#GENUINELY IT WAS A GODDAMN RIOT

[llumimoon]

I spedrun this drawing to give to the cast at the last liveshow! :D

[thistaleisabloodyone]

Still thinking about making a gif set for winning MV - if Summer Riot wins, I riot and throw my computer out the window, then fight with making a gif set with whatever remains.

[anonymous-dentist]

Okay I did some vod searching and here’s Cellbit’s pov of the prison announcement (in the form of a pretty badly clipped video lol)

A couple of things to note:

The silence

The stammer

The knife

The eyes

First, the silence, because it could be easy to miss from another pov because he was already pretty quiet before. But you can see the literal second it registers what Forever had just said because the change in the silence is palpable. He didn’t even raise his voice above the noise when he asked Forever if he was being serious.

Second, the stammer. This is a man who is very good at talking. Look at him during the presidential debates, nothing was able to keep him from talking, not even his own suicide. But then here he… can’t talk. He’s that shocked, and he’s terrified. See:

Third, the knife. Now this knife. Now this knife. It’s his emotional support murder knife. He only brings it out when he feels scared, and it’s gotta be a real deep fear for him to bring it out. It’s only been a few times, namely when he’s been triggered over his past, most notably when he and Richarlyson explored the Federation prison after Pac’s kidnapping.

And then fourth, the eyes. After he takes the knife out, Cellbit’s eyes flick back and forth between Forever the audience in what appears to be genuine confusion. Because, and this is important, Forever never told Cellbit about the prison. So between the fear and the Horrors, there’s some actual legitimate confusion in there because he didn’t know about this.

So now, after all that, let’s take a look at q!Cellbit’s character in general because I know there are people who don’t know about his very tragic backstory.

So Cellbit was in prison for… something. Probably murder tbh, but that was never confirmed. He was in prison with Pac e Mike and he was a really bad person. As in, murdering people, threatening people, ripping human ears off, stabbing, inciting riots (I think???). He killed Felps. He almost got Pac and Mike to kill each other.

And then, after being left to die alone on an island, Cellbit got some goddamn help for the first time in his life.

Before prison, he was in a war (ie the Hunger Games.) Then he was in prison, and the math is hunting towards him being incarcerated prior to his eighteenth birthday. He was 18-ish when he was in prison, and he’s 26 now, and he spent those eight years in therapy. Now he’s a better person, and he’s a very scared person.

He has many triggers, but the one that’s come up the most has been prison. He killed Abueloier that first time because they were in a prison-like cell. After hearing that Pac e Mike were arrested, he almost became another person as he interrogated Foolish (just watch that vod back, the whiplash is there.) When exploring the Federation’s prison, he was visibly on edge, clutching his emotional support murder knife and tensing when he saw all of the cells and almost stabbing Cucurucho when it appeared. Foolish asked if he could arrest him, Cellbit immediately turned him down, and he went behind his husband’s back to convince Foolish not to arrest him, either. (I’m not sure if he knows in-character about the prison cell in the new murder mystery game, but he will Not be happy if he gets put in there.)

So. Prison.

He wants to be a better person, is the thing. Cellbit doesn’t like thinking about who he was as Cell- he canonically even avoids cellphones when he can (see: Abueloier.) But he can’t help what happens when he’s triggered: he killed Abueloier, he almost attacked Cucurucho and risked his whole new infiltration plan. He’s worried about hurting someone again, because he knows he’s capable of it. He might not be the best at pvp, but that doesn’t matter when half the server is just as bad as he is (/affectionate.)

He doesn’t want to hurt his family, and there being a big huge physical trigger all of a sudden in the form of this prison he wasn’t ever told about has clearly made him realize that, oh shit, this could be bad. Bad for himself, and thus bad for others.

[stevethehairington]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY @stevecarrington!!!!! I HOPE TODAY IS UNBELIEVEABLE!! i'm so glad this fandom has brought us together, you're such a wonderful friend and im very lucky to know you!! i know how much you love steddie AND ted lasso so i whipped up a little steddie lasso for you, i hope you enjoy 💕💕

⚽️✨️⚽️✨️⚽️✨️⚽️✨️⚽️✨️⚽️✨️⚽️

Eddie is not quite sure how he got here.

One day he was sprawling across his ornately carved DM throne, gleefully ruining the lives of those brave enough to sit at his table and dip their toes into his particular brand of tabletop roleplay chaos, and the next he was packing up his life and getting on a bus heading west, back to god damn Hawkins, Indiana — the hometown he swore he'd never come back to all to coach soccer.

Yeah. That's right. Soccer.

The thing is — he's never been a sportsball kind of guy. Not baseball, not basketball, not football. Certainly not soccer. Outside of ogling the players for their tight little shorts and their calf-hugging socks, of course. The only reason he knows even the slightest brush of the basics — and even then, it's a strech to say he knows it — is because Wayne is a sportsball guy.

But apparently that incredibly bare quasi-knowledge of it was good enough for Chrissy — Eddie's best friend extraordinaire and prominent figure in the sports world (truth be told, Eddie really couldn't tell you what her actual position was — all he knew was that she did everything and was everywhere. Seriously, it was insane how many connections she had in the world of professional organized sports.) — because when she heard the words "looking for strong leadership" and "to build comraderie" and especially "with a creative, outside of the box approach" when the league announced that they were looking for a new head coach, she had immediately submitted Eddie's name. Without even consulting him on it. Without even telling him in the first place.

It was a true testament to just how desperate the club was that they had actually chosen him.

Getting that call had boggled his damn mind.

Still does, if he's being honest.

And now here he is, fresh off the bus and standing in front of Nancy goddamn Wheeler — the tiny, but incredibly intimidating owner of the whole goddamn team.

"Eddie, welcome," Nancy says, flashing him a perfectly pleasant smile that still somehow makes him feel like prey. "It's great to meet you."

She holds out her hand, and Eddie quickly wipes his palm against his jeans before accepting it. Her handshake is firm — she's not fucking around.

"It's lovely to meet you too, ma'am," Eddie replies, with his politest midwestern manners.

Nancy's lips press together, turning down at the corners, and for a brief moment Eddie thinks he's somehow managed to fuck this up already. Could you get fired for sweaty hands? Was that legal?

But then a small laugh slips from those lips and Nancy says, "Just Nancy. Ma'am makes me feel like I'm seventy-five and belong in the bingo hall."

Eddie can't help the bleat of laughter that bubbles out, probably a little too enthusiastic. "Hey, the bingo hall's a riot," he says.

That gets Nancy to chuckle again before she clears her throat and smooths down the lapels of her blazer. "Well, thank you so much for taking on this position, we're really grateful to have you here, and we look forward to seeing what you can do for us," she says, and she sounds genuine about it, which puts Eddie a little more at ease. Nancy barrels on, "I'm sure Chrissy had briefed you about speaking with the press?" She asks, but she doesn't give him a chance to answer. "You'll just be sitting down with some journalists and answering any questions they may have — and I'm sure they'll have plenty."

Eddie lets out another nervous titter. Yeah, he's sure too. "Sure," he says. "Um, and that's... tomorrow? Later this week?"

Nancy makes a face, a sort of half grimace, half sympathetic thing.

Eddie's stomach turns.

"Actually," Nancy starts, eyes flickering towards the door behind Eddie, "it's right now."

Shit.

"Did— did Chrissy not let you know that?" She asks, chewing on her lip.

"No, no!" Eddie is quick to reply. "She did, I'm sure she did, I just— probably wasn't listening. It's kind of been a... crazy fucking day—" his eyes go wide, "— I mean—"

Nancy laughs. "You can say that a-fucking-gain," she agrees, and Eddie's shoulders relax from where they'd tensed up to his ears.

"Well, I'm sorry to just throw you to the wolves like this, but we can't really call it off now," Nancy continues, giving him an apologetic look.

Eddie glances towards the door too and nods. Rolls back his shoulders and straightens his spine. Let's himself slip into his DM persona — the guy that can handle every punch that's thrown his way, no problem.

"No, it's fine. I got this," he says, nodding again.

Nancy smiles and leads him towards the door. "Whenever you're ready," she tells him.

Eddie takes a deep breath, steels himself, and turns the handle.

Immediately he is bombarded by flashing cameras and an increase in volume as dozens of eyes all pinprick right onto him.

He's got this. They're just people. He's good with people.

Eddie climbs the two steps leading up to the staging area and swaggers to his place behind the desk, dropping himself into the seat. He reaches out to tap the microphone, which emits a sharp whine that shuts the crowd up.

He stifles his grin and leans into the mic, "Let's start this thing, shall we?" He pauses, scans the audience, quirks a brow. "Questions?"

Almost every single hand shoots straight up.

Yep. Should've seen that coming.

"Okay, okay, you know what? Let's just—" he motions for everyone to put their hands down, "— yeah, there we go. Great. Thanks. Right. I'm sure a lot of you have some of the same questions, so why don't I start by clearing a few things up first."

He wriggles in his seat, getting comfortable. "Yes, the rumors are true. No, I have not coached soccer before. Haven't coached anything before, actually. Hell, I'm probably the least qualified guy they could have hired for the spot," he laughs, and a murmur goes through the crowd. "I don't really know the first thing about soccer, but what I do know is that this team, the Hawkins Demodogs FC, these ferocious warriors of sport— they're going to get out on that field and they're— they're gonna put all of their intelligence and wisdom and strength into it," he says firmly, falling back on his trusty DnD knowledge. Game of sports can't be that different from a campaign, right? "They're gonna put their constitution to good use and fall back on their dexterity and they're going to defeat their enemies — I'll make sure of it."

Glasses guy in the second rows eyebrows lift, almost like he recognizes the terminology.

"Now," Eddie says, clapping his hands together. "I'll take one question from the masses. Make it a good one."

The hands shoot back up again, but the only one Eddie notices is the one belonging to glasses guy. It raises it a beat after the rest, lifts his hand into the air relaxed, easy, like he doesn't actually care.

It intrigues Eddie. He intrigues Eddie.

"You, in the second row," Eddie says, pointing right at the man.

A slow smile spreads across his face as he rises to his feet, clicks his pen, pushes up his glasses again.

"I like your glasses," Eddie comments, unable to help himself.

The guy's smile twists at the corners. "Thank you," he says, and his voice is smooth, rich, like honey. Eddie kind of wants to bathe in it.

His stomach swoops. "And you are?"

"Steve Harrington, the Indypendent," he says.

Eddie leans forward on his elbows, lets his smile turn a little flirty. "What's your question, Steve Harrington from the Indypendent?" He asks, stretching out Steve's name, loving the way it tastes in his mouth.

"Yeah, I've just got one question for you," he says. He fixes a narrowed, nettled look on Eddie, cocks a hip, and says, in a perfectly, deliciously, bitchy tone, "is this a fucking joke?"

Oh, he's going to be a fun one.

[blacclotusss]

What Can the Damned Really Say to the Damned?

Just a bit of meta on my favorite scenes from episode one of season two!

Louis and Lestat in the Field

At this point and time, using context clues, we know Lestat is conjured up from Louis' mind. Personally, I think Louis conjured him up due to the fact that he's surrounded by dead bodies and the most recent "dead" body he's cared about is Lestat. So now, he's thinking of his past love and the murder of him, the only time he's felt like he murdered someone. "Oh love, I'm merely waiting until you're happy." This seems to be the opposite of what Lestat has done to Louis in season one. He would always try and catch Louis when he was down and make the situation worse e.g. Paul's death, the church turning, the closing of the Azalea, the riots, etc. It's interesting, especially, considering Lestat isn't actually saying any of this. Crazy how Louis' brain is working in this moment. A friend of mine also brought up that Louis is in a period of desperation and despair and I think it may have brought up thoughts of home, the home they left Lestat to die in.

Claudia and Louis' Argument in the Boiler Room

The first time we actually hear, from her own mouth, how much Claudia resents Louis for the fact that Lestat is still looming over them. "I forgave you for messing up my plan, I did not forgive you for bringing him with you." Louis, in that moment, seems to want to make nice with people on their journey and dismisses Claudia's concerns and ideas, which may build even more resentment. "I'm looking for one, just one, that ain't a goddamn bastard!" Her search for vampires seems to be her both wanting answers as well as her own companion to escape the bastards she's encountered as a vampire.

Claudia's Dreams/Nightmares

This one is a bit tricky for me to understand because the only thing I can think of what Louis is trying to say is that she is lying, but I don't think he'd call her a liar. I believe Claudia only said she couldn't dream because Louis was getting on her nerves. I hope to God that is not the angle we're going with because I will personally raise hell for her.

Morgan Asking Louis for Help

Very short point but it's so interesting that Morgan thought Louis would help and I was somewhat surprised that Louis left it alone. I think that those four years have hardened him just a bit and he's over the humans for now. Another point, a bit of racism slipping through that Morgan thought the Black man was going to help.

Daciana and the Fire

Two interpretations of this scene and I'd like to believe that the both of them have some truth to it. One (brought to me by my friend @nakiaslilhoodoo), Daciana and her killing her children relating to Claudia. Even in season one, we see just how much he cares for Claudia, even going so far as to postponing his suicide so that she wouldn't have the memory of her brother dying on the same day as the beginning of her journey of traveling. I think Daciana jumping into the fire after losing her children could show how Louis will lick the fire (internally) once Claudia is gone. 

Two (another point made by a friend of mine, Daciana and Magnus being one in the same in this scene. The both of them walked into the fire after feeling defeated with having no companion. I didn't realize this until a friend brought it up to me and I think it makes the situation even more tragic.

Louis' Speech to Claudia

A very bittersweet moment for me, and the way the trailers and clips are set up makes me believe this may fall apart. I thought I'd feel stronger about Louis telling Claudia about having a shitty life, I still don't think it was quite necessary because I'm sure she knows that and her life was shitty before she even met Louis, but it didn't leave a poor taste in my mouth like I thought it would. The soft words he gave her was what genuinely broke me. I think it hit me because I know Louis genuinely believes what he said to her and how it's her and him against the world, but I know it's going to go left. Even when they held hands together after getting off of the van, they really could be everything if they keep each other close. You could tell by Claudia's face that she's been waiting to hear that from, (Delainey said this as well) but she also seems a bit skeptical and questioning whether he'll stick to his words, which I don't blame her for. And then Louis conjuring up Lestat as he's telling her this...I know there will be problems on the rise.

Louis and Armand in the Bedroom

First of all, the bedroom seems to be gorgeous and I would pick it apart more if it weren't for the bars and the painting in the back. The bars are a bit jarring because I don't know who they would represent. Would it be Louis feeling confined to this relationship and life he's made with Armand or would it represent Armand holding back his emotions and how he feels? And the painting of Jesus and Judas, who betrayed Jesus, hanging in the back is a wild concept. But, I did enjoy the softness each of them displayed with one another. The talk of Claudia's diary pages could have easily blew up into an argument, but they each know each other well enough for it to remain calm. Even Louis' face before he kissed Armand was quite reassuring. Love what I see from these two so far.

[ohnoitstbskyen]

Hello, I've been watching your content for a while. While I quit League a long time ago I still hold partial interest to Runeterra's lore, (such as it is) . In particular I really enjoy Bilgewater in general as well as Illaoi and Ezreal as individual characters and I've enjoyed your takes on said things. (Also fuck Demacia) And I wanted to ask you, after so much dissillussionment from Riot's content, in particular from the latest "cinematic" , how they have always prioritized e-sports and skins over actually giving the lore a proper direction and conclusion or how Legends of Runeterra is getting downsized and unlikely to last much longer, why do you still do League content? You are clearly very critical of a lot of the decisions the higher ups do that affect the output of artists and writers in charge of Runeterra's universe and character designs. And there has not been much sign of improvement since a lot of your points. It's like screaming into a brick wall at this point, so why not move on?

Why not spend your time on something that doesn't lead its fans along with empty promises, breaking them, promising to do better next time and then repeating the cycle all over again for years like an abusive relationship. Beyond doing it because it's what you're most well known for, why stick with content that you know will keep disappointing you?

I'm glad you are diversifying your content but I personally feel your passion for art, animation and writing analysis would be better spent away from League and into more games beyond that (in particularly really liked your take on "Despite everything, it's still you" from Undertale). The indie scene in particular is chock full of incredible and unique takes in terms of character design and narratives I'm sure you will enjoy. League is clearly not worth the time for people who are into the lore, art and setting of videogames anymore. I hope I wasn't too personal or intrusive with my question. Cheers.

So that's a very long question. I'll start with the short and cynical answer:

I am doing League of Legends content because that is what my audience wants, and that is what makes me most of my money.

My channel is a League of Legends channel primarily, the algorithm likes it and pushes it that way, and League of Legends is an absolutely enormous intellectual property with an absolutely enormous player base, which means there's a big audience for my content about the game. A large audience means more engagement, means more ad revenue, more sponsorship opportunities, more subscribers, and so on and so on.

That's the cynical part of the answer. I don't want to sidestep it with some guff about "being passionate about the subject," because the truth of my job is that it is a job. I'm not sailing freely on the oceans of creative impulse pursuing my bliss, I'm trying to pay my rent and my pets veterinarian bills and pay down loans and have enough left over to help my friends when they need it.

I approach this job much the same way I approached being a freelance illustrator - having passion for the subject is a nice bonus, but you don't always need it to do good and valuable work.

And with the cynicism out of the way... I also just genuinely love the fucking League of Legends universe. With all its many, many stupid flaws and its garbage corpo owner and its years of systematic neglect and the constant disappointment, god help me, I still love this stupid shit. And when management gets out of the way and lets the good writers at Riot be good at their goddamn jobs, amazing things can happen.

The Ashe: Warmother comic is still such a beautiful short narrative work, with such visual verve and empathy for the characters it's depicting.

It zeroes in so acutely on the idea that Ashe and Sejuani are shaped by their difficult relationships with their mothers, and that THAT is ultimately the difference that drives them apart when they should by rights have had the chance to be sisters. When they become warmothers of their own tribes, it is the memory of their mothers that drive them, and just as the Freljord is divided by generations of strife engineered by Lissandra, the matriarch of the whole region, that generational trauma resonates into Ashe and Sejuani and sets them against each other.

Or Ekko's short story, where he has been accepted to the fancy Piltover academy that's supposed to be his golden ticket out of poverty, his chance to escape Zaun, everything his parents have worked their whole lives to give him, and...

Like, FUCK, you can't just invent these silly cartoon muppets to throw at each each other in your dumb MOBA beat 'em up and then give them INTERIORITY like this??? Apply their silly cartoon powers in way that explores their emotional difficulties and works thematically with their internal philosophies?

god dammit I love this stupid game's universe, I cannot be saved, leave me and go before it infects you too!

[quietpagan]

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and yes I'm late, so sue me

I wasn't going to watch any of the PiB movies but I heard 'Death' was a character, so

First two minutes: It's GORGEOUS and here's an entire post of me freaking out over the visual mastery of this film

If I'd seen this in theatres today I'd get kicked out for gasping so much

I can't even

The animation style is so beautiful I'm gasping out loud and had to stop three minutes in to begin this post, it's wild. The particles - !

LOOK AT THE TEXTURE OF THE LEATHER HAT. THE ANIMATORS ARE FLEXING AND THEY ARE FLEXING HARD.

Every single frame of this film is a goddamn work of art. Look at the stars on the wooden ceiling. Look at the lighting.

Even the reflection in the glass, holy shit

They need to stop flexing before I have a frickin heart attack here

Also thank you for putting actual blood and not just a reddish cut, actual dripping blood, thank you :)

This is such a love letter to animation and art and I'm here for it

The scene transitions are absolute *chef's kiss*

THEY ACTUALLY *BEEPED* OUT A SWEAR WORD it's a third of the way through and this is my new favorite movie

Each glitter particle glistens in its own moment, I cannot

I feel like a lot of modern movies have some weird fear of putting genuine color into a film. WELL NOT HERE FOLKS. ABSOLUTE PSYCHODELIC COLOR EXPLOSIONS THROUGHOUT.

What the fuck, that escalated quickly

SIR WHAT ARE YOUR QUALIFICATIONS?

THe dog has a potty mouth and every swear word is BEEP'd out and he swore a LOT

I love how all of the characters just rant the fuck off in Spanish when they get mad

I didn't see the other Puss movies but Softpaws?? Was declawed at some point?? That's so mean?? that's literally amputations omg her poor hands

And she left Puss at the altar at the same time that HE left HER at the altar, these assholes deserve each other at this point because absolutely nobody else will put up with either of them on a serious level

except for the dog, who deserves the world. LOOK AT HIM

Kitty wasn't going to wait for a egocentric asshat to put down his ego for her, YOU GO GIRL

somebody put the puppy in a sock and tried to drown him omg

he has the saddest backstory but he's just happy to have his life and his friends, whereas Puss had nine lives and didn't appreciate any of them, okay, I get it now

The dog actually calmed Puss down from a panic attack and you could hear his heartbeat calming and it was really sweet

The framing of this film is fantastic. Also, Death? Actual Death? The thing that Puss wasn't aware he was afraid of or even needed to be afraid of yet was running from his entire life? Such an incredible villain

I can't concentrate on anything else about the movie because everything is just so goddamn pretty.

The movements and the visuals are just a little bit choppy and a little unfinished, making every still look like a painting. It's so stylized and wonderfully so

jesus christ what a visual callback

Okay movie's done and I can talk now

THE CAT LADY i love her <3

I appreciate that Goldilocks finally accepted her family but it's okay to want other things, I think, as long as you're not taking for granted what you currently have. That said, they're definitely going to have to talk it out because stuff like that doesn't just go away with a quip and a new business plan

One that note, the fucking cricket was hilarious. John Mulaney's character was a riot and I appreciate the cricket giving up on him as a bad job.

I was worried about Death's defeat being a bit of a cop-out but it wasn't. Death was angry that Puss was given so many lives and appreciated exactly none of them, thinking himself invincible forever, not understanding consequences because they never really applied to him, so they decided to cheat and take his last one early. But Puss accepted his mortality and began to appreciate his last life properly, so Death let him live it. It was done well.

I don't really like the 'tough girl no trust femme fatale love interest' thing, I think it's tired and overwrought, so Kitty wasn't my favorite, but I liked her anyway. And I liked that she's able to poor-little-meow-meow Puss when he least expects it.

The doctor scene where we went through each of Puss's lives was storyboarded so beautifully, even the title cards were gorgeous

the fight scenes are so pretty

I can't do anything besides gush over how fucking pretty this film was, I'm useless

Anyway watch the film, it's just a masterpiece and the music was fantastic and I loved the whole thing

[transingthoseformers]

I just have to share this because I am very excited about a two birds one stone plot solution for Transformers: Iconoclast.

So, I had to figure out why Orion Pax became Optimus Prime when Primes aren't a thing in this universe AND how to connect the Jazz & Prowl Plotline to MegOP.

So the basic premise of the first part of MegOP is they both recognize the mistreatment and even more that the current general is corrupt. They set out to speak to Ultra Magnus, who is a folk hero figure and famously a free Transformer, and Quintessa, who is Ruler For Life of the Quintessons and has a Cult of Personality with them and is considered genuinely divine by some Transformers.

They both still believe Quintessa would listen and help. Somewhat naively. She is known as one of the original Creators and who famously fought in battle with Transformers during a famous War that nearly destroyed the Quintessons and that she freed her soldiers granting them citizen status and who enabled laws for "fair treatment" and that allowed other freed Transformers some partial rights as citizens. Ultra Magnus was the most famous example of this and is, allegedly, Supreme Head of the Military, and gives yearly speeches and appearances.

Orion and Megatron have been left for dead by their superior officer who is involved in shady things with their contracts with Xetaxxis and Lanarq working both sides. They succeed and get to Ultra Magnus first who immediately clocks onto the fact their behavior regulation modules are busted. He tells them to run but before they can the guards arrest them and take them to Quintessa. They plead their case and offer evidence while Ultra Magnus stands silent and obedient. Quintessa nods and listens saying she believes them and is every inch the regal figure they imagined.

She summons the General, reads him the riot act with the evidence and then finishes coldly with, "I cannot stand incompetence." before shooting him point blank and telling the guards to clean up. This is when she drops the act and turns cold eyes to explain she can excuse a little skimming the top and ambition but sloppiness enough that products figure things out is inexcusable and compromises operations. She tells the guards to restrain them and Orion and Megatron fight back with Megatron firing at her and scarring her face which infuriates her. They are restrained and separated.

She is cruel and decides to use Orion as a "bait mech" on Velocitron which is the entertainment colony famous for both its gladiatorial pits and racing. The battle mask is actually a muzzle and Quintessa removes his ability to speak. Megatron, a gunformer, is mode locked as a trophy for her due to him saying something along the lines of rather dying so she decides he can "serve his betters". Orion survives his first fight and though the pit runners are told to kill him the decide to paint him bright red and blue and rebrand him as Optimus Prime.

Here Optimus starts a rebellion with Jazz's people and meets people like Drift, Lugnut, Arcee, etc.

Optimus is his Gladiator name and I am so excited about it!

Ooooo??? Megs and Oppy teaming up together?

why do I get the vibe quintessa won't help /j

Behavior regulation modules

hmm. interesting interesting, noted.

goddamn, quintessa, that's. damn

OWO on the "bait mech" detail and Orion eventually becoming a gladiator THAT way? I'd be lying if I said I hadn't thought about that concept for my plotlines before, and the battle mask being a muzzle? Damn.

And Megs getting altmode locked? wow

So this is cool as fuck, gladiator!Optimus is an idea that always fascinates me, yes yes yes

[atopvisenyashill]

@thaisthedreamer do you think Cersei you blow up the Sept and kill all the Tyrells?

genuinely unsure. i mean she has to be unseated from KL somehow but Cersei using wildfire to blow up the sept? Like, specifically that chain of events?

you can't just blow up a house of religion and get away with it. whole wars have been fought over stuff like that, that's a catalyst for a crusade or an invasion or something awful. IF she does something as extreme as set fire to another building (rip the tower of the hand) her life is functionally over, even if the lords and the sparrows don't get her, the common people definitely will!

Wildfire cannot be controlled!!!! Look at how crazy the Battle of the Blackwater got with Tyrion's use of it and that wasn't even the worst wildfire can cause. If she aims for an area in the middle of KL, it's going to spread to other areas.

I simply think Qyburn is smart enough to talk her out of doing something that stupid. I know he's crazy too but he seems more inclined to do things in a more subtle evil way so they can stay in power and I do think he'd talk her out of that one.

Half the Tyrells aren't even in King's Landing anymore, Willas is still in the Reach and Garlan is off fighting the Ironborn (and I think his wife is at their new hold too?) and Loras is kinda MIA, but if she blows up Olenna, Mace, Alerie, a wholel bunch of Tyrell cousins, and Margaery, you can bet Willas, Garlan, and maybe Loras if he's still alive are going to square the FUCK up.

KING'S LANDING LOVES MARGAERY OH MY GOD SHE CAN'T KILL THE QUEEN. Cannot stress enough how absolutely stupid this would be to get caught murdering Margaery. The smallfolk were ready to riot to protect her when she was taken for questioning, just no way there's not a storming of the red keep if the sept of baelor goes up in flames.

NOW. All that said, I do think there's some evidence that Cersei is going to do something drastic to get herself out of this situation once Qyburn and Ser Robert Strong win her trial. I think the blowing up of the sept was them ending like six story lines in one move.

The main thing for me here is I'm just really unsure of the sequence of events because I have no goddamn idea when the Others are going to be relevant. Some things that are going to happen include:

Cersei's trial

Probably some mess from the Sand Snakes

Some more power jockeying from the new High Septon

Young Griff is recognized as a real claimant on the level of Stannis, Robb, Robert's boys, etc. aka he stops being a nuisance and starts being a threat. I expect Tarly will side with Griff, likely Dorne as well.

The Reach/Tyrells is fighting with Euron

Dany has to reach KL

KL has to go boom

I am of the opinion that Cersei's ultimate fate will come for her in Casterly Rock, as she's fleeing from whatever happens in KL. But like...do I know the order of events in how she gets there? I have no idea, genuinely, or what she could possibly be planning. I think she might try to put her own yes man in as the high septon if the high septon dies somehow (like if she frames him for something) but otherwise I think it's a bit tricky to say for sure what's she's going to do, besides saying whatever she's going to do, she will not just get to keep being Queen if she's caught blowing up the Sept or murdering the High Septon and Margaery.

[soleminisanction]

Trying to reconfigure the first arc of Steph's Batgirl run into a revisionist fanfic has given me something entirely new to be frustrated about regarding that series.

Scarecrow's goddamn "Thrill" drug, the central plot-point of the first arc, makes no fucking sense. It's supposed to be this addictive, hallucinogenic street drug with fear gas as its base ingredient that pumps up the user's "adrenaline and cortisol" levels, with the implication that users take it when they're expecting to get into a fight. First user we see is a kid who got shot off-panel, and supposedly, Scarecrow keeps his goons addicted to it to keep them loyal to him.

Thing is, nearly every single person we see drugged with this stuff doesn't just get "a little aggressive," they go freaking feral, immediately trying to rip apart anyone they see. The only exception is Jordanna, who first acts drunk, then gets exactly one burst of feral anger in before she passes out.

So, okay, maybe this is something Scarecrow's cooking up to sell to the gangs and other baddies of Gotham, take the turf wars and street rumbles new level. Except then that raises the question of why the fuck would he drug Stephanie with this junk in the climax, seriously, why would he be that stupid?? Bane doesn't try to get Batman hooked on Venom!

Sure is super freaking convenient then that Stephanie is literally the only person in the entire comic who DOESN'T go on a feral rampage, she just gets all weak and dizzy and starts hallucinating people telling her what a bad superhero she is so she can prove them wrong. Like yeah, she took the fear toxin antidote before going in, but how exactly does that turn off the parts of the drug that are endemic to everyone else who takes Thrill (the feral rampage) and NOT the purely Informed Attribute that no one else but Stephanie experiences that is better associated with Fear Gas (the hallucinations)??

Also! What the fuck was the point of spiking the Harvest Festival punch bowl?? The only explanation Scarecrow EVER gives is, "Now no one in their right mind will go into the Devil's Square, which is exactly what Black Mask wanted!" But Gotham University is not in the Devil's Square. And the kid who died in the Devil's Square didn't even die of Thrill, he got shot. You're trying to tell me Scarecrow somehow planned for the kid to get shot, for the paramedics to refuse to enter the dangerous neighborhood to treat him, and for all that to lead to a riot that would result in the neighborhood being functionally abandoned by city services? Really?

No, of course not, that's stupid. It's literally just done as an excuse to get Stephanie involved with a case that she has zero reason to get involved in (especially because Babs doesn't want her there) and it doesn't even do that well.

I just. This comic. Goddamn. Were there no rewrites, or too many rewrites? I genuinely cannot tell.

[jacquelinemerritt]

Dragon Ball Z: Abridged Episode 57 Review

Originally posted September 8th, 2018

A brand new character steals the show.

Hercule Satan fucking rules.

That could legitimately be my entire review of “Opening Serumonies,” and I don’t think anyone would mind, because first, it’s obviously true, and second, it’s about all that needs to be said about this episode. Hercule Satan is a goddamn incredible character, Antfish brings him to life brilliantly, and all of the jokes around his character land with aplomb. I don’t need to provide a good defense here either, because if you’ve seen the episode, you probably already agree with me that he’s a fantastic character, and love him just as much as I do.

I say all of that, and yet I know full well that based on this episode alone, I can’t exactly justify or explain my love of Hercule Satan, though he does get a hell of an introduction here. Satan is very much the kind of egotistical character we’ve come to love in this show, but unlike Vegeta or Freeza, he actually starts off as a genuine hero, entering the #CellGames and stepping up to fight Cell one-on-one, despite not having an inkling of how strong Cell actually is.

Even as Satan hogs the spotlight in this episode though, both in the narrative itself and also literally taking the spotlight off of Cell and our heroes, we see a glimpse of depth to his character in his detailed explanations of how Cell is pulling off seemingly impossible feats, as well as in his urging to children to not recreate the violence they see on screen at home, aware of how his celebrity makes him a role model.

We also get to see a vulnerable side of Satan, as he is at first baffled by, and then apprehensive in responding to Cell’s detailed personal insults, calling for a commercial break to recover from the shock of Cell seemingly being able to describe his personal history in great detail. He’s also made vulnerable in a much more literal sense, as when we finally see him attempt to take on Cell, he’s swatted away like an annoying bug, slipping down a mountain as a bloody, beaten mess.

With all of that, you could be forgiven for assuming that the episode is literally just about Hercule Satan and the lead-up to his battle with Cell, but his story actually only takes about a third of the episode’s runtime, with the rest focusing on our main cast’s arrival at the games, and apprehensions about taking part in such a violent contest.

The only two characters who seem to be unaffected by the #CellGames are Goku, due to his love for fighting, and Android 16, who is far too distracted by finally meeting the man of his dreams, the man he wants oh so desperately to kill, and yet cannot bring himself to muster the courage to ask Goku to do so until it is far too late. It is clearly one of the great tragedies in our modern storytelling era, and if anything happens to 16 to stop him from getting to fulfill his dream of killing Goku, then I am going to riot.

#JusticeForAndroid16

Rating: 4.5/5

Stray Observations

I am just now realizing that all of the characters wear pointy boots because Akira Toriyama probably can’t draw or hates drawing feet. And it’s kind of adorable because those pointy boots mesh perfectly with Toriyama’s aesthetic.

Oh, I fucking love Jimmy Firecracker too, he’s exactly the kind of awful, trend-chasing, sleazeball journalist that would cover something like the #CellGames as a wrestling event, and Xander Mobus does a near pitch perfect impersonation of Jeff Bennett’s radio announcer from The Legend of Korra/that same old-school radio announcer voice that you hear when a TV show or movie wants to call back to serialized 1930’s adventure, and I am all about that type of voice.

Critical Eye Criticism is the work of Jacqueline Merritt, a trans woman, filmmaker, and critic. You can support her continued film criticism addiction on Patreon.

[rescue-ram]

traphawk and trapper/louise for ship bingo

TrapHawk

MI AMORS!!!! The ultimate friend!ship, I love them so muchhhhhh. Almost tagged criminally underrated because they deserve the WORLD but kdjdkfjk Baby boys, OTP, I love them 🥰

TrapLouise

GOD. We don't get an excess of info about their relationship in canon, but you have already gotten a sneak peak at the TrapLouise Cinematic Universe that lives in my head, and I have soooo many headcanons about them. Failmarriage of my heart ❤️ I have so many headcanons about how/why they suck, I feel so so bad for Louise and want her to have Catharsis, and also I like to imagine they would genuinely be friends after the divorce and Louise got to read Trapper the riot act a few times for his bullshit ❤️ I have not seen a fanon take on them that matches my imagination, most people make Louise too cool with him or skip the step where he Makes Some Goddamn Amends, but their horrible marriage that is equal parts resentment and affection is part of Trapper's characterization that gives me brainworms, so I love the version of Louise I made up lol

[smokeybrandreviews]

Paradise Falls

I’ve been relatively quiet about The Last of Us adaption because i wanted to wait until the thing ended to really dig into that content. However, the third episodes absolutely shattered that plan. I watched the thing Sunday evening. Sat on it. And then watched it again yesterday. It is f*cking exceptional. Seriously, episode three of The Last of Us is, without a doubt, some of the best television i have seen in me entire thirty-eight years on this planet. Everything about this episode was near perfect. Everything. All of it. From the direction to the cinematography to the use of silence and color to the writing and even the editing; This episode of TLoU was so brilliantly constructed, i was left speechless. It is a work of art. A technical masterpiece in terms of television production. And that’s just praising the actual meat and bones of the production, itself. The performances in this thing are what really sell it. The performances make all of the other aforementioned brilliance, look dull.

I’ll get to Nick Offerman in a hot second because, holy sh*t, but i need to take some time and give credit to Murray Bartlett. Goddamn, did he imbue this version of Frank with such emotional weight. He loved. He hated. He LIVED. All of this was given to us in the span of one hour, deftly demonstrated by Bartlett. Frank, in the game, is little more than character development for Bill. He’s a corpse when we finally see him. We never really see him alive or interacting with the love of his post-apocalyptic life. We are told all of this. The adaption SHOWED us all of that. Frank is a fully realized character, smarmy and sarcastic, but genuine in his earnestness. He is brazenly honest, living his life on his own terms, even surrounded by the emptiness of the apocalypse. I love the fact that we got time with Frank and i am so glad that Bartlett was able to make us care for a character that was little more than a course on a floor in a video game level. That said, as much as i enjoyed Bartlett’s Frank, for one episode, this was Nick Offerman’s show.

Bill is so much better a character in this adaption and that has everything to do with how Offerman portrayed this character. Bill in the game is kind of a dick. A life defending his oasis in a sea of plague will do that. Offerman definitely brings shads of that curmudgeon i know from the game but he is able to give Bill so much more humanity. The is an emotional nuance to Bill in this show that you don’t necessarily get in the game because it’s a game. You don’t send time with characters like you have the potential to do in a straight forward narrative. We got a whole hour with Bill and, later, Frank. We got to see them meet, fall in love, and live a life. A life where they grew old together. A life that was satisfying. And an end to that life which was much more meaningful than living on without his love. His purpose. Nick Offerman delivered a performance i had no idea was within him. This sh*t is star-making. This sh*t gets recognition. Seriously, if Nick Offerman doesn’t get a not from the Emmys or the Globed, we riot in the street. Ron Swanson came with the goddamn heat and he deserves gold for it.

In terms of the show, i still want to reserve judgment until this first season concludes but, these first three episodes? F*cking bravo. Pedro Pascal is a fantastic Joel and Anna Torv really stole the show as Tess. I was upset she met her end so goddamn quickly. Definitely wanted at least three or four episodes before she kicked the bucket. Ellie is still a question mark for me. I like Bella Ramsey as an actress and, in terms of performance, she’s fantastic, don’t misunderstand me, but this doesn’t feel like the Ellie i know. I see shades of her in there but so far, it’s ringing foul to me. We’ll see as time progresses but, overall, i love this show. The Last of Us is really f*cking food an i did not expect that sh*t coming out of Sony. I imagine HBO has a heavy hand in the quality we’re getting because, i mean, Morbius happened. Also, i just want to go ahead and say, out loud, the best thing about this show are the flashbacks and cold opens. Like, f*ck, dude, that very first one? Are you kidding me? If you're not watching The Last of Us, you're f*cking up bud.

[artyc-stan-of-tsp]

This isn't my usual type of content, and I don't want it to be. But something happened tonight that has urged me forward into writing this.

My parents and I were debating—not atypical for this family, nor problematic, as it's more of a shared hobby than an issue—and we got to a topic I normally like to stay quiet on/stay out of. I won't go into specifics, but tonight, I spoke my mind in a way I hadn't in a long time. And after some back and forth which grew beyond a reasonable debate and into a heated, irrational discussion (of which I warned it would and repeatedly tried to avoid), I broke down. This was not 15 minutes ago, mind you. I'm still fucking aching. I hurt. I really hurt.

And the reason I hurt is because I realized tonight the hard truths of living with the colder older generation that many of us have grown up with or around. I realized that my life doesnt matter to my parents in any way but hypothetical.

It doesn't. It truly doesn't. And I know a lot of other people deal with this too. I know there are other people out there whose parents, or relatives, or surrounding folks, are loved by their family in a way that feels so goddamn artificial and hollow even when it isn't. Because the way my parents love me is real. I know it is. But it's hypothetical. It's obligatory. It's generalized to make it easier to love me. Because a lot of me that I showed tonight were the parts they tore down the most. Especially my father.

And maybe this seems like a leap in logic, but I need you all to understand—if I genuinely died to something, like a cause or an activist riot. If I killed myself over mass hate from the same people my parents support—if I passed to the very same problems which my parents platform, the blame and the disgust would still land on me, even after death. My parents have admitted to my face they find it weak. They have admitted they think that kind of pain is cowardly and the 'solution' selfish. And it is. It truly is. But it's also a goddamn symbol. It's the final mark that bleeds eternally with every last thing that passed loved one went through. And they will never stop bleeding. I will never stop bleeding in this family, no matter how quiet I am to appease their sensibilities. Because every time I speak—every time the wound is opened—they claim it weakness and they pry it open further to prove a point.

Maybe most people won't get this post. Maybe there isn't a single person out there who understands what I'm getting at. But if this reaches someone who does, who understands what I mean. Who knows what it feels like to know, 100%, in your heart, that your death would be a pity to your family rather than a tragedy or a testament to the pain they've caused you and let be done to you. To those people. To MY people. My folks who lived for the hope of humanity despite every single person who pries open your wounds. To all of you, if you exist. Your life is worth something to me.

And maybe that doesn't mean a lot now. Maybe right now, one person seems like a penny to an ocean. But you have no idea how many wonderful people, like you, who have been lost to this same hatred.

This isn't a suicide post. This is a post about hopelessness. This is a post about the raw fucking pain of KNOWING you are alone in a household, in a community, in a state or Providence or other lands.

This is a post about you and I. The people who have seen the ugly, who know it's shape and it's heart, and have still overcome it to find the beautiful in life. Who, even still, beyond this, know they are alone in their real life. You are now. But you don't have to be forever. When there are more of us alive and out there, we find our people. We cultivate a world full of the kind of people who can see the world for the shit it's stained with and still love it to pieces anyway because we know the good exists.

We feel small now. I know you do. Because I feel small too. My parents make me feel so fucking small. My relatives make me feel small. My own doubts of who I am versus what I could become make me feel small. But 100 pennies makes a dollar, doesn't it? And doesn't 500 pennies make $5? How many is small, until small isn't small at all? How long until our little hill of perseverance grows and compiles into a towering mountain?

It doesn't have to be long. But you have to make it happen. You, of all people, can. I know you can. Because I have. And I will.

Please. If you take nothing else from this emotional nightmare of writing on a page, let it be this: the more of us there are left to spread the message when our family and relatives are gone, the better we make it for all of us. You, one single person, could make 5 people change their minds. And those 5 find 2 folks each, 10 whole folks they help save. You, just being alive, being you, could save 2 lives: yours and mine. Yours and hers, or his, or theirs. Your life is worth every life there is to live. And so is mine.

Let your wounds bleed. Let them scar. Let them be a reminder that you have lived and learned where the others who cut you could not stand to live with themselves. And yet you're still here for you. For me. For each other. We have the one thing they lost that they can't get back, that we have to protect and love about being people. About being human. And that is our solidarity. Our unity. Our hope.

My life isn't worth a damn thing to them. But it's worth something to me because I know I can save other people.

I hope this saves one of you out there.

I see you for the light you are and can be. And I fucking love you. Stay here so you can continue to find that love. You deserve it.

Just like I do.

Just like we all do. 🧡

[paradise-is-comfy]

Pinned!

[PT: Pinned! End PT]

Hello, Internet, this is selfshipping side-blog, and I am goddamn scared to use general tags! /half-joking

⭐ Main is @paradise-making-stuff , we will interact from main

⭐ This blog is run by part from endogenic collective (mod ♟️) and, most likely, I will be the only one mod here (unless we get introjects of our self-inserts)

DO NOT INTERACT

[PT: do not interact. End PT]

Basic DNI criteria (bigots, homophobic, transphotophobic, racist, ageist, ableist, etc)

Radqueers & Transid users (unless "innocent" transid like "transgreeneyes")

Pro-contact/neutral-contact on harmful paraphilias

Agressive anti-endo/anti-tulpa

Pro-ship/Dark-ship/Com-ship

Pro-war/pro-israel/pro-russia

Radfem, including TERFs

Heavy NSFW/18+ blogs (i nicely ask you to keep this sideblog minors friendly, thank you! /gen)

[End DNI section]

However! This sideblog is safe place for minors, plurals of all origins, LGBTQ+ (including aspec folk!), queer folk, mspec monos, MOGAI, alterhumans and otherkins (in fact, for any non-human creatures)!

About me and my F/Os under the cut!

I am mod ♟️, my name is Adam, my pronouns are He/Him, I'm bodily 18, ablebodied, Mentally Ill™ + queer. I am host of plural collective. I do selfship because of comfort and coping reasons. I have no idea what orientation I am, but I have hard time dating real people, but easy time dating fictional men. I also develop detailed self-insert for each of my F/Os very easily and once day all my self-inserts will riot and come to me to ask why I gave them so much mentall issues /hj. My S/Is semi-distinct from actual me and I treat them half as OCs and half as sonas, sometimes I'll post solely abour S/Is, but all of them EXTREMELY personal to me. Each S/I is like "channel" I connect to each F/O through.

Romantic F/Os

[PT: Romantic F/Os. End PT]

Template:

Opinion on sharing (canon x S/I) // Opinion on sharing (canon x canon)

Name // Source // Emoticon tag

{ { Associated S/I name // S/I emoticon tag } }

OK with canon x S/I // extremely not OK with canon x canon

Sebastian // Stardew Valley // 💧🎹

{ { Adam // 🌟🫐 } }

OK with canon x S/I // OK with canon x canon

Affogato // Cookie Run // 🌀☕

{ { Cyanide // 🦴☁️ } }

OK with canon x S/I // not OK with canon x canon

Michael Keh // Good Pizza, Great Pizza // ❄️📃

{ { Oliver // ☀️🥞 } }

Tag system

[PT: Tag system. End PT]

Here's tag system, besides F/Os and S/Is tags:

#paradise is selfshipping — general tag for everything related to my selfship/my affection towards F/Os. Block this tag if you're uncomfortable about us& sharing your F/Os (you also can block emoji tag if you're uncomfortable about me posting about specific F/O! /not-forcing /genuinely)

#paradise brought headcanons — headcanon posts

#not selfship — anything besides selfship

#reblogs

Mods' tags:

#mod ♟️

[victorlincolnpine]

far too many people make a living announcing their stances on things while doing nothing about it. Simply talking and getting money for it.

the pulpit or the town's square has become a performance venue where people stand in the center of attention to speak their calls to action for a paying audience who then go home and do nothing except wait for the next person to stand at the pulpit like a weekly episode of TV drama.

This is so pervasive that real calls to action, where a genuine cry for hands on deck to change the world for the better, is raptly paid attention to for only the duration of the rant, and is promptly fucking forgotten.

Meanwhile a hateful piece of shit with some funny memes, quippy garbage and bigoted ideologies can get people laughing and convince them to hurt their own goddamned children in the name of "saving the children". They can just go out and say "look at these things, they're so disgusting. It would be funny if somebody killed them, haha." And generally get their godforsaken request answered by somebody somewhere in the world.

Do you see the fucking problem with this picture? The problem of calls for good things being turned into a dog and pony show while chuckles filled with violent and evil innuendo always hit their mark to the death of a trans kid or a black kid or a disabled kid etc.

I genuinely think the dog and pony show needs to end so riots can take it's place.

Don't you?