#He's just a funky guy your honour

[thetransluscentghost]

here's a scott doodle for your troubles

[vivwritesfics]

Moon Gets Fashionable

In honour of the shitshow that was yesterday and me dedicating today to my crochet, cross stitch and baking, have a Moon blurb

Gonna preface this with i did animal management for years and am in my final few weeks of an equine degree, imma try to not anthropomorphize moon as much as possible

Series Masterlist

Moon didn't love it when his parents came home. But only because he had no concept of love. He just knew that the guy that fed him and sometimes took up his space on the bed was back and the woman who mostly fed him and wouldn't leave him alone was excited about it.

"I'm so happy your back," his mom whispered to his dad as they all sat together, his mom leaning against his dad as Moon sat on her lap.

Logan kissed the top of her head and reached around her to scratch Moon. "You're happy to see me too, right, Moon?"

He chirped, but it wasn't in response to his fathers question. The scratches to the top of his head were just so good.

After Logan's first season in F1, Moon had learnt his patterns. He knew that the guy who sometimes fed him and slept on his side of the bed would only be home for a few days. And then the crazy lady would be back in full force, sitting him in front of the television to watch those funny shaped blobs go around and around in funky circles.

But then, while guy who sometimes feeds him was away, Moons mom took him to the craft store. He'd never been to a craft store before. His mom sat him in the baby seat of the shopping cart and pushed him through the isles.

The craft store was fascinating. His mom threw some funny sticks into the cart. She grabbed a ball of yarn, let Moon smell it and threw it into the cart. "You're gonna look so cute, Moony-Moon," she said as she pushed him towards the check out.

***

"What is this?"

"It's your son."

Logan had left his girlfriend and Moon alone for nearly a week. He shouldn't have expected anything different than what he came home to.

Moon was in his mothers arms like a baby. On his body was a green sweater. "Did... did you make this for him?" Logan asked as he reached out to touch the sweater.

She grinned proudly and put Moon on the floor. "What do you think?" She asked as she stepped up to him. "And do you want one?"

Logan wrapped his arms around her. "Make us all one and we can make it our Christmas card photo."

She kissed him. "Love it," she said and ran off to find her knitting needles and yarn. "Move over Lewis Hamilton, Moon's gonna be the most fashionable thing in the paddock."

[smilingangel582]

Day: 8 - Magic

A/N: I can't remember which video it was, but I was inspired by Lyney and Kinich little fan video... it was so cute I had to give my boy Kinich some lee moments and who is better than ler!Lyney himself hehe. I'm not committed as most fic writers, but I will try to write as much as I can. Plus my birthday is coming this month hehehe ~ Enjoyyy

Warning: spoilers for both Natlan and Fontaine, tickles, fluff, platonic, my stupid silly grammar mistakes (English is my second language)

Summary: Lumine takes her Natlan friends to Fontaine. Mualani, Kachina, and Lumine are interested in macaroons, but Kinich, after meeting a real magician who is rare in Natlan, is a little curious. Little did he know that his curiosity had a price to pay.

Ler!Lyney / Lee!Kinich

Ft. Mualani/Kachina/ a fontanian character (Surprise) /Lumine (I always use Aether, so I chose Lumine for a change)

..........................................................................................

Fontaine shows are often spectacular. Lumine has finally managed to invite Mualani, Kachina, and Kinich to the nation of water. Everything is the same with so much liveliness as ever.

These Natlan kids barely seen the world, so Lumine persuaded (specifically Kinich) to travel here for a brief time.

"So" Ajaw spat with contempt "This place didn't drown? Well what a lame boring ending"

Lumine rolled her eyes, and Kinich's stare made Ajaw huff as he stepped down his narcissistic side.

Mualani and Kachina gasped in wonder. "Whooaa!!!" It was Kachina. "I-I can't believe I had the honour of seeing such an amazing nation! Thank u!"

Mualani also added "Yup, and macaroons are their specialty right? I always wanted to try some!"

Lumine offered, "We can have some now if you like..."

But before she could finish, they were already bouncing in joy as if looking for a luxurious treasure chest.

"Ah~ my dear Lumine its been a while"

A familiar and unforgettable voice. The magician Lyney was there suddenly and behind Kinich who -for the first time -looked startled and surprised as he jerked front.

"Lyney! Hey... I came here with some new friends" Lumine waved with a grin, Lyney bowed politely now taking his hat off.

"Oh, how lovely... That's just like you Lumine,"

Ajaw grumbled, "Who's the funky welp with tights?"

"Rude..." Kinich murmured, now nudging Ajaw aside before giving an apologetic nod. "I apologize he's just antagonistic as always... dont mind him"

Lyney was not offended but clearly amused at the ancient Saurian relic, "I never met a pet so different like your friend," he stated as he observed Ajaw in wonder.

"Haaaa?" Ajaw snapped "You dare call the almighty dragon lord a pet of this worthless servant?? Unacceptable!"

Lumine groans "Seriously wouldn't he shut up"

Mualani impatiently looked at Lumine and then signalled to Lyney. Lumine sighed, "Sorry, uh guys, this is Lyney. He's a magician of fontaine, and Lyney this is Mualani, Kachina and Kinich from natlan... oh ig Kinich's uh partner Ajaw"

"Insect! Dare you name me later after my servant!"

Lyney widened his eyes clearly enjoying everything despite Ajaw's rudeness "Why its rare to have any visitors from Natlan... quite the shocker... well carry on carry on... I wont stop your way"

Kinich however looked like he wanted to say something as he glanced at Lumine but then folded his arms slightly.

Mualani noticing this chuckled "Oh uh Lumine's friend, Lyney, Kinich here likes to say something to you"

Kinich lifted his head, blank eyes but irritated at how she always figured him out, "Mualani..."

Grabbing Kachina, Lumine grinned in agreement "Well Lyney if your not busy why don't you entertain our shy friend Kinich while we grab some macaroons and come?"

"Oh, I'm very free, I have no problem in entertaining a guest"

Mualani gives him a thumbs up. "K later, dude! Haha, " with that, she sprinted along with Kachina and Lumine.

"W-wait-!" Kinich cuts himself off, clearly at a loss, he looks at Lyney awkwardly, clearing his throat "Ahem, I apologize...uh its just that the concept of magic... I never understood it."

Lyney hums curiously, leaning closer now they were by the corner outside the opera epiceles.

"Why, that's simple enough... here let me show you my favourite trick"

Ajaw snickered "If you can make him disappear I'll reward you generously."

Kinich shrugs nonchalantly. "Funny how we both want the other to disappear"

Lyney enjoying their dynamic so much shakes his head, "Honestly you two should perform for Fontaines comedy shows... you guys are so funny"

Kinich sighs but Lyney suddenly adds showing a coin "I got this coin in my palm... look at this..." he moves it side to side and up and down showinf its real. He stuffs it into his own palm and then shows it to the saurian hunter.

"So...? Which hand has the coin?"

Ajaw grins "ha! I call dibs on the right hand... and Kinich if you fail... you owe me"

Kinich feeling competitive calmly states "Oh yh? Well you will owe me if I win, I say its left hand"

Lyney hums cunninyly now turning his palms up showing the left hand first, which is empty. Ajaw cackles "Muhahaha I won!"

Lyney cuts in "Hold it little guy... its actually..." shows his right hand which is empty as well.

Ajaws jaw drop, for the first time Kinich wanted to let a laugh, it was an amused huff making Lyney want to hear it more.

Lyney then leans to reach for his ear "It's actually... right here"

However, neither of them expected Kinich to jolt violently when Lyney's gloved hand accidentally caressed his ear.

"I uh..."

Lyney blinked but then manages to keep a decent smile "Oh what's this? Is my guest ticklish?"

"Correction, I was surprised I didn't expect you to touch me... I'm not good with strangers..."

Ajaw snickered. "Ya ya... but Mualani knows your super ticklish here." he pokes the small of Kinich's back, making Kinich jump. But then he instantly puts Ajaw in a time out who yelled in protest before being cast off.

Lyney chuckles, now poking his left side "Why so defensive if you said you weren't ticklish?"

Kinich was silent, but Lyney persistently began to poke him, "D-don't... hey..." A giggle almost slipping but Lyney chuckles."You know I was trying to find the coin that was in your ear, but it looks like the coin has gone missing... but where?"

Oh boy, Kinich didn't like where this was going. He wished Mualani and the others might come soon and stop Lyney. Yet at the same time he kind of wish it wasn't interrupted.

"How about here? Is my coin there?"

"Gaha!" Kinich let's a startled laugh when Lyney pinches his left ribs. He backs to the wall, unable to escape from the clever magician.

"Still no" feigning disappointment Lyney giggles. "Well more spots to go? How about your armpits? It's a good sneaky place to hide something"

"H-heheh hey no... not therehehe" Kinich knew badly enough this is Lumine's favourite spot to get him, especially when his guard Is down with her. For some reason, his guard was down with this guy he just met as well.

But he is Lumine friend so... it makes sense.

"A-Alrihihihihght alright haha just hehehe juhuhust stohohop yohohou win!"

"Ah, you finally asked me to stop?" Kinich scrunched his shoulder up when Lyney playfully tickled the crook of his neck, "It was adorable how you didn't even say "stop" not once"

"I-I did! I juhuhust couldn't speak.." Lyney helped Kinich up now, giving a wink."You remind me of a certain friend in Sumeru... he got a long hat and a very serious look. But he's got a soft heart like you but your actually sweeter"

Kinich blushed, another Lumine i to deal with. But he couldn't complain. He sighed "Alright I suppose the price I pay for watching your magic trick was this... I can accept it."

"Oh but my show isn't over sir, where do you think is the coin?" Lyney wags a finger animatedly. Kinich thought for a while but suddenly giggles when Lyney gave a brief tickle to his tummy and showing a coin in his hand at last "There it is"

"W-whaha? How...?"

"It's all illusions my dear, but I guess Natlan is a nation I should visit too to show magic tricks..." he said it partly to himself. Then Kinich looks up, slightly awkwardly but a little earnestly.

"If you do come to perform in Natlan... uh can you come to my home first?"

Lyney stares in awe, and he noticed how the ice is melting, its cute how Kinich suddenly became a softie for magic, so interested like a child.

"Why I would definitely come to your home first... tell me more about Natlan though..." he rests his hands on his elbows as he watches Kinich expectantly.

"I'm sure Lumine knows how to say her experiences better than me,"

"She does yes but... why don't you tell me your story? As friends?"

"Friends... with me?" Kinich rests a hand to his own chest, "That's a huge price your offering, how can I ever repay you generously?"

Lyney laughs, "You're more into business than the Iudex of fontaine... how about reciprocating your friendship with me? That means we're even"

"Is that... fine?" Kinich blinks, surprised how simple that sounds but suddenly obvious.

"Of course..."

Kinich nods slightly happily, now beginning his story in Scion of the canopy. Meanwhile, Lumine and the other girls have managed to be held up by Navia.

"Come now, partner," she casually says, sipping tea after making the best macaroons for Mualani and Kachina, "Your friend will be all fine, I mean Lyney is a natural with new guests even with introverts"

Lumine sighs but smiling, "Yeah I know,"

Navia grins now, waving her sunglasses proudly, "Take it from me... Hat Guy once met Lyney, and they had a splendid time together."

"Wait... Yuki? Are you... s-serious?" Lumine was shocked how the wanderer managed to let Lyney entertain him. She is curious about what happened but she just couldn't care less.

It's a nice relaxing day in Fontaine at last.

[101maverick]

Jason Todd Headcanons

Robin Jason edition!

This is just a little something to keep you guys entertained while I keep working on all the requests you’re sending in! You guys can’t understand how happy they make me, how happy it makes me that you enjoy my work and entrust me with writing down your daydreams! I’m honoured, truly🥹

My dude shows so many borderline traits it’s not even funny

He goes from idolisation to demonisation so fast it gives me whiplash

You can’t tell me he didn’t spend like half his time in the Manor inside a blanket fort/“nest”

After having lived on the streets so long you just know he refused to roam the hallways without a sherpa blanket around his shoulders like a cape

Whenever I think of him in the Manor’s library I envision a cat in the sun, especially if the library has reading nooks next to the windows

He wears funky socks. He was out with Alfred and passed by a shop with some in the window display once and saw Andy Warhol-style Skulls on a pair and fell in love with Funky Socks™️ for the rest of his life. No convincing me otherwise sorry.

As much as he enjoys the library’s hardcovers, I think ratty mass-produced paperbacks have his heart in a chokehold. They’re pragmatic in format, super easy to keep hidden and just on hand in your hoodie pockets, yet they can hold the most beautiful and ethereal messages

I say this because I think on the streets he kept some thin paperbacks, and the cheapest books are always classics because the stories are public domain.

Since the books are thin they are also most likely plays, think Shakespeare or even Euripides

On this topic I don’t think he has a favourite Tragedian, but I do think he has favourite tragedies: Sofocle’s Antigone and Oedipus King, Euripides’ Medea and Aeschylus’ Theban Cycle.

This is it for now!! I really love Robin Jason, I think he’s a sweetheart that deserved a lot more time to just be a kid without having to worry about crimefighting or clowns in purple suits. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoyed :)

[thatstoomanysausages]

is Scott in your funky life thing (can’t spell sorry)

He is not! But not for long‼️‼️💥💥

GAY RIGHTS🏳️‍🌈‼️‼️‼️😭😭(Tomodachi Life)

- CuteGuy has been changed to Ariana Griande just because of how feminine I made CuteGuy😭, bear with, I’ll make CG again)

- As always I have short term memory loss and I forget if I have said this but: Lizzie and Pearl are besties

- I feel like I’ve said it before

- Getting Deja vu

- Just let it happen

- Grian: “It feels like I’ve known Joe all my life” The duo I never knew I needed

- Cuteguy has a fucking incredible poker face btw

- Iscared a fart out of BigB

- I gave Etho a ballet manual and now he is spinning in pirouettes around the room😭

- Tango is dreaming about being seaweed… good for him ig���

- I got fried seafood as a gift😭

- Tango told me to go to Pearl cause she had a story to tell me and she’s saying FUCK ALL😭😭

- All men do is lie

- Joe and Ella (Pearl and Ren’s child) are friends ‼️‼️‼️‼️ COOL UNCLE VIBES‼️

- Martyn did an impression of Timmy and he just sounded the same but I can’t tell if the impression was shit or I made them have the same voice😭😭

- Joel wants to take Jimmy on a date oh my god😭😭

- The beach for sure😍

- HotGuy and Poultry man have had a fight guys

- I gave HG crisps and he calmed down instantly 😭😭 me

- Okay they made up

- That was rlly anticlimactic ‼️

- Joel and Jim are on the beach while they are both wearing dresses, one of which being a maid dress😭😭😭 PLEASE

- So… did a a judgement bay thing which is basically “choose a side”

- I drew a dick and vag on each side

- 16:4 (dick wins)

- Here are some honourable mentions:

- For dick:

- Etho: A kid would definitely choose this (😨 I mean… he’s not wrong😭)

- Tango: I went on my instinct (okay… go king..?)

- HotGuy: this is basically the only choice (gay rights‼️‼️ bisexual allegations destroyed in one fell swoop)

- Jimmy: This choice just feels right (I wanna say a slur rn…😟)

- Martyn: It makes the most sense (to you babes… to you)

- Grian: This is okay, isn’t it? (The internalised homophobia is crazy😭 (so real))

- Ariana Griande: There’s more than one correct answer (BISEXUAL QUEEN😍😍😍)

- And for the vag side (the correct one):

- Skizz: This one! My reasons are secret (my first day at high school, I hope no one notices I’m straight!!🥺🥺)

- Joel: A kid would definitely choose this (Pls Joel not you too😭😭)

- Lizzie: This one is so grown up (real! Liking vag is a very maturing experience😍😍😍😍 (I’m aroace))

- Okay, now: 3rd Life vs Last Life vs Double Life vs Limited Life

- 4:2:9:5‼️

- Mumbo (3rd): To tell the truth, I have no idea (yh cause you weren’t there babes😭)

- Grian (Double): This is basically the only choice (Yeah okay😭 Gayass)

- Scar (Double): Unbelievably, it’s a good choice (why both of you😭)

- Impulse (Double): I was under pressure to go here (😭HAHA)

- Pearl (Limited): A noice wouldn’t know to go to this one (SO TRUE‼️ LIMITED LIFE🔛🔝‼️)

- Did a men vs women vs both vs none

- Both won🩷💜💙 bisexual rights

- And to the surprise of no one, Grian and Scar were in the men’s section😭

- Ren, the only one in none: I was under pressure to go here (okay aroace with a wife king)

- TANGO IS IN LOVE

- WITH JOEEEEEE

- GAY RIGHTTSSSSSS

- yes confess in your flamenco dress

- JOE GHOSTED HIM

- OH MY GOD

- “He didn’t even show up…” ARE YOU FUCKINF SERIOUS😭😭😭😭😭

- HES DEPRESSED

- I’ll hyponise him… yes😍

- It did not work👍😍

- He’s kinda a buzzkill to be around😬

- Anyway

- SCOTT SMAJOR IS HERE‼️‼️‼️

[twink-between-worlds]

Name one (1) thing you like about one (1) of your favourite little guys, I’m making a list because the brain decided it wanted to play with some data and also hear what everyone thinks about their favourites! :D

(it’s also a ploy to get you to think about a character that makes you happy just in case you’re having a bad day, but you didn’t hear that from me ;) )

(if you can’t pick just one feel free to give multiple answers, and no pressure to answer at all if you’re not feeling up to it, for whatever reason that may be, this is for fun not to be a stress :) )

ok so i cant pick so im just going to rattle off a couple characters i like very much

god...have i said how much i love legend. he's very neat. i like his design (mostly.) and his adventures and the things he can do are cool....bonus for bnnuy....i like him a normal amount. ill fight legend haters til my dying breath dude. hes just a little guy!!! he's cool. he's got a cool boyfriend. awesome aesthetic. hes just like me fr (very autistic). the fandom hates him but i love him

fizzarolli is cool too. hes a disabled gay icon whats not to love. hes silly. hes a jester. he told his boss to publicly go fuck himself. he lived every retail workers DREAM. bonus points for being voiced by Beetlejuice Himself. EXTRA points for getting the sin of lust to love him. hell yeah you go funky jester guy

raz from psychonauts you are famous to me. the kid is ten and he's working a governent job. his great aunt was a war criminal, and she (unintentionally) stole an identity. he survived the meat circus. he went from all the trauma from psy1 and went right to the events of psy2 in the SAME WEEK. THEYRE SET IN THE SAME. WEEK. hes so strong. so very brave. my son.

honourable mention of snufkin. dude. hes amazing. im obsessed with him. i want to be him. hes so gender !! whoo !!

[oneatlatime]

The Winter Solstice Part 1: The Spirit World

I'll be watching this two part episode as two separate episodes.

Starting strong with some stunning pastoral views.

I like how Appa's shadow undulates over the clouds.

Is Aang passively airbending at all times when they're on Appa? Otherwise how do they hear each other? Unless it's a windless day and they're flying at walking pace there's no way they would be able to have a conversation.

Can you imagine the freedom of being able to throw yourself into the air with no consequences? Imagine how being able to ignore gravity since (presumably) a very young age would shape your worldview. Aang must look at the world in a fundamentally different way.

Blow dried Momo.

Could Katara stop babying Aang for five minutes?

The perspective is so funky in this shot that Appa looks Momo sized.

Did Gyatso say that Roku specifically would help Aang? He said that someone in that special room would guide him, but the only living creature in there was Momo.

Emotional support Momo. Maybe the help Gyatso spoke of actually was Momo.

Every time Iroh appears I become increasingly convinced that the creators of this show are fans of The Big Lebowski.

I love Iroh weaponizing teenage awkwardness to get himself five more minutes in the tub. I think I can also now declare myself officially used to Zuko's voice. I no longer find it muppety.

This is the environmentalism after school special.

The way this guy talks about flying Bison and airbender tattoos, is he actually old enough to have known airbenders?

Katara blindly trusts this guy because... he's old?

Pretty.

"It is the greatest honour of a lifetime to be in your presence." "Nice to meet you too." Yep, those greetings are definitely in proportion to each other.

I love the lighting in this scene. Everything has this golden glow.

The winter solstice sounds a bit like Halloween. The walls between worlds thin to almost nothing and things can cross over which shouldn't.

Aang's eyes are brown in this episode.

I love this attitude. Optimistic, upbeat. "I have to try, don't I?" is so true.

Is it just me, or is Sokka's ponytail weird this episode?

I think this is the Bumi guard voice guy again.

This episode appears to be taking place in a part of the Earth Kingdom that hasn't been taken over by the Fire Nation (unlike last episode). So for Zuko & crew, this is enemy territory. Iroh, who is a general with a fancy title, the brother of the leader of the fire nation (so I guess the next in line to the throne?), and so recognisable to the enemy that they can identify him without a single piece of insignia or even clothing denoting his country of origin, thought it would be a good idea idea to have a solo, unguarded spa day here? I bet the fire nation is happy the other brother is the one in charge.

More pretty.

Sokka racking up some major Big Brother points this episode. Aang may be the Avatar, which makes this kind of stuff his responsibility, but he's also 12 and clueless. He shouldn't have to face this alone.

This village must be close to the Avatar world's equator because that sun set ridiculously quickly.

You know, if I turned around and saw that thing following me, my first impulse would be to scream and run away, not introduce myself. This is why I'm not the Avatar.

If that's their water tower gone, this village is done for with or without the Avatar's help.

This spirit is throwing a proper tantrum. I love the way it moves too fast to see. I did not see Sokka getting kidnapped coming. I actually had to rewind and watch it again because it happened so fast that I did not see it at all the first time through.

I think the fire nation solider here is the Bumi guard voice too.

This is an insane shoulder to waist ratio. Also nice to see Zuko figure it out so quickly. This show has given me the impression so far that he's kind of stupid, but I guess not.

It's a panda! Black and White spirit, plus the environmentalism stuff from earlier, I really should have put that together sooner.

"I Failed." yeah you kind of did. So pick yourself up and try again.

Bird horses? Also those earth soldier helmets are probably really effective, but they look so stupid.

Proof that Katara is used to relying on Sokka to do all of her thinking and planning like I said last episode. If Sokka was the one left behind and Katara the one missing, he would not be so passive.

"All I have to do is figure out what I have to do. But once I do that, no problem." Even the most impossible tasks can be broken down into manageable steps. I love Aang's attitude.

It's so painfully in character that what gets Katara out of her funk is looking after someone else.

Where's Momo in all this?

In the spirit world, the avatar is just some guy? Can't bend. So what makes him uniquely qualified to be the guy who deals with spirits?

Dragons can talk with their whiskers. I'm sure I've seen that somewhere before.

Iroh can see stuff in the spirit world? Maybe it's an old people thing?

How stupid are these earthbender guards? Nice call back to the water heating trick. This show is really good at set up and payoff like that.

This dragon is very fluent at talking in pictures. Also the sky in the accelerated days and nights animation is actual live action footage of sky, right?

Earthbenders can skate on their bare feet. That's beyond cool. Imagine having an inborn ability to sock slide at will. I'd never walk anywhere again. Only slide.

Comforting Appa really did get her out of her funk and inspire action. Neat.

Aang and Zuko's stories do intersect this episode after all. Also I had no idea the two parties were this close to each other. Zuko showing this episode that in addition to deductive reasoning, he also has long-distance tracking skills.

I want to visit this village just to see the sunsets in person.

Iroh was right, they were clearly outmatched. These guys are just the worst. They're on a dirt floor in a dirt cave with the advantage of numbers and actual pants, and they still lose. Did Iroh even firebend?

I take back what I said earlier about Iroh being stupid for going off alone in enemy territory. If this is the calibre of soldiers he knew he would possibly run into, then he was perfectly safe all along. Although the last minute rescue from Zuko was a nice touch. Did anyone really believe that he would choose chasing the Avatar over his uncle? I didn't.

I like the creepy spirit whispering at the gate.

Did Katara yelling to Aang attract the spirit's attention to that main building? Because it seemed to be ignoring it before.

Chekov's acorn!

When Aang went to the spirit world, his body stayed behind on the statue's head. But when Sokka went his whole self was stuck there? Also that bathroom joke is payback for all the denied potty breaks.

Sokka's practicality and bluntness is just so perfect this episode. A nice counter balance to the spirity stuff. Just spent 24 hours in the Spirit world? That's nice. Can we have supplies?

Momo's back in these final scenes, but where was he the rest of the episode?

How does Aang know the island is in the fire nation? From the temple architecture?

Final Thoughts

I really like this episode! There is so much that is good: -beautiful visuals (so many sunsets!) -interesting sound design (that whispering was neat, and the single wind chime in the last spirit attack was so eerie) -so many well-executed set ups and payoffs (acorn, firebending heating stuff, how the spirit does relate to the burnt forest from the beginning) -So much good dialogue, from Zuko especially ("Now would you please put on some clothes?!?" / *sniffs* "Yeah, that's Uncle Iroh.") -relationship stuff (Sokka being big brother, Katara being lost without him until someone else needs her to be strong, Aang's relationship to his responsibilities both internally within himself and externally with how the village sees him and what it expects of him, the exasperated teenager and secretly amused parent dynamic between Zuko and Iroh switching flawlessly into a fighting team, then flawlessly back) -Everyone feels in character (optimistic sweetheart Aang, practical protective Sokka, caring Katara, super chill yet super skilled Iroh, Zuko just so fed up with everything) -The humour was downplayed this episode but the few jokes that were there were genuinely funny. Sokka getting hit with the acorn in particular. I'm thinking that there must have been a rule in the writing room that it's not a proper Avatar episode unless Sokka gets to be the butt of the joke at least once. -Zuko and Iroh finally getting fleshed out a bit. I feel like this is the first episode where Zuko hasn't come off as an asshole. -Worldbuilding (this is the first time the avatar's done his job as per the job description) -How it's supposed to be the first half of a two part episode but it doesn't feel like set up at all. It's a self-contained story with actual stakes, a conclusion that matters, lessons learned all around, and ALSO set up for next episode.

Once I had gotten a good look at firebending in the Southern Air Temple episode I started wondering how the fire nation hadn't completely decimated all their enemies. After I saw Bumi's bending skills I understood how the earth kingdom had resisted the fire nation for a century, but Bumi really was the exception to the rule, wasn't he? If these earth kingdom soldiers are typical of the earth kingdom army, I'm going to have to switch back to my original opinion and wonder why the fire nation didn't win the war 85 years ago. Because these guys are bad. They are surrounded by their element. Their prisoner is standing on their element. Just make the ground grab his feet! He'll be a sitting duck and they'll be able to do whatever they want to him. Better yet, just bury him completely. Or make handcuffs out of rock instead of metal. That being said, the soldiers' stupidity set up a really cool fight scene. How did Zuko not break his foot with that kick?

Everything is woven together so well in this episode. Almost nothing feels contrived - you can't tell me that Zuko didn't wait behind a bush somewhere so he could time his rescue of Iroh to have maximum drama. But otherwise this episode feels organic - like we were actually watching a couple of days in the life of these people.

I really liked this one.

[kvetchinglyneurotic]

hello terrifying talented friend! i come bearing more ask game numbers than is reasonable so feel free to pick and choose!

2, 11, 13, 17, 35, 73, 81

💚💚💚

Thank you my friend!

2. talk about a notable time a narrative or character has looked you dead in the eyes and said “fuck your plan, here’s what we’re actually doing.”

This was what happened with most of the back half of The Hedgehog’s Dilemma! I intended for Ted to have a fairly minor role, but I wrote his conversation with Jamie in chapter 3 and there was so much of his own baggage with his dad lurking under the surface that it promoted him to one of the main characters. James Tartt also unexpectedly invited himself to practice while I was writing the scene where Jamie picks him up from the train station in chapter 5, and the fallout of that ended up being most of the plot for the rest of the chapter. 

11. what’s something neat you’ve learned while doing research for something you were writing? also, how much do you worry about doing research in general?

I know so much about reality dating shows now, including a bunch of research into American shows that I probably didn’t need to do. Apparently after someone gets eliminated from The Bachelor, they have to ride around in the back of a limo with one of the producers until they could get a shot of them crying, even if it takes a very long time (which is maybe more sad than neat). 

How much research I do for my fics depends on how much research I have to do in my academic life — when my life was consumed by thesis research over the summer, I hardly did any, but now that I’m mostly onto the writing/editing portions, I do it more often.

13. talk about a writing experience that has pleasantly surprised you.

Writing fanfic! I think I’ve mentioned before that I started off writing original fic, and for some reason I was convinced that fanfic would be way more difficult. It isn’t, and furthermore is a lot of fun. 

17. what is your favorite line you’ve ever written?

Damn you, inability to remember any line I’ve written after I’ve written it! I’ll go with: 

They’d got stuck to each other, these past days, like those little birds that rode around on top of capybaras but if the capybara saved the bird from his shitty bird dad and promised to take him home to see his bird mum, and in return the bird was so blindingly handsome and good at football that the capybara was honoured to have him riding around on his back, actually, even if he pretended not to be ‘cause he was a grumpy old twat.  

from THD because I got a lot of nice comments about it, so now capybaras are permanently associated in my mind with people being nice to me on the internet, in addition to already being my favourite animal. I love those funky little guys. 

35. tell us about a character who’s very different than you who you love a whole lot

Rebecca! She’s a delightful schemer in season 1, very poised and put together on the outside but kind of earnest and sweet on the inside. I’m also occasionally a schemer, but we’re generally very different people and want very different things out of life — I don’t think anyone would describe me as poised or earnest, and I don’t want a life partner of any kind, and definitely not kids. 

73. how do you visualize scenes? do you see it like a movie in your head, or do the words just flow?

I can picture some scenes very clearly, but more often as static images rather than like a movie, so it’s a mix of trying to describe what I see in my head and just writing. 

81. if you could go back in time and give your younger self a piece of writing advice specific to you, what would it be?

You don’t have to write quickly! It’s okay if you don’t make your word count every day or takes days off or set lower goals. In fact it often works better — it’s easier to be deliberate in your writing when you aren’t pushing to write a chapter a week. 

[sherwoodknights]

SP 1999 EPISODE 5 LIVEBLOG

And thus begins the final 2 parter of the series!!!!

Uh oh its 1794 and they're at an orphanage in paris

I'm gonna get my heart ripped out by the Dauphin aren't I goddammit

THE KIDS CALLING HIM YOUR MAJESTY LMAOOO

MY POOR BOY STOP SHOUTING AT HIM

I don't care what version of the story it is, I can and will get emotional over the Dauphin

LEAVE THE CHILD ALONE HES A LITERAL CHILD STOP MAKING HIM INSULT HIS PARENTS FFS

Who is the spooky man in the mask

Richard E Grant are you the spooky man in the mask

HE JUST FULL ON PUNCHED A WOMAN IN THE FACE AND STABBED A MAN IM NOT SO SURE THATS RICHARD E GRANT

Transformers wishes it has explosions like this

Awww percy being nice to the painter what a king

Women in pretty dresses yes please <3333

Marguerite in red dress is GORGEOUSSSS

Suzanne is also gorgeous for the record

PERCY AND MARGOT STOP HAVING FIGHTS IN FRONT OF THE PRINCE

SHES LEAVING HIM?????

Please tell me that was all part of a plan

I do not care if you are the Prince of England sir you will not touch my wife

Oh no

Oh I don't think it was planned at all

Margot you know what happened the last 2 times you were alone in france

Ugh ffs Chauvelin leave her aloneeeeee

"Your English is better than mine" says the British actor to the American actress

God they're so bad at small talk

Yeah Marguerite why have you left Percy we'd all like to know

Stop enjoying this so much Chauvvy damn

GET YOUR HANDS OFF HER SHES SLEEPING

Oh wait he was waking her up my bad

What do the French government want with Marguerite thoooo

OH SHIT MAYBE IT IS A PLAN

GODDAMN THEY HAD ME FOOLED

Robespierre has a model village akdndjeksndnd??????

Robespierre rolling his eyes and looking disgusted while Marguerite talks about falling in love with Percy lmaoooooo

She is a person thank you very much don't call her a piece of propaganda

Omgggg do we get to see margot back on stage lets gooo

"You should be in politics" oh robespierre if only you knew

WHY IS ROBESPIERRE LIKE A SULKING CHILDDDD

Chauvvy with a cigarette is kinda hot????

Andrew in a silly revolutionary beanie is too cute lmao

Who are they looking for

OH SHIT THE GUY THEYRE LOOKING FOR IS HANGING FROM THE CEILING

Yeah you go you funky actress stick your scene partners head into your chest

Oh god margot had to share a carriage with Chauvvy AND Robespierre?? That must have been the world journey in the worlddd

Oh nevermind the actress is a raging bitch

Aksjejskekrkrk she insulted robespierres playwrighting abilities

"It's an honour, Citizen robespierre-" "no, its an intrusion" lmao what a line

PERCY STOP KISSING YOUR WIFE CHAUVELIN IS RIGHT THERE

PERCY AND MARGOT REUNION AGAIN <3333

Uh oh the shaver cut Robespierre he's gonna dieee

He doesn't believe Percy is the Pimpernel despite the fact that he admitted it to Chauvelin??? Trust issues in full throttle I see

You go percy save that woman I believe in you

ROBESPIERRE BALANCING THE GLASSES ON THE WIG AGAIN LMAOOO

SIR THE DAUPHIN IS A CHILD DO NOT DARE BRING HIM TO TRIAL

The only time I will agree with Robespierre in this series is when he refuses to put a 10 year old on trial and execute him

Honestly Andrew looks so fit in his revolutionary disguise

Oh no where's the woman they were gonna save gone

OH FUCKED SHES BEEN DROWNED AND HER NECKS BEEN BROKEN

Stop bullying margot you bitch she's more of an actor than you'll ever be

We get a lot of sassy robespierre this episode and I'm enjoying it honestly

I hope the guy on stage rips his pants

Not out of spite or anything I just think it would be funny

I swear to god if she sabotages Margot ill cry

Girl what the fuck kind of Epilogue is this

DONT CALL MY WIFE A TRAITOR YOU BASTARD

Shoutout that one random man in the audience for starting to sing i guess????

Look he saved Marguerite from looking completely stupid good on him

Two seconds ago they were insulting her and now they're carrying her through the streets on shoulders??

Aww percy looks so proud of her <33

Another episode done!

Only one episode left this season now, I can't wait to see how this goes!!

[ryuuka-balaen]

Do u have a favorite mh monster

so in mhw that answer is really easy, my favourite Bois there are the bloodpuppy Odogaron and the b-52 bomber Bazelguese. bloodpuppy is just so much fun to fight with him not having any super annoying mechanics/attacks that ruin the fun and dealing high enough damage that he's still A Threat. B-52 I find really really funny that they have a guy that just shows up and starts doing fucking wwii carpet bombing shit while you're out minding your business, and again I find it really fun to fight

(and special mention to zinogre for being so so incredibly pubby)

over ALL the monhun games though?? it's so tough to pick favourites

so I actually do really like and have a soft spot for that big dumb chicken I hunted in the og monun while streaming last night, Yian Kut-Ku he's a fun guy with a face no mother could love and I just kinda like him

I like Great Jaggi a lot, not for any particularly good reason but he's just a silly goofy guy and he makes fun noises and he's just kinda chill and funky to fight he's a good time

zamtrios is a really really neat and cool design I think he looks wicked. though tbh could do without the vore thing.

tetsucabra is just frog. who doesn't love funny frog (also the vitality boost on its armour `chef's kiss`)

honourable mention to nibelsnarf for having the funniest name ever

least favourite monsters is easy.

1. monke.

2. nerscylla.

monke/rajang because it just scares me. it's so fast and hits so hard and goes Super Saiyan on my ass and I'm not about it okay get that Goku shit away from me

nerscylla I don't have an actually valid reason for hating, but it was a required hunt in mh4u and I can't even look at the damn thing. how the hell am I supposed to hunt a monster without looking at it.

[rocklandjbrin]

"Haha yeah, I'd be wandering around like Rudolph." The teen joked, listening as Wade described the plot to The Breakfast Club, a moment later. "Huh, yeah. Sounds alright." And by alright, he meant kinda cool. An intriguing concept. "Maybe they've got it at the library or somethin'." Not that he was likely to give it a watch back at the house; their electricity was often hit or miss, for one thing. But he could keep it in mind, maybe Kari would be open to watching it at her place.

He nodded his understanding, as Wade spoke of Dune. "Yeah, pretty cool experiencing a new book series for the first time." He agreed, before his jaw fell slack because this guy hadn't read Lord of the Rings? "Is it any good? It's only one of the greatest series of all time! Are you serious? You haven't read it? Dude!" The teen might as well have leapt up off the bench with all the enthusiasm he spoke with. Hold up- he'd asked if it was any good. "Please tell me you've at least heard of it. Hobbits? Rangers? Elves? Dwarves? Elves and orcs and the bonds of fellowship?"

When it came to the others' family, well, that was one way to put it, he supposed. He knew life could be rough sometimes, but man, that was seriously rough. Seemed like the right thing to do. "That's pretty honourable." Least most of them weren't violent. "Sure, alright, you can be Batman. Maybe you should get like a full on mask and a cape, really lean into it. You could be an Avenger." He smirked.

What was he doing? The teen tossed a mischievous smile his way, "Just wait. You'll see. Long as I can pull it off." Watch, now that he was makin' a show of it, he'd fumble. Nope. He managed. Blue eyes flickered to Wade's, illuminated by turquoise energy. He laughed, clearly having knocked the dude's socks off. How had he done it? Now that was a good question,

"That's kind of like asking how you walk or talk, or flex a muscle, it's just kinda... a thing, for me? Like one of those funky joints people can flex in weird ways." The teen snorted, "I can just like, sense the energy, and sort of summon and project it, I guess? M'not that great at it yet, haven't really been able to practice them on the regular, but they're like... force fields. You can tap it if you want, kinda makes a cool noise like one of those humming bowls mixed with a drum. It won't electrocute you or anything. But this is what I meant, when I said I could handle myself." Magical powers. "Kinda. I mean, it's more like a differentiation in my genes, but magical powers sound pretty badass." He grinned at the compliments, "Thanks!"

As for how he'd found out? He shrugged, "I dunno, I mean, I remember kinda seein' the energy flicker along the walls and stuff as a kid, when I got upset. Think the first time it sort of formed as a proper field was when I got in a scrap or somethin'..." He furrowed a brow in thought, bit at his cheek a moment. Was it when he'd fallen down the stairs? Maybe...

Wait- "Did you just say what I think you said? You're a vampire? No way! Like Dracula? Can I see your teeth?" He squinted and leaned towards the other slightly, trying to get a read on whether the guy was pullin' his leg. "D'you like, sparkle in the sun?"

Well that caught their attention alright. A middle finger had shot into the air, directed at a group of teens across the street who were hovering by a Duncan Donuts long closed for the night. The boy beneath the hoodie, propelling said finger, sneered. Just like that, the group of five moved towards him, the tallest, Shacks, sauntering forward with an irritating air of confidence. And to think, there'd been a time when Rockland had thought he was cool.

"You can't seriously blame us, Rocky." He looked to the others with cruel amusement, "It was a prank, get a sense of hum-" Too busy searching for the favour of his crew, he'd missed the draw of the younger teen's fist before it met his cheek.

"Prank my ass, I could've been arres-oof." Rockland was tackled by Archie, the smallest of the bunch, who was about a head shorter than he was, but kinda stalky for his age, and with the element of surprise on his side. Cane clattering out of hand, and across the sidewalk, the lanky teen scraped across the pavement, electric pain radiating up from his tailbone. He caught the breath that had been knocked out of him just in time to catch the thump of a fist to the nose in return. - For Wade

Wade didn't know what to make of this city yet. He'd only been here a couple days and was still trying to get his bearings. It wasn't a bad city, he thought, just cold. Just... really cold when you're alone, like all cities are. Nevertheless, Wade did some hunting and stocked up on other supplies, always wanting to stay on the move. That's how he got jobs, and that's how he kept sane.

Tonight had been quiet enough so far... that is until he heard sounds of a fight. But a fight... between kids? Was he hearing this right? Wade made his way toward the sounds, and sure enough, some kids whose parents were absent and whose bedtimes must be fast-approaching were going at it. Or rather, several kids were beating up on one unfortunate one.

"Hey! Come on, cut it out, what the hell're you guys doin'?!" Wade yelled, hoping to scatter the bullies. "You know better than this, get off him! Don't make me call the cops!" he said, watching as they all scattered... save for one. Wade knelt down beside the boy lying on the ground. "Hey, buddy, you okay?" he asked gently.

[ontheoddoccasioniwritestuff]

my dumbass saw west side story 2021, said “wanna write a 10k+ fanfic about riff?” then didn’t wait for an effin answer

Would anyone want me to post it? It’s x reader, got all the canon typical stuff for the film, and I like it 🤙

Edit: it’s mostly up, under Kisses and Near Misses

[safety-frog]

Your Weekly Tunes: The Mechanic

This ones a little out of the blue, but we both had a few songs picked out as we were touching up the playlist that seemed perfect for The Mechanic’s character. It is a little on the shorter side this week. We've focused mostly on the central characters (or even the main side ones), but who doesn’t love a good bad guy turned good guy? Enjoy!

YouTube

Spotify

Top five songs for The Mechanic are below the cut!

The Trial: Pink Floyd- “The crown will plainly show the prisoner/ Who now stands before you/ Was caught red-handed, showing feelings /Showing feelings of an almost human nature” and “I always said he'd come to no good in the end, your honour/ If they'd let me have my way, I could have flayed him into shape/ But my hands were tied, the bleeding hearts and artists/ Let him get away with murder, let me hammer him today”

So this one might need a bit of explanation for those not familiar. We’ll put it shortly! Pink Floyd released their album (and a subsequent movie) The Wall, and all of the songs together tell the story of a man descending into madness after growing up with his fatehr dying in a war and abusive teachers. This is the second to last song where the wrongdoings and his own mental state culminates into these ‘characters’ accusing him. The main thing is that they are all still sung by Roger Waters. Thinking about it in terms of The Mechanic coming face to face with the wrong of his past life under The Hood makes it quite interesting!

Holding Out For A Hero: Nothing But Thieves- “Somewhere after midnight in my wildest fantasy/ Somewhere just beyond my reach, there's someone reaching back for me” and “Through the wind and the chill and the rain/ And the storm and the flood/ I can feel his approach like a fire in my blood”

So this purposely isn’t the original Bonnie Taylor version (which, let’s be real, is incredible in it’s own right!). Nothing But Thieves’ cover gives a dark and gritty view to the idea that waiting for a hero may not be exactly what one needs. Especially if you’re the villain.

Iron Man: Black Sabbath- “Is he alive or dead?/ Has he thoughts within his head?/ We'll just pass him there/ Why should we even care?” and “Now the time is here/ For Iron Man to spread fear/ Vengeance from the grave/ Kills the people he once saved”

This one shouldn’t need too much explanation! A man of iron shunned from the world he tried to help then becoming a villain not by his own means. The Mechanic in a nutshell.

The World Ender: Lord Huron- “I had a name, but they took it from me/ I was the man that I wanted to be/ I had a place where I lay my head/ They burnt it to the ground and the sky turned red” and “I’ll never bleed and I won’t ever age/ I’ll never feel the embrace of the grave/ The fair and the brave and the good must die/ I seen the other side of living, I know heaven's a lie”

Especially with S2 Mechanic, this song is somewhat upbeat and a little funky while having the absolute most horrifying lyrics over a literal world ender. In our opinion, it really fits the vibe of The Mechanic relentlessly coming back time and time again, each time more threatening than the last.

My Body Is a Cage: Peter Gabriel- “My body is a cage that keeps me/ From dancing with the one I love/ But my mind holds the key” and “We take what we're given/ Just because you've forgotten/ That don't mean you're forgiven”

Another cover that is just straight up incredible. How can you not think of The Mechanic when singing about being trapped in one’s body and life continues on like a play with nothing to do but go along with it?

[welcome-to-the-end-of-eras]

I’m keeping a log of my thoughts whilst reading The Half Life of Valery K for the first time because I think it’ll be fun, enjoy (and, of course, beware the spoilers ahead):

- HE’S A NERD YOUR HONOUR HE HAS A LIL PET RAT!!! NAMED BORIS!!! BE STILL MY HEART-

- “…he wasn’t in the habit of looking gift rats in the mouth” MS PULLEY YOU’VE DONE IT AGAIN WITH THE LOVABLE WEIRDO

- “…but lately he could feel his mind effervescing” ok Edward Cullen

- so he’s in a cold place losing his memories and forgetting how to think properly…inch resting… my theory brain is working overtime as you can tell (definitely gonna read this one back to myself and cringe at how stupid it sounds but that’s a problem for future me)

- STOP PLS HE GAVE HIS BUNKMATE BORIS TO HOLD BC HE DIDN’T WANT HIM TO BE ALONE THIS SWEET LITTLE MAN

- I am. 2 pages in. And I’m already in love with Valery. Finally, a pulleyverse main character who isn’t a cynical little prick off the bat. Not that I don’t love the others, but I’ve adopted Valery as my son so-

- Wait what’s this fucking tattoo, is it gonna be a good addition to my future pulleyverse sleeve??? (Edit: oh absolutely not that is a real life gang symbolism-)

- I would absolutely make a cigarette out of a cheese ad

- What or who tf is the Vory??? A gang??? A guard system??? Just one guard??? I’m intrigued. This is why Ms. Pulley’s use of paragraph indents is brilliant, because it actually DOES something; most contemporary authors I’ve read do it like every other page and it’s a pet peeve of mine

- Fun fact: my orchestra teacher all throughout high school lived in soviet Russia and served in their military for a while bc it was required by law, but he’s such a sweet guy and I can’t imagine him being as rough and ruthless as these fuckin guards, holy hell-

- WAIT IS VALERY ABOUT TO GO SUPER SAIYAN ON THIS BITCH OH F U C K YEAH

- Oh no he’s just doing mind tricks god damnit. Still, very cool he can keep his composure like that, very much like Joe could, and I really liked that about him so it’ll be cool to see in Valery

- THE WINTER KING THE WINTER KING THE WINTER KING THE W-

- THEORY BRAIN GOING ABSOLUTELY CRAZY RN!!!

- “But if someone complained about normal life, the overwhelming human instinct was to kick them in the head” if that isn’t me every day at work idk what is-

- I feel like the idea of the world and circumstances making a person “small” (to quote twofs) is a big thing with pulleyverse mc’s but it’s very interesting with Valery bc he seems the most optimistic about it. Idk, it’s just a funky lil thing I noticed, maybe I’ll make another post fleshing out my ideas about all four main characters at some point but for now I’ll leave it there

- Fucking FINALLY, a decent description of the mc off the bat!!! Only took 7 years-

- The specific lack of quotations around “Remember you like doing that, remember how satisfying it is when the ice breaks?” is so fucking interesting, it’s like someone else telling it to him instead of himself that, and it’s an odd place to have a break in the narration style unless it’s purposeful which of course it must be. That is another hallmark of Ms. Pulley’s writing that I just love, the way she can speak and create meaning in the style of the narration, it’s so unique to her works and so so s o fun to read

- Y’know it just dawned on me that Valery is very similar to Linus from The House in the Cerulean Sea

- Ooo chapter titles

- Nice and accurate portrayal of Russian driving skills (from someone who has been cut off while driving on multiple occasions by my Russian orchestra teacher)

- What in the fuckin dystopia is this town-

- Lord knows I am not Grace Carrow’s biggest fan, but her research in ether studies was the precursor to atomic theory, and I’m definitely going to feel like a proud mom if they mention the works of Dr. Carrow at any point in Valery’s research stuff. I have a love-hate relationship with her.

- “…something odd and dead about the lake” INCH. RESTING.

- I’m so intrigued by this dude and his sketchy past and I’m so glad it’s written this way but I’d pay serious money to figure out wtf is going on right this second

- I have a terrible habit of reading the last page of a book when I get antsy — which actually almost caused me to dnf the watchmaker the first time I read it — and I don’t wanna do that but it the urge is there

- Valery…buddy…the first thing you notice about a guy who may or may not kill you is the fact that he’s tall, dark, and handsome??? Really??? Yknow what he’s been in prison for 6 years he deserves it I’m gonna stop shitting on him

- THE LIGHTHOUSE??? I N C H . R E S T I N G .

- This man is autistic I’ve decided

- Pls let Elena and Ilenko be gfs I beg of you Ms. Pulley-

- Valery mathing in his head for a solid page and a half is both adorable and very helpful

- Damn okay Elena I was rooting for you a lil bit but clearly she knows something weird is going on and she’s just being a bitch about it (I’m getting defensive about her being passive aggressive to Valery excuse me)

- Call me crazy but like I’m 95% sure the scientists are also being experimented on. The cheese thing reminded me too much of feeding lab rats for good behaviour.

- I trust tf out of Ilenko now, she’s mean but she’s honest and I like it. Reminds me of Takiko.

- The room is bugged. I know it, you know it, we all know it. Bc they’re being experimented on. There’s no way they’re not.

- SHUT UP BC IF THEY’RE ACTUALLY HANDING OUT MORI’S WATCHES I’M GONNA CRY-

- Shenkov gives me very much Missouri Kite vibes. He clearly knows something more than he’s saying, and likely already has a soft spot for Valery somehow (which I do too but like. I’m reading inside his head so it’s a bit different)

- I’m seriously going to go insane with all the minute references to her other works. Like. It’s totally plausible that someone thinks of Peru first out of every South American country, but is it really a coincidence??? Really??? Especially after tlfop mentioned it so pointedly??? I’m gonna have to start wearing a tinfoil hat at some point.

- The fucking telescope thing I’m going to go nuts-

- Okay back on my comparing the pulleyverse mc’s bullshit, they all have a particular area of observational expertise, and Valery’s seems to be in logistics which is very fun

- Valery’s immediate switch from feeling safe and scared of it to being aware of imminent danger and comfortable with it will never not make me sad

- Why isn’t Ilenko there. Where is my girl.

- Finally in a time period where it’s normal-ish to recognise and call out racist shit hell yeah

- Absolutely love Valery and Shenkov’s dynamic so far, plus the way he interacts with the students is so fucking funny compared to how he interacts with everyone else

- I notice my observations getting less and less frequent the more I get wrapped up in this book, which is impressive considering I’m barely 70 pages in

- Am I crazy or do the radiated mice sound very similar to the people sent to New Bedlam??? Maybe the whole place was built specifically as a quarantine for radiation damage??? Inch. Resting. (definitely not true but a fun theory)

- DAMNIT THEY SHOT MY GIRL!!! FUCK!!! At least Elena is being less of a bitch

- He’s excited about his eyeball jar 🥺🥺🥺 and he is absolutely correct about the medical schools

- Ohoho his devious bastard side is showing now, immaculate

- “He loved children, but he knew he’d never have any” is this bc he’s queer or because of some sad secret medical thing??? Or both???

- …I’m sorry doctor W H O ? ? ? NOT THE FUCKING NAZI BLOOD PURIST WHO PERFORMED HORRIFYING GENETICS TESTS ON CHILDREN??? SURELY NOT??? RIGHT???

- This is…wow…I’m so glad Ms. Pulley made even the obvious bad guy recognise that human experiments and eugenics are inarguably awful but Jesus C h r i s t -

- “…he should not have trusted Shenkov to be above board purely because he thought the man was fascinating” sir you’re going to fall in love with him-

- HHHHHHHHH I LOVE THEMB

- Shenkov…buddy…stop being so incredibly endearing…istg…

- “He was in no state to cope with kindness” :(

- “He was going to have to avoid Shenkov as much as he could, at least until the triple shot had worn off” :((((((((((

- “…felt as though something Artic had come to look at him” ooo inch resting inch resting, very Winter King-esque

- Valery is such a genuinely nice dude who understands the reasons people do science I love him sm

- What is with these tattoos man I need descriptions!!! I wanna know!!!

- STOP PLS HE TELLS JOKES TO THE PEOPLE WHO BUGGED HIS ROOM THAT’S SO CUTE-

- God al-fucking-mighty I love this man. He really said “…don’t you find usually that the people who are most worried about seeming effeminate are the ones with a permanent Friday-evening appointment with a sailor?” I can’t-

- H e l l yeah Shenkov chapter!!! Oh wait no he had his ribs broken oh no-

- Wow there is some brilliant sensory descriptions from Shenkov, which is like. Oddly reminiscent of reading a chapter in Thaniel’s pov. I’m choosing to interpret this as him having sensory issues bc I think it’s fun, but either way it’s fantastic writing

- AGAIN WITH THE FUCKING WINTER KING, WHAT THE F U C K (also Shenkov and his kids are adorable)

- I am a big fan of Ms. Pulley making her female characters tough and morally grey as like a fuck you to the stereotypes but would it kill her to write a female character who isn’t borderline sociopathic??? Would it??? Bc I don’t know many people who can deal with 3 miscarriages, and potentially a fourth, and not feel any specific way about it

- “People think science is all specialists and expensive stuff, but it’s mostly made of kitchen rolls and fridge magnets and we just spray it black when anyone with a news crew turns up” absolutely love that

- Who tf is the medical doctor she seems cool af

- “I’m a funny harmless little science elf, people tell me things” F E L T

- Awweee cute winter-y description of Shenkov but ooo the “bonfires in the forest” thing is sus to me

- I like Nanya, she means business and doesn’t take any shit. T h a t ‘ s a good way to write a strong female character

- OH FUCK THE TRUTH ABOUT ELENA IS COMING OUT!!!

- He really said “I’m gonna be in prison for 10 years. Wanna play hangman?” Absolutely love this fucking nerd

- Oh my god I fucking love the octopus he’s so CUTE!!! And the way Valery just gets him bc he wants to!!! And the way the octopus is so protective of him!!! Ugh I adore him

- “How much more qualified do you want me to be?” GET HIS ASS VALERY!!! I’d pay serious money to see him interact with that phd guy he supposedly annihilated

- “Surely there were things even KGB agents didn’t want to hear.” MY GUY-

- I keep mistyping KGB as LGB and I think that is mildly hilarious

- Valery as a teacher is. Fantastic. Like genuinely such a good teacher. I know Ms. Pulley is a professor herself so I’m sure she’s a fantastic teacher too and that makes me happy

- …I may have misjudge Anna-

- I feel like if a pulleyverse man is going to be married to a woman (for more than like a day at least) she legally has to be the coolest person on the planet

- Oh my fucking g o d the gaslighting from Elena and the director is driving me NUTS

- I KNEW IT!!! I FUCKIN K N E W THOSE RANDOM “VOLCANIC” EXPLOSIONS WERE WEIRD!!! ANNA YOU BRILLIANT BASTARD!!! If she turns out to be a shitty person I WILL be crying myself to sleep

- Valera Valera Valera Valera Valera Valera Va-

- Brb putting my fOOT THROUGH THIS BOOK ISTG-

- THE ASYLUM??? UM???

- Very excited to add more to my analysis on asylums from that one post I made a bit ago even though I haven’t read the chapter yet, but I think it’s very cool that she’s adding that element into this book as well

- Every time the Winter King is mentioned/alluded to my ears perk up like a dog

- “My tools of the patriarchy are getting too long.” 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

Okay I got too wrapped up in the rest of it to finish this but final thoughts:

- I fucking. Love Valery. So much. He’s such a sweet little man but also a complete bastard who blows people up and it’s genuinely the best character combination I can think of

- Shenkov is a gentle giant and I would give him my first born in a heartbeat (bc he would take fantastic care of them)

- Sincerely misjudged Anna at first and I regret it sorely, she is perhaps my favourite side character in the whole book

- I love the ending as well, it wraps up in the same way twofs does; could be a happy enough ending, but with enough unfinished business to make a good transition into a sequel, and I would be absolutely thrilled to have a sequel

- All in all, fantastic book, 10/10, will absolutely be recommending it to anyone who will listen

[project-paranoia]

Let’s Watch: Yin Yang Master: Dream of Eternity

I have watched this movie 85 Whole Entire Times and I do not regret.  The only thing wrong with this movie is that it wasn't a fifty episode series.  I cried, I laughed, I fell in love.  The cinematography is on point, the acting is amazing, the crew member who put snow on people's eyebrows did an amazing job, and the acting!  The subtlety, the gentleness, the love and affection, the discussion of race is one of the best I've ever seen.

As people have pointed out before in series like X-Men that fear of mutant's is practically if not thematically justified due to the laser eyes in a way that fear of ethnic minorities just isn't in real life.  In Dream of Eternity however humans are equally if not sometimes more super powered than the yao they hunt.  Demons - very much not in the Christian sense - are a mixture of spirits, resentful souls, and animals and plants who cultivated to human form.  They often appear human at first glance and in some cases the extent of their power seems to be the limited to turning into a smaller more vulnerable animal.  Qingming's deliberate care and gentleness not only reflects his upbringing as a Yin Yang Master, but parallels the experience of racial minorities labelled as aggressive.

The movie takes particular care as well in the way it looks at trauma, grief, and love.  The three of which haunt the main characters and send out ripple effects into the world around them.  In the world of Dream of Eternity no loss is purely private, it spools out into the world around the person effected until they make an effect to acknowledge and deal with their experiences.  Qingming's warmth and gentleness isn't just marked by his behaviour but by the orange light he's lit by and his variety of shishen - but he is also separate, standing alone in frame and facing away from the people around him.  Boya's loss has made him unforgiving and as cold as the blue light he's lit in, and yet he is open and instinctive, talking and acting as soon as the thought enters his head.  The Empress is lost and drifting, trapped and grief stricken, vulnerable to those who profess to love her.  The film is simple, it says and shows what it means when it means it - but it is also as complex as the very human characters it depicts.  

The movie is made even more complex by its pull from theaters.  Claims of plagiarism drench the edges of the movie, which as true as the assertion that Fan BingBing went on a spa vacation in 2018.  Although this blog is about Chinese censorship dealing specifically with BL content, Chinese censorship also effects those who criticize governmental policy.  I hope that supporters of this blog will also support Chinese media threatened by censorship for many reasons so that artists and others involved in film making can continue to make meaningful content.

Doing a watchthrough of a movie is not feasible, but please enjoy a few thousand words - with spoilers on Yin Yang Master included:

* That gentle chiming and rain soundscaping is so soothing, what a great way to calm and lull the audience before the movie even starts * Qingming is so small and isolated in the frame - cinema! * The lighting and cinematography is just so good * Shifu, soft gentle teacher * So much love stored in the Shifu * Instant grow * This boy is Sassy * This theme of deflection in Qingming's character is established early * Deflection with a teleportation portal and then immediately deflection verbally * Shifu is certainly an attractive man aged up, but his face is also soft and gentle, something to note when his double pops up later * Also the awkward question of don't you have someone you want to protect, maybe part of the problem is that shifu is just really bad at wording things * The answer that yes he does has several meanings, one of which is immediately apparent when Shifu acts out one of those Father Saves Child By Yeeting them youtube videos * ACtion MuSIC * I love them your honour * The spirit guardian's design is so specific and elegant, absolutely superb you funky little shishen * I wonder if Qingming ever thinks about that if he didn't come back with all his fellow disciples that Shifu would have been fine * Maybe it's not that he doesn't have someone he wants to protect and more that he believes that he's not capable of protecting those he wants to * subtle indication Shifu's qi is corrupted * Precious Magic Childe ;-; * The framing, I'm living for it * The Serpent graphic is lovely * Also the way they set things up * Qingming cares so much about his shifu * Mark Chao just has the ability to crumple his face like paper * Sad Time exposition involving the corrupting influence of desires * "When you're gone I'll be all alone" in just about all you need to know about Qingming at this point in the story * Also like, sympathy for Shifu in raising this lonely child.  By all accounts he was an absolutely superb father figure, and Qingming I'm sure was not an easy child to raise.  He's the sort of kid that would take a lot of calm and patience. * Slumber party! * It's kind of interesting that this is an activity Fangyue and He Shouyue are doing together.  He's definitely obsessed and in love with her and she's just doing friends and family activities with him * Also yellow/gold lighting is kind of their thing * It's interesting how they do the make up for He Shouyue.  The actor is very attractive, but they make him up to look doll like, a little too pretty, a little too shiny.  Like a porcelain doll. * Cool lit Boya and warm lit Qingming appear! * Camels! * The framing is so good, they're careful to be sure he's shown as obviously isolated as much as possible * And it should go without saying that I adore the City * The matte painting is outstanding * But there's also the lighting, the vignettes, the clusters, the foliage * It is a supremely beautiful set * The irony that Killing Stone is playing along with Boya's music and then it's Boya who kicks him around * A small note, but one I appreciate - even when Boya has warm highlight's they're red instead of orange * "It's Jason Bourne!" * I hope Qingming paid for that water taxi * It's interesting how Killing Stone goes from the safety of Qingming's orange light to the danger of Qingming's blue * Colour related foreshadowing! * Look at this poor sweet man, how could anyone suspect him of anything.  He's just a sad man who loves his dead wife * Qingming's use of a fan is interesting - battle fans show up all over wuxia and xianxia, but it feels like it also ties into the way he's so very careful in how he presents himself.  There's that quote that a sword can only be a sword but other weapons are also able to serve other purposes - not a perfect quote but the point is got across. * The way Qingming just knocks Boya back, like get An Clue, my dude * The way that Killing Stone curls around the pipa ;-; * So the movie is based on the book series 'Onmyoji' by Yumemakura Baku.  The books start with Seimei (Qingming) and Hiromasa (Boya) already in a relationship talking about various cases Seimei has recently experienced.  Plotwise, obviously the stories are different, however thematically Seimei and Hiromasa discuss why some yao stick around and solutions to the difficulties and dangers they might cause - which is generally from Seimei's very successful perspective to listen and treat them like humans.  So in that way the plots of the books and the movie are quite different, but the themes are just about identical. * Boya says Don't Talk Me I Angy and also that demons don't have feelings and Qingming's face takes out a billboard that's just like Ah, Another Fantasy Racist, Excellent * Qingming also does what should be done in this situation, taking care of the victim not the racist * Fight scene!  Fight scene! * Qingming's first few moves aren't to attack, they're to distract and just hold his fan up to block Boya's way and his view - it's only when Boya persists in attacking that Qingming fights back * Qingming's sassy smile, he is very much deliberately irritating Boya as much as he's refocusing his attention and distracting him * "nICE sWORD" * I've sighed that sigh before * This boy is taking great pleasure from teasing Boya, but also he makes a really good point * I understand and relate to what Qingming did, but also I can understand why Boya was ready to throw rocks at Qingming when he saw him again * Killing Stone lit in Qingming's orange light again * Killing Stone, my beloved * A good gauge to the state of the world for yao is no one has told this sweet boy before that demons have feelings too * There are several lines like this in the movie that just drop kick you with Implications * The same way Qingming clung to Zhongxing, Killing Stone wants to join up with Qingming to have some compassion in his life * The way he asks to be a spirit guardian is so formal too, and Qingming is so gentle with him, I cry ;-; * The warm orange light of Qingming's love ;-; * He heals the wounds * It took me an embarrassing amount of time to realise it's the actual imperial degree speaking and not one the of Jingyun Temple Masters * The mutual this guy again is delicious * "Is it because of your pretty face" * Boya draws his sword so fast and Qingming is so amused by it * Longye!  Queen!  I love her! * The two of them seem to understand each other instantly * Those sassy little smiles * He Shouyue looks even more like a doll than before * Longye has her head on a swivel from second one, she plays the Maiden so well like she's not a skilled master * And her customer service smile * Qingming is shooketh

* What happens next?  You'll have to watch and find out!

[kylewalker-peters]

Eleanor, I need to ask you, as the number one Lewis Hamilton fan I know (through my screen), what are your actual thoughts on George because everyone on twitter seems to think he's an evil mastermind smiling at Lewis' downfall and I'm just like you do know that's George Russell right... he ain't plotting anything

honoured to be the no.1 lewis hamilton fan on your screen!! i genuinely love George a lot he's my second favourite driver on the grid. i wrote a whole 1k paragraph about him for gormlaith to try and explain why i like him to her lmao. like i call George a terrorist or a criminal or whatever else and part of that is because he does make mistakes and does need to work on his racecraft but also because people who hate him take everything he does so seriously and personally. like George couldn't speak more highly of lewis he literally says he's the GOAT every time he's interviewed he clearly respects him so much. it's always baffling when people act like he's masterminding lewis' downfall when the man can barely make it through turn 1 without incident in a bunch of races you'd think he'd focus on masterminding that. unprovoked he did the unacceptable tweet, said he would crash with anyone else but lewis, said lewis would have achieved most wins in a season ages ago if he had the same teammates as verstappen. just weird he'd do all that and then be getting out the tactics board to ruin the season of an 8 time world champion. i genuinely think anyone posting that stuff seriously is a weirdo. i don't wanna waffle on for ages about everything i like about him because you probs don't care lmao but i think he is the embodiment of a weird little guy, a funky little dude, a silly little sausage and I'll spread that propaganda to anyone who gives me a second of their time