#In fact the thing that makes BB so easy for me to work on is having an existing “story template” in mind

[bonefall]

Hey, what makes a character a 'plot device but not a character'? And how do you not do that? I'm trying to do it on purpose but also I need to still make them interesting because it's on purpose, yknow?

A good skill to pick up is to learn to criticise criticism itself. A "plot device" is simply a thing that moves the plot along, it's a neutral literary analysis term! Usually, when people are angry that "a character has been used as a plot device," it doesn't mean they hate plot devices. It means they're gesturing at something deeper.

Runningwind and Bumble are equally plot devices in their deaths. They are both killed by the antagonist to escalate political tension. Runningwind is rarely "accused" of just being a plot device, and yet, we're talking about Bumble for the same thing.

So, why?

Well, Runningwind is just a background character, but in life, he was a part of the community. He was characterized as impatient but responsible. Yet, he wasn't SO important that he died with a bunch of unresolved plot threads.

He is mostly an extension of the entity of ThunderClan. His killing by Tigerstar, and the fear and paranoia that settles on the group after this, feel like a progression of the story insteas of something forced.

Bumble, on the other hand...

Is hated immediately by Gray Wing, when she's established as Turtle Tail's friend. Bumble's abuse at Tom the Wifebeater's hands invites even MORE investment. The rejection is shocking and upsetting. There's a story there about our main characters being imperfect; jealous, bigoted, and judgemental.

But, she is simply killed off. Everything they set up for this character is gone with little personalized fanfare. It's not a tragedy with a lesson about cruelty, or something anyone regrets.

It's just... plot. Gray Wing whinging that no one will like his shitty brother now that his body count is 2.

More than that, in the discussion of women in particular, "Fridging" was coined to give a name to the way women characters often don't get their stories told at all. There is a CULTURAL trend of female characters facing disproportionate violence, for the sake of advancing male plots.

Bumble has a lot going for her. Petal had a lot going for her. Turtle Tail had a lot going for her. Bright Stream had a lot going for her. When they died, they took their potential with them.

It's not always wrong to kill off a character of high potential, mind you. In Gurren Lagann, Kamina's death is sudden and shocking, leaving a massive hole in the hearts of the cast that never heals. Grappling with that loss, but also letting his memory fuel them, is a major theme of that story.

All that to say... there's no formula for avoiding it. You've gotta identify what the deeper issue is, in your specific narrative.

I can't say for certain what that will look like for your story, but here's some things I keep in mind;

When you make characters who exist to die, make sure they're people before you axe them.

Ask yourself; what about them does the cast miss?

If they just miss them because they were (pre-existing relationship), go back to the drawing board.

Fluttering Bird as an example. Who was she? Dead sister. Why do they miss her? Dead sister. No traits until after her death.

Runningwind was short-tempered and helpful. Kamina was a valuable leader who made people believe in a brighter future. Swiftpaw was fiesty and desperate to prove himself. The better characterized, the more profound the loss usually is.

If this is a female character who is dying just to serve the plot, be aware of cultural bias and tropes. How is the gender ratio looking in your cast? Is this happening disproportionately with your girls?

Note how Quiet Rain's litter had both a boy and a girl, but the girl was chosen to be "weaker" and wither away.

And how most of the time in DOTC, whenever a man had to be upset, a girl would get killed for it.

If you ever feel like the character on the chopping block is NOT a full character, ask yourself why it needs to be a character at all. You don't need to spend narrative time building out someone when a literal object of high value might suffice.

"My sister died when I swore to protect her and I can't face my family" = Old. Tired. Ive seen this.

"I lost my heirloom sword when I swore to protect it and I can't face my family." = Fascinating. Why was the sword so valuable? Will they really not take you back? How did you lose it?

When you do kill off "high value" characters, try to make sure you're not leaving too many plot threads hanging. Or at least make a point of how they will never get closure.

[dreamiie4her]

How i mastered the art of persisting & how yall can too

hello my luvs, lemme tell u, its been a rlly eventful last 2 weeks in terms of me undergo a drastic shift in my mindset and WHEWWWWW, i thought it was time to share with yall

storytime

this past year i told myself i would adopt a strict mental diet where i wouldn't let doubts stop me or anything and lemme tell you, it was such a rocky road. There would be periods of me affirming that i was a master shifter, seek validation from the 3D and then start dwelling in my old state again. This cycle of giving up continued until i came across these posts. I then deeped how i've been overcomplicating manifesting & shifting to the point where i would give up so easily on my new states because "persisting was too hard” when it rlly wasn't. Anyways, lemme share my favourite tips & advice i learnt.

THE ADVICE & TIPS

stop associating emotions w/ states

Once i stopped associating me doubting, being frustrated, etc with my state, i found stuff x10000 EASIER!! I be affirming when i'm sad/frustrated because my emotions do NAWT define me. If something happens in my life, i allow myself to acknowledge it then i affirm on loop that "everything gets better" and the very fact i am a master manifestor.

manifesting will exist whether u like it or not

whenever i feel like "giving up", i remember that no matter if i "give up" on my desires or not, the law of assumption will still operate in the same principle of dominant thoughts materialising ur reality. So that really made me think, why would i not take advantage of knowing about the loa and manifesting everything i want? Like once you find out about the law of assumption, there is no turning back so u might aswell utilise it.

you can never lose your "manifestation powers"

Sometimes i be having thoughts "what if i lose my manifestation powers" and its like?? i will always be able to manifest easily & so will you. You can never "lose" the ability to manifest. Its a LAW. Meaning you will always be able to do it

pick a staple affirmation & loop it no matter what

After utilising robotic affirming, i've felt so much more FULFILLED then i ever did. Trust me when i say, pick one affirmation (e.g. "i am a master shifter") and keep affirming through your doubts, random thoughts, etc. Litreally when you deep it, affirming is basically thinking and thinking is super duper easy. So picking one affirmation and continuously repeating it is so easy even when you feel like your having sm doubts (trust me, once u get in the habit of js affirming, things feel sm easier).

you don't need to believe to manifest

Before some of yall come at me, lemme tell yall something. When i got more serious about the loa this year, i overconsumed a sh!t ton of loa content stating in order to manifest your desires and it made me feel so frustrated whenever i felt doubts/overwhelmed when affirming for my desire. The belief bit will follow natrually while persisting, dont focus on beliving in ur manifestation, keep repeating you have it & your belief of it will feel more natrual as you keep repeating it (if that makes sense)

the 3D isn't the end, keep persisting

I made a post about this but to keep it short & simple, your 3D circumstances aren't permanent. Just because you may be experiencing the opposite of what you want in the 3D, doesn't mean it will stay like that forever and your manifestation "won't work". Keep affirming bb <3

okie that's it for the post <3 i'll probs make a pt2 if i got anymore advice?? but hope yall liked it ;3

[nakylvr]

https://www.tumblr.com/https-lvesick/765820605716152320/aespa-their-kinks-%E1%B6%BB-%F0%9D%98%87-%F0%90%B0%81-%F0%9D%92%A9-otes-aespa?source=share

it would be so sick if you made a katseye version of this post with their kinks

ask and you shall receive 😋🫶 this was actually super fun lowkey

— THE KATS & THEIR KINKS

minors do not interact

SOPHIA ⚓️

EDGING - whether she's giving or receiving, she is a sucker for edging, more specifically to do it to you. she loves the tears that fill your eyes as she does it over and over again, telling you that if you be good then maybe she'll let you cum. do it to her and she is a begging mess trying to get you to let her cum, what a taste of her own medicine

MOMMY - both in and out of the bedroom does sophia adore you calling her mommy. she just cares so much about you and literally goes crazy whenever you say it, it gives her a sense of dominance that she enjoys quite a bit

SENSORY DEPRIVATION - it may seem random, but put a blindfold or ribbon around her head covering her eyes and she is 10x more vocal than normal, the feeling intensifying not being able to see. she would make sure you're okay with it before doing it to you, always so caring like she usually is

MANON 👑

PRAISE - manon is so big on praise no matter whichever one of you is topping or bottoming. she will constantly murmur into your ear everything she loves about you and how she loves you so fucking much. you praise her even a little bit and she's on her knees for you, easily going into subspace with your loving words towards her

OVERSTIMULATION - she love love loves overstimulating you to the point you're crying and pushing her off. she could fuck you for hours if she could, and she only stops when she can tell you're nearing passing out, giving the best aftercare possible

VOYEURISM - this one came to me like a vision i can't explain it. she wouldn't verbally say she totally gets off to watching you touch yourself, but god does she want to just sit there with you watching you do all the work yourself, telling you that if you are able to make yourself cum that then she'll fuck you

DANIELA 🛡️

DEGRADATION - she is big on degrading you when she has control over you, calling you her dirty little slut amongst other names that would hurt in any other environment, but she's never serious about what she says. now, if you're the one degrading her, she's constantly denying everything you say but the way her body reacts says otherwise, secretly loving it

DUMBIFICATION - she is such a sucker for fucking you til the point you can barely do anything except moan her name, and it's so easy when she's so mean when she doms :( but being the switch she is, she almost loves it more when you're the one making her mind go blank and become a fucked out mess

MARKING - for dani, she needs people to know you're hers, and that always ends in you being covered in any type of markings whether it's bruising hickeys along your neck or scratches down your back, and she's always telling you to not cover them

LARA 🗝️

BRAT TAMING - lara is the certified brat tamer despite being one herself at times, she doesn't put up with your brattiness and won't hesitate to fuck it out of you, she's so rough when she does it too you can't even try to respond as she grins wickedly at you asking if you're gonna be a fucking brat again :(

DACRYPHILIA - seeing you so overwhelmed with pleasure that tears well in your eyes is one of the biggest things that turns her on even more than she already is, just the fact that she's the one making you feel so good you're gonna cry has her swelling with pride, always kissing away your tears as they fall

ORGASM DENIAL - a way to break you if you're being a brat, but also just something she loves doing is denying you of your orgasms, and she's so mean when she does it over and over again til you're begging and crying for some kind of release, loving the way your body squirms around as she denies it yet again

MEGAN 🍒

BEGGING - poor girl is such a beggar no matter what you do, whining so needy for something, anything. she'll do it without you even asking her to, she's so shameless and knows you'll easily give in if she begs just a little bit, looking at you with big eyes hoping you'll give her what she wants

THIGH RIDING - on the chance that either you're too tired to do anything or purely trying to torture her, she'll resort to riding your thigh, but rarely can she ever get herself off even with you flexing your thigh every now and then, your hands on her waist pulling her back and forth, whining for you to just help her out :( poor baby

FACE SITTING - for megan, it's the only time she has "control" in the situation, but she is far from domming, she is still your subby baby as she uses you solely for her own pleasure, the pillow princess in her giving up halfway through and just rocking against your face as you take over

[creedslove]

mari bb it’s 3am here but i’m suddenly thinking about brooklyn/qz joel (the phase where he’s wearing denim shirt and looms over people like a fucking goon) and how i just wanna be his girl sooo bad 😫 like i want the other women in qz whispering how “no way she got a fucking sundress” and “joel got it for her” and like bash me “fucking spoiled c*nt” etc 😫😫😫😫😫😫 want those nasty blue balled men at the ratty makeshift bar at qz to stare but not daring to do anything bcs “that’s joel’s girl” 😫😫😫 wanna rub joel’s tired muscles after a day of hard work 😫😫😫

but then i thought to myself “wait… do they pnly eat jerkies ..?” and was like nuh uh I WOULD STARVEEEE 😭😭😭😭😭 but i wanna be scary old man joel who can body grown men with a single arm’s sweet little pea soooo bad

-jerk loving anon

Post outbreak!Joel Miller x f!reader

A/N: my beautiful jerk loving anon, this ask is pure sin, it smells and tastes like sex just like everything revolving around Joel Miller 🤤🤤🤤 also, I hope you are doing better now my angel, and sorry if it took me too long to get this done

• life in the Boston QZ was hard; more than hard, it was pure shit most of the time, a depressing city full of depressing people who died out of starvation, disease and poor condition while ruled by a fascist government division, it was understandable why it was so terrible

• that for most people, but not for you, not when you were Joel Miller's girl

• technically, life was a shitty for you and Joel, but you two had each other which made things much better because well, you made Joel happy and no one, absolutely no one messed with Joel Miller's girl

• you both were such a good match, taking care of each other and making sure to make your existence a little less terrible in that fucked up world

• it had started with sex, just sex in the beginning, but it wasn't like Joel could resist your body, your touches looking for some affection and shyly cuddling him after being railed by his thick cock and your big warm eyes looking at him as if he was the greatest thing in the world when he could only think of himself as a murderer and nothing else

• he knew you deserved better, he knew he should keep away, but he didn't want to make sacrifices anymore, he wanted to be selfish and have at least one good thing in the world, and that had to be you, his girl

• it was a surprise to him when he found out his fame didn't bother you one bit, it didn't matter if people hated or feared him, if people knew he could kill in the blink of an eye or if he smuggled shit inside the QZ, you still liked him

• so he knew he would have to take good care of you; so he did his best to give you nice things, it wasn't easy but he would smuggle whatever he could in order to spoil you

• so he would manage to get you several things: new shoes, books, a gorgeous summer dress that would hug tight to your body and even a red lipstick he managed to find because he wanted to see his cock all smeared in red as you gave him a blowjob with red lips

• he even managed to smuggle some snacks once, anything to make his girl happy

• he pretends not to know most women around nearly dies of jealousy of you, they whisper and talk whenever you pass by, whether it's because you have usually better or newer things or simply because of the fact you managed to win Joel Miller's heart of stone, out of all the other women in that QZ

• you also knew those envious bitches trash talked you, but you didn't care one bit, if anything, you were proud of being Joel's and that a lot of people envied you, you just knew you would be envious too if Joel liked someone else instead

• you and Joel walked around when you had some days off, it only took a glare from him at whoever guy who tried to hit on you or make any remarks towards you, your looks or your body, and needless to you, you felt so safe in his arms

• he always pulled you closer, kissing your temple and having his arm wrapped around your waist

• in return, you would do your best to cook as decent meals as possible with that ration FEDRA gave you all, it wasn't the best, but Joel seemed to like it

• you always warmed up food so he could have a warm shower and you would gladly rub his shoulders, massage them and make sure to help him relax

• and you gladly loved to ride his cock in that shitty couch or shitty bed and it didn't matter if the neighbors could hear it or not, you just wanted to enjoy the pleasure Joel gave you

• at the end of the day, you would snuggle Joel and hug him to bed, falling asleep in his arms, loving how he very often became the little spoon even if he was bigger than you

____

[yuzuyoon]

Can I just say something without coming across as a major anti?

What the fuck is up with JKs fans? They are literally collaring fake data and trying to prove how JMs streams are fraudulent, camping under every tweet and vilifying JM? Is it because they know deep down that he is as successful as JK and would have been more successful if he was given an iota of support JK got? JM didn't even get support comparable to Standing Next To You? Has Jimin always been their benchmark and now they are scared that what they thought of JKs popularity is all wrong? I know that people think JK was gaining popularity but was he though? Seven eas everywhere because the company promoted it everywhere, paid radio advertisement in every country, sent him to perform everywhere? Like do they genuinely believe that Seven would have that many streams if it was treated as how WHO is being treated? WHO is objectively a better song so people are listening to it. Have his fans always been this embarrassing or has this gotten worse?

By the way this isn't to say PJMs arent perry as fuck either. Some of them and their actions are questionable. But damn JJKs have been so embarrassing lately? Like two boys can be popular in their own right, calm the fuck down. Also has always been a household name. There are metrics to prove that. I know popularity changes and I am sure it will change but to harp on about it for this long is so bizarre.

I am sorry but if they genuinely thought JK was the Gps favourite and so popular, why would Jimin then even matter. JK supposedly has GP to carry him. To be honest I feel sad for JK because he is talented and honestly has so much potential. Him and Jimin can co-exist. That's totally fine but his fans just don't get it. And now he is stuck with weird and crazy fans that will drop him as soon as they find out he isn't gay (which he might be, I am not sure), he is/was dating women or even men and he is just a normal dude just like the rest of us haha.

its literally the simplest thing. they're scared that their fav will lose his title of "the most popular bts member" (a title that he doesn't even own, might i add)

we have to remember, most solos were once army or they're akgaes who never cared for the other members. army has a reputation of being a toxic fandom, but that's just the mark of a big fandom. all fandoms have that loud minority of terrible, toxic people. the bigger the fandom, the larger number of toxic fans. of course there are gonna be some bad apples in jimin's fandom, that's just how it works

the thing is, when you look at army as a whole, most people will say jk is either their bias, used to be their bias as a baby army, or their bias wrecker. so when you take army as a whole, put together the stats of the toxic fandom and the jk loving fandom, and then split them into solo fandoms, the fact that a lot of people like jk means that a lot of those toxic fans are making their way into jk's solo fandom. jk is an easy choice for most people to like and that's why a lot of new fans and locals drift towards him. it's a familiarity thing and because he's the "basic pop boy" of the group, pop fans will like him

now, for the other solo fandoms for bts are probably half composed of army and locals and half composed of actually biased people and solos. those people that are hardcore solos don't really care about being toxic because they're too focused on their fav. those are the mostly sane people who understand that hating on another member will not do anything to advance the success of other members. jjks clearly do not understand this. putting down another artist does nothing but rile up their fans and encourages them to stream, buy, support, love even harder and stronger. we have seen this very clearly with all the hate Jimin has been getting. people hate and we fight back through our streams. remind me which song (seven or who) has more longevity on bb hot 100? because it's not the song that got all the praise. stay encouraged and keep fighting <3

[iveneverseenthesebowlsbefore]

Oh boy have some ep6 and 7 rewatch thoughts!

First off, please enjoy these lines I didn't appreciate enough the first time around:

and also

I feel better about our fellas after a rewatch too. Cuz they were doing pretty ok actually?

Like look at Ed here, even after the torture bits he's having such a nice time right up until the moment Stede goes to kill Ned

Lookit that lil face. He's so proud of his bb. Stede did the pirate thing without hurting anyone. Win win.

Then this shot of Ned is so telling:

The yellow and blue is obvs reminiscent of Ed's vision and mermaid Stede- but this time something's sinking. Makes sense, this is the catalyst that leads to them starting to fissure.

Loved this over the shoulder shot of Ed throwing away his leathers

Reminds me very much of him embracing Blackbeard from last season:

He's throwing it all away again, starting new, just this time it's Blackbeard he's tossing out the side of the ship.

And then the fact that Stede's new 'crew' is all in leathers just like Blackbeard's isn't an accident.

But they were still doing so well! The fact that they tell each other things - the mermaid and the letters - they're starting to let their guards down, show more of themselves...

They both have these moments of vulnerability during ep 7, where they say something kinda silly, where they could have been hurt... and then show each other right away that their trust wasn't misplaced:

It was all going so well dammit!

Another thing I noticed is that Ed completely makes his decision to leave without talking to Stede once more. He gets so in his head about it. And i think here, it was him reaching out:

He doesn't want to leave. But fisherman and pirates can't work out. Its so simple if he puts it like that. But it felt like he wanted Stede to say something, convince him he's wrong, say that he'll be a fisherman too if that's what Ed wants, say he doesn't just like him cuz he's a pirate, say that he loves Ed more than he loves pirating.

But instead poor Stede does the worst possible thing he can, challenges Ed's already shaky sense of self. Which is why it's so easy for Ed to then lean hard into the idea.

Black and white thinking. I get it my poor adhd riddled darling.

And just one more thing, this moment between Stede and Izzy was really nice :)

[inventedfangirling]

pran-so-cool to pran-so-brave

We all talk about pran so cool to pran in love and yes of course everybody needs to talk about that growth all the time forever and ever cos really it gave us one of the most beautiful and respectful love stories of all time, but i also wanna take a teensy second to talk about how pran so brave too.

Jumping into a body of water to help a drowning person not easy. putting your thoughts and feelings into a song and then singing it out loud, not easy. Confronting years of lying and suppression and hurt, standing up to an overbearing parent is definitely not easy.

Dealing with insecurities, voicing those insecurities, working to overcome those insecurities not easy. confronting your feelings, taking a leap ready to get hurt if that happens, and then deciding to stick through one person no matter the hurdles also farthest from easy. Pran has done so many brave things over the course of his young life but right now i just wanted to focus on what he did in episode 10 in this scene.

Like seriously picture this, you're out with your boyfriend, grocery shopping have a wonderful time teasing and goofing off with each other and then bam, his bitch ass of a dad appears and see's you in a not entirely uncompromising situation.

And then without even thinking of where they are or how they are literally just kids, this man begins to get aggressive with them.

I can't even explain just how triggered this scene or just the gif of it even makes me...that said i need to talk about it because just can't get over the significance of what pran did here.

On paper he is just standing up to defend his boyfriend from an aggressive man but of course in reality he is actually putting himself between a fully grown adult man and his own adult son (who lets not forget is physically stronger than Pran). I need me and you and everybody to process the fact that Pran is at heart (and brain development wise) still very much a child. He is barely 20 and he is gay and he is in public with his boyfriend in a conservative country (i know there is no homophobia in the bb universe but still!)

And suddenly he is outed and then this aggressive loud man who is his boyfriend's dad and his family's sworn enemy comes and starts being aggressive with Pat with whom he has as far as Pran knows had a pretty smooth at least non violent relationship (that we know of) so then do we realize how incredible is it that Pran immediately put himself between Pat and Ming??? Not only is he physically no match for Ming. But in how society would view it, he really had no place there? and because there hasn't been a history of Ming being aggressive with Pat, Pran needn't have done what he did, since in his mind such a grim possibility is not looming large.

And yet the moment he saw that Pat was possibly in danger, that very instant he comes in front of Pat, trying to calm the situation down? I'm just...that's just....so so very brave of him?!! My brain truly cannot comprehend the inexplicable amount of love Pran must have towards Pat to exhibit that level of protectiveness without even taking a second to think of his own safety or anything against Pat's own father??? Pran who hasn't had the best most healthy relationship with his own parents was standing up for Pat against his father!

And then to be shoved aside like that to the side, in such a violent manner, being looked at with so much contempt, with all those people watching. And then going back home to stand up to his mother only to get shouted at and slapped??

And then years of distance and time and growth later, he comes back and he actually brings a gift for that very man who as far as we know didn't even apologise to Pran or Pat for what he did to them there. a man who for years had kept them away from each other, filling ideas of hate into their minds (with ample help from dissaya ofc) and disrespecting and demeaning both of them??

Pran really took all that hate that was directed at him and he returned it in the form of love, he did it for pat's sake, but he did it none the less.

He really embodied "i will be tender hearted despite despite despite" and he did it while he was growing professionally and personally.

I'm sorry but look at that smile???? only the vilest spawn of satan could hate him my heart is about to burst rn.

He fr took some of the sourest lemons life offered him and along with pat turned it into a lemonade so sweet even 20 rewatches can't wash the sweetness off of it and i genuinely can't help but marvel in awe. I seriously need to sit down and think about this for days weeks ever cos really it is just something else. Pran is just something else.

He shows us how we're more than our trauma, how our choices are what define us and that even if it's difficult we can make that journey, and that we can do it with love.

[m00nl1ght-sun25]

The “Why Is Lloyd Blonde” Theories

so yk it’s a big thing in the ninjago fandom of to “How is lloyd blond when misako and garmadon both have brown hair?” Well- yall the answer is quiet simple-

i see so many people saying it’s because he died his hair, but see that wouldn’t make sense. Since day one Lloyd was blond, and he was a kid when he was first introduced in the show. A kid who wanted to be exactly like his father, his father who had brown hair. Why would lloyd dye his hair? that would make him less like his father. Like that just doesn’t make sense for younger lloyd

Then there’s the headcannons that Misako cheated on garmadon with wu-… Like y’all, do you really think that they would do that for a kids show? I mean i know i hc some pretty unkid friendly things self but still idk-

Here’s how it works, so you know how Wu has blonde hair? We’re also going to assume FSM had blonde hair, or maybe he always had white. But still see there, then here’s a thing called genes. Learned about them last year but they don’t make sense tbh, but still. I know for a fact, that if both wu and FSM had blonde hair there is a small, small chance that lloyd can have it. It’s the whole BB Bb bB bb thingy, lloyd got the bb genes.

So yeah, the whole thingy is easy and simple, Lloyd is a blondie because genes, it was a small chance that he could get blonde hair. but it wasn’t impossible, so he got the small chance and is a blondie

fun little fact like a month or 2 ago me and asher had a talk abt this- i wanted to make a post abt it and finally have! yay

[hyugaruma]

Hii! Okay, so I'm a bit super shy(by new jeans) sending this since I really like your works sm but imma pull some confidence put of my left ass cheek 😭 my personality is I'm really froiking introverted like approaching makes me internally shit bricks but still I like making friends, and like in a friend group I am the calm one or quiet one, though from time to time, with ppl I am comfortable with or have the same humour as me I really am loud, talkative, and kinda corny. My mbti is an ISTP, I am currently taking psychology(pls spare me some will to continue it bcus I cannot anymore), things that I like are listening to music, playing online games, watching movies and series, and my hobbies are writing(ofc), skateboarding, playing volleyball, playing my electric guitar, and reading:). For preference, I really like someone from the worst era, but I don't mind getting someone from the sword era. That is all, thank you bb!!

thanks for the req :-)) i love your hilo writing, btw!

I match you with… Himuro Reiji!

Even though the little bit we see of Himuro makes him look like an asshole, outside of all the gang warfare and school rivalry he’s actually a pretty chill guy. He would have no problem with your introversion; in fact, it’s probably what would draw him in. He would want to try to get you to open up to him so that he could see that more exuberant side of you. To him, it doesn’t really matter how long it takes either, because he thinks that shy side is adorable too. He’d also be super intrigued by your psych studies, so expect him to be constantly asking you questions about it. In his free time (when he’s not beating people over the head with brass knuckles…smh), he usually just likes to chill. He’d definitely be the type to want to learn how to skateboard or play guitar so he could partake in your pastimes with you. He’d appreciate a partner who feels comfortable and easy to be with; he’s not someone who brings unreasonable expectations to a relationship.

Alternate Matches: Hanaoka Fujio, Nakagoshi Dai

[sunshinechay]

👬+👀+🚫

👬 favourite side pairing

WaanTul owns my whole ass. I was gone for them so fast it’s insane, but also it’s Yacht so why am I really that surprised lol. Recently though MetheeThanthai from Laws of Attraction had me by the throat as well.

What can I say? Give me one rich (not required) boy with low self esteem and pair him up with the one who thinks that he hung the moon and I’m a sucker

Other honourable mentions include: TeeYuki (I will die mad about the fact that they cut out their subplot), InkPa (the best thing about the series. PERIOD but also I have unpopular opinions about BBS so let’s just leave it at that), NuerSyn (when will MML come out and give me TutorYim as leads?), DanYok (because DanYok okay), KimChay (*insert cry gif here*) and many others lol

👀 what do you think of love triangles in BLs?

I feel much the same as I do about love triangles in het dramas. If done properly, it can provide insight into all of the characters involved and further their growth. That being said, the LI who gets chosen in the end much make logical sense for the leads progress. Though there is a part of me that always goes, why not both?

A good recent example I think is from La Pluie. The Patts x Saengtai x Lomfon triangle worked for what it was trying to do. It gave us a greater understanding of all the characters and helped each in the end. It is an example of a love triangle that also has a clear “winner” right from the beginning so take of that what you will.

All that being said, love triangles are another thing on my list of “hard to pull off, easy to fuck up” so I’m always very weary of them when they come up because it’s hard to tell if it’s going to work for the story or not.

🚫 what trope do you hate and why?

Not to sound like a broken record but SINGING!!!!! When the show is actually about music and musicians (like My School President or something similar) then okay, the singing and the instruments makes sense and I am okay with it, but I genuinely really hate when the characters just randomly pick up instruments or start singing (I already have my most hated scene in OF and it’s literally Ray doing karaoke. Khaotung can sing and I love his singing, but please don’t! I can’t take it anymore!)

BL ask meme

[derekscorner]

Kingdom Hearts: Gods & Angels

Just as the name implies this is a bit of a random shower-type of thought. It's not me complaining or trying to rewrite KH either, what I'm about to describe isn't even a problem objectively.

The thing I'm about to explain is a very much "me problem" that extends to any story I invest in but if you're bored like I am let's indulge a bit.

Kingdom Hearts: Angels & Gods

You see, I have the type of brain that tries to understand the lore of something. I do not need every answer given since a story should always retain mystery but there will always be some aspect of a world I can't help but hyper-focus on.

In KH's case it's the way life & death work. Initially it was easy to assume that Hades was the de-facto end point since the Disney version of the Olympians are very much godly.

Even in their source film the gods are depicted as immortal and omnipotent over their domain. Even Hades is, in actuality, a very powerful threat both in the movie and KH series.

(you see Hades display super strength in the movie a few times in fact)

Sora always wins with the power of friendship and Hercules has literal god-tier strength so Hades isn't that threatening but to the average living being he's basically a force of nature.

Even with his keyblade and otherworldly magic Sora can't actually kill Hades. He's legitimately immortal, there is no death for him.

Then later I assumed that each world essentially had it's own afterlife. Which may still be true to some extent at the time of me writing this. The presence of Joshua in DDD solidified this idea for me for a while.

I do keep in mind (as should you) that any Square character that cameos in KH is not the same one you see in the game they appear in. Squal isn't Squal, he's Leon. Cloud isn't Cloud, he's emo Cloud in Vincent Valentines outfit. Their backstories and personalities are rewritten entirely.

Even Zack who appeared in BBS was from the world of Hercules rather than having a history shared with Cloud. The closest being we seen to having a backstory hinted to be similar to their source material was Auron but the very fact he was in Hades underworld means some obvious variation has happened there as well.

This is very important because that means the same level of alteration exists for Joshua, his reapers, and the Shibuya that Neku calls home. We know the reapers game exists, we know that a Composer exists, but the actual accuracy to TWEWY's lore isn't guaranteed.

If anything, you should assume that the Shibuya that Neku calls home in KH is basically its own thing entirely. Especially now that Verum Rex exists with a Shibuya of it's own. (it was confirmed that the two shibuya's are indeed different)

The Final Headache World

But this all changes with KH3's Final World- hell, it all changes with Dark Road from the mobile titles.

In KH3 we're shown the "Final World" the place you supposedly go when you are done. There is no tricks, there is no miracles, you are as dead as you can be.

Sora literally broke time twice to save the day and still wound up here...or you're supposed too? See thanks to Dark Road or KH4's premise it's confusing.

We know you go to this Final World if you die both in heart, body, and soul. A total demise, KH3 tells us this in-game.

We also know that "Unreality" functions as a type of afterlife for people like Sora too since Strelitzia tells us as such in the KH4 trailer.

So...where do Joshua and Hades fit into that?

According to Hades here, according to what we've actually seen, the Underworld is your death. A Kh wielder or two die (okay more) in KHDR and they do go here.

The protagonists make a deal with Hades to speak to the spirit of one such dead key kid. Soooo that just makes my brain question "why?".

What dictates these differences. On a surface level you can assume Sora and Strelitzia are in Unreality because they were kicked out of "reality". We know this is true for Sora at the very least, the world at large didn't kill him it flat out removed him from reality as he knows it for breaking time.

But the first time Sora died he went to the Final World not the Underworld. The excuse that Kairi was keeping his heart connected to life is also a stretch because Sora still went to the Final World.

She offered a way back but she did not stop his death leading him to this world.

So where does the Underworld fit into that? How does Joshua's reaper game fit into this set up? Is there even a common denominator at all?

It's possible that every afterlife is connected to the Final World but that's conjecture on my part not a fact. I only offer it because Hades is shown fully capable of summoning dead people (like Auron or the Key Kid) and Joshua has shown that he's fully capable of retrieving dead people and moving them to worlds not within his domain.

He took Neku's group to the Realm of Sleep, he left his world behind to help reconstruct them. We don't know why he did but the point is that he could.

Hades and Joshua are literally two beings that you witness working on a cosmic scale. They clearly have power over death even in worlds they don't physically live in.

Kingdom Hearts: Gods & Angels???

And you want to know the real kicker? This bothers me personally not just for these questions about death but because my brain jumps the shark to the divine.

Death is always governed by something in any religion and what I have just described is an angel based on monotheistic religion and a pagan god working on a cosmic scale.

(technically composers are more like super-reapers or lower ranked angels than true angels but Joshua has the wings so semantics)

What is bothering me is that I do not comprehend how the cosmic landscape works. I know Hades is the god of death for everyone thanks to Dark Road, even Xigbar pokes fun at Hercules for having help in "high places". The Olympians in KH effect the universe as a whole.

But...Joshua exists and so does he. Do the gods just pick worlds to personally run? Do they make them? Between Joshua and the church in Notre Dome how do pagan gods like the Olympians or even Callisto from Pirates of the Caribbean fit in?

It's these kind of questions that my mind wanders too in KH and any story. I want to know, it bothers me that there's no concrete law.

Hell, I bet you even forgot that Davy Jones Locker was in KH3, it's an after life as well! Calisto is barely shown in KH3 but she's there, she's a sea goddess.

I didn't forget but I don't know where they all fit.

There is no answer for any of this and honestly it would be wiser from a writers standpoint to not try and do so. I just needed to rant about it for a bit.

I hope you enjoyed this trip through my insanity, I hope that I cured your boredom and never forget; this is a very me problem.

[bonefall]

can clerics be lawyers? if so, maybe cinderpelt being the lawyer for squirrel & leaf? who are the options that you are thinking of?

I've got a rough outline of the Trial of Squirrelflight's Horror in mind with some neat new deets, let me toss them together so you can see what I'm trying to do here. I'll also post a "Wanted Ad" of traits the cat needs to display

But to quickly answer directly; Yes, Clerics can be lawyers. However, Cinderpelt might not fit specifically, because this lawyer needs to be equally antagonistic as well as protagonistic. This won't be a Lizardstripe situation.

BEFORE THE TRIAL;

Squirrelflight's Horror is a book that is setting up the events of TBC.

First of all, it's setting up how no one immediately caught Bramblestar being replaced by an impostor. He is not a popular leader, with a long list of controversial choices.

(unfortunately, the fact he was suddenly good at making names stood out more than his cruelty.)

Second of all, we're going to set up some tumult in StarClan.

When Squirrelflight and Leafpool die this time, it's actually their uncle Iceheart who "fetches" them.

He died in the Battle of the True Eclipse, having a rematch with Tigerstar. So they haven't seen him in a while.

From him, they learn there's been delays in StarClan cats coming up and down. But he'll walk them up. (Iceheart replaces a cat named Blade completely.)

Squirrelflight really doesn't want to go, since her grandson Hollylark (from Fallenleaf x Cinderheart) just died, leaving her apprentice Sparkpelt (from Bramblestar x Jessy) alone with newborns.

There's also been a couple shuffles in the cats they meet up in StarClan, let me go over them;

Squirrelflight is barren and had a miscarriage, back in Po3. She was only a moon pregnant (equiv: 4-ish months in a human)

She never gets back with Bramblestar after his treatment in BB!OoTS, he has Spark and Alder with Jessie.

SOOO I don't actually have a place for Dandelionkit and Juniperkit because I really do not want BB to have Angel Fetus Children like canon lmaooo

Flickerkit and Larksong are here though! Their new names are Flickerflame (starclan-given) and Hollylark (to show that Larksong and Hollytuft have been combined).

Shrewpaw, now Shrewface, has been Squirrelflight's guardian angel for her whole life. She learns this here.

When apprentices and kits die, they get full names and the ability to choose the age they appear as, barring certain circumstances.

Hollyleaf, now Fallenleaf, is not dead so she is not here.

Squirrelflight's mentor was Goldenflower, not Dustpelt. They are BOTH here though.

When Squilf and Leafpool get to StarClan, they learn that they've lived VERY controversial lives, and now need to be judged. That brings us to...

LEAFPOOL'S TRIAL

Actually does not go over as harshly as it did in canon. Squilf is going to be the one getting interrogated, sorry girlie

The main purpose of this one is to show how the trials work for Squilf later. I'm also planning for the same Lawyer who handles Leaf to handle Squilf too.

However, Leafpool is still grilled. The line, "Why do you think you're worthy of StarClan?" is used.

Breaking the code to be with Crowfeather is brought up, countered with "she came back and stayed, because the Clan did not have a Cleric."

When the Three are brought up, it's addressed with the Queen's Rights. She "did what she was supposed to," giving her children to Squirrelflight to raise.

She spent her whole life obeying, even at personal pain to herself, and served her Clan loyally despite momentary lapses in judgement.

It was a traumatic thing to go through, but still results in an easy ruling; Worthy of StarClan.

Leafpool chooses to stay in StarClan, and they watch her body die down on Earth, plus the following vigil

Squilf's Trial is a lot more complicated.

SQUIRRELFLIGHT'S TRIAL

Fire Alone, as an ideology, involves a TON of codebreaking... which she has done, often. Especially during the events of Squirrelflight's Horror where she has been forced to defy Bramblestar's direct orders several times

She's lived her whole life with the knowledge that unjust laws MUST be defied.

I think she should also kill someone in defense of the Sisters tbh. Like let's really make this worse than canon and give them something worth interrogating her about. WAS it okay to kill that person in defense of someone outside the Code?

It's not just Squirrelflight that's in question here; it's Fire Alone itself. WILL StarClan accept the idea that the Code applies to outsiders as well?

VERY IMPORTANT: This is why I do not want the Lawyer to be someone who is a Fire Alone supporter. Squirrelflight is defending it, AND herself

Iceheart, Firestar, Sandstorm, Bluestar, and all of her allies grow more and more agitated as the Trial goes on. Her enemies do as well.

Before the ruling, the entire jury is in a FEVER PITCH. Thunderstar, the Judge, cannot roar loud enough to get them all to quiet down. In fact, he makes it worse

Ashfur is one of the named "enemies" of Squirrelflight, and one of the loudest for her damnation.

The court cannot calm down enough to cast a ruling. It's starting to break out in actual fighting, Squirrelflight casts a glance at Leafpool

She's trying to yell that she needs to go home, people need her, she doesn't have time for this

And then she feels a squeeze on her ankle

Yowling with alarm, Squirrelflight feels herself sliding down into the clouds, away from the furious chaos that is engulfing StarClan. It becomes a shining speck on the horizon as if she's falling out of a dream

She's screaming for Leafpool, reaching out her claws for StarClan, convinced that she's just been damned and is being dragged down to the Dark Forest

BACK ON EARTH

She awakens in her nest, back in her body

With her son Jayfeather next to her.

As she stirs and begins to raise her head, she hears Lionblaze bellow, "YOU GLORIOUS BASTARD YOU REALLY DID IT!!" before dogpiling her

Jayfeather looks surprised that it worked at all at first, before huffing proudly

Jayfeather: "never ask me for anything ever again"

The last of a golden glow fades from his eyes; he has used the last drop of power he had left. He later shares that he doesn't think it would have worked if Squilf hadn't still been hanging on.

Fallenleaf rushes in next, followed by grandchild Ivypool, her first apprentice Rosepetal, her best friend Daisy, and by that point the Cleric's den is bursting.

Bramblestar is poking his head in, but realizes pretty quickly that he is Not Welcome, and stares longingly.

After her cuddles and hugs, Squirrelflight brings up Sparkpelt. She NEEDS to see Sparkpelt. Sparkpelt needs to know she's okay, and that her mate and poisoned child reached StarClan.

SO... LAWYER WANTED AD:

The lawyer can't be someone who's entirely on Squirrelflight's side. It's someone who is challenging her, but not entirely unsympathetic.

It needs to be someone she knew in life. Lawyers are never people who are strangers, which rules out Yellowfang who I had been heavily considering.

Ideally it's the same lawyer between Squilf and Leafp, just so we can spend plenty of time with the character and use Leaf's trial to show their personality.

Hmm.... you know, now that I'm thinking about it... what if it was ASHFUR?

Maybe even have him blackmailing Squilf... "I'll be fair, for you, of course... just promise to do whatever I say, and I'll save your sister. This is your chance to make up for everything you did to me..."

That could be pretty fun. AND be good setup for BB!TBC.

[popculturebuffet]

Indy Prelude: Carl Barks; The Seven Cities of Cibola! (Comissioned by WeirdKev27)

Hello all you happy adventuerers!

Since I last covered duck comics. While Disney Ducks built this fine institution the fact is other disney properties, other cartoons and comics in general, and general nonsense have simply take up more of my time. But it's always good to return home and just in time as this is also a prelude to something duck adjacent. a franchise that may not exist without good ole scrooge mcduck.

Yup just in time for Dial of Destiny we're taking a look at the indiana jones film quintology! From one of the most loved films of all time with too many quotable lines to count and more nazi's turned to goo than you can shake a staff of ra at, to it's divsive followup featuring the most iconic heart ripping in human history, a future oscar winner, and the directors wife, to the film almost as iconic as the original with sir sean connery, holy grails and more nazis, and all the way into that fourth film what people don't like to talk about with nuclear explosions, greasers, communists and actual cannibal Shia Lebouf, cumulating in a film I.. don't have a ton of antedotes about because it hasn't come out yet? Indy punches a protester and deals with the horrifying consequences of age and america working with the nazis? I dunno, i'm just excited, kev's excited and hopefully you are.

I'm dead serious about Scrooge being part of the reason Indy exists though. While sadly not coming up in the fablemans, though likely because it might've been a bit too much of a LOOK LOOK SEE THE THING THAT WILL MAKE HIM FAMOUS LATER moment the film honestly avoided so I can respect the decision, Young Stevie was a huge fan of Scrooge McDuck, to the point his future succesful self did a forward for one of the many carl barks collections. It's not the only influence and i'm sure as I research Raiders, i'll no doubt find tons more direct ones, but it is a notable one that gets brought up quite a bit and it's easy to see why: Scrooge too is a globetrotting adventurer who has a successful day job (If a far less modest one), cares deeply about the history of what he finds, is a tad gruff, verbally pars with most love intrests, and takes the quick solution when it makes sense, so it's easy to see the compassions. The two are still different enough: Indy isn't in it for the money, generally adventures because he has to not for the thrill like scrooge, and Scrooge's only child we know of isn't a massive embarrassment, but you can still see how it left a mark and see Barks attention to culture, love of slow adventure, and humor in Indy.

That and one certain scene we'll get into in the comic is the direct inspiration for one of the most iconic scenes in film history.. but we'll get for that. For now we're taking a look at one fo the most legendary stories in the duck canon and seeing how it holds up, this is the Seven Citeis of Cibola!

We begin with what you all came to see

It's a neat enough visual gag and a reminder to me that most scrooge stories.. really didn't open with the big splash pages i'm used to in comics nor an actual story title

Though Barks still makes the best of it with the sight gag of Scrooge lieterally bathing in money. The setup to this one is brilliant too: Scrooge reflects on the fact he's got his feathers in just about every industry imaginable. Cannaries, Fisheries, Newspapers, Horse Races, Bibble Removal, Steam Cleaning, Steamed Hams, baseball, both kinds of football, mega football, calvinball, horeshoes, unicorn shoes, abestos, tabacco, cultural apporiation, robots, Goat Cheese Pizza, getting the cool shoeshine universal solvent, fishmobabywhirlmagigs, Spam, Crackers and Milk, Breaking Cat News, allen wrenches, gerbil feeders, toilet seats, electric heaters, trash compactors, juice extractor, shower rods, water meters, walke-talkies, copper wires, saftey googles, radial tiers, bb pellets, rubber mallets, fans , dehumidifiers, picture hangers, paper cutters, waffle irons, window shutters, paint removers, window louves, masking tape, plastic gutters, kitchen faucets, folding tables, weather stripping, jumper cables, hooks and tackle, grout and spackle, power fogers, spoons and ladles, pesticides for fumigation, high peformance lubircation, metal roofing, water proofing, multi purpose insulation, air compressors, brass connectors, wrecking chisels, smoke detectors, tire gagues, hamster cages, thermostats, bug deflectors, trailer hitch demagntizers, automatic circumciers, tennis rackets, angle brackets, Duracells and energizers, soffit panels, circuit brakers, vacuum cleaners, coffee makers, calculators, generators, maatching salt and pepper shakers, horse dewormer, fighting gold, repulsor technology, pym particles, Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosiiiiiiiissssssss, flying pigs, wild pigs, pigssssss innnnnn spaccceeeeeee, wilkins coffee, islands that walk like men, mood slime, chainsaws, saftey films, toner, donald duck abuse, Yoghurt Platinum, Clubmarine, Saltweens, Disco Dairy, Disco Duck, Lard, Trash Bag Wrestling, Superfast Jellyfish, The Gizmonic Institute, Cloning deboning, dethroning, stupid nintendo games, Rusty Shackleford, Molten Boron, SCTV, Squakabilly Taxi's, An Automatic Man, Wells for Boys, Flight Rings, decoder rings, olvatine, Krakoan Gates, Sealabs, Underwater Motor Scooters, Sex Bombs, Good Guy Dolls, The Last cult, Krustyburger,Chalk Tablet Towers, nerderotica, underwear, money, fat, hank.

The problem is he's got no more worlds to conquer: He's invested in everything, and thus can't make money on a NEW venture. Barks gets some great gags out of this too with Scrooge trying and failing to buy Gyro's newest gadget and a peanut stand, only to find out he OWNS both. It really shows that despite his horrifying wealth and influence.. scrooge can't ENJOY it. To him the fun's in the chase. The having's nice too, but the world just dosen't feel the same if there isn't another rainbow to chase, something I get as a book and film collector. It's great to have, but the looking is just as fun. It's something i'm sure most can relate to especially us nerds.

Thankfully Donald and the Boys just happen to drive by: their hunting arrow heads for 50 cents a piece over in the desert for Crazy Harry's House of Cultural Approritaion. That's Crazy Harry, the man with a snake on his face.

As you can guess this story has some dated bits: while Arrowheads are still treasured, I have one my grandpa gave me, it's not nearly as kosher to sell artifacts of someones' culture for fun and profit. Even as far back as 1980 Indy himself was doing it more for the joy of history and famously said it belongs in a museum.. and evne that's starting to slip as I saw on John Oliver last year. You can find his piece bellow.

And of course they use the i word instead of native americans or indegenous peoples.

Which is annoying , but not suprising.

So our heroes go looking for Arrowheads out in the generic desert. Weirdly for Carl Barks this Desert.. isn't a specific place. There's just suddenly a giant desert outside Duckburg. I didn't notice when reading the story for this review as Barks still packs in nice detail and makes it feel real, with our heroes having to conserve water, brave dust storms and track using realistic methods where tribes may of hunted their game. For the record it was the Pueblo who were linked to this, primarily settling in new mexico. I normally woudln't be this harsh on research, I got that bit from wikipedia after all, but given both how much Barks was lauded for it and how much care he usually puts in, it's weird to see him drop the ball a bit

At any rate our heroes soon find a trail and along it some treasures they take in to town to get examined. The curator there reveals their from The Seven Cities of Cibola, seven cities made of gold and gleaming with treasure, similar to EL Dorado, based on real life rumors about lost cities that turned out to be adobe huts, something Donald brings up. Barks does find a clever way for the myth to still be true, and a shockingly modern one: given the people who found it were conquistadors and heard it through rumors, it makes sense that the people they were conquering and mistreating wouldn't tell them where the city REALLY was. It's not phrased that way, but it's still brilliant.

So our heroes decide, well Scrooge and the Boys decide Donald is just sorta swept along by the tide as usual, to go after the city, figuring the trail leads there. THey stop at a diner for some nondescript hamburgers.. and end up evedroppsed on as nearbye the Beagle Boys are kicked out of an Aid for the Poor Center for welfare fraud and are told hey hey why don't you get a job, which has aged like fine milk on the sidewalk. They naturally follow scrooge smelling money and trail our heroes. I do like the Beagle Boys Inc t-shirts they wear in this shirt, before beagle boys inc was bought by feel good inc in the mid 2000's.

Once our heroes get going Barks DOES make up for his previous non-descriptness as he cites actual locations along the trail such as big bluff and the colorado river. We also get a nice tone: normally the adventure is scrooge dragging our heroes along and being a real dick but here there's a real sense of camradery and excitment ala ducktales 2017. The boys gladly use their guidebook to help while Scrooge uses his experince, the guidebook finding them shade. Eventaully it can only go so far and they end up lost, as do their persuers. They refill the canteens but eventuallyt heir dry. It's a nice showing of the dangers of the desret and the realisim Barks really likes to use in his stories. These may be cartoon ducks but they can die just like anyone else… except of old age but you know

Our heroes fortunes don't get better when the beagles blindsight them.. but plan to just up and leave, having had enough fo the desert and having NOT stocked up on water due to being too busy persuing scrooge, leaving our heroes free to persue the cities unabated.. but near death if they do'nt find water soon. Thankfully they find an old spanish galleon and more importantly

That said I do love Donald's expression here. Barks is a master at those. It does provide our heroes with a way forward, as the logbook details both the ships survivors meeting people clad in gold and a clue about the way the ships pointing at long last our heroes reach the seven cities.. and the sight is truly gorgeous.

And inside are countless treasures, a great sequence as we see pools of coins, ruby arrowheads and most importantly an emerald statue.. set on a trap. Yes this is where the parts Indy homages come in, as it's also on a weight trap, though a far more elaborate one that will destroy the city if activated. IT's clever adn I can see why speilberg and lucas reused it and i'ts diffrent enoguh in the indy version to work as Indy tries to actually take the statue and uses clever manuvering.

At any rate we get to the climax and.. this is where the story falls apart for me: it starts well enough: the beagle boys show up, throw our heroes in a bricked up prison and star tlooting..a nd naturally stupidly trigger the trap leading to the second half of the equation for INdy's iconic opening

But again done diffrently.. with indy we actaully SEE it chase him, so Speilberg got the clear diffrence between inspiration and outright theft. He took the basic idea but made something fresh with it.

The ending… is what really weakens the story for me: everyone gets amnesia, no one remembers and the city remains buried, with scrooge not willing to go back for measly arrowheads. This ending… is all kinds of dumb. For one Scrooge talked to the professor man, he might follow up, and two.. ther'es no real reason for it. I get not wanting a white idiot to loot a fantastic city, that part's fine. Everything about the climax works … except the amnesia part. Yes scrooge could dig, but he could also damage everything or there could be nothing left. The amnesia seems tacked on because Barks coudln't be bothered to come up with an actual reason why Scrooge woudln't go back, when the trail coudl've been lost in a storm or something or the beagle boys destroyed it on the way so while Scrooge gets resuced, he has no way back. There are other ways.

Overall the Seven Cities of Cibola is a decent outing. It has a LOT of good stuff, the slow methodical apporach with little action but a lot of intrigue, the gorgeous city, and the threat not being fantastic traps or anythin gbut simply the heat and environment, and the comedy is on point, with Scrooge going from hunting arrowheads to hunting a lost city all wrapping together. Again it's really the amnesia ending that hurts it: without it this would easily be one of my favirotie scrooge tales, a well done caper that again is shockingly slow paced, but in a delebrate well done way. The ending just drops it a few knotchs in my eyes. It's still worth a look, just temper your expectations>

Next Time: Dun dunnn dunn dunn dunn, dun dunn dunn dun dun dun dun dunnn dunn dunn da da da da, da da da da dun dun dun dun da da da, dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dunnnn!

[thesinglesjukebox]

TINASHE - "NEEDS"

I mean, have you seen the price of cold cuts lately?

[6.79]

Jacob Sujin Kuppermann: So catchy that it's become the background radiation of my mind. [9]

Crystal Leww: Earlier this year Tinashe was playing Knockdown Center in New York and a friend of mine tweeted that tickets were $5. I really did check because it did seem like a believable reality at the time which is really all you need to know about whatever is happening with Tinashe in the year of our lord 2023. [3]

Ian Mathers: I don't have, like, a list but I suspect/dimly remember that there's at least a microgenre of sex jams with videos set in innocuous backdrops like the grocery store found here. But I don't recall any of them seeming like they had quite as much fun there as Tinashe and her dancers do; fitting enough for a song that doesn't do anything particularly novel but does it all with such frank matter-of-factness and confidence that it feels fresh. [8]

Frank Falisi: How can you tell that a singer is a good dancer? I think maybe it's in the voice. I think maybe a voice is a thing that can be wielded and conceived of as entering a physical space like any other limb. I think maybe Tinashe proves that. "Needs" is a paean to get and give that puts the pleading back in pop music, an apparatus that approximates us by asking to take up our time and space for three minutes or less or so. Crucially, Tinashe's voice choreographs that approximation in terms of necessity instead of luxury: everything here is just plain simple needs, like breathing and being. The voice prepares a body for wanting. It clips and jabs, wups and garbles life. There's a pitch shift here in the first minute or so that feels like a somersaulting step, like the total inversion a beloved can inflict on a body. It makes me gasp, which makes me aware of my voice. It puts us head over heels, moved and moving. [8]

Wayne Weizhen Zhang: Tinashe running around grocery store aisles with a turkey pan on her head, Tinashe wearing deli meat as an outfit, Tinashe twerking on top of containers of nuts, Tinashe riding in a grocery store cart. The "Needs" music video is an instant classic for the same reason the song slaps: it's effortless and clean and simple, but doesn't take itself too seriously. This is the type of cool that enjoys itself, the kind that's unconcerned with anything but having a good time. [8]

Leah Isobel: What does Tinashe have left to prove? Songs For You demonstrated that she can make creatively satisfying crossover pop without a major label; 333 was an ebullient victory lap that pushed her art outward in all directions, uniting her most experimental tendencies and her most down-the-middle melodies behind her star presence. She could fuck off for, like, five years and still have people (me) frothing at the mouth for her return. But of course, the industry doesn't work like that: if your job is to make music and perform, you have to keep clocking in. "Needs" finds a way to make those obligations both transparent and irrelevant; "They ain't never seen moves like these," she sings, as if she's still a new artist, as if there isn't ample evidence of her staggering physical skills. It's branding as much as it's boasting. But we -- I -- come to Tinashe for that outsized confidence, the easy bravado masking tremendous effort. And "Needs" still delivers where it counts, with a warm bath of a chorus that stretches on and on and on. Even when she's just punching the clock, she's generous. [7]

Daniel Montesinos-Donaghy: It's great when Tinashe gets silly, something that was in short supply during her embargo at RCA, where she square-peg-round-holed into trends or pushed onwards with her gothic mumblings. Her most recent album, BB/ANG3L, could do with a few more athletic sex-comedy routines like "Needs." Over queasy West Coast keys, Tinashe's filtrated voices bawdily narrates a hook-up, where there's teasing and power-play but no humiliation. It's all very silly and rather human: "I'm just human, we all got needs," she lilts in the warmest of shrugs, like it's really that easy. [9]

Alex Ostroff: A decade on from Tinashe's initial mixtapes -- which were heralded as the emergence of a talented new left-of-centre voice in R&B who was just a little too vibey and ethereal and uninterested in big shiny hooks to take over the mainstream -- Tinashe has returned to that position, following a brief detour into the world of major labels that tried to DJ Mustard her way into pop hits. She's made two compelling albums since going independent again that mostly exist in her midtempo R&B comfort zone. "Needs" exists in the same space, but feels slight and tossed off. It's catchy enough that it only took 2 or 3 listens before "peaches, banaaaaaanas" was permanently embedded in my brain, but by its nature its pleasant, wispy and low-stakes. [6]

Katherine St Asaph: I've always heard an empty sadness beneath Tinashe's singles, even the ones (which is most of the big ones) that aren't meant to be. "Needs" is supposedly gleeful -- watch Tinashe grin all throughout the strip-club Supermarket Sweep video. But its musical palette is all resignation: vacant handclaps, synths flickering in and out like the lighting of an abandoned floor, minor-key melody delivered with almost no flirtation or embellishment, like the checked-out cadence of "Big Spender"; the fact that the phrase "we've all got needs" usually comes with the implication that they aren't currently being met. The fact that no one else ever seems to hear this makes me worry that maybe this is some kind of projection on my part; but I can't hear anything else, and the resulting tension between sound and intent makes "Needs" more compelling than it should be. For instance: That buffet line because wasn't sexy on Katy Perry's "Bon Appetit" either. [7]

Alfred Soto: She mastered this midtempo sex jam years ago; 333, the best album of 2021, was a middle finger to challengers. She can record these melodies over click tracks forever. In the best of Tinashe's midtempo sex jams I hear more at stake. [6]

Will Adams: As a single, it's serviceable, with Tinashe going cruise control on a cutesy sex jam. But it's a disservice to the otherwise excellent BB/Angel, where tension was the mode and, as a result, far more interesting. Docked an extra point for that weird vocal processing midway through that makes it sound like she's suspended in Jell-O. [5]

Joshua Minsoo Kim: BB/ANG3L is one of Tinashe's best albums if only because it's 20 minutes long -- the maximum amount of R&B she can deliver before everything turns to mush. And "Needs" is indeed more of that nondescript, nocturnal mood music: gauzy synth pads, a minimal beat, her voice flitting in the ether. That lone verse is the best part, her vocals slurred as she sings about getting eaten out -- the brashness matches the dingy, dimly lit atmosphere. Artists with 10x her budget would make being horny a glamorous, extravagant, all-consuming affair. As an unimaginative songwriter and perpetual C-lister, Tinashe can't quite do that, and so she sticks with meat-and-potatoes production and finds the lyrics to match. [6]

Michelle Myers: Nashe seems to be enjoying herself again. Perhaps my perception is colored by its twerking-in-the-grocery music video, but "Needs" feels more like a dirty joke among friends than a genuine attempt at seduction. [7]

David Moore: I enjoy the Ryan Leslie-esque synth clouds, but the song goes beyond circular to samey -- a mass of wispy gray stratus clouds when they needed to be little fluffy cumuli. [6]

Brad Shoup: Not entirely certain why she bothered with a verse. Maybe she had nowhere else to place the peaches, bananas. A short, spare song but there's still room to ponder whether the simp sucks or not. (The verbal abuse feels central to the action.) Great singsong chorus, even if I keep hearing "talk real mean" as "taco meat". [6]

Taylor Alatorre: An impressionistic portrait of desire intermingling with control that sets a rather low bar for itself, and then proceeds to leap over that bar with an abundance of style. And by "style," I mean Tinashe doing violence to her voice in a way that's meant to embody twin ideals of cuteness and menace, which has the knock-on effect of making her say "peaches, bananas" in a voice that sounds like it's been taken over by the Shimmer from Annihilation. Now that's just good clean fun, in my opinion. [7]

Edward Okulicz: Nice song. Not sure why they shot the amusing video with Tinashe and her dancers having fun in a supermarket before they finalised the vocal though because there's a fine line between sexy and bored in a jam and this is on the wrong side of it. Wait, what? This is the final version of the song and it's not waiting on a re-recording to make her sound as fun as she is having in the video? You're shitting me. [5]

Jackie Powell: It is impressive that Tinashe was able to freestyle the final line in the chorus "we all got needs" which launched the entire concept for "Needs." She told Dazed that she "just pressed record and played a beat" and a chorus was born. This track seems more like an extended hook or an interlude rather than a full song. The chorus and post chorus make up over 75 percent of the entire song. It's fine this song was made for TikTok, but the only verse this song has contains a vocal distortion that ruins what came before it. Tinashe's voice is smooth and sensual enough, it doesn't need to sound like it's underwater. I say Na-na-na, na-na-na to whoever decided that Tinashe's diction had to suffer in the track's only verse. She sounded like she was holding her nose. [6]

Nortey Dowuona: Tinashe was always meant to be a mid tier artiste. She had both too many outre tastes to stay comfortable in conventional pop structures, but was too nostalgia heavy and cynical to drift into a more esoteric mysticism. She could dance, she could sing, she could dance and sing, in a world where neither of those things was novel to the marketplace or stunningly amazing, she could have comfortably avoided irrelevance and been scooped into the orbit of an actual star. But Tinashe has always charted her own path and set her own course, so instead she's doing this slower than 120 bpm pop-R&B tune about satisfying the desires for pleasure and indulgence, the things music can easily achieve without breaking a sweat. Thank god for Tinashe. [10]

[Read, comment and vote on The Singles Jukebox ]

[darklovecat]

Another outfit?

My transition weather outfit inspired by Jessica Alba.

We're in this weird phase where it's neither spring nor winter, it's this in between thing where the mornings are freezing cold but it gets very warm after 12 and it's really hard to find things to wear that will be appropriate for the entire day, I either have to freeze to death in the mornings or sweat like crazy during the day... this outfit is an attempt to strike balance.

Jessica Alba has always been such a beauty to me since I've seen her in the sleeping dictionary, she's stunning. I mean imagine looking this good on a candid. I love it when female celebs wear chic simple outfits, they always look so elegant and the outfits are easy to replicate. I happen to have everything in my closet and I am wearing something very similar with a few tweaks.

A white leotard.

This is an essential piece in my closet, I wear leotards not only in the studio but also in my day to day life. Relaxed fits look terrible on me, I like sharp defined lines as they suit me best, I hate that most white t-shirts are see through, I don't have the desire to iron, I hate it when shirts ride up and look weird, and I hate tucking in my shirts because it looks stupid. All of these annoying problems are solved with this simple piece. I bought one like a month ago and loved it so much that I bought lots of others, white cool undertone, white warm undertone, white smooth material, white cotton. (This one is white smooth material with cool undertone). The material is very stretchy but it has a very fitted but not tight fit and I am obsessed with it.

A royal blue skirt.

I've decided to step out of my comfort zone and I am wearing royal blue instead of navy blue now, the royal blue brings out and compliments the orange color of the coat beautifully. I don't own a single pair of pants because I don't wear them anymore, so I had to recreate this look with a skirt obviously. I bought the smallest size available but it was still too big on me so I had to get it tailored, it is still a tiny bit too big around the waistline and I try not to think too much about it. It's not the most comfortable to walk in because it's a maxi A-line skirt with a non-stretchy material but the color is truly stunning so I decided to keep it. I would really recommend wearing royal blue jeans/skirts/pants etc. to people who want to wear incorporate more color because it matches pretty much everything, it's versatile, not too bright, you can dress it up or down and it's a simple color to work with.

A Peach Jazz Hijab.

I dedicated a year to focusing on my faith, I studied at an all-girl Qur'an academy, each class had their own hijab color, and this was ours. It was a very cute concept if it weren't for the fact that every single girl in my class hated this color with a passion because we were all Middle Eastern and most of us had olive undertones, it's harder to pull off pastels with our skin tones. I wasn't a fan either, this color made my under eyes look like the entrance to the Tartarus, and I thought it will just get lost at some corner in my closet after I graduate but I discovered the world of color analysis and how I can use makeup to make certain colors work for me. Dr. Jart color correcting treatment to erase any redness, BB cream to even out my skin tone, blush across my cheeks for a healthy glow, lengthening black mascara to make my eyes stand out, light eyeshadow to look fresh, peachy color to make my lips moisturized and juicy, and peachy pink is now my color & I'm good to go!

A tile colored trench coat.

I bought this in middle school but it still fits me and it looks like new. I bought this from a brand called Orsay, I couldn't think about passing up a deal that good so here I am 8 years later. At the beginning I couldn't stand the color, I don't really wear orange and I hate that I had to coordinate my entire outfit around it and make my fits neutral or monochrome to make it work for me so I only wear this piece a few times a year. It's flowy and the fabric is thin, it's 65% viscose and 35% polyester, I try to take note of the material to see how it relates to longevity, I've learned that 100% natural aren't always the best choice for me. It's a beautiful coat, very flowy and I always wear it unbuttoned, I like walking around the city, headphones in, breathing in the beauty of my city, snacking on curry spiced cashews because I can't wait till I'm home, and my coat is just flowing in all directions with the wind.

Cat.

[shastafirecracker]

for the ask meme: 3, 18, 22?

another break for writing rambles!

3 what’s one scene you always wanted to write but can’t be arsed to write all the setup and context it would need? I would love to write just some smutty smutty PWP of polygun all having fun with vash’s vine tentacles but I keep being hung up by my own inability to let go of canon characterization - the fact that those vines are incredibly traumatic to vash and I have such a hard time getting him in my mind to a place where he’d be okay with even manifesting them, much less railing three people at once with them. argh! it took me however many thousands of words of the VWL post-canon AU to get to a place where I think vash is fine with feathering out and having oops-accidentally-psychic sex with wolfwood and livio. do I have to do that with vash/wolfwood/meryl/milly also?? (maybe?? i’m not saying it’ll NEVER happen I’m just saying it makes me insane)

I also have a slew of AU ideas that I know would make great 100k+ epics but like, man, that’s work, that’s so hardddd whine whine whine

18 do any of your stories have alternative versions (abandoned plotlines, AUs of your own work, alternate characterizations)? again I can’t say anything about BB fic yet, though I will! probably in december I’ll make a roundup post of discards and trivia. and I don’t think I ever have alternate characterizations, because having a strong idea of the characterization through-line is usually where my fics start. but in both Trillium & Ivy and my bb fic I have thought to myself that it would be so fucking easy to make them polygun instead of vashwood. there’s a very noncanon-to-t&i wip of the wives and the bfs having a bi4bi4bi4bi weekend getaway, which… I’m gonna hold onto because there was a polygun event interest check recently and I do like the bones of this wip, it just needs a LOT of work, so. if there’s an event it might be just the thing, idk.

T&I has the most abandoned plotlines of probably anything I’ve ever written besides my old destiel AU. modern-setting AUs have so many potential ways to get sidelined, at least for me. probably the biggest thing is that according to the original outline, the final showdown was meant to take place in like a warehouse at some docks (why? what??), zazie was going to drive everyone there because elendira sent them to get her man back safely, the WHOLE crew was supposed to go (vash, nick, livio, meryl, milly, kaite, zazie) and there were going to be? whole gun fight scenes??

this is a blatant example of what is meant by “don’t be precious with your ideas” - I wrote several thousand words of outline and then looked at all of it and said what the fuck, time to put all of this in the garbage disposal and start over. don’t be precious = drawfee’s whole bit of “delete your art.” sometimes you gotta accept not even scavenging for bits to salvage, just burn it all.

the fic is MUCH better for it

22 do you reread your old works? how do you feel about them? I do! I love them! oh it’s the tea, for me, the tea for me, the tea specifically designed to kill me, etc etc! I drift off from rereading my own fics in older fandoms often because I’m just not rotating those blorbos in my head so hard anymore, but for finished fics in my current fandom, it’s like hey wow this author wrote a fic that will push every single one of my buttons with extreme precision, because this author lives in my head and is me, lol. also, when I get a review that mentions any specific thing, I have to go back and reread that bit to extract all the dopamine from seeing it through fresh eyes and imagining how the reader interpreted it or felt about it.