#It's like the matrix is going *chef's kiss*

[muffinlance]

i read FT&KB in one sitting on a long car journey (6 hours FLEW by, thank you, SO excited to get into the sequel :D) and thought you might like to know about the best music sync-up i've ever had - i'd just reached the last couple paragraphs, and got hit with the lyrics "Remember all the dead and gone / You might've killed me once / But you won't get that chance again" 11/10 timing, universe read the vibes exactly right 🤌🤌

Holy shit the universe was JAMMING with your read-a-thon, that's awesome

...Oh no did you just become a protagonist? Was that car ride your movie's opening montage, complete with well timed themetic song?

I'm glad you enjoyed it, and thank you for your kind words! May you be living in the genre of your choice <3

[hydroelectricjaya]

LMAO I’ve got a lot of things to say about the Administration, but first let’s talk about Jay:

DR Spoilers under cut

Ahhhh ahahahahha. They really did make evil/villain Jay a reality. He’s not a wagey slaving away in a cubical, he’s management. (Looks like middle management, maybe upper management.)

He’s every asshole manager you have ever had who doesn’t do shit, gets promoted by failing upwards and makes employees stay late to cover for his own incompetence.

They made Jay a “suit”. (Creatives hate suits.)

This is just *kiss chef*.

And because he lost his memories/no Nya around, he has defaulted back to his sassy asshole roots. LMFAO

Speculation: but I wouldn’t be surprised if Jay gets promoted to an executive next season, and we see him interacting with the “big bad” that was eluded to at the end of episode 20. You all aren’t ready for board room Jay. 😂

The Administration is a piece of work though. It’s a mashup of every corporate hell-hole popular media: Dilbert, Office Space, The Office, everyone’s experience going to the DMV, etc. Even Arin and Lloyd sneaking around the cubicals getting messages from Zane was a scene from the Matrix LOL.

[blackterrae]

Ideas for Black!Reader Fic

I am going to try my hand again at writing. And I wanted to share some people and fandoms that I love. If you don’t know these shows/actors/franchises/movies/streamers/games

I’m putting you on! For the following:

Princess Bride

Alice In Borderland

Johnny Depp- All his characters

Napoleon Dynamite

Cameron Monaghan- I know that there are fics out there but it’s only always his Jerome/Jeremiah roles never just him or Cal Kestis

Anthony Carrigan- I loved Anothy as Victor Zsasz

Paul Dano- There are Riddler fics but not as many for his other roles

Damsel

The Entire Cast of Hawaii Five-0 (2010) - Don’t even get me started on how good this show is! And the cast looks amazing!

Chicago Med/Fire/PD- These shows have so much potential for fanfic storylines!

The Game (2006)- Has great potential for slow burns and fluffs.

Star Wars franchise (1977-present) - I know I said Cal Kestis but there are also other characters like Anakin, Luke, Obi Wan,Boba Fett (etc.)

NCIS franchise- I honestly love this franchise and it’s characters!

Hamilton

Any/All Sports Men- Jude Bellingham,Lewis Hamilton,LaMelo Ball,Allen Iverson(etc.)

Berleezy - He’s handsome and he’s funny!

Coryxkenshin- I literally love him and his videos!

Albert Aretz (Flamingo)- Look … he may be the epitome of mediocre white man but I like what I like!

AMP- Duke Dennis, Kai Cenat, Agent 00, ChrisNxtDoor,Davis, and Fanum ( all I gotta say is love a black man from infinity to infinity🗣️)

Beta Squad- A British YouTube/ streamer group!

SOMEBROS- Berleezy, Rico, ,PG, Joe (etc.)

WWE- come on now, do I even need to explain!!!

Four Brothers- All the cast but Garrett Hedland in particular!

Peacemaker - Don’t get me wrong I love Adrian Chase but I want to see just as much Peacemaker x black!reader fics because 2 words… JOHN CENA

MAWS- New animated Superman show! Love!

Smallville - The entire cast is hot! Tbh I fell hard for Tom Welling when I was younger when he was in Cheaper By The Dozen. Plus they literally whitewashed Vixen. COME ON! Vixen is a black female hero btw. She was also with Jon (Green Lantern) at one point.

Justice League/Justice League Unlimited (2001 and 2004)- I mean I literally can’t find any Jon Stewart x black!reader fics and he was with a BLACK WOMAN!

Warner Bros Franchise (minus the looney tunes & space jam)- There are lots of popular franchises that this company has from Fast & Furious to The Matrix!

Peaky Blinders- Saw a Tommy shelby x arms dealer black!female reader fic on my previous account but even then I couldn’t find it again on that account. So it’s gone with the wind. And the cast (i.e the actors and other characters they’ve portrayed). Example: Cillian Murphy as Johnathan Crane.

The Bear

FBI (All)

The good doctor

Tiktokers: Vinnie hacker

Blue Bloods

Will Poulter- I haven’t really seen any Adam Warlock fics

Slashers

Stranger Things

Cruel Intentions

Burnt

Dave Lizewski

Eddie Redmayne

Macgyver (2016)

Fresh Prince of Belair

Guardians of the galaxy- Explanation? Do I really need one?

On My Block

Descendants (characters will be the actors age in real life.duh)- Love Boo-boo Stewart & Mitchell Hope!

Matt Rife

Joey Bragg (Liv &Maddie) - What can I say I love dorks!

The Boys- Haven’t seen that many fics about the characters and a black reader

Once Upon A Time- I love dark fairytales sometimes because they remind me that not every story has a happy ending and you have to learn from them. But this series is good for any theme really.

Walker Texas Ranger (1993)

Top Gun

Nicolas Galitzine

Magcon: Whether you saw their vines on YouTube or vine, you know who they are

Dolan Twins

Mission Impossible

Euphoria- Entire show has great storylines with the potential of drama in fics

Shameless- Especially Carl Gallagher and Lip Gallagher

Creed- Michael B Jordan need I say more

Keanu Reeves- There are very few fics about Keanu but I’ve seen a few of his John Wick x black!reader fics (chef’s kiss) but never see any of The Matrix Fics!Also Ted (Bill & Ted)

River Phoenix

Batman Beyond

Rider Strong

Danny Gonzalez

Timothée Chalamet

Past-Present Singers & Rappers/ Groups -Bow Wow, Tupac, Lil Baby, Nelly, Omarion, Prince, Michael Jackson, Jon B,Usher, Central Cee, Måneskin, New Edition, BTS, James, PRETTYMUCH Bay, Daniel Caesar, October London, Steve Lacey, Artemas, YUNGBLUD, Andy Biersack,Eduardo Vega(etc.)

Anime(Any kind!)- Would love to see other shows, I know hunterxhunter,aot,one piece (etc.)

Bridgerton- There is very little Bridgerton stories catered around a black reader.

Marvel- Now that’s not to say that there aren’t any in fact there are many but I never see (Tobey Maguire Spider-Man stories and it seems like everyone tends to focus on the famous Marvel characters like The Avengers but not on other aspects like X-men or better yet, heroes that haven’t even gotten their own movie but are just as amazing like Squadron Supreme , it’s equivalent to DCU’s Justice League.

Secret Invasion- Not gonna lie , I’m feening for Gravik.😳

DCEU- Another franchise that pushes its other characters to the side. For example, Hush (Thomas Elliot) is literally the epitome of Bruce Wayne gone bad!

Ross Lynch- There are so many roles that Ross did so well in Like Teen Beach Movie or Sabrina.

Highschool Musical Franchise (2006- present ) I’m not just talking about HSMTS (2019), I mean even further back than that. I don’t see any Troy Bolton x black!reader and that’s crazy. I also can’t find any Zac Efron x black!reader

Interview with a Vampire (1994) and (2022)

Austin Butler- He did well in his role as Elvis!

Vikings - There are a good amount but still!

Transformers

Suits

Saved By The Bell

The Goldbergs

Parks & Recreation

Leverage

The Outsiders

Heart of Stone

New York Undercover (1994)

Addams Family

Victorious

Matpat

ICarly

The Real Bros of Simi Valley (2017)

Think Like A Man (2012)

One on One (2001)

Scorpion (2014)

The King of Queens (1998)

G.I. Joe Franchise

Terminator

Beware the Batman (2013)

Any and all Asian Idols/Actors

Seal Team

Mortal Combat

Bill and Ted

Barbie

Detroit: Become Human

Will Trent

Bones

Tokyo Vice

Growing Pains

Graceful Family (Kdrama)[Any Asian Drama shows or movies would be great as well]

The Regime

Batman: The animated series

The Sympathizer

The Invitation

Jawbreaker

Hunger Games

Saved By the Bell

Eve (2003)

Yellowstone

Superstore

Rodrick Heffley

Tracker

Girlfriends

Grown-ish

CSI

Kingsman

Jury Duty

Scoot Pilgrim vs the world

21 Jump Street (The Show and Movies)

Sky High

The Outsiders

Left

Midsomer Murders

Wayne (perhaps college AU characters will be the actors age in real life)

Carrington Bornstein

Yakuza

He’s Harmless I swear ( Webtoon comic)

Kaleidoscope ( formerly Webtoon turned Tapas comic)

Legends of Tomorrow

You

Scrutinized

Dexter

Arcane

The Pitt

Hudson and Rex

If anyone needs ideas for these franchises/movies/shows/actors/webtoons , then holla at me! I got you!

Also add more to the list if anything that you would like to see comes to mind.

Also tag black writers who you want to see this!

@sheabuttahwrites @shinsouscatpisssmell @cocoamoonmalfoy @heathenarmyimagines @cinewhore @cocoamoonmalfoy @stxxllaaa @glitterjuju @lilvampirina @breanime @blackmissfrizzle @afro-hispwriter @stargirlfics @lavenderursa @clydesducktape @pettyprocrastination @theblvckvenus @plantvenuss @punani @n-slayaaaaa @infernalodie @halfofmysoulsblog @iridecsense @tomhardydallasstarsgirl @supremethunda @thekrazykeke @canumoveurseatup-no @hiatuswhore @avintagekiss24 @ohcaptains @iguessweallcrazyithinktho @xsapphirescrollsx @bakarilennox @batfamily14 @ramp-it-up @blackreaders-assemble @royallyprincesslilly @funnyexel @blackterrae @slashisms @shelbydelrey @toocriticalharlow @v-era-18 @vampsired @queenimmadolla @sinnerlillith @greengoblinswifey @apocalypse-shuffle

[howlingguardian]

Transformers One was so good!

First off, it's gorgeous- the city of Iacon, with massive towers reaching up and down; the trains with transforming tracks; the surface, with mountains rising and falling as the landscape itself transforms- >chef's kiss<

As for the characters, they did them great. Orion's such a little dork, I love him. The fact that when he gets in trouble doing something weird, people just roll their eyes and say 'Oh, it's him again'- I love that.

And D-16! He used to be such a nice guy! He is nice! But he's a nice guy in an abusive system trying to justify the abuse, and it's so easy to see how he starts to lash out once he realises the truth of things and has the power to push back.

Watching how he and Orion change, and gradually grow apart, and finally fall out- I don't personally see it as romantic, but I can see why people ship it. Either way, goddamn- it's a tragedy.

I do think that B-127 is maybe a little too corny, but then he's just baby. He's just a little guy, he's funny, he's the comic relief.

Also, the action's great. You can see how the protagonists picked up skills from mining- swinging tools, racing through collapsing tunnels- that prepared them to fight. Plus stuff like partial transformations to grapple or dodge. There's a bit when Optimus gets a guy in a hold, and then transforms so the process rips the other guy apart. I mean, holy shit.

Also, Lawrence Fishburne as Alpha Trion, just as I've been on a Matrix kick? Awesome.

I love it, go see it. This deserves to be super successful.

[pipermca]

TF One Thoughts

I saw the movie at a preview last week, and saw it again this weekend.

I loved it!

THIS is the movie Transformer fans have been waiting for. It's got good characterization, emotions, stakes, action, and humour, and it does it all while still being aware of all the years of history that it's borrowing from. (And somehow manages to do it without sexist or racist baggage. Go figure!)

And it's definitely ignited some thoughts in my brain. I'll probably be chewing on these ideas for a while before they go anywhere (mostly because I'm trying to focus on my current ongoing) but I wanted to get them down before I lost them.

Spoilery movie and worldbuilding thoughts behind the cut!

Sentinel Prime. I LOVE HIM. I want to do things to him. I want to dip him in wax and put him on a shelf. Normally, I don't get super interested/inspired by villains. Megatron, Tarn, Overlord... they're FINE but they don't really stick in my head. They're like scenery. TF:One Sentinel, though? Whoa. Obsessed. I think it might be because I KNOW assholes who would pull shit like what he did. I've worked for some. So maybe he's just more of a realistic villain to me than the over the top DJD sort of sadism. And he's so pretty. Hnnrr.

Timescale and Sentinel's deception. So in the novelization, D-16 says "my entire generation was born without cogs." So basically the cogless are all the new bots, which means the ones who can transform are older. Some of the racers on the board are canonical Autobots, so I doubt they knew what was going on with the cogless. Sentinel could have just framed it as "Matrix lost, cogless born, energon dried up, so sad." But how long has this been going on? And the miners were all talking about promotions and being higher tiers. What did that get them? Someone other than Sentinel and Airachnid had to know something! God, I want details on how Sentinel arranged everything to keep everyone in line. (And D-16 obviously thought the same thing, as he wants to kill everyone who supported Sentinel's deception.)

Transportation Infrastructure. Tell me how it works. I want to know. The roads build themselves as you drive! So do the train tracks, below and above the surface! Obviously there's a threshold for the roads: Orion has to slow down enough (?) before the road starts building itself under his wheels as he drives. So the train, I could see the train having just the chunk of track behind and in front of it, and disassembling the back part to build the front track as it goes, but how do the roads work? Does the road just read your mind for where you want to go? Or are there causeways that it will use? (This makes sense, like a drawbridge: if no one's using the road it'll go away so that flyers can make use of the space.) But if the road is reading your mind, see my thoughts below about Primus. :3

Building infrastructure. After the race, when Sentinel and Airachnid come to see D-16 and Orion, they have to lean down to look into the examination room where they're waiting. And there are other "bays" in the same facility designed for larger bots. So this brings up all my IDEAS about how to design a city/support infrastructure around people who can be wildly different sizes.

The surface. The idea of a Cybertron surface that is always changing and transforming is... mwaa! chef's kiss, A+. I touched on the idea before in my story The Ghost of the Howling Plains, where there were canyons that would open and close suddenly and unexpectedly. But what we saw in the movie was FAR more than that, and I LOVE it. Imaging trying to map the surface that way. Maybe there are only parts that change like that... For example, the parts with organic matter (like around the cave) must be pretty stable. And the city/building structure they hid in from the Quintessons must have been built in a place where it wouldn't be ripped apart by the surface undulations.

The mines. So they're mining up unrefined energon from down in the depths of the planet. And Sentinel implies that even that source of energon is drying up, that it's being exhausted. Like the planet is slowly going dry. And uh...

Primus. So if Primus is ACTUALLY the planet, and the people are living on his surface (in the past) and just under his "skin" (now)... Well, that makes sense why the surface is changing. The surface is living... Flaking off, growing new. The mines are slowly sapping his energy, draining him of his "blood." The planet is alive, and that's why it is always changing! Eeeee, I love this.

This movie made me so happy. I know it really struggled opening weekend (apparently because Beetlejuice 2 had longer staying power than expected, and might have sapped some views from Transformers: One) but I so hope that Hasbro will still see it as a success. It's gotten amazing reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, the toy fans love it, the fanfic fans have loved it, the casual comments I've seen from random people said it was a fun flick, and it's getting really good buzz online. I think the first trailer and the staggered release really hurt it, unfortunately... All I can do is hold my breath and hope they build on what they made here. 🙏

Please go see it when you can. 💗

[devilart2199-aibi]

Transformers Skybound Reading update: Issues 6 & 7!! 📚

As a Soundwave enjoyer, these were crazy. Thoughts and spoilers below ⤵️

I gotta say I feel like someone on the team likes Soundwave haha. This fella feels like he always gets the short end of the stick. Always incredibly efficient, loyal and quiet, but never rewarded. But in this one!! Soundwave steps up! I had to go over it a few times to just take it in and be like "Wow Soundwave really just did that?!?"

It kinda felt weird almost, like maybe we're getting too much from him? You know when a character usually occupies a quiet role and they work on something in the background (a scheme or something). Additionally him really caring for his Cassettes is something I love so much so getting that too, I almost feel spoiled! Or like maybe this is too good? Like something horrible is gonna happen?haha I dunno.

The panels too of Soundwave fighting Screamer and them all saying his name!! OOF!!! *Chefs kisses*!!

I loved this so much too T__T ahhhhh

Also I feel so bad for Thundercracker! He lost both his seeker bros T_T I kinda hope he finds out how Skywarp died actually and maybe goes on his own again like in IDW1.

Arcee being trained by magnus is a cool idea! Magnus always fluctuates in importance and age so much between interpretations!

She looks so adorable here. Poor baby T_T (also is she holding Magnus' hand?? 🥺)

And I was very happy to see Warpath for 1 second 😭 rip silly guy (also Kup)

I'm enjoying it so far! One thing that always gets me confused in Transformers series is just how much it takes for them to die? Like when should I be heartbroken or can they just be put back together? IDW1 eventually makes it pretty clear, but I'm still a bit confused with Skybound.

Some characters have gotten killed off and I'm just like "Dang... you too??" Starscream doesn't count because he's Starscream. You could put him in a blender, feed him to Unicron, have him poop him out and then be tossed in the dark universe and he'd still come back! Probably with a spiffy new paint job too!

Anyway the whole things with Sparkplug and the Matrix ehhhh I'm not sure what's going on? I get the a soul for a soul kinda thing, but I'm not sure how i feel about it 🤔well! I'll find out eventually! It's just different and interesting rn! 🤔

I have one more issue so I'll yap more then! What do you think so far?? Please no spoilers tho for the next issues! (8 onwards since I'm reading the physical releases!) I'm curious what your thoughts are!

[unrepentantweirdo]

I'm back for WIP Wednesday!

Hi everyone! Sorry I've been away for a while. I've been lurking, dodging spoilers for the Fallout TV like the Matrix. (Plan to finish it soon, I'm on Episode 5). But my time away has not been wasted, because I bring you the first chapter of my MacCready/F! Sole Survivor fic, Defenders at the Crossroads.

I'm so excited to share my story with you. The amazingly talented @twosides--samecoin has been beta reading for me; without her fic Long Time Running, I might have never gotten the inspiration to keep working on this project. (Go read her fic, seriously. The scenery descriptions alone are *chef's kiss*)

I still plan to post MacCready's chart and character info later on, I just got derailed (thanks mental health) and put back on the rail (working on my writing).

Love you guys!

-Weirdo

[aluvian]

12 and 19 for the movie asks!

12. Which movie has your favorite soundtrack?

Oh God, I have so many favorite movie OSTs. Tarzan, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Avatar, Titanic, Star Wars, Dune, The Sound of Music, Moulin Rouge, The Last Samurai, The Lost Boys, The Matrix Reloaded...I could go on and on lmao.

19. What part of filmmaking do you find most interesting (ie. sound design, costuming, set design, etc)?

Pretty much all of it, tbh.

Sound design blows me away because there are people out there who straight up invent sounds to things that have never existed before. My favorite example is the lightsaber from Star Wars. Yeah, sure, they are so awesome to look at and use, but I feel like if they sounded different, their impact would have changed. Maybe. I dunno.

I love costuming too. Anyone who can sew and craft outfits from scratch have my utmost respect and admiration.

I saw some rare behind the scenes photos from the set of Aliens not too long ago and was astonished by how minimal the set designs really were from that movie. You wouldn't know that from watching the film. So, I also love good set design, too.

People can hate the Avatar movies all they want, but there is no denying that they are absolutely the peak of what CGI can do. The world of Pandora would have been very difficult to make with practical sets and effects, so I'm glad the technology exists that allowed those movies to be made.

That being said, I absolutely adore practical special effects too. John Carpenter's The Thing, An American Werewolf in London, the first two Alien movies........... *chef's kiss* (I'd sell my soul to have the xenomorph queen puppet. Oh, and a tauntaun from Empire Strikes Back)

Ask me about movies!

[buginateacup]

Fics of the week

Decided I would start doing a roundup of fics that I have been enjoying over the week for your enjoyment and my own.

The 12 Days of Christmas 2020, 2021 and 2022 by Her_Madjesty

Annual collections of fic based on Hero/Don John from Much Ado About Nothing which I have devoured over this last week. Most of them are AUs of one form or another. The Porco Rosso and Great Gatsby AUs were particularly *chefs kiss*

Bluebride by Teal_Individual

Roxanne may not be the first bride Megamind has taken, but she certainly is the most determined. One way or another, whether for spite or justice or love, she intends to be the last. Loosely based on Bluebeard, historical romances are my jam and the interactions between Roxanne, Megamind and Minion in this one are spot on!

a deep but dazzling darkness by Lirazel

A deep and abiding favourite from one of my favourite movies with ZERO fandom. The Vast of Night is about two teenagers manning the local switchboard and radio station one evening in a small town in Cayuga, New Mexico and there are lights in the sky... This fic is what might have come after.

The Iron Giant by ArdenDrifter

When Jamie Tartt gets a midnight call from the Manchester Municipal Police, he expects to post bail for his father again.  What he finds is something quite different.  

Or, Jamie Tartt discovers a thirteen-year-old half-brother no one ever warned him about.  Luckily, Roy and Keeley are there to help them out.

A Ted Lasso fic that was going to be only 4 chapters (I know that feeling my friend) but has since exploded into an incredible story about family, queerness, football, being a goldfish, organised crime and so much more. An absolute masterpiece of storytelling, that keeps the story consistent and clear which when viewed through the half concussed brain of one Jamie Tartt, professional football goldfish which is astounding in and of itself.

after the storm by perennial

He watches Leonato do quick mental calculations, already knowing the final sum. The governor might prefer Claudio as a man, might want to indulge his beloved daughter’s infatuation, but at the end of the day a prince is a prince, even a bastard one, and a count is just a count. Claudio intends to marry Hero. Don John gets to her first.

Another Hero/Don John fic that every reread makes me want to eat oranges and sit in sunshine. Politics and antagonists to friends to (hopefully?) lovers! I am in heaven!

my true love gave to me also by perennial

December 2011. Michael Bublé's Christmas album has just hit shelves, holiday parties are in full swing, and it's time for Don Pedro's annual office-wide Secret Santa gift exchange. 

Another Hero/Don John fic (look I like what I like and the mean gruff one falling for the soft sunshine one is enough to catch me even though I’ve only ever seen the Tennant/Tate version) Office AU this time

Dodge and Burn by jurijurious

A Dot Matrix x Megabyte AU fanfic which starts at the hunt and hurtles off down its own circuit.

I never saw the show until this year and of course there is nothing I love more than a smooth voiced villain. And this fic, enemies to lovers be still my heart! Fuck the tension in this one is incredible and you know its all going to end in flames and the voices are dead gorgeous! (and may have also inspired me to start writing my own Dot/Megabyte fic)

Let The River Run by astolat

This one just started and is still an untagged story updating every day. I love astolat’s work for how fantastically well they entertwine the politics through the story (any romance is always more interesting when political jockeying is involved). Can’t wait to see where this one goes!

[otrtbs]

nat, i want to tell you that a few days ago i started reading art heist, baby! and now not only i can't stop reading it but i have also had to dodge like ten thousand spoilers, like that scene from the matrix with the bullets. i'm going to do my best to stay that way until the end because your fanfic is becoming one of my favorites and it's SO addictive!!! you are very very very talented and your way of writing is *chef kiss*

AHH HELLO!! <333

thank you, thank you, thank you so much!! <333 honestly , if you can make it through without seeing any spoilers for ahb! you should add that as a special skill to your résumé bc that’s impressive !!!

[meowdejavu]

The Matrix Resurrections Reaction Post

Now that I’ve seen the movie twice, presenting my big rambly mess of thoughts!!! 

Overall I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to rewatching again! I haven’t decided if I loved it as much as the OT, but that’s a very high bar for me since the trilogy is my all-time favorite story. I definitely think this was an extremely fun and cool way to continue it, and I’m glad it exists!!! (It also realllllly made me want 5 & 6, gosh!)

I’m gonna break this down in bullets because I’m still processing everything. Here we go!! Spoilers ahead.

favorite parts 

IO!!! omg I fucking loved IO.......give me an entire spin-off about the botanist/garden plz?? 

Trinity finally remembering and kicking her bot “husband’s” ass, A++

Neo and Trinity's real world reunion!!!!!! I really wish we saw more of them and their cute bald heads actually!!!!!!! 

Neo/Thomas once again enjoying some really good noodles

Very well-used flashbacks!

SATI AND HER PRETTY LITTLE SECRET GARDEN SIM HELLO PERFECTION

Basically everything in Act III OBVIOUSLY

“ANOTHER CHANCE” 💗

Closing on that brass cover of “Wake Up” was *chef’s kiss*

biggest surprises

LEXY 😍😍😍 marry me challenge??

Wholesome robot friends...surprisingly so great!

The new (magnetic?) tech for programs to walk around in the real world!!! Hello what!!!

Niobe’s flashback story about the machines fighting each other had me like ???!!! damn okay!

Berg’s fanboy crush on Neo, A++ 

stuff i’m a little ??? about (updated x2)

I’m not sure I get the purpose/benefit of the Anomalium for the current version of the matrix? Like, what percentage of energy are they harvesting from the two of them vs all the other pods?? Confused.

Also not sure I get why Zion was attacked again after the Analyst came to power.

Does it.....make sense for Trinity to open her eyes in the pod before she’s remembered herself?? Like yes sure maybe she felt a disruption with Neo being unplugged, but her briefly waking up felt really dramatic to me and there was no evidence that it had any effect on her? (I would have liked more scenes about Tiffany’s life tbh!)

and finally.....some small nitpicks

Seems like a missed opportunity not to show the (immersive??) gameplay of the Matrix games and/or if they had special hardware tech, etc!

As much as I love callbacks to 2 & 3, I’m not sure the Merovingian needed to be in this movie lol sry :/

[murdershegoat]

an incomplete list of fics to read (and comment on!) while you’re quarantined/self isolated

SUPERCORP

quite literally anything by @c--and--b (on ao3) just read thru the whole account and youll feel better

it feels better biting down - by nirav - lena’s new girlfriend might be a spy :O

but then, my homework was never quite like this - what is there to say, absolute classic by @jazzfordshire

[yeah, we really are] - bs13 on ao3, @pippytmi on here. i trust these fics with my life. absolutely the best best best. also try hypothetically, which is my favorite.

when i say read everything @seabiscuits-us has to offer, i mean it. read everything. my top two are a foolish wit & to refashion the matrix of creation. do NOT complain that it is unfinished. revel in the fact youve been blessed with these chapters.

a ribbon in time - abcooper - just a beautiful story, a wonderful read.

and when im feeling alone you remind me of home - mooosicaldreamz - WE STAN AGENTCORP BROMANCE

@spaceman-earthgirl has small delicious offerings ready to get u through this (ao3)

the fifth wall. im a slut for a good baby fic, im sorry

is this even a fic rec list if i dont include @lynnearlington���s stay the night? a staple.

SANVERS

i would move mountains to make you smile is just the best fic of all time it will make you smile and cry and i love it with my whole heart

yearning to breathe free - the fake dating hollywood au. what a treat.

and still the world spins. it makes my heart hurt.

CLEXA

she - thefooliam - bruh every single person on planet earth should read this fic. idc what ships u like or not this is artistry and you should read it now.

in love and war and politics - centuriesofexistence - lexa becomes clarke’s campaign manager. phenomenal. 10/10

commander in chief - lexa is the president. christmas fic. lovely and warm.

beat the devil’s tattoo - isawet - another ‘everyone should read this’ fic

the business of caring - college au that just,,,, chef kiss

be the lightning in me - OOFT WHAT A FUCKEN FIC, LADIES!!!!!!!

break your plans - i forgot how much i love this. delightful!

FABERRY

youre the trouble that i always find - @mooosicaldreamz - what an absolute fucken dream of a fic. im always thinking about it. in fact, read all of their faberry fics.

here’s my previous list of faberry recs

also i hate to be That Bitch but if ur desperado i have a bunch of fics that are all mostly short and relatively easy to read so like,,,,, here u go lol

[cherry-gemz]

The City by the Bay: Part V

Summary: Fates push you and a handsome and known stranger into each other's paths. His chilvary and good looks make you take a leap into his world and more.

Chapter: The woman in Keanu's house is revealed; you and Keanu go out on an official date to his book signing.

Catch up HERE

Pairing: Keanu Reeves x Y/N (F!Reader)

Rating: Mature, 18+

Word count: 2.5k

Who might be interested: @whiskeyslullabye ​ @marissat1998 @aestheticallywinchester ​ @fookingbetch @keanureevesisbae @romereadingshop @a-little-counter-esperanto

“I’m Mnfhdphf,” you mumble with your mouth full.

"What?" She asks again, annoyed.

"She's Y/N, Meredith," Keanu replies as he walks in, pulling a shirt over his head.

"I'm Y/N," you finally respond clearly.

"Yeah, got that," she chides.

Keanu walks over to you and grabs a piece of cheese, popping it in his mouth.

"Y/N, this is Meredith...my agent. Meredith, Y/N...Y/N is my guest."

"Oooh, your agent. N-nice to meet you," you reply and hold out your hand.

She gives you a curtly smile, but you know it's ingenuine.

"What the hell, Keanu?" She directs her annoyance to him.

As if he already knows what she's thinking, he raised his hand into submission.

"Look, it was a small accident. No one got hurt."

She tuts at him and tosses the manilla envelope on the marble slab counter.

"What's this?" He asks innocently and takes the document.

"A role...they're filming here in the city. Figured you'd be interested since your project has kept you here."

You tug at the hem of his shirt and cough, "I'll leave you to it...just gonna go get dressed."

"That would be best," Meredith snaps.

"Play nice," Keanu says unphased and reviews the script. "Huh…"

You hear him discuss a few things with her as you scamper to the living room to grab you jeans.

"What?"

He scratches the back of his neck and cranes it to the side, "I dunno, Mer. It's um…"

"It's what?"

"Dancing?"

"Yeah, so?"

"I dunno how to dance. I haven't done something like this," he shakes his head and tosses the script haphazardly on the counter.

You jump into your jeans and quickly button the button.

"Did you say dancing?" You ask across the living room.

Meredith crosses her arms and rolls her eyes.

"Yeah, this role requires me to waltz."

"There's this dance studio on Van Ness. We passed it coming here…" you quickly reply, thinking that the last time you were there was with your ex.

"Let me guess, you're a dancer," Meredith retorts.

"No...I work at a bookstore...I mean that's not all I do…"

"She's a chef, Mer. Lay off," Keanu replies.

"Oh fantastic. You almost kill yourself while riding in the rain with a bookstore girl?"

Keanu's hand motioned her to stop, "If this is about the accident, it was my fault. Don't out blame on Y/N."

"You can't just go gallivanting around the city! Or you at least call me to tell me you're okay! I had to call a million people, plus the studio, and lie until I saw you. You didn't answer your phone!"

"I'm sorry…" you pipe up. "I didn't mean for things to get out of hand...if you want me to leave-"

"YES."

"No," Keanu said cooly.

Meredith shot Keanu a death glare, but he shrugged it off and grabbed a water bottle from the fridge.

"Keanu…" she started to say as he shook his head.

"You got what you came for, Mer. You saw me, I'm fine. I'll take a look at the script and let you know. I'll call you in the morning."

"But-"

"Now, Mer I know you're coming from a good place, but you've been rude to my guest. So please see yourself at the door and we'll talk later."

Meredith's mouth stayed open like a cod fish and shot daggers over your way.

"Fine. Let me know first thing in the morning. Otherwise who knows, Hugh Jackman might swoop in on this. And don't forget, you have the signing party tomorrow night."

"Yeah, okay, Mer. Thanks."

She pivoted on her heel and headed to the foyer and out the door.

You plopped on the leather couch, stunned at their interaction.

"Gosh…" you were able to say. "I didn't think that would happen to me today."

"I'm sorry, Y/N. Meredith means well. She's tough as nails and has been my agent for years. I get why she was upset, but she had no right to talk to you that way."

He picked up the folder and walked over to the couch to sit next to you.

"It's okay...I mean, I don't know her from Adam. But definitely don't want to be on her bad side again."

"Heh, yeah. Me either."

You gulp as he sits comfortably next to you. Is this what it's like? Being normal next to the global superstar? Just be cool, Y/N.

"So, do you have any plans tomorrow?"

Your voice cracks, "What?"

"I had a fantastic time with you...I hope there will be more…" he smacks his forehead and blushes, "Gosh. I didn't mean it like that."

You stifle a giggle. I hope there will be more moments like that in the bedroom.

"What I mean to say is, I'd like you to be my date tomorrow at this signing thing...that is if you'd like to come?'

***

The next day you're on cloud nine. You've chatted to your brother about meeting the famous actor and he hadn't stopped asking you how he was and is he as cool as he seems. It's as if he wanted to go out on a date with him instead.

“Ask him for an autograph,” he asks.

“You’ve got to be kidding me, CJ,” you roll your eyes as you pace your bedroom.

“What? Not for you, for me!”

“Shut up.”

“C’mon, I have my Matrix poster that I can give you-“

“I’m going? Ceej.”

“No, wait. Ask him more about Cyberpunk...like can he-“

“Bye, dude!” You reply and end the call. It was just you and your brother these days, your parents had passed on and while you loved him, he did drive you crazy from time to time. He was finishing his senior year at Sac state and being your baby brother, you’d think you were the protector. But instead he always was the one to check in on you, to make sure you were eating all your food groups and drinking water. You loved that nut despite his spaziness.

You find yourself going through your closet for an evening with the superstar. You pick up from your bed a black leather pencil skirt and hold it up to your waist. Unsure if you can pull it off and not really knowing what you'd match it with.

Your bedroom door swings open and it's your neighbor's teenage daughter, Cori.

"Oooh, what are you doing tonight?' she teased as she crunched the apple she held in her hand.

"Help yourself, Cor," you roll your eyes alluding to the fruit that she took from your counter. You toss the skirt on the bed, then pick up a pair of your comfy boyfriend jeans.

"I got some Dr. Marten's that would go great with that skirt," she says and plops down the bed, rummaging through your clothes.

"I have worn Doc Marten's before you were born," you laugh. She's a cute kid. Hella beautiful and smart. She's talked about joining the Air Force one day and you hope she gets there.

"You need to show some leg, Y/N."

"What are you doing here?" You tut and she hands you the pretty floral silk mini dress that you bought for a wedding last year and never wore again.

"It's for tonight. It'll be cold."

"Even better, he'll have to give you his jacket."

"How do you even know about these things? You're fifteen."

"Fifteen is the new twenty," she shrugs and gets up to your closet.

You stare at the dress. It's an outfit that does accentuate your legs and you've felt cute in it. Maybe Cori is right…

She returns and hands you a faux leather jacket that you bought at some boutique a few months ago.

"I dunno…"

She shoves it to your chest, "Trust me."

"I'm not sure if this is the right outfit for the event."

"What's it for then?"

"A book signing or something?"

"Ooh, he's an artist?"

"Kind of… thespian…" you blush and pull your shirt over your head and reach for the dress.

"Oh, like locally?" She crunches another bite of the apple and leans on the doorframe.

"Not exactly…"

You pull the leather jacket on and peer at your full length mirror. You look pretty good: chic and cool, not trying too hard, but an effort nonetheless.

"Black tights," she clicks her tongue and waggles her brows.

"Is that seriously in?"

"It's hot. Sheer tights and my boots, c'mon, Y/N."

"I dunno."

"Is he hot?"

You blush at the thought of Keanu and then that you're talking to a teenager about your love life.

"Oh, he is. Okay I'll be back with my boots," she replies and rushes out of the room.

"Cor! Wait!" You yell, but she's already down the hall. You look back at your reflection and bit your lip.

I can do this. What is one little night out with the man of your dreams? Nothing to be worried about.

***

Keanu insisted on picking you up despite your resistance. You told him it was fine and you could just meet up. He wouldn’t take no for an answer. Which secretly you enjoyed.

The roar of his motorcycle echoed down your street and you pretended like you weren’t waiting for him for 30 minutes on your couch. Your palms were sweaty an your hair was falling flat, but the excitement was overwhelming.

The knock at your door startled you despite your ability to hear him approach your doorstep. You take one more look at yourself in the hall mirror and then open the door. He’s wearing a nice coat, a v-neck gray shirt, and jeans. Maybe you overdressed?

“Wow,” he says as you open the door. “I leveled up for sure.” You giggle as he hands you a bouquet of wildflowers. The bursts of yellow and orange are gorgeous and he can tell you’re pleased with them.

“Beautiful flowers for a beautiful lady,” he smirks. You give him a kiss on the cheek.

“Thank you…” you reply. “Come on in, I’ll put them in water and we can head out.”

He nods in agreement as you pivot towards your kitchen, nervous that you have him in your apartment. Keanu Reeves is in your apartment. Get it together Y/N, he was between your thighs the day before. You silently chuckle to yourself as an image flashes to your brain.

“What’s so funny?” he asks as you stare at him, caught in your thirsty moment.

"Oh, uh nothing really."

He smiles and rubs his chin, as if he could read your mind.

"I'm really looking forward to this,' he replies.

"Me, too. I hope I don't get too much in the way," you reply as you place the flowers in a vase full of water.

"Of course not," he leans his elbows on your kitchen counter. He fits here, you think. "I just hope it's not too boring."

"A night out with Keanu Reeves? Anything but boring."

He grimaces and smiles again, "No pressure."

"No pressure."

He claps his hands together and rubs them in eagerness. He's hit with a quick pain and grabs his side.

"Ke...you okay?" You leave the vase on the counter and go to his aid.

He gently touches his shoulder from the fall the day with you.

"Yeah, just got a little excited, heh. Ke. I like that."

A smile is brought to your face as you realized you called him that. It wasn't like you had thought of it before, but it fit.

"Do you need me to look at it?"

He cocked his brow, "Trying to get me shirtless again, Y/N?"

"I mean...not gonna lie. That does sound like a fun time…”

“Hey, I thought it was the intent to wine and dine you.”

“Is that so?” You coo and approach him, placing your hand on his chest. His brown eyes are soulful and deep, you could get lost in them. He leans in for a kiss and you close your eyes. His lips ignite a desire within and he encloses the gap and wraps hands around your waist. You press your body against his, the thinness of your dress makes the apex of your thighs ache.

He reluctantly pulls away, "At this rate I should cancel tonight."

"You can do that?"

"Sure, just let me call Meredith and you can tell why I won't be showing," he teases and pulls out his phone. You quickly grab it from his grasp.

"No, no need for that!"

"You sure? I bet she'd love to hear from you."

You look at his screen and pull open the camera app to take a candid shot of you two. Your first photo together.

"Let's go before I get you into more trouble."

***

BRZRKR. It's a comic book. You're attending Keanu's comic book signing party. CJ is going to flip his lid.

You arrive at a nearby bookstore, smaller than the one you work at, but it's filled with memorabilia, dolls, comics, posters of all types, heroes and anti-heroes.

Keanu downplayed this to the umpth degree. Considering how small the store was, it's jam packed with fans and media.

This is a big deal. Leave it to Keanu to say it was going to be an intimate evening. An intimate evening with 100 people you think to yourself.

The two of you didn't really talk about how to address things considering you showed up together. You were a bit busy hanging onto his strong abs as he whisked you away on his motorcycle through the city. So you weren't prepared with the paparazzi and journalists buzzing your way, trying to get a shot of the mystery woman who Keanu had arrived with.

He was escorted to the back of the store, you saw Meredith and she ignored you, purposefully. As he and the head comic writer dove into a Q&A session of how the idea was brought to life, a woman around your age accidentally bumps into you.

"Oh, excuse me!" She whispers as people continue to snap photos.

"It's okay," you reply and smile.

"This is something, huh?"

"Yeah," you nod, trying to hear what he says about comic series.

"What magazine are you with?" The woman asks. She's wearing Doc Marten's and you stifle a laugh to yourself.

"Me? Oh, I'm not a journalist. I work in a bookstore."

"This one?" She asks as she folds her arms, peering over to the table. Her hair, braided, is a natural red which is ridiculously beautiful. She's like a siren, and particularly calm.

"Oh no, just on Columbus. City Lights."

"Oh neat, so then you're a comic book enthusiast?"

"Me? I mean I've dabbled in Marvel and DC. But nothing like this."

"Yeah, tickets were hard to get for sure. I had to pull a few strings just to get this pass," she says and holds up a press lanyard.

"Oh," you reply. The crowd laughs and Keanu shakes his head smiling. Dangit, I wish I knew what they were talking about.

"How'd you get yours?"

"Um, Meredith gave it to me," you reply and then realized maybe you've said too much.

"Cool," the woman says unphased. "Mischa."

"Y\N," you say and then turn your attention to Keanu. "I'm gonna try to get a closer look," you say as a segway to leave.

"Oh sure, talk to you later," Mischa replies as you snake around the crowd to hear better.

***

After almost two hours, Keanu has done some meet and greets, and other press photos. You hang out in the back and peruse the rest of the store. Meredith approaches you from behind.

"So, what did you think?" She's wearing a slick, blush power suit and she looks amazing. Her short brunette hair is styled and for a second, she actually looks approachable.

"Very educational," you smile.

"Surprised you stayed this long."

"I hadn't realized what this actually was. Ke didn't make it sound like a big deal."

"Ke?"

"Um yeah," you blush. "Just a nickname."

"Already there, huh?" She stuffs her hands in her pants pocket and you don't understand the chip she has on her shoulder.

You ignore her comment,"So should I stay around?"

"He probably wouldn't notice you gone."

You give her a side eye, the nerve.

"Who's gone?" Keanu asks as he turns the corner and is between the two of you.

"No one," you beam as he places his hand on your shoulder.

"Mer you treating my girl alright?"

She grabs a wine glass from a nearby waiter and smirks, saying nothing and then walks away.

"Like a bulldog," you say as she disappears in the crowd.

"How about we get out of here?" He says and draws himself closer to you. "You smell fantastic by the way, did I mention that yet?"

You giggle and shake your head no, "What do you have in mind?"

"Are you up to show me the City at night?"

[rottenbrainstuff]

Matrix: Ressurections

(Spoilerish discussion)

While my oldest kiddo was here visiting from overseas, we went out and caught a movie together. This was the first movie she’s seen since before Covid, which was a nice treat!

So, inevitably, I had really high hopes and expectations for this movie. I was in highschool when the very first matrix came out and it’s hard to overstate the effect it had when it came out and how much we all liked it. First of all, it looked amazing: the CG was unique and cutting edge for its time, and the wire work martial-arts fights were something new. Nothing looked like this movie. And the story absolutely blew our minds. We were a bunch of highschool students just starting to get really disillusioned with this stupid future society was pushing us towards, and a movie about how all of it was fake and there was a more meaningful truth underneath it all was EXACTLY WHAT WE WANTED TO SEE.

…and… then life went on, of course. We all got plugged into stupid jobs. We all got busy with bills and rent and kids. The world just keeps getting crazier and crazier, and we’re getting more and more tired and more mentally ill. Climate change, Covid, late stage capitalism… honestly if I had the option to plug into some nicer simulation and get away from all this crap… I dunno. Why wouldn’t I? Wouldn’t that be a cool take? What happens if we’re so tired that an escape from it is appealing, even if it’s fake? (Or alternatively, now that we’re old enough to actually really FEEL the weight of all this bullshit, how do you take that same message that this is all just a bad dream that you can wake up from, and tell r in a fresh way?)

Anyway, the point is, we are fucking tired now. We had all these fancy ideas for what our lives were going to be like, and how we were going to change the world, and here we are working 9-5 and too tired to fight anymore. Right now would be an AMAZING time to have another generationally significant movie addressing these feelings. A Matrix movie for a generation approaching middle age and feeling like we missed some amazing opportunity. I really, really wanted this movie to be that. Did it live up to expectations?

Well… not really, not entirely. But how could any movie? I did definitely have fun watching it, me and the kiddo had a good time. I’m glad I saw it in a theatre. Also I wonder if I maybe enjoy the Matrix movies for different reasons than other people.

I really enjoyed the first half of the movie. Thomas dealing with anxiety and wondering if he’s going crazy? Plus the design team having a meta discussion about how to make a good Matrix sequel? : *chef’s kiss*. Loved that. Absolutely loved it. I have to say… although I adore Keanu Reeves as a person and wish he was my friend, I’ve never been a huge fan of him as an actor. I’ve always found him flat and boring. But I thought he did a good job here. Maybe he had more to work with and better direction. Not sure.

Everything kind of turned really really meh for me though after he was “woken up” again. And this is maybe where I think I like the Matrix for different reasons possibly? For me, the Matrix movies have always been more interesting when they are vague allegories for society, and I have never been interested at all in the “lore” and the details about the history of the human cities and blah blah blah whatever. I actually didn’t like the two sequels much at all. I just have no interest in any of it at all.

So when everything is resolved and Neo is woken up and yeah for realsies he’s not crazy, here’s a human city and here’s some old characters and here’s what’s happened since the last movie and blah blah, for me it just kind of settles into being a really ho hum sci fi action movie, and that’s just so much less interesting.

However it was still super fun to watch Neil Patrick Harris: he’s a delight in anything he does, isn’t he? And I loved whatever camera / post effect they were using for the… what. Ultimate Bullet Time? The weird blurry way Neil was moving around while time was paused. I thought it looked pretty! If they shot an entire movie like that I think it would look neat. What was it do you think? Did they remove frames so he’s “animated on twos” or something? Looked cool whatever it was.

So I mean. No, it wasn’t the groundbreaking, generationally meaningful movie that I was wanting, but damn how could any movie live up to that? I had fun watching it, the first half was amazing, in fact I feel like I want to go watch it again. And that’s good enough, I think.

(Also Bugs was fun? I liked her? Is she going to be people’s queer awakening the way Trinity was for a lot of people in the 90s?)

(I ALSO loved that they really did use the song Go Ask Alice in the movie… I get so disappointed when a cool trailer comes out with a creative use of a song, and that song is nowhere to be seen in the final movie… thank you for actually using it in the movie, thanks for that)

[macabrecabra]

Transformers (any universe) for the fandom thing

Ohhh! 83 For this one, I'm jumping around universes as...different idiots fill different niches for me! I put it all below the cut to keep it from getting long post = w =

blorbo (favorite character, character i think about the most) SHOCKWAVE (any universe, Shockwave is always the logical choice and you can pry that out of my cold dead servos) Favorite of the Shockwaves is TFA, Shockwave, the cryptid elk. That design was *chef kiss* and great personification of both logic and cold calculative nature = w = Close second is Knockout because who doesn't like a good pirma donna that decides the autobots are better for his finish?

scrunkly (my “baby”, character that gives me cuteness aggression, character that is so shaped) STARSCREAM of course. He is stinky bastard man but when he is on screen I just go "BABY STINKY BASTARD!" because he is WIle E Coyote with his schemes. But it is adorable! ....Armada Starscream is most adorable though. Trying not to act like he didn't enjoy being treated nicely when with Autobots. Tsunderescream.

scrimblo bimblo (underrated/underappreciated fave) SWINDLE Ya'll don't appreciate this used car salesman that is actual car and he needs to appear in more properties, selling out to both sides his cheap useless crap. Slapping dangerous weapons like this thing is made of so many minicons. All designs of Swindle must all have a bolo tie. That is all.

glup shitto (obscure fave, character that can appear in the background for 0.2 seconds and i won’t shut up about it for a week) SIDEWAYS I'm sure no one really heard of him as I'm sure most people do not speak of Transformers Armada, but Sideways was the scheming gremlin tiny former who had the coolest transformation of any motorcycle ever and I would love to see his matrix hacker bastard self show up.

poor little meow meow (“problematic”/unpopular/controversial/otherwise pathetic fave) WRECK-GAR Not sure if he is problematic or controversial...but garbage man is not often a popular pick for things and he doesn't do much but dare to be stupid and swim in literal trash, but I love him all the same for it <3

horse plinko (character i would torment for fun, for whatever reason) SENTINEL PRIME he was mean to Optimus Dad in TFA and that is unforgivable. He created a stupid plot in the Bayformer universe and that is triple unforgivable. IDW Sentinel Prime did some redemption though so he will just get poked fun at and be the but of everyone's jokes.

eeby deeby (character i would send to superhell) ALL THE BAYFORMERS Every single one of them. There is not one that is redeemable because any character they could have had was butchered. It is like the alternate hell-verse where the original transformers would look upon it and scream. Optimus Prime and Galvatron would put aside differences to join forces to destroy these abominations. Not even Unicron would want to devour the Earth Universe where these squiggly pointy monstrosities wiggle around in their poorly CGI trash compactors designs. Let these devils be cast into deepest hell, the junkpits of the Brave Little Toaster to sing musicals to their death of being compacted smaller than Shockwave compacted Blur.

[dana-chan-the-control-brain]

oh shit. top 5 zim eps :o

Awww man.

I guess I'll just go with my gut and not second guess myself here.

1. Zim eats Waffles.

I wouldn't call this the "definitive" invader zim episode, or even a episode to recommend to someone who's never seen the show.

But it's my all time favorite and I absolutely love that nothing happens in it.

Dib's increasing frustration is halarious and it's probably the boredom he has every day when he spies on Zim.

I love slice of life style/ feels like one shot episodes like this.

There's also a lot of silent humor in this one and long pauses of nothing happening, which IZ doesn't do often.

Also a lot of wholesome slice of life moments with Zim and GIR which is what I live for.

2. Nightmare Begins.

There isn't much to say about the first IZ episode that has never been said before.

But it is such a good first episode. Not just in IZ but in animation and television in general, and I feel this episode needs to be STUDIED.

From the first shot, you know your in for something special and it does something that I don't see done in too many cartoons these days.

It introduces the characters and setting in a very meaningful and atmospheric way. First impressions and appearances are everything, and from the very first line, it doesn't even feel like an introduction.

It just feels like you already know who these people are.

The Tallest's introduction has them bickering with each other.

Zim's introduction has his leaders fear him and have him asset attention and anxiety as the title character.

Membrane acts to busy to spend time with his son, Gaz is annoyed by her brother, Dib is introduced as a dumb kid who watched the matrix once and thinks he's cool, by riding the gutter of the roof and splashing into the sink immediately.

Like it works so well as character introductions, setting introductions and premise introductions.

In some cartoons sometimes I feel the introductions can be... Over the top, or like they try way to hard on a first impression like:

"HELLO, HI! I AM THIS CHARACTER! LOOK HOW QUIRKY I AM! DONT YOU WANTA STAY WITH ME FOR 25 EPISODES?! WAAATTCH ME"

Even Gravity Falls, my beloved, is guilty of this in the first episode.

With Invader Zim, they just have the characters interact with each other and there's not too many pandering moments. Even GIR's introduction is massively understated.

Nightmare Begins needs to be studied for what they accomplish in tone, setting, character introduction, and premise all in less than 30 mins. (I can't even imagine this thing with commercial breaks back in the day)

Just... Nightmare Begins.

It's good. Amazing. And starts IZ so strong then it has any right to.

3. Backseat Drivers from Beyond the Stars

You forget this episode is only 30 mins.

It honestly feels like a short movie and the chaos in the last act is such (chefs kiss)

It was nice to actually see the Vortians after hearing about them for so long, and other aliens that actually tried to do something about Irken Galatic conquest (although screaming and massive anxiety)

I just love the third act and the ending where every single setup in the first act is blowing up in Zim's face all at once, and they threw in the Robo Parents for good measure too, cause why not? Lol.

4. The Wettening

The episode that actually made me stay and watch more of the show.

Before the wettening, all the episodes felt kinda "samey" to me.

Alien misinterprets a common Earth or skool thing, anxiety spirals out of control, horror and/or chaos insues.

It's why I stopped watching the show at Dark Harvest the first time I watched it.

I just felt there was just so much you could do with Zim as a character.

Boy I'm glad I was wrong.

While NanoZim also had a Dib and Zim fight, this is where I felt it was the most intense and I understood what the show wanted to be.

Skoolyard bully kid fights, on a massive scale.

In a lot of ways the wettening is kind of the pre curser to Battle of the Planets.

But unlike BofP, The Wettening keeps the focus on Dib and Zim's fight and interactions the whole way through.

Even leading the audience to get a bit of sympathy towards Zim, cause Dib is just being a bully.

And my jaw pretty much hit the floor with how the episode resolves.

It's just one of my favorite episodes and it made me stick around and continue to watch the show. And I'm so glad I did.

5. Tak the Hideous New Girl

Now... This isn't because of Tak herself.

While Tak is an okay and interesting character in her own right,

And the Irken reveal genuinely shocked me at the time (cause I was watching the show blind, so I had no idea she was irken. Even despite the obvious spaceship cus that's just how the show is sometimes... Like there's underground classrooms I'm not going to question a private weenie jet.)

What I really like about this episode is in the third act or climax...

Where Gaz, GIR, Dib, Zim (and even Computer) all work together to take down Tak. And there has absolutely been nothing in this entire franchise like it sense.

Dib turns off Tak's machine and supplies Zim with MiMi's memory disc that he got from Gaz.

Gaz in turn, reprograms MiMi with GIR's and Computer's help...

Which in turn causes Zim to win the spaceship battle and defeat Tak..

Just in time Dib puts the earth back to normal.

Tak the Hideous New Girl gave me a glimpse of what can happen when there is a larger threat they need to stand up against...

AND THERE HAS NEVER BEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT IN THE FRANCHISE SINCE.

A lot of the stuff with Zim trying to romance Tak is halarious and good and Tak's backstory is legitimately pitiful....

But I ultimately come to this episode again and again for that third act high that I know they will never do in the comics or ever again.