decision to keep this baby hadn’t been easy; how simple it would have been, back before Orpheus, to let go. She hadn’t wanted to be a mother, hadn’t envisioned herself as the type to have maternal instinct, to be strong enough to raise a child after raising herself. When she’d read the test-when she’d cried, thought about her future and her schooling and everything she had worked toward, she felt defeated. She thought she’d known the answer. And then things changed; holding the test she thought of Orpheus, who liked to find her between classes and kiss her forehead, bring her food so she remembered to eat within her busy schedule. She’d thought of disappointing him, but also of the possibility that things just might work out. She thought of Orpheus with Junie, all the adoration in the universe settled into his eyes, his instinct far more present than her own. Eurydice thought of him with their own baby, that just maybe he’d find excitement in it all-that he’d look at their baby the same way. The optimist and the girl who’d been beaten down most of her life; it had made her laugh. Then, he’d been excited. He’d wrapped her in his arms, asked her time and time again if she was serious; not in a way of anger, or disappointment, but of joy. And when he’d told her they’d find a way-that everything would be okay-it was hard to disagree. It still is.

              The doctor comes in and Orpheus finds his own seat, keeping hold of one of Eurydice’s hands as he talks her through the basics, reminding her of her options. All she can do is nod, understanding. A part of Orpheus thinks that maybe, right there, she’ll change her mind. They’re young-she’s anxious. But she smiles at him anyway, a shaky turn of her lips, before asking if they can see their baby.

              There isn’t much to see yet; the doctor points to the screen, explaining exactly what the grainy blur of blacks and whites and greys is attempting to show. Neither cares that the picture is unclear-that they’ll laugh later over where their baby’s head might be. In the moment, there is only a stunned sort of silence in the air between them as they stare at the monitor. Eurydice feels the squeeze of Orpheus’s larger hand within her own as the gentle thrumming, rhythmic and wave-like, fills the room with the sound Eurydice had only ever heard on television or in movies.

              “There’s your baby,” The words wash over Eurydice as a true call to reality-to the fact that this is very real, tangible. She’d recognized the differences within her own body, but hadn’t really felt the distinctive, instant connection that she’d read about on parenting blogs while fueled with her own anxiety. Looking at the tiny little bean shape on the monitor, she wishes she could hold on to this feeling forever. Her heart melts, a gentle squeeze, pulling her toward what had been before nothing more than an alien sort of feeling. And maybe it still feels that way, when she attempts to connect the picture on the screen to what’s happening inside of her own body. But Orpheus kisses her head, wraps an arm around her and begins asking the doctor questions from a paper list, questions they’d written together the night before to help quell her own doubts.

              They walk from the lobby of the office in a peaceful sort of silence; Orpheus with his hand around her waist, Eurydice clutching the print-outs of their baby’s first pictures in hands that refuse to let them go. It’s difficult to believe that this isn’t all just a dream-that she’s made it out of her hell-bound childhood, that the man by her side is someone that’s excited and happy, who loves her in such a soft and tender way and without condition. The pictures keep her grounded, tether her to the present moment and to the future that will come.

              “This is crazy,” she laughs to herself. They’ve stopped in the lobby of the building, Eurydice staring back down at the grainy pictures in awestruck wonder. “This is insane.”

              Orpheus lets his gaze truly examine her for the first time, at first deciphering her words as those of negativity; doubt or disappointment or a sudden change of heart. The smile that he captures instead-the widening of her big doe eyes, the shimmering of welled-up emotion…looking at Eurydice is like looking through his own soul and finding everything he’d ever wanted, everything he didn’t know he needed wrapped up in one beautiful, intelligent, wonderous human being.  He can hardly believe that she’s real, that she said yes to the instant, very strong pull of his emotions-that she wears her tiny little engagement ring with pride, holds his arm and presses herself close to him whenever she can. He can hardly believe that any of this is real, and so he gives himself proof;

              “What are you doing?” She asks as he holds his phone in the air, the rolling numbers of a recording counting up in the corner of their faces.

              “It’s for us, I just…I want to remember. You said you don’t have any home videos, and not a lot of pictures, so…” He turns to the camera, Eurydice laughing as he attempts to adjust the frame to fit them both. Then, his lips turn in a tender sort of smile, his voice soft and low.

              “We just got out of the doctor’s office after seeing you for the first time…you’re just a picture now, and to be honest we can’t even really tell exactly what’s going on in it. But it’s still beautiful, and amazing, and…”

              “Crazy.” Eurydice cuts in, her joy and anticipation coming through in the airy tone of her voice. Orpheus warms at the feeling of her body leaned against his, her head on his chest and her laughter reverberating against him. “It’s crazy, and it makes me feel all kinds of things all at the same time. But the important thing is that we love you, baby. We may not seem like we’re ready for all of this but we’ll get there, I promise.”

              “We love you,” Orpheus turns his head to kiss Eurydice, presses his lips against her forehead and listens to the sound of her giggling-the release of all of her anxiety, all of her doubt. Still at his side, she holds the treasured pictures up to the camera, an uncontrollable smile lifting her flushed cheeks and keeping them there.

              “We can’t wait to meet you.”

[miniaturestarlightsandwich]

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By Glendale2x

New framework seems to have performance issues

This version of ABP for the new Safari framework unfortuantely seems to kill performance on my computers. Maybe it’s partially related to them being a bit older (one is a Mid 2011 Mini, the other is a 2012 iMac), but with ABP enabled I can’t even open a new tab/window and type a URL into the bar and expect Safari to accept the input without having to hold down the return key until it goes or wait a minute after opening a new tab or window. I also noticed that using Twitter was jumpy and lagged even with simple typing, it felt like all the dynamic content it relies on was just struggling to be processed through whatever framework Apple is forcing. Hopefully the devloper can figure out the performance issues because it’s really, really bad now.

By Ramblin'Rose

why isn’t this working?

I have ABP and it wasn’t perfect but worked fairly well for my needs. Recently, it simply disappeared. (I see someone else said that could be from the latest iOS update, but I don’t have that on my desktop yet). When I tried to reinstall, it showed me two boxes to check. The way I read it, if you checked the box that said you wanted the icon visible in the toolbar, it would be able to read sensitive information of all kinds on any page. What good is an app of any kind that allows for that?! As it was, with only the one box checked, it only blocked very few ads, and I was still getting requests from sites to be whitelisted without being able to fnd any way to do it. I’ve got all kinds of garage showing up on my Facebook page, and you guys have ruined what was a reasonable product. WHY?

By PeopleRsad

Still works for me

Almost didn’t download the new version based on the recent reviews, however after looking at the other apps here that claim to be ad blockers I didn’t’t see too many alternatives. I decided to go ahead and get the new version and so far its pretty much the same as the old version, lots of ads blocked. I’m happy, just make sure you go through the simple set-up.

By achilds19

Works well but

After much research, I understand the issue with Apple changing the rules on the devs so they had to build this app from scratch. Works well for me so far, except for one annoying problem. I use Yahoo mail and it's not hiding the ad that appears in the top line of the inbox even with unchecking the Acceptable Ads box, which is super annoying. I know the devs are watching these reviews, so if someone can point me to an extension or something that will fix that, I'd appreciate it. Was using AdGuard and it fixed that problem, but that app behaves like spyware and is constantly running in the background even after you close Safari.

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[orginaldisneychild95]

A Night to Remember (pt 3)

(***)

“Excellent job, so far everyone.. I’m very proud of you. Ms. Swanson, it’s your turn.. please come up to the center.” 

Arista let’s the tension leave her muscles with a deep breath, taking the few short steps to stand in front of her teacher.. looking Stephen in the eye, determination and readiness in her eyes.

“Let’s begin.. concentrate, broaden your mental horizon,.... I want you to put us inside the mirror dimension”.. She gives one nod in acknowledgement and closes her eyes, breathing in deep.. letting her third eye visualize the spell. Slowly, Arista positions her wrist and fingers and after a few seconds, with a swift movement of her arms.. a glass like encasing surrounds Stephen and Arista, she senses everything around her has changed and she opens her eyes. Looking across from her, Stephen is grinning with pure pride.. She looks around, sure enough the rest of the class and courtyard have disappeared.. holographic sparkle shining all over them and the sound of windchimes drifting around them.

She smiles so big, almost like a little girl.. “Well Master Strange, how did I do?” Stephen chuckles with a smirk, wanting so much to grab her and hug her, kiss her.. “You did a phenomenal job, Ms. Swanson... How’s your wrist?” 

Arista checks to see, moves her wrist up and down... there’s hardly any soreness... “Nothing at all, just a bit tight but no pain. This is incredible, I can’t believe I did this”...

“You most certainly did, now before we move on to the next spell... Quick review, what is the purpose of the mirror dimension?”

The infatuation but proud student replies... “It’s a spell to keep sorcerer’s hidden and concealed from the real world, for using spells, incantations, and contain threats. Leaving the mirror dimension is possible, but not without your sling ring” She replies confidently.

Stephen grins at her, so excited to see her advancing so well... “Excellent. Now, on to the next one”...

With a wave of his hand the mirror dimension disappears, Stephen turn towards the rest the class.. “Isn’t she wonderful, applause for her please” he says gesturing to Arista. The students offer her warm praise with abundant cheers, she smiles and bows her head in thanks.. With a proud expression hidden in his eyes as he watches her, he reaches out to her in her mind.. “Okay baby, last one.. remember, move slowly and don’t strain. Are you ready?” He let her go, then he turns back to her and she turns back to him.. Smiling, she nods once signaling that everything he said reached her.. Stephen gives his instructions, “Alright, Ms. Swanson, I want you to conjure the Crimson Bands of Cyttorrak.. However, don’t let it get too intense otherwise it’ll magnify. You’re only demonstrating, not attacking an enemy. Are you ready?” 

Arista takes in a breath and releases it, she puts her shoulders back.. “I’m more than ready, Master Strange”...

Her handsome teacher nods once for to begin.. 

Slowly, Arista closes her eyes.. she’s completely centered and in tune with her body and senses. Her eyes open, she positions her hands and fingers in a diamond shape, slightly separated. Letting her confidence simmer within her, she says the incantation with her strength “By the Crimson Bands of Cyttorrak!” Suddenly, bright red fiery bands sprinkled with flaming embers emerge in front of her, partially encasing her like a shield... looking around her in shock while remaining her composure, she couldn’t believe she did it. One of the most powerful spells for protection and she was able to harness it well, especially with her wrist feeling uncomfortable.. Looking across to Stephen, she’s beyond happy that he was smiling with such pride, but his eyes were dancing with sheer excitement.. She could tell that he was containing himself to grab her and shower her with the adoration she deserved.

Stephen was fighting with himself to not give their love away, but he was immensely impressed with her.. Showering her with more physical praise wasn’t called for at the moment, but she most absolutely earned it.. He thinks to himself, “Oh Arista, I couldn’t be more proud of you baby... You handled yourself beautifully.. all senses in order and in tune. I can’t wait to see how much further you excel with your magic.” 

“Ladies and gentleman, a around of applause for Miss Swanson.. isn’t she wonderful?” The class and Stephen give her bountiful cheers, with a hand gesture from Stephen she lets the spell go.. turning towards her classmates she bows her head in thanks, back towards Stephen she chooses her words carefully.. “Thank you so much, Master Strange.. and to the rest of you as well. It was quite the challenge to perfect it, but I’m glad I finally did. Although, my wrist doesn’t agree with me at the moment”. She giggles, her cheeks slightly pink.. Stephen chuckles softly.. “Miss Swanson, don’t worry.. I have remedy that can fix that” He sees that she’s rubbing her bad wrist with the other hand, he thinks she most likely held the spell in place a bit too long.

Finally, Stephen gives his dismissal speech.. it’s been quite the lesson and in all honesty, he’s secretly anxious to end the day so he can show his beautiful pupil and girlfriend the best night she’s ever had. “Well, I must say... this has been a truly great lesson. You’ve all improved beautifully and getting stronger each time.. He looks over at Arista who was still standing across from him, a soft smile that didn’t reach her eyes because they were filled with something warm, wicked.. Stephen smirks at her and elegantly gestures with one hand for her to return to her place in the group... “As I was saying, let’s keep this pattern going” Arista’s walking away as he continues “Seeing as you’ll need the upmost skill in place for final examinations, and I have full faith that you’ll  make me proud.” Arista is watching him back with group facing him, she’s feeling this urge she can’t describe.. she has to have him, but can lose control, she feels her breathing getting deeper.. 

“That being said you won’t have lessons with me until 2 weeks from today, due to preparations for final exams before the summer break.. so rest well but don’t put practice to on the shelf. I can’t wait to see how far you’ve come. Well, that’s all for this week.. enjoy your well deserved weekend, see you in two weeks” Stephen walks away with applause behind him as the class is dismissed, he’s almost out of sight when he hears... “Master Strange.” He stops, turns back to find Arista standing the center of the courtyard, he smiles.. he saunters back to her, stopping a few feet away.. 

“Yes Miss Swanson?” His beautiful baritone only for her..

Without any words, Arista slowly walks to him closing the gap of space.. Stephen could see her breathing becoming labored, as was his having her her so close. Both of Arista’s hands travel up his muscular arms, his hands are restrained behind his back.. he was trembling, controlling his emotions not to grab her and sweep her away. 

Her hands rest at the back of his neck, fingers intertwined... Going up on tip toe, she smirks her iconic her smirk with a nibble of her lower lip, and without warning, her lips seal themselves over her lovers.. he momentarily tenses but she feels him relax under her touch.. Stephen responses slowly, both of the their mouths softly brushing without a sound. Just soon as Arista stole her chance, she ever so slowly releases him, not a sound coming from either of them.. 

“I hope to see you tonight, Doctor Strange”... Her voice breathy soft, she walks away a smile on her lips... Stephen is still in the same place, in shock but delighted as the woman he loves stole a kiss from him in broad daylight.. He smiles, turning to watch her beautiful figure in the distance.. “Oh trust me, baby... you most definitely will”

(To Be Continued).....