#Distribution channels definition

[deathsmallcaps]

Ok when I reblogged this last night, I picked 3rd because that’s what I’ve heard, but I also said maybe a little bit #4? Because at the time I thought ‘well something not really mattering to you = a sort of rejection” so I was a little confused as to how they were separate options?

And then when I woke up and I saw this I remembered that the ‘rejection’ idea was an antisemitic talking point. As in supposedly you saw the undeniable truth of Jesus and were like nah.

So I’m not sure how else it could’ve been worded - it was quickly visible to me after a good night’s sleep - but I wonder how many other people were thinking similarly to me when they picked #4, and how many are genuinely antisemitic. But I hope there’s just a lot of confused people.

[tony-andonuts]

How the fuck are ads made from or using tiktoks/that one ai voice used on every online ad ever also being used on CABLE TV like whaaaat

[artbyblastweave]

Lindelof's Watchmen?

I have very mixed feelings on it. I think it had extremely confused ideas about police and policing, power and its proper distribution, and failed to commit to its initial apparent skepticism on those topics in a satisfying way.

That said, I think that This Extraordinary Being provided an interesting and potentially very important counterweight to the original text. The superhero community in the original Watchmen was deliberately monoracial, white or white passing, because a major theme of the book is about the paradox of living out a rebellious cowboy ubermensch fantasy that's nonetheless functionally dependent on widespread tacit societal approval of your vigilante violence in order to remain sustainable. Let's run through the lineup of the Minutemen, excluding the cypher that is Hooded Justice- we've got a star athlete, a millionaire playboy, a former marine, a showgirl, a thug-turned soldier, a cop, a European heiress. The book presents superherosim as a gratuitous fantasy, carried out by people with sufficient institutional backing that they had other options.

But the thing about condemning "vigilante violence" is that sort of by definition, you can only really do so from an implicit position of faith in legitimate channels- there has to be something you can direct the would-be vigilante towards instead. Watchmen answers this by claiming it's a moot point, exclusively positioning superheroes as people integrated with and protected by the system, even if what that integration looks like in practice changes over the forty-year span of the timeline. This Extraordinary Being retorts, alright, smartass, what if you're not protected by the system, what if the system wears on its sleeve the extent to which it doesn't care about you and everyone who looks like you. You bring in a "vigilante" who's a black survivor of a race massacre in the 1930s- a man who tried to go through your legitimate channels and got stonewalled at every turn- and it suddenly becomes extremely difficult to plausibly portray the superheroic impulse as universally, irredeemably gratuitous. Very abruptly, you're brought back face to face with the actual fundamental appeal of the superhero genre- the idea of a figure who can cut the gordian knot when evil has choked out the halls of power so thoroughly that the idea of legality becomes a bad joke. Not that he really successfully cuts the knot, mind- this is still a bitter deconstruction. The scene where Will massacres the cyclops cell and burns their warehouse to the ground isn't precisely a framed as a triumphant beat. But it's an act of violence that nonetheless invites the question of what, at this point, you think that he ought to be doing in response to Cyclops, if not this.

[ukfrislandembassy]

I think that conlangs are a very useful way of seeing how the biases of linguistic theory manifest when applied by amateurs (and occasionally professionals). When linguists are promoting their theories they often like to make the claim that they can account for all phenomena, even if there's some clear foci for their actual attention. So the outputs of conlanging as a hobby make an interesting case study of the application of these theories, because the theories bias the kinds of structures conlangers actually end up including in their languages.

Specifically, it seems clear to me that internet-based conlangers especially show the clear effects of the assumptions made by what Jim Blevins terms the 'Post-Bloomfieldian Structuralism' that has been the default mode of linguistic analysis and theorising for decades now.

In phonology this manifests with the focus on phonemes and phoneme inventories, partly at the expense of phonotactics but especially phonetics. The result of this is a flattening of phonological structure; each of these phonemes ends up being tret as a unit of equal status within the system, with any kinds of distributional asymmetries between phones only included as an afterthought by means of some phonological rules.

It's why you get channels like Conlang Critic on Youtube pronouncing each of the individual phonemes of a conlang like that tells you what you need to know about the actual sound of a language. I rarely see any kind of restricted distribution or positional neutralisation of the kind seen in e.g. the Mandarin Chinese palatal series.

Morphology is where this kind of fixation most strongly manifests, because morphemes are an even worse fit for the morphological phenomena of natural languages than phonemes are for phonological phenomena. In effect what this leads to is the same kind of atomisation that we see with phonology; all 'morphemes' are tret as having equal status in the system, so you end up with a morphological system that just comes off as a phonologically more bound version of the syntax (but with more lists).

For instance, when was the last time you saw a conlang that made use of the concept of 'stem'? Or which showed syncretism between cells in paradigms? Have you ever seen a conlang that made use of a morphological pattern that could be considered 'morphomic'? I could go on.

None of these are somehow 'strange' or 'exotic' phenomena; they're found to some extent in pretty much all Romance languages, perhaps most elaborately in French, and much of this also crops up all over Germanic too.

I think there might be some of this tendency in the lexicon too; homophony and polysemy seem oddly infrequent in conlangs, even though they're ubiquitous in natlangs (English I/eye and you/ewe are particularly neat for showing that not even pronouns are safe from this). I've not got as much to say on this as I don't tend to pay so much attention to conlang lexicons, so I could be wrong on this one.

The actual relationship of conlangs to linguistic theory is messy, and I'm acutely aware that this is largely anecdotal. Indeed, plenty of experienced conlangers make a point of highlighting at least some of these issues, and there's definitely conlangs that avoid many of these issues (Siwa/Siųa is a good one for this, you'll have to dig through the thread to get to the actual grammar). My intent here is mainly to get some discussions going, because the real question is actually 'how do we get the conlang community to understand these phenomena and make use of them at the kinds of rates that we actually find in natural languages (which is pretty much any language with morphology, with maybe a couple of exceptions)?'

[cowboymantis]

Headcanoning possible Life Series "gimmicks"/concepts

...with a twist! What's the twist? Yeah. Inspired by Kamen Rider season gimmicks WHO WOULD'VE THOUGHT

I'll only do some because 1) I have yet to watch every Kamen Rider season 2) not every season fits for a Life Series gimmick. Especially the older ones would be too repetitive since they are very similar in that regard!

Also, if I don't specify further, the regular lives distribution is used.

1) Kamen Rider Kuuga

This is probably the most normal, not too gimmick heavy KR season I'll add here. But the thing with the Gurongi seems interesting to implement into a Life Series season! In the show, Kuuga needs to kill all the Gurongi, who make a game out of killing as many humans as they can.

Possible concept:

There are two teams of players, randomly chosen each session. A and B, for simplicity. Team B needs to kill as many things as possible. What things? Some sort of mob maybe. Or just any mob in general. But team A needs to kind of prevent them from doing this. Definitely would be harder at the beginning, where greens can't kill each other to prevent this, but could get chaotic later on with a more serious threat of being killed for participating.

Each team will, similarly to Secret Life/Trivia Bot, gain some rewards if they're the successful team. The losing team doesn't get a penalty, I think then people wouldn't focus TOO heavily on this game.

2) Kamen Rider Ryuki

Oh... Ryuki me belobed... One of the best and most painful seasons fr, a timeless classic. In this season, it's all about a battle royale, called the Rider War. The Riders need to fight to the death until only one is left, who gets a wish fullfilled. They also fight with the help of a card deck that gives them abilities. On top of that, Riders all have a contract with a monster from the "Mirror World" that helps them fight. If they don't feed it in time (like with other monsters or humans), it will eat them.

It's kinda a bit like Pokémon- uh, without the eating It's own trainer. Funnily enough, the voice actress of Ash sings the opening theme! She's a big Kamen Rider fan and still friends with one of the actors of the show to this day!

((BTW! As of just recently, Kamen Rider Ryuki is fully available on Youtube for free! On the TokuSHOUTsu channel. It has also been on Tubi for a while, but it coming to Youtube is actually wild. Probably need a VPN if it isn't in your region though, it's always kinda weird with Toku...))

Possible concept:

There are a couple things I have in mind here, could be either their own concepts or combined, but then it'd be a bit too chaotic 😭

- Card decks. Well, this isn't the only KR season that has cards as gimmicks. And now, with Wild Life, the Life Series has done it too! But here, the cards are all individually given to the players. They have a button or a card deck in their inventory. When triggered, it gives them a random temporary ability. Maybe some sort of buff, or even weapons! Everything around offence and defence. Of course, to balance it, there will be a cooldown after each use. Maybe the lower the players' lives are, the stronger they get.

There is the so-called "Survive" card only a few characters get throughout the show, but it would be cool to have it in the finale for the last players to be triggerable. Basically, think a huge boost for all stats and/or good weapons/armour.

- Contract monsters. So, in session one, everyone is off to go find one mob they want to use as a contract monster. The contract is done by defeating any mob while holding a contract card in the off-hand. Let's say each mob has certain useful abilities it would bring, also they help fighting. They cannot be killed by other players as long as their owner is alive, so they aren't too strong on their own, more used for the players as supporters. BUT if you don't feed it regularly, it will start hunting you down, and then you'll be also the one who can't kill it.

How to feed it? Hostile mobs, other player kills (doesn't matter if it's a regular kill or permakill). All of those kills count the same amount so people don't actively try to kill each other from second one.

What happens to the contract mob if it's player permadies by another player? Well, let's make it pretty much like in Ryuki and they will try to get revenge and hunt the killer down. BUT if the player defeats it, they can either kill it off for good, or make a contract with it, too. It will "fuse" with the players OG mob, aka it will get it's effects added on top of it.

Keep in mind, the more contract mobs you have, the more mouths you have to feed, even though they're fused, they count as multiple.

- The finale. So, by the end, there is one player left, the usual. You can definitely count them as the winner, BUT they now have to prove themselves in a final battle against someone. Who? Could be either the "strongest" player on the server (can be decided on beforehand or in the moment), or someone who isn't even in the Life Series! If they lose then it would certainly be a bit embarassing. It's only really a silly little thought on how to implement this concept of the Rider War, since there aren't any real stakes in a Minecraft series 😭

3) Kamen Rider 555

(Pronounced or also just referred to as Kamen Rider Faiz)

Now, this one I didn't initially want to include because I wasn't sure how, but some sort of Orphnoch-like would be interesting.

In the world of Faiz, there are beings called Orphnoch and they're... kind of similar to zombies in the way of how they exist but not... all of them??? Let's see how I can do this.

I will be using the name Orphnoch, because zombie just would feel weird lol.

Also, interestingly enough, Orphnochs are all grey! Thought this was kinda fitting - because of the grey red life skins. Although now people seem to go more into the red, but still.

Possible concept:

Two ideas on how to implement it!

- There are two ways players' lives are distributed. 6 or 5 lives. The ones that already are Orphnochs that haven't awakened their powers yet, and the ones who will turn into one after death.

A: Players with 6 lives, upon reaching their last live, will get into a buffed state and their name turns grey. They cannot die from anything other than other Orphnochs OR enchanted weapons.

The buffed stats will all be kind of different, with them randomly focusing on speed, strength, or defence.

On top of that, they can hear further and get night vision, making it harder to sneak up on them.

B: Players with 5 lives, upon losing their 5th life, will not permadie. After about 10 minutes, they will be revived with a grey name and also be in the Orphnoch state that's the same as the one mentioned.

- I think this is my preferred one. A bunch of random players will be assigned the Orphnoch role, but they won't know.

The Orphnoch system is a bit different. Live distribution is all the same, but the Orphnochs will get into the buffed state about 10 minutes after their "permadeath". BUT the main thing is: they don't know it from the beginning on, so it's secret and more of a gamble.

Now, if they were to kill (not just permakill) a player in their Orphnoch state, the player will also turn into one. Their abilities will be the same as the killers, just weaker.

So let's say Orphnoch player A has strength 2, then converted player B will have strength 1.

One natural Orphnoch can only convert ONE player per session. Converted ones don't have this power. Only direct kills count as conversion, so no trap deaths, for example.

In this case here, anyone/anything can kill Orphnochs because it would be too OP otherwise. BUT, if you get turned into an Orphnoch on your last life, even though you naturally would've turned into one, you still get the weaker powers. All adds to the gamble.

Thing is, if you naturally turn into an Orphenoch after death, or let yourself get permakilled by one to turn into one, then you technically gain one life.

I think this would work well with people trying to make alliances and hoping to get permakilled by Orphnochs to get a stronger extra life, or taking the gamble of naturally being one.

Idk. I feel like this sounds weirdly complicated, but I think it could be really fun!

((Take a shot whenever I say Orphnoch))

4) Kamen Rider Blade

OUGHGhh just like Ryuki: one of the best and most painful seasons. I will never be able to look at That bench the same again.

Anyway, in this season, it's all about a battle royale and it's card theme- wait, now when I say it like this is sounds like Ryuki again!

Well. Battle royales and adjacent survival/death games happen quite a few times in KR seasons, I love them!

In this one, there's a battle royale happening between the "Undead" - no, despite the name, they are not zombies, they are their own beings. They're actually called Undead because of their immortality. That's where the card theme comes in- instead of killing those Undead, they can only be sealed away once defeated.

Okay... the battle royale in this show also has its own name. Yeah. It's stupid. Yeah, it's called "Battle Fight". Yeag.

Anyway, the winner here will be granted a wish to change the world however they want, all that again. Not really important for when you put it into a Life Series concept...

Also, one of the characters has a "wild" form. And he transforms into it using a card that has "wild" written on it. WILD CARD REAL??

Possible concept:

The thing is, sealing away Undeads in Blade puts them inside cards that can help for battles. HOWEVER, there are two similar upcoming seasons I want to put in here that I will be utilising this for instead, so I'll focus on another thing in the show: the Joker, a very very powerful Undead.

(But also btw an absolute meow meow. Look at this adorable little guy. My phone case is based on a card he uses <3)

See, in this show, the cards are based on a suit of cards. There are different categories of "cards", so I'll be turning this one into a gimmick.

- This game starts completely normal, but there is one difference: everyone has a card in their inventory. To make sure everyone's stays safe, it's not possible to drop or put them into storage. If you want to transfer it to a different person, you need to do so via command.

This one card is their only chance as sealing the Joker. Who is that? At the beginning, one player gets randomly chosen to be this Joker. They can't normally permadie if they're on their last life. They can ONLY be sealed with the card everyone gets at the beginning.

Maybe see it as a bit like werewolf/mafia/among us, one of those type of social deduction games? It's not like the boogeyman, the Joker isn't an one episode curse and they technically don't have to kill anyone. Their only goal is to survive until the end. If by the end only two players are left, one of them is the Joker, and the other player doesn't have a card left, they will automatically lose because they can't kill the Joker.

If the Joker gets sealed before the finale, then the game just proceeds normally.

If the sealing card gets used on someone who is NOT the Joker, the player using the card loses a life. This, of course, will make it harder to use this ability towards the finale, especially if you're on your last life and risk permadying.

All in all, it's a very normal Life Series type game, just with this one looming threat that could ruin the finale.

Some thoughts on how to make it not too easy:

> The player who is the Joker isn't stronger in any way and can still take damage on their last life, they can only not die. Whenever they were to "die", they get a totem of undying effect - or maybe an alternative animation/sound to not make it too annoying lol. Either way, this is to ensure people don't go hitting everyone on their red life and see if they take damage or not.

> Depending on how many players are playing, maybe only half of the session gets a card. I feel like if a TON of people have those cards, the Joker can just be deducted from trial and error very quickly. Either that, or two Jokers. But then they'd have to leave each other alone 💔

> In a hypothetical scenario where this would be a series on Youtube, yeah, it 100% needs to be completely prerecorded up until the finale. Y'know how watchers are, want to spoil the fun for everyone and tell on every secret!

5) Kamen Rider W

(Pronounced Kamen Rider Double)

Oh, W... One of those things in Kamen Rider I had to think about when the whole Martren situation happened in Wild Life! (also. Wait. I just remembered one of the main characters actors names is Renn. huh...)

It's more of a detective-type season, but the main concept of this seasons main Rider is that it's actually two people sharing one body whenever they transform. One of them always loses consciousness, which then gets transferred into the other person's body while transforming.

Possible concept:

- This one's pretty easy and straightforward since some of the lifers already did something similar! Here is Jimmy's POV of it. They had two people control one Minecraft character for a race to beat the game.

So, in a way this is also how this Life Series concept would work. Two players get assigned to take control over one single body!

I was just thinking more about it not being throughout the whole series, and more just in random intervals! Would probably be a bit hard to do in Minecraft like this, but those here are all just hypothetical ideas, so there aren't really limits, I guess?

In a way, this is also a bit similar to Double Life, where people were practically forced to team up due to the soulmate bonds, although it didn't work on everyone bc this is the Life Series and people want to be silly that's why it is so great :'D

6) Kamen Rider OOO

(Pronounced Kamen Rider Oh's)

So, I first introduced this season to you in another post due to the main characters being basically desert duo. BUT I think there could be an interesting concept with this season's theme- I'm just not 100% how to perfect it.

There are beings called Greeed in this show. They are, well, quite greedy. They're basically desires in monster form, wanting more and more until they're completely out of control. I guess that's a good simple way to explain it without getting too deep into the lore...

Now, I think this season's gimmick I will do mainly based on the Greeed? I think this could be interesting!

Possible concept:

- The players are the "Greeed". At the beginning, they either select or get randomly assigned to have one specific stat boost. Defense, speed, strength... Hell, even jump boost if you want! It starts off as level 1 in session 1. But to keep this stat boost alive, you need to be greedy. Collect medals, dropped by any mob in the game, the stronger the mob, the more medals they drop. For the sake of the game, they will naturally deplete over time and there is a max cap of how much you can have at once. The cap will increase every session, but it will also deplete faster each session. And as long as you don't go in the negative, next session your stat boost will increase by one level. Also, if you die, you will lose a bunch of medals at once.

If it drops below 0... You're out of luck, because next session the level will decrease by 1! So, technically, if a player never collects medals, they can go into the negative. So, better choose your boost well! Are you ready to collect a lot of medals to get OP, or would you rather stay back and not have too much of a negative effect?

7) Kamen Rider Gaim

PEAK.

But, yet another Rider season that- uh- well, in a way, is a battle royale...? Made by the very person who made Madoka Magica after being inspired by Kamen Rider Ryuki. So that's one wild lineup of peak right there.

It's really hard to talk too much in depth about it since it's just, wow. The plot twists and everything just will give you goosebumps from how perfectly and dramatically it's executed 😭

Possible concept:

- There is one special item hidden in the nether, maybe in a fortress or bastion. Let's say, for example, a golden apple. Let's be crazy, why not call it something like the forbidden fruit?? Right??? The players ABSOLUTELY want this golden apple because it gives an incredible stat buff + full netherite armour + weapons for about 2 minutes, basically making it sheer impossible to lose once you have it. The other function it has is that a player could also use it instead to revive another player who permadied before. No matter the use of the apple, it will be gone after.

Now, the catch is this: The player can ONLY eat the apple once two players are left (themselves and someone else). If they try to eat it beforehand, they'll just die and the apple drops where they die. If they die in any way (permadeath or not) while carrying the apple, the apple also gets dropped where they die. Better than having the whole keep inventory off again, this makes it too stressful methinks...

So yeah, basically, you could say this is sort of like a reverse hot potato. Everyone wants the golden apple!

8) Kamen Rider Ex-Aid

This is the gaming-themed Kamen Rider season. Well, and medical. Basically, the Riders are doctors that cure the gaming virus more and more people suffer from.

This virus made of videogame characters (called Bugsters) infects people, and if they don't get cured fast enough, they'll die. OR, if the Bugster is stronger, they'll take over this persons body. Kinda similar to dying, just that your corpse is more of a marionette, I guess 🧍‍♂️

The thing here is... There are uh, two slightly insane game masters that want to crush everyone who doesn't abide by their rules or makes bootleg games.

Grian in Wild Life going YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO HAVE FUN, THIS IS A PVP SERIES in Wild Life reminded me a bit of that it was very silly 😭😭

There's also the threat of a game called "Kamen Rider Chronicle", which will make everyone who wants to able to turn into a Rider and fight and there can only be one winn- OH GOD DAMN IT HERE WE ARE AGAIN WITH THE BATTLE ROYALES THIS IS ALL JUST THE LIFE SERIES FR

Also it has the bestestestsetset Kamen Rider character evre evrere rvere!!!!!!!!!<3<3<3<3<3<3

Possible concept:

Like with Ryuki, I'll be doing multiple ones here!

- Kamen Rider Chronicle-type game in a way?

Players CAN kill each other, but the main focus is on killing special bosses. (Maybe it's just a big horde of mobs with one ingame boss, maybe a warden or multiple?) Once a player target a boss, this boss HAS to be killed throughout the current session. If they fail, they'll get a death. The very person who puts in the last attack gets an item, some sort of token maybe.

The person with the most tokens after every boss is defeated can summon a final boss with them. But they have to fight it without any help. If they win, they'll gain a great reward in strength.

I could say something like, they'll win this series, but other influences I think go against the concept of the Life Series. I just think it has to be a battle to the death to do it justice, right? If there will be a season without it happening like this, I'll not complain, but I'd rather do my concepts as "close" to the original as possible! Just to clarify that. :]

- More regularly based on the main concept of the show: Every session has a different "minigame" / "objective", and the player who beats it, gets a reward. Similarly to Secret Life, but it's not a secret and everyone can do it!

Possible games (based on Bugster viruses in Kamen Rider Ex-Aid, because those are basically games to be cleared to defeat the virus):

> "Salty" inspired. The players have something like a cook off- whoever cooks the most food, wins this session!

(Fun fact: Salty in the show has a snail badrd design. We love snails here in the traffic fandom don't we... Although, calling a snail Salty is a bit ironic-)

> "Aranbura" inspired. Fairly simple: defeat the ender dragon!

> "Revol" inspired. Wave of mobs you can only defeat by shooting at them (any weapon/projectile that you can shoot). BANG BANG SHOOTING!!

> "Motors" inspired. Horse race!!! Or any mob that can race- maybe different rounds with different mobs!

> "Collabos" inspired. Rythm game time! Or maybe easier to do, some sort of Simon Says?

- Something more different, this time directly based on the Bugsters. Let's go again with Team A and Team B. But Team B this time is a smaller one.

Team A are normal players as usual, but Team B are bugsters. They can send mobs (can spawn one mob: zombie, spider, or skeleton every 5 minutes) to attack regular human players and affect them with their virus. There's an indicator on the players' screen when they get infected. Every session a player is infected, they will have one heart less. It only stops once the bugster infecting them dies. The heart reducing caps at 5 hearts, but it probably won't ever last that long anyway.

I think it's better to do it a bit less intense than a player dying if they don't find the bugster in time. Just a bit more of a slight inconvenience and making them more vary of mobs and players around them.

9) Kamen Rider Geats

I first thought about on how to add Zero-One and Revice, but everything I thought of, I feel like they would be too similar to the boogeyman and Double Life, respectively.

So Geats is next! Now- uh. It's like some sort of mix of Fortnite and Squid Game and Among Us on drugs. BUT I LOVE IT.

This season has something similar to a battle royale- but it's more like- a survival show? It's called the "Desire Grand Prix", because it's all about the desires of people.

And the last surviving Rider gets their wish fullfilled and then the world gets reset with their wish active, until there's a new game and a new winner and it gets reset all over again.

Everyone lives their lives happily after losing their memories- only regaining them after they touch their ID core (what they need to transform into a Rider) presented to them again to join the game once more.

The games can be different, with different modes. Football? Impostor Among us? Save the world? Be the last survivor? You name it!

Once someone dies, they full on die, in every timeline. But when someone gets disqualified (like they lose a game), they'll get sent back to their regular lives but lose all motivation for what once was their dream and forget about it all.

Now, how to implement yet another survival game season... This will definitely be a shorter brainstorm, but I just think Geats would be THE season to incorporate the audience.

Possible concept:

- Watchers influence. After every session, there will be polls about what happens in the next episode!

Also, there will be votes on which players will gain some sort of helping items/abilities!

To be honest, pretty self-explanatory, I don't think there's more to say! Basically, a viewer-interactive season. Hell, maybe even live stream the finale and make viewers decide things in real time!

10) Kamen Rider Gotchard

GOTCHA‼️

Another card-themed season, but don't worry! No battle royale! It's a full on Pokémon-type season this time.

The protagonists goal is to befriend "Chemies", they are literally Pokémon. Have names of things they represent combined, and when he befriends them, he puts them in cards. He can free them from them again and/or use them to transform and use attacks.

Possible concept:

- Remember the Ryuki contract mobs concept I did? It's quite similar, but not as dangerous for the user. Basically, each session every player can add one mob to befriend. The mobs can't be killed by anything other than red names, for security measures I think its better like this.

The mobs just help the players fight, of course aren't too strong, but will definitely come in clutch with other mobs since they can't be killed! The player can freely summon them or take them back in their inventory (maybe a seperate inventory spot for them), no need or worry to feed them.

11) Kamen Rider Gavv

Hey! It is the current running Kamen Rider season! Kamen Rider Gavv, the 39th Kamen Rider season to date, is currently only on episode 16... But there is enough gimmick to make a gimmick!

The protagonist is half human, half alien ("Granute") and his whole Granute side of the family wants him dead. His (human) mother got killed in front of him and turned into a snack (this still sounds so unserious out loud, but she fr got turned into food 😭), after he was locked inside with her for his whole life. He fled to human earth and kills every Granute who endangers humans, because they like to use them for food. At this point he even killed one of his siblings, my guy DOES NOT PLAY AROUND. Yet, he stays silly :3

Also. Uh. He has a second mouth on his stomach, and whenever he eats snacks, uh. He births a little snack based creature that only lives for him to eat through his second mouth, killing them instantly and helping him transform into Kamen Rider Gavv. Those guys are going to snack Valhalla fr. Whenever I try to explain this season I feel so stupid. Like, it's peak, but oh my gosh it is so weird to describe. 😭😭😭

Possible concept:

- Y'know... Kirby...? When Gavv eats something, he gains the power of it in a way. For example, he eats chips and gets a chips-themed Rider form. With swords as sharp as possible, but only from specific angles. Hit the wrong angle and the sword shatters. Great analogy to eating chips and you suddenly bite on them The Wrong Way.

So, it's similar here too: Whatever a player last ate, they gain as a "power". Only foods that don't already have some sort of effect allowed!

Not sure if you can make fitting powers for all the food, so maybe the foods just get assigned random powers and you have to find out along the way! Like that hunger wild card in Wild Life, but in positive!

HONORABLE MENTION/SPECIAL: Kamen Rider Decade + Kamen Rider Zi-O

So. Both of those are anniversary seasons, revisiting past seasons and worlds (or alternate timelines of them) and using their gimmicks.

Why not a Life Series like this? Every session, an old concept gets dug up again for one episode! Probably better once there are even more seasons, though.

SO YEAH! THAT'S ABOUT IT FOR NOW! Idk if I'll ever do a part 2. Maybe once I've watched more Kamen Rider seasons and think of something new and unique- because there are a lot of seasons, but it is all the same overall concept each time in a way- so you can only do so much without being repetitive- especially translated into a Minecraft series. :D

And if you're curious about Kamen Rider now... (I'd never forget my propaganda), here's my master list of those types of posts, Kamen Rider seasons recommendations for Life Series fans included!

[lostrealities0]

My Rodney Copperbottom headcanons:

- trans masc

- autistic

- polyamorous

- unlabeled in regards to attraction, but definitely not straight

- learns how to play the instrument his dad plays

- gets most of his stuff from scavenging or dumpster diving (both when growing up and post movie)

- tries to support local artists and small businesses as much as he can

- occasionally shoplifts from big chain stores (only if he can't find whatever he's looking for anywhere else)

- donates most of the money he earns

- when he becomes the CEO of Bigweld Industries, he makes spare parts free (still gets funds through inventions) and redesign the pay distribution so it's balanced and is no longer a hierarchy

- volunteers a lot

- never goes to college

- eventually makes a podcast with Fender

- has a youtube channel that covers things from economic systems, engineering lessons, "don't do this because we did and accidentally set our company building on fire", to info/updates about his personal projects

[wild-west-wind]

I'm doing a High Profile program for some corporate types today, and while I know I will knock it out of the park, I am definitely anxious about it. This is the first widely distributed filmed thing I've done that is VERY likely to work its way back to me, and as much as I've joked to friends about being on TV before, it's weird that people I know (and don't know!) will be watching this, not just 30 million people who receive/watch the American propaganda "language learning" channel.

[sonic-gallery]

Introducing May's Sonic Channel wall♪

Hello! This is Tomoko Hayane.

How did you all spend your time during Golden Week?

I had a great time at Sony Katsu, reviewing the Sonic movie in preparation for the domestic distribution of the Paramount+ drama "Knuckles"♪

Speaking of Knuckles, this time's wall illustration features a mysterious girlfriend who is also his natural enemy (?). A slightly sexy jewel thief sister who always fights over the Master Emerald...!

This month's wall illustration features...

Yes, it's Rouge!

This time's illustration of Rouge has a sexy and mysterious atmosphere, which is completely different from the wild and cool figure from last time!

Her smile looks like she's planning something, but it also looks like she's trying to take advantage of someone she's greeting, by beckoning Knuckles, for example.

Well, this time too, I held an illustration viewing party with my colleagues, and I said, ``Even though I know that this illustration is greeting me, Rouge-nee, who I admire, is like that to me! But I'm happy!'' There was a staff member who expressed his excitement!

While I thought it was a cute reaction, I also felt a little sympathy for her. There's definitely a charm to older sisters that you can't help but admire.

What do you all think? Please let me know what you thought when you saw this illustration of Rouge (!), if you don't mind! I would be happy if you could post on X (old Twitter) with the hashtag #SoniKatsu♪

See you again in the next Kabegami introduction!

[gamie99]

New Episode 70 Part 3 leaks have dropped!

A couple of hours ago, we received what is probably the biggest (and by far the coolest!) leak drop EVER. A total of SEVEN different images were distributed to multiple different creators within the community. The images recieved, and the people who recieved them, are as followed:

Russian Creator Фордел (Fordel): Plunger Cameraman Fan Animator Spidarrund: Dark Speakerman Analysis Channel ARM Hov: Camerawoman Analysis Channel ISOTOILET: Speakerwoman Analysis Channel Mobi: Polycephaly Analysis Channel Elite Cameraman: TV Woman Analysis Channel Dattebayo: Scientist Toilet

An eighth image was posted to DaFuqBoom's Instagram page. Put them all together in the right order, and you get this foreboding and frankly ominous message:

"This is the end for someone."

Someone is dying next episode. Who, you ask? We have no damn clue. And to be honest, I'm kind of scared now.

But seriously, this is DEFINITELY the coolest leak drop we have EVER gotten. I LOVE it when creators interact with their community in ways like this! It's great!

[alpaca-clouds]

Let's talk Energy Mix

Let me talk about the energy mix for a moment - because I feel a lot of people are very unsure, how a renewable energy grid would work in practice.

So, let me get out my electrician gear and go very quickly through the different energy types that we would probably have within a Solarpunk world or something along the line. Or rather: What we might have in the future, if our governments actually fucking cared to go carbonfree.

Photovoltaic (aka Solar). Now, let me make one thing clear: Technically Photovoltaic and Solar are two different things. Photovoltaic uses certain materials that can build electricity when they interact with Photons, while Solar uses the sun's heat radiation. What most people think of as "Solarpower" is photovoltaic. This technology has made a lot of advances recently, making the panels so much more efficient than they were only a few years ago. By now photovoltaic roof tiles can actually provide enough energy for the house even during cloudy days and even further up north. Of course they cannot create enough energy during the night. While production is not 0, it is by far not enough.

Wind turbines. Currently wind turbines are making up a lot of the renewable energy mix in many countries, like my own (Germany). And for good reason. They are so darn efficient. Especially off-shore energy. While they are right now not useful for personal energy production (because turbines are fucking loud up close - only up close), they are really good at keeping the grid fed. Maybe just a bit too good.

Other forms of Wind Power. I really do not want to go too deeply into this topic. But there are currently also other forms of wind powered generators being researched. Including some that could be put onto houses. (If you want me to gover those more, just send me an ask.)

Hydro Power. Now Hydro Power, so water based power generation, has two big kinds of being used. One is by channeling the power of rivers through a generator - the other is as the currently simplest form of energy storage: If you have too much energy in your grid at any given time, pump water into a reservoir and if you need that power again, let it go through a generator. Please note though: Environmentally Hydro Power is definitely the kind of renewable power with the worst environmental impact.

Other forms of water based power generation: Currently we are experimenting a lot with getting power from the ocean. For example through tidal generators or wave generators. So far, though, these methods are only experiments, not fit for large scale production.

Geothermal Power. In a lot of areas with Geothermal activity we can also use the heat of the earth to create steam, which we then can use to power generators as well. This is especially handy in places like Iceland, that are geothermically very active, but also do not get a lot of sun half of the year and are not ideally suited for wind power.

One thing that should be noted is, that very probably we are still gonna need nuclear power as an emergency tool.

One thing that definitely needs to change, though, is how we build our energy grids. Currently we are relying a lot on macro grids, that is grids, where a few central power plants generate all the power for a large area. This does not work out well currently, based on the fact that a lot of renewables work best, if you have smaller, further distributed power plants.

This creates the need for micro grids, that are also better suited to just... Not create large scale blackouts, as the US experiences them semi-frequently.

Again, if you want me to talk more about that, I can totally do, just... send me a message.

But what you really do not need to be concerned about is the entire idea of "what do we do at night"? We have ways to deal with that. Even now. Let alone in 10 years. This area of science is currently really moving forward in long strides!

[literaticat]

Hi Jenn,

Do people in the industry still use the term “traditional publishing”? I was told that was an incorrect term and that it should be referred to as “trade publishing.”

Do you know why some people consider the term offensive?

Thanks!

OK so here's the thing:

Publishing is a vast industry and within it there are several different "markets" - that is, places that a given book might be created for and sold.

The actual correct term for the branch of the publishing industry I work in, and most authors and illustrators I know work in, and most publishers we work with, is Trade Publishing.

Trade Publishers -- like most imprints of Penguin Random House and Macmillan and Chronicle Books and Candlewick, etc, basically all the publishers you normally hear about -- mostly publish "into the Trade Market." The "Trade Market" is regular bookstores. Pretty much 99% of the books you see on the shelves in B&N or whatever are Trade Books.

There are other markets! For example(s), Educational Publishing is its own market, with its own publishers and its own norms. Religious Publishing is its own market, with its own publishers and its own norms. There are obviously Trade Publishers who also publish "religious" or "educational" type books -- but they are still TRADE BOOKS, they are the religious and educational books you'd see at the regular bookstore. Truly Religious Publishers or Educational Publishers are peddling their books primarily through their own separate distribution channels, and they don't normally work with agents in the same way as Trade Publishers do. If you only shop in a regular bricks-and-mortar bookstore, you may never even see actual Religious Market specific or Ed Market specific books, they would be more likely found in a Religious Bookstore or through a Library or some such. (Though of course, all of them are available online!)

(There are other Markets, too -- like "Mass Market" refers to both a kind of book -- those short chunky paperbacks like they sell in the supermarket or drug store -- and also a Market, specifically, "places like the supermarket or drugstore". Some/most of these books originate in the Trade Market - some are made specifically for the Mass Market).

"Traditional" publishing is a term that sprung up in relatively recent years (like, the past 20 years or so???) -- to differentiate it from Self-Publishing/"Indie Publishing" -- so often on websites where, for example, people are advocating for self-publishing options, they will say "We are breaking the mold of Traditional Publishing!" or whatever. It basically became shorthand for "the opposite of indie publishing"***.

Now, I understand that the vast majority of people saying "Traditional Publishing" aren't actually dissing or dismissing it -- in fact, I have definitely said it as well when I am for some reason talking about both types and want to make my point clear. HOWEVER, some people are offended. (OK, I'll be specific: The only place I have ever personally seen anyone be offended is on the Absolute Write forum -- which I find to be a delightful forum generally, but they are quite pedantic about this terminology!)

So: Long story short: It's called Trade Publishing. If you want to be right, call it Trade Publishing. However, if you are specifically trying to differentiate Trade Publishing from Self-Publishing, nobody will actually care if you say Traditional Publishing, unless you are around people who are being unusually pedantic.

***

*** the one that actually gets my goat WAY more than "traditional" instead of "Trade" is INDIE publishing instead of Self-Publishing. The reason for this: INDIE means something in the Trade Publishing world. INDIE BOOKSTORES are non-chain bookstores. INDIE PUBLISHERS are privately-owned publishers. Indie Bookstores and Indie Publishers have a very rough go of it in the world and are generally doing work that big corporations could and would never do; they are often daring and special, and I find it extremely annoying that some people have co-opted this language to mean something that isn't the thing it means.

Note that I AM NOT annoyed by indivuduals who are self-publishing and want to say they are "indie publishing!" or "independently publishing!" -- I was at first, 20 years ago, don't get me wrong, but this is a normal term at this point, clearly people like saying it, and it's a perfectly valid and cool thing to do if its what you want to do! So I'm not mad at those people DON'T COME AT ME.

Who I AM mad at are companies who "help" self-published authors under the guise of being "indie publishers" -- because often the people who are pushing this language are actually selling some sort of scam where they get authors to pay them a grip of money to "publish their book" when actually the authors would be better off completely doing it themselves. So they are calling themselves "INDIE PUBLISHERS" but in fact they are SCAM PUBLISHERS, SCHMUBLISHERS, VANITY PRESSES, etc, and meanwhile actual Indie Publishers got their thing taken away from them. :( -- however, the ship has kinda sailed on this, so, whatever I guess. :(

[shinjiist]

Curious about your apocalypse au... 👀

I'll open w/ the fact that this is a zombie apocalypse AU

Characteristics of an infected individual shown below (scratched this out really fast for the purpose of this post)

Site A - constant leaking of orifaces, mostly from eyes and mouth.

Site B - destabilization of body; lesions may appear

Site C - spines growing from wounds

Site D - darkening of ink + involuntary change in chromatophores

*also not mentioned in diagram but the white in Callie's tentacles is directly related to the involuntary change in chromatophores as well as the dehydration making it impossible for inkfish to hold artificial dyes in their tentacles/ink.

I'll note (so that this au makes any amount of sense) that I hc that inkfish biology works via like. A central core crystal is the individual and that crystal controls a finite amount of ink that will function as a specific cell when necessary + inkfish are more a membrane containing this ink than like an animal constantly producing more and more ink. Like, splatting is the destabilization of the membrane due to infavorable (acidic) conditions or something like that. And the change between forms is just the stretching of this membrane, swimming is the dissolution of the membrane and the movement of the crystal itself, etc etc. Idk how factual any of that might be but that's what I'm saying.

Anyway back to the fun part, what triggers this disease to spread is a period of uninterrupted rainfall (spanning six weeks of downpour). With inkfish cities being equipped for desert conditions and unprepared for prolonged rainfall and humidity, there is a lot of flooding and a lot of moisture trapped in places that ordinarily would not encounter these conditions. This is worsened by the storm being so prolonged that the air doesn't stay cold. Resultantly, bacteria and mold grow at highly accelerated rates.

The flooding takes a long time to get under control and even begin to drain, so there is a sort of tide pool effect in the desert. Lots of microflora grow, and many oases spring up especially near Splatsville (which become tourist attractions) but there is also an explosion of microfauna.

There is a chain of events specifically responsible for the disease's creation, but that's relatively unimportant rn

Timeline-wise it's kind of like annoying trying to find a cute spot in canon for it + I think canon events r like largely negligible for the purpose of this so like idgaf I'll say right before Splat 3 events happen. I haven't written out a definitive timeline for everyone yet but I'll talk a little bit about each settlement:

Marie is by herself.

Shiver and Eight are both in Splatsville and establish a stable settlement in the city. It's based out of the subway station, and is very small. At most there are around 12 individuals and it is semi-exclusive (aka. be able to bring something to the table), though they will go out of the way to aid individual families/people they run into. Between the Splatsville settlements there are actually like genuine turf wars between settlements (fights over buildings potentially full of resources, shelter, etc) which is the reason for this exclusivity.

Frye and Big Man are both relatively off-grid, acting more to connect smaller countryside settlements. Big Man works more toward diplomacy while Frye works more toward gathering and distributing supplies, leading/overseeing most of the runs into Splatsville. Frye has her eels run notes around for her in the channels of the newly-wetlands. The other agents are also technically connected to this settlement.

Marina and Pearl established a settlement on Pearl's property as it's on a hill and relatively safe from shamblers because they cannot tolerate any amount of water (I hc that healthy inkfish can tolerate being in water if they have enough ink in their bodies; with maintaining an ink tank to fuel their weapons taking any of the ink not immediately necessary to keep an inkfish alive, this is why jumping into water splats them). This settlement is not very exclusive. There are efforts being put into studying the disease, but given Marina is a combat/computer scientist and not a doctor, the going is slow. There is also a radio signal put out every 6 hours by Marina, recited both in Inkling and Octarian.

Those r like the basics of the AU, feel free to ask questions :) I've thought about this a fair amt and have a lot of useless info lol

[copperbadge]

Hi Sam, hope you are having a fine day. Not sure if this is a weird comment to leave you with, but when I saw the trailer for “Red, White and Royal Blue” I immediately got excited because it felt like maybe one day Shivadhverse could get its own cinematic universe, and I would really and definitely enjoy that. Thank you very much for writing and sharing your stories, they have been a comfort to me for a decade now and going.

I've seen the trailer! It looks fun, I'm going to try and catch it. (And if folks reading this haven't read my books but are into Red White and Royal Blue, I think you may enjoy them. They're available free as PDFs!)

This particular film is being made and distributed by Amazon, but I think it's a good opportunity to discuss the genre and the way it's shifting, which means circling back around to Hallmark Channel for a minute. The OG "light-romance" channel as a whole is beginning to lean just slightly more liberal, and a lot of actors left en masse to join a more right-wing channel, and I'm hoping Hallmark...hasn't really missed them. And I think everyone in that orbit -- not just Hallmark, but the production companies that make Hallmark movies and also off-brand "Hallmark" movies that show on Netflix and Amazon and Paramount and such -- have realized that a) the permanent loss of viewership over simply having a gay romance is either minimal or has already happened, and b) if you make it gay, THE GAYS MIGHT WATCH. And anyway it's not like Amazon has the same viewer base, so there's less risk regardless.

Fete For A King was originally written as a Hallmark script, full-on. It had two versions -- the original "Eddie" version and a halllmarkified "Edie" version where Eddie was a woman (pretty much nothing but her pronouns changed). That didn't go anywhere, which is fine, the odds of something like that going anywhere are quite small, but it meant I could develop it into the books, which are a satisfaction on their own. If Hallmark (or any other film distributor) came knocking, sure, I'd love to see the Shivadh novels as films and I think they're pretty cinematic in the specific way Hallmark movies are.

There's a Hallmark movie director who gave an interview once where he said, "You don't find Hallmark. Hallmark finds you, if you're lucky," and I think that's pretty true -- you can't like, submit your novel to a production company and be all "Hey here's a movie idea". But you know, the more these novels circulate, the more word of mouth the readers give them, the better odds that someone'll see them and think, "Hm."

Anyway, I stand and wait. There's enough material in what's published to make four to six movies or at least twelve bingeable episodes of streaming TV, should anyone want it.

(I would hope it goes without saying but to say it anyway, I'm not volunteering this to happen while the writer's strike is ongoing; my mother didn't raise a scab.)

[goldenpinof]

i'm confused about the wad release, is he saying it's not (as of now anyway) going to be available anywhere for purchase and/or streaming unless you buy tickets for the thing on the 25th?

yes. okay, the definition of "sell sth on" is interesting.

as i understand it: after the shows are filmed Kiswe will have the rights to stream it for a few days, and then they (probably Dan's managers; or Kiswe itself??) will try to sell the rights (to the actual edited product this time) to someone else to make it a dvd, or put on a streaming service, or something else. i wonder if by "i get to keep it for me" Dan means that he will be able to upload it to his youtube channel or something (probably for free in this case, if youtube doesn't buy the rights to put it behind youtube premium (youtube originals is dead, do they even have a company that can buy the rights? no idea)).

distribution costs money, so obviously it's preferable for Dan to sell the rights and actually get something from this tour.

so, i really hope someone records it. i would love to. but my internet is shit, and the streams are always lagging.

[sgiandubh]

You aren't the first to mention it and I'm sure won't be the last, but does everything have to be award worthy to be good? Can't this just be an opportunity for a broader audience to see Sam in a different role and in some cases for the first time? This fandom has a very strange relationship with Sam, he's talked about in a way no one else on OL is. Once Sam was overlooked for his stellar work in those last 2 episodes of season 1, I knew he'd have an uphill battle as the show continued, and he has. I like OL, it's an imperfect to overwrought book series and an imperfect to horrible show (season 4 is terrible) the writing is sometimes garbage and the acting from all 4 leads could be better at times, yes, even Caitriona. I for one hope he's seen by people and cast in something people think he's worthy of. Whatever that means. I watched TCND, it was a good use of my time and quite enjoyable.

Dear Award Worthy Anon,

No, of course not and you definitely have a good point, here. If TCND can be a good opportunity for more people to see S and raise his brand awareness, then of course amen and hallelujah: but will it be so or will it be something more akin to 'oh, almost there, but not quite'? This, only time will be able to sort out, I think, depending (for example) on how many foreign channels will buy it in Cannes (not the Festival, the TV and creative content fairs: MIPCOM, Canneseries and MIPTV). Note to self: write a separate post on these, as the distribution circuit of creative content looks like totally unexplored territory for our fandom.

This fandom has indeed a very strange relationship with S, because he triggered a perpetuum mobile between lust and rejection of his persona, where possession (fantasized, frustrated, denied or sublimated) is the common denominator. I had always said it and now more than ever: this guy has no idea, and maybe if he did, he'd start taking himself more seriously. And I agree with almost all of your comments on OL: despite all these flaws, here we are. Still hanging on, still ogling, still talking. This,*** understood very well, along with another solid sales argument: you don't need GoT's figures to keep the project alive - cult status and an uber invested fanbase is enough.

As I already mentioned, I also hope to see more of S. And I will. TCND is but another step on a bridge like this one I was reminded by coincidence about half an hour ago:

This is the famous U Bein Bridge, near Mandalay, in Burma. As seen and photographed by me, in August 2010. Easily one of my favorite places on Earth.

Thank you for dropping by, Anon! These asks are really down my alley and totally my jam. Don't be a stranger!

[castielmd]

Castiel's physical strength.

Today, I want to bring the agenda of the raw strength Castiel wields — partly canon; then diving into head canons.

Currently, I'm watching S8 and specifically S8EP08 brought a thought to me. I don't remember a lot of the past seasons [speaking 4-6], so I will be focusing on this specific scene. You're welcome to share other incidents!

In this episode, they [Sam, Dean, Castiel] are essentially working a case about cartoons coming to life.

Castiel and Dean are seen investigating a bank where an anvil was dropped on a person. Short scene proceeds:

Dean: "Hey, can you lift this?" [referring to anvil]

Which Castiel does, fairly easy.

So I'm wondering — how far does his strength go, speaking on a purely "physical-possessed-vessel" basis. He can lift something this heavy, which Dean obviously couldn't since he wouldn't have asked otherwise.

Shallow research on anvils revealed that they can weigh up to 500 pounds [~226 kg]. Given that the anvil we saw on screen appeared to be quite large (my assumption is, it reached to their kneecaps), I would like to assume that it's at least somewhat in that weight range. Definitely above 100kg in my opinion.

So, answering the question, Castiel is very strong, just hands-on. How have I not noticed this before? Or maybe I did, in hindsight.

———

Somewhere down the line in S5EP18 [Point of no Return], Castiel is seen to beat Dean up. Quite brutally so. Dean, whilst not really showing active signs of fighting back, doesn't seem to have a chance to either. He gets flung back by Castiel and then proceeds to ask for it to be finished.

Dean: "Do it."

Dean: "Just do it!"

Castiel then relaxes his fist, and proceeds to tap Dean out, not complying.

Castiel only used physical force to beat up Dean. Therefore, it seemed like just a fight between "humans" — there's plenty examples of Sam and Dean beating each other up and it gets bloody. Hence I never paid it much mind. After the anvil incident though;

Dean didn't [HC: couldn't] fight back and was down, when telling Castiel to end it. This can be chalked up to Dean's general suicidal tendency [wanting to surrender to the angels, being used as vessel] or/and acknowledging the difference in strength between them — that Castiel has the potential to end him.

Now, to the fun part. I propose the idea that Castiel could've ended Dean with one punch. I even think he could rip someone's head clean off, if he wanted to. Maybe he did and I just forgot. If he's lifting something this heavy [anvil], he should be able to distribute that raw force into combat as well. He's trained for combat after all. Dean, as human, is #not built for this.

Which leaves no question but only the conclusion, that Castiel is precisely and actively deciding how much strength he puts behind each punch/kick/pull/choke.

Summarizing so far: Castiel wields a lot of strength and is controlling his output.

———

In my opinion, it is out of Castiel's good heart that he spares Dean. Dean has disappointed him gravely, and Castiel says so.

Dean: "What, are you crazy?"

Castiel: "I rebelled for this? So that you could surrender to them?"

Dean: "Cas, please!"

Castiel: "I gave everything for you. And this is what you give to me?"

Yet, he doesn't kill Dean, which would've arguably been easier than watch him all the time to make sure he doesn't surrender himself to heaven.

So he estimates how much impact Dean can take, and lets him live. Yet the fight is personal and close enough to convey the message of hurt, betrayal and disappointment. I don't want to turn this into a "Dean is Castiel's weak spot." discussion. I want to give credit to Castiel for being kind enough to let him off; and in control enough to hurt but not kill.

———

And this leads me to my final point — practice and mistakes.

I'm wondering, whether or not Castiel had to learn to channel his power. I'm not sure if Jimmy was his first vessel, likely not, but even so: in his first vessel - did he have to practice basic touches? Fighting to disarm instead of kill? How much time did it take if yes?

Were there any incidents where he applied too much? Perhaps he ripped off a door handle once. Maybe aimed for a friendly pat on the back and sent the person flying. Perhaps, it even was easier for Castiel around other angels in vessels; since they could take it/are on par.

I'd also be interested how much conscious effort it takes. At first it might've taken a lot, then became easier until it was automated.

———

I felt the anvil was a strong reminder, to me at least, of Castiel's strength and competence. The show tends to make me forget it. For example, most of the episode in S8 was centered around his "incompetence" as a hunter. Ridiculed for his attempts to help on his own, and never acknowledged for useful contributions. But he is, inherently, capable. He's knowledgeable, strong and smart. He's simply adjusting to fit in [e.g. this whole post about strength] — yet this way they forget what he is. And if he doesn't adjust, attempts to bring in his own abilities, he is condemned and shunned.

———

Anywho, that's all. Castiel is strong and very capable. I wish they'd notice it more. Perhaps a display of strength would be nice, one that is not focused on an anvil.

Feel free to leave thoughts and own theories.

Edit: I forgot he became a seraph. So some of this strength might've come later on, although I'd like to stick with the thought that he outranks humans by far in simple physical strength even before becoming a seraph [and could've ended the fight with Dean much sooner and a lot differently.]