#I'm tempted to make a list for movies & tv shows too

[dayscapism]

Read this instead of Harry Potter - part 3/ 3:

Young Adult (YA) recommendations under the cut:

Part 1 - Adult books

Part 2 - Middle grade/children's books

Arrows of the Queen (Heralds of Valdemar trilogy) by Mercedes Lackey (high fantasy): There's actually multiple series in the same world. In this trilogy we follow Talia, a young girl who lives in a small community that misteats her. She doesnt know any different, this is the only life and people shes ever known, but then is chosen whisked away by a mystical horse and taken to a school to become a trainee Herald, destined to become one of the Queen's own elite guard. For Talia has certain talents of the mind only her horse companion can sense. Here, as she works to master her abilities, she also begins to learn to trust for the first time in her life, connect with other people, and understanding her trauma. Meanwhile, conspiracy and trason is brewing in the realm, and only the Heralds can help protect it from its enemies.... This first book is very heartwarming and classic fantasy. In the sequels we follow her as she gets older and the sacrifices and darker, heavier moments that come with that. Honestly thos one sounds like the same brief for the main character as HP. Lackey has great LGBTQ+ representation too.

★ Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson (novel + novella): About a warrior-librarian who finds herself entangled in an evil plot in a world where magic books, called grimoires, have sentience and can turn into monsters if they're not properly taken care of. These grimoires are created by magicians whose magic comes from demons linked to their old-blood families, and these magicians' houses are full of magical artefacts, strange curses, hidden rooms magically folded up between walls and sentient gardens, all very reminiscent of Hogwarts' ever-shifting magical corridors.

★ Lockwood & Co. by Jonathan Stroud (series, British): Teenage ghost-hunters, magic bureaucracy, dark vibes, historical artefacts, death discussions, found family, haunted houses, suspense, and more.

The Nature of Witches by Rachel Griffin (standalone): In this world, witches maintain the climate, but when this control starts faltering, a witch with rare magic, connected to every season is the only hope.

To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo (duology): Mermaids! For Goblet of Fire fans.

Raybearer by Jordan Ifuenko (duology): Tarisai was raised in isolation by a mysterious, absent mother until one day she sends her to the capital, to be chosen as one of the crown prince's council and kill him. This is a story about friendship and the love and warmth of family.

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas: Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can't get rid of him. This story is about a Latino, trans young wizard, who battles with his family accepting his gender.

★ Legenborn by Tracy Deonn (trilogy): Arthurian retelling with a black protagonist who enters a secret society in her university to solve the mystery of her mother's death but she finds it more full of magic and secrets than she expected. Secrets that might even tie to her own heritage and bloodline...

The Diviners by Libba Bray (quartet, paranormal, mystery, horror): It's set in 1929 New York, the protagonist, Evie, comes to the city to live with her uncle, who has an unhealthy obsession with the occult and she worries he will discover her greatest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought problems so far. When a girl is murdered and branded with a cryptic symbol, she realizes her power might help solve the murder. Great alternative to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

Scythe by Neal Shusterman (trilogy, sci-fi dystopian): This has themes about death and mortality/immortality. Set in a world where humanity has conquered hunger, disease, war and misery, now a group of select people called scythes are tasked with ending life to keep the population size under control. We follow two apprentices to such a vital profession, a role that neither wants.

This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab (duology): In a city overrun by monsters created out of acts of violence, there's no such thing as "safe", a young woman and a young man on opposite sides of the divided city, must decide if they will become enemies or friends, heroes or villains and what means to be one. (I mean if that premise is not the analogue to a Horocrux or werewolves idk what is.) I also recommend City of Ghosts by this author (set in Edinburgh, where the protagonist's parents host a TV show about haunted places. But the protagonist can enter this world of spirits ever since she almost--or did drown.)

The Little Witch by M. Rickert (short story): Every Halloween an elderly woman hands out candy to a young trick-or-treater girl who's always dressed as a witch and looks the same age every year. She grows more and more curious and attached to her and her oddness.

One Dark Window by Rachel Gilling (duology): To stay safe in her eerie, mist-locked kingdom, Elspeth needs a monster. One day she meets a mysterious highwayman on the forest road, and her life takes a drastic turn, thrusting her into a world of shadow and deception. Together with the highwayman, they must gather a set of magical cards that are keys to cure the kingdom from the dark magic infecting it. But Elspeth is forced to face a dark magic taking over her own mind. This sounds great for people who liked the horrocruxes as a magic device, who like exploring evilness corrupting a character from the inside out, and for fans of the dark forest in Hogwarts.

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco (series): Set in London in the 1880s, we follow Audrey Rose Wadsworth, born a lord's daughter, who yearns for more than social tea parties and dress fittings. She has a secret life working in her uncle's laboratory, studying the gruesome and fascinating practice of forensic medicine. Then a string of savagely killed corpses begin appearing... Deliciously creepy horror novel inspired by the Ripper murders.

School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani and illustrator Iacopo Bruno (series): This year, best friends Sophie and Agatha are about to discover where all the lost children go: the fabled School for Good & Evil, where ordinary boys and girls are trained to be fairy tale heroes and villains. As the most beautiful girl in Gavaldon, Sophie has dreamed of pink dresses, glass slippers, and devotion to good deeds all her life, she knows she’ll earn top marks at the School for Good and graduate a storybook princess. Meanwhile Agatha, with her shapeless black frocks, wicked pet cat, and dislike of nearly everyone, seems a natural fit for the School for Evil. But when the two girls are swept into schools, they find their fortunes reversed... Is this really a mistake? Or is it a clue to discovering who they really are?

Into the Labirynth by Jown Bierce (series): Hugh is the worst student the Academy of Skyhold has ever seen. He can barely cast any spells without them failing explosively. He is an outcast in the school, and he definitely doesn't expect a mage to choose him as an apprentice, but when a very unusual mage does, his life starts taking a sharp turn for the better. Though, he still has to get ready for his final test in the labyrinth below the school.

Fireborn by Rosaria Munda (trilogy): post-revolution/overthrowing the government plot, with dragon riders and maybe a child of the old regime survived... This is perfect if you were unsatisfied by the infamous HP7 epilogue.

Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch by Julie Abe (duology + prequel): Eva Evergreen is determined to earn the rank of Novice Witch before her thirteenth birthday. If she doesn't, she'll lose her magic forever. For most young witches and wizards, it's a simple enough test, but Eva has only a pinch of magic and always gets the spells backwards. But she comes up with a plan: set up a semi-magical repair shop to help her town and prove she's worthy. But the biggest magical storm in history threatens the town. Will her little bit of magic be enough? If you wanted justice for the squibs in HP!

The Magician's Guild by Trudi Canavan (trilogy, adventure, epic fantasy): Every year, the magicians gather to purge the city of undesirables. Cloaked in the protection of their sorcery, they move with no fear, until one angry girl hurls a stone at them; there is someone outside their ranks who possesses raw magical power. She must be found and schooled before she destroys herself and her city with the power she can't control.

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger and illustrated by Rovina Cai (standalone, mystery, magical realism, LGBTQ+): Set in an alternate USA with magic, monsters and legends. Elatsoe, an indigenous girl, can raise the ghosts of dead animals, a skill passed by generations of her Lipan Apache family. Her beloved cousin has just been murdered and she will protect her family and unveil the secrets of this town.

★Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead (YA, series): A magic school but for vampires instead of witches. Still has magic in it, with the dark vibe that goes with vampires. It's a trashy teen vampire series in the best way, tbh. Great to pass the time.

Graphic novel recommendations:

Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama

Anya's Ghost by Vera Brosgol

⚠️The following books are often recommended too, but some or their authors are problematic, so tread with caution: ⚠️

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater: Has racist Asian stereotyping/jokes in the third book of the series. The author has some problematic behavior on Twitter but I don't know the details.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: Asian racist stereotypes of the character Park. Carry On/Fangirl could be options, I suppose.

Scholomance series by Naomi Novik: The first book, A Deathly Education, had damaging racist passages and stereotypes of black people's hair. The book was later reprinted to fix the issue.

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card: This author is staunchly homophobic.

Skyward & Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson: This author is a Mormon. By this religion's rules, they have to donate a percentage (aka tithing) of their net earnings to the church (around 10%), and the Mormon Church actively funds anti-LGBTQ+ initiatives. Sanderson has been asked before about this, but he hasn't given a clear answer on his contributions. He is presumably paying the tithes, though he will tell you he is pro-gays if you ask him. His books also have heavy religious preaching and his world-building is often very cis/hetero-normative. He is doing great work fighting against Amazon's book monopoly though, using his popularity and power for good, which is great. (I have read his books before but nowadays I would rather read other authors and I will never BUY any of his books.)

Happy reading!

★ Books I've read and personally recommend.

Supporting Sources:

https://www.aspiraldance.com/middle-grade-and-young-adult-books-to-read-instead-of-harry-potter/

https://missprint.wordpress.com/2022/09/01/back-to-magic-school-harry-potter-alternatives-booklist/

Goodreads for synopses.

[singsweetmelodies]

tagged by lovely @car-bo-hydrate to try this <3333

star sign: virgo

favourite holiday: new year

last meal: a hot mug of tea and some south african buttermilk rusks (comfort food breakfast!!! ❤️☕)

current favourite musician: probably taylor swift, but as always, it's hard to choose just one. OOOH! lately, dove cameron is high up on the list too

last music listened to: confetti (acoustic version) by little mix - LISTEN. ever since ms perrie edwards put out a tease that her solo music is coming soon, i have been on a big little mix high again, listening to all my old favourites and hyping myself up sooooo much for that perrie music drop 👀👀👀😍

last movie watched: my girlfriend and i rewatched shang-chi and the legend of the ten rings again last night for movie night <3 LOVE that movie, omfg. both my gf and i firmly declared all michelle yeoh's scenes our favourites 🤭

last tv show watched: you know, it's actually been really long since i've properly watched a TV show, so the answer to this is probably something silly like reruns of FRIENDS

last book/fic finished: 2 different answers here!! last book was iron flame by rebecca yarros (yes, i caved to all the hype and read it on the plane - yes, there were bits that pissed me off, but i mostly enjoyed it) and last fic was one of AO3 user venerat's landoscar masterpieces, "i'll kiss you first" <3

last book/fic abandoned: hmm... i tried to read this rom-com called "you & me: a mlm single dads romance" while on holiday in SA, and i just... couldn't make it more than 5 chapters in. the cringe (& the VERY american focus of... everything...) was just too much for me, especially because i tried to read this right after a super delightful wlw rom-com recommended to me by darling @duquesademiel. after that, this one just... couldn't compare. at all.

currently reading: well, i'm back to work, so my time for books has unfortunately dropped exponentially... all i'm actively reading rn is a bunch of f1 rpf fics, to be perfectly honest

last thing researched for writing/art/hyperfixation: "WHAT COULD CAUSE A SCANDAL IN THE REGENCY ERA" 🤣🤭

favourite online fandom memory: storytime sundays where we tell those long DM fics with @boxboxbrioche and @welightitup <3333

favourite old fandom you wish would drag you back in/have a resurgence: HMMM! i am mostly over all my old fandoms by now, to be fair, but if i really had to choose one... probably one direction?? because a proper resurgence would mean the reunion, right? (right?) ((so maybe i'm not quite as "over it" as i pretend 🤭))

favourite thing that you enjoyed that never had an active fandom: ohhhh, i can't think of a name immediately now, but it's definitely some or other book series that, if it had a fandom at all, was so tiny that i was practically the only person in it 🥲

tempting project that you're trying to rein in/don't have time for: LISTEN. i have had the most awful writer's block for months, and now that i can finally write again, somewhat, all that i want to write are the things that i should NOT be focusing on rn, because those things don't have deadlines but other things do *charles_wtf discord react*

prime example: about 2838474829 piarles smut WIPs and a/b/o and chussyverse explorations, instead of... my PWFE fic. some belated birthday fics. some celebration fics i promised nearly half a bloody YEAR ago. oops 😭😭 but, we'll get there. we will! just like this will be ferrari's year (i am delulu) xD

no idea who's done this yet and who hasn't, so i'm just going to tag some friends and hope i'm not double-tagging anyone - also, if i miss anyone, please feel free to say i tagged you anyway, because i'd love to see your answers <3 @boxboxbrioche @welightitup @hourcat @teamnick @sedicii @francophones @radiocheck, if any of you feel like giving this a go <3333

[leverage-ot3]

I was tagged by my buddy and old siren (freeform) mutual @imaginejolls for this ask game!

Star Sign(s): Sagittarius sun, Aquarius moon, Capricorn rising

Favorite Holidays: halloween :3

Last Meal: my mom's cajun beef stew with rice pilaf and a roll

Current Favorite Musician: I've been listening to a lot of noah kahan recently (vermont represent), but I also adore hozier, gracie abrams, lizzie mcalpine, phoebe bridgers, etc. I've never been the same since I was told my taste in music was yallternative. I also love lil nas x and found a new musician through tiktok that goes by brye that is really good

Last Music Listened To: the playlist I listen to the most, especially for sleep: immaculate fall vibes (technically the name of the playlist is just a bunch of the artists featured in it but the description is immaculate fall vibes). my most recent song was save me by noah kahan

Last Movie Watched: this is so embarrasing but I watched the meg with my dad yesterday lmao. I have a weakness for stupid monster movies (we used to watch the shittiest syfy movies together when I was in hs. the shittier the better). I thought he'd like it because jason statham but he was meh about it

Last TV Show Watched: last one I was invested in was the new episode of percy jackson, but I did watch a little bit of that polish show high water on netflix the other day which seemed interesting

Last Book/Fic Finished: god I actually haven't been reading fic for a hot minute which is really surprising. probably my reread of of the northmost winds and skies by @jjackfrost. wasn't in the crossover fandom until earlier this year but actually adore that pairing. this is now my comfort longfic (+400k). it's so good, I read it and I wasn't even in the fandom at the time and it was amazing!!! all the characters are written so well, the voices and pov are great, the worldbuilding and storyling is amazing! I've gushed in the comments before but ugh I love it so so much. inject this into my mf veins

Last Book/Fic Abandoned: I don't really abandon fics, I just wait for them to get updated again. as for books, I really tried to get into loveless by alice oseman because aroace rep but I couldn't really get into it :/

Currently Reading: nothing at the moment (not going to list all the fics I'm waiting for updates for because I can't remember them all and the ones I can remember would take up like multiple pages lol)

Last Thing Researched for Art/Writing/Hyperfixation: ooo this is hard. technically speaking I've been hyperfixated on playing animal crossing so the most recent thing I looked up for that was what treasure islands were lmao

Favorite Online Fandom Memory: oooo I'm not sure actually? I really love having mutuals even if we don't talk. I also really enjoy when people engage with my posts and appreciate my tags and aus. I like sharing my thoughts and ideas with you guys and it's so heartwarming and validating when y'all enjoy it right back

Favorite Old Fandom You Wish Would Drag You Back In/Have A Resurgence: I agree with jolly, I miss siren dearly. can they just do a leverage in like five years and retcon the last season? thanks

Favorite Thing You Enjoy That Never Had an Active or Big "Fandom" but You Wish It Did: probably some of the kdramas I've watched. I adored the guest on netflix but there's no fandom. I really REALLY wanted some fix-it fics for the ending of my name but there weren't any because the fandom was too small :(

Tempting Project You're Trying to Rein In/Don't Have Time For: so many things that I jump between (the adhd of it all lmao). I really would like to make a leverage ot3: are they queer video essay and I have some stuff typed up BUT I work in the healthcare field and I'm really hesitant of putting myself on video because when you work in this field it can be weird if clients or employers find your channel. so that's technically on hold for privacy reasons rn. I also really want to learn how to sew and make clothes and my roommate has even offered to help (they used to do competitive cosplay) but I'm just very unmotivated. I want to get back into witchy things but don't have the mental energy to invest in that other than appreciating my stones

tagging 10 moots but anyone can play!!!: @leverageclips @all-things-breathing @digitaldiscipline @peachyteabuck @vampirewalterskinner @buzzmcnab @sidras-tak @my-beloved-lakes @kajaono @suddenrundown

[hepatosaurus]

2023 AO3 Wrapped!

I had a lot of fun tracking my fic reading in 2022, so... I did it again in 2023! Still fun, still both completely unsurprising and a little illuminating at the same time. I definitely read less fic this past year—only 77 across 12 fandoms, compared to last year's 110—but that's OK. Life happens, and I'm very aware that I'm never going to be a person who reads a million words per month (or 100 books a year). Stats-wise, I can't guarantee that these numbers are completely accurate, but they feel right and that's what counts.

Word Count

971,646 words! Numbers fluctuated throughout the year with one real dead zone (lol @ June - I was busy! sibling got married! played a lot of Zelda!), and I kind of petered out by the end of the year. On the plus side, my brain can handle reading actual books again, which was fun. On the minus side: less fic. Oh well. (Also: May's number isn't entirely accurate, but I had to put rubicon's final word count somewhere. No, I haven't finished reading the complete edited fic yet, but that's when the last chapter draft hit my inbox, soooo there.) Most fics were on the shorter side, unsurprisingly (average length was ~12k); I think rubicon was the only one over 100k. I did read more 50–100k fic compared to last year though, which was nice.

(Putting the rest behind a cut. Obligatory warning that this is mostly about Fire Emblem, but what else is new?)

Top Fandoms

My FE3H reading took a HUGE hit this year, falling from 87.3% to... 83.1%. Ouch, how will my faves recover. Really though, this was yet another reminder that although I certainly watched and loved a lot of new movies and tv shows, read new books, played new video games (ok, it was mostly BOTW/TOTK), all things that could conceivably lead me to check out greener pastures, I am still in an extremely monofandom phase in terms of actual fic reading/fandom participation (four years now!). And honestly, I'm fine with that! I'm having fun, blorbos are still my blorbos, there's still a ton of fic I haven't read yet (new and old), and I'm in a nice/quiet/drama-free corner of fandom. Besides, the average fandom lifespan is too short these days anyway. I'm doing my part to break the cycle. :P

I do wish I had the brain space to read a little more widely, though. I was so close to going on a zelink bender after I finished BOTW, but life got busy and it just... didn't happen. Maybe in 2024. Severance and fandom juggernaut SoftBank Next 30-Year Vision tried their best—two fics each! impressive, lol—but the heart wants what it wants, and what it wants is anime chess pieces kissing (and/or killing) each other.

Top Authors

56 individual authors, with the top spot going to...desmodus! which does not surprise me tbh; they write such good fic. Looking at these particular results was an interesting reminder that I'm really not someone who methodically/voraciously reads through an author's entire back catalogue, at least not currently. Like, besides the named authors, there were four more with two fics each and the rest had only one each. Next time, I'm almost tempted to see if I can factor in word count to get a better idea of how much time I really spent reading each author, especially since I might (hypothetically) read multiple forgettable 1–5k fics by Author A, and then a single memorable/meaty 95k fic by Author B that sticks with me for years. Is Author A really more of a "top" author? Not really. That's more work on my part though, so we'll see what happens. (All of this waffling could be solved by making an actual rec list for once, but shhhhh.)

Top Pairings

Surprising absolutely no one, I'm still in sylvix hell. Congrats to None for jumping a couple spots in the rankings, though! A solid showing. I need to get better at tracking platonic relationships, but to be fair, those tags are underutilized on AO3 to begin with (or not used consistently), and I typically—but not always—stick with the main tags chosen by the author.

Also, please note that the ship in sixth place was entirely thanks to alphabetical sorting (it was a six-way tie), but I'm keeping it as is because it makes me laugh/implies some sort of character growth on my part that may or may not exist.

Top Characters

Lol. In my defense(?), Sylvain did drop almost three whole points this year; he couldn't even hit 60%! What kind of blorbo...?! Jokes aside, it's an entirely expected list. My Blue Lions/Golden Deer bias persists, but I'm not sure what determined when I logged "Blue Lions Students" vs. their actual names—probably half laziness, half just following what the author picked. I did love seeing Ask A Manager's Allison Green chilling at the bottom of this list with Bakugo, though. I'm sure she'll be fine. (And god knows Mr. King Explosion Murder and the rest of my top 20 could stand to follow her advice.)

(Also: apologies to Lorenz Hellman Gloucester, as I see his illustrious surname was cut off accidentally. Forgive me.)

Ratings, Categories, etc.

Also pretty unsurprising! I considered cutting my NSFW tracker at the beginning of last year since it's a little redundant, but that never happened. It might come in handy one day, especially if I'm looking through my spreadsheet for individualized recs. I was surprised that the Multi category was so low, but that could be due to inconsistencies in how people tag their fic? And/or how I logged them. Sometimes it means poly, but sometimes it just means that there are multiple kinds of ships in a fic. Either way, it's something to consider for 2024's tracker. Consistency! Let's strive for it! ✨

Tags & Tropes

Also about what I expected, though I was honestly shocked to see Established Relationship ranking so high? And Friends to Lovers so low? What is going ON here. (The former is probably partially due to mikey desmodus's excellent married sylvix fics.) Sorry to Horse Feelings, though; I made a dedicated tag on my google form and everything, but there was only the one fic in the end :(

Etc: Commenting, Rereading, Reccing, and Bookmarks

Commenting: My only real fic-reading "goal" in 2023 was to get my commenting percentage up to at least 50% and...I did that! Just barely, but 51.9% is 51.9%. Obsessive media tracking works!

Rereads: As expected, and pretty in line with last year (with a tiny increase). I'm just not a big rereader in general, though I did do a fair bit of rereading WIPs to prepare for new chapters. (Not sure how I classified those, come to think of it...)

Bookmarks: Also pretty similar to last year (with a tiny decrease).

Reccing: Now this DID surprise me. That "Yes" percentage seems almost absurdly high, jumping from 46.4% to 61%, and my "No"s dropped a ton too (22.7% to 5.2%). Either I got nicer or I just read better fic. :P Leaning towards the former, but probably a bit of both tbh. My one DNF was a longfic WIP that didn't spark joy and was becoming a hateread, which is rare for me - byeeeee.

Takeaways

By now my tracking form has become part of my fic-reading routine (read - track - comment/etc), and I can't see that changing any time soon. Obviously not everyone wants to (or should!) engage with fic this way, and I can definitely see how it might suck the joy out of reading for some people, but for me, it's been a good mental exercise and a really helpful commenting aid. Also, it's just fun. I like thinking critically about media! I like having a place to record my silly little thoughts about the silly little fanfics I read! All in all, I highly recommend doing something similar if you, like me, get a rush from making lists and compiling data, and if you like complimenting people but sometimes need that extra push to actually tell them and post a comment.

Goals-wise... I don't really do those lol. Probably to continue commenting and maybe try to read more widely, but honestly I'm probably not going to change my habits intentionally. Besides, looking at what I've read so far, yes, it's already half Fire Emblem, but also half gen and half F/F with nary a Sylvain in sight*! We got History Boys, we got Haikyuu filk, we got Ingrid and a MILF! Who knows what's around the corner?

(*This is quite literally only because I haven't logged rubicon yet. Don't worry, he's coming.)

[the-shy-artisan]

Plumeria, iris, tigerlily and zinnia :D

plumeria— are you currently working on any creative projects? if so, what kinds?

Currently, I'm working on a prototype of a mini Beastos plush I plan on making/selling (it's just about done! c:), and the long overdue second chapter for my first God of War fic, To Survive. I'm trying to finish these two projects before I start adding more to my list, although it's awfully tempting ;; Too many ideas, not enough free time ;n;

iris— would you describe yourself as a sensitive person? why or why not?

Most definitely!

tigerlily— do you have any favorite quotes from any movies, tv shows, books, or poetry? (or from people in real life)

"You’re only given a little spark of madness. You mustn’t lose it." -Robin Williams

and

"No good friends. No bad friends. Only people you want, need to be with; people who build their houses in your heart." - Stephen King's IT

zinnia— would you say you think more with your head or with your heart?

I definitely tend to think more with my heart ;;

[jennathearcher]

5, 11 & 18?

fandom year in review asks!

5 - Favorite song, album, or artist to listen to this year

Oh god there's too many to list here!! Taylor Swift, obviously :P As well as Harry Styles, Ghost, and many many movie and TV show soundtracks!! I'm tempted to make a playlist with all my fave songs of the year, though I worry it might be too long XD

11 - Biggest squee moments of the year

Unsurprisingly, of course they are all connected to Hellcheer :P From Eddie's introduction scene, to the now iconic forest scene, and "Chrissy, this is for you," I can't remember the last time I fell this hard and fast not only for a ship but for the set of characters in that ship!!

18 - Fandom that you never expected to get into

You probably predicted this, but I definitely never expected to get back into Stranger Things after so long; let alone to find a new favorite ship and favorite characters!! Other than that, I had other surprises this year, mostly how much I ended up loving House of the Dragon, and how hard I ended up falling for the protagonist of The Magnus Archives!!

Thank you so so much for asking, Laura!! <3

[xoteajays]

Exactly! Regardless of the character's personality, lots of characters I love can fight or kill if they need to. Because who doesn't love fighters like those characters? Everyone always has their reasons for fighting.

Intelligent characters too.. Because I always love when they're able to outsmart the other characters through strategic planning in ways any one else is too stupid to understand. Chishiya, Tommy and Vincenzo.

~

I forgot that you mentioned that. That's my fault. Anyway.. I'm usually so opened minded to horror movies, but only if the movie (or show) is interesting enough for me to watch. I won't watch my time if anything I've seen didn't catch my attention in any way. So that really depends.

That's what I thought.. Because I only saw Joong-ki listed as a cameo for one episode, and I know Wi-Ha Joon only in some episodes. So if I do watch the show, then it might be a while. But I may eventually end up watching it. Maybe after Halloween? I don't know. So it's a maybe.

How the fuck is Joong-ki nearly forty years old? This man.. He always looks half his age! He's like the type of attractive person who has tried to be sexy (based on Vincenzo), but always ends up being cute about his appearance. He's so adorable. Don't know why that came to mind.

And, of course, some of Joong-ki's work is on Netflix. So I'll be able to watch more of his work. But there are some shows and movies that is only available in certain countries, so hopefully those are listed on the sites we use. Same with Do-hwan and Sang-yi's work too. I hate that.

Yes! Masters Of Horror should be on Tubi because that's where I have watched the series. I wish they still kept the show on tv. And I actually don't remember why the show was cancelled either.. Because when it was aired on tv, that was usually around Halloween time - around that time in the season. And there will be some actors you'll recognize too.

My only complaint about the Tubi app is that it's not in high quality so hopefully you'll still enjoy shows and movies on there, especially for in the Halloween season. I just prefer high definition over low definition.. It has better quality in my opinion. Maybe because I'm used to it now.

~

That's kinda what I thought about Shion's situation. Smoky's dead by this point in time, they lost a lot of people during the explosions - way before Smoky was killed. So I can (possibly) see them forgiving Shion after some time. And who knows if he may actually make any attempt to kill Nikaido, if Nikaido isn't already in prison with the most of Kuryu by then. But that's how I could possibly see this situation happening.

~

Everyone has different reactions to writing the Strawberry Girls, from what I have noticed anyway. Some people want to try fleshing out the characters to make them interesting in their stories, and other people do not seem to care enough about their characters to even try writing them well enough in the stories. I still haven't decided for myself yet.

Weird.. Their initials are the same. Kinda. Orange Girl, Ojou Girl, so it's OG now. But that's until names (my names) are figured out though.

I love how we've already figured out characters like Rocky Murayama, also Hyuga too, because they are the easiest to figure out. But Cobra! This fucker is pissing me off. I still can't figure him out half the time.

If you used Ayaka as a face claim, which visuals would you use for her character? Like Ann in Alice In Borderland? Or from different roles?

True. I know Asian schools are strict about uniforms so that really just doesn't surprise me. So their clothing would be like in Oya's? Because the full timers (like Todoroki) wear their whole uniform but part timers (like Murayama) incorporate casual any clothing with school uniform. Like flannel shirts and headbands, jewelry, clothes and accessories in these schools that shouldn't be permitted. At least in Asian schools.

Stop it! The more we talk about creating characters, then more I'm so tempting to create even more characters. I already have a lot of them for High&Low. So stop tempting me with something like this now.

If you used pink for your Ojou school, just use different shading of the pink then. Purple is rarely used in H&L. Indigo? Bluish purple shades... Blue and indigo are the shades of blue I use for my blue character in a traditional sense. I don't know how similar Oya and Ojou are though.

That's the different between Orange and Yui then. Even if Orange and Cobra do end up together romantically, she's rarely - if ever - shy with Cobra. But that's because they have been childhood friends though.

But that's something Orange and Yui have in common. Orange.. She's not a hateful person (unless you truly did horrible things in her eyes in a way that warranted her hatred like Kuryu). But I can't see her hating any of the Strawberry Girls, she might be friendly towards them since they have the same group of friends. Though at the same time, I have imagined Junko being jealous of Orange. Because Orange is this very confident woman who is always true to herself, she doesn't act much differently than normal, she's just herself. And Cobra (along with a lot of everyone else in Sannoh) pays attention to her. So Junko's always a girl comparing herself to Orange, also trying to make herself cooler in Cobra's eyes. Except his attention is towards Orange if they'll actually end up romantically involved. Junko is jealous. Still thinking that over. But yeah. That's another thing that have thought of, mostly because I don't care that much about these girls to care what happens to them.

Murayama and Yui sounds like bickering siblings trying to get Cobra's attention. That's what came to mind when I read it. Don't know why.

i love a character who can fight. but there’s also a handful of characters i like that are just plain bad at fighting and are just kind of. totally hopeless.

i also love a total himbo. like obviously i loved chishiya and a bunch of other smart characters, but i love an idiot.

duality of my character loves.

~

wi ha joon is the main male lead, and i think he’s supposed to be the main love interest but the leas pair don’t actually get together which is so frustrating because they have excellent chemistry. i’ve noticed he doesn’t seem to have a lot of romantic roles, which is a shame because he’s. So Pretty.

yea ive seen that descendants of the sun on netflix and heard its pretty good. and space sweepers. i’ve just not watched either because they kind of fall into genres im not really into. like military/war stuff and space-y/sci-fi aren’t really my thing.

also - idk if it’s just new in australia - but once upon a crime with takanori iwata is on netflix now. and ive also been thinking of watching informa with reo sano.

the other bad thing about tubi is the ads. like i dont wanna watch like 12 ads across a movie. it’s nice that it’s free, but i hate. ads.

~

nikaido should be watching his back if he’s not in prison. because if the remaining rude boys find out he was behind smokey’s death, they’ll likely be coming for him and nikaido doesn’t have the defence of kuryu’s fighters anymore.

~

that’s kind of the original writers’ faults i think. they didn’t really develop them and they didn’t exactly make any of them compelling in the scenes they were in. like naomi was only in a few scenes, but she was fleshed out and way more interesting than any of the strawberries.

also i just realised ive stolen two of the strawberries’ crushes for my ocs. murayama from oshiage for ryuko, and cobra from junko for yui.

luckily we can kind of dodge any mix up with that, i think. since i’ve named her now. so your’s can stay og until you figure out names and mine’ll switch over to yui.

i’ve decided on both the new girls’ names now actually: yui sakuragi and shizuka ibaraki. (the surnames are similar on purpose).

i’m still trying to figure out cobra too! i need to watch a bunch of his scenes again so i can try and get a feel. maybe read some fics or other people’s headcanons about him and see what i agree with. cobra! stop being complicated!

i don’t know exactly what role, but i have one pic of her that is extremely in-character for shizuka. i’ll have to send it to you! it’s very tomboy-ish, casual chic.

more characters! i’m an enabler!

if i use purple, i was thinking maybe a more red-lean purples as opposed to blue-purples. oya and ojou are pretty similar, though ojou puts up more of a ‘good school’ front and is a bit tidier; but there are still rumours about ojou’s fights and the brawler students.

yui is not usually shy, but she also hasn’t had a lot of crushes in her life. then she meets cobra and it’s very. different. she’s still got a bit of bite about her, bits of her usual confident attitude coming through, but she’s also quieter, kinda fumbling. she cannot flirt. she comes back from meeting cobra, all blushy about him it, and shizuka teases her.

yui is kind of indifferent towards the strawberries. she kind of views them as a gang in aesthetic only because they wear the outfits but don’t? really do anything? she’s just not really giving them any thoughts. junko thinks they’re rivals though. yui’s like ‘do you want to fight then?’ and then junko never does, so yui just … ignores her.

i can see junko being jealous and making excuses that they - orange and yui - only get attention for their looks and completely ignores the fact that they’re being true to themselves and not trying to act like someone they think other people (read: cobra) would like.

murayama and yui just on either side of cobra, pulling on his arms like two kids fighting over a teddy. cobra likes both of them (in different ways) but he’s also like ‘someone help’.

since i haven’t mentioned her much. lemme talk about shizuka a bit.

she’s a year or two older than yui and the two have something of a sisterly relationship. shizuka never wanted to be leader of ojou, but she respected yui for never giving up (since yui didn’t make leader her first try and had to work through a few losses) and ended up befriending her. she’s a big romance fan. where yui is very ‘women don’t need protection from men, girls can fight too!’ (she’s a lil snippy with the rascals getting in her way in a fight), shizuka thinks it’s romantic when men step in to protect the girl they like. she’s more relaxed than yui but also more confident around the men she likes. her and hiroto probably get together before yui and cobra because she has little issue whenever it comes to confessing her feelings.

[wavejhs]

Scream

Genre: Thriller/Horror

Pairing: Hoseok/Reader

Word Count: 2,812

Tags: Thriller, Horror, Murder, Some fluff, Angst

Summary: It's tradition for you and your boyfriend to have an annual movie marathon on the eve of your birthday. A mysterious caller makes it a night you'll never forget. Scream!AU

You've always thought it was a satisfying sound; the popping of popcorn as it gets cooked.

In the living room, the screen of your Smart TV displays the Netflix homepage. It's the eve of your birthday and you're getting ready to watch a scary movie. It's a classic slasher one. Your boyfriend had phoned you no less than half an hour ago, telling you he'd be present to hold you as you start your annual movie marathon. You appreciate it, knowing Hoseok wasn't a fan of the horror genre but he was willing to spend one night a year to watch scary films with you.

You make it up to him, though, watching cheesy romance comedies and action movies on his birthday. A balanced compromise means a healthy relationship.

You're walking back and forth between the kitchen and the living room, wanting to make sure you don't miss a spot cleaning up, making sure you've got a large enough blanket draping the couch for when the night gets chilly, making sure your beverages are ready. When you deem everything presentable, you focus on your TV, clicking the first movie on your list.

Your boyfriend lived a few blocks away from your house, usually taking him less than 10 minutes from his house to yours and you wonder what's taking him so long. You're just about to pick your phone up to dial him when it rings, startling you enough to fumble with it when it nearly slips out of your fingers.

It's an unknown number. Pursing your lip, you answer the call.

You clear your throat, "Hello?"

"Hello." It's a man's voice.

You wait for a response. When only silence follows, you shut your eyes, rolling them behind your eyelids. It's a prank call.

Trying to sound as polite as you can, even using your customer service voice, you follow with a, "Yes?"

It takes two seconds for the receiving end to answer. "Who is this?"

You absentmindedly stride towards your kitchen, checking on the popcorn in the microwave, "Who are you trying to reach?"

"What number is this?" The man's voice was deep and smooth, but had a gentle tone. He sounded like he was genuinely asking, and you start to think your assumption was wrong.

You hum patiently. "What number are you trying to reach?"

"I don't know."

You nod, still staring at the microwave, "I think you have the wrong number."

"Do I?"

You hum again, hanging up with a, "It happens. Take it easy."

Your lips lift in a soft smile, the conversation with the soft spoken stranger turning out to be one of the most polite ones you've ever had. It takes a exactly second for you to remember why you even had your phone in your hand and you unlock the screen to dial again when,

It rings. You pick it up.

"Hello?" You start, tentative.

"Why don't you want to talk to me?" It's the man again and you're starting to sense in the pit of your stomach that something might not be right.

"Who is this?" You reply, closing your eyes and taking a silent breath, telling yourself not to assume the worst every time.

There's a chuckle on the other end, boyish and light. "You tell me your name, I'll tell you mine."

Just as you start to ponder if playing along would get this over with, your microwave dings. You peek at it and take out the popcorn.

Walking to the cupboards where you keep your boals, you make a disapproving noise. "Hm. Yeah, no. Sorry, it's just..stranger danger. You know how it is."

"What was that noise?" Still smooth, still gentle. Still a mystery.

Rolling your tongue in your cheek, you bite and play along. "My microwave. I'm making popcorn."

"Oh," There's a rustle, "You watching a movie? I only eat popcorn at movies."

"Well yeah." You giggle, giddy at the thought of spending the night with your boyfriend's hands gripping yours tightly.

"Really? What kind?"

Grabbing the bag of fresh popcorn and transferring it to a bowl with one hand was inconvenient, but you'd rather deal with it than stop the conversation with a stranger whose tone of voice you start to feel is familiar, "Just a scary movie. Pretty old."

The man drawls the next question, "do you like scary movies?"

You nod, even though you think he can't see you, "Yup."

His voice is husky now, his words throaty and drawled, "What's your favorite scary movie?"

Oh, now he's flirting with you, you realize. It might be one of Hoseok's friends playing a prank on you, maybe even your boyfriend himself and you inwardly huff.

"I don't know. They're all different in their own way, so there's no way to compare."

"Well, you have to have a favorite."

"Uh," You wrack your mind for a title, "well there's a recent one I just watched. New to the slasher franchise. The Boy. Heard of it?"

"Ah, yes the guy hiding inside walls, stalking his own baby sitter."

You're in the living room now, bowl of popcorn in your hand and setting it on the coffee table. "Yeah. Brahms Heelshire."

"Brahms! That's right. I liked that movie, it had a nice twist."

"It did have a nice twist, the ending kind of sucked though." You glance at the clock and your eyes twitch, not looking forward to your boyfriend once again apologizing for being late.

"Maybe. Do you have a boyfriend?" Speaking of boyfriend, you roll your eyes. It's Hoseok now, you're convinced. Hoseok with a voice changing app.

"Yes." Not for long unless he gets arrives in less than a minute to save his ass. You don't notice the way your finger accidentally taps the 'End Call' button.

Your phone rings again and you answer on first ring.

"So sorry! Didn't realize I hung up."

"Tell me your name."

You want to scoff, instead you shake your head. "Why do you wanna know my name?"

"Because I wanna know who i'm looking at."

Your blood seems to have went cold inside you, goosebumps suddenly erupt throughout your whole body and you shoot up, looking around you.

You swallow a lump in your throat. "What did you say?"

"I want to know who i'm talking to."

"That's not what you said." You rush to open the small drawer installed in your coffee table, taking out a bottle of pepper gel before bolting to your front door to make sure it was locked. You turn on the light on your porch and see no one present. You turn it back off.

Walking briskly to the sliding door between the small garden and the inside of your house, you turn the light on too, but again, you don't see anyone present. You huff now, gripping your phone tighter.

"I have to go now." Your cold, shaking fingers struggle to remove the phone from your ear.

"Wait.. I thought we were gonna go out."

"I don't think so. I have a boyfriend."

The voice, previously so gentle, turns hostile and violent, "DON'T HANG UP ON ME."

"Gotta go." You force out, willing yourself to hang up.

"DON'T—"

Your shaking as you try to recollect yourself. Yoongi left a gun here, you think. Said it was for self defense and he doesn't go without it whenever he walks his girl home. The last party, he was showing off. He had a gun and he passed out. He left it and you were going to return it tomorrow. But it's still here. Still in the house. You could go get it.

You clench your eyes shut, panic consuming you the more you try to remember whether you placed it in your father's seldomly used vault or in your bedroom's private drawer. Both were at the opposite ends of the house. You were having trouble just standing.

The phone rings again and you're tempted to let it ring until it goes away.

But you have to know..

"Yes?"

"I told you not to hang up on me." The gentle tone is completely gone.

You clutch the pepper gel tighter in your other hand, making sure it was unsealed, ready to be used. "What do you want?"

"To talk."

"Well, dial someone else, okay?"

The voice sounds amused now. "Getting scared?"

You grit your teeth. "No. Bored."

You hang up immediately, tired and afraid.

You run to check your back door, finding it locked as well. All of the doors were locked. There was no way someone else could get in.

Just as you back away from the door, your phone rings again and you're fed up.

"Listen, asshole—"

"NO. YOU LISTEN, YOU LITTLE BITCH. IF YOU HANG UP ON ME AGAIN I'LL GUT YOU LIKE A FISH. UNDERSTAND?"

It's deep and it roars.

You suppress a whimper. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"More of a game, really." It's calm again but you don't trust it one bit.

"I'm calling the police. I swear. They'll trace this and i'm filing charges." You threaten, gripping on to one of the curtains to ground yourself.

"They'll never make it in time." It's dark, it's deep, and you're so scared.

You release a sigh, and you sound defeated even to yourself. "What do you want?"

It's deeper this time, more throaty, less human, "To see what your insides look like."

You fumble to hang up, letting the phone fly out of your hands right after.

Your hands are shaking but you shake your head in determination as you reach for it again. You dial 911.

"Hello, 911. What's your emergency?"

"Can't—No time, he said he was here. Someone threatened to kill me. Said—said he could see me. Think he can see me. Said he'd kill me. Please send someone! Anyone!" You whisper frantically, backing against a corner to avoid any surprises.

"I understand. We'll send someone immediately."

You nod, unable to find your voice to even thank the receiver.

As you're curled up in the corner, you bury your face in your arms.

Then, you remember.

Hoseok is supposed to arrive any second. If someone dangerous was waiting to break in, Hoseok would be completely unaware and helpless.

Your pacifist boyfriend Hoseok wouldn't have anywhere to hide. To run to. You know for a fact he'd be walking this late at night with his car broken down since the previous week.

Better if it was just you. Better if you didn't drag him in.

Trembling, you dial his number.

"Hoseok?" You jump when he picks up the phone.

"Yeah, honey? I'm so sorry i'm late! I'm almost there!"

"My parents are here!" You squawk, and in the back of your mind, you're taken aback at how easy the lie fell off your tongue.

"My parents are here and pissed. Have—have to cancel." With a shuddering breath, you whisper delicately, "I love you."

"Wait, what? Y/N? DON'T HANG UP ON ME!"

You hang up.

Your phone rings again and you already know it's an unwelcome call.

"Hello?"

Silence.

"Who's there?"

"You should never say "Who's there?". Don't you watch scary movies? It's a death wish."

You loose your grip on the phone, letting it clatter to the floor just right by you. The voice buzzes. You tap the loudspeaker option.

You sigh. "What did I do?"

There's silence. You physically feel the energy draining out of you, the adrenaline taking its leave and in its stead, defeat. Your eyes are clenched shut, so that you don't have to see yourself die.

Your voice is croaky, and when you touch your face, it's wet with tears. You were crying? "There's must be something I did. Something I must've done for this. Can't you tell me?"

The phone clicks, signaling the call was ended from the other side.

You hear a crash from upstairs. The shattering of glass. You locked the doors, but the windows are breakable.

"Y/N!!" You hear Hoseok's voice, his fists banging on your front door. "LET ME IN!"

Multiple thuds from the other side. Hoseok was trying to break down the door.

It's too late. You hear footsteps approach you and you curl tighter around yourself, keeping your eyes shut.

You whisper then, "Get it over with. Just don't touch him."

The footsteps stop in front of you. "Sure. Loverboy's queued right after you."

It's like you've been brought back to life, hearing that sentence. You snap your eyes open and realize you're still gripping the pepper gel in your hand. You look up at your tormentor, sees a a shapeless silhouette with a mask on, a knife aiming to pierce through you but just as he gets close, you empty the bottle. Even through the mask. It has to have a hole for him to see, right? You hope.

There's a yelp from the masked man, and you dash towards your front door, your hands still shaking as you undo all the bolts. Hoseok looks red in the face, but you grab his hands to run.

"Fuck!" The masked man sputters, throwing his disguise down and upon hearing something hit the ground, you risk a glance behind you.

Your blood boild at the sight of a familiar face.

"Yoongi?!"

"Fuck. Who the fuck do you think? Fuuuck!" The man rolls on the ground, grunting in pain as he rubs at his eyes.

"Yoongi! I told you I didn't approve of this shit!" Hoseok growls, marching towards his best friend.

"Fuck you! It was you idea, asswipe!" Yoongi bites. "It was his idea, Y/N!" Yoongi chances a peek at you with one eye as he totally rats his best friend out, his whole face red and wincing, "Said you liked horror movies! Said this was foreplay for you! I'm the victim! I fucking climbed up with the tree that had a fucking bee's nest! I have ant bites all over my fucking ass! I have three splinters! Fucking hell! Ow!" He chokes on a sob as the gel finally settles in his eyeball.

"Wha.." You look at your boyfriend, confused beyond comprehension.

"Listen, I said it in passing and I was drunk! I didn't know they'd do this to you!" Hoseok raises up his hands in a defenseless manner.

"You scared the shit out of me, Yoongi!" You growl, marching towards where he's curled up into a ball, clutching his face in agony.

"God, please take me to a hospital." Yoongi pleads.

"You deserve this, you son of a bitch! I can't believe you took him seriously while he was drunk! You gave me that advice yourself!" You stomp on the mask he was wearing, picking it up to examine it just to throw it back to the ground in pure rage.

"So," Hoseok nuzzles his head against your shoulder, trailing kisses to your neck, "happy birthday?"

Yoongi huffs from his hospital bed as he watches the two of you practically melt into each other.

"Oh, shut it. You brought this on yourself." You stick out your tongue at your boyfriend's best friend.

"Whatever." Yoongi grunts, "Call Jiah. Tell her I have to cancel on our plans for tomorrow. My eyes hurt."

You giggle as your boyfriend's lips land on a ticklish spot behind your ear.

"Fine. Let me get my phone." You reach over to grab your bag and Hoseok whines at the momentary loss of your warmth. You stare at your phone, head tilting in wonder and you call out, "Hey Yoons, I can't believe you could say all that stuff."

Yoongi glares at you from his spot. "What stuff?"

"About gutting me and shit. That was traumatizing." You shake your head, and you miss the look of confusion shot in your direction.

"What?" Yoongi looks at you like you've morphed into a duck. "No I didn't."

You hum as your boyfriend resumes rudely ravaging your neck. "Didn't what?"

"Say that. I only called you twice. It was a prank call. I asked you if you had a boyfriend just in case you were playing Hoseokkie and you said yes so I clearly failed."

You feel your heart drop to your feet.

"Why did you break my window, then?" You whisper, pressing yourself closer to Hoseok as fear crawls back up your spine.

"What? I didn't. You said your parents' windows were never locked so I went in through there."

Your hands twitch, still holding your phone.

"Y/N? You okay?" Hoseok asks, wary of the way your face loses color.

You whisper, barely audible, "Someone was really there."

A few blocks away from your house, a girl grips her phone with a bloodied hand.

Your caller ID flashes on the screen. Too late.

(A/N: don't know if i'm making this a series. user @curlykoo who has since deactivated but complimented me and liked horror fics this is for u 💕 + most of the dialogue is actually from the movie itself!)

[animeshowsfree]

The Netflix Curse

I have over six hundred books on my reading list, most of which I own. Some of them I've never read before, others I want to reread. They weigh on my mind and clutter up my room. Some I want to read so I can review them for my blog, Lover's Quarrel, and others just look like fun. Everywhere I turn in my house, there are stacks of books to be read. I have four reading apps on my phone as well.

But too often I turn to Netflix when I have some free time. I love Netflix. With all of its shows and movies perfect for binge-watching, I find myself looking forward to marathoning That 70's Show (again) instead of wanting to read Voyager by Diana Gabaldon for a couple of hours. Don't get me wrong, I love reading. And there have been plenty of times in my life when I preferred reading to watching TV. But after starting college and then taking on landscaping as a summer job, I must confess that my reading habits have seriously diminished. I even had to take a brief hiatus from Lover's Quarrel because I didn't have any more books to review and couldn't find the will to read any more.

Ironically, Netflix became my free time activity of choice for the same reason I prefer books to TV: it takes less imagination and energy. All of the sights and sounds are provided for me so I don't have to spend precious mental energy and imagination, which gets seriously depleted during the school year.

But Netflix quickly becomes a vicious cycle. It's too tempting to watch it when I have the energy to read, or even when I should be working. Luckily, there are ways to get me away from Netflix and back to reading, apart from unsubscribing to Netflix (let's not get too crazy).

Listening to music or white noise has helped a lot. It gives me the same stimulation as the audio on a TV show, so it keeps my reading distraction-free. I have a white how many seasons of in the dark noise app that I like, and I've found some really good "Music for Reading" videos on YouTube. Audiobooks also bring me away from Netflix because I can knit or clean while listening to them.

However, the most effective thing I've found to get me away from Netflix is to keep binge-watching. No, seriously. Once I've found an amazing show and I get a huge obsession over it, I can't stop watching it until I run out of episodes. And after I've run out of episodes, other TV shows are ruined for me for awhile. That happened with Stranger Things and I'm sure it'll happen once I hit season 8 of That 70's Show. Since all TV is ruined for me anyway, the best thing I can do is find a book that I know will be as addictive as a good television series. And that will take me away from Netflix. In the meantime, I'll have to make myself read while I ride out my television craze.