#And also a neat and creepy puppet

[gollancz]

Calling fans of Garth Nix and Creepy Puppets

To celebrate the paperback publication of SIR HEREWARD AND MISTER FITZ, we're running a giveaway on our Instagram! You can win a copy of the book and a one of a kind handmade Mister Fitz puppet!

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The deadline for entry is midnight on Sunday 26th May, T&Cs available on the link in our Instagram bio!

[cmrosens]

Creating fantasy religions: something I'm doing now so thought I would post about my process.

The mistake a lot of writers make is developing a religion from a singular event, and piling a ton of stuff on top of it that makes logical sense. Whereas, in reality, religions are self propelling systems that travel under their own steam and if there is an event that catalyses them, it is never in a socio-cultural or political and economic vacuum.

You also end up with an apparently totally random set of things attached to one figure which does make sense if you know the origins, but otherwise is just accepted even if the meaning is lost.

It is the difference between "the god of Midwinter and festivals around this originated because a cult of necromancers were banished into the frozen wastes and this <event> became the Origin Story for how we got to a midwinter festival with creepy bone puppets in my fantasy world" and a religion that feels ... Real.

Ok so firstly, this is a bit too neat. (This was my original reasoning for a midwinter god called Yarash and I changed it because it wasn't very realistic or interesting for my world.)

Why, let's say, is the god whose feast is at midwinter also the patron of puppet makers and osteopaths?

Well, we could say that this makes a lot of sense because the god's festival was originally to do with remembering the dead, and puppets were used in the festival to represent the dead, as necromancy should have been part of it but people didn't actually know how to raise the dead properly. Then as magic evolved people could actually raise the dead for short periods to deliver messages in these festivals, but this drew internal debate from the conservative priests who thought puppets were the original form and so should be maintained, and necromancy was an aberration, vs the progressives who saw necromancy as the original INTENTION and so the natural and correct progression from the puppets. The debate might rage on for years creating splinters, sects, differing traditions that sit uneasily together but find middle ground in other less controversial topics and practices, and even cults.

At some point, the secular authorities get involved for their own reasons. Maybe some rulers are pro-"The Old Bones" or anti-, or they want to outlaw necromancy or benefit from it for various political reasons, socio-cultural reasons, economic reasons, military intelligence reasons, etc. Whatever happens, happens. Times change. Official attitudes swing back and forth, while internally the religious debates continue, now informed by and perhaps as counters to, this secular intervention.

Then we end up in modern times, the times of the story. Nobody really believes in gods anymore. They do remember the old gods of the seasons and at the secular festival in winter, there are a lot of traditional puppet shows that have a whole history and life of their own. The puppets are called "the old bones" and nobody really remembers why. Osteopaths have the puppets and symbols relating to the midwinter festival on their certificates and college heraldry and nobody really remembers why, but the information is there to look up and is a fun thing to know for trivia nights.

And necromancy... is a controversial branch of science, divorced from its original religious significance for many but not for all, and more integrated as an art or practice in the public consciousness (positively or negatively depending on perspective and propaganda and actual usage).

And now, you have a ton of depth and meat to it without having to flesh out the arguments and debates themselves unless that is plot relevant.

There is a lot you can do with this society now, and by tweaking one thing you can create completely different societies and ideologies. The depth is now there to set your story at any point during this history and to develop numerous ideas. So much stuff can happen.

With the singular event version, and a static fact of a necromancy cult in the frozen wastes, things are much more limited and linear, with less depth to play with.

Also remember that your characters will not be expected to know everything about your world unless they are experts in religion and/or history, and also the 2 subjects are not mutually inclusive so a historian is not an expert theologian and vice versa. How much the average person on the street knows depends on levels of formal education, accessible knowledge beyond formal education, which may include religious instruction and folklore, and propaganda. But it means you can build in some subtle things - like the puppet symbols on the door of an osteopath or bone doctor - that never need to be explained, but have a logical in-world explanation below the surface.

Try taking a static idea and work it into a system and see where it leads!

EDIT: I'm doing a workshop on Build A Hellscape at the Devils and Justified Sinners online conference, Saturday 24th Aug 2024, 9AM UK Time. Sign up below:

[dollydoee]

SOME JANES ID LOVE TO SEE MORE OF

Angelic jane (halos n stuff. Like those old angel dollys I used to get to put on christmas trees)

Zombie/reanimated corpse janeys. Like ones that are actually horrifying to look at (closest I can think of early jane where she looked more like a zombie. Sadly I couldn't find any pics :(((

Wooden doll. I'm aware a good amount of janes use puppet motifs but still

Angry janes. Vague but id love to hear an angrier version of her ballad where she's like frustrated and maybe even FURIOUS how she lost her entire identity and died in a freak accident etc etc

Grey skin. That's kind of it. Just something lime this id feel would look cool (I'm a sucker for cute janes and creepy janes. Every jane is good jane)

White pupils in pure black eyes. Yes like sans. I feel it's look really neat :3

Big hair and/or big hat. Now I feel this may look odd but I feel if done right can really give doll vibes and I just love it. Also can give morute vibes which imo is janes exact vibe

Thats all gn

[eternity-death]

Okay… 2.1 thoughts (mostly revolving around Sunday bc I am obsessed with him)… SPOILERS AHEAD FOR THOSE WHO HAVENT COMPLETED THE QUEST!!!

PART 1

"You got to prove your worth to Sunday before you can speak with him." MEOOOOWWWWW

Aventurine pointing out Sunday's need for control and calling him insecure made me laugh out loud.

Also, the slipping into Sunday's collar... tee hee...

Do you guys think Yan Sunday puts you in the sand pit when he's upset with you...

It's either time-out in the sandpit or a "nice walk" through the real dreamscape. You obviously choose the pit. And now you're stuck with the creepy Oak family puppets for the foreseeable future. It's unnerving and lonely, and despite your shrunken size you start to feel a little claustrophobic.

When Sunday feels you've had enough time to... reflect on your actions... he approaches the sandpit and asks if you're ready to behave.

And yes, he does expect a sincere and lengthy apology.

"Breathtaking view" more like BREASTtaking. We know what you were really looking at, Aventurine.

These are important because in my endless list of drafts I have some hc’s of Sunday being a neat freak and I was correct!!!

Further reinforcing my hc that Sunday would like to help you get ready in the mornings.

Part of it is to satisfy himself and the other part is to make sure you look acceptable and appropriate.

SCREAMED… SUNDAY MIND CONTROL POWERS CONFIRMED…

We now know that he can take away one’s ability to lie… though this is probably just the tip of the iceberg.

THIS SCENE IN PARTICULAR AIWHEGRHWHHWHWHEHAGHW… SCREAMED AGAIN… WITHOUT THE S….

THAT SMILE… WHEN HE KNOWS HE HAS AVENTURINE RIGHT WHERE HE WANTS HIM… INSANITY… MEEOOEOOOOWWOWOW….

[lilaczx]

Live Blogging: TMAGP Ep 40, Public Image

Ohhh interesting incident elements

Is this about InkSoul and Alice's brother?

I am writing this live Blog on time neat

I just had my chicken pesto melt and my two drinks that are very good.

Glances at the beginning of transcript I should read these more.

Peak cozy in chair

Oh my god it's an American

Former military guy?

Yeah veteran turned PI

Is Alice wearing an earpiece

Dane is such a tryhard, he's so silly

I should visit Berlin

Colin's situation is one way to put it.

Gwen don't bring in new people please

Dane sounds like a call of duty guy

He's carrying a strap.

The autistic rizz off

I think Wooden Puppets are hostiles

I love the sound design for HEINRICH

Hmm secret third guy

"Even a monster gets lonely. Also, he offered to help me… develop. I have struggled of late. Computerspiele. Videogames, you understand?" Awww?

Yoo we get his statement

Is it a good chair?

Heinrich Unheimlich is very German

The stranger and flesh?

"And for the first time in its existence, the toy felt something. It was… happy. Satisfied. It had filled a hunger it did not know that it possessed." That's not creepy at all

"But when they came into the house, and they crept up into the room, the toy found the most curious thing… It was real. And it could hurt them. It soon discovered that to kill a child is… A passing rush of fear, acute yes, delicious certainly, but unsatisfying. To scare them, though, to terrorize and taunt, to sit silent and still but with the smallest, tiniest hint of movement… That was delicious, and as they fled from the house and told their friends what they had seen, the children’s story would grow and grow and the toy would feast." That's very good

"He was tall and thin, with a long, matted black beard and slender fingers stained with wood varnish and children’s blood. His eyes were deep and his teeth were sharp as iron nails. The doll was just one of his creations, each of which was full of malice and cruelty. Each hungry for children’s screams." That's a good description that little boy should go into creative writing

Good for Heinrich Unheimlich developing hobbies

Heinrich Unheimlich is a adoptive Dad confirmed?

Klaus, that's not a good idea.

He is a dad

Yeah he is very German

He is going to video game development to better target kids

Can he hurt adults?

Oh shit Dane being stripped to bits

Alice are you okay, how are you calm?

Not the Kay that's such a mood

[sunshine-zenith]

Also while talking about the Encanto related books, here’s a neat detail from one of the books I got my niece — since these are static pictures and not moving images, the artists (credited here as Denise Shimabukuro and “the Disney storybook art team”) showed Camila’s shape shifting powers with him keeping his default outfit

Makes me wonder about if this would’ve worked in the movie with how it was animated— they’d have to modify the puppets of everyone Camilo turned into to have them wearing his outfit (or rather, have him keep his outfit), basically creating a new separate puppet for what would’ve been a brief gag, right? It also would’ve made the Camilo-as-Delores gag harder to pull off (plus it would’ve made it harder to make Camilo’s interpretation of Bruno in WDTAB come off as intimidating. Bright yellows and oranges just don’t read as creepy as greens, even in the dark), though on the other hand it would’ve been charming to see how his outfit would’ve looked on all the random people he turns into

[journalsouppe]

Professor Layton and the Spectre’s Call!! I actually discovered ordering the game from the UK with shipping was actually cheaper than ordering the American version of the game, there were no major differences that I could tell as they still had the original English voice actors.

I enjoyed this game!! Not my top favorite installment but I still had a great time and loved the new characters. The puzzles were well designed and had nice scaled difficulty and the mini games were really neat too. The Eternal Diva references were so blatant lmfao but I’m excited for Miracle Mask! I was also super exhausted when writing the summary so sorry there’s so many errors and I use the word fun a million times ToT

The Descole and Tea sticker are from JordyDrawsMerch! All other stickers are from Daiso. Writing typed below!

Rating: 8.3

Played: Sp 2024

Port: DS on 3DS

Favorite? Y

Replayable? Y

Recommend? Y

Series: Professor Layton

Comments

Emmy and BABY LUKE!!

OH THANK GOD IT’S CHRISTOPHER ROBIN MILLER

Ngl im so excited to watch the anime, I love the animation sm

Oh Layton is not taking Claire’s death well at all

I love how animated the background now is!!

Beautiful music as always

Does Clark have the same VA as Dmitri lol

THE WORLD WILL END? Damn Luke

The specter looks like one of those little kingdom hearts guys

Luke’s been a LaytonMobile hater since day one lmao

Luke is especially funny in this game

Layton taking Luke to the black market is so wild

THE PUPPET PLAY IS ADORABLE

I’m going to fight aunt taffy

Ooo we get to play as Emmy

Holy shit Emmy

GIRL FROG

Emmy asking if Layton always pokes lamps he sees is making me think he physically touches everything the player taps

The convo with the meowing man???

CHELMEY AND BARTON

Based anti-cop npc

THE DYNAMITE WORKS LMAO

Is Hershel gonna get a cask of amantillado’d T^T

The canals are so pretty i like the design of misthallery

Oh i do not like the police chief

I LOVE YOU EMMYYY

Grosky is very funny

Omg the cliff death police cover up reminds me of killer frequency which i just watched a playthrough of

FUCK JAKES

Where’s phoenix when you need him

JAIL BREAK JAIL BREAK!!!

I love descole’s voice

YAAA LADDER VS STEP LADDER

NESSIE???

The story book stories and animations are so CUTE!!

I wonder if Naiya was added to the game to hit at the Eternal Diva

This kinda reminds me of a pokemon movie but I don’t remember which one it was

^^ it was pokemon heroes when latias and latios were caught ^^;

AN OCARINA!!!

Creepy fucking factory music ToT

Oh dear. I seem to have stepped on a hexagonal spanner

Descole always serving massive cunt

Woah the golden garden is beautiful

Ohh so that’s why Luke was fork life certified in plvspw

ZAMN T^T

THE WAY THE SPRITES WALK KILLS ME LOL

I really like these little episodes from others POVS! ^_^

Summary

This was such a fun origin story for Luke and Layton. Very much a classic Layton game with world ending machinery and gorgeous environment design. I really liked both Emmy and Descole, there’s a more serious undertone than with Don Paolo as the main villain (even though I do love Don Paolo). Emmy is amazing!! I was afraid she would be sidelined like Flora was but I’m glad to she stands her ground and does what she wants to do. I alos like how we got to go on our own adventure as her to London, she’s a character that doesn’t need to rely on Hershel to solve everything. Meeting Luke was great, loved his blank stare. It was fun seeing his origins and how Clark and Hershel knew each other. I’m curious how the prequels will play into the New World of Steam, especially now that Luke’s family have stories and sprites (unlike in the original trilogy). Loved the ACAB story, v nice to play while I’m still so mad at what’s happening to university students currently. Descole was so fun, I am obsessed with his outfit and personality. Unfortunately I was spoiled on who he is but I’m very excited to learn more. I think similar to Ace Attorney, the fourth installment is that last game in the classic 2D style, which is sad but PLvsPW makes me very hopeful about 3D Layton. The overall story was fun, I really liked the sub plot about the Ravens - that was really fun (i was so tired writing this omfg). I wish we got a little more backstory on the rich guy who died, I feel like there’s more to the story. OO I loved the little episodes, especially the one about Chelmey. They added a lot of fun context and gave more life to the NPCs. Such a fun and classic Layton game, I can’t wait to play Miracle Mask! (And read the light novels). This wasn’t my favorite Layton game but I still really loved it and had a great time and loved the puzzles — that’s all I want from PL!

[buellersfueller]

Theo Raeken Pokémon Team

#0047 Parasect: The bug host is drained of energy by the mushrooms on its back. They appear to do all the thinking.

#0114 Tangela: Hidden beneath a tangle of vines that grows nonstop even if the vines are torn off, this Pokémon’s true appearance remains a mystery.

#0233 Porygon2: It is an artificial Pokémon. Since it doesn’t breathe, people are excited by its potential to be useful in any environment. -> This artificial Pokémon evolved thanks to cutting-edge science. It sometimes displays behavior that is not in its programming.

#0168 Ariados: It wanders in search of food after darkness falls, never nesting in a specific place.

#0442 Spiritomb: It was formed by uniting 108 spirits. It has been bound to the Odd Keystone to keep it from doing any mischief. + It was bound to a fissure in an odd keystone as punishment for misdeeds 500 years ago.

#0828 Thievul: It secretly marks potential targets with a scent. By following the scent, it stalks its targets and steals from them when they least expect it.

(Explanations and honorable mentions under the cut)

Explanations: I had a few general ideas for what I was looking for including man made Pokémon, liars, and ugly or hard to love Pokémon, these are after all for Theo. Idk if I'd necessarily say he'd have this team but is the team I'm assigning him.

Parasect feels fairly obvious, either the doctors are the parasite or Theo is, it's just about what angel you want to come at it from. Either way, Parasect is one of my all time least favorite Pokémon. I hate it's eyes so much, it's so creepy. Paras is so cute, hence the betrayal of Parasect. This also works for Theo, who masquerades as friendly, and perfectly palatable and then reveals his true form. Also Paras is always doomed, the mushrooms are always there. Per some other Pokedex entries for Parasect, the mushroom spreads it's spores to the bug's eggs once it finishes draining the parent host. Something something born guilty, always doomed.

Tangela was chosen because it's true form is obscured by it's creeping vines. I had initially expected to add Mimikyu to the roster for the very obvious disguise/desperate for love reasons, but I just felt Tangela could do the same work in a slightly less overt way, which felt in line. Also something something vines, puppet strings, strangling, etc.

Porygon is the main man-made Pokémon other than Mewtwo, and legendaries aren't being included, so Porygon. It very much helped that the descriptions for the evolution line are just riddled with interesting tidbits. the line about how its creators are excited about Porygon being useful, for instance. Porygon2 is neat because on the one hand it's upgraded and on the other hand one of the initial pokedex descriptions points out that it can't fly, and is thus still not good enough. On the third other hand this evolution is no longer entirely under the control of its base programming. Its giving boy who was made for a specific purpose which he could never realize, who has in the long term starting down a new path. I'll tell you what, taking pain and being the bait is not in Theo's base programming, but he's still doing it. On a path to independence and identity separate from his origins. Porygon-z was very tempting as the final form and the most glitching version, but ultimately I decided that a middle stage Pokémon added a certain something.

Ariados was a must because Theo needed a spider on his team, I don't make the rules, we all saw the spider scene, it was special (right up until it was horrible. Spinarak, its prior form was also tempting what with it's fun little description about remaining frozen until the dark of night, and I am a little charmed(?) by the idea of horror Movie Child Theo and His Terrible Spider watching motionless as prey struggle to live before finally moving in to take what they need after hours of struggle. I realize I have just described Tara's death and am further assured that this is an absolute must for the line-up. I do maintain that Theo at his canon age can have evolved his Spinarak over the years, so three cheers for that ig. Ariados also hunts by marking it prey and then following them back to their friends, which felt in line. Also, you know, ceaselessly wandering, never finding a place to belong. It fits a little too well. I am actually saying that Theo would literally have this on his team.

Spiritomb is a twofer. A "chimera" of sorts, made up of 108 Pokémon, and bound for his evil deeds. You understand. Woah that's just like my good friend and darling boy Theo Raeken.

Last but not least: Thievul. I know it's name is literally a portmanteau of Thief and evil, but let's take a moment to acknowledge Theo + Evil comes out pretty close as well. Theo is also all about stealing - Josh and Tracy's Power, Scott's pack and alpha spark - and part of Thievul is striking when not expected, which hey man he did that for sure. Ultimately I am not about some word play, and that was a deciding factor, despite the Themes.

Honorable Mentions:

Ditto (obvious reason)

Murkrow (Evil bad omen bird)

Cofagrigus (this was a close one, Cofagrius doesn't remember that it was once human, which I thought was neat thematically (allegedly). the allegedly even make it better, it's just a rumor. Alas only six slots.)

Sinistea ("Sinistea gets into your body when you drink it, and then it steals your vitality from within. It also tastes awful." Look I don't make the rules. It's giving the inhaler, it's giving earning everyone's trust just to destroy the pack and steal everything from Scott. It also add something that the tea from the evolved from, Polteageist, apparently tastes much better but is fatal is you consume too much. Wacky little guy.)

Zorua (I admit, I just don't like Zorua all that much. again, a shapeshifter and trickster. I'm okay with missing out on a literal shapeshift/illusionist in favor of Tangela, I just think Tangela is doing enough in that regard and still has some thematic interest for s6 Theo who is no longer actively lying but is still not Known.)

Mimikyu (See above, I like Mimikyu but...)

The type breakdown IS really poorly balanced, but that's what happens when you go hard on vibes and themes. He winds up basically all Bug, Grass, Dark, Ghost, and Poison, fitting for a guy who killed his sister int he wood ig. I do have mild obsessed with Theo taking up "Uselessness" as a hobby, so a team that simply would not stand up to the elite four appeals to me. These are supposed to be his little guys, I think he's spent long enough shaping every aspect of his existence to being of use.

Bonus: Nolan definitely gets an Espurr, that's literally a photo of him.

Bonus 2: I haven't thought about it (yet?) but Scott definitely get a Chansey (maybe a little Happiny), because veterinarian. I also think he get's exclusive rights to Lycanrock (The werewolf Pokémon). I also Like the idea of him having a Snubbull or Granbull, who are mean, which Scott demonstrably think is funny in humans, and are dogs (Scott deserves a dog), and also they're timid Pokémon who are putting up a front, and I am charmed by Scott having such a pet.

[variousqueerthings]

I've just been spending the last few hours thinking about this ending that I haven't even thought about the whole rest of the episode, I've gotta. I've gotta just

oh boy I've gotta just fuckn

nothing about donna or fourteen or fifteen here just all the rest

1- at first I was thinking that the toymaker was defeated in kind of a simple way, but then on the other hand it's more a setup for some of the things we know is coming in ncuti gatwa's era, with classic!who gods. so the toymaker, yes, gives the opportunity to wrap up this past era and for DT to do those big sad wet eyes of his, but is far more for the next story's benefit in the long run from the sounds of things. also the behind-the-scenes for the game of catch is hilarious. NPH was so good, would be cool to see the toymaker make a reprise just with gatwa

2- ohhhhhhhhhh the Puppetry in this episode! PUPPETS! I am soooo into puppets, I could have spent a million episodes with these creepy fucking puppets, I hope we get more puppets

3- AND speaking of the toymaker, the master in the toymaker's tooth???? I haven't seen dhawan yet, so idk how that all ends, but I did not expect master setup, and I am very happy we did because the master is my favourite (derogatory, what a bitch)

4- RTD talking about the puppet that was broadcast on TV, I knew about that puppet (from getting a quiz answer wrong relatively recently lol), but giving that little historical Moment, now we all know a bit more, I just think it's neat

5- I am still not a fan of UNIT. every time we meet them they're a military force with weaponry that has the potential to do so much harm and... then they lose control of that weaponry. and also do weapons-related stuff that often makes the situation worse. I feel similarly of classic!UNIT who do manage to help out more on the whole, but still are fundamentally military and several times have people who do Bad Shit. dunno, still trying to figure out their place in this narrative other than convenient guns when we need guns. I want them to be more complicated if they come back for the next era, I'd be interested if shirley-ann bingham became a liz shaw type and really questions the limitations and biases that exist within UNIT

6- wait no, going back to point the first I'm soooo excited for the things they've hinted at, stories about gods are my whole damn jam, it's going to be amazing!

7- them playing the prime minister saying he doesn't care about anybody and donna goes "same as always" (or however she says it), listen, it's low-hanging fruit and I am eating it, anything dragging the british government and right wing sentiment is good and necessary for my soul personally

8- one really big Thing is no martha. will never get that closure RIP. argh though freema agyeman and ncuti gatwa could do great things together I think, cmon. one day

I'm sure more things will come up as I think about it, but off the top of my head

[jp---v]

Chapter 414

Apparently someone thought that the break was long enough to warrant a recap

Still looking like a creepy puppet just to keep moving

Imagine just casually mutilating yourself just because something gave you "the heebie jeebies" that regeneration is a fucking cheat code

The classic 'can't decay what you can't touch' method this time with an absolutely massive chunk of the ground

That's a neat little work around, too bad it's pretty limited

Hey remember when Dabi still kind of looked like a person? Good times.

I would also be confused if my 1-on-1 match (complete with inspirational speech) was interupted by the lizard man with purple hair and an obsession with swords

Get his ass, next quirk fire it off

Midoriya is the gun, the quirks are the bullets

No reloading, no missing a shot. Do or Die

[tobiasdrake]

You know, as much fun as we're all having stabbing this guy in the junk, it's going to have to come to an end at some point.

What the hell is going on here? Are they... feeding these monsters to something?

Aephorul said he was going to fuse the Acolytes with the Dweller of Strife to create a whole new thing. Maybe these Dweller minions are being... fed to or... fused to Strife as well.

Or this might have something to do with Erlina?

Whatever it is, I hate it. Also, those guys in Acolyte robes. I hate them too.

Mm. Slayings for later. Right now, Soul Curator's sensitive spots have a date with Serai's knife.

Gonna stay still and get it over with this time?

What, like some sort of grim Captain Planet of Viscera?

*gasp* Captain Viscera. THAT IS SO COOL! I love the cape, especially; The way it blows in the wind like a badass. And the fire scythe really brings the look togeth--

Wait, this is bad for us.

Now, you could defend this compound from the unruly agitators bringing war into your domain but, counterpoint, you have that big bladey weapon and the Soul Curator makes really funny noises when you--

Yeah, that's fair.

So you're a... teleporty shifty robot guy made from four combined (human?) souls fused together who can break apart into copies of itself. That's neat. Okay. Are the copies driven by different souls?

Beside the point. Loathe as I am to credit alchemy for things, my creepy stalker puppet over here has these neat tonics. Here, let me float a couple over to you.

Aren't they cool? Yeah, they're cool, huh. You know what happens when they mix?

Phase-shift that, asshole.

Yeah, that kind of thing is what radial attacks are for. Never underestimate the value of a well-placed hand grenade.

Oh, shit. Erlina next? Seriously? Will you just fucking die alrea--

Oh. Well. There we go. One last shank for the road.

I'm happy for you, Serai.

I've seen you smile several times since we began avenging your people. And I never get sick of it.

So, that just leaves the Dweller of Strife, whatever that long-ass name Erlina has now is, and Aephorul himself. I think we're just about done here.

Oh, that's probably a good idea. It won't matter where those minions were being sent to if they can't come back.

OH. OKAY.

For once in my life, I'm going to vote for "DO NOT smash the thing." In fact, let's be very, very careful what we touch.

Planet killing bomb, Zale. What do you think you're going to do? Hit it and then run away really fast and hope the explosion forgets you were there?

...

Oh, never mind. Hack away, Zale. Cut it to ribbons before it even knows it's dead. I love it when--

Well. That's just unfair, is what that is. What about you, Serai? You think you're quick enough to--

DRUMSTICKS!?

I'm sorry, I'm still stuck on "Who the fuck are you?" with a side helping of "How and why are you even here?"

Uh. Okay. Thank you and farewell, random bird stranger.

What the fuck are you implying? What, you think I'm going to jump them from behind while shouting "SNEAK ATTACK FUCKO!"

...

You know what, that does sound like me. That's a valid concern to have. I'll try to remember not to attack anybody unprovoked.

See you around, I guess?

[walking-fnaf-encyclopedia]

That's so real- our fictives tend to influence that stuff for me too, like my danganronpa AU having influences from my Junko and Makoto (villain and hero of danganronpa) headmates, but I think Sophie (from The Walten Files which is what TWF is) is the only one who's rlly made an AU of her own.

In my swap AU, basically, the order and circumstances surrounding each death are switched, and the killer is... kind of different as well. My current thought process is that William murdered Sammy- he hadn't intended to kill him, but he more or less beat him until he died from a traumatic injury- but he didn't kill any of the other kids. Instead, Henry, desperate to bring his son back, killed all the missing children. Elizabeth was still killed by Baby, but this incident was caused by the well meaning but unaware older brother Cassidy (crying child) leaving her alone in just the wrong moment and panicking and protecting himself instead of her. He later gets springlocked in Spring Bonnie. Spring Bonnie and Fredbear were actually from a totally different sister location. Michael was kind of an. extra murder on top of everything else just to take everything away from William but idk who he'd possess. Puppet maybe? Its weird creepy design feels up his alley.

The band in this AU is fronted by Baby. Freddy is a more or less scrapped character barely used for shows if at all, and as such, Susie is stuck in the back most of the time. Chica, Bonnie and Foxy make up the rest of the band, and Gabriel takes over Chica where Jeremy is Foxy and Fritz is Bonnie.)

All of this.. disaster leaves Charlie alive, and Charlie was actually childhood friends with several of those kids, including Elizabeth. She has genuinely no idea what happened to all of her friends, and has carried that with her, hoping that one day she might be able to track down Elizabeth and figure out if she's actually still alive. Which she is not, and Baby, angry at Charlie for her father's actions, really.. rubs this in. On the other hand, Cassidy is being manipulated with his own fear into being on Henry's side.

This is one of my less developed AUs (my two main aus have a RIDICULOUS amount of lore) but here it is :D

ohhhh the walten files. ive never seen it shortened to that and havent watched anything related to it in a while so i didnt pick up on it lol

ohhh william killing sammy and then henry killing everyone else - thats good, love that!!

CASSIDY CRYING CHILD CASSIDY CRYING CHILD (<-has a cassidy crying child fictive)

the puppet being possessed by a character thats so drastly different from the original puppet is fascinating! and mike as a murdered has me curious 👀

poor susie, but baby getting to be the face of the band is cute! does her design - or the others’ designs - change to make them mesh better with each other? shed look kinda out of place with the og’s, hell even with the toys.

charlie being alive, and seemingly taking a similar role to og mike is neat!! and cassidy being manipulated UGH i love casskdy crying child it feels very. underexplored?? i feel like i never see it. i love evan crying child and his bestie cassidy but you can pry lonely cassidy crying child who blames their dad for their death more than they do michael out of my cold dead hands

LOVE this au!!! thanks for sharing!!! if there are any yall want to talk about in detail - or any of my aus you want to ask about in detail - go ahead! sorry that this answer took longer, lol

also HAPPY FNAF MOVIE BIRTHDAY!!!! hope you guys get to go see it if you want!!!

[game-boy-pocket]

Well everyone I saw the Five Night Feddy movie.

Here's my honest to goodness review guys.

Zero out of ten stars. NO Puppet. NO toy mangle. NO Monty Gator. No Roblox Circus Baby. No Glamrock Huggy Wuggy. No Flumpty Bumpty. Just old hat gen wunner trash bots that only appeal to Freddy boomers. They don't know what REAL fans want. They want that Jumbo Josh, they want Stinger Flynn. They want Sonic EXE. Real fans don't want the story of five murdered kids haunting some obscure near decade old characters nobody wants anymore. They want Markiplier and Mr Beast in VR chat doing the floss with Underhell Sans and that sick Imposter Baldi mod. Two thumbs DOWN for pandering to that OLD hat FNAF 1 garbage, I spit on this film for the lack of youtuber cameos.

Okay, my disdain for that whole scene that I feel popped off with FNAF ( okay let's be honest here it was really Slender but Slenderman has since faded into obscurity ) would not allow me to not make a joke review but with that out of the way, I thought it was a neat adaptation of the source material. Not sure how well it will go over with people who aren't already fans of the franchise. I also feel like fans will have nit picks. I think the robots having glowing red eyes make them significantly less creepy. I also feel like they could have done a bit more with the dream sequences.

The reveal at the end was cool and I hope it leads to another movie with a Jason Vorhees style big bad, but I guess we'll see how it goes. Very tame, feels less creepy than the games by a lot, but I think they know who these games are the most popular with.

[lilaczx]

Live Blogging: TMAGP Ep 40, Public Image

Ohhh interesting incident elements

Is this about InkSoul and Alice's brother?

I am writing this live Blog on time neat

I just had my chicken pesto melt and my two drinks that are very good.

Glances at the beginning of transcript I should read these more.

Peak cozy in chair

Oh my god it's an American

Former military guy?

Yeah veteran turned PI

Is Alice wearing an earpiece

Dane is such a tryhard, he's so silly

I should visit Berlin

Colin's situation is one way to put it.

Gwen don't bring in new people please

Dane sounds like a call of duty guy

He's carrying a strap.

The autistic rizz off

I think Wooden Puppets are hostiles

I love the sound design for HEINRICH

Hmm secret third guy

"Even a monster gets lonely. Also, he offered to help me… develop. I have struggled of late. Computerspiele. Videogames, you understand?" Awww?

Yoo we get his statement

Is it a good chair?

Heinrich Unheimlich is very German

The stranger and flesh?

"And for the first time in its existence, the toy felt something. It was… happy. Satisfied. It had filled a hunger it did not know that it possessed." That's not creepy at all

"But when they came into the house, and they crept up into the room, the toy found the most curious thing… It was real. And it could hurt them. It soon discovered that to kill a child is… A passing rush of fear, acute yes, delicious certainly, but unsatisfying. To scare them, though, to terrorize and taunt, to sit silent and still but with the smallest, tiniest hint of movement… That was delicious, and as they fled from the house and told their friends what they had seen, the children’s story would grow and grow and the toy would feast." That's very good

"He was tall and thin, with a long, matted black beard and slender fingers stained with wood varnish and children’s blood. His eyes were deep and his teeth were sharp as iron nails. The doll was just one of his creations, each of which was full of malice and cruelty. Each hungry for children’s screams." That's a good description that little boy should go into creative writing

Good for Heinrich Unheimlich developing hobbies

Heinrich Unheimlich is a adoptive Dad confirmed?

Klaus, that's not a good idea.

He is a dad

Yeah he is very German

He is going to video game development to better target kids

Can he hurt adults?

Oh shit Dane being stripped to bits

Alice are you okay, how are you calm?

Not the Kay that's such a mood

[reviewsclown]

Star Wars Episode VI; Return of the Jedi 1983

A second death star, I hope this doesn't set a trend for future movies vis a vis 'another death star'. Anyways, Jabba the Hutt and his band of freaks, skin colored tentacle man and gomorrean guards, a twi'lek is there. Jabba looks much better as a puppet and not a CGI edit inserted after the fact. Speaking of why's there a bunch of CGI aliens that look like dogshit that are here to sing a song and, look sexy? it's unclear. 5 million years of porn from the sexy green twi'lek. Anyways awesome rescue mission where everyone sneaks in, poor Han kind of, blind and weak from the freezing. 5 million more years of porn from slave bikini Leia. The Rancor was cool, they made a lot of toys of that thing. Whats the point of showing the fat white guy that owned the Rancor being sad about it's death, does that add anything to the plot or themes, the sand barges are cool, just an iconic vehicle in a way, the Sarlaac is also cool and iconic, and suffers from needless added CGI that, doesn't really make it ugly it just wasn't needed whatsoever. Boba Fett falls in a hole and for the next 40 years people make media related about him, even though he did literally nothing of note. Palpatine and Yoda continue being parallels it seems, but as palpatine becomes more present in the story, living on the death star, yoda leaves the story dying of old age, also I guess all jedi can dissappear when they die? I thought that was an Obi-Wan special but Yoda does it too, so maybe it's a thing about being powerful? Unclear, I think it's never elaborated on. Admiral Ackbar is cool, what a good costume it is, the rebel bases are always a neat collection of characters. Cool stealth mission with a stolen shuttle into the death star 2 where Luke and Vader can definitely sense each other through their newtype familial connection. I've always been a fan of the scout trooper designs and their sick-ass speeder bikes. Ewoks are weird little guys, teddy bears with creepy faces that have a tribal society and worship c3po like some kinda cargo cult, and eating the main characters. Anyways, this scene with Luke and Vader talking is very cool I think, redemption arcs are happening, palpatine's neat but not that much of a character, just an evil guy, and he doesn't need like 5 movies that give him depth, but can't win them all. Was it cruel to have the ewoks fight in a war they couldn't understand as led by their god-king c3po. This movie dedicated to the brave mujahideen ewoks. Parallels in Vader and Lukes fight, his hand got cut off… and it was a robot hand… just like Lukes hand…… also force lightning is awesome. very funny that Vader just picks up palpatine and throws him down a hole. In a marvelous showing of good ideas when the empire dies they show a bunch of planets we've never seen in the original trilogy that were added later. and also replacing redeemed vader force ghost with that guy that killed a bunch of kids, odd choice. But overall the celebration is a pretty good ending.

The edits in this show really well again how much better the puppets are than the CGI, way better Jabba than the first movie, way better all aliens than the first movie. it works for the ships they don't need to look super good, or at least it's less noticeable. Really good sword-fights in this movie much like the second one, they're sort of leaning into the flippy bullshit of the prequels? But it's not at that level yet they only do like 2 flips.

Final Review: Damn that was a good as hell movie, if you haven't seen the original trilogy, you really should sometime.

[31stday]

8 - The Birds

Synopsis: Melanie meets Mitch in a pet store and, after some flirting, surprises him in his hometown north of San Francisco. Unfortunately, this weekend away coincides with an assault on the town by attacking birds.

Year/Country: 1963 / US

Subgenres: creature feature

Reason for watching: Trying to get more classics on my lists! Also, it's probably been more than 20 years since I've watched this movie (but I remembered it all so well!).

Highlights: Great acting. Unsettling. Also, love dissecting all the cinematography and effects that went into the movie.

Lowlights: While unsettling, not necessarily scary. Also, I do find the bird sounds a little offputting - not in a "creepy and getting under my skin" way but in a "that's not real birds" way.

Rewatchabilty: Absolutely.

Overall review: An absolute classic. Good story. Could enjoy the acting even though I found the characters ridiculous. The suspense is really well done (though the movie never really gets scary). As mentioned above, I love breaking down the use of editing, real birds, puppets/fake birds, etc. throughout - so fun to see how creative and innovative the work was in creating this film. However, my favorite part of the film is the end - I don't know if I'm always into such an open ended non-resolution at the end but it just works here. I also very much appreciate how it is never explained why the birds are behaving the way they are. I think the modern day interpretation probably defaults to climate change, while I imagine the 60's interpretation was probably something to do with Russians.

Who should watch it?: People who like suspense. People who don't need their movies tied up with a neat little bow.

Also, evidently it's a Mandela Effect that people remember this movie as being originally in black and white. I would have sworn that was the case before reading about it tonight. It was always in color, but the production stills were released in black and white (omfg, I love all the kids' reactions in this scene).