#EDGY BOY ALL GROWN UP

[love-toxin]

The way you write Tommy is just UUGH

I just wanna pin him down and ride him until he has nothing left to give :((( like gimme his chunky babies!! 😭🙏

oh noooooooo........my gears are turning......tommy with an obsessed s/o that wants to bump uglies constantly......MMMRRRROOWWWW!!!

he's so flattered, but so edgy about it cause momma can't overhear him engaging in premarital sex!!! especially not the type you like where it's just messy and raw and rough and you leave spit and slick everywhere, all over his hairy chest and his lap and your clothes. you have to do it in the barn in the hayloft and its STILL loud, still so sloppy he has to carry you in the house just so none of his family notice the dark stains on your clothes.

but can he complain? no. cause you're the only one who's ever seen him as a man and not just a mistake, and it's not like he doesn't like seeing you so needy all the time. you could be doing this to any other guy but you wanna do it to him--him! a nobody, a wretched defect like him! you must be an angel. or maybe you're a devil cause you fuck as nasty as one. he loves the scrape of your nails through his hair as you drag them down his sweaty chest, when you're perched like a pretty sculpture on his lap. his thighs jiggle every time you bounce on it--his cock, that's what you call it--and you can't help but grip them, squeeze them for balance but also cause you just love the feel of him everywhere. his belly doesn't bother you nor does the grime and sweat caking his skin, nor the dirt under his fingernails or his maddening, untrimmed bush that radiates out to his thighs like a curly black cloud.

it doesn't matter if he's been working in the slaughterhouse all day, shoveling pig shit, or doing any of his other messy chores. when you give him that look like you wanna eat him right up, he's completely at your mercy and he loves every fucking minute of it. you look at him like he's a piña colada in the desert and you'll die if you don't get a sip.

and that's before you start getting hit with baby fever. suddenly, almost out of the blue, you're picking through baby clothes in the trunks upstairs and finding old rattles and toys that are barely holding together. Tommy's baby bottles that Luda Mae kept and never threw away cause she could never bear to part with her sweet baby's things, even after he'd grown up and out of them. it's the sentiment that really gets you and then you're stuck thinking about babies, not just about what Tommy was like when he was that young, but what your babies together might look like. would they have his nice dark hair? his height? would they be hardworking and loyal like he is? would they be so committed to their family they would...

well, that part isn't important right at the moment. you're more concerned with making the babies than anything else--that's the fun part, after all. you keep dropping hints here and there but it's when Tommy finds you sewing together a stuffed bear he loved as a boy that he really starts thinking. you're so gentle with it. you clean him up and polish his little button eyes and patch up a hole on the arm where Hoyt 'accidentally' burned it with a cigarette while he was drunk. you put him back together and he looks almost brand new, newer than when he first had it and Luda Mae tenderly plucked it out of the dumpster to give to him for his birthday.

he gets it then. that night is deplorable when you two sneak out to the barn. Tommy's just as riled up as you are and when you realize he's not just fucking you for pleasure--this time, he's fucking to breed--your sobs and choked-up squeals have to be muffled by his thick fingers stuffed in your mouth. he hooks them and drags your face closer to his chest for you to suffocate between his pecs, cause he needs both hands to grip your waist and jam you down on his cock like he's shoving a cork back in a wine bottle. you're just so little compared to him and such a tight squeeze, he can't help getting a little rough when he wants in! it's just prepping you for birth. you're gonna need to squeeze out plenty of kids for him after this, and with his size? they're gonna be little monsters to try and deliver, just like he was.

but you love him and that's why you're doing this. that's why you let his nuts drag down your ass on every deep, near-painful thrust, and why you let him beat your cunt like he hates you when there's nothing but pure love and possessiveness in his eyes. that's why, when you squirm to get away, he knows you don't really mean it and slams your hips back down for you to howl like a cat in heat. that's why he can't let you sleep until sunrise, when you're half-conscious and spasming with leg twitches, cause the seed pooling in your tummy hasn't stopped leaking out from every time he's planted his roots into your squishy womb. he's gotta make sure it takes just in case you change your mind. once you get pregnant, then you really are part of the family--you'll be a Hewitt just like all the rest of them, birthing the next generation of Hewitts to keep the family roots strong <3

[1-800-cheolie]

baby fever | bakugou headcanons

part 2 part 3

tags: suggestive themes, not proof read, heat in the moment writing, fem reader, mentions of pregnancy, established marriage, they’re pro heroes, crappy writing.

word count: 642

☆ bakugou katsuki. when people hear that name, they say he’s rough, brusque and edgy, a double sided sword. on the other hand, you find him sweet and loving, quite adorable even if he denies it.

☆ you often think a lot about how he would treat your kids in the near future and despite his tough exterior, he’s grown fond of kids.

☆ social media thinks that he's going to be the worst dad to exist if you have kids, you think they’re delusional.

☆ but the moment you realize you know he’s the one for your non-existent kids is when you’re both out on patrol and you find a lost kid. “leave him to me” katsuki grumbles. “go get yer injury healed”

☆ you do as told, conversing with one of the medics, and in the corner of your eye, you spot the child laughing with your husband.

☆ butterflies dance about in your stomach, fluttering vigorously. “he’s going to be a great dad, [hero name].“ the medic says. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you, almost like you held the earth up for him.”

☆ you softly thank her with a smile, beaming with rays of sunshine as you approach your boyfriend. secretly watching him play with the young boy.

☆ “I see you’re both having a great time” you say. katsuki whips his head in surprise, coughing into his fist as if to hide his blush. “has dynamight been nice to you, sweetie?”

☆ the kid jumps up and down in glee, bobbing his head. “mister dynamight is the best! he even gave me a lollipop! but mommy can’t know or she might get upset”

☆ he sheers away in embarrassment. “thought it might cheer him up or somet’ing” you press your lips against his cheek, praising him for his work. the kid pretends to gag and you both chuckle, he’s an adorable little guy.

☆ “aoi!” a woman calls out and the boy goes running to his mother, “oh my god, I can’t thank you enough.” you smile at her and tell her it’s your job as heroes, waving back to aoi as they leave.

☆ “having a kid doesn’t sound so bad. I wouldn’t mind waking up to our baby in your arms. It’s adorable and sexy.”

☆ he pauses. freezing in place. did he hear you right? our baby. him being a dad? sexy? fuck. you were definitely going to be the death of him.

☆ “[hero name]!” he calls out. you wink at him, skipping off to the agency. “baby! you can’t just say that and leave me like this!” he groans. having a hard on in the middle of work was going to be difficult to explain.

☆ the next morning, you saw the media, snorting at the headline. PRO HERO DYNAMIGHT SEEN SMILING WITH A KID. COULD WE POSSIBLY BE SEEING POTENTIAL FATHER MATERIAL?

☆ you yelp in surprise, dropping your phone on the side of the bed at the sudden touch of your boyfriend. “c’mere” he rasps. “why the fuck are you up s’early? it’s only 8am, go back t’sleep”

☆ “wanted to check the time is all. do you need something?” you ask.

☆ he shakes his head and lays you atop of him, grinding against your ass as a grin paints his lips, canines showing. “only thing I need is to fill you up to the brim and pump you full of my cum.”

☆ “katsuki! It’s only 8am!” you repeat his words. they fall deaf on his ears.

☆ next thing you know, you’re holding a test in your hand, double lines are present as a smug katsuki smirks at you. what a little shit.

[evermore-fashion]

Met Gala 2024: Top 5 Men's Looks

So we've seen what some of the female attendee's bought to the Met Gala, and now it's on to the men of evening. As you all know I'm not into men's fashion at all but seeing as this is the Met Gala and men in the world of show business are starting to step up with their red carpet looks it's only fair I give you all my favourite looks of the night.

Like before my opinions are my own, they're not gospel so don't take what I say personally especially if you disagree. Remember fashion is art and art is subjective. 1. Gustav Magnar Witzøe wearing Versace Firstly I had no idea who this guy was until today and second I know his outfit wasn't everyone's taste. However I just love the fact that it wasn't a tuxedo or a suit in a vibrant colour. I love the fact that it's fun and eye-catching haute couture outfit designed for a man that leans into the roman and greek statues you'd find in stately gardens. 2. Sebastian Stan wearing Ami Paris If anyone was wondering who I was referring to last week when I slyly mentioned who I hoped was going to show up to the Met Gala. It was this handsome man and boy he did not disappoint because he didn't show up in a suit. I love the fact he went more casual but with the long coat and black embellished flowers that just added that final touch that to me made his look a standout. Sebastian Stan, I am free and single whenever you are... just kidding. 3. Barry Keoghan wearing Burberry This guy has been hot property in the acting world recently so it was no surprise to see him attend the Met Gala. The reason why he made my top 5 was because even though he was wearing a suit, it reminded me of the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland. I just love the fact that it's vintage but not at the same time and the green velvet jacket looked amazing on him. 4. Bad Bunny wearing Maison Margiela This was another outfit that has grown on me the more I look at it. I don't know what it is that I love about it but I just do and I think Bad Bunny looks amazing in it. It stands out despite the fact that it's black with hints of red in it and somehow it fits the theme perfectly.

5. Wisdom Kaye wearing Robert Wun So there's one thing I've noticed about this year's Met Gala... men look good in long coats/capes and I'm here for that trend. Wisdom Kaye stood out simply because red suited him perfectly and I love that his overall outfit was elegant but also edgy thanks to the burn marks on his hat and along the bottom of the coat.

[midnight-pluto]

ROUND 2 : PG.00 — well shit

ROUND 2: dazai osamu x gn!reader

SYNOPSIS: When you decided to attend Chuya's volleyball game, you didn't expect to see a familiar face. A face of someone you thought you would've never seen again; what's more annoying however, is seeing said face repeatedly.

TW: talks of a successful suicide

round 2 master list || next

OCTOBER 18 ; 18:07

IN ALL HONESTY, you were just there for the fact that you all were going to get ice cream afterwards. What you expected was for your team to win, everyone congratulates Chūya, then you both drive to get ice cream.

Your expectations came true, for the most part. Chūya's team won, but when him and other teammates were celebrating you catch a glimpse of a face you had presumed to have died.

Dazai Osamu. Now grown compared to the boy had once knew, still giving the same shit eating grin to a pissed off friend — not a mutual one this time.

Eyes locked onto him, afraid he was going to disappear on you like he had before, Chūya gently slaps your arm to get your attention, "What're you looking at?"

You simply point in the brunettes direction, still unmoving.

"What the fuck?" his eyes widen, two pairs of eyes now locked onto a man they haven't seen in three years.

A man they once knew.

His grin fell as he turned towards your direction, but there was nothing to be seen where you both once stood. "Huh, I swear I felt someone staring at me."

"What're you on about this time, Dazai?" the blond man raised a brow, adjusting the glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"Don't worry about it, it’s no longer a matter that’s important to me,” he replied.

“You’re not as edgy as you think when you talk like that.”

Your grip on Chūya's shoulder loosened, as you both slowly turned towards each other. "There's no fucking way that was him," Chūya muttered.

"And here we thought he actually succeeded in killing himself," you huffed out, "Of course he wouldn't be lucky enough for that to happen."

"Well, I guess our night's been ruined," he sighed, kicking his shoes against the gravel, "And you teleported us without letting me change out of my uniform."

"Did you want him to see us or not?" you ask, looking at the frustrated expression on his face.

"I doubt he'd do anything in the first place," he rolled his eyes, "Clearly he wanted to cut all ties with us and start fresh at another school, don't know how he'd manage that with how popular he was here."

"I guess he did grow taller and doesn't have a broken arm this time around," you shrug, amused at Chūya's eyebrow twitch at the mention of height. "Still has that insane look in his eye though, don't know how anyone can miss that.”

Chūya sighed, "Well, people are dumb. Now I'm gonna go change." As he begun to walk away he felt your eyes trailing on his figure, "Don't worry! I'll be back in under ten minutes, you won't be waiting long."

"Good," you say, not loud enough for him to hear though; you didn't feel like shouting right now. Unlocking your car, you hop into the drivers seat and went on your phone as you wait for Chūya.

'SHIT SHIT SHIT shit! Why would those guys be here of all places? To make themselves feel better? That’s actually kinda pathetic… Are they seriously glaring at the back of my head right now?’

Sitting in the booth by yourself, you swallow another serving of ice cream down your throat, pretending to observe the color changing spoon that you were given.

‘Ah yes, the spoon is changing from pink to blue. How cool.’

Tasting the remaining ice cream left on the spoon on your tongue, you glance behind you to see if they had moved and meet Dazai’s eyes.

He was standing behind his friends admiring all the ice cream flavors, his face blank as he continued his make-shift staring contest.

Your eyes widened slightly, but your gaze slightly hardened noticing the intense look in his eyes. You shift yourself so your legs are no longer hiding under the table; ready to get up if he wants to try something.

“Dazai! What flavor do you want?” a voice interrupted, but failed to shake his gaze.

“Cookies n’ cream.”

“Okay!”

A few more moments passed and the frown you initially wore didn’t change, the only thing that caused you both to break your gaze was a white-haired boy handing Dazai his ice cream.

Unbeknownst to you, the brunette looked back only to be met with the back of your head.

You continued to munch on your now somewhat melted ice cream as you could hear footsteps approach your booth.

A sigh made you look up to see a familiar redhead sitting across from you again, “What were you even trying to do there?”

“What do you mean?” you tilt your head as Chūya scooped his ice cream into his mouth.

“That staring contest you both did. Hella weird,” he elaborated.

“The bitch was staring at me and I ain’t no pussy so I stared right back,” you shrug, “Shit, I finished my ice cream.”

STICKY NOTES:

im trying my best to not unintentionally make this an enemies to lovers

TAGLIST : @heeslovr @atlasnessie @cvidy @rattyrattyratty @chaos-inperson [ if you want to be added, send me an ask or feel free to comment! ]

[grenade-maid]

there's a lot of reasons more people aren't into yuri that are troubling to consider, but equally, I genuinely think it cannot be understated how much of it comes down to most yuri being boring as hell. Like truly. I've been reading the front page of Dynasty Scans like it was the newspaper for 15 years I am not exaggerating I can show you the download file data 15 years.

You know what the complaint about yuri by yuri readers was back in 2009?

"wow that really was just 5 volumes of them blushing at each other and then they don't even kiss"

You know what the complaint about yuri by yuri readers is today in 2023?

"wow that really was just 5 volumes of them blushing at each other and then they don't even kiss"

Don't get me wrong, Yuri has grown a LOT in that time, to the point that most people today wouldn't even understand a Maria-sama reference if it were dropped in front of them (thank God). It's expanded and evolved to encompass more stories about adult women, wider varieties of scenarios, a greater acknowledgement of real life lesbianism, and is more comfortable showing girls kissing with tongue and having sex.

Yuri Manga is maybe the best is it's ever been, and it's also getting the widest readership it's ever had in the English speaking world. The titles we carry at work are always on back order with long queues, and, when I've asked them, most weebs of all gender or sexualities report keeping up with at least a few Yuri series.

At large though? Most of it is still really boring. That's not a bad thing necessarily. I like it because it goes down easy. For the most part any series you pick is gonna be pretty chill. Even shit from Sal Jiang which is PRETTY EDGY for yuri is a pretty breezy read. More serious ones like How Do We Relationship? cover some pretty real subjects about how intimacy is actually quite difficult even when both of you love each other, but it's not like... Exciting. Yuri isn't where you go to pump your fist or get perched on the edge of your seat.

So when the comparison is made to yaoi, well, I mean, have you READ any yaoi? Even in some of the more restrained titles those boys are likely to be sucking and fucking balls and all within the first volume or two. There's gonna be drama, intrigue, shit is gonna get messy, passions are gonna get heated, clothes are gonna be ripped off, people are gonna get sold to One Direction, it's stuff you can sit down with a bowl of popcorn with you know? Stuff you can message your friend and gush Hey Can You BELIEVE? A lot of it is pretty trashy, but that's the appeal. The generic state of yaoi is torrid and exciting and sexy. Ultimately, as a species many of us like to see pretty people fuck. In yaoi you'll get that. In yuri you won't. Nothing wrong with that, but it is gonna be a major contributing factor to their relative popularity.

It's also worth making the comparison to hetero romance manga, which has undergone a renaissance of it's own in recent years. There's now a whole meta around crafting a handful of mean shitty grouchy dysfunctional bully women and flinging them at the protagonist of the day who, unlike in years past, may actually have a face and personality. Most of these are also very trashy and truly scrape the bottom of the bucket in terms of writing.

AND YET?

I would bet money on the fact that you'll have heard of these women and probably even have a good idea what they're like without ever having touched a page of their manga.

I'm sorry but the straights are whipping donuts around the yuri girls in terms of delivering a wide variety of weird compelling fucked up women. How many yuri leading ladies by comparison can you point to as standout recognizable characters even divorced from their story? There's definitely a few, but not many. I'm not talking quality or depth of writing, I'm talking straight up pure recognizability. There are many beautifully written women in yuri, now more than ever. I can't think of many who'd like, get a figure made or have their face splashed on merch, though.

I don't really have a conclusion here. I love Yuri a lot, but at the end of the day this is just kinda the state of things right now.

[amomentsescape]

Bro, I love your writing so much and it’s so cool to see some new Gotham stuff pop up on my feed s🥹❤️❤️🥹❤️🥹 if it’s alright, could I please have some fluffy and slightly suggestive headcanons of some Gotham boys, including but not limited to the J squad, with a punk or alt s/o? If you don’t want to do anything suggestive, tho, I totally understand

Please and thank you in advance if you decide to do this ❤️

J Squad + Oswald, Victor, & Bruce with Punk! Reader

Includes: Jerome, Jonathan, Jervis, Oswald, Victor, Bruce

A/N: I hope you enjoy! I wasn't able to make every character suggestive, but I tried my best to make the HC's fit your request!

Jerome Valeska

He loves your aesthetic

Has asked you time and time again to help him get dressed before a heist

Thinks your outfits would not only look badass while murdering people, but they would also help you blend in at night

"Practical and sexy, doll"

Loves when you place your tall, leather combat boot on his leg, asking him sweetly to help you lace it up

He likes to trace his fingers along your leg at this, sometimes going a little too high which earns him a swift smack to the hand

He just lets out a chuckle at this

"I'll get you back later..."

If you're out and about and he notices people looking at you, he immediately helps you embrace it

Will twirl you around in the middle of the street and place a big kiss to your lips

Whispers in your ear how gorgeous and sexy you are whenever he gets the chance

If he's out on a heist and he sees something he thinks you'll like, he'll take it

Even if it steers him off his current mission a bit

Starts having you paint his nails religiously as "good luck"

But in reality, he just likes how his pretty fingertips look wrapped around your neck

Jonathan Crane

This sweet boy is in awe of you

Your edgy looks, your interests, everything

He's never been introduced into this genre before, but you've opened a whole new world for him

Absolutely falls in love with the music you listen to

He just connects to it so well

He also adores being a dress up doll for you

Want to try out a new makeup look on him? Go for it.

You want to see what he'd look like in an edgier outfit? He's ready.

You want to dye his hair a crazy, experimental color? Let's do it!

Seeing him dressed similar to you empowers him in a way

He's used to being hidden in the background, so you pulling him away from that insecurity is like a completely different life to him

Gets extra touchy when you have chokers on

Will softly give you little kisses just above and below the accessory

He's ashamed of it, but he lets his eyes wander for just a little too long when you get all dressed up

He tries to hide it but will turn into a huge blushing and stuttering mess if you catch him in the act

Jervis Tetch

He's definitely intrigued by you

He's used to his world being full of chaotic color and fantasy

But you have this certain edge and uniqueness about you that he hasn't come across before

They say opposites attract for a reason

He feels like you balance him out

You actually help him feel his emotions and openly discuss the things floating around in his head

But of course, being opposites still come with a few disagreements

He finds your taste in music and makeup a little... much

His taste is a little softer and more elegant, but he's not one to judge what you enjoy

He's just tried listening to a couple of your favorite songs and found them scary

He's also not very knowledgeable in this particular genre

So if you bring up something, he'll simply look at you like you've grown a third head

But besides that, he's overall supportive on whatever you want to wear or do

Loves when you both get dressed up together for a night out

It gives him a deep sense of thrill when people look at you both while out

You two may have opposite styles, but your aesthetics are similar in the fact that they don't "fit in" with the public eye

And Jervis honestly loves that

Oswald Cobblepot

You caught Oswald's eye almost immediately when he first encountered you

Something about the way you held yourself drew him in

And when he got to know you?

He was so interested

He wanted to learn more about your clothing choices, the music and art styles you liked, what made you interested in the aesthetic, etc.

He might not share the same exact passion for the things you do, but he will always be very respectful on supporting your interests

He also just finds your look to be super attractive

He doesn't mean to, but he finds himself becoming a little more submissive around you

He's used to throwing out orders and making decisions in his normal day-to-day life

But coming home to you immediately allows him let go of those reigns

You just tell him what to do, and he'll do it

You've accidentally gotten him to whimper a couple times just by complimenting him or giving him words of praise

When you kiss him, you can feel his whole body fall into you

He literally turns into Jello

But he's still an emotional man too, so give him lots of love and attention, and he'll be fully content

Victor Zsasz

Well, obviously he adores how you look

I mean, he wouldn't consider his own look to be punk, but he's aware that he's taken inspiration from the genre in the past

Honestly thinks you two make a badass duo

Even the Zsaszettes admire you whenever you're around

He also likes how easy it is to spot you in a crowd

Not that he stalks you while he's out "working" or anything

He loves your normal outfits of course, but if you wear anything that shows a little skin?

Oh boy, does that dark gleam shine in his eye

He just about sinks his teeth into you (literally)

Victor is known to keep his cool no matter what, but you are able to tell when he really likes a particular outfit that day

A hand on your lower back, a lingering glance, and a teasing smile are all signs

But he also will not hesitate to pinch your butt at the most random times too, public or not

Makes you hold his weapons sometimes because he thinks they make you look even edgier

He also has a thing for any piercings you have too

He's not sure what it is, but he's fascinated with how the cool metal sinks into your skin

He'll play with them too if you let him

He's careful not to hurt you

Unless that's what you want, of course...

Bruce Wayne

He honestly doesn't really think anything of it or notice it much

Which isn't a bad thing by any means

Bruce doesn't judge based on looks, so however you decide to present yourself is just who you are in his eyes

But he also cares a lot about your interests

He'll happily sit beside you and listen to your music, shop with you for new clothes, and come with you for your latest piercing or tattoo

You name it, he's there

If it means a lot to you, then it means a lot to him

But he does think it's pretty cool to have such a badass partner

Has helped you dye your hair a handful of times

He kind of gets a slight thrill from knowing that he's the only one that gets to see all sides to you

People may see you one way when you're out in public, but he also gets to see you when you're at home sleeping in his bed or cuddled up on his couch watching some crazy show he's never heard of

He just likes knowing that he gets all of you

He finds it pretty romantic

Really likes any leather pieces you own

You may have persuaded him to buy a couple jackets based on ones that you already had in your closet

But he especially loves the leather on you

Becomes a bit touchier when you have it on, tracing his hands along the material

He thinks it looks great on you and will definitely let his gaze linger a little longer than usual

[emonydeborah]

If the crew became kids

I doubt this is going to happen, especially because TNG already did it, but I would personally have such a great time.

An overarching theme would be Una's height because reasons, and because her talking to someone and suddenly having to look down at some child would be hilarious.

So some kidifying ray swept the ship, affecting them either one at a time or all at once.

Chris will not shut up about horses. He's swinging his legs on the biobed and chattering away. He accidentally interrupts and is so apologetic bc he never wants to be rude!!!! He wants to be friends!!! "Are we friends?" Spock has to look down at his captain/father figure and say "...yes. Chris." (Also Chris stares up at Una and says she's pretty bc he has more brains as a child than a grown man). He stares out at the stars with the biggest eyes.

Una the preteen is the same height as La'an and La'an is pretending not to be salty about it. They know she's Illyrian and she Freaks Out, and she and La'an have a talk about accepting themselves and not being defined by what others think that is more educational for La'an than for Una. What a gangly woman. She is out here constantly knocking things over, and the crew sees someone who had to grow into herself as much as anyone. Her default response is silence and big scared eyes but she can be tempted with some trivia. Erica spends hours showing her the flight controls.

Spock is a complete deadpan sassbucket and no one is prepared. the cute chubby cheeks. The bowlcut. His babysitters lose sight of him for sixty seconds and he disassembles a replicator because he heard a funny noise. Don't touch that. Why? *is touching it* They cannot make him believe he is in fact an adult and they're trying to fix him. "Mother says to find a mother with children and ask her for help if I get lost." Man asks Una for help because he's lost. Legend.

Uhura is such a little imp. Once she gets over being scared she disappears into the jeffries tubes. Her giggling echoes through the ship like the ghost of a demonic victorian child. Hemmer is down to let her roam but Una crawls in and drags her out. If any of the kids get a leash, it's Uhura. Erica distracts her with sweets. She needs to be occupied at all times or she will wander away.

Erica is the surliest eleven year old. Everyone expected her to be the easy child but she makes a point of being difficult. Una is tearing her hair out and Chris is like yes but have you considered. She is eleven. She's edgy and moody and everyone is like how did our Erica come from you. Una says she's the best pilot she's ever met and sits her at the helm and Erica stops her griping for a bit. She determinedly does not show interest but she does look at the buttons and subtly watch Jenna doing her job.

La'an has a lisp and sucks her thumb. Una insists she has to stay with her. For security reasons. Una has to go yell at people and La'an is holding her hand/on her hip the whole time. Everyone else is curious about little La'an but Una goes NO get your OWN. Little La'an wants hugs and cuddles and Una goes well if I must. For Starfleet. Chris does get custody for a while and he carries la'an around on his shoulders.

Christine and her big fat smart mouth. ackshually I read about this and you're wrong. Her sass is only matched by baby Spock. Grown Spock does not know how to handle it. This eight year old and her sassy little crossed arms leave everyone speechless with the sheer audacity. Joseph "don't touch that you'll break it" vs Christine "we use these at school all the time I know what to do" *breaks it* "... I didn't do that."

Joseph is the smiliest boy. He's having a great time. He follows Christine around and asks her about everything. Someone is in Sickbay with a sprained ankle or something and Joseph goes hmm. Looks like you're real sick. Do you have chicken soup here. He's the most charming little kid. Everything he does is cute. Everyone gets hugs and secret handshakes.

Hemmer, like Spock, takes stuff apart for the heck of it. Uhura tries to distract him by asking about Andoria and he could not care less. Man is tearing apart the EPS manifold and Uhura goes ...buddy let's not do that. Una says stop and he stops. All the deadpan blind jokes. Look away for two seconds and he is actively climbing into the warp core. What are you doing?!?!? Hemmer *shrugs*

Pelia is off like a shot all over the place. Talking a mile a minute. Young Pelia is such a foreign idea no one knows how to handle it. She's their wise old hermit and their wise old hermit is hanging upside down off the biobed. Now she's on the ground and her head hurts. Oh crap she's crying.

[riddlerosehearts]

azami izumida is really the character of all time. he's a 14 year old boy who was the heir to a yakuza clan. he's a bratty, angry, edgy teenager who didn't want to be the heir to a yakuza clan so he ran away from home to pursue his actual dream of becoming a makeup artist. he shares his dorm room at the theater with a 30 year old man who's basically his father figure that he pretends to hate. that 30 year old is still in the yakuza clan that he was supposed to take over and has been his babysitter since he was 4. they once made up their own yu-gi-oh knockoff card game together. he regularly yells at and lectures grown adults for not taking proper care of their skin. he's a foul-mouthed delinquent who blushes profusely at any mention of romance and thinks hand-holding is supposed to be saved for after marriage. he's the only character in a3 who gets to have a rap verse in his character song, which is about how badly he wants to fistfight anyone who treats him like a kid. he raps about his dead mom

[lemonswoop]

2024 game journal entry ✨️

I grew up with the Final Fantasy series, so delving into its newest entry was a great adventure.

Pages written out under the cut.

Final Fantasy XVI logged into the game journal.

Full post under the cut.

Final Fantasy XVI

Start date: 12/16/2023

End date: 2/5/2024

Platform: ps5

Hours played: 137 hours

Positives:

- characters were compelling, and I genuinely cared about them

- lore was very engaging

- combat felt fun and snappy

- side quests were engaging and fleshed out the world a lot!

Negatives

- very easy to get over-powered very quickly

- a LOT of side quests! I loved the lore but sometimes it was hard to get back to the main story

- no chocobo theme :(

Final Fantasy is a series I've grown up with. I remember sitting on the floor of my cousins playroom at 9 years old, both of us freaking out over how much we loved Squall. Despite that, it's been a while since I genuinely enjoyed a modern Final Fantasy title, so I went into this with cautious optimism, and I was greatly rewarded with a game I thoroughly loved!

When I heard the phrase "mature Final Fantasy" I was afraid it would be misery porn. A lot of the time people seem to think of "mature" as frit, gore, sex, profanity, and death for deaths sake because the equate maturity to misery. Nit only did this game avoid being overly miserable and edgy, but it leaned into themes of hope and positivity while not straying from themes of grief. It was a refreshing approach.

I had one gripe with gameplay, and that was I felt very overpowered early on. I quickly fixed it by only doing plot necessary fights and leaning into story over playing around in the field. Sometimes the side quests felt like they pulled away from the main story during moments of urgency (even if I loved the side quests) which sometimes made the pacing jarring. I can't, however, imagine the game without them. They breathed an incredible amount of life into the world, so I learned to enjoy them as breaks and a breather between action.

Something I really valued was how the game set up a villain to be BIG and IMPOSING, a threat to be reckoned with, and time after time it delivered on that feeling. No boss or built up force felt like it was a let down. If an event was shown to be life or death, it truely was life or death!

"It wasn't a good death we should be fighting for, but a better life."

I didn't expect to love Clive as a character as much as I did, but I'm a sucker for a man who goes through unspeakable trauma and comes out the other end kind. It was also nice to finally have an older protagonist.

While talking about characters, I found myself feeling deeply for all of their struggles. The world felt big and lived in, and the characters themselves felt alive. Towards the beginning, when Cid died, I remember thinking, "wow this is actually rough. I really liked Cid!" I remember thinking, "the deaths of any more main characters would be painful as I get to know them more is THAT hurt!" So I was hoping it wouldn't happen! And oh boy... this game isn't afraid to kill it's darlings.

By the end, I was sitting with my mouth hung open like "oh okay, they really just did that."

But I think it was the perfect ending, the only way to end a game that places importance on life after grief, on a legacy, on choosing your own life AND death, on planting a seed you'll never see grow into a tree.

"My dad always said there's two ways to live life; chasing after a dream or slowly shuffling to your grave"

Sometimes, I need that message of hope. Humanity is messy. We don't have a reason to go on, but we do. We reach out for a shoulder to lean on and keep going even if it seems hopeless to do so long down the line.

That part is very much true.

[phoenixwatchesmovies]

Dracula Season Watch Party: The Lost Boys (1987)

After moving to a new town, two brothers discover that the area is a haven for vampires. - Dir. Joel Schumacher

Let's get one thing straight: this movie isn't. Stick a pin in that because we'll get back to that in due time.

In that case, though, WHERE DO I START? This is a fucking great movie and I'll fight anyone who says otherwise. (I didn't say you have to like it. Quality is objective and personal taste is not. Go forth with that nugget of wisdom.)

Starting at the beginning, then, we get one of the best movie themes ever written (as evidenced by the amount of covers that exist), some of my favorite establishing shots ever filmed, and the character entrance that made me say out loud, "OH SHIT 👀"

YOU SEE WHAT I MEAN. As the top comment on the video says, "you know it's awesome when you click just to watch the opening."

The entire movie is like that, TBH. It's almost as quotable as The Princess Bride Thee Greatest Movie Ever Made, and is matched only by The Shining for scenes I'll just watch on their own because I love them that much. Like this one, for instance, that I'm linking because I'm going to bring it up again later:

^^ the music, the camera, the lighting, the transition from the headlights to the lighthouse... It's so good...

Other great music moments include the "People Are Strange" montage of slice-of-life style clips of folks going about their day in Santa Carla intercut with all the posters of missing people hung up around the boardwalk, "I Still Believe" featuring Tim Cappello, Tina Turner's former saxophone player, "Walk This Way" as the boys close in on the surfers on the beach, and ENDLESS uses of "Cry Little Sister."

Brief moment to talk about the Emerson family dynamic. Script, performances, and direction all work together in all the best ways so you never doubt how much they care about each other, or how far they'll go for each other. You can argue for family being one of the core themes of the story, whether it's the one you're born into or the one you're...well, born in a sense, into. Either way, it's about the bonds you make, be it for a lifetime or an eternity.

Grandpa gets his own bullet for being such an icon, and for having the absolute #1 best last line of a movie in history. We waited an hour and a half for the punchline of a joke we didn't even notice we were being told. 🫡

Suppose I'll move onto the Frog brothers. Their antics are where most of the comedy comes from, and if there's one thing I have a problem with in this movie, it's the way the two halves don't quite fit together. Michael and David and Co. work on their own as an edgy, stylish, coming-of-age story. Sam and the Frog brothers are the most obvious giveaway that the original concept was something a bit more similar to The Goonies. And it's probably because I like the vampires a lot more, but the kids just aren't that interesting. They're funny and necessary, but I'm not as invested in what they're doing.

Which brings us back to the Lost Boys themselves. The name is a deliberate reference to Peter Pan, and that's where the tragedy of the whole thing comes in. Screenwriter James Jeremias, after reading Interview With The Vampire and the character Claudia in particular, ran with the idea that the reason Peter and his gang never grow up is because they're vampires (which came first, this movie, or the theory that Peter and Co. are the souls of dead children?). You can see that influence throughout the story, and apparently David and the boys were meant to contrast with Michael in the way they represent adolescence, given they're eternal teenagers.

Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut I don't get that very much. I'm sure it's there, but in terms of x vs y, the vampires and the Frog brothers have always stood out more to me. Compare the two kids trying so hard to appear grown up (Edgar even puts on a deep voice that fools no one) and the four kids who will literally never grow up.

I also called this a tragedy, at least as far as the boys are concerned. What else could it be, being a horror movie, but you watch scenes like the bike ride and it's fun and exciting and you understand what Schumacher is going for. They're alive and living in the moment, free in the way only kids seem to be. As you learn what they are, you realize that, for them, at least, this freedom is forever. Life will always be one big party going from one thrill to the next. The tag line is literally "never grow old, never die." And only one of those is true by the end of the movie. The gut punch about David's death (aside from the fact that he dies at all, what can I say, I'm obsessed with him) is that he doesn't go out like the others do, with blood and melting flesh and explosions. He just...dies, as that child choir kicks in one last time, and you see him for what he always was--a dead kid.

In conversation with tragedy is the theme of monsterhood as a whole. When Michael is faced with the reality of what his new friends are and what he himself is becoming, David has this to say: "You'll never grow old, Michael, and you'll never die. But you must feed." Spoken after the vampires have slaughtered half a dozen beach bums, we have the cost of immortality underlined for us. We've also seen Michael struggle against his new nature when he nearly attacked his own brother earlier in the movie, and it's not like he chose to go after Sam because he's evil. It's instinct. Hunger. A matter of survival. We see him alternatively warning Sam to stay away from him and pleading for help to stop what's happening to him because he doesn't want to become a monster, a killer like David. And that's what makes David and the rest of the boys the antagonists, because their survival depends on killing and feeding on other people, but that's all they're doing, is surviving according to their nature. That's the tragedy of monsterhood.

Along with the realization that someone had to have done that to these kids. Someone chose to make them what they are, and that's the real evil of the story.

And speaking of Max, I appreciate the fake-out approach to revealing him as the real Big Bad. It's very Scream, where you were pretty sure it was Billy the whole time but there was that one scene that threw a temporary wrench in your theory. But Star's line about Max being a secret David was protecting comes out of nowhere in a way that feels like there was a bit more context for it initially, but it never made the final cut.

Which leads me to my other gripe. The pacing and timeline don't seem to be in obvious cooperation. Again, it feels like more was there at one point, but transitional scenes were left out, so it's hard to tell how much time passes between the Emersons moving to Santa Carla and the final showdown. Things could either happen very quickly in which case the escalation is on a level with Romeo and Juliet, or it's more spaced out and the space isn't apparent. And I'm leaning towards the "spaced out" approach.

Now. Allow me a few more indulgent moments, because we gotta talk about David.

Look at him.

LOOK AGAIN.

Istg, he stepped around the bend of that merry-go-round and I said, out loud, with words, "oh shit." I had a crisis for days afterward due to the gender envy. I STILL don't know if I want him or if I want to be him. (I'm too fond of my hair as it is to even think about whether or not I'm brave enough for a bleached mullet, so at least I don't really have to think too hard about the answer.) All this to say, can you really blame Michael? One look at this guy and I didn't know what kind of egg joke I wanted to make, so I'm not surprised our boy Mike was trying so hard to fit into this group.

(Yes, you're correct, I'm circling back to my opening statement.)

You can read this as straight up, pun slightly intended, guys being dudes and Michael just wanting to be accepted by the local cool kids. Makes sense, really. They are cool. He's the new kid in town, and that folds right into the usual coming of age narrative with finding your place in the world along with discovering your own identity, etc etc. But if that's the case, then why all the long, frequent, intense eye contact?

@verified-villain-fxcker gets it. 🥂

Look, I'm sure if you tried hard enough to find a heterosexual explanation for the homoerotic tension I'm seeing, you could. But you're on this site, browsing the tag for this movie, so do you really want to? I've got a whole thesis statement on how Schumacher being a gay man/identity influencing one's art/motorcycle clubs being part of queer culture rattling around somewhere in my head, but to keep mostly on topic, I'm sticking with this: part of the coming of age story is discovering your identity, which includes your sexuality. Therefore, it's hardly a stretch to say this is a movie about gay awakening as much as anything else and that Michael Emerson is a disaster bisexual. Of course I'm not the first person to see it that way, but Pride Month is almost over. What else was I going to end on?

He's queer, your honor. Happy Pride. 🏳️‍🌈

[rockybloo]

Feel like dropping a Beanstalked funfact before I go to take my daily nap so here is one about Jack's Slayer mode. This at some point becomes me rambling about fairy tales again so it's a long one:

Jack's Slayer mode exists because I grew up loving the trope of protagonists in anime that had an alternate side to them. I think one of my first encounters with such was watching Yugioh as a kid with Yugi and Yami Yugi...though that's like...a more positive spin on it. STILL - I loved how there was that switch up between a nice and innocent face to someone who was more skilled and experienced.

Then you got me getting into Inuyasha and his entire full demon mode he entered under specific circumstances, and then Ichigo's whole thing with his hollow self, and Maka's temporarily going insane during her battle with Crona. All of which are instances of protagonists becoming more antagonistic (or just losing some chill).

All a lot less wholesome than the Yugioh example (and all are things I got into when I was older)

BASICALLY - That switch being flipped in a character you typically see as the good guy, doing some wild ass shit just STUCK with me forever. It's very cliche and many kids these days would call it edgy but I adore how corny it is.

For Jack specifically, I felt like he'd be the best character for such a trope because Jack and the Beanstalk is a very interesting fairy tale to me. It's my favorite and I think one big reason (aside from how cool a gigantic beanstalk is) is the fact Jack isn't explicitly a good guy. He def can be depending on the story you are reading (especially one meant to be read to children) but some old retellings lack that moralization for him.

And that's something that has led to a very large amount of fairy tale adaptions featuring their own beanstalk Jacks that are viewed as the bad guy or are more mischievous than a Cinderella or Little Red Riding Hood.

TO BE FAIR the fella kind of just breaks into someone's house, steals their shit, leaves and cuts the beanstalk down, killing the giant in the process.

It helps ease the "illegality" of Jack's actions that the giant is typically a giant maneater with his whole "I'll grind your bones to make my bread" shtick. But many choose to just look past the cannibalism (or non-cannibalism since giants aren't really humans) to point at Jack and go "Hey that's actually really fucked up man"

Growing older, I def can see that perspective and understand it more than younger me who grew up with a more moralized version of the story where Jack was depicted as a little kid instead of a young adult (or straight up grown man).

So I always grew up with a bias towards a good guy Jack.

CIRCLING BACK AROUND TO MY FAV TROPE - Jack was the best OC for it because of the duality to the character he was based off of. His default personality is the Jack I grew up used to imagining: A wholesome guy just trying to do his best in a situation he very much didn't fully understand and winded up doing something drastic just because he didn't know what else to do.

And his "cool and edgy" personality was the Jack that would purposely cut down a beanstalk to kill a giant in cold blood.

Over the years of working on Beanstalked, Jack's Slayer mode became a lot more dynamic and wasn't just tied to him being angry. It shifted to something that triggered when he felt adrenaline and winded up being a peek into the emotions he'd bottle up and push down because Jack, at his core, just wants to make people happy. And some emotions make that a bit more difficult.

But it basically is just my way of having my cake and eating it too. I wanted a nice and sweet farm boy but I also wanted one who wouldn't hesitate if placed in the right (or wrong) situation.

[variousqueerthings]

I'm intrigued...who is Sick Boy?

SICK BOY!!!!

@le-red-queen I'M BEING ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SICK BOY WHAT A GREAT DAY!!!!!!!!!!

sick boy is a useless silly little criminal baby boy punk who's addicted to heroin

he's one of the ensemble of the movie trainspotting which i would recommend with a whooole bunch of content warnings if you have triggers or squicks

it's an iconic movie based on an iconic book, about a group of scottish addicts who rail at the nature of the world around them and the hypocrisy of 90s capitalism (ohhh sweet summer children), but also double-cross each other, have anger issues, drag each other down, and fuck up their own lives in various ways -- the score is also a work of art!

sick boy's character in this story is someone who pretends to be generally unaffected by the life they're in, obsessed with james bond, and on the whole the somewhat shallow it-girl of the team, if you will, but there are a lot of strong clues in the first film that suggest that he feels far more than he lets on, and he goes through his own personal tragedy in the movie as well

but yeah he's kind of head-empty bimbo too

in the sequel, x amount of years later, the writing decided to focus more on him and his dynamic with the lead character, renton (played by ewan mcgregor), and where their lives have ended up now they're no longer youths who can push away the accountability for their own lives and the world around them. it leans more heavily on them having a lot of homoerotic tension, and having had A Past in which they were best friends and how becoming addicts gradually pulled them from one another, but maybe they'll find their way back again who knows, which is a little different from the first movie in which the outlook is generally quite bleak (they're both quite bleak, but the first one is by far the more tragedy-based narrative)

all grown up sick boy, still a bimbo

the other two leads of this dynamic are begbie and spud, and they do have large parts to play in both of the stories as well. fun links, begbie is played by robert carlyle who's in plunkett & macleane with JLM and he's been very open about playing the former of these roles as a closeted gay man... the latter is my own imagination, but i see you mr robert carlyle (yeah I originally wrote richard idk why either, sorry i did that to u mr carlyle)

but yeah. trainspotting. amazing movie. unfortunately all your brother's edgy friends are into it too, it's kind of one of those "if your boyfriend's favourite films are american psycho, fight club, the matrix, and trainspotting, run" movies, but you know. don't hold that against it 😂

the sequel: a bit self-indulgent, but I'm the person being indulged and it's genuinely fun seeing these actors who've remained close throughout all these years return to some of their career-making roles, and explore a little more of the book lore + look, i read too much into it maybe, but both ewan mcgregor and JLM are recovering alcoholics, and seeing them as middle-aged men playing the parts of recovering addicts, it's... good. i think this movie is good, in a very different way to the first one. renton and sick boy do not make out, but there's a character who says they're definitely in love and ought to fuck, and she's so right for that

in conclusion:

highly recommend it

[writingsofwesteros]

#princess of the dreadfort

You just know that Aemond would love the Bolton’s. Flaying is a big barbaric for his tastes, but he enjoys the power and reputation they have, even all the way down in Kings Landing. Aemond had adored his older half-sister as a boy, her often spending time with him in the library while the others rode dragons. He grew attached and had been so upset when she left to the North. Now she’s here, stuck to her husband’s side and she hasn’t even spoken to him yet. He wants to think that it’s just poor timing, but he isn’t blind to the way the Bolton lord steers her away from her brothers and sisters. She just smiles softly at him and brushes the hair on her son’s head. It boils his blood to see. How dare he take away his family from him - he’s a prince.

Aemond tries again at dinner, and yet he makes no further progress. The couple sit across from Daemon and Rhaenyra, the two sisters talking all night. The Bolton doesn’t say much, though his hand linked with hers resting on the table the entire night says enough. Aemond watches as she gasps at the sight of her father, only for her husband to soothe her. He hates this guy, especially as he wishes it was him. It all comes to a head when the pig is brought out, his toast silencing the room. He makes eye contact with the Bolton and grins before speaking once more,

“And to my sweet sister, the Lady Bolton. Now a mother. How much you’ve grown and changed since I saw you last… it seems being kept by the side of a northerner becomes you.”

His tone is edgy and others, including her husband, pick up on the veiled insult. And yet, Aemond watches as the princess smiles at him and moves around to hug her brother. She thanks him softly, wishing him well. Aemond smirks over her head as the Lord Bolton stands up angered and grins as the princess leaves the room shortly after. It is only then that the chaos of the night ensues, all having held their tongues for the sweet princess. Aemond goes to bed that night pleased with himself - he got a rise out of his nephews, the admiration of his uncle and affection from his sweet older sister.

(Aemond is a jealous little shit-stirrer)

(Aemond is a jealous little shit-stirrer)

AND WE LOVE HIM

The Princess is so like Helaena as she claps at Aemond's speeches ; not picking up on the slight tone and taunts he has.

He wraps his arm around her when she comes close and stays in her embrace a little too long. Aemond notices the Lord Bolton itching forward to collect his love

[the-black-bulls]

If your still doing the headcanon ask thing, do you have some for Henry and Zora?

seeing a headcanon you disagree with and it kinda pisses you off

the animal loving duo!

Zora:

- oh boy, let's see… that he's a slut fuckboy playboy or some bullshit based on how he dresses and acts, which downplays the depth and complexity behind his character by brushing it off as him being your regular edgy sexy manwhore (who'd end up the same in terms of his fashion sense and personality whether his father lived or not? cause that sounds so forced to me child zora is so different from zora now for a critical reason and that reason is his father's death)

- any headcanon that involves him hooking up or dating nobles or royals to be honest, shipping is shipping we do it because it's fun which is perfectly valid and I don't judge you for it at all, but I can't look behind zora's spitefulness towards the high class and I find it more fitting to have him connect with some of them, mimosa and noelle for example, without involving romance

- that he'll remain a magic knight for years and years froward, I said the same with nero and I'll say it with zora too… bitch you've wasted enough of your life following a dead man's path NOW please live life and move one?? take off that mask, help peasants with their magic, just become a florist or collect an army of bugs or do anything that resonates more with you ("zora ideale") and less with the you you're forcing yourself to become ("super magic knight zora")

Henry:

- don't have anything specific, but most headcanons that portrays him as an innocent childlike angel who does no wrong and not the suicidal grown ass man who wrecked shit and glared bloody murder at people who tried to hurt his family… henry IS kind and wholesome so I'm not saying it's wrong to highlight these traits of him, but there are a lot of nuance in his character that I wish gets more addressed

[beginnerblueglass]

I finished Titans S3 and it's everybody's problem!

No, I have not yet seen S4, I just felt that seasons 1-3 formed a perfect little three-part story, and I HAVE SOME THOUGHTS

About six years ago I was a staunch Marvel fan living in a Marvel household, and I was in deep. DC was not spoken of in my home, EXCEPT for a little annoying cartoon called Teen Titans GO! that my younger siblings were obsessed with. I never liked it very much, but I was forced to watch.. a lot of it. At the time I had a habit of going onto IMdB every day and watching all the new trailers. Imagine my surprise when I noticed a new trailer for a show called Titans. "Oh, they're making a live-action show about the Teen Titans? How interesting!" Then I watched it. I was horrified. Horrified. Why is it so dark? Why is it so violent? Why does it look so scary? Why is there so much blood? Why is Starfire killing someone? Did that grown man dressed as Robin, covered in blood, just say "f*ck Batman"? What is happening? I decided right then that I never wanted anything to do with this show, and for the next several years I heard nothing more about it. What happened since then? I don't know. I grew up and became interested in DC? After I saw it while browsing Netflix, I looked it up. Most of the reviews were meh to negative, but I decided to give it a try, just starting with a few episodes.

And oh my goodness?????

This show surprised me so hard.

Season one is rough. It's very dark and gritty and violent. Like the creators are saying, "Look at me!! I'm edgy!" The subject matter is extremely dark, there is minimal music and almost no soundtrack, the language is coarse, and the colour scale is ✨grey✨. At first, this was very offputting, especially since seasons two and three have a completely different tone. The Doylist explanation is just that the creators were doing the cliche "kid's media adapted for adults, and make it unmistakably for adults," thing. But the Watsonian explanation? Ooh boy, that's interesting.

One thing that I found so captivating about this show is how the audience's viewpoint is halfway inside the main character's head. So much of this show is Dick Grayson's internal mental landscape presenting itself onscreen. We see his dreams, visions, flashbacks, memories, and hallucinations. Whole episodes take place inside his head, and the things going on in his head regularly escape. This happens at times on some level with the other characters, but when Dick is onscreen it's like he pulls the audience in and we see things the way he sees them. This show does "immersive" very well.

Why is the first season so dark, Watsonian-ly speaking? (Watsonian-ly?) Because this is set during the darkest time in Dick's life. He's depressed and suffering from an identity crisis, he doesn't feel like a human being and has cut himself off from everyone who cares about him. Why is there no soundtrack? Because pop songs aren't really going through Dick's head right now. Why is there little to no humour? Well, Dick isn't really feeling the jokes at the moment. Why is there so little colour? He's seeing everything in bleak shades of grey (of course, Kori comes into his life in a pop of colour 🥰). He is completely immersed in a cycle of violence and bloodshed that he doesn't know how to get out of, and it's torturous. The tone of the season matches his mental state perfectly. It is easy to watch? No, but if we're looking at it this way, it shouldn't be easy.

Dick begins the healing process starting in season two, and the tone immediately shifts. There's colour and a soundtrack!! There's humour and even some happiness! The Doylist explanation, of course, is that audiences didn't want more seasons like S1, so they made the tone a little more friendly. But the Watsonian explanation is that Dick is in a better place, mentally and emotionally, so his surroundings respond in kind. This continues through season three.

Now, the action-centred plot lines in seasons 1-3 range from being really interesting, to really boring, to being absolutely riddled with plot holes. Don't watch this show for that reason. Watch it for the character-centred emotional arcs. They don't disappoint. Seasons one, two, and three form a three-act story, centred on Dick's emotional journey expressed in his relationships with Bruce Wayne on one side, and Jason Todd on the other. Dick's journey of blame, anger, running away, self-examination, and forgiveness is repeated in each season, but it doesn't feel repetitive, it feels symmetrical.

(I already made a post about how I feel that they dropped the ball right at the end of season two in this regard, so the "forgiveness" aspect of the cycle didn't really land, but that's why God gave me an imagination.)

In season one, Dick blames Bruce Wayne for making him into what he is (a killer, someone who is capable of terrible things, who has hurt people, and will continue hurting people, as he doesn't know any other way to live). He is so steeped in that anger that he has become someone he barely recognizes. A year ago, he ran away, cutting himself off from everyone and everything. After being thrust into a mission to protect a young girl who needs his help, Dick is forced to do some self-examination. In the end, he realizes that healing for himself will only begin if he takes some responsibility for his own actions and forgives Bruce.

In season two, since he is no longer blaming Bruce for all his problems, Dick is blaming himself. Again, the resulting anger causes problems, he tries to run away, and he ends up being forced to take a hard look at himself. He realizes that his running away is selfish and isn't fixing anything and that healing, both for himself and the people he's hurt, will only come once he takes responsibility for his actions and forgives himself.

In season three, there's a three-way system of blame between Dick, Bruce, and Jason. Jason blames Bruce and Dick for setting him up to be Robin and then (as he sees it, and he's not totally off-base) giving up on him and casting him aside. Bruce blames himself for failing first Dick, then Jason. And Dick, having learned to stop blaming either Bruce or himself, blames Jason for turning evil. Whew! The cycle I was talking about comes to a crescendo in this season, and the resolution is so satisfying. This time, it's Jason who lashes out in anger and it's Bruce who runs away. Dick still has to do the "self-examination" thing though. In the end, he comes to realize that (you guessed it) healing for all the people involved will only begin when each party takes responsibility for their actions and forgives each other. Dick begins with himself; he realizes that he is partly responsible for the way Jason turned out, so he is the first to extend his hand in both an apology and forgiveness, which begins the healing process, which literally cleanses Gotham City. It's beautiful, ok?

The themes of fatherhood and family trauma are so subtly interwoven throughout the story, but it's powerful. The show shines a spotlight on the effects of all the father/son relationships and makes them the beating heart of the storyline. It's actually beautiful how Dick's final internal battle ends with a vision of both his past and his future: he sees himself as a little boy with his birth father, who announces that he will always love Dick no matter what, and then he sees his own future daughter. Father/child relationships are a powerful force in this show. They are the source of great pain, harm, and damage, as well as great strength, hope, and love.

This show has changed my brain chemistry.

One more thing. Dick is portrayed by Brenton Thwaites. Do you know who he is? Let me now confess that he was my first celebrity crush. I saw him in The Giver and I was gone, but I don't think I'm biased when I say that he is such a good Dick Grayson it isn't funny. He plays "internally haunted" extremely well, as well as all the other things Dick Grayson needs to be. Now Iain Glen as Bruce Wayne really threw me at first, but I have to admit he has grown on me. He's an older Bruce Wayne, kind of the spiritual successor of Adam West, minus the campiness. Not the best Bruce Wayne in cinematic history, but give him a chance. His scenes with Dick and Jason are *chef's kiss.*

There's more to the show than Just Dick, Bruce, and Jason, but like I said, they're the beating heart of the show. I could go on, but I have to go eat dinner now, and get started on season four. Happy ending, here I come!!

[blenselche]

wanted to sketch this scene from Oneirogenic Coalescence out

“Shoko?”

She stares back at him, only a few inches away and inspecting his face with narrowed eyes.

“I’m stuck being your guide again,” she surmises. “Subtractional. We’ve got to stop meeting like this.” She blows a sigh out, pushing a hand through her hair. “I should have stayed in the deadworlds.”

Finn snorts, elbowing her. “Well, for what it’s worth I’m glad you didn’t. Is it actually you this time, or- or is this just part of the hallucination?”

“I’ve been dragged out of your subconscious. I’m still with you, after all, as you’ve aged you’ve grown closer to me. You remember my life,” she turns, and they’re back at the gang’s open bathhouse, overgrowth creeping backwards. “Why is that?”

The Plant Teacher metamorphoses into a bath boy, poking at its hair rollers. “Your future is debating removing you from the cycle of reincarnation.”

Shoko looks over her shoulder, quirking a critical brow at him.

“I—“ his hands raise in defense of himself. “Maybe. It was just a stupid thought,” he muffles into his palm as he stares at their feet, uncomfortable and edgy. “Fern is immortal, he doesn’t have to die unless I do, and- and if I don’t die, then…”

“You’re afraid you won’t be able to find yourself in the next life,” she guesses, and he lifts a finger gun to the air without looking up. “You found the Princess, Finn, and we were barely friends. You found our closure, what makes you think you wouldn’t be able to find it again?”

“Maybe I’m tired of finding myself! Maybe- maybe I’m tired of going through painful junk and learning the same lessons just to find something good under it all,” his hands raise and slap back down to his sides as he walks in a circle on the concrete platform. “I’ve never been in love in any of my lives, and I finally have that. Why can’t I get off the ride if I have the chance? What if I want us to stay like we are?”

Shoko stops him, dragging him to sit on a cracked step as her life bustles around them in blurry, fluid dreamscapes. Finn watches with tired, drooping eyes as she releases the Ice King from a group of old witch women.

“That’s what life is, Finn. Sometimes we have our arm cut off by our father, sometimes we lose it trying to cling to him. It’s just how the cycle works. You can’t stop it.”

“I want to,” he murmurs, muscle of his jaw jumping. “I’ve finally got some stability.”

“Life is change,” the entity reminds him, lifting a slice of cucumber over its eye. “You cannot cross the stream without getting wet. You are not prone to give yourself to indolence, child, you are always moving, always changing. Do not falter to the soul erosion of a middling existence in vampirism, it is counterintuitive to your purpose.”

Finn groans, chest deflating. “I hate that determinism gunk. I’m not made for anything. I don’t believe in destiny.”

“No, I know you don’t. That does not stop it from being true.” It settles lower in the water, watching him. “You are a very purposeful being, Finn. You, a cosmic force trapped within a man cannot remove yourself from the cycle even if you wish it. You have yet to find your final method of being.”

“Not this comet crap again,” he whines, face tipping to the sky and eyes screwing up tight.

“Yes this comet crap again.” It snaps its fingers and they’re hung in the vast nothingness of space, Shoko scrambles to grab onto him, terrified.

“Finn!?” she screeches. “What’s it talking about?”

He curls an arm around her waist and hefts her higher. “We were put here to commit acts of ‘great good’,” Finn says, tense, “Davey stopped Orgalorg, you released Simon, I defeated the Lich, Penny blasts the cosmic elementals…” he pauses, brain skipping on the realization that he remembers her, “and some day we’ll ascend to the fourth dimension. I refused last time.” He nods with a rigid jerk to the comet, to Martin and the moth. “We’re… some godlike entity. But we forgot.” He swallows dry, throat constricting. “I don’t think about it. It makes me feel like- like my skin is on too tight.”

“You may reject predeterminism, but that does not stop it from affecting you,” the Teacher announces, loud enough to rattle his bones. “I can only help you if you’re open to it. Will you open yourself? Or will you pursue this dead ended, disillusioned passivity borne from the fear of your truth?”

He feels Shoko tremble in his arm, smells the sweet spices they used to use in her hair and sighs out a dejected “okay.” His feet hit the hardwood of the tree house’s kitchen, and he lets Shoko dismount his side, knees shaking and wobbly as she falls back into the dingy cushions of the wrap around sofa.

“That was terrifying,” she chokes with an airy laugh, forehead thunking to the table.

“… our bones are like, six feet away,” he thinks out loud and she shoots him a freaked out glance. “Sorry. Nerves.”

“Are you ready to face yourself, little hero?” It hangs from the ceiling, having taken on Marceline’s form.

A smarmy, weak grin stretches across his expression. “I already am, technically.”

“Don’t be tiresome, the other half of your soul gives me enough trouble.”

Finn snickers unevenly in the face of this unknowable tutelar, at the sensation of bantering with some infinite providence when he’s such a tiny animal.

He nods, and the strings of his being unravel as Shoko keeps hold on the red piece of yarn that connects them, steadying the knot at his center.