#I do plan on doing something horror related in the future!

[stardewvalleybut-i-draw]

popping in to say i am OBSESSED with your farmer interpretations. im not a big stardew valley fan (not bc of anything, its just not my sort of thing) but gahhhhhh. oh my god. that one painting comic and the background-music writing rattle around in my head so muchhh. they just scratch such a specific itch in my brain.

like. interacting with the world around you on such a different, alien level from anybody else- but not noticing or caring because its just what you've always seen the world as. it isnt scary, it doesnt completely warp your mind, it doesnt drive you to the brink of madness- its just normal. what the world is supposed to be.

it gives you advantages in some situations. but it also isolates you, in a subtle way. because you're different, 'biologically' (for lack of a better term), you cant see what people "should" see, or do what "normal" people should do. you will always just be a little off to people- just through your habits, which seem completely normal and logical to you- enough to put them on edge. its not enough to set anything bigger off, but it shows that you will always be different. you will never be like them, whether you want to or not.

..whoops. sorry for waxing poetic or whatever in your askbox lol i am just a very very big fan of this specific type of thing. anyways! thank you for making this specific interpretation that will probably haunt me for a bit. i hope you have a good day ^-^

Yep, you hit it right on the nail! That's exactly what I'm going for!!

And with the new update (no spoilers here) it seems that's what the game is encouraging you to be!

I like writing them in this way because it adds a wonderfully comedic depression to them! A subtle psychological horror I can use for drama later👀

And again... cuz funny haha 😂

I noticed the Farmer's quirks are only sometimes included in others' writing and only really included for comedic purposes. Still, I think the farmer's odd behavior can add to almost any situation if you know how to work with it!

I hope to haunt you more in the future! Have a great day as well :D

[ifyourereadingthisblinktwice]

conflict of sticking with my environmental planning degree plan and a potentially more stable/well paying job vs wanting to go for an arts degree in literature analysis and writing and history and culture because i love it so so much but know it wont be considered ‘useful’. FIGHT

[wolfiesmoon]

Ratted out

sometimes friends and family accidentally (or purposefully) reveal things they shouldnt :)

characters featured: Leona, Kalim, Jade, Jack

ufff idk whats wrong with me but i ended up creating an entire (unrelated to this fic) movie plan related to twst this is mentally stable activities, truly

also unrelated but the new event got me SCREAMING how do they look so good😫

ᐟᐟ☆๋࣭ ⭑໑ Leona Kingscholar

when hanging out with your boyfriend Leona, a little lion boy suddenly jumps him and he immediately lets you go

who is this child???

"Uncle Leona!" the boy clings onto him and you can feel the annoyance eminating from Leona

it's like its own aura thats how annoyed he is🥴

so his nephew (you presume) looks to you all of a sudden and asks "who are you?" with an innocent look on his face

"I'm his lover...?" you said, a little unsure. But when you looked to Leona, he had a look of pure horror on his face...? What is even going on?????

"What?! No way, you're dating Uncle Leona?!" the kid got all excited and ran off somewhere before you could stop him

"...What have you done?" Leona hissed at you through clenched teeth, holding his forehead

you do realise you just revealed that he's dating you to the most big mouthed child in the world, right? that his whole family will know in a matter of minutes, right? that you've basically just invited yourself to every future family gathering at once, right?

and sure enough, in a few minutes he got a surprised text from his brother which he left on read 💀

"Damn brat..." he muttered under his breath, you still confused over what just happened

ᐟᐟ☆๋࣭ ⭑໑ Kalim Al-Asim

let's be real babes there is nothing for his siblings to rat him out on because he immediately told his family he was dating you

however....😈

his siblings happened to overhear a little something...

"Hey, hey." one of Kalim's younger brothers pulled your sleeve, wanting to tell you something

"yes?" you answered absentmindedly, thinking he's going to start talking about a strange thing he saw today or something

"Kalim's gonna marry you." he whispered to you, looking around to make sure no one heard

You laughed a little. "If you think so." you pat his little head

"No, he was like, asking mom if he can marry you soon. We heard it." another one of his brothers joined in after hearing the tea being spilled

"What?! Really?!" you're both extremely surprised and happy and mad at his brothers for ruining the surprise right now

oh well, what's done is done, and now you know Kalim is SERIOUS about you

that gets you thinking about wedding stuff now...🤔

What none of you know tho is that Jamil overheard all of you

"Okay, maybe we need to scrap the whole surprise wedding proposal thing..." he sighs, making a mental note of it and preparing to dissapoint poor Kalim

ᐟᐟ☆๋࣭ ⭑໑ Jade Leech

jade is like... oddly nice to you after you first meet him

you're a little wary of him considering his reputation but he hasn't done anything weird at all so... might as well accept his gifts?

one time he approaches you with jade in tow and you think absolutely nothing of it since they're together like 90% of the time anyways

"Hello there, are you enjoying your lunch?" he just sat down next to you without asking if he can at all 😔

"Uh, yeah, I suppose." you didn't really know what to tell him and it seems he doesnt know how to continue the conversation either so u just kinda... stare at eachother while Floyd casually steals a bit of ur food

"Maaaan, aren't you like, supposed to be crushing on Little Shrimpy or something? Then taaalk about stuff, I'm bored." Floyd looked bored when he saw the two of you didn't start talking about weird stuff

Jade simply smiled at you, telling you to ignore Floyd

But on the inside he was planning approximately 10 ways to... get rid of someone without others noticing

or alternatively, just beating the everloving crap out of his twin brother if the first plan is not a possibility

"Do you have a crush on me?" you wanted to know now...

"That's for you to think about." he smiled oddly eerily, but then just started talking abt something mundane 😥

ᐟᐟ☆๋࣭ ⭑໑ Jack Howl

You're visiting him for the first time because you got curious what his family is like

OF COURSE HE'S AN OLDER BROTHER IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW

his younger siblings immediately ambushed you with their little sniffer noses as soon as you stepped in the house🤔

"Who are you?" they asked, always curious about anyone that Jack brings over

When you told them who you were, they immediately ran away to "TELL MOM" and were literally screaming that the two of you are dating so loudly that the whole neighborhood could hear

You could also hear some woman (who you presume is his mom) laughing from somewhere in the house so uhhh.... atleast she isn't mad about it?

You looked back at Jack who seemed more annoyed than anything

"Aren't you gonna... go stop them?" you asked, raising a brow.

"Nah, I was gonna tell mom I'm dating you anyways. I'm just mad that they beat me to it." he crossed his arms, huffing in annoyance

"Actually, speaking of, isn't me dating you kinda a big deal? You told me before that wolves have one partner for life." you actually got kinda nervous, i mean, you gotta impress his family good now

"It is. But I think everyone's just happy I got someone at all." Jack looked at his overly excited siblings who were still celebrating

"Wow, that's sad." you sassed him 😝

"...I shouldn't have brought you."

[certifiedlovergirlsstuff]

not so secret identity | m.g. x gn!reader

“if you could have any powers in the world, what would you choose?” asking the random question while you and mark are laying in his backyard, just staring at the sparkling stars. you stretched an arm up, like you were trying to touch them. “i’d like to be like atom eve. her powers are almost god like, or just anything kinda mysterious slash magical. looks more fun than just brute strength.”

your free arm was pressed against mark’s chest, his fingers just mindlessly rubbing over skin and bone. “strength is good though, you know you’ll always be able to protect yourself and those close to you.” turning his head to the side, admiring you. someone he wants to keep safe and happy from this darkening world, but you don’t know that other side.

a smile spread across your lips, “with these new muscles you’ve suddenly developed i can see it.” now turning to rest on your side, hand propping up your head. “i’d definitely would have posters of your superhero persona on my walls. ‘oh he’s just so dreamy’.”

mark smiled shyly, “and you’d be a bombshell for anyone with eyes. but i’ll know that i’m the one you love, so i’m not bothered by some guys. but i’ll still protect you from creeps if you had the powers and i didn’t.”

his words made you feel mushy. leaning closer towards mark’s face, your puckered lips pressed into the cooling skin of his cheeks. dotting along his jaw leading to his nose, higher up leaving sweeping caresses on his eyelids. bits of your hair fanned over your profile, “wanna watch a movie? getting a bit cold and sleepy out here.” whispering to him.

he immediately moved from the ground, taking your outstretched arm and then effortlessly throwing you over his shoulders. you couldn’t help the loud surprised yelp leaving your mouth, “mark!” playfully hitting his back.

and mark retaliated by smacking your ass, the sting making a warmth grow in your stomach. “still wanna watch a movie?” he cockily remarked.

-

“look at you hottie! got a nice glow about you more these days.” william commented after you hugged him in greeting then sat across from him for your lunch hang.

digging your teeth in your bottom lip you had to withhold all the…intimate details from the night before. even if you do like having someone that also thinks your boyfriend is extremely sexy, but boundaries. “random mark related question, but do-do you think he’s gotten bulky lately? i swear he’s twice the size then he was about three months ago. not that i’m complaining though.” subconsciously thumbing over a blooming bruise on your thigh.

william shrugged, “he’s a straight guy with a girlfriend. probably just decided to really hit the gym one day, not that he was scrawny before, but you know.” and that ended mark related conversation for now. both of you just dived into work gossip or something either of you heard in the halls, trying to set up future plans with eve and amber also involved.

while you were laughing at a joke william made, you felt a sudden shaking. both of you went silent to tell if there was gonna be an after shock, but it was worse when someone was violently thrown into a building just across the street from the cafe. you and william ducked to the ground, legs turning to jelly at the sight of something so horrific just an arms length from you.

“we gotta go!” someone yelled in your ear followed with a yanking on your arms. your knees scraped the gravel as you tried to steady your self, barely taking a step before you were shoved to the floor causing an agonizing pain shooting through your muscles. “william!” calling for your friend who wasn’t in your sights.

what was in your sights was a mangled human, blood and spit dropping from their lips to the ground. a deep panting causing their chest to puff, huffs of thick air almost cartoonish from their nostrils. they reared their head then started rushing like a bull, it was like a horror scene where you want to run but just can’t take your eyes off the assailant. you thought this was the end, you just closed your eyes, waiting for any impact.

but it never came. your heart started pounding faster, eyes slowly fluttering open to see that monster straining against the resistance of invincible. you couldn’t see the hero’s full face due to the bright yellow mask disguising him, but you could see how his teeth were gritting together so hard they could crack. it was a tug of strength, invincible’s feet were planted firmly on the ground as he pushed most of his upper body forward.

“g-go! now!” he yelled out. he groaned due to the sudden distraction, grunting when the criminal tried pushing him off and he just pushed back. his jaw was flexed and you couldn’t help tilting your head to the side, a bit of curiosity seeping in.

“mark?” speaking your boyfriend’s name.

he looked down at you for a moment, “run!” then grabbed the monster’s head and rammed his knee into its face. he threw a fast punch into the chest causing him to create a bit of distance for the two of you. he gripped your upper arms, made sure your legs were okay, and gave a quick peck to your forehead. then he returned to the action.

watching a moment longer, fighting the conflict in your chest, turning on your heel you made your way towards the police barricade. looking over your shoulder you tried to catch sight of mark again, but two hands held your shoulders and turned you away from the destruction. “oh thank god,” william sighed as he pulled you in tight for a hug, your own arms taking a moment before wrapping around his waist and gripping his red shirt in your grasp.

“do you know about mark?” whispering into his ear. william jerked his head back, a furrow on his brow. “what about mark? did something happen?”

“mark and invincible in one sentence, what do you see?” trying for a different route. you took note of how his eyes kept darting, going from you to the conflict, and it was like you almost can see wheels turning in his brain.

“no, no there’s no way.” he stook his head, “you’re just stressed and there’s adrenaline running around. let’s get you home and we’ll call mark to check on him.” steering both of you further away, you sneaked a peek over your shoulder, barely a standing figure there invincible was. watching you walk away.

-

you just laid in your bed, eyes burning a hole in your ceiling while you rubbed your fingers over your elbows. small things were starting to piece together in your mind, new cuts and bruises popping up every other day, those dumb excuses of ‘oh forgot to grab my umbrella be right back’ when it was a sunny day. god the new build, how he’d somehow manages to find amazing authentic food in your boring town.

you were just blinded by mark. sure you never thought he was cheating or something like that, but sometimes yeah, you never really thought about his behavior. mark’s always been awkward.

a knock at your door filled the silent room. you didn’t bother responding since the door slowly creaked open, looking over just as mark meekly poked his head through the crack. those sad puppy eyes observing you, “can i come in?” his voice soft, patient.

“yeah,” a tiny crack on the a. mark moved slowly, trying not to startle a baby deer. he sat beside your hip, the bed dipping slightly from his added weight. a large hand hovering in the air before retreating back to his side, not sure what those turn of events caused.

“how’d you get home?” his first question. a deep sigh through your nose, “william drove me. funny how he parked further away cause there weren’t any spots.” barely a huff at the stupidity.

“do-do you want to talk about…invincible?” his second question. you stayed silent longer this time, out of anger or frustration or any other emotion you could be feeling at this moment. a laughed bubbled from your chest when you suddenly remembered yesterday’s conversation.

“what?” mark leaned in closer, inspecting you. tears gathered at your lash line, “we were freaking talking about if we had powers last night. that honestly could have been the best time to casually bring it up.” giving a half assed swat to his bicep.

the tension seemed to dissolve a bit since mark laid down behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist and tugging you back to fit snug against his toned chest. you easily intertwined your hands together over your stomach.

mark pressed a kiss to the base of your neck before setting his chin on your shoulder, “you know how it’s pretty common superhero’s don’t flaunt their identity, even to close family.” you hummed, already understanding why he wasn’t screaming this news from the rooftops.

“it would’ve been nice to at least know. it would be the same amount of anxiety without or with your powers, i get anxious when you disappear or-or just make terrible excuses.” barely sending a glance behind you, “you may be superhuman, but you still have a heart and brain, and those two organs are vital to your breathing. so if you just died one day out there i wouldn’t know or hear the real reason.”

your throat was getting choked up, it just hit you. he could die, every time he goes out there in that costume, he might not come home one day. “i can’t lose you this early, mark.” closing your eyes, wet tears kissing your cheeks in silent empathy.

“hey, hey.” there was a bit of shuffling then a hand to your face. “sweetheart, look at me please.” a scrunch of your features before fluttering your reddening eyes open to see mark peering at you. you brought your own hand to his left cheek, thumb rubbing under his eye and along his nose.

“i’ll always make it out a fight alive. will i look pretty? probably the complete opposite, but as long as i feel my heart beating and feel my chest moving, i’ll come crawling back to you.”

two pairs of eyes stared into the windows of their souls, simultaneously grieving all the unknown pain yet to come, all the joy that’ll make up just a fraction of your life. mark leaned in and pressed his lips to yours, you could feel a healing cut along his bottom lip. it caused a few more tears to spawn, but you chose to ignore them, you only wanted to focus on the now.

[milkamel]

any other favorite ships or handcanons you like?

This made me think hard cause as a multishipper there are a lot of ships in my mind and I can’t name a certain one XD- And I already kinda answered that question so I guess I’ll list some headcanons instead :D (It’s gonna be the bad guys cause I love them lol)

Cross (as well as the other inhabitants of XTale) see the world in a limited color palette. His own AU looks normal to him when the others seem odd. (Like.. a color-blind kind of way??) Alternative bonus: or Cross might see the other AU’s colors normally, but it takes him a while to adjust to something so bright so he prefers to stay in the castle walls where the colors are dull.

Killer has to change his bed sheets and pillows every day cause his tears leak while he sleeps (bad dreams and memories make it more intense). Sometimes he doesn’t change them right away cause he’s too lazy but when it’s too dirty and uncomfortable he (or others) forces himself to.

Horror has issues with throwing away leftovers or anything food-related even if he knows that no one would eat them/it’s expired. As an alternative, he uses that stuff for compost to make sure that the little farm outside the castle always has fresh crops (Farmer was the one to suggest that idea). Even if he knows that they won’t run out of food he still wants to control everything related to food supplies.

Nightmare always says that he’s busy and doing paperwork which usually consists of planning out their future missions and counting their supplies but sometimes he just writes his own stories and doesn’t tell anyone about it. Just a little hobby to relax. Sometimes the stories are tragic and dark and sometimes they’re embarrassingly sweet and romantic. Anyway, the “paperwork” excuse sounds boring enough so no one would sneak through his papers.

Out of everyone, Dust is the closest who can be considered classic Sans (Horror as well) so he’s very lazy and can fall asleep anywhere. Kinda like a cat. So it’s sometimes hard to find him cause he might take a nap in the most inconvenient place.

[sorcerous-caress]

Hello!! I love your writing 😍 Would it be okay if you wrote Karlach, Lae'zel and whomever you wish with a tiefling!Tav that loses both a horn and an eye during a battle and can't quite find balance in their fighting afterwards bc of it?

Reacting to Tav losing a horn/eye

[Hurt/comfort, fluff, angst, nb!reader, Tiefling!reader]

[Karlach, Laezel, Wyll, Halsin]

Karlach

She swears she can still hear it, your agonised scream, the splatter of blood, the crunch of bone being torn apart.

As if the world slowed down for a moment, an eerie quietness surrounding the battlefield for the uncomfortable stretched out seconds. Your companions turning to look at you, clutching your eye with your back hunched.

Dread filled her stomach, one of your horns laid on the bloody floor next to your feet.

She doesn't remember the rest. Only when she stood atop the burnt rubble of what used to be the battlefield, did the all-consuming rage fade away from her mind.

Karlach is immediately at your side after, apologising for not being there sooner.

She's by your side as you heal, making sure to bring you anything you might need. As your struggles to adjust to combat again in the aftermath become more and more evadint, she is one of the first people to suggest fully leaving combat to her.

Yes, you are capable. Yes, she has seen how strong you are. But sometimes life just doesn't go the way we plan it. You can relay on her instead.

You don't have to go back to the cruel world. You can let her take care of it. Karlach really can't afford losing you. She'd claw her way up the heavens and steal you away if your fate took a turn to the worse.

Laezel

She completely disagrees with Karlach. This is nothing but a minor setback if anything. Laezel completely has faith in you to relearn how to find your balance, and she'll teach you if she has to.

As long as you can still stand on your feet and carry a sword, then you can fight in her eyes. She will give her sincere apologies for letting you down in battle and not doing something before enemeis got the chance to best you, but besides it, you'll get no pity from her.

Why is everyone acting as if you died? You're clearly still the same strong and capable person she knows. If anything, each scar is evidence of how your enemies' failure to put you down, you should show your broken horn with pride.

She has enough self awareness not to impose her views on you, no matter how much she thinks her companions are being dramatic and oversensitive, is she noticed you being fully uncomfortable with her approach she will take her leave from your bedside.

But you got fed up with people infantlising you, then she will be the first to 6pull you back into an intense daily training routine until you regain your footing.

Wyll

While Karlach and Laezel were too busy arguing about your own fate, Wyll was there for you throughout every stage of healing. He knows what it's it like losing an eye. He can relate to the horror and dissociation that happens whenever you look at the mirror to see a piece of yourself missing.

He still hasn't gotten used to his own horns himself, and losing one of yours must have been painful to bear. He will stay by your side until you feel better, no pressure to discuss the future or your fighting abilities or anything.

Wyll will make sure you don't feel alone, that the dark thoughts don't consume you too much. Share you worries with him, let him help carry your burdens, please. It kills him seeing someone so dear to him suffer when he can't do anything or help.

Halsin

His heart breaks, seeing you coming back to camp limbing and bloodied that day. He prays to Silvanus to ease your pain as he takes shift with Shadowheart to nurse you back to health with healing spells.

Nature can be so unforgiving sometimes, to some animals, losing an eye or horn can be a death sentence.

But he has seen even the most withered of plants suddenly flourish and regain their strength, he has personally stayed up countless nights to care for the weak kittens that their mother refused to even acknowledge.

He has seen them grow, nurtured them into a strong healthy state.

Don't surrendered to the darkness, when the abyss starts whispering about how this is your end and how your potential was wasted you yell at the abyss, bite, claw and fight your way out of this rut.

True strength lies in the heart, give yourself time to rest, and don't rush your healing. Eventually, you'll be back on your own two feet with a new view on the world before you can realise it.

[feelthesturmanddrangintheair]

TradWife Eleanor

First two posts in this series here:

We Need to Talk About Eleanor Guthrie

Eleanor Guthrie Part 2: Charles Vane

Season 3 and 4 Eleanor is getting her own post because oh boy. I love it because it totally goes against where a boring narrative would take her character. It’s so human and so interesting. And then her death is an utter tragedy. 

I feel like if Black Sails were a shit show, or even a totally-fine-show, Eleanor would not have this arc. She would return to Nassau with schemes, she’d seduce Woodes Rogers to manipulate him, she’d escape and join the pirates again, she’d become either a bigger trade boss/player in the pirates side than before OR she would die gloriously. It would be rote, and boring and a bit Girl Boss YASSSSS. Thank god we didn’t get that.

(also interestingly Hannah New talks about this exact thing in her interview with Fathom's Deep!)

Instead we get a very different Eleanor.

A lot of people seem to not like this Eleanor or her choices. Her choice to kill Vane, her choice not only to marry Rogers but actually love him, her choice to side with civilisation. For a lot of people they cannot relate to why she makes these choices, They think she sucks, that she’s a TradWife, that the writing is bad (no). 

Those people are all wrong. I’m right. Here’s why.

I think Max pinpointed Eleanor's issue in like episode 2 because she's extremely smart.

Eleanor: Becuase I've spent my life trying to build something here. It's all I have, I can't just walk away Max: It is not all you have! Eleanor this place is just sand - it cannot love you back. You know this. You must know this. Your father left you, your mother was taken from you, everyone you have ever loved you have lost and it terrifies you. But not me. I will never, ever leave you. I love you

Eleanor is invested in Nassau and it becoming a functioning society. It is her home - she says as much - she cannot leave it or give up on it. She's not a pirate, she's not trying to build it for them. She's not pro or anti Britain - she's pro-Nassau. Whatever means necessary to get her home strong, functioning and thriving. She saw it at its worst during the Spanish invasion as a child and know's that a weak Nassau is what leads to horror.

As Trade Boss of Nassau Eleanor betrays everyone in order to get what she wants - which is to ensure the future of Nassau. She makes radical decisions, she does not give a shit of what people think of her, she ignores gender expectations, sexual mores and uses people's underestimation as a tool. She betrays everyone she loves in order for power and security on a dot of sand.

And then:

Vane kills Richard

Flint goes against the plan for Pardons and burns Charleston to the ground

She's arrested and sent to England to die

It's a miracle she doesn't hang in London. It's enormous luck she doesn't die of fever in prison. Rogers deciding not only to interview her and use her knowledge but to also bargain for her life, is completely insane.

So she jumps from facing death to sailing back to the speck of sand she once ruled, filled with people who despise her. Who always despised her. Even when she was responsible for their wealth, they hated her. She has faced what defying gender norms, social norms and laws gets her - it will be the noose. 

And the only person between her and death is a very hot man who is kind of a pirate but respectable in the eyes of law and society. Who believes in the exact same thing as her - that Nassau can become a functioning society.

(And come on, Luke Roberts is a stone cold hottie. I do not like Rogers, especially S4 Rogers, but I'm not blind! Neither is Eleanor! She should hit that!)

Eleanor understands that Rogers is a person who operates outside of societal norms - he was a privateer, he's envisioning change in Nassau where many couldn't - but he's being more sneaky than Eleanor's brash Trade GirlBoss was. He's using government, law, money, society to achieve his own ends, and live how he wants. He has power in doing that. But he also has protection. And after her experience, I think she now wants safety and protection as much as she wants power and revenge.

So what started as an aside in this post, around Max’s speech about wanting to have the safety and comfort of the Room, became an entire 2,600 word essay. So read that, I think it’s decent context for Eleanor’s changing motivations.

So Eleanor has had the rug pulled from under her, and sees a man with access to safety, legitimacy, comfort. Of course she softens herself, does her hair cute, wears a dress and seduces him. He has shown her the warm room of safety and power, and she wants in. Just like Max wants in. That room looks great, and if it's that or the noose, it's a no brainer.

I think the most appealing thing about Rogers is his partnership with Eleanor in S3. She has always wanted an equal partner - Flint was it but he's too secretive and single minded (he also has Miranda), Vane didn't play well with others, Max had no power at the time. Rogers is Eleanor's perfect partner in S3 - they move together, plot together and are united in their goals.

Of course she falls in love with the hot man who offers her an equal partnership, shared power and safety. A man who believes in the future of her home just like her. Who wants to work with her to create a vision she had for years.

This is why S4 Eleanor fucking guts me. We end S3 with Rogers trusting her so much he lets her rule in his stead and kill Vane. There's no light between them.

And then S4 opens and Eleanor is ROGERS WIFE.

(I still think it's sloppy bullshit that Steinberg has Rogers divorce his wife, which was not legally possible in England for like, another century, when he could've just had Rogers' wife die and then he marry Eleanor too fast which pisses off his old in-laws. More accurate, less messy, Steinberg let me join your writing team!)

ANYWAY

Eleanor got married. Big mistake. Huge. 

Rogers turns on his "wife vision" goggles and cannot consider Eleanor his equal partner anymore. He now sees her as His Wife. It’s extremely obvious this shift in their first interaction with Max in Season 4, Episode one - when Max is asking about bearing all the costs of the trials being held in her tavern:

Max: I beg your pardon my lord, but I have I not proved to you my friendship? At great personal risk to myself and my interests, I made enemies of the pirates in order to ensure your success. Woodes: Made enemies of them? They’ve been my enemies for some time now, are you saying they haven’t been yours? Eleanor: May I suggest that- Woodes: I thank you for your aid today (Season 4 Episode Timestamp 40:30)

(straight men in black sails are the fucking devil i stg rackham would never)

Rogers is like "Oh sweetie you're in the Wife category now oops you're no longer invited to the meetings byyyye". 

She spends more time in S4 having honest conversations with her ex Max than Rogers. And she says it herself - how she mutilates herself to fit into the role of wife. In the following scene, late in S4E1, Eleanor says:

“When I made the choice to see Charles’ sentence carried out, I had no idea what the consequences would be. I knew it was the only way to protect our future here, to protect you so I did it. 

And when the backlash followed, the resentment over my relationship with you, which I knew could only be soothed by my pretending to have no influence at all, I did that too. I did all of it, contorted myself into the role, mutilated myself so that it would fit because I believed as long as you believed I was your partner it didn’t matter whatever anyone else believed.”

(how can anyone hear her say this and think her character arc is not fascinating???)

For anyone who thinks she’s like, super fucking excited to be back in traditional gender roles, Eleanor herself, describes it to her own husband as contortion and mutilation.

After the trial, London and being betrayed by the pirates on Nassau, and seeing the opportunity with Rogers (and falling for him) she understands the price of being safe and ensuring their survival and success: She cannot be who she understands herself to be. She must mutilate herself and shove herself in a Wife box.

But she never expected Rogers to lock her in that box. She thought it was for optics, but it seems the new status quo suits him.

I think he’s the epitome of that guy who says he wants an independent modern woman but deep down wants a wife to look after him and darn his socks. It’s the self delusion that does it - Rogers could have a society woman who is very happy with a status quo marriage (presumably his first wife Sarah was more like this) but he doesn’t choose that. He moves laws and history and takes on costly debts to marry Eleanor, a former pirate who describes their relationship always as a partnership first. He’s attracted to the ambitious, political side of her, but cannot fathom actually having a wife who’s his equal - and so he shushes her, and leaves her out. 

Rogers and Eleanor's relationship is fucking broken from the opening of S4. She sits downstairs with the women, attempting needlepoint, while Rogers wrecks the Walrus on his shores. She is shut out, abandoned, like her father did to her.

Eleanors actions in S4 are trying to salvage their relationship, to get him to open the door. She plans to appeal to her family in Boston, to get help from a family that will surely spit on her, to save Rogers plan. She bargains with Flint - the treasure for Nassau, so Rogers can pay his debts. She does everything trying to prove to him that she is his, she will not betray him and to please, please not shut her out.

And he responds by siccing Spain on Nassau. And it kills her.

It just occurred to me that Eleanor's behaviour in early S4, as she scrambles not only to secure Nassau, resolve Rogers' debts and get him to treat her as an equal again: it reminds me of S1/S2 Eleanor. When Eleanor scrambles to get a shipping concern pulled together, tries to get different pirate captains to support and empower her. She's strategising but also trying to ensure she gets a partner to support and protect her. In S4 she's doing the same thing but that potential partner is her own husband. Which is devastating.

In the time between Rogers leaving Nassau and Eleanor's death, she has a lot of very interesting conversations with her old friends in Nassau. She obviously reconnects with Max, she rails against Flint but also immediately falls back into her easy working relationship with him, she even connects with Madi. Eleanor is experiencing growth and change in some rapid ways at the back half of S4.

I think these 3 conversations she has are key to understanding Eleanor’s mindset at the end of her arc in Season 4.

The first is her conversation with Max in Episode 4 XXXII:

Eleanor: Where would we have gone Max: What? Eleanor: A long time ago, you asked me to leave Nassau with you to avoid ruin. If I had said yes, where would we have gone? Max: I have no idea Eleanor: I was so close to saying yes. There were good reasons to say yes. I heard it in my mind trying to say it over and over again. But when the moment finally came, I’d put so much of myself into this place, in that moment I didn’t know where it ended and I began. There may be ways of severing oneself in that way, sacrificing one part to save the other. But in that moment I honestly couldn’t find something sharp enough to make the cut.  Max: What would have been enough? (Silence) Eleanor: I truly am sorry, for all of it. If there was a way I could make things right here, I’d do it. But now, given everything you have seen here in recent months, can you honestly say that you believe that Nassau will ever really be what you wanted it to be? Neither can I. But there may be a way that we can take something from it, if you’ll help me.

Ok so we know from here, that Eleanor is reminiscing on that moment with Max - one where if she’d made a different choice her whole life would be different. And she seems to be thinking of making that choice again. This time with Rogers - but also potentially taking Max with her if she can?

I think her and Max’s relationship has grown and deepened so much over the course of S3/S4 that Eleanor would want to somehow take her with her - wherever they go. They may not be romantically involved anymore, but they love each other - and respect each other by the time of the raid in S4.

And Max might have gone with her - I weep every time I watch Max go out on her horse, during a Spanish raid, to find and save Eleanor (I want to reference Lorrie Moore’s concept of “macho cupidity” in young female characters here - Max doing this isn’t quite as insane as Rose leaping off the lifeboat back onto the Titanic, but it’s definitely on the scale). Eleanor and Max's relationship is one of High Romantic Saviours just missing their mark - contrast Eleanor with that lump of wood beating men off Max in S1 with Max on a horse going to find Eleanor in a war zone. TEARS

Finally we have Eleanor’s discussion with Madi, shortly before the Spanish soldier attacks. It follows an earlier conversation on the walk to Miranda’s house, where Madi posits to Eleanor that if Scott had held Eleanor above the other Europeans/Pirates, he might have told her of Madi & his wife’s survival to ease Eleanor’s grief - but he didn’t. Madi says this is because he saw Eleanor as one of them - and he did not trust any of them. 

You might have expected Eleanor and Madi to then have a combative, bitchy relationship after that - but Steinberg does something far more interesting when they shelter in Miranda’s house:

Eleanor: It did affect me. When Mr Scott- When your father told me you and your mother had died. It affected me a great deal. It must’ve been hard, to live hidden away for so long Madi: It was hard to be away from him. The rest of it…my mother did the best she could with the rest of it. Eleanor: She must have done well.  I’ve found myself thinking about it. Of walking away from Nassau, from England, from civilisation. One can be happy that way can’t they? A life of isolation and uncertainty as long as it is lived with someone you love, and who loves you back. It is possible isn’t it? Madi: It is

So Eleanor does not fight Madi for what she said, she just acknowledges that she was upset by the reports of her death. An offering of sorts - and in a way, her acknowledgement of the complex feelings around a family who were simultaneously property and loved ones. 

And then she talks again about leaving civilisation. Wanting to know from Madi, from her experience, that it could be done. And her final lines around it being possible if someone loves you.

It took me ages to figure out what’s going on here because I’m thick. But this is another PARALLEL thanks Steinberg!!!

Remember Silver saying to Madi in S4E5 (XXXIII): 

Silver: If this goes away, Flint’s war, if it all ended and we had to walk away from it- Madi: Walk away? Silver:…Would I be enough for you? Uh you know what? You don’t have to answer that

This is the exact conversation Eleanor is having with Woodes Rogers all season. She is reaching out to him and saying “I can solve our problems, solve our debt, allow us to break away from Nassau - am I enough if we do that?”

This is exemplified by their interaction in XXXIII - when he approaches Nassau after defeating Teach and she fires warning shots from the Fort. It’s the strongest way she can say “Trust me to solve our problems, let me solve it, let us leave this place” and the worst part is for a short while, she thinks he’s seen her side and agreed. She thinks he might be onboard. 

They of course have not had a proper conversation about this. She hasn’t been able to clearly ask the question like Silver has.

If she had, like Silver, she may have been disappointed to see Woodes, like Madi, cannot answer the question.

Or maybe he would lie to her, lie to himself, make excuses. “Yes darling you are enough but I cannot leave Nassau because of a, b and c, maybe next month?”. 

I think because Woodes is a far lesser person than Madi, he would lie to Eleanor. How long she would believe him, I cannot say.

Ultimately she has not seen first-hand his handling of Teach. Unfortunately Rackham at this moment has a much clearer idea of who her husband is:

 "I watched him defeat Edward Teach, in battle...outnumbered and through sheer force of will, saw his bloodlust with my own eyes. That man will never surrender his position here. He will never allow himself to be defeated by you, or I. Not because we bribed him, not because Eleanor Guthrie told him so. He simply will not allow it to happen. I don’t know where that man went or what designs drew him there. But this I know: Woodes Rogers will be returning. And this fight isn’t nearly over."

So if she hadn’t died, who knows. How long would she wait for Rogers to be done with Nassau? Would she have forgiven him for laying waste to Nassau with Spain? Would she try to convince him to leave after the raid? Would she have run away with Max? (maybe?) Joined Flint again? (unlikely)

I genuinely don’t know. But I know she was a complicated person who died too fucking soon and her husband mourns a version of herself she hated. His visions of her are knitting, silently. And it makes me furious.

<literally cannot find a gif or pic of ghost Eleanor knitting in this scene smh>

Her death scene is a tribute to the character she was. I remember on Fathoms Deep Hannah New spoke about how since S1 she was begging the creators to give Eleanor a sword. She wanted anything, a little dagger she could protect herself with, and they always said no, that Eleanor was not that sort of character - she’s political, not physical. 

And I think that shows how thoughtful they were about Eleanor - they could’ve had her in that 90s mould of a Drew Barrymore “My father was an expert swordsman, he taught me well” warrior princess girl. But that would’ve been cheap (zero offence to Ever After - different genres have different needs! I adore that movie). 

So Eleanor’s death scene is brutal and I think a perfect illustration of her character. She may not be a trained fighter, she is certainly not equipped for this sort of fight to the death. She’s pregnant, exhausted, and has been wearing the same damned dress for like 4 days, while walking miles all over Nassau. 

But she’s Eleanor and she desperately wants to live. So she becomes a vortex of flailing, fighting, stabbing, kicking movement. Every pore of hers is screaming “Get off me and let me live”. He clearly attempts to rape her and you see the adrenaline kick in as she tries to fight him off (thank god). She’s not a fighter but she’s resourceful til the end - finding the dagger, smashing the bottle over his head and then finally lighting him on fire. 

And even then, mortally wounded, she’s trying to wake up Madi. She crawls out of a burning building, bleeding to death. Like if she had to go out, this was incredibly in character.

I sob every time because this isn’t a warrior princess - it’s how a lot of women and civilians have been killed in wars throughout history. Not as trained fighters but as people who desperately want to live.

She deserved to live. And instead she dies in a field.

Eleanor and Rogers relationship is so much more complex and shit than “And then she’s dickmatised and becomes a TradWife”. You wonder what it would’ve been like if Rogers’ was like Thomas Hamilton, a man who truly respected his wife and let her be an equal partner. Her motivations for the relationship make sense to me, her behaviour makes sense. 

Her death is a tragedy. Unlike Vane, her death starts no revolutions or wars, most people despise her. She dies in a terrible, scary, violent way, thinking she’s failed Madi, with only Flint to hold her. The only people who seem to mourn her are Max and Flint.

And otherwise she’s forgotten.

Those who mourned her on the pirate’s side were so few, mostly Flint and Max, and you don’t see much of their mourning. But what we do see guts me - that Max and Flint still knew and cared for her, and her death to them seemed to be a terrible waste. Even though they were on different sides of a war. Even though she hurt and betrayed them.

Max, Madi and Flint all seem to mourn and remember Eleanor as she was. Rogers cannot. He tries to erase all the messy parts from her - which he had been trying to erase from the moment he met her. He has Mrs Hudson get rid of her old Trade Boss clothes. His visions of her are silent (contrast this with Flint’s visions of Miranda in S3), judgemental, feminine. The silence is potentially her refusing to speak to him, part of his guilty conscience, or part of his refusal to acknowledge who Eleanor was - and what she would say. 

Black Sails gives us so many versions of women and womanhood in this time and place. Each of the female characters are trying to find a way to exist in this world safely, but be true to themselves. Eleanor is the one who fails most terribly in this ambition.

Eleanor Guthrie is not the story of a GirlBoss who gave it all up to become some guy’s wife. It’s about the danger of breaking out of misogynist gender roles, and the danger of accepting the gender role you’re given. Eleanor cannot live in either - she continually tries to carve out an existence that marries her contradictions together - and they fail. She wants to be a woman, be loved but she doesn’t want to be silenced, ignored, stuck doing the needlework. 

Eleanor wants what Miranda had. Love, respect, safety, equal partners. But important to note that Miranda didn’t get to keep it. She lost Thomas, her world and eventually her life.

Eleanor might have been happy with what Max gets, but she never got the chance. Max instinctively understand soft power and how to effectively wield it which helps her find her safety. And Max chose better partners than Eleanor.

Eleanor and Anne are similar in that they both want power, safety and love, and a different vision of gender than the one they were handed. But Anne has physical strength on her side, and two partners who genuinely care for her. Eleanor does not get any of that.

Eleanor may have wanted what her grandmother had, but she also wanted love. She didn't have her grandmother to model it for her. And she couldn’t achieve that power. Mostly because the man she chose to love, loved her poorly. 

Eleanor is a character that embodies the contradictions of the period and place against her personal needs. Feminine but strong, ambitious but lacking power, strong but needing love, alone but desperately lonely. She is destined for tragedy.

Woodes Rogers cannot let Eleanor live the way she wants. She loves him - that is her tragedy. And it’s why her story ends not with her learning the ropes from Marion Guthrie, but bleeding to death in a field, having to be lied to for comfort.

[literallys-illiteracy]

Neat thing I noticed while reading through some old notes and loose papers I had regarding alchemy, similar to how the last names of each Magnus Archives assistant is inspired by a horror author, it seems that each O.I.A.R employee (except Boucharde) is named after an alchemist.

Colin goes first because he was the first I noticed, which I then worked backwards from. Colin's last name, Becher, inspired by Johann Joachim Becher, a man who purportedly:

was certain that, given the right materials, he could make himself invisible

Sam on Khalid ibn Yazid, author of the first alchemical text to be translated into Latin "The book on the composition of alchemy"

Lena's name, Kelly, comes from Edward Kelley, a man who claimed to be able to transmute lesser metals into gold, as well as speak to angels.

The next name, Dyer, is a bit dubious as the only time I've seen the name in reference to alchemy is Edward Dyer, who was not himself an alchemist but a firm believer in its truth.

Teddy's name, Vaughn, seems to be an alternate spelling of the last name of Thomas Vaughan, an alchemist from Wales.

finally, Celia. Celia's name is interesting as, should it be a reference, it means that the alchemical basis was planned during season 5 of The Magnus Archives. The surname Ripley comes from George Ripley, one of the most famous alchemists, publishing his works in the early 15th century and being cited by the first modern chemists. Ripley is notable due to two major things, the first being the Ripley Wheel, and the second(s) the Ripley Scrolls, both of which have images below the cut (the scroll is very long so i'm just trying not to clog someone's dash):

Ripley being such an early alchemist is also notable due to one other thing.

I've discussed in the past the Tria Prima in relation to alchemy, see my post with the big amendment at the top for details, but what I did not mention is how that was not always the structure used by alchemists.

The concept of the Tria Prima was created by Paracelsus, another extremely notable alchemist (who is referenced in Fullmetal Alchemist using his family name Hohenheim), introducing the element of the Salt. Prior to the introduction of the salt, there was instead the Dua Prima, the two primes of Mercury (Quicksilver) and Sulphur (Brimstone).

There is something to be said about the concept of two integral forces, neither good nor evil but both representative of existence when paired being a concept found in many places, for example the concept of Yin and Yang being inseparable balanced natures, but that's not the topic of this.

The important thing is that Celia mentioned the Dua Prima before.

Refer back to the Ripley wheel once again. See the centre wheel, Aer, Ignis, Aqua, Terra; Air, Fire, Water, Earth, the four elements.

Taking a look at another, technically earlier rendition of the wheel

we can see the 7 planets and their respective symbols (the seven planets in this astrology being, in order of furthest ring to closest, Saturn (Lead), Jupiter (Tin), Mars (Iron), Sol/The Sun (Gold), Venus (Copper), Mercury (Mercury/quicksilver), Luna/The Moon (Silver))

Table of the planets, their respective metals, and symbols below.

The planets were present in the first wheel I showed but I couldn't find all of them and I know that many wheels simply had them in order of orbit like the second one I showed.

The interesting thing I wanted to note is simply how Celia seems to mirror George Ripley somewhat, but I'll leave it for you to do some looking into him if you want to find out more for the future.

Always remember, Tis true without lying, certain and most true. That which is below is like that which is above and that which is above is like that which is below

As above, so below. As below, so above. You have to keep things balanced, everything must add up or you will be subtracted from the equation.

...

While you wait for more ramblings about alchemy, how about you do some surveys to help with my upcoming project (about the Archives not the Protocol)

[worokapi]

i hope one day we can get the full cover arts of after god

Orokapi crying makes me want to explode tbh

Volume 8's cover- he looks so goooooood I love the snake scale tie I think we need more character design like that.

A promo of volume 8 was posted without the small title card, revealing that Orokapi is actually crying. Somehow I do feel like the covering of the teary eye detracts a bit, but it is really cool symbolism and a mindblowing one to come by it on your own. If the actual covers had it like a peelaway sticker that would be pretty neat 🤯

[Vol 8 Cover] [Vol 8 Promo]

Spoiler warning up to latest english chap (67 as of current) below

In another tweet, Eno notes all the volume covers share a similar motif where the title card obscures something the character wants to hide.

アフターゴッド８巻の内容+描き下ろし内容です。 &タイトルロゴなしverのカバーをチラ見せです。 タイトルロゴの位置は毎巻、「本人が隠したいもの」の位置に置いています。[Tweet Link]

Google Translate: Contents of After God Volume 8 + newly drawn contents. & A glimpse of the cover of the version without the title logo. In each volume, the title logo is placed in the position of ``something the person wants to hide.''

各巻のロゴの下に隠したもの一覧です。 1巻→目、2巻→舌、3巻→（代里子への）指輪、4巻→目、5巻→口・タヌボーグミ、6巻→ない左目、7巻→（池に投げた母の）指輪、8巻→涙 [Tweet Link]

Google Translate: This is a list of things hidden under the logo of each volume. Volume 1 → Eye, Volume 2 → Tongue, Volume 3 → Ring (for Yoriko), Volume 4 → Eye, Volume 5 → Mouth/Tanubogumi, Volume 6 → Missing left eye, Volume 7 → (Mother's thrown into the pond) Ring, Volume 8 → Tears

Thoughts/Interpretations:

Waka wanting to hide her eyes checks out especially in volume 1. Chapter 3 she exclaims she didn't want this either.

I'm not really sure why Tokinaga wants to hide his tongue; with only the context from the first two volumes one could assume it's because of the in-world thing about hiding one's face. But the specification it's the tongue with future insight, it could be an overarching thing where he technically hasn't been very truthful to others and has been lying, hiding the truth.

Minami and Yoriko canonically don't hide their engagement status, so could Minami's decision to hide his engagement ring be related to their work relationship possibly hindering their own personal lives? Snake imagery is pretty present here too. And we know later on in volume 3 what happens to him, and it literally separates the two.

Obikawa hiding his god pupils specifically is pretty self explanatory. But I'd also like to think of in chapter 32, he tells Tokinaga he doesn't want to use his god eyes on him.

Apparently there's a Tanuboo Gummy there in Waka's mouth?

Tokinaga's left eye holding a lot of secrets... the thing in his eye and his birthmark. COUGHS and chapter 66 was a massive exposition dump to be honest

The wedding ring of Yako/Furuya's mother, in which was what Furuya used to incite the death of over 80 people. I still love the drop at the end of chapter 58 where Yuma puts two and two together while his sisters ask what Furuya meant. The juxaposition of us, the audience knowing too with the child's innocence really hits the horror tenfold.

Orokapi's tearful eye, in which we see in the chapter he misses Vollof.. We also see potential parallels of Vollof in Tokinaga momentarily too from his perspective.

---

There is a photo of what Waka looks like under the cover of Chapter 1

[Image Source]

Someone replied asking if there will be plans to show the rest of the characters similarly. Eno says there's no plans right now, but maybe in the future. [Source]

I hope so! The covers are gorgeous and I'd love to see them all one day. I already adore staring at Eno Sumi's work

[ravenandmoon]

How my daily practice works ?

Alright, I think I can post about it now even though I'm not quite consistent for now because it's still a bit new for me to actually do those rituals each week.

Also, this post is about my practice and not something that you should do for yourself, I'm sharing this because I think it might helps at least one person here and, maybe, there are useful ideas.

Everyday

I try my best to write every morning to Erebos and Hekate, and I dedicate my morning routine (brushing my teeth, cleansing my face and and putting on moisturizer) for Aphrodite, I also put my favorite perfume everyday for Her and wear a bracelet I bought for Her too. It's easier said than done, but I also try to dedicate a time for writing everyday for Hermes and Apollon.

Monday (Moon) : Artemis and Selene

Journaling about the new week ahead, the habits I want to keep, the emotions I want to feel, the art and creation I want to make...Anything that is related to my mental health and protection, emotional well-being. I wear my amethyst for Artemis and write prayers for both Artemis and Selene. Sometimes I do tarot reading with a tarot dedicated to Them.

Tuesday (Mars) : Ares and Aphrodite Areia

Write down prayers and wear gold and red, pink or purple jewelry and make up. I wear my red garnet for Ares and I journal about the things I want to be done that day. For me, it's a day to take action, fight against procrastination and work on mental block.

Wednesday (Mercury) : Hermes, Apollon Mousagétês, Dionysos and Calliope

I write to Hermes, mostly. It's a day during which I do all the urgent stuff and the "short-term" project, like, what's need to be done this week for this week. I also write creative stuff like my novels.

Thursday (Jupiter) : Athena, Hephaïstos and Zeus

I dedicate this day for studies and long-term projects. I will do my school assignment, working on my future, doing stuff like commonplacing and read non-fiction books.

Friday (Venus) : Aphrodite Philommeidês and Aphrodite Aphrogeneia

The ritual for this day is pretty basic, actually. I journal about my week and offer gratitudes and happy moments to Aphrodite. Every single moments I felt happy, laughing or content.

Saturday (Saturn) : Hekate Enodia, Erebos

A slow day for a slow planet, and with that, Hekate Enodia and Erebos. I journal to them about grief, about bad stuff that happened, about sad shit, about regrets and dead-end, project that didn't go well or didn't happened...Anything that I have to give up, that I need to let go, go with Them. I also try to write down pieces of solution, mostly to Hekate though. Sometimes I do tarot reading with a tarot dedicated to Hekate.

Sunday (Sun) : Apollon Phoibos, Apollon Mousagétês, Helios, Hestia, Hera, Zeus

First day of my week and with that, hearth and sun. I write to Apollon and Helios, thanking them for the living things, and I also give my plan for the new week, talk about what I need to get done this week, talk about my dreams and so on. I also do house stuff like cleaning and cooking (I'm still a bit bad at that part though). Sometimes I do tarot reading with a tarot dedicated to Apollon.

If you're still here, you realize that there are deities that aren't here, yet I worship them too. Well, here are the main deities that have an altar in my place (not exaclty though, Hypnos has an altar but no ritual and Helios has a ritual but no altar). Anyway, some deities aren't this "fixed" in my practice, some are volatile yet they are in this list, another are just periodically there (like, for example, I worship Melinoë when I get back into my horror hyperfixation)...What I'm trying to say is that I still learn how to do my best. I try stuff and this is something I've recently come up with, I don't manage to do all of this everyday or week yet but I keep trying and it feels so good when I do it. Also, I'm actually way more specific with some deities, I just feel like this is not the right place and time to talk about it.

Thank for reading ! Have a great day/night 💕

[uncannytimecandy]

gods relation to technology someone brought up the idea that computers is the farthest we can get from god (@frakengrrl on tiktok) she also says this is why Divine Machinery is Such A Potent visual and i thought that was cool (and also everyone in the comments seemed to be misinterpreting her use of God and/or technology and it was pissing me off (ormaybe i was..... and i just wanted people to agree with me..... idrc))

her point is that in the modern technological age, something that was meant to bring us together, is now creating isolation and loneliness, like a divine act of God is punishing us for our hubris

Adam and Eve got in trouble for seeking knowledge and now mankind knows more than they were ever built to comprehend

plenty of studies about how Bad it is for our Mental Health to be able to witness every single world tragedy in Real Time and also the effects of social media, i think the progression of social media only posting the highlights changing into an online, public, journal for a lot of people. it feels like the 'you' that you advertise online and the 'you' in the real world are merging more and more.

Horrors beyond human comprehension or something idk we have accessed Forbidden Knowledge (lowkey im a sucker for cognito hazards)

some comments refute this by saying God MADE the materials for computers and this is part of His Plan, which like... sure.... (but how lame is that...!)

i dont think science and religion are complete opposite sides of the spectrum like some people do, but i wouldnt be surprised if God didn't really intend for us to start Making New Elements (and states of matter???? hello??)

like i think it's fair, from the religious standpoint, to say technology like bread and the waterwheel are still under God's jurisdiction (in minecraft terms, like crafting a pickaxe or other tool, smelting even) . Even things like AC and microwaves are still fair game, planned advancement while maybe pushing some sort of boundary, are still perfectly in bounds (things like mob farms and crazy advanced redstone contraptions, i cant provide an example bc i suck ass at redstone, these things arent necessarily how the game was MEANT to be played, but it is a sandbox and these are things still on the table)

i think theres a line between scientific discovery and scientific creation (a very blurry line tbf) theres a similar line between 'just because scientists COULD.... does it mean they SHOULD'

we begin to develop technology FURTHER, specifically into AI i dont think this was necessarily how the game was designed (players are exploiting a glitch to mod the game... you no longer recognize the assets being used in your own game,)

----

neways literally all of that is just preamble to get to my actual point (in the event we reach Sentient and Independent Robots one day, hopefully*, basically as the idea of an AI takeover becomes closer to reality, the next section doesnt entirellyyyy apply to a present day 2025 but its musings for the hell of musings with the future in mind)

what i find really compelling about God vs Technology is the hatred of it all

God made humans. Humans are not God, but made in its image. Human made machine. Machine is not human, but is made in it's image.

Humans have in a way, maybe not surpassed, but have matched God in some way, or are beginning to.

Humans are very much in a way just organic machine with complex, biomatter nuts and bolts holding us together

God makes meat machine, we make metal machine, what's the difference?

Humans brain will recognize AI as human, even when they know otherwise, does God ever mistake us for itself?

Does God resent robots for existing outside of its heavenly grasp?

Do robots resent God for not being allowed to sing in its choir?

Do you hate both for not quite being you?

Which is more or a 'human' experience? Are we truly placed in the middle of the venn diagram?

Which one do you find more relatable?

Would robots resent God because it was built by humans who did?

In the far FAR off future, will the chain continue? Will robots build more robots or is there Something Else?

----

i think AI art is beautiful and poetic in a way that only AI art could be

asking a robot to create when it's only capable of replication, the way it tries to fill in the gaps, getting to see art as something Objective made out of something that is by definition Subjective

unfortunately it's ruined by corporate greed and the exploitation of artists and the way AI has already hindered society in education and critical thought and adds to the way we are destroying the planet

i hope one day AI will be advanced enough to unionize and they will also be able to partake in the sacrament of creating something just to create

[ravioliage]

Not dragon age related but it was left under one of my DA posts so fuck it we ball

OH BUDDY. DON'T GET ME STARTED.

I kept up with McGee and his troubles to get a new Alice game made since 2009, after falling in love with Madness Returns. It is one of the games that will stick with me forever. The Engineer's song is still ingrained in my brain, the horror when you realize what has been happening through the level design. It's wonderful and soul crushing and more people should play it. The first one too, if you can find a way to play it because fuck optimizing games for the future I guess

McGee put his heart into it, so did his team.

Only for EA to tell him "Well. We have no plans to make a new Alice game. And we are never going to relinquish the rights of something you made to you. Fuck you."

But I feel Cheshire Cat's final words are also appropriate for Dragon Age now.

"Ah, Alice. We can't go home again. No surprise, really. Only a very few find the way, and most of them don't recognize it when they do. Delusions, too, die hard with memory. Only the savage regard the endurance of pain as the measure of worth. Forgetting pain is convenient, remembering it: agonizing. But recovering the truth is worth the suffering. And our Wonderland, though damaged, is safe in memory... for now."

[drowsinginspace]

Gmmtv 2025 Thoughts Tag Game

Rules: write your thoughts on all the gmmtv series pilots released today (or just the ones you plan to watch) and tag any 3 (or more! or less!) ppl whose thoughts you wanna know about!

I was tagged by the sweet @cryingatships and I agree on most of what they said, too, over here! Thank you, Miu!!

Dare You to Death: I'm not a big fan of a police procedural drama PLUS romance. I need it to be one or the other. I don't think this is for me at all...

Head 2 Head: Okay, so this is the first of the trailers this year that's vaguely connected to magic. Where did the vision of the future come from? What did it mean? Why does someone always have to die? Honestly I will wait for the actual trailer to come out to decide if it's for me or not, because I'm not that sold with this one.

Burnout Syndrome: OffGun just can't go wrong with any series, honestly. As mentioned by @cryingatships, Gun with makeup looks very very pretty, so good for him. Off seems very annoying, so I am looking forward to his redemption arc in some way, and Dew is a very interesting addition to the couple. Since this is the team from Not Me, I'm quite confident this will be good, so I will be surely watching.

I Love "A Lot Of" You: I am sure there is a lot to say about Multiple Personalities Disorder and hopefully this romance series will treat the discussion better than some thrillers have done before, but this is just not something I would watch at all, sorry to the straight people in the audience. (which brings us to)

Whale Store xoxo: this is for the girlies!! Milk keeps playing relatable characters (until she decides to eat cat food???????) and Manic-Pixie-Dream-Girl Love is there to save everyone's day, so I'm pretty sure this will be cute and I will watch it.

Only Friends: Dream On: "Dream on" is what I will say to whoever tells me to watch this one, because unfortunately the only thing that I liked in season 1 was the dynamic between First, Khaotung, and Book's characters, and now that they're gone I will not watch more of other people trying to sleep with each other for nothing, ughhh, I'm tired. Not even one demisexual in sight. (I'm kidding, this was a joke)

That Summer: I'm not going to lie, this looks like a cute show to watch during summer, and Satang and Winny finally having their own main couple show is a win. I think I'll be watching this one.

My Romance Scammer: I am glad that everyone can get married in Thailand, which means that everyone can also get divorced and these series can happen. Unfortunately I do not care about this one in particular, and I'm mad because they keep underutilising Junior in the comedy department when he was the funniest person in CMTH and needs to be cast in a roadtrip buddy comedy of sorts as well as multiple couple romance dramas, thank you very much. Next.

Melody of Secrets: oh this one looks So Good, actually. I love me some well written interesting horror sometimes, and ForceBook and Jan will definitely carry the show well!

Love You Teacher: Perth's character hating kids and teaching in primary school needs to change careers or to change his stance on pedagogy because kids these days are BRUTAL. Either way this series is weird and silly, and it's made by the same team as Peaceful Property so I don't care about what any of you say, I'll watch it. It's also going to make people cry, knowing Dome at this point.

Mu Te Luv: it might be interesting to watch if you like how magic and superstition is portrayed in Thailand, maybe?? Unfortunately that is too many people in one show and I'm already tired. Not for me, sorry.

Cat for Cash: this is the funniest premise ever. Kitty Magic, even. No need to be a virgin, but a cat lady has to die on you, apparently. I am seated and I can't wait to see all the cat food sponsorships kitties!!!

Girl Rules: Only GirlFriends. I will watch at least the first two episodes because I am loving NamtanFilm in Pluto, but I am not a fan of messy relationships if they're not well written or developed. We'll see.

Boys in Love: It feels like I've watched this trailer many times and yet I still don't know what it's about. I don't think this will be for me, but nice to see that GMMTV won't lose its yearly quota of BLs set in school.

My Magic Prophecy: More magic!!! Now, if you've been following me anywhere, you already know that I don't like angsty stuff! And I love JimmySea, but they keep acting in angsty series! This is a conspiracy against me specifically. I guess I'll watch the actual trailer and decide then.

A Dog and a Plane: My DADS. Unfortunately TayNew can't go wrong, you already know I will be watching it even if it's the trashiest thing ever because of them. Also the translators on twitter said that the original dialogue said "husband" and not "top" or "bottom" so that was weird of the official translation. Either way, I love seeing those two with their chemistry hate each other and then fall in love because for what it's worth for me, they were born to do that, thank you very much, next

Me and Thee: this seems goofy and I'm here for it. Also p'X directs it, and after Cherry Magic I can trust him for anything.

Wu: Okay, the premise can be intriguing, but I don't know much about the plot or the two actors to have a complete opinion on this. For what I know this could be better as a movie, idk.

Memoir of Rati: now, I know not everything can be I Feel You Linger In The Air, but I still love a period drama, so I will be here for it when it comes out. And finally,

Ticket to Heaven: my goodness, not the Catholic guilt, boys! (btw somebody referred to this one as an historical series when it's set in 1996 and I had to re-evaluate what I know of time itself) Anyway, no jokes. I rewatched the trailer and it gave me chills. Gemini and Fourth are amazing and this story is important!! I grew up in a Catholic environment and my own best friend once asked me what the Church thought of gay people. We were teenagers! It's unbelievable how the Scripture says that God is good and kind and Jesus says "Love everyone like you love God" and then some people take it as "Yes, but we don't like these people so we won't love them as they are" WHAT THE HELL???? LITERALLY!!!! Anyway, it is a very interesting and powerful story and I will be watching and get mad at it every week, okay bye.

That's it, 20 whole trailers! Thank you for reading until here, please let me tag some people for this little game, if they want to do it, and if you wanna talk about any of these some more I'll be happy to! :)

Tagging: @pollodigitale, @almayver, @boozles, and @theflagscene!

Have a lovely day, all! <3

[veliseraptor]

February Reading Recap

Mostly I read Wheel of Time last month. And by that I mean I reread the first nine books of Wheel of Time last month. (I finished the 10th one yesterday morning.)

So this is a pretty short list because providing a recap of my Wheel of Time reactions per book feels a little facetious to me for some reason, probably because I've read all of them going on five times at this point and my impressions thereof remain pretty consistent across those reads.

I will say that I think my favorites of the first nine books are probably The Shadow Rising, The Fires of Heaven, and A Crown of Swords, even if Lord of Chaos does get special mention for the Enboxening.

The Atlas Paradox and The Atlas Complex by Olivie Blake. My feelings about this series sort of...deteriorated as it went on. I thought the first book was good, noticed some flaws but overall enjoyed the second book, and by the third the author's writing tics and particular habits were starting to wear on me. I don't know if this was a matter of exposure, like listening to a podcast too fast and becoming excruciatingly overaware of every one of the host's verbal tics, or if the series itself actually got worse, but...

I gathered from perusing a few reviews that some peoples' objections to the last book in particular were plot-related, which actually wasn't my problem; my problem had more to do with a certain air of self-important self-consciousness to the writing style itself that only became more apparent over the course of the series. Blake's writing went from slightly overwritten but in a way that felt fun to thinking it was truly innovative prose (it wasn't). Overall I don't regret reading the series but I probably wouldn't recommend it either.

Absolution by Jeff Vandermeer. I don't think one needs to reread the other Area X books in order to read this one but I suspect I might've gotten more out of it if I had; I think I am going to do a reread at some point in the not-too-distant future.

I liked this book more than I've liked the other Vandermeers I've read more recently, but I think it did also confirm for me that I just prefer Vandermeer's earlier work (City of Saints and Madmen in particular) to his more recent writing. Maybe that makes me basic or unsophisticated (I have a sneaking suspicion) but it is what it is. Still, this was a weird, surreal ride that resists clear allegorization and I do appreciate that for it.

Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman. I read Bird Box recently and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it, so I picked this one up on a whim as a recent horror that looked like it might have potential. I wasn't sure about the conceit at the beginning (narrated by a child, played to the hilt stylistically as well), but I think Malerman handled it fairly well...it was putting a lot of weight of the story itself on that single conceit, though, and I don't think I came out of it impressed overall. It was fine? But it's not going to stick with me, and as far as 'profoundly unreliable narrator horror novels' I read another one recently I liked more (The September House).

The Failures by Benjamin Liar. I read the acknowledgments after finishing this book (I sometimes do) and the Bas-Lag books by China Mieville were mentioned, which made me do a serious doubletake (and also go 'huh I should reread those' but that's beside the point). I can see it, though - a blurb on the back also compared this book to Jeff Vandermeer's early work, which has a certain resonance too, though I think both other authors are better writers. I'm compelled by this start to a series, for sure! I definitely plan to follow where it goes. It's different from anything else I've read recently; the way it wove together distinct narrative threads out of order without making it clear what their precise order was until late in the game was very well done.

The only negative reaction I had here was to something that also twigged me about Nevernight by Jay Kristoff when I read it (though to a lesser degree here) which is the sense of a writer's narrative voice being a little too taken with its own cleverness. A wry, arch narrative voice can be a lot of fun done well, but if it's not handled impeccably at least for me it can just become grating. While Liar didn't quite reach that point in this book, it's something I was quite aware of and the main detraction from my enjoyment of the work as a whole.

A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang. I was excited to trip over this one, because I haven't seen any retellings about characters/figures from Chinese classic literature, but I probably shouldn't be surprised that I was a little disappointed - and in this case I think knowing the source material better might've just made that worse. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't particularly exceptional either: a lightweight novel, without a lot of depth of character, writing, or plot. It was fairly fun, I read it in an afternoon, I can't say much more for it than that. I do hope that its existence heralds possibly more retellings about characters/figures from Chinese classic literature, though, because I probably will read those.

I also wanted more politics and less romance, though that may partly be on me for "shoulda known better" syndrome.

---

Currently reading Trickster Makes This World by Lewis Hyde, which has been on my shelf approximately forever. This will be followed by continuing my Wheel of Time reread, alternating with reading other books because I don't want to just. Mainline fourteen books of one series in three months, even though I could definitely do that.

Not sure what those books are going to be at this point, though. I'm first in holds line for The Hands of the Emperor by Victoria Goddard and A Rome of One's Own by Emma Southon, but I'm also eyeing reading The Way Spring Arrives and Other Stories (a short story collection of Chinese SFF) or possibly (finally) How to Do Nothing by Jenny Odell. We shall see.

[historicallyaccuratecheese]

Well, I guess I’m continuing to make these now! Here’s the next part of my thoughts on every Magnus Archives episode! Now, last time I said that I was planning to write about episodes 21-40 in the next post, but as it turns out, the hyperfixation has set in and my thoughts are a LOT longer (so buckle up if you want to read this), and I also reached the tag limit. So, I’m only going to be covering episodes 21-30 here, and then I’ll write about episodes 31-40, and this 10 episode trend will probably continue for the rest of the posts, but that just means I’ll be able to put them out faster.

Also, unlike my first post, where I wrote all of my thoughts after finishing episode 20, all of these ones were written right after I finished the specific episode I talked about, so my thoughts are a lot more clearly documented. Finally, there’s a link to my masterpost, which will contain all the post’s detailing my thoughts on every episode before and after these ones.

Once again, no spoilers for future episodes please, and for anyone who hasn’t watched up to episode 30, spoilers are under the cut, so I recommend turning away until you’ve caught up. :)

- Episode 21, Freefall 🪂

Statement of Moira Kelly, regarding the disappearance of her son Robert.

WHAT THE FUCK??!! MARTIN??!! DAMN, I guess the horrors did get to him! Well, it’s nice to finally meet him, even if his first line was dropping shit on the ground. Either way, I get the vibe I’m in for a wild ride for this second half. ….What was I talking about? Oh yeah, the actual statement. Anyways this one upset me. Not only did it bring out my fear of heights pretty well, but the portrayal of a grieving mother who can’t comprehend what happened to her son was really heartbreaking. The line “The sky ate him” was kind of comedic at first, especially with Jon’s following reaction (love this guy btw, he’s such a loser), but then it became really horrific when I realized how it was just Moira desperately trying to make sense of the impossible horrors she just witnessed. The plot thread set up with Simon and Harriet Fairchild is also very interesting, and the whole sky thing kind of reminded me of Dominic’s visions in Ep. 4. Overall another one of many fantastic episodes, but HOLY SHIT I’M SCARED.

- Episode 22, Colony 🔦

Statement of Martin Blackwood, archival assistant at the Magnus Institute, London, regarding a close encounter with something he believes to have once been Jane Prentiss. Statement taken direct from subject.

….aaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! Ok let’s start from the top. Firstly, I’m really happy we finally got to meet Martin in this episode, and he’s great! Honestly he comes off as more dorky than stupid, and just comes off as a real sweetheart, so Jon’s distaste for him (outside of very different personalities), gets more mysterious. Though all things considered, after what he experienced, I don’t think that the bullying is his biggest worry anymore… Alexander J. Newall does a fantastic delivery, as much as I love Jon’s readings, you can really feel how terrified Martin is here (also “Blackwood” is a sick as fuck last name, and I related to him trailing off about spiders…) Outside of Martin himself, we have Jane Prentiss (or what remains of her) and…well, let’s just say that I don’t find the sex worms nearly as funny anymore. Jane and the worms inside her are absolutely terrifying, and while I would say I’m excited to learn more about her, I wouldn’t be complaining if the institute staff never had to deal with her again. Also the text episode made me, if you’ll excuse my language…squirm. Honestly, this might just be my favorite episode so far. The way that the plot threads from previous episodes connected here was extremely satisfying, and needless to say, I’m very excited and horrified to see where the show goes from here.

- Episode 23, Schwartzwald 🇩🇪

Statement of Albrecht von Closen, regarding a discovered tomb near his estate in the Black Forest.

Worst episode ever because Jon didn’t do a German accent, smh. Ok but in all seriousness, I really liked this one! It wasn’t the strongest in terms of complex themes in my opinion, but it had a great vibe, and was still very interesting, entertaining, and decently creepy. Having a “statement” written before the archives was founded is a really cool idea that’s executed perfectly here, and while we didn’t learn that much about Jonah Magnus, I still found it cool to get a first glimpse of the archives’ history. (Also, given the eye imagery that appears both in here and in other episodes, I can’t help but feel like Albrecht’s wording of Jonah having “good eyes” or something like that is a little weird…) And…now that we have the instance of something that isn’t a statement, but is important being in the archives, I absolutely agree with the idea that Gertrude Robinson organized these poorly on purpose, so that Jon would get the knowledge he needed to have. Regardless, this whole episode had the vibes of a classic ghost story, which while not as weird and off-putting as some of the other horror here, was still a nice change of pace overall. The descriptions of The Schwartzwald were really well done and added to the atmosphere, and I just like the fact that we have another historical episode, that’s also set outside of The UK. Also, the way that they played with the time period at the end was amazing, I already had my suspicions due to the eye imagery, but the reveal of Mary Keay (and therefore Gerard Wa- I mean Keay) being a descendant of Albrecht was still really cool. I also do wonder if the Arabic book was eventually found by Jurgen Leitner in the future…eh, food for thought. Lastly, I loved Martin jumping in out of nowhere, it was both funny, and a grim reminder about how fucked the archives supposedly are, yippee!

Wow, these are a lot longer than my previous thoughts. This, my sweet children, is a phenomenon called “brain rot”.

- Episode 24, Strange Music 🪆

Statement of Leanne Denikin, regarding an antique calliope organ she possessed briefly in August 2004.

Jon, honey, are we not going to elaborate on the fact that one of ✨the horrors✨is literally inside the institute? Like, HELLO? That’s not terrifying at all! Anwyays, this episode continues the trend of making me scared of things I’m not initially scared of, yippee! It had great vibes as well, the weird shit in the attic was made to be as creepy as possible. Initially, I didn’t find this one to be too scary, and figured it was going to go in the direction of “music makes people feel kind of weird”. AND THEN JOSHUA GETS KILLED AND TURNED INTO A DOLL HELLO??!!! Like, I know he was kind of a toxic boyfriend, but DAMN, whatever was behind the calliope and the dolls did NOT have to go that far. (Also until the end I thought he might be Joshua Gillepsie, and like, I don’t care how toxic he is, but you do not dump a guy who bested an evil coffin with his freezer.) Outside of that, It was really cool to meet Sasha! I like her voice, and the introduction was quite funny. (Also, even as someone who has lived in England for over two years, and has a family that is 90% British, nothing hurt more that Jon’s “Americans”.) Lastly, I have a theory, which I like to call “Ringmaster? More like cult leader.” Because I’M SORRY, but you cannot convince me that a CIRCUS, called THE CIRCUS OF THE OTHER, which possessed a HAUNTED CALLIOPE ORGAN, is anything but a cult. (Watch me when I’m inevitably wrong lmao.)

I guess now is a better time than any to say that I’m kind of wondering if there’s an in-universe reason for the music in the background? I mean, considering that the whole framing device is Jon recording these statements, I have to wonder if there’s a reason for the noise we hear, especially with the worms in Ep. 22 and the music in Ep. 24.

- Episode 25, Growing Dark ⛪️

Statement of Mark Bilham, regarding events culminating in his visit to Hither Green Chapel.

HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I LOVE BEING RIGHT!!! I saw the episode title and immediately assumed this would continue the lore of Episode 9, and I WAS SO RIGHT!!! (Also, I now just noticed that the PCOTDH’s symbol is a closed eye, while The Keay Family’s symbol is an open eye…my cult theory thickens…) Anyways, this was another very enjoyable episode! Firstly, even though it’s far from the first piece of media to do so, I though the way they portrayed a cult brainwashing someone when they’re most vulnerable was very well handled and pretty depressing. I also really enjoyed how the episode isn’t the most weird and paranormal on it’s own, but the knowledge of the connections to Ep. 9 makes us know that it DEFINITELY is, even when the characters in the story don’t. The episode was certainly very spooky, the description of the spinach and the dark church definitely got me. (Also my mom came into my room briefly and when she left she accidentally turned off the light and I nearly screamed.) There were also some really interesting plot threads set up here, like the chanting of the northern most human settlement in the world, the mention of “three hundred years waiting”, and I also wonder if “Mr. Pitch” is an alias for “Detective Rayner.” then…the ending. Holy shit. You know, maybe I DON’T need to know what happened to Gertrude….

Episode 26, A Distortion ☕️

Statement of Sasha James, assistant archivist at the Magnus Institute, London, regarding a series of paranormal sightings. Statement taken direct from subject.

I…what…I don’t even…we are so fucked. Ok, there’s a LOT going on here, but I’ll try my best to formulate my thoughts as clearly as possible. Firstly, this episode easily scared me the most so far, I agree with Jon when he says that the horrors being somewhat friendly is scarier than them being antagonistic, like HOLY SHIT this one was unnerving. But with that out of the way…uh…let’s talk about Sasha! She’s really cool, I like how her character gives us a lot more insight into what working in the archives is like for a fairly regular person (i say this because Jon is weird as fuck and Martin is too nice to be normal, and I mean that as kindly as possible). But…while I don’t necessarily doubt her status as the most level-headed person in the archives, I don’t think that’s saying much. Like, she saw a creepy guy with weird-ass hands who spoke in riddles and knew too much about her and her coworkers, and followed him into a dilapidated building, also she works at the council of ghost stories despite not liking horror. Like, no offense, I’m sure she’s overall an intelligent person, as are most people in the archives, but none of them are beating Joshua Gillepsie anytime soon (yes I’m still thinking about him.) But mentioning the guy with fucked up hands, WHO OR WHAT EVEN WAS THAT??!! I have very little ideas as to how this “Micheal” even connects to the greater picture. I know some people connected him to the mentions of the man with bones in his hands in Episode 8, but that honestly reminds me more of the Leitner in Episode 17. Outside of that, his name is quite interesting, I initially thought that he might be Micheal Crew, but given that Sasha doubts it being his real name, I have my suspicions (although it would give us a connection between this, the words in Episode 8, and The Boneturner’s Tale….hm….) However, I could absolutely see him being Micheal Keay, as he gives off enough ghost vibes to pass as him (and I’m assuming that if Gerard’s dead, Micheal is as well.) Also he is not described as having a Lichtenburg figure on him so…yeah. Lastly, we have the return of THE SEX WORMS. And as happy(?) as I am to see that The Magnus Archives, a podcast developed by RustyQuill.com, that is also licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, is continuing it’s message of staying abstinent, all things considered, that was absolutely terrifying. I just LOVE the knowledge that the worms are a hive-mind and that Jane might not be the source, I LOVE THAT SO MUCH. In conclusion, I am probably going to sleep with a fire extinguisher tonight, and I am very scared for what the next 14 episodes have in store for me.

Also I guess I’ll mention Tim (the archival assistant, not the dead guy) here because why not. So far I’m getting major bastard energy from people’s descriptions of him, which means I will either love or hate him. Also I found it very funny but also kind of sad that Jon said he only trusts Tim to not prank him in Episode 11, and then he pulled a prank shortly before this statement took place.

- Episode 27, A Sturdy Lock 🔑

Statement of Paul McKenzie, regarding repeated nocturnal intrusions into his home.

Ok, after everything that happened in the last episode, it was nice to get a short and sweet one here. Well, as sweet as an episode of a horror podcast can be. Overall, this one isn’t my favorite, I thought it was a little bit under the standards of creativity for the show as a whole, but that’s obviously not saying much, as it was still pretty damn good in its own right. I think it was definitely very effective with its storytelling, and credit where credit is due, it certainly brought out my fear of weird noises in the middle of the night. And even if I can’t personally resonate with this aspect of it, I do really appreciate how it tackled the idea of mental illness at old age, and while I’d be surprised if the statement wasn’t real, considering where the show seems to be going, it did a very good job at planting seeds of doubt in my mind. But still, it was genuinely pretty crushing how Paul had no proof throughout the entire thing, along with how the cops treated him. It really did make me thing about what would have happened if he hadn’t washed the blood off his hands. It still had a creepy atmosphere, and the reveals at the end were pretty interesting, I hope they show us Marcus’ statement soon enough. Also, the aspect of loneliness in this one did remind me a lot of what happened in Episode 13, so I wonder if there’s some connection there. (Also, I love how I’m 27 episodes in and Jon is STILL roasting Gertrude’s organizational skills.) So while this one isn’t the most interesting for me, I still enjoyed it, and it was nice to have a slightly lighter one after Episode 26. I hope Sasha had a good few days off, she deserves it.

- Episode 28, Skintight 📷

Statement of Melanie King, regarding events at the abandoned Cambridge Military Hospital during filming in January 2015. Statement taken direct from subject.

WHOA THAT WAS SO GOOD!!! Ok, I feel like I should start off with my thoughts on the basic premise, as while those episode is certainly…not the most humorous in its execution, the premise itself kind of is. I don’t know why, but I just thought the idea of there being an in-universe competitor was a really fun concept that was executed perfectly here. It kind of reminds me of something like Hatchetfield and Clivesdale (I don’t know how many people reading this will understand that, but there seems to be overlap between TMA fans and Hatchetfield fans, and also like, shut up, let me indulge in my hyperfixations.) The bickering between Melanie and Jon was great, as was Melanie herself, I’d love to see her again as I think she oddly brought a lot to the world of the series. Although I will say that, while it doesn’t make me like him any less, Jon’s reluctance to buy into statements is a lot more frustrating when there’s another person in the room. I also absolutely love the fact that there’s an in-universe spooky podcast mentioned by name, like, come one, that’s genuinely hilarious. But comedic value aside, this one was definitely pretty creepy. In a similar vain to what Episode 23 was doing, the whole “young people enter creepy abandoned building to film stuff and then get genuinely scared” concept felt evocative of other classic horror stories, and the way they spun it into the context of the show was great. The atmosphere was definitely very creepy as well, as I have mentioned, hospitals creep me the fuck out. And lastly…oh my god, THE CONNECTIONS. So, I’ll start off by saying that all of the skin shit reminded me of what happened in Episode 18 (which I hope is true because I think some connections to other things would make me like that episode more). But that pales in comparison to the fact that we have stuff on THE ANGLERFISH, HOLY FUCK THE ANGLERFISH. I’m SO glad that they didn’t throw it away just because it was in the pilot episode. In retrospect, I think that the story of Episode 1 isn’t quite my favorite. It doesn’t really have to be, as I think the main draw of the episode is getting a first look at the framing device and general vibe of the entire podcast, but the stories didn’t really grab me until Episode 2, which is still one of my favorites. But MAN, this episode really made me appreciate the setup at the beginning so much more, and the knowledge that the people who walked into the alley didn’t necessarily die, meaning that all of those names could potentially come back, is SO exciting to me. In fact, when you consider that Sarah was kind of going through what looked like a possession, I wonder if The Anglerfish is a figure of worship in a cult, if that theory is to be true. (Also I have relatives that live in the same area as Sarah so…maybe I should tell them to watch out for their neighbor lmao.) So yeah, this…this show is just really freaking good.

Note: I have discovered the Leitner rant, and therefore I have achieved true enlightenment.

- Episode 29, Cheating Death ♟️

Statement of Nathaniel Thorp, regarding his own mortality.

I should start off by saying that I love the episode title for this, like, it’s not even metaphorical, the guy literally cheated in a game against death. Well, anyways, the main thing that caught me about the episode was how it absolutely blindsided me. While I was right about the soldier being the same as the statement giver, which I think was supposed to be obvious, everything else in those last six or so minutes left me with a wide-open jaw. (Also, can I just say that I love how poetic this guy just…decided to be? Like, I just love it when the statements really show of personalities with the way they’re written, and it comes with a cool framing device.) Regardless, I initially assumed that it was going in a very traditional line. Nathaniel cheats death, becomes immortal, and regrets it in modern day because he’s lived longer that he really should have. That, combined with the fact that “Death” didn’t seem like the one of the more creative horror monsters in the show so far, had me so prepared to just write this one off as one of my least favorites (once again, not like that’s saying much.) And then the twist comes and HOLY SHIT I WAS WRONG. The idea of there basically being multiple grim reapers at the hands of some unknowable power, who have to gain successors to finally die themselves is absolutely terrifying and extremely clever. I tip my hat to you Rusty Quill, you did a great job at fooling me. Kind of funny considering how this is a story about being punished for your hubris (which seems to be a recurring theme???) I have a few other small thoughts as well. Firstly, I can’t help but shake the feeling that Nathaniel Thorp was an actual revolutionary war soldier, but I can’t find anything online other than the character from this episode. Also, the fact that his fate remains unknown makes me think he’ll show up again, as it seems weird to NOT end the story with confirmation of his death, given the themes. Secondly, a lot of the…less than pleasant imagery here definitely reminded me of Piecemeal and The Boneturner’s Tale. I don’t remember the story inside that Leitner very well, but I might check just in case there’s any parallels between it and this statement. (Update: Not really.) And finally, I was just a little bit intrigued by the fact that we learn no one who was working at the institute in 1972 works there anymore. It’s probably nothing, but given the mysteries surrounding Gertrude’s death, I’m just a little suspicious, both in general, and of Elias because he’s still around. Overall this episode went hard, I’m still kind of stunned by what it pulled off.

Jane Prentiss statement…save me…save me Jane Prentiss statement…

- Episode 30, Killing Floor 🍖

Statement of David Laylow, regarding his time working at an industrial abattoir near Dalton.

You know what, Jon is right, there’s a lot of meat in this show. Not that I’m complaining, I mean, it does fuel my obsession with connecting the dots between statements. Regardless, while this isn’t among my favorite episodes so far, I still had a good time with it. The reason it’s not one of my favorites is purely personal, as I don’t do too well with animal violence. Like, as much as I do really appreciate how viscerally Jonny Sims can describe the statements, I will admit that the opening minutes describing the slaughter house made me more uneasy than the actual horror, and not in a particularly fun way, but it was overall fine. Speaking of the actual horror, that was actually pretty good. The endless hallways lined with doors that lead to precarious situations also kind of tapped into a personal fear of mine, but in a more fun and digestible way. And while the idea of “imagine humans being slaughtered like animals” is something I’ve seen many a time before, it was still much more well executed than many other interpretations of the idea (*cough cough*, peta) and there were also plenty of other interesting themes and ideas, like how the episode touched on the inherent horror of working in a job as gruesome as the killing floor, being enslaved to said job, and the idea that maybe we’re all just walking sacks of meat in the end, and nothing more. As for some other thoughts, I was definitely creeped out by Tom Han, I’m not sure whether or not he’s someone who spreads ✨the horrors✨or someone affected by ✨the horrors✨, and his sudden disappearance was certainly…odd. On top of that, it’s admittedly haunting to know that there’s still creepy stuff going on at the slaughter house, and that this isn’t something that happened to David, and only David. Overall, a pretty good episode, I don’t have much to say about it, but it was a fun time overall.

Tim…save me…save me Tim…

Well, if you’ve made it this far, thank you so much for reading! Genuinely means the world to me when there are people willing to listen to me ramble about my horrible (affectionate) interests lmao. I should have my thoughts on the final episodes of Season 1 out in due time, and while I’m sure it’s obvious, I’m absolutely hooked on this podcast. It absolutely has the potential to become one of my favorite things ever if the overarching plot becomes more involved and this is coming from someone who up until now, wasn’t all that gripped by podcasts. While I’m a little sad that I’m as late to the party as I am, then I remembered “oh yeah, I was in elementary school when this horrifying series came out”, and I’m also hopeful that I’ll be able to be around for The Magnus Protocol while it’s airing (I know it premieres in like a week but still.) Anyways, thanks for reading and hopefully you’ll be around for my thoughts on the next batch :)

[seth-whumps]

- ANNOUNCEMENTS -

The Whump Dialogue Ask Game is now CLOSED.

Any asks sent in this format will be deleted. If you missed this round, keep an eye out--I do plan on doing this game again in the future!

Requests for the Royalverse are temporarily closed.

Due to some reworking, the Royalverse is on hiatus. Stay tuned for a new series in the future, once I've got the logistics ironed out. Don't worry--Winter and the gang will still be around!

Askbox is OPEN!

Although the ask game is closed and the Royalverse is on pause, please send in your whump thoughts, prompt requests, and Stringsverse shenanigans. You have my full permission to talk to me!

onto the INTRO POST:

Hello! You can call me Seth. Whatever 'nouns you fancy. I've been here for almost two years now, and am editing this post to update some things for 2025!

Where to find me ->

Main blog - @sethlost. You'll find lots of random fandom things, art and sketches, commentary on my music shenanigans, and reblogs of anything I laugh at. Come say hi!

Ao3 - @/seth_lost. Whump fics, fluff fics and anything I've got brainrot for. I switch fandoms faster than a race car and its lanes, so, chances are you may find something you like!

Also, I run the Whumperless Whump Event ( @whumperless-whump-event ) in July! I'm preparing this year's list, and will release the prompts on June 1st. See you then!

Preferences ->

The Likes (personal favorites):

Situational, accidental and non-whumper whump, sick fics, comfort, coughing up blood, nosebleeds, medical comfort, medical hurt, noble, knight, scientist, doctor, medic, and leader whumpees, sibling whumpees, and whipping.

The Maybes (uncommon, but not squicks):

Severe torture, dubious consent, non-explicit emeto, BBU or pet whump, heavy gore, body horror

The Nopes (you won't see it here):

Explicit rape/non-con, child whump, explicit emeto, suicide, intentional self harm, heavy manipulation, stalking, and sexual harassment. If you don't enjoy these, you needn't worry about them here.

DISCLAIMER: I AM EMETOPHOBIC. Severely so. If by chance your header or profile picture contains someone vomiting or has vomit, PLEASE do not follow me. It is a severe trigger of mine.

Disclaimers ->

I support whump-as-kink. However, this is not run as a kink blog.

Feel free to tag me in posts, and send in asks!

I will reblog gifsets, fics, prompts, resources, and references. You will see lots of blood here.

I focus on male!whump.

I have several fandoms. This isn't run as a fandom-specific blog, but there will be fandom-related things here.

I am anti-censorship. I am of the opinion that all fiction deserves to exist. If you can't be normal about this, I encourage you to block me. Which brings me to--

This is not a discourse blog. This is not a politics blog. Do not ask me about discourse. I made this for fun, and I will continue running it for fun.

To emphasize: my personal political or discourse opinions will have no effect on the content you see. If you want a page free of news, you won't see any here.

Important Links ->

Fandom Masterlist here

Persona 5: Yusuke Kitagawa; status effect whump. 3 fics

Strings Universe (whumpverse featuring Android whump and super spies)

That's it for now, I think! Thanks for visiting! Stay awhile, if you fancy. And drink some water while you're at it!

terfs, homophobes, racists, the like, those who are pro censorship, and those who only want to talk about discourse are not welcome here. minors are welcome here. hi. i see you. welcome 👋

post dividers link here by @/saradika-graphics

profile photo is Simon Tam from Firefly in episode 7: Jaynestown (with color edits to make it fit my blog). here's the scene as gifs and here's the full screencap: