#I originally had a backdrop but I removed it

[shadow0-1]

Kisses - Throat

[daydreams-after-dark]

Back in Ten, baby

Pairing: CEO dom!leaning Jisung x sub!leaning fem reader // established relationship

Scenario: Han instructs you to wear a strap-on and peg him in the hotel after his important business function.

Word Count: 4K approx

MDNI // SMUT - LOTS OF SMUT Content warnings below the cut

CW: oral sex (both rec), pegging - anal sex with strap on dildo (m rec), collar leash, name calling (slut, cockslut, baby, angel), praise, choking, cum eating, squirting, aftercare, an obsession with Jisung’s ass, feeling up in a semi public place (kind of, but not really), indecency in front of a hotel window

A/N: Just a word of warning. I was unhinged when I wrote this. If you are not into anal play, this isn’t for you because Jisung loves his ass to be played with and y/n is in love with Jisung’s ass. It’s a match made in heaven.

Also... This story was originally posted on my main blog... but because it's a little more flavoursome, I think it belongs over here.

This story was born out of an ongoing discussion with @noellllslut where we both wondered what it might be like if Jisung wanted to be pegged but he wasn’t our subby, needy baby.

This is my version of what it could look like.

Thank you @noellllslut for letting me run some things by you and also getting me worked up and feral thinking about him in this way. I hope I did this story justice.

“You did so good tonight, Jisung. I’m proud of you.” You kissed your CEO boyfriend on the cheek, as the elevator doors closed once again after letting the last person out of the lift, leaving the two of you alone. Finally.

You’d spent the last four hours at his side while he worked the room and mingled with the investors. Now he was wrapping his arms around your waist and pushing you against the mirrored wall of the elevator. Only five more floors to go until you reached the top floor of your shared suite.

“Mister Han!” You exclaimed. “What is that pressing against me? Don’t tell me you’re going to ruin me in a hotel lift?” You leaned into his ear “They have cameras you know?” You whispered. 

Jisung grinned against your neck. “I know.” He answered and slid his hand under your dress and tugged your panties aside. 

“Baby!” You protested and pretended you wanted him to stop.

“That’s Sir to you.” He growled as removed his fingers as the elevator bell dinged indicating you had reached your floor.

“Shit, baby. I just remembered. I need to go back downstairs, I forgot something. You go ahead babe. I’ll only be ten minutes.”

He smacked you affectionately on the ass as you stepped out of the elevator.

“Yes Sir.” You replied suspiciously and smiled to yourself as you made your way to your shared room.

The hotel suite wasn’t the biggest, but it was luxurious with a large, plush bed, couch, widescreen television and a generous bathroom off to the right. A large mahogany desk stood at the far end of the room with a backdrop of floor to ceiling windows that looked out to the city. The view was breathtaking, but your eyes were drawn to something else.

A red box in the middle of the bed. A gift? You sat on the mattress and lifted the lid. Inside was a pile of red tissue paper with a note on top. 

They were instructions. 

“Be a good girl and wear these for me. Be ready in ten minutes.”

Ten minutes. The exact number of minutes Jisung said he’d be before returning to the room.

Cheeky shit.

You peeled open the tissue paper to reveal what exactly it was you were meant to wear and your eyes widened: a strap-on dildo, red collar, and chain leash. 

Lifting the strap-on out of the box and inspecting it, you realised it was massive. Much, much bigger than any of the plugs and dildos he’d gotten you to use on him previously. You’d certainly never used one this big on him, and you’d never used a strap-on before.

You reached back into the box agan and retrieved the thick red leather collar and accompanying leash.

You only had ten minutes to be ready. You took a deep breath, and prepared yourself mentally for how your night was going to unfold, and took your supplies to the bathroom where the lighting was better and you could see what you were doing.

Most of your ten minutes was spent trying to get the strap-on to fit just right. The dildo looked even more alarming in size than you first thought. At a guess it was 8 inches long, but the girth? How he was going to take that up his ass you weren’t entirely sure. But he chose it so he must be confident. Right?

Next, you fastened the collar around your neck and attached the chain, and finally studied yourself in the full length mirror in the corner of the bathroom. 

It felt like such a juxtaposition really. The idea of wearing a strap-on conjured up the idea of the wearer being in charge, dominating a submissive lover, making a needy man or woman desperately beg for his or her hole to be fucked. But the collar and leash around your neck was a stark reminder that you weren’t in control tonight. Your role was to please Jisung, Sir Han, and tonight it seemed Sir Han wanted you to do all the hard work, while he sat back and relaxed.

You considered whether or not to put on a sexy bra and sheer stay ups, but it wasn’t on your instructions, so you decided to simply fix your hair and make up.  

Looking down at your fake cock, you wrapped your fingers around the girth, you couldn’t even get your fingers around it, and pumped it a few times like you always saw Jisung do before he’d push it into your cunt. You imagined pushing it into his tight hole. The way it was going to stretch him open and disappear inside of him. The thought alone had you wet. You were ready.

“Alright,” you said to yourself. “Let’s go fuck your man.”

“So fucking slutty.” a deep voice resonated through the hotel suite when you stepped back into the dimly lit space. You were momentarily startled to find Jisung had already come back into the room and was sat behind his desk. Behind him the full length windows overlooking the city magnified the power he radiated as a CEO. 

“Come.” He gestured for you to come around to his side of the desk, turning his chair towards you and reaching out for your hands as you came to stand in front of him. 

“How are you feeling?” He asked drinking you in.

“Nervous.” You whispered. Jisung smiled at your admission.

“That’s okay, my sweet angel.” He squeezed your hands. “All you have to do is follow what I say.” He reached up to play with the chain of the leash. You felt a heat rise through you at the possibilities of what he could ask of you. 

He let go of your leash letting it drop against your bare skin and slid a hand under his desk to retrieve a round footstool. 

“Sit.” He patted the cushioned top. You did as he asked and sat yourself down on the low seat between his spread legs.

He leaned back in his chair and you blinked up at him with expectant eyes. The corners of his mouth curled upwards into a smirk and he dropped his gaze to your strap-on, and bit his lip hungrily. Maybe he was needy after all?

“Undress me.” He said low, his voice laced with desire.

You moved slowly, placing a hand on each of his knees and running them up his thighs, enjoying the feel of his muscles beneath his trousers. You ghosted your hands over his crotch, you could see he was hard under there, before sliding them up his stomach and chest, all the way to rest on the top button of his shirt. He’d already lost his jacket and tie somewhere along the way, so you didn’t have too much to take off. 

You took your time undoing one button at a time and slowly exposing his chest. Your eyes flickered up to meet his. The way he was looking at you made you flustered and your fingers faltered for a moment.

“You really are nervous, aren’t you baby?” He whispered, while you persevered with his shirt. 

Next, your fingers found his belt buckle and you undid his trousers, allowing you to untuck his shirt and push it off his shoulders and removing it entirely from his body. He didn’t take his hazy eyes off you as he watched you explore his toned chest with your fingertips, eventually trailing them down past his belly button and into the waistband of his trousers. He didn’t need to be asked to lift up while you pulled his pants and underwear from him.

He was truly a marvel to look at. Fully naked in all his glory, the city night lights and moonlight illuminating his skin in the prettiest way. And his cock. So hard. So thick. So irresistible. Sitting there untouched against his hard abdomen.

You could barely wait for your next instruction, and If you actually had a real cock yourself, it’d be throbbing for him and leaking at the tip, just like your cunt ached and was moistening by the second.

Jisung reached out to lazily squeeze one of your breasts making your skin tingle. Your nipple hardened when he rubbed circles over it with the pad of his thumb, and then he grasped onto the leash dangling from your neck. Wordlessly, he tugged on the chain, gently forcing your head down near his cock. Gripping his length with his other hand he rubbed the tip along your bottom lip.

“Open up baby. Suck on it for me.” he wound the leash around his hand and reached up to hold onto the back of your head and pushed you down over his length. It was absolutely fucking delicious and you couldn’t hide how much it pleased you to have him in your mouth.

“That’s it baby. I know you love it, don’t you? My little cockslut. So precious.” he praised as you purred around his dick.

“Let’s see if we can get it all the wa-” his words were cut short as you sunk down entirely onto him until your nose was nestled against his wispy pubic hair. “Oh yes… just like that. Taking me so well.” 

He held you in place so you couldn’t move then pinched your nose closed. “That’s it. Let’s get those eyes watering.” He let go just long enough to let you catch your breath and then pushed you back down and held your nose closed. You felt the head of his cock lodged in the back of your throat while he held you down, cutting off your air supply until your head felt light and fuzzy. Again, he released you and let the air fill your lungs before repeating the same thing two more times. 

Jisung knew you loved it when he did this. He knew how wet you got from it. You had practiced and experimented plenty enough that he knew exactly the number of seconds he could choke you with his cock before it was too much for you. Plus you had your “two taps on the thigh” signal if needed. 

Jisung released you, and while you bobbed up and down his cock, reached over the side of his chair to pull a lever that allowed the backrest to recline 45 degrees. “Baby. You know what you need to do now.” he tapped you on the head with a bottle of lube.

Drunk with lust, you growled in protest as he pulled your mouth off his cock entirely so he could hook a hand underneath his thighs to pull his legs up so he was almost folded in half. His cock, balls and tight little asshole were on display for you, perfect for your next task.

But before you even opened the lube, you couldn’t resist holding onto the base of his cock and leaning down to take his balls in your mouth. He groaned in pleasure as you sucked them in and rolled them around in your warm wet mouth and then hummed around them for good measure.

You released them with a pop, and moved your attention lower. Pressing a palm on each of his cheeks to get him as wide as possible and spat directly onto his hole.

“Fuck!” Jisung hissed when the saliva made contact. You dove in and pressed your tongue against his asshole. Again, Jisung cursed trying to remain calm. You licked around the tight ring of muscle several times, then took your attention back up to his balls, taking them into your mouth again, before coming back down to his hole. You pressed against it with the tip of your tongue until it breached the muscle, making Jisung keen, and then withdrew it. You took your time, giving your attention to all his sensitive parts, including taking his cock back into your mouth every now and then.  

You made everything so wet and slippery with your saliva that you hadn’t even opened the bottle of lube when you slipped your middle finger inside him. Jisung groaned in approval at the intrusion.

“Does that feel good, Sir?” you looked up to see his expression dark and aroused. 

“Fuck yes… another finger. Stretch me out baby…Quickly. Fuck, baby. You’re so dirty with your fingers up my ass?”

You smirked, and took his balls into your mouth while at the same inserted another finger. “Ahhh…yes… fuck me with your fingers. Such a good fucking girl.”

You continued to loosen him up, building up to three fingers, and fucking him with your digits until you felt yourself being jerked up by the leash. Jisung pulled over him so he could kiss you. Your fingers were still lodged inside of him while he invaded your mouth with his tongue and moaned against your teeth.

”Okay, baby.” He peeled his mouth away and looked up at you. “It’s time for you to show me what you can do with that cock of yours.” He reached down and tugged on it like it was an actual dick. “Okay, up.” He tapped you on the ass.

You felt your cheeks redden when you removed your fingers with a loud squelch and placed them inside your mouth sucking them clean. Jisung hummed in approval and stood from his chair pulling up with him. He was all over you in an instant. He held your body against his and you could feel the heat radiating from his dick as it pressed against your stomach beside your fake one. He kissed you long and deep, and it made your knees go weak. How after all this time with him you still swooned you didn’t know. But you loved the giddy feeling.

Your core ached for him, and all you wanted was for him to bend you over the desk and fuck you brutally. But instead it was Jisung who bent over the desk, exposing the two perfect orbs that were his ass, to the world outside the window. He rested himself on his elbows, curving his back and creating an alluring silhouette with his ass poking off the edge just enough to let his cock hang down between his legs and the edge of the desk.

“Get behind me. Baby, listen carefully. I need you to fuck me properly, do you understand?”

You took your place behind him, letting your hands roam over his ass cheeks. So tantalising. “Fuck, Sir. Your’e so perfect.” You adored Jisung with all your being. You stroked his back tenderly and then squeezed his ass cheek, even bending down and taking a gentle bite of the flesh. 

“Fuck, I didn’t say you could tease me.” hissed Jisung. You stood back up and slapped him on the ass. “Sorry Sir, you’re just too delectable” was your reply, and you took the dildo, your “cock”, at the base with one hand and with your other you poured a generous amount of lube onto the tip and smeared it all over the shaft. 

“Is this okay, Sir?” You inquired as you ran the tip between his cheeks back and forth over his quivering hole. 

“Fuck, yes.” He hissed and pushed back onto the dildo. You watched as the ring of muscle expanded and sucked the thick tip inside. You stayed completely still as Jisung let out a relieving groan. “More, baby. Give it all to me.”

You pushed this time, watching more of the toy slip inside. When he’d adjusted you pushed again with your eyes glued to where the massive dildo was lodged halfway in his ass. Yes, you’d fucked him with dildos before, and yes you’d fingered him too, but this simulation of you actually penetrating him as though this dildo was an actual appendage of yours, took this experience to a whole new level.

It looked obscene watching your hips push more and more of the dildo into your boyfriend’s ass, splitting him in two. You used your hands to knead the flesh of his cheeks, helping him relax and stretch, until you had bottomed out and his ass cheeks were flush against your pelvis. This position felt so intimate and you wondered if this was how it felt for Jisung when he fucked you from behind?

Jisung dropped his forehead to the desk between where his forearms rested and began to grind back on you, moaning low. It was mesmerising.

”Baby,” he puffed “It seems im doing all the work here. I thought I told you to fuck me?” he growled.

You snapped out of your trance and went to work. You grasped onto both his ass cheeks, spreading them wide to give you ultimate access, and pulled the dildo halfway out and then slowly pushed it back in to the hilt. You immediately withdrew again and pushed back deep inside. Jisung cried out on the impact. Your hands moved to hold onto his hips so that on the next thrust you could guide him back to meet your pelvis in a powerful smack. 

You knew what it felt like to get your holes fucked and you allowed yourself to imagine what this was feeling like for Jisung. It felt incredible having a cock stretch your holes open and drag against your inner walls. You knew how incredible it felt when your Jisung reached the deepest parts of your soul, or the way it felt when you were being used as nothing but a cock sleeve. 

All these thoughts had your cunt gushing and you picked up the pace, slamming yourself into Jisung over and over. The sound of his ass and balls slapping against you on each snap of your hips resonated throughout the room. His leaking cock repeatedly swang back and hit your thigh.

Jisung propped a leg up on the desk. “Fuck me harder, deeper. Show me how bad you want it. Show me how bad you wish you had a real cock.” He demanded.

This new position meant you could thrust even deeper and at an angle that was becoming impossibly too much for Jisung. He was starting to lose composure and his noises were becoming more like whimpers. He was losing the upper hand. He was losing control. You could tell he was so very close to cumming.

”Pull out. Baby. Stop for me.” He panted and started to stand up and push you off him. Part of you wanted to ignore him and push him back down flush against the table and pound into him until he exploded all over the floor, But you listened to your lover regardless. What if he was sore? 

Jisung turned around and cupped your cheek and ran his thumb along your lip. He looked at you with fucked out eyes and an expression that could kill. He must’ve been close and didn’t want it to be finished, you concluded.

“Now my sweet angel.” He tugged at your lip forcing it open and shoving his thumb inside. It took all your self control not to let your eyes roll back into your head.

”On your hands and knees.” You immediately dropped to the floor and Jisung held onto your leash. “Now follow me.” He instructed, leading you away from the desk towards the bed with you crawling behind him like an obedient dog. He picked you up and threw you on the bed, climbing on top of you immediately. 

“So fucking beautiful.” He said kissing your neck and fondling your tits. “Beautiful. So perfect.” He praised you as he made his way down to where the dildo was strapped to you. You thought maybe he was going to take it off. Maybe he was ready to fill you with his cock and come deep inside your pussy. Or maybe your ass? Maybe it was his turn to fuck your ass? Oh your body ached to be touched. Your cunt needed to be filled. You knew you’d be so fucking wet that he’d slide right on in with no resistance.

But Jisung didn’t remove the strap-on. He sunk his mouth over it instead. “Now who’s a cockslut.” You said. Jisung’s eyes sprang open and you knew you’d pushed his buttons. But you didn’t care. Sometimes this is how you two played.

He was on top of you again in a heartbeat, caging you in, staring into your eyes. “Takes one to know one.’ He replied and raised an eyebrow. Then a hand came to rest at your collar. Please choke me. You thought to yourself. 

“Cocksluts shouldn’t be bratty otherwise they might miss out on the thing they love most.” He teased. “I think the best thing I can do is demonstrate what’s expected of a good little cockslut.” 

He carefully removed your collar and to your surprise secured it around his own neck. Then he hovered over your dildo, grabbing it with one hand as he lowered himself down over the entire length, impaling himself on your fake cock. His eyes rolled back into his head as his body adjusted. It was the most exquisite thing you’d ever seen Jisung do. He leaned back and rested his hands behind him next to your legs and began to lift up and sink back down over the dildo. He built up the pace and intensity of the thrusts, eventually planting his feet down beside you and using his legs as leverage to really slide up and down and fuck himself incredibly hard. 

You could see absolutely everything from this angle. His thigh muscles working hard. The thick dildo appearing and disappearing into his ass. Heavy cum-filled balls bouncing up and down. His painfully engorged erection hitting his taut abs on every thrust. The way his stomach muscles contracted. His hardened nipples. The veins in his neck straining from under the collar. His tongue hanging from his mouth. His eyes squeezing tight in pleasure-pain. The beads of sweat dripping down his forehead. You could see all of this from your position on the bed underneath him. 

“I love you Jisung.” You couldn’t keep it contained. He just looked too beautiful.

He opened his eyes and smiled at you. “I love you too. Look what you’ve done to me, I’m so fucking close, baby.” He choked. 

You took that as your cue to grasp your fingers around his cock and start pumping it. 

“I’m gonna cum. Be a good girl and catch as much as you can, okay.” 

You aimed his cock towards you as he came, spurting ropes of come towards your open mouth. You tried to catch as much as you possibly could on your tongue, the rest landing across your face, chin and tits. 

Jisung lifted off the dildo and flopped on the bed to catch his breath, then he removed the collar and the strap-on and used the tip of the dildo to scoop us as much cum as he could from your chest and face. “Open up baby.” He whispered and pushed the dildo into your mouth. “Good baby. Good girl. Lick that clean now.” He encouraged. “That’s it.” He removed it from your mouth and tossed it to the side along with the collar and leash.

“Now let’s see how wet you are after this” he shuffled down between your legs and pried them open as far as they would go. “Dripping wet.” He observed. You barely had a moment to prepare when his face was buried between your legs, his tongue eagerly lapping at your neglected holes. You arched your back off the bed and cried out your Jisung’s name when he easily slipped three fingers into your cunt in one go. It only took half a dozen thrusts of his digits against your sweet spot, and a couple of suckles of your clit and you were exploding all over him. Everything had tensed up so tight, that when your release hit you you squirted all over his face.

“Yes… yes baby make a fucking mess for me. That’s my girl.” He praised and proceeded to lick up as much of your juices as possible.

You were both such a sticky, sweaty, fluid-covered mess, yet you both couldn’t stop kissing each other. Tongues were deep in each other’s mouths. Your bodies were still grinding together until Jisung found himself hard again.

He fucked you slow and deep, professing his love to you and coaxing another orgasm for your body while he came deep inside you. 

Eventually he ran a bath and carried you in where you both cleaned each other up, before playfully bickering about who was going to call room service to change the sheets.

If you enjoyed this story and want to read my short scenario where reader comes home to find Ji pleasuring himself with her dildo, you can find that here.

@channieandhisgoonsquad @kangnina @weareapackofstrays @queen-in-the-shadows @queenmea604 @newhope8 @minnieprincess77 @itshannjisung you have all been tagged in the original but would super appreciate if you like and share this one too.

[jelly-dragon231]

Oops I forgot to post the art that I did for a One Piece 2024 calendar

I wanted to make each piece a visually distinct style and/or technique, so some are more experimental than others. Blurbs about each one under the cut!

January: Law

Experimented with dramatic bi-color lighting I've seen used in photography — can't remember what it's called, but it looks like this:

February: Sanji

Inspired by this one oddly specific genre of whimsical yellow art of chefs tasting food:

Guest appearance by Luffy who smelled the meat.

March: Franky

Inspired by vibrant and geometric styles that use bold linework (@kuroiyuki96-art and @krookedglasses on Tumblr are 2 great examples of artists who use this style that come to mind).

April: Zoro

Inspired by ink illustration styles originating in China and Japan (sumi-e being a big one, specifically).

May: Nami

Went for a stained glass window look with some smaller motifs pertaining to Nami's character.

June: Ivankov

Had to pick Ivankov for pride month! Inspired by psychedelic abstract works.

July: Luffy

Inspired by pop-art and comic book styles.

August: Usopp

Didn't have a specific style or this one, really. I wanted to emphasize contrast between Usopp and his alter ego good friend Sogeking, and decided on vibrant graffiti against a grayscale backdrop.

September: Robin

Done entirely with hatching! This one took the longest by far (worth it, since Robin's my favourite!).

October: Brook

A direct parody of Meatloaf's Bat Out of Hell album cover —

— made to look like Thriller Bark.

November: Ace

Inspired by black velvet paintings (which I learned originated in Kashmir, despite typically being associated with Mexico).

December: Chopper

This one's special, as I asked a group of my friends to make drawings of Chopper's different forms! I thought it would be cute for him to be 'drawing' his different transformations and hanging them up. The copy I printed has each friend's name on their respective drawing, but I removed them for privacy before posting.

[trensu]

have another snippet of stasis in darkness! just 'cuz i'm bored tbh, and kinda stuck on all my wips i'm currently working on.

The seventh night:

“Has he spoken to you yet?”

“How could he when you’re here yammering my ear off every night?”

“He’s a god, I’m sure it wouldn’t be that hard for him to shut me up.”

“Even gods have their limits.”

“Oh, har har. The warrior’s got jokes. You didn’t answer my question.”

“...not yet,” Steve said stiffly. 

“It’s been how long now? A week?” The man hummed in a falsely thoughtful manner. “Maybe he’s just not that into you, man. Maybe he’s letting you down easy.”

At his words, Steve involuntarily curled his shoulders inward, slightly, ever so slightly, in defense. He'd been wondering that same thing earlier that day. Steve had toiled hours in the sun to fix up the shrine; to make it welcoming; to encourage a divine visit. 

He had stopped wearing his armor to free up more time to work. Putting it on and taking it off took too long, and he didn't have to maintain it as much if he wasn't wearing it regularly. He stuck to only his chainmail. He'd kept his shield stored away, too, so it wouldn't get in the way while he worked. Though, he made sure to keep his sword nearby.

He’d taken his knife and traced over the etchings of stars in the alcove that served as a backdrop to the statue. His knife had been ruined but it didn't matter. The Lord of Night would probably want the stars of his dark sky with him, he reasoned, and these had worn so thin. Sadly, it was the only detail he could bring out of all the stone. The statue’s face was so crumbled that Steve couldn’t even begin to guess what it had originally looked like.

He had discovered that the vines he chose to keep were moonflowers. They had blossomed every night since he’d removed the other more invasive plants. He'd draped them carefully so they lay across the statue's shoulders, wrapped lovingly around its torso and clung to its waist before the ends of the vines trailed off at the knees. 

The strange man might have made himself a nuisance during his visits but he never stayed the whole night. Steve had been able to get a few hours of makeshift prayers at the shrine every night. He’d done all this, yet dawn broke every day without a single sign that the Lord of Night had been listening.

“Warrior?”

Steve broke out of his reverie. He refused to look at the man. He had to clear his throat roughly before he could speak.

“It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been rejected by someone I love." Steve tried not to dwell on his father's perpetual scowl and his mother's infinite disinterest. "I’m pretty used to my devotion being one sided by now.”

“That’s a bummer,” the man said. His sympathy was meant to be teasing, Steve could tell, but it came out surprisingly sincere. “Good thing you have a whole pantheon! Strong guy like you? Any god would take you to be their warrior in a heartbeat.”

“What are you talking about? No, I’m nowhere near done with his shrine,” Steve said determinedly. “I know a silversmith and a stone mason who’d give me a hand, and Dustin and Robin have been dying to come up here to bring him offerings. The only reason they didn’t come with me is because I had to do the pilgrimage on my own if I wanted a shot at earning his blessing.”

The man spluttered.

“Are you insane? A god rejects you and you’d come back? What kind of stupid–were you dropped on your head as a child?

“A couple times, but that doesn’t have anything to do with it.”

“Are you sure? Have you checked? You should go to one of the gods of medicine. Owens, maybe. Have him take a look at your head,” the man huffed in frustration. "For stars' sake, why would you want to come back?"

He ignored the insult to his intelligence. For stars' sake. Steve murmured the words to himself, letting them settle in his mouth to get a feel for them. He'd never heard of that one before. He liked how it rolled off the tongue, natural as anything. 

The man waited for his response. Steve took a moment to try to sort out his words. He kept his head bowed towards the shrine as he ruminated.

“People barely remember my god,” Steve finally said. “And when they do, they remember him as something he’s not. Even if he doesn’t believe I’m worthy of carrying his crest, he shouldn't be forgotten.” 

The man said nothing. Steve took a shuddering breath before the quiet could take over. 

“Having someone forget you is…it’s very lonely. Which is the worst feeling. I…I guess I don’t want him to be lonely anymore.”

The silence that followed his statement stretched long enough that Steve started falling into that meditative state he’d learned during his many nights at the shrine. It helped dull the twisted up, unsteady sensation that lingered from the man’s prodding at his every self-doubt and fear.

“He hasn’t rejected you yet, though,” the man broke Steve's musings awkwardly.

“He hasn’t reached out to me either. It’s fine. I’ll keep coming either way.”

Another silence. It was around the time the man usually left Steve to his worship. He didn't hear retreating footsteps. Instead, the man cleared his throat, and when Steve looked up at him, the man turned his face away, shrouding it in gloom.

“Maybe he’s nervous. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t contacted you yet.”

“Nervous? No way.”

“He sounds like a godly weirdo,” the man said. “Maybe he’s never had a holy warrior before and doesn’t know what to do.”

“He’s the good kind of weirdo! And there’s no way he’s not had a warrior carry his symbol. He must’ve had loads back in the day. I probably don’t meet his standards,” Steve smiled lopsidedly, playing off his insecurity.

“I’m serious!” the man exclaimed. “It’s possible! Some gods never get warriors. Some never want them at all!

“Look, even if I was the first to offer to be his, he’d know he didn’t have to be nervous,” Steve insisted. "I’ve never served a god before either! I wasn’t sure I could have faith at all until I learned about him. So like, if he’s new to it then so am I, and we’d figure it out together.”

“...you really mean that, don’t you? You’d let him make it up on the fly if he took you on.”

“Well, yeah,” Steve shrugged.

“You’d keep coming back even if he rejected you?”

“Yep.”

“But why? That’s so stupid. Nobody would do that!” The man sounded frustrated.

“I’m not really known for my smarts,” Steve said matter-of-factly. “Robin and Dustin had to translate the only book we found about the Lord of Night because I definitely wouldn't have been able to. It was a tiny book but it still took them ages to do because the language doesn’t really exist anymore. So they told me it’s possible it’s not accurate. It felt true, though, to me. 

“There was this quote, I can’t recite it word for word, but…it was something about how monsters don’t always look monstrous, and the monstrous aren’t always things to be feared.”

“That sounds ridiculous,” the man protested. Steve shook his head.

“No, it’s true! Like, I know I’ve got a pretty face and really great hair,” he smirked when he heard the man scoff, “but I was such a fucking asshole when I was younger. I went around hurting people on purpose, tearing them down for no reason other than I was hurting too, and that’s the shittiest reason to hurt anyone. I had to get some sense knocked into me by the people I call friends now. 

“My friends are the greatest people I know, and I’m really lucky to have them, but to everyone else? My friends are losers. They’re rejects because they don’t act right or they don’t look right; they talk too much or too loudly. People treat them like shit because they're different. 

“And after I noticed that, I started seeing it more even if I don’t always pick up on it. And I still mess up sometimes. I'm not a god, I can't change the world but…in the stories Robin and Dustin translated, the Lord of Night helped people like my friends because it was always the weak and rejected that try to hide themselves in the dark. I want to help those people find him again so they know they’ve got someone holy in their corner. They should know someone loves them enough to protect them.”

Steve didn’t really know where all those words came from; he wasn’t a wordsmith like Robin and Dustin. He always had a hard time verbalizing his thoughts, and he usually messed up the words. Nonetheless, these words had almost burned to be said. 

When the speech that flowed from him finally reached a natural end, he felt…lighter, cleaner. He felt like his shield and sword when they were polished to a shine. But when he turned to see his audience’s reaction, the man had gone. Steve felt strangely dejected instead.

–

The eighth night:

“Hey, it’s me again. My supplies are low and I don’t know what your thoughts about hunting on your land are so I’d rather not…I don’t want you to think I’m disrespecting you. I might have to leave soon to get more supplies,” Steve swallowed nervously. “Which isn’t an ult..ultimate…? No, damn, what is it called? I’m not trying to force you to talk to me before then, is what I mean. Not–not that I could! With you being a god.” 

Steve scoffed at his own blundering. He should’ve had Robin help him make speech notes. Cards with conversation starters. Something! He took a deep breath and tried again.

"But I'm coming back, I promise. I meant what I said about fixing up your shrine. I’ll commission a new plaque and I’ll talk to the stonemason about replacing your plinth. I don’t know a lot about sculpture, but I’ll get you the strongest type of stone and get something nice carved on it. Your flowers? Or cats? Cats are cute. Maybe your bats would be better…?” Steve trailed off.

It was quiet save for the faint rustle of leaves in the cool breeze. The full moon illuminated the area more than ever before. The shrine must have really been a beautiful sight back in its heyday. The thought of it sent a pang of longing through his soul.

The hour came that the strange man usually showed up. Steve steeled himself for another round of questions, another jab at his faith. The hour went by with Steve alone in the clearing. Steve frowned.

“Do you think he’s okay?” 

Steve’s question went unanswered.

After another hour without seeing his stranger, Steve had finally convinced himself to round the perimeter for a quick check in case the man was nearby or in need of assistance. When he found nothing, he checked again in case he missed something. 

Still nothing. Uneasily, Steve gave up his search and returned to the shrine. He knelt before it again, head bowed. He cleared his throat.

“Lord of Night, I don’t know his name, and I know he’s been rude–annoying–but could you please watch over the man? Please keep him safe from harm for as long as the stars shine tonight. Thank you.”

He received no response, but Steve had faith. He knew he was heard. He knew his god wouldn’t let an innocent come to harm if he could prevent it.

ps: i do not do those reader tag list things. if you’d like to keep up with my stuff, follow my writing tag: trensu tells stories

[alotofpockets]

Red carpet date | Florence Pugh x Reader

Summary: Where Florence takes you on a date to The Oscars.

Marvel masterlist | Words: 1k

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When you first started dating Florence, a whole new world opened for you. The movie sets, and early wake up calls. The award shows, and interviews. The fame, and being recognised in the streets. All of it was new. To you Florence had never been the movie star that the world knew, she was the girl you met at a bar. The girl who charmed her way into your heart with her quirky personality, and contagious laughter. 

People around you kept telling you that dating someone from such a different world would never work out, but the two of you had been going strong for two years. She became a part of your world, and you had become a part of hers.

Her fans loved it when you would show up in the background of Flo's cooking videos, or when she would post pictures of the two of you together. At first it was weird to you that people shipped you with your girlfriend, or told you that the two were goals, but now it flattered you to see people supporting your relationship in such big amounts.

Tonight wasn’t the first award show you would go to as Florence’s date, but it was the biggest one. The Oscars, you grew up watching your favourite actors and actresses being nominated and winning trophies, but you had never imagined attending the event yourself one day. By now you were used to the hair- and makeup team invading your hotel room before big events, helping the both of you get ready. Florence was having the time of her life getting to know the people who were working on her, while you were simply listening to the world around you. Florence was good at the talking part, and you often just followed her lead in those moments that were slightly outside of your comfort zone. You didn’t mind though, you could listen to Florence talk for the rest of your life, and be happy. She always showed interest in every person in the room, and you only loved her for it more.

Once you were fully ready and had taken a bunch of pictures at the hotel, you headed down to the car. The original plan was for you to join Florence in the backseat of the car, but as soon as she got in a problem arose. “I-” Florence was trying not to burst out laughing, “I can’t bend my legs.” You looked inside the car and found your girlfriend laying on the whole backseat with an awkward smile and two thumbs up. It was hard for you to not laugh and snap a quick picture of the scene in front of you. 

Luckily both you and Florence were ready to adapt at any given moment, so you hopped in the passenger seat and joined the driver in the front. When you arrived at The Oscars, Florence had to basically be dragged out of the car to not ruin the dress she was wearing. Since you weren’t allowed to help, to keep your outfit in good shape, you filmed the process, knowing how much the two of you would laugh at it when you would be watching it back. 

When Florence was successfully removed from the car, the team did some quick touch ups on the both of you, before you could head to the red carpet. It was probably your least favourite part of events, with all the camera’s flashing, and photographers yelling directions, but you knew that it wasn’t Florence her favourite either. Plus you knew you would get some great pictures from both her and the two of you together at the end. Florence walked the carpet first, she looked absolutely stunning in her dress, and the decor was so beautiful. Pink flowers were featured on the white backdrop, creating gorgeous reflections in your girlfriend’s dress. You were so mesmerised by her that you hadn’t noticed that Florence was holding her hand out to you, until a staff member nudged you to walk the carpet. 

You posed with Florence for a moment, before you walked the rest of the carpet hand in hand. The room you ended up in was gigantic, you couldn’t believe your eyes. Soon the room filled with thousands of people. Actors, actresses, directors, screenwriters, you name it, they were there. Big names were all around you, while you had gotten used to that a little bit, you still fangirled when someone you loved watching walked past you, and Florence was just the same. 

Oppenheimer was nominated for a total of thirteen Oscars, which was insane to begin with, but watching the movie your girlfriend was in win in the categories over and over again, was even crazier. Watching her walk onto the stage of the event you grew up watching, to accept an Oscar along with the rest of the Oppenheimer crew, brought tears to your eyes. You were so immensely proud of her, and everyone that had worked so hard on a movie that Florence had loved working on so much. 

The rest of the evening was great too. Everyone was so happy for and supportive of all the winners, which made the whole event have a great atmosphere. Not to forget the fun you were currently having at the after party. Dancing around with Florence, and some of her friends in a room full of famous strangers, you felt so comfortable with her by your side.

“What was your favourite part of tonight?” Florence asked as you got back into the car, this time being able to share the backseat, as her after party dress allowed for more movement. “My favourite part was you.” You say with a sly smile. “The serious answer is watching you up on that stage has to be top of the list. I am so proud of you, my love, you all deserve the recognition that the movie is getting so much.” Yor let your hand fall to her thigh and give it a soft squeeze. “What about yours?” She put her hand down on yours. “Oppenheimer winning so many Oscars was incredible, but nothing beats dancing with you baby.”

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💗 If you enjoyed this fic, please consider liking, commenting, and reblogging! You can also supporting me by leaving a tip 💗

[ave09]

i saw your post and this is me coming through with a jerjor request 💪

ok ok hear me out…jack kelly x bowery beauty/actress reader? perhaps they meet while she’s rehearsing for medda’s show and he is painting backdrops?? i wanna leave the actual storyline up to you but fluff would be appreciated 😌 ok bye thank you i owe you my life

awkward

jerjordan!jack kelly x reader

note: I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG! i’m literally so swamped with school and theatre and life in general! but i hope you enjoy this, and i am considering a part two so please let me know if that’s something anyone would be interested in!

her tap heels clacked against the hardwood of the stage, the sound echoing through the empty theater. 

or… at least she thought it was empty.

jack kelly stood in the wings unable to keep the smile off of his face as he watched the girl tippity tap across the stage with ease. 

he’d seen her around before. and damn, did he think she was admirable. always putting in the work, always pushing herself. she was a tough one. 

the spell she’d cast upon him snapped as she tumbled to the ground. before he could even think, he called, “youse alright?”

she jumped slightly, glancing back toward the voice’s origin, her face flushing with embarrassment. “yeah-yeah-fine..” she murmured, running a hand over her face.

jack quirked a brow, stepping out toward her. “youse don’t look so fine.” he said, plopping down beside her. she arched her brows, “what are you doing?”

“sittin’ here, what’s it look like?”

“you work here?” she asked softly, having never seen him before. 

“uh no, i means, i just do some stuff for medda, painting the backgrounds, more like favors.” she nodded slowly, taking in the features of the boy. he was boyishly handsome, a strong facial structure, unruly dark waves peeking out from beneath his flat cap. but it was the twinkle in his eye that she noted most. they held a sense of promise. a promise of what? she didn’t know. but she found herself never wanting to look away.

the clearing of his throat caused her to glance away, face flushing with a mix of embarrassment and something else… something she couldn’t quite pinpoint.

“youse.. uh… youse is good, ya know?” 

“hm?” 

“dancin’. youse is good.”

her face felt hot. “thank you.”

“you been doin’ that awhile?”

“since i was ten.” she replied. dancing had always been the passion. he arched his brows in surprise, “and how old is youse now?”

“why?” 

he shrugged. “maybe i’s just tryna make conversation.” 

“eighteen.” she hummed. “dancin’ for eight years, huh?” he let out a low whistle. “the hell you doin’ here at medda’s? don’t gets me wrong, this place is great n all, but you should be out in the big leagues.”

she scoffed, to which he arched his brows, “what? ya ain’t believe me?” 

“i’m not good enough for that.”

“not good enough my ass.” he shot back as she sent him a pointed look, “how can you say that? you’ve hardly seen anything.”

“i’s seen enough.” he refused to admit that he’d seen more than she believed. “you could make it big.”

“why do you just paint backdrops?” she shot back. he furrowed his brows as she continued. “you painted all those backdrops, right?”

“i’s did.”

“why aren’t you doing something big with that?” 

he pursed his lips. “this ain’t about me.”

“it is now.”

there was a sort of silence that enveloped them, nerves being struck in both parties. jack exhaled deeply, removing the cap from his head as he ran a hand through his hair.

“this is awkward.”

“it is.” she nodded, agreeing.

“can we’s… can we’s start over?” 

she glanced over him, smiling slightly as she extended a hand, giving him her name, “nice to meet you.” 

he scoffed playfully, shaking her hand, “name’s jack kelly.”

jack kelly. the boy who would become the one to steal her heart and heal her soul and save her in every sense that a person can be saved.

[magnoliaroad]

4 Seasons Back Yard Remodel + Crystal Yard

My 4 seasons remodels of the Petz 5 Back Yard are now available for download! And because I went on a bit of a side-quest, I’ve also made a bonus version, a fantasy, crystal back yard!

You can read my creator's notes below:

I somewhat wonder if it's fair to criticize the original Petz 5 playscenes too harshly. It's possible that the development team faced tight deadlines or budget constraints, factors that may not have been entirely within their control. However, regardless of the circumstances, the end result was a disappointingly sloppy product, and it's difficult to ignore some of the glaring flaws. While I can understand that the developers were working with dated software, there are certain flaws that can't be attributed to software limitations. Rather, they seem to reflect a clear lack of attention to detail. Here's what I mean.

The more you look at it, the harder it is to decide which flaw is the worst. The blatant MS paint spray paint "touch-up" in the upper left, that there was no effort put into blending in the skybox, or that they neglected to add textures to the roof.

Alright, enough ranting there. None of this is to say my playscenes are perfect either, but they were a labor of love and I hope that this is evident in the final results.

SPRING

I smoothed out the grass texture to give it a more velvety, manicured lawn appearance. I brightened up the dingy looking fence to a more brighter white. The original playscene had a hole in the fence, and while it might add "character", I opted to cover over it for a more polished look. I added bushes behind the fence to cover up the skybox and to conceal the bottom of the houses.

Speaking of houses. Wow these needed a big work-up. The texture work (or lack of) on these is just bad. I'm no expert in house construction, but even mostly-brick houses will have some accents like trims to break up the monotony of a fully-brick façade.

Because of how fuzzy the brick texture is in the original, I drew in the mortar lines of the bricks to enhance the texture. I added roof shingles, siding, and trim boards to the house to make it look more like a typical suburban house. Despite these edits, it's still not a "great" house - the way it looks through the windows, it looks like the house is one room lol. I wish I could put better houses in the backdrop but because Tinker doesn't allow me to edit the animated blinds, I'm constrained to keeping them the shape that they are. Oh well. We can use our imagination.

I added landscaping rocks to make the flower bed look nicer. I also added some landscaping details like bushes, garden lights, and string lights for ambiance.

[ Enlarged picture of the garden light I made ]

I also worked to improve the skyboxes in all 4 seasons of the of the Back Yard playscenes. It would be lengthy to get into the details of all that but here's a before and after of the night skybox. You got to love them high-quality MS paint stars in the original.

SUMMER

I had a hard time with the summer one because it was hard to come up with ways to make it look different from the spring version. I did make the grass, bushes, and tree leaves slightly more vibrant. Originally I had some flowers by the bushes but I just wasn't really happy with them. At the last minute, I made the decision to remove them entirely. This makes the playscene a little more "plain" but I think some people may want a more "plain", undecorated version so that they can dress it up how they want with toyz.

FALL

Fall is my favorite season, so this was a joy to make. I toned down the color of the grass and added fall landscaping motifs. Recoloring the tree's leaves was done by using Photoshop's gradient map feature. If time permits, I may do a tutorial on this in the future.

Gradient mapping is a powerful tool for recoloring almost anything. It can give way better results than methods such as hue/saturation, replace color, etc. And thanks to photoshop actions, applying this recolor to all the animation frames took just a couple of minutes.

Unfortunately, the fall leaves look "bright" in the nighttime version of the playscene. There does not seem to be a way to implement a darker version of these leaves for the nighttime playscene. If you look at the sprites in Tinker, you'll see that there are two sets of animations for Leaves A, B, and C and they're labeled "PropsAd" and "PropsAn", which would lead you to think that the developers originally intended for there to be a set of leaves for the day time, and a darker set for the night time. I guess the developers scrapped this idea because this does not work in the actual gameplay. When I experimented with this, the game appears to randomly display the nighttime sprite even during the day time, effectively ruining the intended affect. I'm not sure why the developers scrapped this. Either they had issues coding this properly or were just didn't want to put in the effort to make two sets of leaves.

WINTER

Instead of doing recolored leaves for this scene, I made all the leaves transparent and added holiday lighting to the tree. I know the lights aren't perfect - it was kind of hard to make out which direction a branch was going, so it has hard to maintain 'perfect' perspective.

CRYSTAL YARD

This is a bonus playscene that I made because I got a little side-tracked as I was working on the 4 seasons back yards. This is inspired by the Suramar zone from World of Warcraft, so it has a bit of that fantasy, night-elf feel and color scheme. It's been years since I've played WoW but I still appreciate the enchanting aesthetic of the elven zones.

I used gradient mapping again to recolor the leaves to give it this lavender, shimmery, iridescent look. I did a little bit of gaussian blurring and layer effects to make them look a little more "glowy" than the originals.

As before, Tinker won't let me edit the blinds, so it limited what edits I could do to the houses. I would love it if I could have done curtains instead or something. I did my best to make these houses look a little less suburban and more elven. It's not perfect but it was rough working with what I had.

KNOWN ISSUES / THINGS I COULDN'T EDIT

As far as I'm aware, there is no way to turn off the snow effect for seasons like summer where it wouldn't make sense. This probably involves some code-editing that is beyond my technical skillset.

The winter playscene still has the green grass footprint when your petz walk. The sprites for these are not housed within the .env itself but in the Petz 5 Rez.dll file. It would probably involve a bit of tweaking in the code to switch the sprites to something else.

The fall leaves are "bright" in the night time version because there is no way to implement a second, darker set of leaves.

I cannot edit the blinds animation. Tinker gives you an error when you try to edit this sprite. This unfortunately limits what edits I can make to the house and the fence because of where the sprite is positioned.

If anyone does know of solutions to these, do let me know as I'd love to enhance these scenes further!

ICONS

Making the icons for these was also a fun little project. For some odd reason though, the game puts a stray pixel over them when I import them through LnzPro. I did my best to disguise them but there does not seem to be a way to fix that.

BEFORE / AFTER

With all that rambling out of the way, visit my main page over at Magnolia Road > Resources > Playscenes to download the goodies!

[desertdollranch]

This is Jasmine, my new I'm A Girly doll.

I'm A Girly is a brand based in Switzerland that sells their dolls in multiple countries. In North America, their dolls are sold through Amazon and Target. They're also notable for involving kids in their product development, as well as a commitment to reducing waste or other practices harmful for the environment. In the above picture, Jasmine is showing how her box unfolds into a cute little closet backdrop.

It appears that Jasmine is no longer being sold by any retailer, international or domestic. I had my heart set specifically on Jasmine and didn't want anyone else, and had to track her down on eBay. The seller still has a few dolls available in their listing for a decent price, for those of you who might be interested.

Another thing that makes I'm A Girly dolls distinct is their wigs. They are designed to be easily removable and interchangeable, and kids are encouraged to cut the wig shorter if they want. I actually already moved her wig to give her a side part, since with a center part it does kind of tend to fall into her face, and it looks cuter clipped up like this. But overall this is a marvelous wig. It's so soft and the curls are bouncy.

That groove is where the hairline of the wig fits into, and then it ties snugly in the back. Other wigs are sold separately. Currently there aren't any available on Amazon or Target's site. Good thing I have an absolute dragon's hoard of doll wigs....... you know how it is.

Her head is similar in size to an American Girl doll's head, so she can wear their wigs too, including this TM 116 wig. But since it doesn't tie on, it does slip off her head easily, so if I wanted to change her wig often then I'd invest in a little silicone wig cap. (btw I am selling this pink and purple wig, so hit me up if you want it).

And as cute as this one is, I don't think I'll do much changing around, since I love her original wig.

And here's Isabelle wearing it. The fit isn't great, but if I were wanting this permanently on her it would probably be okay once glued down.

I'm A Girly dolls have fully vinyl bodes that are a bit skinnier than AG dolls, so sharing clothes is a hit or miss. Mine is wearing denim shorts that I made for my slim dolls, but her purple shirt here is American Girl brand. Shoes are a pretty close fit too. She did come with her original purple dress and silver glittery sandals, I promise.... I just set them down somewhere and can't remember where.

(I'm going to have to come up with a unique hashtag for her here since I do already have a mini baby named Jasmine. I really don't mind having repeated names in my collection and neither do my dolls.)

[arkus-rhapsode]

Fire Emblem and Aesthetics-A Mini Discussion

So for those who don't know, I don't really play Fire Emblem Heroes, but I still have an interest in seeing what units they release. Usually for fanfic purposes or just keeping track of new resplendent designs. But recently, FEH had an update for the original character of Dagr and it got me thinking about how resplendent from jotunheim look

Combined with FEH's ongoing storyline of taking from Norse mythology it really made me think-"Wait, why don't we have a Norse Fire Emblem game?"

Now look, I'm not here to bemoan that FEH don't have a console version, non gacha style game, but it really got me thinking about how we may be missing out on something relating to the use of a rich mythology and it only being in a mobile game more about collecting waifus and husbandos.

You see, Fire Emblem is no stranger to cribbing from existing mythologies like Norse in Genealogy, Arthurian myth and the matters of France in Elibe, and several characters just straight up being named after mythological/classic literature characters like Beowulf, Sampson, Priam etc. But its always done in this relatively Anglo-Saxon-British-French homogeny of aesthetics for their tales. So we can have a character named Sigurd, but he's not gonna look like he's fresh off the Viking Ship. Now Fire Emblem isn't the only franchise to do this, many pieces of media made by other countries draw upon these sort of exaggerated/romanticized look for fantasy stories all the time. And I want to be clear I am not advocating for "Medieval accuracy," I think that's silly. What I'm more getting at is I feel like FE could do with changing up its setting/aesthetics to perhaps inspire newer experiences.

Now I'm not saying FE as a franchise needs to be reinvented. In fact, I think FE has one of the most universal accessible mechanics in turn-based gaming. Simple to pick up, but still able to create many difficult maps and challenges. And by this point has made the support system one of the most iconic in gaming. But if the mechanics are good, doesn't that mean it could be transplanted into another setting? Well, In a way, yes. But once again, I'm not advocating for FE to stop being this fantasy style sword and sorcery story and become like the Napoleonic wars.

(That is a real Nintendo game by the way. Its wild!)

No what I'm saying is that the broad terms of "Middle Ages Warfare" is much more than simply a certain type Eurocentric fantasy.

I'll tell you what, as much as people like to rip on Birthright, I'm still shocked how it took so long for Fire Emblem to have a game where Japanese culture and aesthetics is super prominent and a main setting for a game. Fire Emblem tends to have one character who is obviously inspired by Japanese culture or even sometimes a single country. But a full blown game where so many characters come from and embrace this Japanese backdrop was unique.

Now of course it was still Birthright, so while you got these cool glimpses of a unique world and story like the Oni inspired Flame Tribe, the start of having a lot of retainers as main characters, the monk class and using fans as a weapons, and even roping in Kitsune. It still doesn't really do much than an average FE adventure with them. But it did at lease prove the the FE formula *could* still work removed from its conventional trappings.

Another in the different aesthetic, but missed opportunity category would be Fire Emblem Three Houses country of Almyra being pretty heavily inspired by Persian/Middle Eastern culture. A country that was gesturing so hard at an interesting idea that its left fan artist and fanfic writers to swoon over the idea of a possible FE game set in Almyra.

And if you want an even more recent example, for all the desert backdrops we've had in Fire Emblem, its kinda astounding it wasn't until Engage that we got a lightly (And admittedly exaggerated) African inspired country.

When I see stuff like this and what FEH is doing it makes me realize that we could be getting more. Im sure the next FE will likely still lean on its typical fantastical Anglo-Saxon look, but eventually there's got to be some spice to it. Sure it may be different, but Fire Emblem is a franchise that with each entry does try to be something different while maintaining certain core gameplay elements. So what is the harm of trying to approach something that looks a bit different?

Im not asking for an extreme change right away. Maybe start lighter. We have tons of pirates in Fire Emblem, why not a pirate/sea based game? We've even had the rare few pirate as a playable character. Its a type of story that could be told within the typical Fire Emblem world.

Then perhaps maybe something a bit more culturally ubiquitous like Greeco-Roman inspired FE? There's plenty of gods and magic, but also swords and spears to draw forth on. Heck, that may even open up new potential enemies or stories to tell with like an Evil Senate or a Gladiator culture. It could even push FE to maybe drop or reinvent certain tropes like how they approach the knighthood type of character where a certain culture's version of knight is different. Maybe even make new classes the way Birthright had to.

Overall, I think Fire Emblem is and always has been a malleable franchise. And because of that, I think it can afford to take certain risks on something as simple as drawing from another culture during the medieval magic era, while still being able to provide things that people still love about the franchise like the combat system and support system. Will there be push back on it looking different? Of course, I remember when Three Houses first teasers dropped and everyone was wondering what was up with the military school outfits and what even race was Claude. And of course a different aesthetic doesn't make the game automatically good. But let's remember, that people were judgmental of Birthright not because it went all in on looking Japanese, but because the general story and writing was lackluster for many.

But if you can make an interesting and likable cast of a characters that elevate the story, and make a memorable world for people to wage war in, I see no reason why you couldn't make Fire Emblem work set in the Netherlands.

If there is a personal aesthetic or theme you'd like to see Fire Emblem tackle, sound off in the replies. I'd love to hear what you guys think.

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

More dust settling... I'll talk about Pixar some more, given that this was the year a certain Pete Docter quote caught a loooot of fire...

Mainly, him implying that - ahead of the release of INSIDE OUT 2 - Pixar would back down from making more "autobiographical" films like LUCA, TURNING RED, and ELEMENTAL, and going for more "general appeal" sorts of stories.

I read this as Pixar resigning themselves to the sort-of "genre" that some people think they are. Makers of "what-if" movies, "what if [x thing] were alive?" "What if this thing you've heard of was actually like some world/factory/city?" And restraining the filmmakers from telling stories that meant a lot to them.

And yet... The recently-announced HOPPERS, directed by WE BEAR BEARS creator Daniel Chong, seems to contradicts those statements. Now you may be saying, "Obviously HOPPERS began development years ago, so it would be one of their last films in that vein." I know that. I know how these things work. It was in development as far back as 2020, when Chong returned to Pixar.

That being said, significant revisions could've been made thereafter, prior to the rollout at this year's D23.

But, from the looks of it, HOPPERS - which will be the studio's 30th feature, by the way - will follow in the footsteps of LUCA, TURNING RED, and ELEMENTAL. Stylistically, it's a lot different from the usual Pixar look. Apparently Lindsay Olivares, who was production/character designer on THE MITCHELLS VS. THE MACHINES at Sony, is all over this one. It looks very wacky and zoogy and cartoony, much more TURNING RED than TOY STORY and FINDING NEMO.

And the premise isn't "what if [x thing] were alive?" Maybe the beaver habitat will have some of that "it's like a city/factory" thing going on, but the main premise is rather out there. Basically AVATAR with beavers, a girl puts a part of her brain into a robo-beaver in order to be among them and ultimately save them from a threat. Chong will probably execute this in a way that's different and very cool.

Then you have ELIO, which had a dramatic director change, but thankfully a release date delay because of it. More time to shape things, and not rush it out under immense pressure. Domee Shi already has BAO and TURNING RED to her name, while Madeline Sharafian has BURROW. It's also worth noting that Adrian Molina, the film's original director, is still at Pixar and is already at work on another film. Sometimes, directors kicked off of their movies during John Lasseter's reign just straight up left the studio. Jan Pinkava, Brad Lewis, Brenda Chapman, to name a few. The latter had WORDS. Molina's still at Pixar, has a new project in the works, and seems to want to stay. It must've been an amicable split.

They both got this, and in the recent interview Pete Docter did for The Wrap, it seemed like they really wanted the movie going forward to emphasize the feeling of being a kid in a big, often scary and intimidating world. Albeit against the backdrop of a cosmic adventure. What he was talking about there was far removed from the corporate-speak talk in the other articles, which were quite cynical to be honest. The Bloomberg one in particular from a few months back, which whined about Pixar's more original movies and posited that SEQUELS would restore their magic... Hunk o' logic right there!

VFX veteran Todd Vaziri put it best, on twitter.

everything about that bloomberg pixar piece is tras it's pro-"content", pro-commerce, anti-art

Couldn't have said it better myself... So, yeah, different Docter when Iger's gun isn't to his head, or the trades having him answer questions specifically.

Weirdly, INSIDE OUT 2... A sequel, and possibly on track to become the highest-grossing animated movie ever, was more creative to me than most of what came out of Disney - across all their film divisions - over the past couple of years. It could've just been a blah rehash of INSIDE OUT, but there were plenty of clever things here, and all the mixed media characters like Bloofy and Lance. Good stuff. It did not, however, restore Pixar's magic in my eyes. Maybe at the box office, but... I still feel TURNING RED is my favorite film to have gotten out of that studio in years, and I really dug SOUL and LUCA, and had great fun with LIGHTYEAR and ELEMENTAL. So yeah, none of that.

Pixar seems fine, really. They continue to do cool stuff, it seems Docter and crew understand that's the way. It's WDAS who I feel are struggling, but I digress. D23 reminded me that they've got some neat stuff coming.

Surely, the sequel announcements make it seem like that's the future... But really, if it were, the announcement of an INCREDIBLES 3 would've been followed by FINDING Somebody, CARS 4, WALL-E 2, ONWARD 2, etc.

In reality, I think INCREDIBLES 3 is a long way off. Brad Bird "developing" it tells me the film is in its Jack-Jack stages. TOY STORY 5 has had a concrete release date for some time and is full steam ahead, INCREDIBLES 3 is different. I'm sure there will be another original between the 2026 release of TOY STORY 5 and whenever INCREDIBLES 3 comes out, granted that it's not the studio's June 2027 picture. Which I kinda doubt it is, but we'll see.

Let's look at both decades...

The 2010s had seven sequels vs. only four originals.

This decade so far and including the announced upcoming films: Four sequels vs. seven originals. Subject to change, a few more originals and maybe one more sequel can sneak in there. But yeah, night and day difference. Pixar doing two pictures every other year allows them to get more originals out. I'm thinking they'll do a spring and summer 2028 thing like they did in 2022 and hope to do in 2026. (They had also planned that for 2020 and this year.) If so, I can imagine spring going to either Domee Shi's next or that project Adrian Molina is now working on, and summer going to INCREDIBLES 3. Meaning an original for summer 2027. KITBULL director Rosana Sullivan's movie, maybe?

I find it ever curious and frustrating that social media blew up over TOY STORY 5 and INCREDIBLES 3, but there was relative crickets on ELIO and HOPPERS... Complaining drives engagement, as does "TOY STORY" and "INCREDIBLES". Household names. ELIO, what's that? HOPPERS? I dunno. So, yeah.

[amywritesthings]

SILVER UNDERGROUND / deleted scene 05.

gifts are gifts. :: a deleted scene that was originally meant to take place during flashback: seven. james and levi spar and have a verbal argument after reuniting.

this one is such a doozy. i had this one sitting on a page in draft prison because this was my initial plan of their 'reunion'. yes, spoiler alert, the ignoring was going to last three whole chapters. this is so far removed from the deep bond james/levi shared, and much more in the vein of the first 10 chapters. this is also before i decided erwin's recruitment offer extended to james. i read this back and i'm like oh my god?! you can really tell i wrote the story completely out of order with this excerpt! this is unedited. 970 words / explicit language, fighting. :: please remember: this is additional deleted content, not tied to the current canon of the story.

“You need to get rid of that.”

Your head feels fuzzy from the impact of solid ground beneath it. “What?”

Levi grits his teeth, emphasizing every word. “Get. Rid. Of it.”

He reaches for the necklace. You react just in time to forcefully smack his hand away and push up, up until your palm connects with his throat.

“Gifts are gifts, asshole,” you grunt, squeezing his neck.

Levi doesn’t react to the abrupt violence. If anything, he leans into the assault.

“You don’t get to suddenly disappear on me and then make demands.”

“Technically — all that superiors do — is make commands,” he chokes out, finally flinching when you squeeze harder.

“Smith made me a Lieutenant.”

“That doesn’t mean shit in the Scouts,” he spits. “And technically still — under me.”

In more ways than one.

You growl, pushing at his neck one more time before letting go. Levi bows his head, giving you both a moment to catch your breath in the aftermath of the spar. His matted hair hangs over his forehead, hiding his eyes where you lay.

He doesn’t opt to move away. You’re trapped under him.

Then he speaks without an edge.

“Join the MPs.”

You stare up, frowning. “I can’t. You know that.”

“There’s still time to convince Erwin you’re innocent.”

He must sense the shift of the fight, because he lifts his chin just enough to regard you from under his eyelids. Your lips part with an unknown question.

“I didn’t tell them about you. It must have been Isabel.”

Her name hangs like lead off of his tongue.

You pause, nostrils flaring with contempt. “How do you know it wasn’t Furlan?”

“Because Isabel didn’t know how to keep her mouth shut,” he replies. If you’re not careful, then you may project a rueful hint to his tone. “Furlan never left my side.”

(Loyal to the end, and for what?)

“What are you saying, Ackerman?”

“You’ve always wanted to see the surface, right?” You don’t nod, but he continues as if you’ve acknowledged him beyond furrowed brows. “I argue that you only worked for us once because of some naive obsession with the surface. Isabel likely felt the need to drag you under the bus thinking it would buy her some unfounded favor from Erwin. He could believe that.”

Your stomach clenches at the implication of his lie.

“You would do that to her name?”

“She’s dead, James.” Callous, without doubt; Levi shifts his hold on your wrists to your forearms. “You’re not.”

You sink into the ground, deflating against his hold. “So I’d get transferred by the good graces of Commander Erwin and, what? Leave you here?”

Something flashes in his eyes, but he decides this time not to answer on impulse. Here in this proximity, you can hear him taking calculated breaths through his nose — inhale, exhale, controlled and slow.

“It’s your best option to surv—”

“No.”

The soft and certain answer cuts through his next argument. Levi freezes like you’ve confessed to being part-titan this whole time — his short-circuiting bewilderment is loud and screaming in your face when he refuses to speak candidly. 

He looks like a teenager again, the starry night sky your makeshift backdrop of an Underground you both deserted.

His eyes narrow. “No?”

Your growing smile surges that terrible temper back on the sparring grounds. He lets go of your arms — a fatal mistake — to gather the strap of your chest harness into a closed fist. When he drags you up to meet him, you easily follow.

“Furlan is gone. Isabel is gone. What don’t you fucking get about that, you shithead?” he speaks through clenched teeth, fist trembling. “You lived and you’re pissing that away.”

Just when he thinks he has the upper hand, yours shoots out — quickly you grab his own chest harness, bringing him directly down to you.

Nose to nose.

The proximity catches your long-lost friend off guard.

(Levi Ackerman is good at many things. Being comfortable with someone in his face in a non-violent setting was never one of them.)

“Do you think,” you begin in a murmur, “that I really give a shit about living a life on the surface if that means you’re not a part of it?”

His gray pupils grow black.

“I’ve lost you twice now—”

“James.”

“—let me finish, you… arrogant little shit,” you breathe, and for once in Levi Ackerman’s life, he listens. Intently, it seems, because he won’t stop staring at your face. “I’m — we are out of the Underground. Captains, Lieutenants — maybe they’re both arbitrary titles and fucking ridiculous, but they can mean something. I now have a chance to do something.”

“You have a chance to get yourself killed,” he mumbles. “This isn’t the time to become a fucking idealist. This is war.”

“And this is my choice.” Warmth spreads through your system at the tickle of his breath on your face. “Maybe I didn’t choose the Scouts, but I did choose—”

You.

You’ve been brave up until this point, but now you can’t say it. Not when Levi’s still so close. His nose accidentally brushes yours, and he shoves you — hard — back into the ground to break your grip on his harness.

Like a frightened animal, he quickly sits back on his calves to steer clear of your reach. By the time you can see straight, he’s already standing tall.

“Do whatever the fuck you want,” he spits with venom, “but you’re making a mistake for a person that doesn’t exist.” Levi collects himself, straightening his chest harness straps. “Whatever you think you remember — that isn’t me. Not anymore.”

You roll to lean on a bent elbow, propping you against the ground, but it’s too late.

Levi walks away and doesn’t look back.

[tiikerikani]

Throwback Not-Thursday (2012 v 2024)

Gerrin Goblinkicker, Dwarf Hero (sculpted by Bob Olley)

This was the last figure I painted before starting up again in 2020.

I'm known to be insufferably/irredeemably stuck in the past, so unlike normal people who might strip and repaint their earlier figures, I painted a whole other copy. This dwarf figure is still in production, so I didn't need to wrangle one from eBay at stupid prices. I even happened to have a matching base (they had come in a 3-pack and I still had the other 2—these are discontinued).

On the old version the middle of the shield is just off-center if you look at the model from that corner and it just feels like something is wrong. For the new version I decided to place him along the diagonal of the base instead of the side. I think this way it is clearer which direction he's facing—though it's actually the feet that are aligned to the diagonal and not his face, so it's still kind of off.

I considered painting a whole pattern onto the shield instead of leaving it plain wood, but I didn't want it to be too different from the old version, so I just changed the shield boss to brass/bronze for contrast.

I had placed him too far forward too; I think I was trying to center the feet on the base instead of the figure overall.

I used the same static grass from a plastic film container of it that I got from somebody. I have no memory of where it's from and this is the only figure I have that uses it. I wonder if it's from 2000/1 when I'd just learned to paint, since a pinch of grass on the base appears to have been typical on Warhammer figures from that era. Maybe I used it on Battletech figures I painted for my classmates at $5 a pop. Anyway, it sits on a bed of green stuff instead of a thick layer of PVA glue (which shrinks so you'd need a lot of it to fill up the hollow base, but that's how I did things back then. didn't know any better).

Recipes

The base blue paint on the old model was Ral Partha's Dragon Blue (highlights in Sky Blue). I still have the Dragon Blue pot and wanted to use it but the paint doesn't stick to the primer anymore so I guess it's dead. It's a bit drowned in black wash on the 2012 model, and here's what I did on the new one:

Speedpaint Beowulf Blue (as you do because, you know, vikings). I didn't shake it enough so it came out a bit purple

Thin layer of Ultramarine Blue

Wet blend Wolf Grey into Ultramarine for first highlight

Gorgon Hide for second highlight

The green base was a bit trickier since the Army Painter Warpaints do not have a match for it (maybe the new Fanatic line does, dunno). But I made it work with a solid coat of Greenskin and then Speedpaint Shamrock Green (the latter of which is a decent match).

P.S. The old Ral Partha Bronze paint is really more of a brassy color. It's not orange-ish at all.

Bonus: Super-black background tutorial (kind of)

When you take the photos, use a sheet of black velour / flocking as the backdrop; Green Stuff World sells these in various sizes but the material is originally used in other things that need to be super dark, like telescopes, so you can probably find it in places where astronomy stuff is sold.

You'll never get all the dust and speckles out of it with a tape roller so just remove as much as you can.

Editing the pictures—I use GIMP:

(Optional) Crop your image. You can do it now, or at the end like I do.

Adjust levels and do color corrections as needed.

Fuzzy select the black area around the figures. 10% tolerance worked for me, but go lower if the figures are dark. You want to avoid picking up parts of the miniatures.

Invert the selection.

Copy and paste to a new layer and put it at the top. This layer will be transparent and contain just the figures and a lot of dust speckles.

Create a new white layer and put it under the transparent layer. Now you can see all the speckles against the white background.

Clean up background with eraser tool.

Hide the white layer and create a black layer. (Or just put the black layer above the white one.)

Clean up any stray dust with eraser tool.

If fuzzy select was overzealous and took out too much (you can flip the solid layers on and off to check), copy/paste those areas back in from the original picture.

[ljones41]

"NOBLE HOUSE" (1988) Review

"NOBLE HOUSE" (1988) Review

Between 1962 and 1993, author James Clavell wrote and published a series of novels centered on Europeans living in Asia. Some of the novels featured a family founded by a Scottish-born sailor named Dirk Struan, who became a trader in early 19th century China. And one of those novels was "Noble House", published in 1981.

Clavell's novel centered around one of Struan's descendants, Ian Dunross, who struggled to save the family company from a precarious financial position left by the previous CEO or "tai-pan" in the British colony, Hong Kong. Dunross sought a partnership with an American billionaire named Linc Barlett of Par-Con Industries, in the hopes of rescuing Struan's from financial ruin and a possible takeover by his family's long-time rival, Quinlan Gornt of Rothwell-Gornt. However, matters grew worse for Dunross and the company when the oldest son of Struan's comprador, Philip Chen, sold both company secrets and "coin debt" in the form of one of four half-coins that was given to Dirk Struan 146 years ago, to Barlett. This enabled Barlett to seek a partnership with Gornt in the hopes of making a raid on Struan's. When Philip's son, John Chen, ended up kidnapped by a local street gang, the value of the "coin debt", which ended up in the hands of wealthy smuggler named Four Fingers Wu. And this left Dunross and Struan's vulnerable to another threat.

I first read "Noble House" in my early twenties. Looking back on it, I now realize it was a good thing I had read previously read Clavell's 1966 novel, "Tai-Pan" and saw the 1986 movie adaptation. If not, I would have found myself confused over the family feud that served as a backdrop to the Dunross-Gornt feud and the history of the "coin debt". This involved four half-coins given to Dirk Struan by a Chinese trader named Jinqua in "Tai-Pan", as repayment for the loan of silver. Any CEO or "tai-pan" of Struan's must fulfill the request, whether legal or illegal, to anyone who presents one of the half coins that Jinqua originally kept. I ended up enjoying the 1981 novel very much. But I had some issues with it. Issues that had thankfully failed to materialized in "NOBLE HOUSE", the 1988 miniseries.

One of the issues centered around secret intelligence documents that Dunross found himself in possession of, thanks to his MI-6 contact. These documents ended up being sought by various intelligence agencies, including the MI-6, the C.I.A. and the K.G.B. However, this story arc had nothing to do with Dunross's efforts to save Struan's, so screenwriter Eric Bercovici ditched it. He also removed another story arc featuring an entourage of visiting members of Parliament - which included Dunross' Labor brother-in-law. Again, this arc had very little to do with the main one involving Dunross's business situation.

The miniseries had also removed several characters, including K.G.B. agent Captain Suslev, a visiting author and former Royal Air Force veteran named Peter Marlowe (from the 1962 novel, "King Rat"), Dunross's wife and children (he is a childless widower in the miniseries), Dunross's brother-in-law Robin Grey (also from "King Rat") and especially Dunross's wife Penelope and their three children. In the miniseries, Dunross is a childless widower, enabling him to have a romance with Par-Con executive Casey Tcholok. The biggest change proved to be the story's timeline. Bercovici updated the story's setting from August 1963 to November 1987, allowing it to be a modern tale. This enabled several characters like Linc Barlett and Casey Tcholok to mention Great Britain's future 1997 handover of Hong Kong to China.

I do have some minor complaints regarding "NOBLE HOUSE". One, I found Paul Chihara's score for the miniseries unmemorable and almost pedantic. And speaking of the score, I really disliked the cheesy aspect of the theme Chihara had created for the Orlanda Ramos character. It almost sounded like something for a soft-porn movie. Very insulting for a character like Orlanda, who proved to be more complicated. I also had a problem with some of the dialogue featured in "NOBLE HOUSE". This especially seemed to be the case in scenes featuring dialogue between European and Chinese characters or simply between Chinese characters. I found the dialogue rather awkward, exaggerated and very stylized. I realize the screenwriter was simply copying some of James Clavell's dialogue from the novel. But I really wish he had not.

Despite my complaints, I really enjoyed "NOBLE HOUSE". Every time I watch it, I am always surprised at how epic it seemed by the end of the last episode. And mind you, this story had very little to do with history. It was simply a mixture of the usual melodrama involving sex, romance, financial dealings and family conflicts. Even one of the story arcs, which featured Cold War espionage, managed to have an impact on the narrative's main arc regarding Ian Dunross's financial situation. Most people would be disappointed that this television adaptation was not completely faithful to Clavell's novel. Frankly, I am relieved. Bercovici managed to cut some of the superfluous story arcs and prevent the miniseries from becoming bloated. Yet, he still managed to retain Clavell's epic feel for the narrative. And he achieved this with the help of director Gary Nelson, who provided an overall steady pace in scenes that range from dramatic and action moments. Nelson's handling of the floating restaurant fire and the landslide that destroyed an apartment complex in the final episode really impressed me.

"NOBLE HOUSE" proved to be one of those productions that featured an international cast. Aside from a handful of performances, most struck me as being pretty solid. I must admit that I found those from the likes of Burt Kwok, Lim Kay Tong, Gordon Jackson, Denholm Elliott, Lisa Lu, Michael Siberry, Tia Carrere, John Houseman, Brian Fong, Ric Young, John van Dreelen, Nancy Kwan, Damien Thomas, Galen Yuen, George Innes and Dudley Sutton rather memorable. But there were certain performances that I truly enjoyed.

One of those performances came from the always memorable Khigh Dhiegh, who struck me as very colorful as one of Hong Kong's premiere smugglers, Four Fingers Wu. Ben Masters' take on the Lincoln "Linc" Bartlett characters seemed less boyish and more mature that Clavell's literary version. And to be honest, Masters' interpretation struck me as a lot more plausible as the witty and ruthless corporate CEO. I am more familiar with actor Ping Wu, thanks to his frequent appearances on NBC's "SEINFELD". But I really enjoyed his performance as Four Fingers Wu's youngest son, the intelligent and frustrated Paul Choy, who seemed incapable of impressing his father with his more modern outlook on how to profit outside of smuggling. Julia Nickson gave a very poignant performance as Orlanda Ramos, a local Eurasian television journalist and former mistress of Quillan Gornt. Thanks to Nickson's skillful performance, Orlanda evaded the superficial trope of a one-dimensional, walking sex toy; who became an intelligent, yet emotional woman who desired to be more than someone's bed warmer.

I might as well confess. Despite James Clavell's efforts, the character of Quillan Gornt never became a favorite of mine. His role as Dunross's main rival had nothing to do with my attitude. But I cannot deny that John Rhys-Davies gave one hell of a performance as the ruthless CEO who seemed to radiate wit, presence and a penchant for petty behavior. Casey Tcholok seemed like a difficult character to portray. Actress Deborah Raffin could have easily portray her as this ideal, "Mary Sue" type. Fortunately, James Clavell never portrayed Casey in that manner and neither did Raffin. Although the latter's take on the character seemed a bit more mature than her literary counterpart, Raffin expertly conveyed many of Casey's nuances - her razor-sharp intelligence, impatience, her talent for observation, her fears of being overlooked as a more than competent business person and her wit. However, Raffin's Casey struck me as a bit more sardonic than Clavell's literary version. Pierce Brosnan looked nothing like the literary Ian Dunross. Although both are tall, the latter possessed slightly wavy blond hair and the actor is definitely a brunette. The literary Dunross was in his early 40s, whereas Brosnan was only 34 years-old when he shot "NOBLE HOUSE". And yet . . . the Irish-born actor more than lived up to the role of Struan's CEO with a commanding performance without trying to hard. Brosnan wore the role very well - tight on the inside and relaxed on the outside. He not only portrayed Dunross's intelligence and ruthlessness with great skill, but also conveyed the CEO's growing concerns over losing the company and desperate attempts to save it without resorting to any kind of histrionic acting. By the time the miniseries ended, Brosnan had embedded into the role so well that I had completely forgotten that he was the wrong age to portray Dunross and possessed the wrong hair color.

"NOBLE HOUSE" never really acquired the acclaim that both television versions of James Clavell's 1975 novel, Shōgun or the movie version of the author's 1962 novel, "King Rat" had. But thankfully, it was no "TAI-PAN". Not that I care. I am not claiming that "NOBLE HOUSE" was mediocre. On the contrary, I thought it was a skillful and excellent adaptation of the 1981 novel. The latter is my favorite Clavell novel and I was more than happy that NBC had did more than simply justice to it, thanks to Gary Nelson's well-paced direction, Eric Bercovici's tight screenplay and performances from a first-rate cast led by Pierce Brosnan and Deborah Raffin. It has been years since I first saw it and to this day, I have yet to grown tired of it.

[imekasf]

Favorite Things 2024

Every year(ish) I try to jot down some of my favorite things from a given calendar year - mostly for myself, but maybe also for you! Anyway, here is this year's list, in no particular order (and with spoilers) - let's list!

-->Agatha All Along - Season 1, Episode 7: Death's Hand in Mine (Disney+) I'm gonna go ahead and guess that this specific episode will make a lot of people's lists this year. This entire show was fantastic, but this episode in particular was an absolute masterpiece. The gorgeous visual of Lilia falling in that bubblegum pink gown against a black backdrop was simply breathtaking. The way the episode expertly weaved together all of Lilia's small but important moments was incredible. And Patti LuPone is a goddamn legend.

-->Emerald Wounds, Select Poems by Joyce Mansour Fun fact about me; I love poetry. I picked up this book at City Lights Booksellers, which is a well-known beatnik bookseller in San Francisco. About 75% of my decision to buy was based on the written recommendation from their staff, which read: Oh, how dark! Oh, how wet! Oh, how terrifying! Oh, how absolutely erotic! Between death and love: the sex lives of dreams, flayed open. Surprisingly, not a Scorpio.

Anyway, I read In the Dark to the Left, and cackled until I cried.

-->Wicked, Part 1 Like most of the English-speaking world, I have a long history with this property. I grew up watching and adoring The Wizard of Oz; I read and liked Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire; I saw the original traveling run of the stage version of Wicked in San Francisco (twice). So of course I had a lot of expectations going into this film. And they were almost all met and at times exceeded! The cast is incredible, the visuals stunning, and the songs! Ugh. I'm getting teary just thinking about it. Ariana Grande is also SO funny. I don't think I fully realized until this year how naturally comedic she is. Incredible.

-->A Man on the Inside, Season 1, Episode 7: From Russian Hill With Love (Netflix) Honestly, this entire series is just completely heartwarming, hilarious, and delightful, but this episode is the one that showcases more of the city that I call home than any other (They even filmed a scene in the middle of a Giants game at Oracle Park!) so of course it is going to be a favorite.

-->SNL Season 50, Episode 3: Ariana Grande & Stevie Nicks (NBC) When SNL is firing on all cylinders it is practically unstoppable. This has been a fairly strong season for them, and the Ariana Grande episode was a true season highlight. My Best Friend's House is a darkly hilarious earworm; Bridesmaids introduced us to the now-inescapable character of Domingo (and showcased Grande's talent for singing completely flat and off key on purpose), and Castrati had no business being as goddamn funny as it is. Bonus shout out to Episode 2, which brought back Nate Bergatze, who is a true gem of a comedian.

-->Travel Season - Season 1, Episode 1: Fried Chicken in Korea (YouTube/Watcher) I love travel shows. And I love food shows. Mostly I love travel food shows, so this new show from Watcher Entertainment ticked a lot of boxes for me. I love the vibe of this show, I love the warmth it conveys, and I love watching naturally curious people discover and try new things. It was smart of this crew to focus on one singular location for the entire season, giving them plenty of time to deep dive into a lot of different types of food.

—>Taskmaster, Series 17 (YouTube or Channel 4 in the UK) If you haven’t yet watched this phenomenal British game show, what are you doing? This is the ultimate comfort watch, in that it is entertaining, escapist, hilarious, and charming.

Like many of the casts in previous years, Series 17 included two charming contestants who were terrible at tasks (Sophie Willan and Nick Mohammad, the latter of whom dressed as a vampire to do his tasks and the editors cleverly removed his reflection from mirrors and water); a very clever contestant who did nearly everything right (John Robins); a sexy sassy older woman who flirts with the Taskmaster (Joanne McNally); and a curmudgeon (Steve Pemberton). This cast doesn’t quite live up to the absolutely magical chaos of Series 16, but it is still worth a watch.

-->Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé Whether or not you think this album sits in the Country genre (it does and it also doesn't, as it is so much more than just Country), there is no denying the masterpiece that this turned out to be. I definitely spent most of the Spring of this year spinning this record, and waiting with baited breath for a tour announcement (still waiting, btw). It was hard for me to choose just one track, as I went through many phases, but since AMERIICAN REQUIEM is still sitting firmly in my On Repeat playlist, it must be the one that resonated the most.

-->Hot Fuss, The Killers Hang on. This album is 20 years old, you might be saying - and you’re right, it is! But the band celebrated the anniversary with a mini-residency in their hometown of Las Vegas, and when I tell you this was one of the best nights of my life, I’m not even exaggerating. I scream-sang every single song from this album, and it was joyous, cathartic, and fun as hell.

-->Diamond Jubilee, Cindy Lee (YouTube/Bandcamp) There is a reason this album is popping up on every Best Of list of 2024 - it's fantastic. It sounds both contemporary and classic, and has the warmth of a vinyl record being spun on a Sunday afternoon. That they managed to gain so much traction while staying off the major streaming services says a lot about how great this album is.

-->Kaleidoscope, Chappell Roan Just like everyone else, I listened to Chappell Roan a lot this year, but this particular song made me burst into tears the first (and second) time I heard it, so it gets a spot on the list.

-->Bobby Sox, Green Day Green Day celebrated the anniversaries of both Dookie and American Idiot this year, by playing both albums in their entirety on a world tour. They also released perhaps their best album in years, Saviors, which they also played tracks from on their epic tour. Bobby Sox is their bisexual anthem (Billie Joe has been out as bi since the 90’s, btw) and it is my favorite track on an album full of bangers.

-->L'AMOUR DE MA VIE, Billie Eilish At 22 years old, Billie Eilish has accomplished more than most of us will in our entire lives. She is the textbook definition of an old soul - someone who sings like she has smoked a thousand packs of cigarettes and burned through a hundred lovers.

--> The music video for Taste, by Sabrina Carpenter I have a deep and unwavering love for the cult classic Death Becomes Her, so when I saw that pop video queen Sabrina Carpenter's video for Taste was paying homage to that film (with Jenna Ortega, no less!) I knew I'd be in for a good time. Carpenter retains the goofy antics of the film and has the perfect sense of humor for a video like this. Sure, there's a lot of (fake) blood, but what's a little brutal murder amongst friends?

-->Have I Got News For You (CNN/Max) This news-based panel show has been on in the UK for something like 30 years, and while the U.S. version is still working out some of the kinks, they have completely nailed the casting. Host Roy Wood, Jr., and team captains Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black are perfect for this format, and it makes me hopeful that we might see more panel shows make their way across the pond soon.

-->James Acaster: Hecklers Welcome (Max) If you are not familiar with the extremely specific comedy stylings of Acaster (or only know him from Taskmaster or that GBBO meme) this may not be the best stand up special to start with (I’d recommend Repertoire on Netflix first). That being said, this special is brilliant, and really showcases what a unique and whip-smart comedian he is.

-->How Did This Get Made? Episode 357: Eye of the Beholder (Podcast) Every episode of HDTGM is a banger, but I chose this one because I love Ewan McGregor, and hate this movie so, so much. It's awful. Which is why this episode of HDTGM is great.

I'm sure I have forgotten a million things even though it took me like a month to write this. But nobody has read this far down anyway so it's all good!

[kassandrasdisciple]

~~~Joker: Folie à Deux Spoilers ~~~

This is hideously long, I am so sorry.

Housekeeping

I really wanted to like this Movie, I saw the first one and was sufficiently whelmed; it was certainly a movie. However when trailers came round for Joker 2 and it was starring Gaga in a musical I was hyped, she's known for her brand of choreo dancing and out-there outfits, so i thought she'd be at home in this dancing clown's world.

Furthermore Harley might patch my biggest gripe with any Joker origin story which is that they miss the point. Joker was made as a formula break. Batman, the world's greatest detective, would fight the ecoterroist, the man who loves his wife and the catburglar with facts and logic™ but the Joker was a wild card (pun intended). He was used sparingly because he had no motive other than Chaos and he was uniquely only interested in Batman, not riches or love. However for this to work he has basically no backstory, he's just the clown prince of crime, you undercut this character by weiting a backstory, and that was my biggest issue with Joker I.

The way writers have gotten around this however is by making him interesting by proxy, and they usually use Harley. We don't know much about Joker from the animated series but we do know alot about him in how he treats Harley. As such, I thought introducing her to the second movie could allow for them to remove so much focus of Arthur's backstory and inner thoughts and start building him up into the Joker of myth, filtered through Harleys eyes.

However none of this actually happened; infact so little happened I have to ask you all to watch this movie so you don't accuse me of misrepresenting this train wreck. I usually give any non-Indie project some leeway as it's easy to walk back an indie project and only waste 100 dollars vs in a multimillion project, No one wants to tell the boss you need to start from scratch and waste 10 mill, now in this case? I would've watched the final product as an executive and said scrap it all, and then fired the writers that I'd accuse of using AI. With that let's get into it.

The Good

This is gonna be meanly short but I really tried.

Makeup & costume

This was phenomenal and I don't even say that in pity to bulk the good section, I'd genuinely say this surpasses most films and shows. The costumes looked properly dulled or muddy, most looked fitted for the actors and although I'm not a historical costumer they seemed to fit? Joker firmly breaks from the current trend of fresh of the line clothes that look costumey and captures a city on the brink.

Makeup is also beautiful and this is a production for the craft to shine in, both Phoneix and Gaga are made up perfectly depending on the scene, juggling Glam, Weariness and Clown-core beautifully. I also loved the story of Gaga's clown makeup, with her slowly gaining more with each musical break from reality. However I will say I dislike they didn't go full face like Phoneix had, does feel slightly like they refused to de-feminise Gaga.

Cinematography & Sets

Also beautiful, I will preface that within the narrative your really only shuttled between a prison complex and the courtroom which is quite disappointing, however where they go hard is the musical breaks from reality, these beautiful backdrops and lighting, along with perfect use of angles is phenomenonal, my standout being the tap dancing number (I believe the song is The Joker).

My favorite shot comes early in the film and it's when the four guards are escorting Arthur in the rain and open Umbrellas in the colours of the Joker, it's on the nose but I do love that pallete and it was a cute detail.

Confirmation of POV

This is a smaller one but I was thankful they used multiple POV's. It was draining in the first one to have to second guess if something actually happened, Joker II confirms the 6 murders happened and has shots from Harley's, the guards, and other prisoners POVs, creating a more concrete version of events than it's predecessor.

Stand out performances

I will admit I have always conflated character writing and acting knowing full well that the best actors can't resuscitate a poorly written character (looking at Malekith/Christopher Eccleston) however I'm flawed so I won't comment on Gaga's or Phoneix' acting as I won't be sure what's writing and what's performance.

Kicking it of, Harry Lawtey as Harvey Dent. I feel like he really captures the character of pre-2face Harvey, a brutal prosecutor with a bit of a prideful streak. He still wants to help Gotham but he's not one to humanize villians and Lawtey's tone when he talks about Arthur envisions this perfectly.

My second pick would be Leigh Gill as Gary Puddles, I will say production does their best to cram the most jokes at a little person's expense into Gill's time on screen which im not a fan of. However when Mr Puddles breaks down over how witnessing a murder affected him; how powerless he felt and how he can't function in day to day life anymore. It really hit me, it goes in the face of the narrative spinning around Arthur, how even if he's trying to be morally neutral his actions aren't just murders in a vacuum, he hurts even those he was close with. It was an amazing scene and that was solely to Gill's performance.

The Bad

This might be ungodly long and I have to say now, this might not even be all of it.

Everyone loves Arthur

I need everyone who called Rey a Mary Sue to tell me how Arthur isn't. It is unfathomably strange how everyone in this universe believes him to be the biggest social activist since MLK. 2 years since his murder spree, where on TV he said he killed the business men for shits n' gigs and then gave a milquetoast speech on how we live in society, he still has fans, hundreds, maybe thousands. We hear before the interview his first exclusive tell all is coming soon, so assumingly he's not been talkative since. Yet he has a whole social movement, he has a movie and not just that but in the on screen scenes every character is all about Arthur.

Keep in mind that the multiple POV's make this Movie more solid that the first, knowing that the amount every character centre's Arthur is insane. Harley has no character to the extent I'm calling it Girlboss Sexism where the second Arthur lays eyes on this Jezzabel he stops taking his meds and regresses on all his progress for love. She's girlbossing because she makes the joker worse not the otherway around, however it is still Sexism because we could replace her with the 1 ring and the plot wouldn't change. I have no clue why she's so obsessed with Arthur, or why she does anything other than "I Love The Joker". Outside of singing I think she gets maybe 10 minutes of dialouge which is being generous, to call this move a dualagoist movie would be to lie.

Harley isn't the only one bending over backwards for the most uncharismatic man however. We have Ricky Meline (His prison lackey who FUCKING DIES and the cop, Arthur and the narrative forget about) we have no idea why he idolizes Arthur, actually we can include the whole prison who start kinda-riots several times in support of him.

We have the defense, Maryanne Steward, and even though it's her job to defend Arthur, the level of faith this woman shows to him is frankly dumb. Oh, also he non consensually kisses her twice, both times she's never does more than reproachfully look at him, and doesn't even consider firing him as a client.

This isn't mentioning the BOMBERS who blew up the courthouse on a vague line, the prison guard who flip-flops between getting him into music class then beating him, or the jury who cycle between distressed and sympathetic. Let's be clear this man is pathetic, he has no personality other than sometimes manic, other than that he's despondent. He should not have this much support, it feels like a power fantasy for incel school shooters.

The plot

I've gone into it above the level of distortion the plot does for Arthur but really to call it a plot would be generous. We start with Arthur in prison awaiting trial, with no Harley and we end with Arthur in prison maybe awaiting trial/execution and no Harley +stabwounds. Nothing happens. I never thought my obsessions of phoneix wright and legally blonde would have an antichrist baby called joker: folie à deux but they did and the world won't know peace. The musical numbers don't advance the plot, the entire thing is setting up a court verdict we don't hear, and the opening animation posits a question I don't think even the writers know the answer to.

In the opening animation we see Arthur the clown be replaced by Joker the clown who goes on to shoot the talk show host, we don't know if Joker also killed the 3 business men, his coworker or his mum but oh well. The movie starts and we find out the court case hinges on if Joker actually exists so they can use DID as a grounds for insanity. Let's be clear, even if Arthur has DID, in the 60s/70s he's getting the death penalty, courts don't care about mental health now, you think they did more then? Secondly even if he's doesn't you spend 5 minutes with this man and you know he's so disassociated even without medication that he's got enough grounds for an insanity case. Either way we'll never know, the opening seems pretty clear that this is DID and is seems like Joker is provoked multiple times into fronting during court, but Arthur's ukulele apology to the jury at the end seems to make the answer be he's always been fully aware, which is frankly ludicrous.

The long and short being that there are no plot threads from either the first movie or this one that are answered, open-ended or no, which for a character study movie is abysmal.

The Ending

I was actually laughing by the end, and that isn't a compliment. This started with Arthur trying to stop Lee singing, mirroring the audience's views of this sad excuse for a jukebox musical, and finished when they snuck in one last unanswered question for the finale? Why was someone visiting Arthur? Was is Lee? Why? Did she miss him? Did she want to sing at him again? Was it baby batman?

Oh yeah, there was also some random shanking Arthur. I will admit, I was surprised by how blatant an answer was given in this duology of unexplained threads of films this was. Why is the joker older than batman by loads? I think we all inferred from Arthur's billions of fans that one of them will be Joker Joker but apparently this was the one question that needed a concrete answer, we even saw how he got those scars. It was unnecessary, and honestly I would've rathered seen Arthur get the chair as a send-off. It also posses the question of if the real Joker of this universe will have the same Harley or are Gaga's days numbered? (We don't have to worry, it's tanking so hard there won't be a third one).

In conclusion, the conclusion was a perfect summation of the entire movie, that is that, Harley had no actual role, Arthur was boring yet people are obsessed with him, and we're still stuck in this fucking prison.

Rapid fire time

I don't want to expand these into full points but some further issues -

This is super harmful to the representation of mental health, I won't go fully into it because I will double this post, but as someone who has a grab bag of everything this is on the same level as split bad wise.

God's O gods why was he uncuffed for the majority of the movie.

That jury took an hour? I would've set a speedrun, also why are you letting him get closer, he might whip out a gun or worse a ringlight and a camera.

I shouldn't of watched this a month after quitting smoking, this was just a cigarette Ad.

Is that how this universe's Harvey got 2face'ed because if so that is disappointingly light.

I had to Google every side characters name because they where all so unremarkable.

Why secure Gaga and then do a jukebox musical.

They did a live broadcasted trial for the first live broadcasted TV host shooting AND DID NOTHING WITH THAT CHEKHOV'S GUN.

This was actually chekhov's military arsenal, so many things I thought they'd circle back to, like the dead lackey, the tell all, or the expose interview on prison conditions, and they went nowhere.

The opening animation was ugly I'm sorry, it wasn't even a good homage.

The musical numbers where just I feel numbers so they ground the film to a halt.

This was the first movie I've ever had to turn my phone back on just to check the runtime for.

WHY SECURE GAGA IF YOU WON'T LET HER BELT.

TL;DR

My gods this was long, I think I've thought more about this film than the writers did, my new conspiracy theory is that this was a test for AI writing of major motion films. I cannot fathom how people are defending this Movie, if you've made it this far, firstly I'm so sorry you read all that, Secondly, please let me know in detail WHY you liked this Movie. I know you exist, I've seen the reviews and comments, I want to know genuinely because to me this Movie was holistically bad, I went in with my heels set to enjoy and be the contrarian who likes it and I was swept skywards by a deluge of shit.

This film ends as it begins but with 2 hours of your life lost and a legion of your braincells lost.

Thanks for reading.

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

This is a follow-up question of "On the Nature of Adaptations" meta post. (https://www.tumblr.com/thecarnivorousmuffinmeta/646041627313553408/i-used-to-be-obsessed-with-percy-jackson-when-i) In the post, you said: "A lot of stories and backdrops are not appropriate for an intended audience or will need cultural translation. Many stories do this. Disney, for example, I believe does it quite well. They removed almost all of Hercules’ myth in the movie and made Hera and Zeus loving parents, The Little Mermaid film is very different from the original story though still quite good. I am not against adaptations, however, I do think we should acknowledge they are adaptations." May I ask: what sort of "cultural translation" is understandable? i.e.: what makes you enjoy Disney's Hercules but not Percy Jackson series? Pardon me if this example is wacky, but my point being: what's the difference if they are both not that faithful to the source material? I understand different media has its different limitations so sure, I can understand why Dinsey's Hercules is the way... Disney's Hercules is. But why "no" to Percy Jackson? What's the line here? P.S.: To clarify, I am not a mega fan or mega defender of Percy Jackson, plz don't get me wrong. The reason I am sending this ask is bc your "What Disney song would represent Twilight main cast?" post. I am honestly glad that you mentioned three of Disney Hunchback's songs. Not just Hellfire, but three. Thank you Muffin for not shitting on Disney's Hunchback for... *cough* "not being faithful to the source material." Thank you. So plz take this ask like, I kinda want to justify my love for Disney's Hunchback personally. Thank you again.

Why I Don't Like Percy Jackson.

I guess I should get this out before the show is released and tumblr is overtaken by Percy.

To avoid getting into a whole rant about adaptations, when they work and when they don't, and why it's okay to be unfaithful to the source material or even the spirit of the source material even when Harry Potter fans are upset that not every little detail of the books made it into the films and how dare they cut this character who only had one line! I'll just say how I personally view it.

It boils down to "is the thing good". That's it, that's all I want out of my adaptations.

The Shining film was a slap in the face to The Shining novel, King infamously hates the film, mostly because Kubrick took basically just the setting, the character names, and the very basic plot and uh completely changed everything else. Still a great movie, one of my favorites.

Ghibli adaptations tend to have next to nothing in common with the source material they're based on, they still tend to be very good films.

The Lord of the Rings Peter Jackson films are fantastic, they do not take every detail from the book and even drop a few major plot points for runtime/plotline reasons (such as the enslavement of the Hobbits by Saruman).

For me an adaptation should be able to stand on its own and be enjoyable, even if it diverges from its source material. If you can do that I'm happy with you. If you can't, you bore me, or you make the source material worse/more boring.

Justifying your love for Hunchback's a different post, suffice to say for me, I find it a great film (admittedly with some issues) with a fantastically evil villain.