#I did create a dating profile for a project

[janesurlife]

Thinking of wearing this on a date

[haikyu-mp4]

Crooked bangs

word count; 1053 – f!reader

Not usually favouring sports, you’re in the journalism club to make use of your great eye for design and writing. After watching one of your school’s volleyball team’s official games last season, you took notice of the boring brochures they handed out with the players’ information. You hadn’t yet chosen what to do for your project this semester and decided to lend your talents to making a better representation of the team’s charms and talents. What you didn’t expect to get out of the project was a date.

You received permission from their coach and captain and set up some equipment to take your photos in a room adjacent to the gym during practice. Hopefully, you can encourage them all to pose confidently. In order to not disturb their whole practice, you ask one grade to join you at a time, starting with the first-years and ending with the third-years. Good luck!

You were nothing short of nervous as you got ready to photograph the tall volleyball players. The volleyball team was one of Shiratorizawa’s many great prides, and you had taken it upon yourself to create something that would represent them and their talents. However, you didn’t expect that some of the players would be even more nervous than you. While working with the first years, Goshiki was proving difficult as he kept turning away from the camera. The coach gave you limited time with his players so you started getting anxious, begging him to tell you what made him so camera shy.

“My bangs are a little crooked and I look stupid,” he mumbled. You hadn’t noticed before, but your eyes darted up to the hair on his forehead and you noticed it wasn’t quite as straight as usual.

“I can’t even see it! Don’t worry, Goshiki,” you tried to assure him, ignoring the other first-years giggling at their future ace acting like that. He didn’t seem convinced by your encouragement and the rest of the members you had at hand were no help, so you browsed your brain for an idea and left for where the rest of the team were training. Muttering encouragement for yourself this time under your breath, you walked over to the coach and asked him to borrow a specific player. He considered for a moment, but your respectful demeanour convinced him.

“Tendo! You’re excused. Follow her and make it quick,” the coach yelled, and the redhead was surprised, to say the least. Still, he strolled over to you and gestured for you to lead the way.

“I thought you were starting with the first-years?” he asked and you put a hand on his upper arm before leaning closer so you didn’t have to speak too loudly. Tendo took the hint and leaned down.

“Goshiki is refusing to take his pictures because of his hair. I’ve seen how you encourage him between games, please help me,” you explained, hoping he could hear how desperate you felt. Tendo stood back up to his full height and looked at your eyes for a second. It felt good to hear someone notice his efforts and talk to him so casually. Like he wasn’t scary. He hadn’t even talked to you before, but you seemed to have a good impression of him. He liked this feeling.

“I’ll try my best, boss,” he said simply with a wink. The two of you went back to the first-years and Tendo did his best to boost Goshiki’s confidence. Telling him how people would be looking at the awesome flyer after seeing his amazing line shots to find information about him, the next ace. His eyes found yours and you nodded.

“I can even write that on your profile if you want! The future ace sounds pretty impressive.”

And so the two of you got Goshiki to pose more confidently, cheering him on until Tendo had to go back and you could start with the second years.

When it was finally the third-years’ turn, you smiled a little brighter at the tall redhead. “Thank you for your help earlier, I appreciate it,” you said. The two of you seemed to be looking at each other like the others weren’t even there.

“No worries, are you happy with all the pictures so far?” he asked, not noticing the way Reon and Semi glanced at each other.

“Very, it’s fun showing off such a great team.” Your cheeks almost matched his hair with the way you felt when his eyes were on you.

“That’s good, saved the best for last of course. How do you want us?” he said as he finally broke out of the trance, rubbing his hands together.

“Give me a look that says undefeated champions, even though it’ll probably say it on the paper as well,” you giggled, trying not to be shy about your excitement.

The third-years had you laughing nonstop, energy high as you went from static Ushijima who really just had two poses to dynamic Tendo who made some funny faces for you. You got Reon to give you a handsome smirk and Semi had more than enough confidence and it showed. Overall, you couldn’t be happier.

“You guys better get back to practice, thank you so much,” you said, starting to pack up your stuff. As they were about to leave, Tendo doing so a bit hesitantly, you stopped them. “Wait! Ushijima, did you find someone?”

When explaining the concept to him and asking for his approval, you informed him that you would love it if someone spent some of their own time to make sure you had all the right information. The captain seemed to understand what you meant after a moment of thought. He pointed to Tendo, who looked like a deer caught in headlights. “Satori will meet you for lunch tomorrow,” he said before bowing and leaving. The others followed him, except for Tendo who gulped and stuck around. Is his best friend, the Ushiwaka, playing wingman?

“I’ll meet you by your classroom at lunch then,” you said cheerily. You could feel your little crush blossoming, charmed by how he made you laugh.

“TENDO SATORI!” the coach yelled, done with waiting for the lanky boy.

“I’ll see you then, Grandpa’s calling,” he joked and left you with a soft chuckle.

I can’t wait for tomorrow.

the Flyer Series ║ masterlist

/taglist: @cottonlemonade @dira333 @cosmiicdust @nagi-core

[shini--chan]

Woah a hetalia blog in 2020 and a Yan one at that??? The world has BLESSED US! Could I please request Germany (and Russia If that's okay. Seprate not together) stalking and kidnapping their love interest?

Yandere Hetalia - Germany, Russia (Cat in the bag)

Germany

Ludwig would be so befuddled by his own feelings at first, that it would take some time for him to get back on track. In the meantime, he'd do everything he can to drown out the emotions that are causing him so much agony. It could be through work, household chores, dozens of personal projects (if you want to prevent a terrible future for yourself, it would be in your best interest to help him run away from his feelings.) Though, in the end, that won't be enough, and he'll eventually find himself scrolling through all your social media profiles. 

The more he ignored it, the stronger the urge became. It left him jittery, unable to focus. Ludwig already was reading the same paragraph for the third time, since the meaning behind the words never stuck. He wasn't even by the last sentence when the words began to blur due to overpowering thoughts of you. You, who he didn't want to think about due to the urges and desires the mere notion of you invoked. 

Slamming the laptop closed, damned be the deadline, he then snatched up his phone. Instagram was opened in a second and within a few clicks, he had your profile. He found himself hypnotised by the photos of you on display. There was one of the older ones that was a favourite of his, one where the light of a setting sun caught your features just right. 

Ludwig opened it, and leaned onto the table until he was half lying on it, the phone upright in front of his face. Far too close as well and he would have chided any other person doing it. Almost reverently, he traced the outlines of your face, exactly like he did with icons of the Virgin Mary in another life, when he had still been Holy Rome. 

He wouldn't be sure on how to approach you, so he would take the stereotypical dating ideas like going to the cinema together, or to an amusement park. Would be formal to the point it would be painful, but would loosen up as the evening progresses. 

It would only make him more obsessed with you and he would start following you around, and interrogating people about you. Not stalking, this is researching, is what he would tell himself. With you being so precious to him, he just needs to make sure that he caters to your needs and doesn't hurt you by accident. That would be all. His own curiosity and obsession with you would play absolutely no role in this, absolutely not sir. 

Most of the stalking would take place via social media, with him creating various sock-puppet accounts. Ludwig would go to great lengths to make sure you don't connect all of them to him - like showing different writing styles and personalities, and sometimes even feigning not knowing certain languages. The purpose of these accounts would be to watch you, and also engage with you on different topics and from differing standpoints in some cases. The anonymity the internet grants would be a boon here. 

Aside from that, he would also track you a lot. Germany would use this to "coincidently" run into when you are out and about and then invite himself to whatever you are doing. You'll find him joining the same clubs that you are a member of, if he isn't in them already. Often, he would come across as overbearing. 

The kidnapping would spout from the selfish desire to have you all to himself. He would be aghast by his own thought processes, and suppress it. Suppress it until it would come bubbling back to the surface stronger than before. He would find a whole host of justifications for his criminal actions - that he is allowed to be selfish, that the individualistic culture of Western society promotes his actions. 

Still, he would be filled with guilt and so apologetic for breaking in and knocking you unconscious. Law enforcement would have a very hard time finding you and Ludwig wouldn't really be inclined to release you. 

Russia

In Ivan's case, it would start very tame. The stalking would begin during the process of getting to know you and stem from suspicions of you not being forthcoming. During the first meetings you'd have, he'd inquire about your dislikes and likes, what you like to do in your free time, your opinions on certain matters. If you let him, he'll take you on long walks and converse with you about literature and philosophy until the sun sets and rises again. Though, there would alway be the nagging doubt about the truthfulness of your statements, something that would only be amplified should you show fear in any form. 

Thus, he would stalk you to find out how honest you are with him. Part of this wouldn't even be really following you around or watching you undress. In part, it would consist of going through your collection of books, investigating your taste in art and music, reading any journals you keep and checking what clubs you attend. To get an even better grasp on your personality, he would also look into who you are befriended with, as well as your relations with family members, and do background checks on all of them. 

The apartment you lived in could tolerate a good cleaning, in Ivan's humble opinion. It wasn't like you lived in a pig sty, leaving dirty clothes and rotten food lying around. Rather, it was the sort of "dirty" of a person that didn't have the time to wipe down the surfaces. 

Ivan couldn't help but grimace as he eyed the book shelf. There was a layer of dust on the free spaces and even on top of a few books, thus preventing him from actually taking out the one or the other and skim reading through a few pages. Leaving traces wouldn't do - if you couldn't relax in your own living space, then you'd start hiding behaviours. He'd just have to learn more about the books at home and through the internet. 

Home. It was a cosy little home that you had established for yourself here, but it was nothing compared to what he would give you once your relationship was more "official". First, he had to ascertain how honest you were being with him. So far, so good, you had been truthful with him - but it was possible to speak nothing but the truth and still be dishonest and devious. 

Turning on his heel, he headed to your small bedroom. A book was on your nightstand, just waiting for him to pick it up and flip through. Which is what he did.

Finally, he would also watch you. Some people talk or mutter to themselves when they are alone, and he would like to hear what you say when you think that nobody is watching. Also, humans do such fascinating things when they are sure that they are alone - what will you do? What bad habits will he have to exorcise out of you? Do you eat healthy, or does he have to help you along? Any addictions that he can use against you?

Should he determine that you aren't honest with him, then he'll be furious. Ivan would then make it his mission to teach you the value of honesty, do matter how damaging his lessons may be. Best if you learn quickly, or he'll make you as paranoid and distrusting as himself. 

As for kidnapping - it would only happen if you are in danger. The thing is, Ivan would regard you as fragile. Additionally, he would be very aware that his view on danger is very skewed, so he'd seek to compensate for it. In reality, he would be overcompensating. This would all be for your own safety and nothing you say would be able to convince him otherwise. 

He would even be gentle during the whole process, preferably luring you away. Maybe you go on holiday with him and never return to your home. Maybe you stay a night at his place and wake up to find you can't leave. Should you be resistant and avoid him, he'll of course have to resort to other means - sleeping pills in your food or drink, or snatching you off the street in the middle of the night. 

You were so peaceful when you were asleep. Knock out drops being the cause of your slumber didn't change that - you even had a small smile as he lifted you up in your chair. As luck would have it, you had tipped forward when the substance had kicked in, and face-planted in your take away. 

Your face was full of sauce and there were even bits of food in your hair, but Ivan was still of the opinion that you looked downright angelic. Of course, it was love and passion speaking on his side that tended to give people a different outlook. 

Carefully, he gathered you in his arms and lifted you up. There was a small bunch of people gathered outside of your apartment, curious as to what all the commotion was about. As was ever the case when an ambulance arrived to pick somebody up. In total, it was the perfect alibi, because who would suspect a paramedic of being involved in a kidnapping?

[endgamelukola]

thoughts on the shape of things (2023)

But first, a quote from Luke Newton's Vanity Fair interview (2024)

When discussing the ways art imitated life, Newton resists the urge to navel-gaze. “There are always weird things that kind of seep in, and I hate that it does, because it sounds just a bit lame,” he says with a sheepish smile. “It just sounds like an actor-y thing to say, but he came back with a sense of confidence and swagger, and I started to feel more confident in myself.”

“The flip side of that,” he says, “is that I then did a play immediately afterwards”—Neil LaBute’s The Shape of Things in London—“and played a really insecure, nerdy library guard. Immediately, that started trickling into my day-to-day life, and I was tripping over things and being awkward when I saw friends. And I was like, ‘God, what’s going on?’ So I need to learn to get better at the detachment there. But it’s also what I love about the job.”

TSOT spoilers below:

In The Shape of Things, Luke Newton plays Adam, a library guard who struggles with his confidence and self-image. One evening, while working a shift at the museum, he meets Evelyn, whom he asks out and with whom he enters a relationship. Evelyn's influence in Adam's life sees him alter his appearance and the way he approaches the world, only with the revelation at the end that Evelyn manipulated Adam for her senior thesis project.

As she explains her thesis project to a crowd of attendees, with Adam in the audience, Evelyn says:

"This was a simple matter of 'Can I instill X amount of change in this creature using only manipulation as my palette knife?' I made sure that nothing was ever forced during our sessions or 'sittings' together. [...] the illusion of 'dating' was imperative and that his free will was always at the forefront of each decision. I coaxed. I made suggestions. I created the illusion of interest and desire, but I never said, 'You must do this.'"

"I found that with the right coaxing of my materials, [...] I was able to hone the inside of my sculpture as well as the surface. I found myself suddenly creating strong moral ambiguity where I had detected the slightest traces before, often...in direct proportion to the amount of external change. This means, as my subject became handsome and firmer and more confident, his actions became more and more questionable. [...] He also started to deceive his friends and myself with greater abandon during this period whilst showing increased interest in other women. Indeed, he had relations with his best friend's fiance and continues to harbor details about the incident from us to this day. Moreover, he was willing to give up those friends when asked, walk away without any further explanation, leading me to an assumption of further wrongdoing with the young woman in question. And, as stated earlier, these universal corrections culminated in an offer of marriage to me. [...] He has then, as I see it, been utterly and totally refashioned as a person. And yet, open any fashion magazine, turn on any television, and the world will you tell you that he's only gotten more interesting, more desirable, more normal. In a word, better.

He is a living, breathing example of our obsession with the surface of things, the shape of them."

Aside from the obvious Biblical allegory going on in the play that I'm still personally chewing on, I think there's a lot to be said here about the Lukola fandom, its percentage of female members, and their perception of Luke Newton as a person offscreen and outside of the Bridgerton sphere.

There's some really interesting parallels here to the way female fans critique Luke for his actions after altering his appearance, as if, with a slimmer body and higher profile, he's suddenly gaining attention of women they don't want to see him with and that makes him a bad guy. But is he, really? Since none of us truly know Luke as an individual, the projection of who the fandom thinks Luke is is a look inside the female mind, in my opinion.

It's all just really fascinating to me.

[georgiapeach30513]

RE: Red One.

It’s funny how critics and people online continue to want to keep this film down, but I think it’s continuing to exceed expectations which is a good sign.

I had a feeling for a long while it was going to surprise people, given how many were complaining nonstop about Chris’s involvement.

Also, the discourse about his career choices… 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

It’s one thing if he were to sit there and complain to the media about not being able to find more serious roles or prestige movies to do.

But to my knowledge he’s never done that? I can only think of him saying years ago that his good films he feels nobody watches (true, or at least not ENOUGH people watch) but even then it wasn’t so much a complaint as a response to a question.

It seems like he is having fun and just picking what he wants to do. I’ve never heard him say “I only did this because I couldn’t get that.” He’s thrown out there he did Red One because he’s always wanted a Christmas film and there was a part for someone like him in it. Makes sense to me. And he just did three smaller scale lower profile projects with directors that are still establishing themselves. Without his and Anya’s involvement, don’t know that sacrifice would have been able to get made. I wish critics who aren’t up to date with his career move at least stop talking and wait for developments over a “hot take” for hits.

I saw a ridiculous tweet once again undermining Red One and his choices. Here’s the thing…red one was an orignal IP. It was a new story that wasn’t from an existing franchise, show, book, or sequel. Lots of people worked on that film and Amazon giving it a theatrical release also helps those who worked on the film that aren’t DJ or the rest of the cast. People who are seeing it in theaters are helping to create box office return and if films like this did well and were received well, maybe there would be more studios willing to take a chance on an original take over an existing IP.

Just because it’s a popcorn movie with silliness does not mean it’s trash and only films like Oppenheimer can be considered art.

I really despise that take and how some cinephiles look down on these films yet solely up lift Oscar bait films.

It bothers me immensely as a creative myself because in my opinion, movies are entertainment and they’re supposed to entertain you. If you and others have fun with the content and enjoy, have a good laugh, a smile, a cry, then I think the creators have done their job. Not all films need to be awards worthy, and art is subjective.

Ahh, the discourse on Chris' career is a tale as old as time at this moment. According to some he will never be good enough or rise to his potential. According to some he is a washed up has been, and yet they can't seem to quit him. I think that makes him a bit more powerful than they want him to be. But alas, we're all free to spend our time how we see fit.

It's funny because I don't think some people realize the roles that he was considered for, the roles he turned down, the roles that he was wanted for. Back when Running Man was in talks, he was top of the list as the lead, and we see that he wanted Sacrifice instead. I think that was a better choice, because quite frankly I'm getting fatigued at all the remakes, but some people want to make their career out of remakes. To each their own.

Unfortunately Chris outside of the MCU has never been quite as a box office draw. A lot of his movies, well most, are on a smaller scale. I think people are looking at his last three movies; Ghosted, Pain Hustlers, and Red One, and immediately jumping on a hate bandwagon. Let's break this down, Ghosted was a small movie, and judging by the synopsis I think we got what we were promised. I think that Dex, Chris, and Ana all were making different movies.

Pain Hustlers will mostly be forgotten. It was part of the opiate epidemic movies that became oversaturated. It didn't have any promotion, and compared to the other projects in the opiate crisis genre, it wasn't that great. I still will die on the hill that his performance was solid, and the best in the movie. Emily was oddly terrible.

Red One I think surprised a lot of people. Nobody expected it to be as fun or as good as it ended up being. Due to the strike, Chris didn't get to really film last year, minus the Deadpool movie. Had R1 not be released a year late, he would have only had Deadpool for this year. Starting next year we're going to have another surge of his projects, and they all seem different, so maybe people should just be patient.

The average movie goer wants to be entertained. That's why popcorn flicks make more money than the award movies. now sometimes you can have both. But anyways.

[lol-jackles]

I understand producers wanting a no risk lead and Jared earned that credibility and reputation. I don’t disagree with everything you said about Jared.

But I’m still surprised that Jensen didn’t earn the same reputation being co-lead and surprised he has not been given the opportunity to lead or co- lead again on another show. He seemed to have built a strong reputation with directors and producers and execs in the industry so shouldn’t he be on that same short list? I just don’t get what jensen is missing that jared or max theriot, Tom Ellis or Justin Hartley seems to have. What is that “x” factor?

The work he did on Smallville, Spn, Big Sky and The Boys, why didn’t that earn him points to have studio execs ensure he stays employed and part of a show?

Even in an industry that 97% are unemployed, Jensen seems to be a standout actor that gets constantly overlooked. Why?

Jensen was going to be a lead in Greg Bertlanti's unnamed project, but then Zaslav happened. But you ask a very good question on why the networks' bean counters don't have him on a Short List.

First, my wild guess is while Jensen's scene stealing talent improves the episode he's in, it's not the same as having screen presence to create a story, which is a must for lead actors to carry a show. For example, Jared's two-minute screentime in "The End" was not scene stealing, he became Lucifer for the sake of the story and left a memorable impact on the viewers' impression.

Think of every time spin-offs were created to capitalize on the scene stealers’ popularity, only for the scene stealers “special-ness” to evaporate into the ether when they have to carry the show by themselves.  Rebel Wilson had her own tv show called Super Fun Night. but it failed because fans expected to see the whacky side kick persona, but instead got a Rebel Wilson playing a normal woman who is sometimes socially awkward.

Second, Jensen has a bit of a branding problem.  If an actor doesn't understand what their brand is, then how do you expect casting directors to see it as well?  

Actors make the mistake of trying to please every customer by changing who they are and not understanding that getting hired starts with choosing a brand for themselves and sticking to it.  Say you own an Italian restaurant and I come in and say, “Oh, gosh! You know what? I want Mexican food.” And then you say, Okay, we’re cooking Mexican food now.”   This is what a lot of actors do.

I used to joke that Jensen was like an active from the show The Dollhouse. Actives are neutral human husks until they're downloaded a personality to carry out a specific mission.  You don't know what the true nature of an active unless you're willing to watch several episodes to look for clue crumbs to their innate personalities.  

I tell young aspiring actors on how to discover their brand by pretending to write a profile for an online dating site.  People usually don't write descriptive sentences but use adjectives: funny, athletic, intense, quirky, great smile, etc.  To help them along, ask their trusted friends and family members to make a list of 5 qualities that pop into their heads.  Then use the impression that appear over and over again because now you know that is you, your essence.

Too many times actors wait for an agent or manager to show up and tell them who they are. Or they ask me, “what do you think I am?". Actors have to decide for themselves and figure out their acting “singularity”  -- that exclusive combination of attitudes and behaviors that make them an original even when they're typecasted. Some people describe Jensen as a version of Dean-lite, but that doesn't make Jensen an original then.

Third, Jensen is not a natural born-leader. Most of us aren't, but like acting, you can constantly work on the craft. Leaders are supposed to protect their team, but Jensen was still soft-bashing Jessica Alba twenty years later. I don't care if Jessicca was a bitch, a real man is not supposed to betray a woman’s confidence. He can still talk about the difficulties of working with Jessica while respecting the position she was in and up against. In contrast, Jared immediately defended his female co-stars when it was popular to dunk of them: the Olsen twins, Paris Hilton, and Snookie.

[arcielee]

Interview With a Writer

Thank you @2kmps for helping me continue this series and giving us some insight into the brilliant process that created this piece!

As always, here is the masterlist to my Interview With a Writer series and the other talented individuals who allow me to continue this self-indulgent series! 💜

Name: 2kmps

Story: Opaque

Paring: OC android x reader

Warnings: 18+ mature themes. Be mindful of warnings.

Where did the idea for Opaque come from?

So, like a lot of my ideas, writing an android x reader story was on my eventual "to write" that just ended up prioritized because of the rise in AI and the anti-abortion laws passed in the US. Even in original concepts, Opaque was always meant to be scathing, uncomfortable social commentary and a bleak, sci-fi interpretation of a future where autonomy and privacy just simply don't exist.

People have lost the ability for emotional connection and now seek it in the form of androids. The story has always been big ideas that I felt I could never articulate until I actually tried. I stand behind calling it my best work to date.

Can you share about your method to the madness?

So, my writing process is... a little bit everywhere.

Typically, I decide to pick up a project because I've accumulated a handful of "main plot points" that are coherent enough to build something out of them. Once that happens, I'll start outlining the story which can be a terribly chaotic process. I usually wind up with three rewritten outlines as opposed to multiple story drafts. My outlines are painstakingly detailed so that I don't forget any important areas to cover in a piece. Following that comes the "concept pieces" wherein I take the overall theme of the story, or one particular plot point and write it out to see how it feels, if it inspires anything, how it's received. The actual writing starts after that and usually takes me at minimum, a month, usually more if the story idea is complex.

A lot of times I'll rework ideas from my outline into something else entirely in the final piece because writing is just that way. I write and edit completely from the "first draft" and have proofreaders to, ah, help me clean house because my writing before being polished tends to be everywhere.

Were you already aware of how it was going to end?

Yes and no. No, because there have been multiple endings that outlined and rewrote and over and over. Yes, because all of those endings were extremely similar to one another and what exists now is an amalgam of all of them together. To me, it represents someone waking up for the first time in their life, and sometimes it takes the sort of journey and final outcome for that to happen.

But, of course, I firmly believe in "death of the author", so however a reader interprets the ending is also accurate.

Was there anything in specific that inspired your Reader portrayal?

The only specific that I had for the reader-character we was that they were DEFINITELY a part of the world that they exist in. I didn't want to create a reader-character who was the exception, but rather could fade away into the crowd. I wanted them to become the exception through the events that happen in the story. And, even by the end, you're left wondering exactly how much they can be set apart from the society in which they were raised.

Can you explain your inspiration for Researcher Kim? What was it that drives Kim? And what made him decide of Reader to become the next auditor?

Researcher Kim chose the reader-character to be an auditor because he knew that they were in a precarious situation and falsifying information on their resume. In this world, to do such a thing will earn you a "strike" on your public profile, which is the only real lifeline you have in this world from being turned into an outcast and forgotten. Researcher Kim banked on the Reader's dishonesty and used it as a means to get full cooperation and devotion to the work he had the Reader to be an auditor.

Can you explain your interpretation of Elio? What drives him to sentience?

Elio is probably one of the most complex characters I've ever written despite being an android. What's important to understand is that Elio is a machine, designed and programmed to be in servitude to humans and comply with whatever request they might have, regardless of what it is. He has always meant to be a foil to the Reader—always meant to ask the hard questions to make the Reader uncomfortable, to start thinking individually. The first few exchanges between them really convey that. However, Elio, himself, says he is superior to his predecessors because of what he is capable of doing. He's able to emulate human emotions in a formerly unprecedented way. He is convincingly humanlike, but still has the habits and mannerisms that really solidify that he's an android.

Whether or not Elio develops "real love" for the Reader by the end is entirely reader interpretation. The ending shows a sort of a selfishness and selflessness that would be too contradictory for any other android. He was driven in the beginning to fulfill his programming, but by the end was driven by a desire to have something belong to only him.

Do you think you would ever write a sequel?

This particular story and set of characters I'm unlikely to revisit outside of brief mentions. But, there is another story that I'd like to write someday within the same world where a reader-character is part of Hyperion staff and winds up in cahoots with a "defected" android hellbent on destroying the conglomerate.

Do you have another WIP in progress?

I have multiple WIPs in progress, honestly. I'm working on a longfic for The Ghoul from Fallout, "Better to Eat Than to Be Eaten", the second half of a Getō Suguru fic, "Persimmon & Ink", and I'm in the early development stages of an original longfic that is sleep paralysis demon x reader titled "Incubus Phenomenon".

Following these, I'll be beginning my neo-western epic "See How the Cat Jumps" which is largely a romance and revenge story. Writing wise, I've got a full plate!

Do you have any stories recently read that you enjoyed on Tumblr or ao3?

A story that I'd love more people to read is "Sepulchral" by @ashestoroses018 on Tumblr. It's a greek mythology inspired romance that's Hades x Reader. In the story, the Reader journeys to the Underworld for their younger brother's soul. This author and I have been best friends in real life for well over ten years now, so her work is special to me. Additionally, I think her writing style is approachable and would resonate with many people

[askaceattorney]

Dear Kevin James,

Chief Mod Edgeworth:

I could see that in a fan comic, though there already are mangas of Ace Attorney that aren't canon. I suppose it wouldn't be impossible. I would read it regardless of if it were a fan comic or an official manga.

Co-Mod: I'm a lot more familiar with anime than manga, so I don't know how good or bad that would look (though I guess that would mostly depend on the skill and talent of the writer), but I'm open to the idea. That being said, it reminds me a little too much of a certain despairful video game/anime series, so to answer your second question...probably not.

Mod Zieks: I love the idea. Love it so much. Tbh I'm more of an anime person than manga, but if it was manga exclusively, I'd be all over that.

Dear Minnesotamermaid71,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: You can try doing it on another device or web browser. Otherwise, I don't know what the issue is. You should be able to click on it and it will take you to the Youtube link.

Dear Robottiye,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: I don't know. I doubt there's going to be much difference outside of maybe higher graphics and stuff.

Mod Zieks: Yes, I do have some plans to use it! (For evil.)

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: The recent ones seem like they're asked because they're funny? Otherwise I have no idea.

Mod Zieks: It's the internet, where people can be as anonymous as they want. It's to be expected (unfortunately.)

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Askrikkaiandhyotei,

Chief Mod Edgeworth:

I know. This was made two years ago and the answers were pointed out in the comments right here.

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Eway4,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: This also shows the possibility that Franziska has an older brother too. She may have an older sister and brother. Manfred von Karma is... what? 65 according to Ace Attorney wiki? He'd have been 48 when Franziska was born, which already leaves over two decades and a half for Manfred von Karma to have two, three, even five other kids. That would depend on when he was married, but I think you get the point and no I don't think he has five other kids.

Personally, I think it could go either way. I have created OC's as part of the von Karma family that includes Franziska, an older brother and an older sister. Both have kids and while one owns a dog named Phoenix, it is shared by the two siblings since he considers it a family pet.

I did find this interesting. I suppose it shouldn't be any surprise that the grandchild didn't originally have a gender. Now, I'm curious what the original translation of the credit card pin number comment was.

Dear Charicla,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: Ace Attorney mostly, but I also have Tetris, Project Makeover, Wordscape, Gardenscape, Lilly's Garden, Happy Match Cafe, Solitaire, Island Hoppers, Love Paradise, Winked and Traffic Escape.

Basically, puzzle games, classics, makeover and a dating sim.

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Dawsongfg,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: Spiders? You're talking to someone who used to pick up Daddy Longlegs from the corner of the basement window and drop them in a well.

Co-Mod: I answered that letter, so it doesn't scare me a whole lot, but...that was still a jerk move. 😒

Mod Zieks: Love spiders. They go great with sprite, and maybe crickets as well.

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: It kinda is? I don't know what you're referring to or if it's to any letters. If so, you need to link the letters you're talking about or I'm going to be so confused.

I will say that we only know their ages in each game, being it is revealed in their profile. Outside of that or any official canon B-Days that are revealed in the game or something such as Rayfa's birthday, we can only speculate when it may be. If anyone wants to wish a character a Happy Birthday during any random day, they may and we will recognize it as such.

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: We do insert headcanons as a way to fill in the blank so to speak, since some questions to the characters are not explained or answered in the game. As such, we will use headcanons that will add but not change canon.

As for the previous letters, those were from former mods that no longer work here. Just like Kristoph being a part of the Gavinners was a headcanon to add but not break canon, so was theirs. The game never showed Kristoph claiming he wasn't fond of the genre or only tolerated Klavier's music. That was likely based off of Apollo's and Ema's feelings for Klavier's music of not being fond. Mine of Kristoph being a part of the Gavinners was mostly to answer a question if he was, but I also think it makes sense being that Klavier looks up to his brother and I find it would be something interesting for Kristoph.

Dear A Concerned Asker,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: I don't? Hell, I've answered asks to Klavier and Jake hinting that they swing both ways and I've had Edgeworth once come out as Asexual. Not to mention we recognize Aura Blackquill x Metis Cykes as a canon one-sided ship. Whether Metis returned the feelings is up for interpretation. Outside of that, the only "straight" ships that are canon we recognize is Godot x Mia and maybe Phoenix x Iris. We do not count Apollo's date with Maya, because that was a one time Valentines Day shtick and the other ships we do not count as canon, straight or not. You might get a character or two finding someone attractive (you might be lucky enough to have Klavier admit to finding Apollo attractive) or having one character asking another on a date that is convincing enough, but that's it.

If you're talking about past letters from four or five years ago, maybe more, that’s likely from Co-Mod and maybe Modot. Can’t say. I know Modot did say he hated certain slash ships because of the fandom at the time and Co-Mod felt awkward in answering yaoi/yuri letters, so he avoided them altogether. However, I will gladly answer slash/yaoi/yuri letters and I recognize when LGBTQ+ is canon. I do ship Wrightworth, AsoRyuu and BaroAso, so I do endorse yaoi.

That being said, I do understand where Co-Mod and Modot are coming from. It isn’t that they believe all characters are straight, but that it wouldn’t be IC for say Phoenix to fall in love with Edgeworth when he had been into Iris from the start. From Modot’s perspective, Phoenix and Maya made better sense before DD and SOJ came about. The AA trilogy did seem to have NaruMayo as the canon endgame in mind and Modot seems like a canon shipper. I was a canon shipper for the longest time back when I was in High School full of gay and bisexual students, so I can tell you that preferring straight over gay ships has nothing to do with it.

As for Co-Mod, he had never met someone that was gay outside of his uncle, so it was more that he didn’t know or was inexperienced with how to answer slash letters. It’s changed since I became mod and especially after taking over as the head mod. He's even started answering some slash letters recently.

I know you’re not trying to accuse anyone of anything, but it does feel a little accusatory. Not only are there multiple mods, as you’ve stated, but there have been changing of the Heads over the years. Modot was the first, then Modthorne, Co-Mod and now me. That’s why you need to look at which mod is answering letters. If it’s “The Mod,” he’s no longer here and doesn’t apply to the current mods. If it’s Co-Mod, he’s retired and no longer runs the place. As far as I can recall, many of us do endorse certain noncanon ships, most of them yaoi, and we recognize if characters are canonly gay or at least into the same sex.

Co-Mod: Yeah, I'd say that about sums it up. I was raised to believe that men are made for women and women are made for men (and while my mind could be changed, I haven't seen much evidence disproving that idea), but even if that weren't the case, I hadn't seen very many same-sex relationships, real or fictional, so I wouldn't have been able to portray them accurately, which is why I avoided them. Call it whatever you want, but I was just playing it safe. In any case, we now have several Mods who are more willing to address the topic, so it looks like we've found what appears to be a workable solution.

-The Mods

[bewitched-bullet]

https://www.tumblr.com/bewitched-bullet/744615026194792448/how-did-you-make-the-jump-from-it-being-a-badly?source=share

Unsurprisingly, I did not get a clear answer. I did not expect one. You accuse people of being bullies and abusers while you are even worse. Spreading lies, talking behind people's backs, manipulating others into following your ridiculous crusade. Do you feel good about yourself?

Where are the asks that put John in a better light? I know they are there, because I wrote at least one of them. Oh, you're not answering them? I wonder why... 🙄

I don't expect you to answer this ask. Because you are a coward. And a bully. And an abuser. (Or maybe you lash out because you feel unfairly accused. Like the rp gang did.)

Obviously, it's been answered. And I knew that ask as well as this one are considered "bad faith" asks. But I answered them anyway, just as I answered ones that expressed doubts over the reality of the situation, just as I answered the spicy ones that defended John, and the Harriett mod one.

But do go on and keep putting your foot in your mouth.

And while you do that, I'll put my old teacher cap back on and break this down for the audience (which.... there aren't many going by engagement? Which makes this even more incredibly hilarious. Like, you’re seriously threatened by a nobody who doesn't even have organic reach.)

Bullies and (chronic) abusers cannot be reasoned with, it's a known fact. So, it is unsurprising to see that they dismissed the answer from their previous asks. Then they try blaming/projection. Likely in an attempt to get an emotional reaction. Actually, this whole thing is an attempt to illicit an emotional response.

Then the mod continues with the self-projection (pssssst! What crusade? Why was i not informed?? I'm allergic to genocidal holy wars!) until we hit the first question. (And yes, yes I am)

Now, they are attempting redirection. I have voiced my observations (at that point) that the John mod has only answered asks that have set them in a only good light. Hence the redirection here. As they have blocked me (wise choice) I cannot see from this account if that still holds true. I bet you they changed tactics after my observations. Because I'm a smart cookie and they know it. Check them dates!

(I have received so many asks y'all and I have answered every one of them except two. One that John mod sent that's still there and was an almost carbon copy of the pm they ALSO sent and a public post they tagged me in. Sooo redundant. And one was a link to Dump's profile (which has been addressed by another anon ask)

So! This here is called fabrication in a poor attempt to discredit. They count on the community/person they are attacking to be either naive, sheltered, vulnerable. In their minds, they believe we are all stupid.

Now, we get to some good bits. They are clearly trying goad and then the fall back on their ol' faithful tactic of self-projection.

Throughout all of this, they were trying to emotionally manipulate by attempting to create an emotional response or a sense of shame (lololol I have none). Digging into someone's sense of shame is the easiest way to control and abuse them. But it generally requires more personal involvement with the intended victim

Millions of people don't speak out and/or stay locked in abusive situations because of shame.

Now with all of this said, that doesn't mean because you've manipulated folks before to get what you want, you're a "bad" person.

Because my morals are my own, I will not tell you folks how to handle this gray area.

Just a question to leave you all with: is the world black and white? Or is it an spectrum?

Just like, if I see someone steal food--no the fuck I didn't.

Ok, time to lock the instructor hat back in the closet where it belongs.

(Side note: being threatened by a nobody because they dare to question and can't be cowed, is common with bullies, abusers, and predators)

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk

If you would like to see this whole mess, search the tags for "a scandal in tumblr"

[wintry--mix]

In celebration of the 4th (I think) anniversary of the creation of my oldest oc (that I still use) Kitsune (she/her), I thought it’d be fun to do a bit of a lore-dumping post about her :> Her saga dates back to before I had much social media (including Tumblr), and a lot’s happened to both myself and her in those 4 years, so if you want to hear (or rather, read): brace yourself, this’ll be a long one lmao

So, first of all, a bit of a quick profile for her:

(^ft. the ref I made not too long ago actually for artfight)

Kitsune isn’t an actual kitsune like from Japanese mythology, but rather a weird ink-themed shapeshifting fox monster (bear with me). Being one of these, she’s immortal (or at least immune to death of old age - heck if she knows whether or not she’s fully immortal, she hasn’t had an experience that would’ve absolutely killed her yet), proving this by being 18 (or otherwise a weirdly short older teen) physically but actually 604 years old in-universe (her birthday being today - October 20th!). I rarely ever use her shapeshifting ability outside of giving her a “true” and human form, but she does also have the power to create portals to teleport herself to anywhere she wishes - including other dimensions and universes. As such, I like to imagine her as being a bit of an interdimensional traveler across the many OC universes I’ve made. (Also, fun fact: my voice headcanon for her is basically Spinel from Steven Universe but with a heavy New Yorker accent)

Now, she’s come a long way, considering her origins as a dragon from a mobile game I used to play called Dragonvale, and her modern human design originating from my Gacha Life/Club era (specifically me making a gijinka of the specific dragon she’s based off of). Years have since passed, and while I made (and ultimately scrapped) many personal projects, and many characters for said personal projects, she never did get recycled for those like many other old ocs, only to die with the project. I liked the idea of her existing outside of those universes, doing her own thing with her teleportation powers and occasionally visiting the new worlds I’ve made. I still do, so she still fills this role, but the specific backstory behind it has changed quite a lot.

Most of her old backstories I’ve either forgotten most of or I cringe too hard at to want to share (even to laugh at with others), but the basic gist of her most notable one was something along the lines of her traveling away from her original home universe to go see the world beyond it, leaving it behind to wither away into nothing - and even if/when she did try to return to check on it, there’d be nothing left, and whatever eerie magic system caused that world to turn into a void would nearly trap her there to potentially die as well. I ultimately scrapped this since some parts of it were a little edgier than I would’ve wanted (and calling this premise “edgy” sounds like an exaggeration, but I assure you that some of the old animatics I made about it would prove my point if I were willing to share them), but she does have a newer one that I do like (at least, as of now, lol):

Much like the significantly more well-known Bill Cipher, Kitsune is the last survivor of a world that was destroyed - although in her case, the cause was that its creator simply got bored and ashamed of it and wanted to move on to other creations (with her surviving due to her unique abilities letting her leave before she could’ve died with the rest of it). She has since used her portal powers to do some dimension-hopping across other, newer worlds, meeting and befriending (though, more often than not, bullying) their own residents. Kitsune enjoys her new life, but she can’t help but feel a little bit of resentment towards the creator who destroyed her old home and turned her old friends into their spiritual successors in the new worlds, without any memory of their previous lives…

ANYWAY that sure was a lot of paragraphs worth of rambling, but I hope those who bothered to take interest enjoyed :) Kitsune will (hopefully) stick around for many more years to come, and explore many of the new stories I make - although one in the very early making may give her an actual part to play beyond just a cameo…

[archoneddzs15]

PC Engine - Strider Hiryu

Title: Strider Hiryu / ストライダー飛竜

Developer: Capcom / Dice Creative Co. Ltd.

Publisher: NEC Avenue

Release date: 22 September 1994

Catalogue No.: NAPR-1041

Genre: Platform Action

Format: Arcade Card CD-ROM2

Not many arcade games before Strider Hiryu managed to immerse the player into a world that felt both cohesive and genuinely exciting. The attention to detail was superb and the levels were particularly imaginative - the game just sprinted from one memorable moment to the next. Yes, as you can tell, Strider was one of my favorite arcade games as a child. So, what about this PC Engine conversion? Well, the game is very disappointing - after brilliant ports such as Forgotten Worlds and Daimakaimura, NEC Avenue didn't really deliver the goods with this one (and they were late at that!). NEC Avenue lost the Strider console war to Sega and their in-house port of Strider to the Mega Drive.

The exclusive and added content is awesome - the extra level is average but adds a nice touch to the game, the remixed soundtrack is great (mostly) and the cutscenes add depth to the original story. However, the animation is not really as smooth as anticipated, and the game is plagued with slowdowns and sprite flickering. I also can't really put my finger on it, but the controls feel less responsive overall. Because of all the added content, I still recommend any Strider fan picking this conversion up (the game has now become a rather pricey collector's item though...)

Interestingly, this PC Engine port was made by the Japanese developer Dice Creative. Their website states that the company was created in response to a request for third-party outsourcing by Satoru Iwata (Manager of Development of HAL Laboratory at the time and former president of Nintendo). They first released the gambling game Vegas Stakes/Las Vegas Dream (Super Famicom, 1993) and Strider for the PC Engine followed in 1994. This is rather strange if you take into consideration that Dice only developed "low-profile" games for Hal Laboratory and other companies, such as Adventure of Lolo (Game Boy), Itoi Shigesato no Bass No.1 (Nintendo 64), and Sega Rally (GBA). Strider was the only PC Engine game they ever made. How did they end up inheriting NEC Avenue's Strider project? However, all of this partly explains why Strider looks underpar compared to other NEC Avenue games.

You may have noticed that it was released in 1994 - five years after the original arcade game, and four years after the Sega Mega Drive version. So, what happened? It seems that original work began on a SuperGrafx HuCard version in 1990 - but, apparently, the failure of the system forced NEC Avenue to make a CD-ROM version instead (it seems that the choice of the Arcade Card came later). Although the incredible delay is explainable, various pictures appeared in Japanese magazines around 1990 arguably "showing" images of the game in action. Indeed, the images do show differences from the original arcade game (they could be pictures taken from an arcade beta version though). In any case, this was enough to start a rumor mill among PC Engine fans, and this subject remains a topic of controversy, still to this day. But we should take all of this with a grain of salt - several urban legends have become part of the Strider SuperGrafx story, and I won't mention them here. But something is sure - to this day, nothing rules out the existence of a potential SuperGrafx prototype.

[sexwithsophie]

Kickstarter Smarter With Sophie: Scamtastic

EDIT: I actually turned this into an article, if you want to read it here: withsophie.co/post/scamtastic

Not sure if this happened to anyone else, but I was approached midway through my failing @kickstarter campaign by someone who presented themselves as a kindly man curious to know why it wasn't doing better when it looked so great. He said he was William La Mont and that as a collaborator on a wildly successful project with Vortic Watches that brought in over $350K, he wanted to apply his skills to help me in my campaign.

His profile appeared to match the collaborator from the actual page, because he has the same profile photo and zero backed projects, just like the William from the campaign.

Plus, it was all searchable from Kickstarter.com, so I knew it wasn't a fake or cloned page. Interested, but broke, I told him I had no money. He said, "Did I ask you for any money?" and acted like he wanted to take me on sort of as a pet project. His apparent previous success was tantalizing!

But things just seemed too good to be true, so I dug a bit. I asked him if he wouldn't mind me reaching out to the project lead, Robert Custer, and he said that he would be happy for me to do so. He even gave me Robert's email address! Only problem? It was a gmail address. So, I found the company website and emailed them directly, as well as emailing the gmail one. WIthin minutes, I received a glowing recommendation for William from the gmail account! A little toooo glowing. It looked like something hot off the ChatGPT presses.

That wasn't a smoking gun in and of itself, though, because Robert wrote as if English wasn't his first language, so of course their writing styles would be different. Still, I decided to find and add both William and Robert on LinkedIn. I figured that if it were really them, they could confirm. If not, I could make them aware of what was going on in their names. This all happened several weeks ago, and Robert just confirmed me as a friend yesterday. I wrote him a message about all this, but still haven't heard back.

I solidly figured out it was a scam though, because even though William's account is private, he wrote to me, so I can see the date he joined KS: March 2024. But look at the date the project he supposedly helped on was closed:

So what kind of help were you providing them five months into the past, sir? As desperate as I was about the poor performance of my campaign, and this being my first Kickstarter, I may have fallen for this guy's shenanigans had I not been a little savvy. I genuinely shudder to think about this dude preying on someone who doesn't happen to certified in the Management of Information Technology.

And how diabolical was this??? This guy either created a fake account and used William's name and image, or he convinced Robert to add him as a collaborator after-the-fact somehow. Can you even do that? And what would he have done? He was going on about doing TikTok and LinkedIn ads, so perhaps he would have asked me to entrust the management of them to him? Or tried to convince me to add him as a collaborator on my campaign, as well?

I don't know, but what I do know is that you need to SAY NO to any and everything that comes to you via Kickstarter's messenger. And report every single last one of those bastards.

____________________________________________________________

If you'd like to learn more tales about what I did wrong so that you don't make my same mistakes, if you'd like to be notified when I give crowdfunding another go, or if you want to learn more about my Adult Lifestyle Programs, CLICK HERE to join my mailing list!

[dreamerfms]

[ … ] ❀ you’re not from around here , are you? i figured because you totally just missed { novella ‘nova’ campbell } walking by. don’t tell me you don’t know who { she } is ? they kind of look like { zendaya coleman } and i could be wrong but i think that they might be { twenty-eight } years old right now. they’ve been living in palmview for the last { one year }. and i don’t know if anyone has ever told them this before but they kind of remind me of { frances ‘baby’ houseman } from { dirty dancing }. if you stick around the town long enough you might catch them in action working at { seaglass dance academy } as a { professional dancer }. you see this town isn’t really that big of a place, some folks like to call them the { the clean slate } of palmview! they took a liking to the name too after a while, go figure. oh crap, they must have heard me yapping. they’re coming this way. i got to warn you though, rumor has it they can pretty { pedantic } at times. i wouldn’t take it too seriously though, from the times i’ve spoken to them they seemed pretty { reliable } to me. we see each other all the time since they live in that { two room } apartment beside me over in { mango bay }

full name : novella evangeline campbell birthplace : los altos, california date of birth : 08 / 25 / 1996 parentage : carter campbell & lillian campbell sibling(s) : none occupation : professional dancer / online literature student relationship status : single gender identity : cis female ( she/her ) sexual orientation : demisexual faceclaim : zendaya coleman

BACKGROUND

tw: emotional abuse, eating disorders, s.exual assault, mental health.

the campbell's never planned on having children, far too interested in their own lives to want to deal with the presence of another. lilian spending half her time planning events a year in advance and the other lunching with the ladies. while carter, a high profile lawyer, spent the majority of his time getting his friends at the country club away with their sins. appearances were everything, and so when lilian fell pregnant, she was beyond devasted. still, they chose to see it through.

from the moment novella entered the world, her mother projected all of her own failed aspirations onto the younger. the second she could walk, she was thrust into the world of dance. forced to partake before she could even voice any real disinterest. as the years went on, it appeared she was rather good at it.

ballet soon took priority over anything else, her interest in books and poetry and words thrown to the side as mother deemed them as silly dreams that would amount to nothing. throughout most of her life, nova was alone. at home, at school. even at practise she failed to make friends. trained to be so competitive no one dared to even try. so rigid and particular in everything she did.

her mothers expectations would soon take their toll. dance aside, she was told to be proper at all times. no single hair allowed out of place. a picture of excellence, perfection. a total facade. this would cause nova to strive for something that truly does not exist, and it made her ill. soon she was scraping food around her plate to create the illusion she'd ate, but in reality she did so very little. this would only spiral when it finally seemed like she was about to fit in.

she'd be invited to a party her junior year of high school, and despite the gut feeling she had in her stomach that she shouldn't go, she did. one boy in particular seemed to shower her with attention, and it being so new to her, she lapped it up. that was until he got her alone and began to put his hand on her leg. regardless of how many times she uncomfortably shifted away, he kept at it. further and further. her saving grace came in the form of his friend looking for him. the moment the door opened, she ran. never told a soul.

her mental and physical health would deteriorate, but still she kept her hair perfectly in place, smile fixed. and she'd dance, and dance, and dance until her feet bled.

reprieve only came when high school ended, when she began to spend more and more time away from her parents and the social circle they strived to be apart of. things slowly began to get better, finding a dance partner she truly began to trust.

these days she still has her struggles, but her coping mechanisms are far less severe. but the hairs on her head are still perfectly brushed into place, and everything is done with careful precision.

c

[weird-gay-disaster]

Uh, so this is really out of left field for me to talk about, but I've been feeling this type of way for over a month now.

I'm very ambivalent about the new Famicom Detective Club.

Before the game's reveal and when we basically had a teaser to go off of, there was a lot of speculation (jokes, memes, or otherwise) over what the project could've been. I'm not much of a survival horror enjoyer, I was just interested in what it could've potentially been. I noticed some accurate leaks about it beforehand, but didn't think they were legit.

When it was fully announced, I basically went "oh. okay..." before feeling a growing sense of disappointment and embarrassed for having such an autistic level of obsession over the teaser. Not because of it being a visual novel, but the fact that it was a certain type of visual novel from a series I genuinely did not care that much about. And the way it was described in Yoshio's interview (mainly the part where the ending was described as "divisive for some people") made me think "oh...so THAT'S how it's gonna go...").

And I probably wouldn't be so vexed with it if I didn't notice a number of FDC's (supposed) fans responding to some similarly disappointed people by...basically insulting them. Because...that'll make people want to enjoy the obscure, niche thing you seem to care about so deeply.

What made things even worse was when I noticed a certain Twitter profile (@WhoIsEmio) and thought it was an ARG linked to the teaser somehow, especially since the bio linked to Nintendo's Emio website/the new Famicom Detective Club game website. There were somewhat sporadic, cryptic uploads with seemingly random Japanese words and music (?) that I assumed would've hinted at certain plot points of the game.

So imagine my shock & disbelief when I eventually found out this shit was apparently an AI experiment from a college that may not exist. And this apparently has nothing to do with the actual game (which creates a number of...interesting questions as to how they even knew about certain dates revealing more FDC information...). It legitimately made me want to jump off a building or something.

Uh, so for the demo (as of Ch. 2 right now)...

I think the music's pretty nice...and the mystery is at least interesting enough...the antagonist is pretty menacing & enigmatic so far....

But....

I'm not saying it needs to be like Danganronpa (especially since that series has issues with a good number of its character designs being increasingly more derivative), but...the character designs here are REALLY bland and boring to look at (besides the main antagonist himself). It's like it's trying to go for a more "anime/stylized realism" angle, but it ends up looking very cookie-cutter instead. Many visual novels, even with all their flaws, at least have some interesting art direction, so seeing how it is here felt very lackluster.

And the writing...the mystery itself is fine so far, but much of the regular dialogue between characters incites little to no emotion within me. Beyond certain key characters, I personally didn't feel that much for the main cast.

When I got to the point where you had to wait at a bus shelter before deciding whether or not to call a taxi, the pure silence and the angle made me paranoid enough that I assumed Emio was either watching from the background or was about to creep up to the protagonist as he closed his eyes to...somehow summon a taxi. Needless to say, it felt anticlimactic when neither of those things happened.

I might continue looking into this, but very likely via a playthrough online (and not just because I'm currently poor).

[dogsliampaynedoesntinstagram]

Deuxmoi keeps bringing up the Emily/O/H rumored threesome based on whatever ppl are submitting. While we agree ‘womanizer’ is not the correct label for Harry based on his confirmed dating history, I do feel things have shifted with Olivia and the rumors of how they got together/when her past relationship ended and was he with Flo first and now *deep breath* the Emily makeout and the past threesome. Online the sentiment is he is all about anything to get the girl and he doesn’t care about interfering in relationships or friendships and that is reinforced with him being famous for a “pussy anthem” (whether or not that was the primary/intent behind watermelon sugar).

I imagine (and I could be wrong), that if he were still in a relationship with Camille (or even a different low profile/drama model) we wouldn’t see the same discourse - and likely not so many of what I consider creepy sexual fan signs and accompanying fan rumors (Coachella make out, Aussie girls, etc.). I agree whatever happened in 1D is in the rear view (outside of dating Taylor, Kendall) bc many of these are new fans who have zero context…and I know rumors are just that…but doesn’t gossip and speculation contribute to an image regardless of veracity? Harry’s current image to me is that he likes to f*ck and don’t get in his way and the fantasy bf crowd eats that up bc it means get to imagine they might be next.

One of my problems with answering this anon - is that I'm very distracted by the '*deep breath*' before your discussion of Harry making out with Emily. I've no idea what you mean - and it's very hard to know how to respond to the rest - particularly as I disagree with so many underlying assumptions

I don't think it's surprising or revealing that there are more rumours of Harry hooking up with people now he's single than when he was with other people. And also more rumours when he's on tour and so in the public eye than when he's largely invisible. The fact that Harry was largely absent from the public eye after he broke up with Camille did limit the rumours, but as soon as he turned up anywhere definite (like Japan) there were definitely rumours and stories.

I also think it's a big stretch to argue the signs fans hold have changed. There have been sexually explicit signs going back to the 1D days. There have been people complaining about sexually explicit signs they don't like going back to 1D days. I just don't think anyone could know whether or not the nature of signs have changed, because people only ever see a fraction of them.

I don't really understand how anyone can ask about the intention of Watermelon Sugar with a straight face. The video, which was incredibly explicit that it was about oral sex, built very much on the lyrics - which are hardly subtle. The idea that the song is about eating pussy is the interpretation Harry wanted and created - it's not something that people are projecting onto the song.

Harry is widely understood as someone who is very attractive to and attracted to women. The details of how people understand that will vary - and stories about things like threesomes will be told by some and believed by some. But fundamentally that image has been pretty stable.

[sunaddicted]

Valentine's Date Night (superbat)

Bruce never had anything against Valentine's Day.

Was the holiday a commercial one to get money out of people's pockets? Sure. Did social media create a whole fuss about it that made people dream of mostly out-of-touch standards? Totally. Did it push the narrative of romance and sex being central to people's lives? Yes.

Still, Bruce didn't hate Valentine's Day - he just didn't care much for it, like he didn't care much for most holidays.

What he cared about was that, just like most holidays, Valentine's Day seemed to breed especially in Gotham, the kind of high-profile crimes that ended up keeping him awake a couple of nights in a row, usually fighting against some kind of ticking clock in the attempt at saving as many lives as possible.

"I hate the mazes" Bruce sighed, leaning back against his chair, steepled fingers tapping against his lips as if the steady motion would help him to focus on the blueprint sprawled on the monitor in front of him "The man has no fucking limit"

Clark chuckled, floating behind Bruce's seat, elbows firmly planted on the top of its back to make himself comfortable as he kicked his feet up in the air "You're just getting old" he teased "I remember when you got a kick out of solving all the clues" it always would end up more physical than Riddler probably was prepared for but there were no doubts about Bruce taking as much satisfaction in letting his brain do some gymnastics, as the Riddler took in thinking up riddles hard enough to stump the Batman.

Clark had long learned not to question such dynamics.

"You know, you could let Gordon handle it"

Bruce's scoff really didn't do the man justice, he was aware of it - it was more of a response to the idea of sitting back instead of taking an active role in patrolling Gotham "Last time he fell in a trap and wouldn't stop complaining about his hip hurting for a whole month" not that Bruce could blame him: bruised hips hurt like a bitch, especially when one was in a line of work that involved running a lot and getting thrashed from time to time "Besides, the Riddler's maze is only one of the schemes we know of"

Clark leaned his chin on his palm "And you're more worried about those you don't"

The other man sighed "I have a bad feeling"

"You always do"

It was true but it wasn't like Gotham had ever proved him wrong, was it?

Most of the Rogues either had troubled romances in their pasts; currently had troubled romances with each other; had had troubled romances with each other; or they thought that laying waste to Gotham would make an excellent date night - it only made sense to be wary of what they would do on Valentine's Day. He still remembered the year Ivy and Harley were fighting (over a holiday destination, it would later turn out) and Ivy had poisoned all the roses in town.

Clark had stopped giving him roses after that, opting for less popular choices.

"You know, you don't have to come out with me tonight"

Clark shrugged "I don't have anything else to do, unless you decide to stay in"

"I wouldn't relax"

"I could make you relax"

Bruce craned his head back to look up at the other, just in time to catch the way he suggestively and teasingly wiggled his eyebrows "Not to diminish your talents, but you know I wouldn't"

Clark's face softened as he leaned down to lightly kiss Bruce on the lips "I know" there was no resentment in his voice: he loved the other man - all of him. Even when it meant getting out in Gotham's cold night to ensure that everyone spent a safe holiday "Date night fighting crime it is then!"

"Thank you"

"I love you too" Clark got his feet back on the floor after flashing Bruce a reassuring smile "I call dibs on Penguin!"