#LITERALLY like a cartoon. it is genuinely not something he can help. big fan of their train noises

[saturnaous]

Woe. Buzz of despair upon ye.

[smileposting]

one of the Big Hurdles for me when it comes to thinking about the drain is trying to strike that balance between "engages meaningfully with GGG's Overarching Themes" and "could plausibly exist in a saturday morning cartoon setting, goofs and all." with that said here's some of my favorite ideas i've gathered from both me own brain and mutuals on discord/bluesky. unless stated otherwise none of these are Necessarily meant to overlap with one another. But They Can.

though the environment is harsh and resources are scarce, drain society itself is rather mundane. the twist is that both the grove and the drain are convinced that the other island is the worst possible fate that could befall anyone ("i hear nobody ever gets to leave the drain" vs "those who leave for the grove never come back...") and the bonkers fucking yonkers geography going on between them does not help. should they ever make proper contact postcanon there will be a lot of initial confusion. this one came about from spitballing with my lovely mutual momo who is Not on tumblr but has made some beautiful art/exploration of drain environments.

my other mutual cici's brought up the idea of there being a Drain-Specific Branch of the bizzyboys meant to look after those still in the drain + the org As A Whole reforming into a sort of mutual aid/outreach program thing (or at least such a group being set up in their place) which i also think is cool. something something embracing one's roots/place of origin albeit in a kind of roundabout way rather than shunning them entirely. i also like the idea of like, the drain branch getting news of the disbandment of the surface branch and coming up to have, ah, some strong words with hector about how if he's really gonna turn himself around then he's gotta help them get their shit sorted, too. after all, every good grove citizen knows you don't maintain a paradise through being complacent!

i know i talk about the idea that the drain is the idea of oblivion/irrelevance made manifest to be like an inverse of the grove being all about preservation and archival and recordkeeping and history In General. but i'm about to do it again: i think there's something kinda beautiful n bittersweet about the idea of there being genuine communities that have formed among people deemed Forgotten. our environment may quite literally be out to fucking kill us and any progeny we may have in here but i want you alive and hey that's gotta count for somethin'. i think this also presents a cool lil moral conundrum that could be explored in postcanon fanwork. like from the perspective of someone who's like. ok well what if i don't want to be forgotten but i also don't want to uproot my whole goddamn house just to be remembered. what if i just want to fix my house. after all, isn't that just as metal as a mass exodus?

i don't really have an end goal here i just think fan speculation meeting worldbuilding is sick as fuck lol. what are y'alls favorite ideas for the drain?

[ikilledamanforthisurl]

Minami Anonx7 If it helps Literally everyone I have known ever has brought up that I sound like a literal cartoon mobster henchman every time I call people boss so i've just embraced it now fully. Everyone is Boss To Me as I sling my guns goofily to Get Da Coppers. But I SEE…. i've been playing through the yakuza games chronologically I’m currently watching through y4 right now but id like to watch dead souls afterwards. It is extremely funny though the idea of watching them completely ramshackled out of order. Anyways. 1) I personally would love to play the minami centric side game also + I literally cannot imagine it’s anymore embarrassing a thing to want then me daydreamng abt the side game id like to make for my yakuza OC and 2) SOOOOOOO true I love it when Nishida and Minami are like sort of a awful duo together also I admire your like notes about M construction. I haven’t given it much thought yet on how it actually works but that’s mostly bc I have family who work in construction so I make myself laugh thinking Majima has no idea what the hell he’s doing LOL but anyways real…… Idk if you've ever read it but there’s an awesome fic on ao3 where it’s basically about how Nishida was also a prisoner of the hole and this like sort of implied idea or like at least smth I saw someone bring up before in conjunction idea that “Whilst Minami tries to emulate Majima Nishida actually IS like Majima in a way and the result of that has made him jaded/heavily desensitised” which i think adds a really interesting layer to the Relationship to think abt ep if it were canon. So this is why Desperately desperately I need a M construction side game I need something to focus on the majima family outside of him and honestly especially on Nishida…… tangent but there is so much interesting potential w him I want to see it explored !!!!!! Last note here but have u seen Minami's scene in RGG online before? I just found an English translation of it today and it had me very biting and chewing over A) Minami getting legitimately upset when his fake accent was mocked, not bc it was a slight against HIM but against MAJIMA and B) the sort of self deprecating mention he makes of what good is he if he’s not strong enough / good at smth before it immediately gets pushed aside by him and C) the implication that Minami is genuinely attached to Kamurocho/wants to protect it. If u havent i can try and find the post I saw abt it but. Much to think about

I HAVE SEEN THE RGGO STORY IT KILLS ME KILLS ME KILLS ME EVERY TIME. biting and chewing is a good way to describe it. have YOU seen the Nishida one? Minami shows up very briefly and i can practically already sense your reaction to his couple of lines (i grab and SHAKE him i shake him so much)

its so funny how hes so close to having any kind of depth and then he brushes it off immediately like "yeah this whole clan fuckup bothers me n has got me feelin insecure .lol lmao anyways". like as much as its kind of annoying as a fan of the character its also unfortunately realistic? EYE do that. you wouldnt catch me dead elaborating and having a nice rock-talk if my life was in the midst of being tableflipped. lol + lmao + anyways is the best you're gonna get

also, as a bonus tidbit before i go figure out how to format this idea for a tumblin post, this is half the setup for the Saejima teacher idea i was playing with ☝ because i already know RGG is NEVER going to put any meaningful spotlight on the Family members who've been essentially left to pick up their bootstraps with the big whoopsie of y7. sorry that i keep talking about it in code i dont wanna spoil nobody, in spite of not caring abt them myself i know others do 🙇‍♂️ i'm taking matters into my own hands and i am going to explore the IMPLICATIONS of the BIGGEST FAMILY POSSIBLY EVER going thru what it does. and i'm going to grab Minami by his non-existent shirt collar and i'm going to shake him around until he talks about how this affects him at least a little bit. i'll stop coding this in the Saejima Teacher plot post so you can decide if it matters 2 you or not and read up when i get to it btws

also your point about Nishida is spot on. you don't keep the kind of man who trembles at every conversation he has for that many years without breaking him down and making him (comparatively) jaded in such a stressful line of work. on top of that, Majima literally tests this man like its some sort of divine Greek-mythos punishment put unto him by the gods..... he's absolutely jaded underneath that shaky deadpan stare. Nishida may never outwardly resemble Majima, persona or the genuine self, but he absolutely rubs off on him and influences him heavily. this is the kinda relationship most Gokudo in the series seem to have with their bosses when they're worth a damn, Saejima was ready to walk to the ends of the earth for his patriarch due to the positive impact he had on him, and Majima likewise for his boss, though moreso in the opposite direction. not wholly..... Majima's priority of strength begets some kind of twisted respect towards Shimano. I wonder if he lacks that respect for Sagawa, who as far as I remember never physically overpowers or threatens Majima except for when he's already down and weakened in some form.......? getting off track. point is Oyajis are very very influential to their precious boys, their Family will reflect them (personality, how he runs the joint, etc) regardless if they want it to or not. Majimemegoro has some baller fics exploring all this and it's a large part of what influences me today.....

Speaking of, i would love the title of that fic you've mentioned... i'm a little picky of which fanfic i'll give the time of day but Nishida also having experience with Anagura is tantalising. like that's so tragic.... that's so evil...... i'm sitting here wondering to myself if he was a survivor or.. yknow........ because no one else, in canon, "made it out" of Anagura alive. or, more specifically, no victims make it out of Anagura. Majima was always the exception. either option makes me sick to my stomach just thinking about it...... cause if he is another victim then the way Majima treats him is just.... and if he's not then is his constant dedication to him like a form of atonement....... oouuhhhrggg......... im going to hit the wall...........

also! i'd love to hear if you have any unique takes regarding M.Con considering your family...... when i say im pulling ideas out of my ass i mean it. you've got access to a unique perspective methinks. closest i got is other people's accounts and (shudders) ausgov roadworkers i see occasionally............

also also! when you get to dead souls please bitch to me the moment something goes awry i HATE-love dead souls.... the characterisation makes me stub my toe repeatedly in frustration. its not bad and i dont want to be the NO FUN ALLOWED twat but ugghghhghghrghrhgrhg the zombie setting is not handled in a way that engages me. thats all i'll say bc otherwise ill be here forever venting all my nitpicks that i SHOULD throw on twitter but wont bc i got hardcore DS dickrider mutuals who'll get sad in my mentions at best and maybe take it personally at worst

[yaomomvs]

SEIJOH MANANGER HEADCANONS

seijoh, aoba johsai x reader | slight oikawa, iwaizumi and kunimi x reader.

a/n: ugh! i just love my seijoh boys so much! and so, i decided to make one more headcanons for them, tysm! hopefully i’ll do inarizaki next or maybe karasuno.

a bit long but i just love them,and i will do a part two mainly focusing on while they do volleyball this is more of random things

other seijoh!manager works: one | two

the volume in this bus is ASTRONOMICAL

you actually never thought of joining a club, specially a sports one.

but you needed it, so while looking at the board of the school’s options you were unsure.

“i just really need something not that complicated, and that helps me helping others” you muttered to yourself

little did you know the coach of the volleyball team was there, this nice man turned to you and offered you a place in the team.

“but please if you are one of oikawa’s fangirls dont-” “who now?” you genuinely asked. seeing that you didn’t had a clue of who he was talking about he immediately handed the application for to you.

it was first day and you were already late, but you managed to enter the gym half way practice.

you guys remember that tanaka and kiyoko scene in s4? well it was the same

“sorry for being late coach!” your voice sounded all over the place since someone was serving and it was pretty quiet.

ALL OF THEM WERE SHOCKED LIKE 🧍🏻‍♀️

the serve even hit yahaba’s face because everyone got distracted by your beauty

“i- did i do something?” “existing omg”

the coach lined up everyone and they greeted you welcoming you to the team.

you were flustered because it was like you never had a lot of guys around you and now you had to take care of all of them and also

aoba johsai’s team had one of the most attractive boys around likeeee

now, a year later, the energy is purely chaotic.

and i mean like

kindaichi and kunimi are lowkey the ones who respect you the most

not only because you, even if it was for only a year, you were their upperclassman but also you had presence

when karasuno came to the practice andy oh catched both of them after talking to kageyama in the bathroom, you pinched their ears and scolded them

“you both do that again and i’m not being compassionate” “SORRY Y/N”

but also lowkey your admirers

kunimi literally only showed strong emotions around you

“i brought you some sweets” he regularly says

“oh you are great! thank you kunimi!”you appreciated this guys little details with you

“so you have a favoritism with our manager huh?”

“y/n permission to hit kindaichi”

“permission conceded”

kindaichi also respected you because you, when he entered seijoh months ago, were one of the ones who made him believe and helped getting over that anger he had with his ex teammates and you even assured that kageyama was the reason he got better, even if he wouldn’t accept it

the second years, your literal followers

like seriously yahaba watori were always around you.

being in the same grade and class as both dod not helped a lot.

they are like puppies with anxiety separation

because you are the reason they feel loved and cared for

they always sit next to you in class, and they make sure you are comfortable with it.

you need help with hw? watori always is there

yahaba lets you paint his nails every time you got bored in class

you were such a powerful trio

they always bring your favorite drink in the mornin

you even developed this sixth sense where if you just look at each other you know exactly who are you making fun of without even speaking

you always make fun of the shit way of yahaba to flirt oml

and you even advice him on what should he do or not when meeting someone new.

istg if it was not bc of you he would have never got his first date with his crush

kyoutani later joined you, but he had trouble on trusting you

but seeing all the team laying on you he actually let himself rely on another person for the first time

he was the one who scared those stupid volleyball boys fan girls (oikawa’s or the other guys ones) away from you

he also thinks that you are not bad physically talking and he actually says it but privately

he also whenever he is mad or just frustrated comes to you and what he likes is that you don’t go in deep of the details but instead you try to distract him with random thing you say.

“guys i told you several times” you laughed “i do have other thing to do! it not like i can attend every night out with you! i have other friends too!”

“so, we are not watching cartoons tonight?”

“i hate you all so much” you surrendered “see you at 8 pm”

you became the second years core four

and also they looked up to you a lot, why? because you are the only people who always deals with the third years shit

god i think your connection with the third years was only a bit more noticeable than the second years

why? you were not afraid to mess up with them

to be real iwaizumi as oikawa caught your eye since moment one, they were naturally attractive and talented but you made a promise to not fall for anyone

omg you were so wrong

if it was iwaizumi, he always made sure you felt comfortable around

you were no vb genius so he took the time to explain you a bunch of things you did not know 🥺

also, he’s the kind of guy to stop everyone spiking because you were crossing through the gym so no ball gets you

he is the one who always search for you in school, asked about your day, and stuff that might seem basic but it was really meaningful

like he is the kind of guy who memorizes all your favorite places, treats, music anything and actually tries to get you to talk about it

oikawa on the other hand was the one who actually made you feel like part of them

he is so sweet!

like

oikawa only starts practice when you are there

like bold of someone to start hitting a ball without you there, he considered you part of the team, so he always waited for you

he walked you home or nearby every time he could he wanted you safe

his eyes always always instantly light up and screams “y/n-chan!” and immediately runs to you

but also he is the one who search you the most around

if it was lunch time he went to your home room and literally lunches with you no matter what or who

he never lets anyone lend you their hoodie, it always has to be his that you are wearing

he self crowned himself as your favorite

he hugs you out of nowhere istg is the best feeling ever

hanamaki also also also considers you priority

he is kinda more of the lowkey one, he is mainly the one who checks up on you

he once spotted a bruise in your arm and he immediately freaked out

“DO I HAVE TO FIGHT SOMEONE” “god no! i just dropped a huge book there!”

hanamaki is the one who waits for you in the entrance of the gym to walk with you to practice

he also is the first one to notice if something is wrong with you along with iwachan

they both unintentionally pay attention to you a lot and if you do something out of the common they just approach you

and they are always right

“what’s wrong y/n?” hanamaki says

“yeah, is everything okay you need anything?” iwaizumi continues.

“what do you mean guys? i’m okay” you obviously try to lie.

“no you are not, you are acting different”

“yea iwachan is right you always change yous t shirt before practice and the way you are ordering the volleyballs is off”

“why do know me so well” you indeed had a terrible day, so you almost tear up bb of that and be of how amazing your boys were to you sometimes”

“come here little one”

you heard a pout

“i see you oikawa, you can get a hug too. matsu come here”

matsukawa is your hype man

he loves messing with you like in the big brother sister way

like if a guy asked you out he’d be like “sis you can do so much better”

you are always being salty whether it’s between you or other ones

besides if you do have a crush on anyone on the team matsu is the only one to know

and he’d constantly blackmail you with that

“if you don’t buy me anything from the vending machine i will tell oikawa you actually swoon for him” “OKAY FINE”

“tell the coach that we do not need laps or iwaizumi is gonna knowwwww about” “i hate you so much”

but returning to the point you always messed with them specially the four third years

and you were so good at it

one day, you ‘innocently’ mentioned to the boys “i’m just telling you! i’ve never seen two pretty best friends, one of them always gotta be ugly”

GOD LORD THE BOMB YOU JUST ACTIVATED

THEY SPENT A WHOLE WEEK TRYING TO FUGURE OUT WHO WAS THE PRETTY BEST FRIEND BETWEEN IWA AND OIKAWA, ALSO MATSU AND HANAMAKI AHHAHAHAAH

your third years never made you feel insecure

like if you think idk listening to btr was weird because someone in the past made you feel like it be sure the next day they WILL PLAY FUCKING BIG TIME RUSH IN PRACTICE ONLY FOR YOU TO VIBE WITH THEM

also they all four have this little thought that they have to be the ones who protect you

in the court you looked out for them, outside of it they were the ones who did that

if you were teased or someone even had the audacity to make fun of you it could go three ways

you stoping kyoutani and yahaba because they were so ready to throw hands

matsukawa, hanamaki and kunimi just taking you out of there and rather say positive thinks about you

or oikawa and iwaizumi behind you giving the saltiest and meanest glares to whoever dared talking you that way and saying “and you still wonder why people don’t like you?, ” then iwaizumi says “you are right oikawa, you piece of crap have your entire life to be a jerk. take a day off your stupidity won’t left anyways”

god you sure loved those guys

BUT

as it can be really useful sometimes there were other times were they become so annoying

specially when it’s about someone liking you.

like romantic styles

i live for the idea that the vb team had obviously fangirls, oikawa mostly. but you also did

like yeah the fangirls of oikawa and the boys envied you

but the guys in aoba johsai high envied the volleyball team even more

god bless the poor guy or girl who DARES to ask you out

like please someone stop them 😭

on valentine’s day you came to practice a bit late just because you needed to figure it out how to organize all the fucking love letters and the chocolates and flowers that you got over the day.

oikawa was already worried as he always waited for you to start, and so were the guys so they decided to warm up a bit more to wait.

you crossed the door with thousands of gifts and all of that barely catching the ones which you dropped. because at this point you did not even try to hide it from the boys, you just wanted them to start practice.

he looked at you and knew exactly what that meant. he received this every once in a while, but god what was that feeling in his chest when some other people like you?

iwaizumi felt that too, that weird feeling not wanting anyone to think about you that wayyyyy

the rest of the boys had divided opinions but still you were their manager.

“so did all this came from...”

“yes matsu...”

“okay but for scientific purposes we need the names”

“HANAMAKI NO”

poor boys, they just are all scared that you’ll leave them because of someone

what a dramatic queens they are all

some of them didn’t like it bc they also had a big crush on you

so what they do is that they gatekeep anyone from you

like oml if they ever catched you and a girl or guy and they knew they liked you they constantly beg for your attention.

and it’s not only because they are being dramatic but also because they remember last year when you went out with some random dude and broke your heart like

they almost killed that guy

so they wanted you to feel happy and safe

to them? honestly you are the light of their life.

they dedicate every game to you, they take care of you, they listen to you, they brag about you, they love you

because honestly you did all that for them first

and ever since then they made sure to return that to you.

[ilikelookingatthings]

So I have a pitch/theroy for the justice league/justice league unlimited cartoon and the Flash

First thing is...a major thing is that Flash in the justice league is considered the first flash....but look wise and detail wise its clearly Wally West. Both of them seem to work as scientists for the police in the show so technically that can line up with the regular Barry....HOWEVER both Wally and Barry technically have the same origin of getting hit by lightning and chemicals...heck Wally in the comics gets hit after visiting Barry after being a fan of the Flash...so there is nothing distinctivly missing....

However...the Barry in the comics is more nerdy with a bowtie, blonde hair and his love interest is Iris West. He also has a slightly different band around the waist...that could be chalked up to aesthetic differences...however the Flash from the cartoon is a red head, his love interest seems to be named Linda, he loves cars and he does tend to be treated more of a younger brother type...This is of course technically because Wally was the Main flash when Barry disappeared from the comics for a bit.

now...it can be fine...we deal with different changes in characters all the time...but it does bother me since it makes a odd disconnect if you go from the show to the comics or other media.

So in case you didn’t know...Wally West, the red head, was actually kid flash who was the side kick and who was very close to Barry Allen the first Flash who then ends up taking up the mantel in the comics.

They had made a point in the show to show that Flash can go back intime, has a big impact on people and can get lost in the speed force if no one is actively trying to connect with him and trying to pull him back.

and in the comics....there is actually two(though it could be more) moments that back up a lost flash...Wally in rebirth had been lost in the speed force and outside of the universe...no one remembered him and he couldn’t be brought back until someone made a connection with him. He tried multiple people...even his original lightning rod Linda...but who brought Wally back and remembered him was Barry...but Barry had to be confronted with Wally literally almost dissolving infront of his eyes until it all came rushing back. But before that was one of the crisies that had Barry basically die/stuck in the speed force for literal YEARS. With Wally taking his mantel and everyone genuinely believing Barry was dead until they found out where he was.

They also had a storyline about Jay Garret...the actually first golden age flash...who if we put aside the different earth thing...had a situation where their town was literally erased and stuck out of time for a while due to vibrations...where Barry was actually inspired by the comics that had been lingering proof that Jay Garrick’s Flash was real.

My pitch/Theory is that to try to save the world Barry had to sacrifice himself somehow....got lost in the speed force(who knows maybe messed up the timeline like he did in flashpoint) or maybe did what he did on crisis trying to save everyone...but as a result the memory of him was earsed from the timeline. Heck maybe the reversed flash or professor Zoom, who has a thing about hating Barry and wanting him gone but needing him to exist or the professor won’t exist paradox, had gotten involved.

But Wally who refused to give up on Barry did something to stop all traces of Barry from being erased...A.K.A.....his NAME. If Wally did something so Wally goes by Barry Allen it could be Wally subconciously trying to save his mentor and dear friend...like by having ‘Barry Allen’ exist withe the parallels and maybe if he spreads knowledge of the flash Barry it might make it more likly that Wally might remember him or that someone might and it might help increase the chance the REAL Barry Allen might be drawn home. It doesn’t completely work because when people are thinking of Barry’s name they aren’t connecting it to the real Barry but to Wally. It would give us a question of what is going on since we know that is Wally would would give the mystery of why the name change if if people would notice.

If we had a movie or maybe a mini arc or something that could connect to maybe the Flash realizing something is up or getting flashes or memories or finding some clues that don’t completely add up....it would be really interesting to find out that all along something was off in the timeline that no one noticed. and that our Flash who we know and love(the red head from the show) turned out to be missing someone and had been crying out to save one of his loved ones all that time that he had been willing to go as far as to rewrite things so he would have Barry’s name.

I’m just saying...that joke about Luthor saying he has no idea who this is could be used as a bit of foreshadowing~ and they did put some of the concepts in the show already.

Wally did almost get lost in the speed force if the justice league hadn’t pulled him out when he went too fast when beating a bad guy.

It would also make us instantly care for the Barry that our Flash(the red headed  who is actually Wally) would care about. AND be a great twist that would make our Flash look even more amazing as a friend and hero. It would also be a great way to reconnect the proper names and dynamics of the flash so the transition to the comics would be easier since Wally IS a legacy character.

I mean..even if its not a change in name but just some clue...the name change is just the easiest way I think for someone to sense something if off and look into it.

If Wally was in danger during it of disappearing potentially the more he looked into it and Barry just wanted Wally to be safe....just saying. We already saw Wally get sucked in in the young justice show where we think he is dead...it could be interesting to play around with it.

Now the show IS done....so it's not like I have hope and its not like it would be a surprise since people have internet and other versions to watch.....but I think it would be a blast. We have already seen him as the heart of certain episodes and arcs and what happens if the team loses him...the idea that maybe also subconsciously they worried about him and treated him younger because part of them remembered the original Flash Barry.

there HAVE been continuations of the show in movies or refences that directly connect to it...especially the batman part...remember that more edgy version centered on Harley, Batman and Nightwing.

its just an idea...what are your thoughts fandom? like it? hate it? would you tweak it? do you think its unrealistic and that I should I just accept it doesn’t matter because young justice corrected it? is it too much of an Winx club twist ala sky/brandon(if you know you know)

Heck since unlimited happened and expanded the scope the setup of that reveal could be big a connect to a chance to show off one of the bigger threats mostly only seen in the comics...like what happened with the crises that took Barry in the comics away in the first place.

[geekgemsspooksandtoons]

The Mask 1994

*I finally wrote the whole thing. I finally watched the movie that involved something I’ve been talking about A LOT. I think this took about an hour since I finished the movie. Forgot to mention Charlie.*

I wanna make this clear, even before I watched movie or ever writing this. I am legitimately a stupid and lazy person. Because my mom told me about this, and last week, my dad rented A Quiet Place Part 2. When I was trying to go to sleep but was looking up movies...I literally forgot my tv can do that too...and that I can rent or buy a movie...I rented the movie this morning, and deleted it afterwards...after all that talk...I could’ve done that...wow. I should do that more considering some movies I wanna see or like. Not too much though. My tv has DirecTV. Just a heads up.

But a few or couple of minutes ago, I finally watched The Mask film from 1994. This post is gonna be filled with spoilers and it’s gonna get long. Gonna be kind of a review. My overall thoughts on it. This was my first reaction to the whole movie.

I’d just wanna talk about this too. I like comic books, I like comic book movies. Mainly my favorites are ones like all of Zack Snyder’s DCEU movies, Spider-Man 1 & 2, The Suicide Squad 2021, Wonder Woman 2017, The Dark Knight(Despite whatever issues I have with it), and Joker 2019. Yeah, those are mainly DC films and two Marvel related ones. I don’t even mind Spider-Man 3 as well. I also forgot Dredd 2012 is another one of my favorites. Along with Batman 1989.

I was hoping The Mask could make that list of favorites. Because I read the comics first. I don’t think I ever watch the movie fully as a kid MAYBE. I’m a fan of the comics, I know this movie was gonna be a lighter take on the series. 

In a nutshell...I liked it. It’s possible it will be on that list of favorite CBM’s...but I want to talk about it. I’ll also admit I think what got me interested in seeing this film and this series was me liking Jim Carrey as Ace Ventura...now, let’s get to the point.

Yeah, I liked it. I thought the movie was genuinely entertaining. Despite seeing some clips before. But also Ryan Hollinger’s video about it. Revealing the ending, the twist, and other stuff. But I didn’t wanna watch more more that I haven’t seen yet.

I will be honest, it still made me laugh. Even some scenes I already have seen. I will admit, the Cuban Pete scene is actually one of my favorites. XD But what also surprised me is that at times, despite being a funny film. It can genuinely be touching in a way. And I am mainly talking about the developing relationship between Stanley and Tina.

I just wanna talk about the characters right now. I’ll just admit unless I haven’t already. I’m a Jim Carrey fan. Mainly because of his more goofier roles. Particularly his roles from the Ace Ventura movies, Liar Liar, and especially Sonic The Hedgehog. I also will admit this, Jim Carry nails playing Big Head or who they call...The Mask in this movie...I’ll nitpick about that later.

But yeah, Jim’s entertaining as Big Head in this film. He does make me laugh. But I think another role he does well despite there are some sillier moments, which is fine. I feel like in a way, Stanley Ipkiss in this version, is maybe one of his more normal roles. But I know I’m wrong considering whatever other roles he’s in. He portrays a likable good guy who’s sadly mainly pushed around. Which is quite the difference from the comics, except being pushed around. But that’s another topic. Yet for this story, even if maybe Stanley’s name could be changed. But him being a genuinely kind guy works for this story.

Even before I saw the movie, learning more about this version about the character. I can relate to Stanley in some ways honestly. Which is something that I like. He basically shines as a protagonist. 

He portrays both sides well. Despite at times...honestly, this Stanley is wacky. I shouldn’t be judging. Jim does a good stuff with what he played, and he’s the highlight of this movie. He also delivers possibly my favorite Jim Carrey line of all time now. Sorry if I get this wrong. I was looking for a clip of it to help me.

“Daddy’s gonna go kick some ass”. A literal line from Jim Carrey in this movie and I love it. He even brings a pistol with him.

I also wanna admit Peter Greene as Dorian is pretty good as a villain. The dude can be threatening and he works with what he is given. And he’s effective as an antagonist. I just wanna admit that I swear, one of these guys. One of them could’ve Walter in a way and I just think that could’ve been possible. But I’m not sure. Just one of Dorian’s henchmen looked like a huge guy. It just got me thinking about Walter from the comics.

Will admit, I think Kellaway is fine. And I just found out Christopher Reeve was one of the actors considered for the role...damn. But again, Kellaway was fine. He’s more like a supporting character and again, this is like an origin story. I do feel bothered Lionel Ray wasn’t added but replaced with this Doyle character. I will admit that Doyle is silly, which is the point of his character. I guess the writers and director didn’t want two sensible cops or something. I like Kellaway alright, but I’ll always dig Lionel too.

I really wanted to get this point. I thought Cameron Diaz was good as Tina Carlyle and Amy Yasbeck as Peggy Brandt. I will admit, I do strangely like the subversion with Peggy in a way with it’s twist. I get the idea if that it was going for that theme of, “We all wear mask” and Peggy turning Stanley into the mob said a lot about her character. While Tina was genuinely the one that truly supported Stanley.

I think was surprised me more was the fact despite Peggy turned in Stanley for selfish purposes such as paying for her condo. Yet what surprised me more was she was actually concerned for Stanley being killed, and didn’t want him hurt...which explains even more why she stuck around in the cartoon. And honestly, it makes me glad the director took out that deleted scene of her getting killed. So she wasn’t that heartless.

Also...it made me think that...my ideas and changes towards her character...maybe hold some weight.

I’ll just put this out there too. Milo is great, one of my favorite fictional dogs maybe. Good dog.

Trying to think what else, the score was fine. But the licensed music was good or something. Overall, I think my negatives could be just...nitpicks. Such as the Big Head part I wanted to talk about. Listen, I understand this is a different version. I just feel it’s weird to call him, “The Mask” instead of Big Head. I know other characters mask in their name or something. But...some reasons, the name Big Head is there. I guess it’s because of the title or something.

Honestly, I think my negatives are more that it feels short. And maybe Stanley becoming Big Head a bit too early. I sound kind of stupid, I know. But this was the 90′s and whatever else. This was a different take on the comics. But I did genuinely like it. Maybe I’m just a bit attached to those comics. Despite knowing the changes they did.

But I will admit, considering the development for this film. And learning that it was meant to be a horror film. But the director Charles Russell found the violence in the source material to be off putting. So he made it less grim, and more fun. I’ve also read somewhere that trying to make comedy with that violence was difficult.

Back to the point, to be honest. I feel like for that time and age. A more light Mask film was maybe the best choice to go. And we wouldn’t have Jim Carrey in it. I do also wanna say, I feel like The Mask series, you can do a lot of it. You can have something dark with it, or maybe more lighter.

There are still some of those darker elements. Mainly considering the moments with the gangsters and all that. But I will admit, learning that Charles mostly directed horror films. I think it’s impressive he made a more family friendly film and it worked. 

I liked it, despite my love for the comics. I thought when writing this, maybe some folks reading this may think I sound like fans who read the comics who first experienced this movie. But the film isn’t bad, it’s just a different take and a pretty nice one at that.

And to be honest, as much as I would of loved to see an actual sequel. And not that bad film known as Son Of The Mask. I understand why Jim Carrey dropped out, and I would’ve loved to see Peggy back because the director planned to bring her back reformed. But I feel like this film works as a one off in a way. And there’s also the cartoon, which works fine as a sequel despite some differences. Yet...I’ll admit, I would’ve loved The Mask 2 if we got Jim Carrey as Stanley again fighting against maybe someone like Walter.

The Mask 1994 is a good film. Despite changes from the source material, but the changes for this vision work. It’s cool this film has a cult following, and the fact I have used elements and story beats from it for The Mask Rebirth stuff I’ve been talking about. Even before watched this whole movie.

It’s a genuine fun flick. But I’m hoping down the line, if Warner Bros stops being fucking stupid with how they run things. Maybe we’ll get a reboot or how about an animated film that seems more true to the source material. 

I know The Mask/Big Head doesn’t have a big legacy such as the likes of Superman, Batman, and Spider-Man. But I do think this series could be reimagined and expanded upon. Using elements not only from the original comics, but even the movie and cartoon. 

And...despite it was because of Ace Ventura...I would like to thank @kaijuguy19 for being such a supportive dude, and talking about this franchise with me. Including wanting to talk about this movie long ago when I haven’t seen it. But I want to say...no...he’s one of the big reasons why I’m a fan. Because he’s one of the only guys I know who’s a fan. It started with Ace Ventura, but it was because of talking with Kaijuguy that I guess things started to escalate. So thanks man for talking about this stuff with me.

Also, Charlie was silly and he was fine as a character. I forgot about that dude despite wanting to talk about him. Gonna tag him too in case. Charlie schumaker

[sylviareviar]

I've been watching PlayFrame's Kingdom Hearts Story Mode Playthrough...

Fellas, is it weird if Goofy is my favorite Kingdom Hearts character? Unironically, I mean? Like, sure, Goofy belongs to Disney, but like... the Trinity Trio is my favorite, first of all, and second of all, the way he and Donald are handled in terms of taking care of Sora as he grows from 12 to like... what, 16, 17 years old?

I read somewhere here on Tumblr that the Trinity Trio has three brain cells among them, and Goofy has two of them at all times. And just... that's so true, isn't it? And all I can think of when I see Goofy acting so serious and smart and actually taking everyone else seriously despite his silly voice and lanky design and silly little shield, is that... This is what Serious Goofy looks like. This is Goofy in a life-or-death situation. His personality doesn't change completely, that's besides the point. But he displays these amazing capabilities we never see in the silly animated Disney stuff he's officially featured in, and I think that's crazy and good. It makes me think Goofy isn't just his name, it's an affectionate nickname given by his friends because, out of the friend group, he's always the one carrying the backbone of their high spirits. He's the one who keeps a smile on his face, does silly things, and acts stupid, his own reputation be damned. Mickey stresses out a lot--I've seen it in lots of scattered animated clips online. Donald is constantly angry. Out of the three of them, Goofy is always the happiest. Sometimes, he may even fuck with his friends just to make a jab at how the things they're stressing about aren't actually that big of a deal--or if they are, that they're overthinking things and should just slow down.

I guess the two clips I think about the most when thinking about this feature of Goofy's personality is this one meme clip I found of Mickey arguing with Goofy about how "Nobody's here," and Goofy leads him around in this big convoluted circle of "Aren't we somebody? So then somebody is here! So then help us!" And Mickey would be like "No--WE'RE stuck! ALL THREE of us!" "Well, Mick, I hate to tell ya, but somebody told me that there's nobody here." Mickey went off on a string of confused noises and eventually gave up. Then there was the other one where Goofy had this like, infinite ring of keys, of which the joke was that he had a "key to the heart," therefore GASP KINGDOM HEARTS REFERENCE BY OFFICIAL DISNEY?????? Actually, in all honesty, I haven't seen THAT many clips of Donald, Mickey, and Goofy. But even so, I can't help feeling like this really is his personality.

Like somehow, if he was allowed to, Goofy would totally goof off and find ways to make his friends smile and laugh or even frustrate them if he could while they traveled to other worlds--from Donald's general demeanor towards him, at least in the beginning of Kingdom Hearts I, it's clear he's done that before already. But with Sora, not only is the kid impressionable, but if Goofy truly decided to live up to his name, the only "responsible" adult in the group would be Donald, and for all that Goofy loves Donald, everyone knows he has anger issues and isn't very mature at all. So he steps up. When they genuinely need to figure something out--which is most of the time, since the entire franchise plays off of vast abstracts that no one can keep track of anymore because at this point everything is a fever dream--Goofy offers what he genuinely knows, rather than fumbling with words for the sake of appearing stupid for the bit. (Granted, he still fumbles words sometimes, but it's also possible that with such an unusual mouth shape, he genuinely struggles with speaking sometimes, which is also valid of him.)

I never in my life thought I'd make an entire essay overanalyzing a literal cartoon character and how much I love him in comparison to like, the rest of Kingdom Hearts. Granted, the main reason I'm a KH fan is, to be frank, the crossover appeal. I'm a sucker for crossovers and I love Kingdom Hearts for it. Most of the original characters (besides Sora, Riku, Kairi, and because I'm biased, Axel) are okay, I guess... Like, they're not bad--in fact, they're great, and they're engaging and I can see the appeal, but... For me, the appeal of Kingdom Hearts is the crossovers. I love hearing King Mickey talk about objectively Dark things. Man might as well tell Sora, in his high-pitched Mickey Mouse voice, that "Ya gotta be prepared to kill if ya wanna survive, Sora," because that'd be the most cursed, funniest shit I'd ever heard. But unironically, the Trinity Trio is my absolute favorite and maybe I'm weird, but I'm totally a fan of the Cartoon Character Angst we get in this franchise.

So fellas, I ask again. Is it weird that Goofy, unironically, is my top-favorite character in Kingdom Hearts, with Sora and then Mickey as my second and third? (Donald as a close fourth--no hate on Donald, but you literally can't top Mickey Mouse saying "Fellas, did someone mention the Door To Darkness?")

[fbfh]

Leo Valdez relationship and intimacy headcanons

As with all steamy/nsfw works, the characters are aged up to 18+/college era

so

let’s get started ‘,:)

(1.2k, get ready)

When you’re making out he’s a top

But when things get heavier

Bottom as hell

Like he’ll instigate

He’ll dance with you and playfully grind a little

He’ll kiss you and bite your ear and whisper things in spanish that shouldn’t be translated

But as soon as you reciprocate

Oh

Bottom mode: fucking on

[plankton voice] I didn’t expect to get this far

Later on in the relationship he might get a little more confident and top you on occasion

Or more if you encourage it

But if he could have one image for the rest of his life 

It would absolutely be you hovering over him about to go to town

Dies in the best possible way if you push him onto the bed/couch/wherever

Gets very excited when you straddle him

Please please straddle him

His hips will automatically go up a little before you even do anything

Really loves when you straddle him 

Loves holding your waist and loves squeezing your butt and loves touching your hair

Genuinely loves all the parts of you

Ass? Yes. Tiddies/pecs? Yes. Legs? Yes.

Big fan of making out

B i g fan of grinding

You could absolutely finish him by grinding

I’m not saying it hasn’t happened before

Like if you grind against him at all even a little

Shabam

Putty in your hands

If you do that little swirly thing with your hips that he loves he’ll moan so loudly

Speaking of which

He is so vocal

S o vocal

Half to break the tension half cause he can’t help it

Makes the absolute nicest noises

Like he takes in a sharp breath and then moans it out

It’s n i c e

A little part of you wants to bite his neck and record the noise as his ring tone in your phone

L o v e s  when you grab him by the collar

If he’s wearing a tie grab him by the tie

Lowkey started wearing a tie more often jus so you’d do this

Generally loves being in a very close proximity to you

He’s the type to be at least a little horny all the time 

His love manifests as horniness a lot

I’m talking any time any place

Especially if it’s inconvenient

Grocery store, clothes shopping, bumping into an old friend

Wake you up in the middle of the night to see if you’re feeling frisky kinda shit

And how could you not be with this boy

The morning after he’ll wake you up with neck kisses

And in his gravely ass morning voice 

“So… you up for round… what round are we up to?”

Goes feral when you lift up his shirt/hoodie by running your hands up his abs

Member 2/2 of the growl/purr thing club

He’ll say something dirty in spanish and punctuate it with some kind of purr snarl and maybe a well placed bite

It’s extremely effective

Don’t let him know that though

Otherwise he’ll do it all the time and have too much power

Speaking of power

Call him papi and he bursts into flame

“Whatever you say, papi…”

!!!!!!

He’ll genuinely freeze in shock

Red as a firetruck

But you can only do it like once a year or he’ll actually die

It’s that powerful

Really likes lacy underwear

If u wear bras and you happen to wear like 

An unlined lace bra

Esp if it’s like burgundy or red

Obvs

Or if you genuinely want to end him then wear matching bra and panty sets

The top of his head unfolds like a cartoon and animated rockets and fireworks spray out  

Another fun thing you can do to ruin him:

Trace your fingers over the lines of his muscles 

Especially his v line

Makes him shiver every fucking time

If you surprise him by pushing him onto the couch, straddle him and grind until he’s bucking his hips and moaning

Dw it doesn’t take long

He will literally genuinely unironically propose marriage if you do that

The type of person to cancel plans if you take off your shirt

Have you seen those tiktok videos where people surprise their s/os by walking out naked

The first one in this compilation is all I have to say about that

H i c k i e s

This man and his hickies,, eye-

He fucking LOVES giving you hickies

Will not object in any way shape or form if you give him a few on his chest and neck

Will “accidentally” let them show without an ounce of shame

r/oopsdidntmeanto

Bite his collar bones really gently

Just trust me his reaction is worth it

Very very worth it

Squeeze his thighs from time to time

It’s a nice surprise for all parties

He is a total hoe for egirls 

You cannot convince me otherwise

Like if you put on any kind of egirl outfit/makeup he loses his shit

Do an ahegao face as a joke 

He actually stumbles backward and falls onto the nearest surface

And then bursts into flame

He just stares at you and you know you’re in for a long night/afternoon/morning

“H-how… how do I make you do that again??”

If you combine the face with the egirl look just uuuh

Time it at the beginning of a vacation or three day weekend

Cause neither of you will be doing anything for a while

Except each other

An “every surface in the house” kinda guy

Literally genuinely such a good lover

Like he’s so focused on you 

Gets serotonin just from you being around

Much less you trailing your hands under the waistband of his underwear

Oh do that too

Like you unbutton his pants and start to tug them down

But kinda play with the band and material of his underwear before you finish undressing him

Drives him fucking wild

m u t u a l  g r o p i n g

Very into foreplay/fun teasing

But won’t die without it

It’s like,, you get a cake and it’s amazing

And the more frosting decorations and sprinkles you add it gets even better

You’re just so excited you have dessert 

Idek if that makes sense but you probs get what i mean

He has a unique brand of aftercare

Ig it’s like,,, more focused on bonding than one person taking care of the other

Good luck not cuddling with this man

Let him sleep with his face in your chest

We all know he’s a stomach sleeper

Esp if you have boobs

If he could purr he absolutely would

If you try to wham bam thank you maam without cuddling after like 

He’ll survive

But when he finally gets you to cuddle he will absolutely make up for that lost time

His favorite thing ever is when he gets to see you just like,,, being organically yourself

Like watching you take off your makeup

Absolutely the type to watch you get dressed the morning after

Like you don’t even really realize he’s awake 

But you get that feeling like eyes are on you yk

You turn around and see him looking at you all sleepy and lovey

“...What?”

“Nothing…”

So you keep getting dressed

But the look doesn’t fade 

And you know it’s not nothing

The way he’s looking at you now, you know you’re the something

He makes it feel really nice to be the something 

Cause like you view yourself as his something

But he deadass sees you as his everything

And he will do everything he can to make you feel euphoric in as many aspects of your life as possible

[renzoreen]

I'm literally smiling so wide right now holy shit-

There. Can't formulate words. I love this show so much. Wander, favourite character ever. I am so glad(?) that Dominator stays evil. And Hater actually being component?? I'm surprised that Peepers didn't propose right then and there, he was so fucking enamored. And Sylvia my beloved she is just so cool.

But you can tell that the show was cancelled on them unexpectedly. That post credits scene leaves on a cliffhanger. And yeah, wonder what the hell they were going to do with space monkeys from earth, that would've been so interesting.

But yeah, I love that the show's able to stick to it's moral of always trying to help others and seeing the good in people, but it doesn't present an overly idealistic view either.

Yes, sometimes the entire galaxy gets destroyed, and there's nothing you can do about that.

But there's also the growth of new life, and also all the allies and friends you made along the way. As long as you're able to focus on the things that matter, you'll be able to get through anything life throws at you.

Wander over Yonder is just such a genuinely positive show. I love me some angsty characters and long drawn out narratives as much as anybody, but this felt like a breath of fresh air. It's not trying to be anything big, it's just trying to be something good, and at that it absolutely succeeds.

In a strange way, I'm grateful that it was cancelled mid-way through. Because it delivers that inch of closure needed, but also doesn't make it feel like an ending, because endings are quite upsetting.

Ah gosh I'm getting quite emotional over this lovely little cartoon. At least I can finally look at all the fan content without worrying over spoilers!

This Tumblr is probably gonna be full of improvised analysis(es? What's the plural?) and some fanart. I can't believe that this show isn't more popular. Then again, I've spent the past half-decade only knowing the show because of the Bad Guy song. Wander over Yonder was not at all what I expected, and if you haven't watched the show but are still for reason reading this even though I just spoiled the entire finale, then I definitely recommend you check it out! I think fandom consensus is that season 2 has most of the best episodes, but that by no means mean that season 1 isn't already top-tier shit.

Speaking of Bad Guy, that one quote from the Buddies song is just circling and circling in my head: "We gave it a go, put on a heck of a show, and did a lot of fun stuff we'll get to laugh about after." This show is also very good at summarizing itself.

Okay I've been pacing around in circles for a good fifteen minutes writing this now. I'm just gonna stop now or else I'll be here for the next hour.

Thanks Wander over Yonder and the crew very very much for existing and for all the love that went into this wonderful little toon. Check out Wander over Yonder. And that's all!

Wait I've just discovered you can change text colour. This is the best thing ever. Okay bye.

[maddhatterreviews]

Hope punk stories you should check out if you already haven’t

I think after everything 2020 threw at of as a people (And some of the bullshit we’re still dealing with now) we could all use something to lift our spirits a little. And what better that fiction to escape from the horrors of reality for a little bit? 

Just to be clear about this list, this isn’t a top ten or anything. This isn’t me saying these are the best movies/tv shows/ games/ whatever that have that Hope punk feel to it, these are just things that I like and might help you get through shit. 

Effectively the codifier for the term. (Or at least the first piece of fiction the term was applied to) I actually stopped watching She-Ra about halfway through the second season, but I’ve been meaning to get back into it for a while. Although I do know that the series ends with Adora and Catra kissing and that somehow fixes everything. And if saving the universe with the power of love isn’t Hope Punk, I don’t know what the fuck is.

If you follow me, you already know how much I love this show. But If I’m being honest, the Hope Punk feel doesn’t really start until the three season. Until then it a pretty generic action anime. Still good though. The show is in more of a darker, “Oh god, we’re all screwed” phase of the story (Not to mention a mid-season hiatus) but it wouldn’t be Hope Punk if there wasn’t some darkness to fight against, right?

Yea, I think this counts. Parks and Rec is all about a genuinely altruistic politician trying to make the city she loves better despite opposition from seemingly every direction, and backed up by a group of loyal friends. As weird as it might seem to call a government worker punk, that is what Hope Punk is all about. And for all the supernatural evils that appear in these other stories, none of them are as scary as an incompetently run branch of the US government.

The first Kingdom Hearts is my favorite game of all time. And as weird and convoluted as the story gets, I still love these games. Sora is the ultimate Hope Punk hero; an eternal optimist who stares down the most wretched darkness the Worlds have to throw at him with a smile. (And a magical sword shaped like a key) What makes Kingdom Hearts Hope Punk to me, is the fact that the thing that makes Sora so powerful isn’t necessarily the Keyblade, but all of the people he’s connected with over the course of the series. Sora himself says it best “My friends are my power!” Saving the Universe with the power of love and friendship.

Okay I sure this is another one that’s gonna throw some people off. But despite the Crow being a gothic revenge story, it’s also about hope and kindness. Or at least the movie is, I still haven’t read the comic. Sure, Eric Draven kills a bunch of cartoonish psychopaths in the most violent ways possible, but he only kills the people who murdered his girlfriend and himself, he protects a young girl he was friends with when he was alive, helps the girl’s mother get her life back together (by scaring the shit of her, but it worked) and only goes after the big bad to save someone that has nothing to do with his revenge mission. I don’t feel like I’m doing this movie the right justice. So if you’ve never seen the Crow, go check it out. I think it’s on Hulu and HBO max.

Sure this was written long before the concept of punk was even a thing, but it’s the story of quite literally the smallest, least powerful being in the world going up against an all-powerful, damn near godlike overlord to save the world. The extended cast doing what they can to push against an insurmountable force of evil, and everything coming down to two tiny hobbits. This shit is punk.

I’m not the biggest Doctor Who fan in the world. I’ve seen most of the new series, but nothing of the original. And I still haven’t watched anything of the 13th Doctor. But I think there is absolutely an argument that can be made that Doctor Who is Hope Punk. 

No, Not you!

That’s Better.

I don’t know, this one might be a stretch, especially since Hellboy is another government agent. But he does quit eventually. So there’s that. And I think it says something that the thing Hellboy fights against is the concept of Destiny itself. Hellboy doesn’t care where he came from or what everyone whats him to do or be. He just wants to live his life the way he wants to. Even when Hellboy get sent to hell, he still just trying to chill and live...Uh, you know what I mean. 

Spiderman feels like the physical embodiment of Hope Punk. Nothing in his life goes right. His friends and family are constantly either dying or turning into supervillains, half the time New York hates him despite how many times he’s saved, the guys spear heading the Spidy hate is his own boss (Who isn’t a big fan of Peter either) not to mention he’s just continually getting his ass kicked and is perpetually broke. But in the face of all his hardships and heart breaks, Spiderman keeps fighting the good fight. No many how hard he gets knocked down, he always gets back up. There’s a reason the “Shear Strength” shot (As I call it) is such an iconic panel from the Spiderman comics. I mean...just read this fucking panel. Sipderman IS Hope Punk. And there’re plenty of movies, cartoons, games, and of course the comics are always easy to find. The Dan Slott run is one of my personal favorites. 

I’m sure among any one of these there’s something that will get you through these troubling times. 

[spongebob-connoisseur]

Omg the latest video with Tom Kenny addressed that most frequently asked question about Kamp Koral in a mocking tone, I laughed out loud! Legend!

I guess they got butthurt, because the comments were... jesus christ, just made me feel sad. How dare they talk about him like that? Are they calling themselves as Spongebob fans?

Tom seemed so excited about it, he wasn’t like ‘someone held a gunpoint at him’, we genuinely don’t deserve him and this entire show.

And I was too naive to think that will calm them down, but oh well.

Yeah it really sucks. He looked pretty happy and just teasing about it. The show barely has continuity so it wasn't that big of a deal. He didn't even say anything new. Long time ago they said they'll explain a lot of the plot holes camp coral comes with.

I've strongly disliked camp coral in the past but the more I learn about it, the more it's really unsure and kinda murky about it. We don't know how much Stephen has approved of it. We have enough to say more or less but jeez people don't know boundaries when it comes to this kind of stuff.

To say Tom Kenny was held at gun point over this or to say he was greedy for money and happily betrayed his friend, someone he's still mourning for is messed up.

I can't stand these people. They think they're defending the integrity of spongebob when they don't even care for the show. They put Hillenburg on some kind of godlike pedestal and attack people he personally knew. People he personally care for. Over a cartoon. Something people work on, that helps pay their bills, that they've poured creative energy into. If you hate camp coral then blame the nick executives. That's what the original tweet from Paul Tibbit that people so often cite as being the source of "Hillenburg would have hated it" it's not the faults of the staff or the people who worked on it.

And also he said he didn't see any spin offs for the future? That was 2002-3. He also said no musical too but he ended up liking the musical. He wanted to end the show after the 1st movie. But he came back after the second movie because it was so much fun to work on. People's opinions can change.

Plus what about the fact that Hillenburg was the one who came up with the concept of camp coral? There's an article mentioning that. As an idea for a spongebob episode that got shelved. Or the fact that he trusted the series to the staff who work on spongebob? Or just any fact? Honestly even mentioning it gets some people so angry and I did literally have someone shouting fake news even while I have physical evidence. That's not even a joke. Literally just typed "FAKE NEWS FAKE NEWS FAKE NEWS" over and over as a response.

You have the right to critique camp coral. But I'm just tired of this. It's like talking to a brick wall at this point. It isn't even about camp coral. It's just fuel for those classics fans that have been harassing the show for years because they want classic spongebob back. Holding on to nostalgia for something that will never come back. And making some one a symbol of that even though they don't represent that.

Nick is a greedy corporation without a doubt but you should actually go after the corporation.

Sometimes I kind of want to write a piece about this whole thing about camp coral and if it's really okay or not but also I don't want to waste energy on it. Even just writing about the 3rd movie like that caused a lot of issues from these people.

It's kind of funny though, I remember where I first learned or camp coral from a particular YouTuber I used to watch when I was younger who called out nick for disrespecting Stephen's wishes but then later on acknowledged his mistake once learning that Stephen gave his ok for camp coral. Like he acknowledged his mistake. I still kind of feel like it's a little murky but also I'm so exhausted by these people that even saying its a lot less black and white makes them so venomously angry.

We cant use an Ouija board to ask Hillenburg what he personally thinks. We just have to take some people's word on it. And that's pretty messy from what one says to another. It's just a huge mess and I'm kind of tired of caring.

[popculturebuffet]

Darkwing Double Feature: The Quiverwing Quack and Paint Misbehavin (Paint Misbehavin Comissoned by WeirdKev27)

Greetings darkwings of the night! It’s time to return to our daring duck of mystery for a third double feature! This one’s been a longtime coming.. as in since around black friday when I did a comissions sale. As usual Kev was my only customer and he bought both Splatter Phoenix episodes... and I shamefully admit this one has sat in my queue for a while as I wanted to finish the justice ducks retrospective first, as I also wanted to cover Quiverwing Quack’s first appearance, on my own time, and I wanted to save doing any Negaduck till I got done with Justice Ducks.  And that’s where errors were made, as I PAUSED said retrospective forgetting I both had this review sitting in my queue, and that I really didnt have that much left to go on it. SO yeah this took WAY longer than I usually do for a commission, and I apologize for that and i’m happy to correct it, with this, along with the freebie I gave him at the time, coming out tommorow i’ll finally be caught up and promise this won’t happen again.  So with my needed apologizes out of the way, let’s talk about why this is a double feature. Simple: Paint Misbehavin is Quiverwing Quack, Gosalyn’s superhero alter ego’s, only other appearance on the show. It would appear in the comics.. in a fashion.. but we’ll get to that. So it dind’t feel quite right covering one without the other, especially since this version of gos is a fan faviorite of many. So does our  archer live up to the hype? Let’s get dangerous under the cut and find out. 

The Quiverwing Quack:

This.. may be the best Darkwing i’ve seen so far. There is some competition of course, but this one is easily the frontrunner. It’s hilarious, has a really great and intresting plot, few faults, and is just.. about as good as this show can get. I could end that here but I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t, so let’s get into why. 

The episode starts with a fairly typical day for Darkwing: Fighting Negaduck, hilariously as always, and mocking his arch enemy for only being Public Enemy #2 behind Dr. Slug, an oft mentioned but never seen in an actual episode villian that’s apparently one of DW’s deadliest foes. So already we have a great motive for Negaduck, who usually just has the motive of “destroy darkwing’ or do evil, though to the show’s credit, just looking at the summaries for his other eps alone, they NEVER ran out of ideas for the guy or forgot he was as clever as he was ax crazy. 

But just as he’s about to beat darkwing, Gosalyn arrives with an archery set Launchpad purchased for her and easily holds him down. And rather than be greatful Drake is mad at her and feels the arrows are too dangerous which.. fair those look to be real arrows but not the time or place.  Gosalyn however is angry her dad stopped her and is chafing both under his overprotectivness and feeling this is about ego, creates her own crime fighting alter ego Quiverwing Quack, dragging Honker along as her sidekick Arrow Boy. He dosen’t WANT to get into hero work, but he’s afraid she’ll pulverize him if he dosen’t. HA HA.. GET IT.. BECAUSE SHE’S A GIRL AND IT’S NOT LIKE GIRLS CAN ABUSE BOYS HAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAA

Yeah as you can tell that bit hasn’t aged well and is the one down note in an otherwise great episode. And I do mean great. Because this essential conflict works perfectly and is expertly built on what we’ve already seen of the characters. 

For starters Gosalyn forming her own hero identity feels like a natural evolution of her character. It genuinely feels that, given her love for adventure and of her dad being a superhero, that she’d take the next step in wanting to follow in her footsteps and put on her own costume eventually. Her making her OWN rather than something derivitative of darkwing also perfectly fits both her anger at her dad’s overprotectivness and her own individual nature. The costume itself is.. okay pretty simplistic, with an early green arrow style hat and some gloves and boots.. but while I didn’t like it at first It’s grown on me a bit, as I realized it feels like the kind of a costume a kid would throw together and given Gosalyn dosne’t have her dad’s backing, it makes sense the costume would be slapped together. Grante dit dosen’t explain her trick arrows, but given we’ve seen gosalyn is pretty talented and that she can easily acess Darkwing’s lair, it’s not a huge stretch to say she went into her dad’s lair while he was gone, took some suplies and made the arrows herself. 

And i’ll freely admit i’m a sucker for a good archer hero as Hawkeye is easily one of my faviroite superheroes. Which granted is a sentence I know will probably baffle anyone who hasn’t picked up a comic with clint, or has but it was written by brianmicheal bendis, as in the movies up to Endgame you could easily replace him with a block of wood with a purple h painted on it and no one would notice the difference. And other archer heroes like Arowette, Speedy, Kate Bishop, Arsenal and Green Arrow are also on the whole pretty fucking awesome, as is the Young Justice Cartoon version of Artemis and the JLU version of Green Arrow. So this was kind of a slam dunk for me and the fact Gos’ costume comes off as a combination of Hawkeye and Green Arrow, having Ollie’s hat but Clint’s purple color scheme and gloves with no sleeves aesthetic, just makes me all the more on board for this. 

What truly makes the episode though is Darkwing, whose internal conflict is masterful to watch. While his being overproective isn’t anything new to the show, this episode takes it in a more dramatic directon: While there’s still a few jokes the episode gives some very painful reasons why he’s like this: He dosen’t want to loose his baby girl, both figuratively in her growing up and becoming more self sufficent.. and literally in her dying. It’s a terror any parent faces and it makes him sympathetic: While he IS overreacting at times and would be better off training her and helping nurture her while still keeping her safe, so when she DOES run off to do her own thing she’ll be ready, you can’t blame him for not wanting that, for wanting her to just stay home, stay safe and stay ALIVE.  The comics, which i’ve read some of and will cover here at some point, make this hit HARDER as during the second arc, where we meet a bunch of Darkwing Ducks from other dimenisons.. and one of them is Quiverwing Duck. You can probably guess just by the name what happened to his Gosalyn after years and years of working together. 

So the risk .. is very real. Loosing her is VERY possible. Being a kid to teen superhero is a VERY dangerous line of work as with less experince and being a possible target if you have any mentors, and sometimes you genuinely DON’T make it. Cypher, Jason Todd Robin, Ultimate Peter Parker, Synch, Danny Chase, Kid Devil, Skin, Wallflower, Icarus, Genisis.. the list goes on, and on, and while MOST of them came back even then the ones that did didnt exactly lack in scars: Jason was never the same after the joker’s beating and Doug, Cypher, had severe trauma he never adressed. The danger Darkwing fears is VERY real.. but is a danger she faces ANYWAY by rushing in and acompanying him. The tragedy is traning her would at least give her a fighting chance as it’s clear from the above that Quiverwing Duck’s Gos died not because she wasn’t ready or because her dad din’t train her.. but because , like MOST of the heroes above.. she died a hero saving the world.  And the show recognizes this even if it doen’t mention the death because the show has to have limits and it was the early 90′s, wiht Darkwing’s fears also being that she’s growing up. He knows sh’es capable of this.. he’s just tearful she’s growing up.. and that she could be gone. It puts his overprotectiveness from other episodes in a much more understandable light, and makes it clear that while it comes from a good place it’s not really healthy: As the episode shows, Gosalyn thinks ALL he sees of her is a baby to be coddled and protected and not as her own person, and while he’s right to protect her.. he’s gone so far in it and in dismisisng her again, and again AND AGAIN, that he’s given the poor girl a complex. Leaping into danger alone isn’t the answer.. but when we get to the climax of the episode you can see why it’s gotten this bad. It’s suprisingly layred for what’s normally a pretty simple character conlficts. Here there’s no easy answer and even while by the end Darkwing’s accepted she’ll be a hero someday and both earnestly apologize, ther’es no real resolution. And sometimes.. that’s okay. It’s something they could’ve revisited had the series gone on and we did get at least one sequel episode at least and the comics do explore the issue of gosalyn being a kid hero and drake’s overprotectiness, with his issues there being why he retired and ended up badly straining his relationhip with gosalyn and ending , for a while, his friendship with launchpad and relationsihp with morgan as well as his costumed career. But obviously as I said we’ll get to that another day. But as an episode.. this one is truly excellent and one of the best the series put out, with plenty of humor but the more complicated dynamics at play BUILT on what we’ve seen before, including Gos rightfuly supsecting dakwing’s against her due to his own ego at points, are what elevate it to the series best. So how’d they follow it up?

Paint Misbehavin:

This one’s in an awkard middle place, where it’s FAR better than the previous splatter Phoenix Episode but not as good as “The Quiverwing Quack”. Still it’s a pretty fun episode all together.  So the main plot is that Darkwing and Gosalyn are at cross purposes because Darkwing is overshadowed by Gosalyn, in this case at the local comic con where Gosalyn, returning to her Quiverwing Quack guise, is the big new thing while Darkwing’s practically ignored. 

Yeah no way around it this is a rehash of “Whiffle While You Work”, same basic conflict, just with suprheroing instead of a video game. So naturally at first it annoyed me especially since they had a debate over who was better, Darkwing’s old traditional hero or Gosalyn’s new very 90′s hero. This.. goes about nowhere and is just cringe inducing for me as a comics fan, whose not against 90′s characters but acknolsges the vast majority got better LATER under new writers, with the exception of some such as superboy, steel, kyle rayner and impulse, who were fresh out of the package.  Thankfully.. the episode pushes past this and it ends up being a better version of Whiffle While You Work, as Drake isn’t as overbearingly obnoxious as he was there: Here Gosalyn is just as egotsitical, at one point trying to lead him away from a crime scene, and it’s only when they finally work as a team that they become unstoppable. It does say something though that Darkwing has genuinely grown as his objection is pure ego instead of overprotectivness like last time and he willingly lets her tag along even if he’s trying to show her up. It’s not the BEST conflict, and it ends with egos clashing, but while this part of the episode is recycled.. at least it’s recycling an episode that genuinely wasted the idea and using it better. Darkwing being jealous here is FAR more understandable as he’s been a hero far longer and while his ego is way too big for his head, it’s understandble to be a big pissy, and agian he dosen’t go nearly as far in how he treats gosalyn. He just wants to show up his own daughter and he’s shown as fully wrong for this. Not great but far better than before.  What IS great and what makes this episode fun, is Splatter Phoenix, whose even better than last time. I attribute this to the change in voice actors. While Dani Staahl was excellent.. her replacment is far better and far more notable. It’s SCTV’s andrea martin... who i’m realizing most of you have probably never heard of. 

Or know what  SCTV is. It was before both our times trust me: it was an early 80′s sketch comedy show that had a unique premise as the sketches were all programs for a fictional tv station, and there’d often be wraparounds about what was going on at the station that oftne led to sketches or impacted them: From dealing with sponser issues brought on by the Moral Majority, aliens, the russians hyjacking their signal, and forging checks from Fred Willard’s account, yes that was a plot and yes he was indeed a guest star, there was no end to the number of shenanigans in and out of program. IT was really good stuff with an all star cast: John Candy, Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas, Cathrine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, Joe Flarhety, Martin Short, and of course Martin. Even Harold Ramis was on the show for it’s first season. It was just a damn good time and if you can find the dvd’s or clips on youtube I recommend it.  My point is Martin is vastly underated and really deserves better than she’s gotten, and this eps proves it as her energy really adds to Splatter’s astetic and really fits the show like a glove and it’s a shame the show ended shortly after this episode, as it would’ve been nice to see her return in the role. But for a one shot she’s UTTERLY awesome, and Splatter gets to do far more this time as her brush has now expanded to be able to create, so we get helicopter cats, pumpkin dogs, a pink gorilla with a toaster for a head and when told superheroes always win she creates her own, absract man, with a hand for a head and a weird body and I just want to see more of him. He even skips off with Launchpad’s faivorie hero, bascally mr rodgers as a weasel, after launchpad draws the guy in. I want to see this gay couple fight crime with love and existetaalism dammit!

But yeah she’s just fun, as is her vandalism of various art works including making the dogs playing poker into skeletons.. which I now want a picture of for my room because that is nice. SHe also brings back the art shitfts from before in little ways, transforming darkwing into abstract art and to blocky art at diffrent points with her brush. And that’s what puts this episode over the other: The creativity is still there but without the whole “Honker being gaslighted” plot that I still hate to this very second, it’s allowed to be fun and fancy free and with Splatter out in the open she’s allowed to get a LOT more ambitious and thus the writers and martin get to have a LOT more fun with the gimmick. 

So while I do feel the episode’s a bit crowded, as they try to cram in both splatter phoenix and this super feud between family into the same space and both episodes would’ve been better served seperatley, i’ts so fun with clever use of the magic brush by our heroes and what not I can’t help but love it. I don’t love the climax though as splatter gets turpentine spilled on her by gosalyny and .. melts for some reason. Because she’s made of paint now even though that was never a thing before? Not to mention the fact our heroes just killed a person...

So yeah the ending’s a bit wonky but it’s a fun episode with the return of a great villian, a decent of played out main conflict and some great gags and fights in it. All in all i’m glad I got comissioned for this one and finally tackled it. Good stuff.  So that does it for this. We’ll be back to darkwing next week just in time for valentine’s day.. and back with Negaduck too. Until then it’s been a pleasure. 

[cynical-amphisbaenia]

Uh, hi? I'm sorry if I'm sending a ton of asks. I accidentally sent an unfinished one and didn't know there was a character limit?? Like I typed a lot on one and it never had a limit so I'm not sure if it's like a mobile vs desktop thing? I'm really bad at Tumblr lol. Uh anyway, my interests are almost entirely dnd and art. I mostly run games for my friends and do world building or plot stuff. When I actually play I always struggle between wanting to play something useful but then get upset when I get brushed off as "not a damage dealer" like yeah I can heal you 30 HP with a 1st level spell but I'm doing 4d8 minimum damage a round. I know basically every ability in the game and usualy use that understanding to work around my allies and make it so they can work as effectively as possible. But I feel like helping them be the best they can be takes away from me and makes it look like I'm not actually contrabuting? Like noticing that I'm the reason y'all are attacking more often would be cool. When I do play damage dealers I have a lot of fun at first bit get annoyed at their lack of non combative abilitys and uses. I'm a very talkative player and like to poke and prod everything and try to advance the plot or keep people on track. I tend to absorb as much information as I can about topics that interest me or just ammuse me so I can spout off that information at random or help people apply that information to whatever (like me the DM, telling my players how to make their characters even stronger without realizing I have to deal with them) I really enjoy art and I dabble in photography? I think my abilitys with photography are more of a natural inclination towards taking good photos more than actually knowing anything about photography? I was one of my photo teachers favorites even though I just winged everything and pretended I knew what I was doing. I do that a lot. Acting like I know what I'm doing just because it makes things easier when I have to put up with other people involving it. I'm a big fan of cryptids and I've been meaning to just do a deep dive and learn every tidbit I can but I haven't yet. Estheticaly I'm very drawn to crowns. I just adore them for some reason and I always have. When I took my friends senior photos he payed me by taking me to spirit Halloween and buying me a crown. I joke about it being my thinking crown and like to wear it while I work. A reoccurring thing that pops up in my life is bees? They're just a part of my personality at this point. I love those lil guys (did you know they can smell fear and do math?) Something I just remembered about myself is that I'm capable of beliving two entirely contradictory things. Like tarot? It's nonsense. But also it's literally never been wrong so I guess it's not? Same with how I feel guilty taking on any "main character" role in games but constantly joke about being all powerful and a being a book or cartoon character that I'm pretty sure I'm slowly trucking myself into genuinely seeing myself as a powerful entity. I'm really good at noticing patterns in the way people act and why they act the way they do and most of the time I just use that knowledge to "win" debates or whatever they just try to argue towards me. By win I mean I just intentionally misconstrued what they're saying to annoy them until they leave me alone (like "fuck you!" "No thanks I'm not interested") a lot of what I do is motivated by how funny I think I would be. Like tricking myself into kinning vriska? Hilarious. Getting into Homestuck so I can annoy my friends with useless trivia? Wonderful. Making my super friendly flower cleric and nicest character I've ever made also a raging anarchist and overthrowing two governments and killing a god through the power of friendship? God tier funny (in my eyes). I do a lot of things just so I can have a story to tell later (like killing the god) uh I think I've rambled for a while so I'm just gonna send this?

No worries about all the asks! I just want to say in advance that I really hope I don't confuse you further, but here's what I can figure out based on the information you've given me:

Your aspect is definitely Light. This is the clearest I've ever been able to determine someone's aspect so I don't think you need to doubt that. So much about Light is important to you - information/knowledge, your approach to stories, your focus on roles in reality (even if it’s fictional dnd reality). 

However, I don’t think you’re a Rogue. The classes I suggest you consider are Maid, Witch and Knight.

Maid might describe your relationship to wanting to be acknowledged as a contributor, but often being ignored. It would also explain why you constantly create Light for others, but desire to sometimes take on those roles yourself. You also appear to create situations for yourself to then create Light in the form of stories, as well as creating Light through plot/worldbuilding.

Witch is an option as you do sometimes appear to manipulate Light - intentionally misconstruing what people say, slowly changing reality by doing things because they’re funny, and using your knowledge to change things for your teammates. Poking and prodding at the plot is a very Witch-like trait. Witches also tend to be confident with their aspect. 

Finally, Knight might explain why you think you’re redistributing Light - perhaps you’re serving it instead. You do tend to use Light as both a weapon and to protect others when playing dnd. Joking about being a powerful entity and pretending you know how to do photography are both very Knight-like traits. However, Knights tend to only pretend to be confident in their aspect which might not suit you if you truly are confident with Light. 

I know I just gave you three new classes to consider! Probably not very helpful, sorry. Though with your own knowledge of classpects, you might be able to easily dismiss some of these yourself. Of course, my general advice is which do you feel you do more often - create, change or serve? Maybe there’s particular roles in dnd that you’re drawn to which would line up with one of these. 

Well, I really hope I’ve helped somewhat rather than confusing you more, but feel free to keep sending me asks if you need help narrowing it down. I’m sure you’ll figure out your classpect though, don’t worry. ^^

[echodrops]

*Slides in on a office chair* Now that you shared some of your HaaH headcanons for Shiro and Hunk, can you do Lance and Lotor?

Didn’t want to post these until I finally had some time to update them a bit and trim out spoilers, but I got a second last night, so here you are:

HaaH Lance and Lotor headcanons:

(Under the cut to save everyone’s dash)

First, a warning: Neither one of these characters’ backstories or plot event headcanons remotely line up with the show, one because I originally wrote most of this stuff around the time season 2-3 was being released and two, because I stopped watching Voltron after season 6 and have no intention of watching the rest of the show due to my dislike for the directions the writing took. I went back and updated some stuff, such as the names of some of Lance’s siblings, to more closely match what came later in the show… but for the rest… I’m just gonna do my own thing and pretend canon does not exist.

Lance:

- The literal definition of “rich as fuck.” When relaxations on economic policy were passed in Cuba that increased opportunities for private business, Lance’s grandfather made a solid deal for three massive sugar refineries. Today, artisanal coffee houses across the world utilize the sugar refined in Lance’s family’s factories.

- Grew up in a giant villa on the peninsula just outside the town of Varadero, on a sprawling property that included a long stretch of beachfront and individual bungalows for visiting family members and the family’s several live-in staff members.

- The whole family is incredibly down to earth despite this. Lance’s aunt and grandmother insist on having a hand in every family meal, Lance’s parents always make time to be involved in the children’s activities, and Lance was taught from a very young age never to take advantage of people, regardless of their position in the world.

- Lance is the baby of his immediate family by almost ten years. He was an accident that occurred after Lance’s mother believed she was too old to become pregnant. Of course his parents never treated Lance like an accident and loved him, but still, Lance has never been able to shake the idea that he wasn’t planned—and therefore he wasn’t wanted.

- He has four older siblings, two sisters and two brothers.

- All of Lance’s siblings are extremely successful in their careers. Lance’s oldest sibling, his sister Veronica, is a captain of the Cuban Navy and commands the impressive warship Audaz. Lance’s second oldest sibling, his brother Yuniel, is a decorated conservational ecologist working to protect Matanzas’ native forests. Lance’s third sibling, his brother, Marco, is a famous solo folk musician who made it big in Cuba. Rachel, Lance’s closest sibling, runs an immersion-based cultural heritage museum that preserves the rich and complicated history of Cuba and its people.

- In short—Lance grew up surrounded by the rampant success of his older siblings, watching as they excelled at everything they pursued—which just bred a greater and greater sense of insecurity in him, as he feared he would never be able to measure up.

- On Lance’s eighth birthday, in an attempt to cheer up his very depressed youngest son, Lance’s father dragged the family’s telescope down to the beach so that they could watch a space shuttle launching from the cape in Florida. At first Lance couldn’t work up the slightest interest, but when he finally saw the huge plume of the shuttle, arcing off into the unknown depths of space, he had a Moment™. Lance knew, right then and there, exactly what he was going to do with his life, something that none of his siblings had ever achieved: he was going to go into space and explore worlds unknown.

- Lance decided that he had, absolutely HAD, to go to Galaxy Garrison when he grew up. This part worried his parents, who pointed out that Garrison was not only in another country but also a solely English-speaking school and extremely competitive. Nonetheless, Lance was determined that he would not settle for anything less than the absolute best.

- Was totally that space obsessed kid. Still thinks Black Holes are the coolest thing in the universe. His parents bought so much “Astronaut” ice cream that they probably kept that entire industry afloat.

- Lance attended Garrison’s summer Astrocamp in Arizona when he was nine. Quickly made friends with his cabin-mate, Hyrum Tava. The nickname “Hunk” came about from a slip-up when Lance tried to compare his new friend to one of his favorite American cartoon characters, the Incredible Hulk.

- Even after leaving the Astrocamp, Lance and Hunk stayed close friends, exchanging frequent emails and phone calls, which helped Lance stay on top of memes popular trends back in the states.

- Shiro was Lance’s cabin leader at the Astrocamp, and his kindness and exciting stories about actually visiting space(!!) made a huge impression on Lance. Lance… may or may not have had a celebrity shrine to Shiro made of photos and news clippings taped to his wall for several years. Whatever, every kid does it and he took it down eventually, gosh!

- Identifies as bisexual, but has never successfully dated anyone, male or female. Due to several bad experiences and close calls, Lance doesn’t talk about his sexuality or express any attraction to men except around people he is extremely comfortable with. Hunk has known for years, of course. (In fact, it was Lance’s struggle with his feelings that helped Hunk develop strong sympathy for LGBT people, despite the fact that his religion is very against it.)

- Never had a real kiss. Might be just a tiny bit desperate to have a real first kiss.

- Also might buy a bit too much into the idea of needing to be stereotypically attractive to fit in. Although his nightly beauty regime is now a comforting routine, it originally stemmed from Lance being extremely self-conscious about his looks. He’s more comfortable about his body than he used to be, but he still frequently compares himself negatively against others; do you know what kind of hell it is to have to share a locker room with people like Shiro?

- Cries at the drop of a hat. Sad book? Sad movie? Abandoned kitten? Dropped something on his toe? Tears times ten thousand. Lance was never pressured by his family to “man up;” in fact, he was always encouraged to empathize, so Lance is extremely sensitive to others’ feelings. (He and Hunk are a great fit in this regard.) He can perceive even minute changes in people’s emotions and is always ready to cheer up people who are down.

- He can’t read Keith for crap though. Not really his fault. Keith’s a literal alien.

- Lance’s extreme empathy actually backfires on him. Because being sensitive to others is second nature to him, it’s often hard for Lance to remember that not everyone is as perceptive as he is. Lance has, many times, mistaken the other paladins’ obliviousness for indifference. Everyone on the ship cares deeply about Lance and would never want him to feel bad about himself—but not everyone on the ship is perceptive enough to notice when Lance’s insecurities are affecting him.

- Wasn’t put in the cargo pilot classes at Garrison because of his flight test scores—most green cadets have zero flight experience and all do pretty badly at first. Lance was placed in cargo class because he scored too high on a combat sensitivity test, indicating that he was a poor fit mentally for becoming a soldier. Fighting monstrous looking aliens is one thing, but Lance would have coped very, very badly if he’d ever been required to kill another human being.

- Struggled to fit in at Garrison. After the crushing disappointment of ending up in cargo class, Lance also dealt with a lot of people treating him like an outsider because he was an international student. “Why is someone from Cuba trying to join the U.S. military? Are you a spy?”

- Couple that with the complicated student visa process and how his status as an international student might affect his ability to take part in Garrison-sanctioned internships and cross-border activities, and Lance felt utterly alienated at Garrison in his first few months.

- May… or may not have done exactly what his parents taught him not to do by looking for a scapegoat to take out his frustrations on. Keith, the lone wolf, ace pilot pretty boy who was too cool to even talk to the rest of the cadets (really thought he was too good to even make eye contact with Lance, huh?!) was an obvious target. Keith had every single thing that Lance had ever wanted in his whole life—the combat class, the talent, the prestige, the respect, the effortless looks—and he didn’t even seem happy to have it!

- Lance had never hated anyone before in his entire life, but Lance hated Keith—Keith basically came to stand in for every obstacle in Lance’s way, every mocking insult thrown Lance’s way, every harsh reminder from the professors that he’d never even be close to good enough, never measure up when someone like that existed… Lance started to honestly believe that the only way he’d ever be able to achieve his entire life goal was if Keith was taken out of the picture—something that proved unfortunately true when Lance was bumped up to combat class the moment Keith went missing from Garrison.

- Lance never actually said any of this stuff to Keith’s face before Keith left Garrison (Lance dreaded his parents finding out he’d been rude), but he would shit-talk Keith to anyone who would listen, a bad habit that was reinforced by people actually accepting Lance more when he started gossiping and spreading rumors than when he’d just tried to be genuinely nice.

- Even though he’d like to repair his relationship with Keith now that they’re teammates, Lance has no idea how to do that after so much time has passed. He really has no clue how to treat Keith normally after building him up into such a bitter rival. It’s… a work in progress.

- A big fan of RPG games and roleplaying. Definitely gets the most in-character when it comes to Monsters and Mana. His favorite thing about meeting new cultures is discovering nifty space items that look like key items from video games. Used to play old school RPGs with his cousins every afternoon. Playing with Pidge is extremely nostalgic for him.

- Has a host of other hobbies that don’t get much use inspace but are nevertheless impressive: he can surf, dive, and was part of a traditional dance group all the up until he left for Garrison. He doesn’t tend to think much of his hobbies as they’re not exactly practical skills you need every day in a space war, but the other members of Team Voltron are quietly impressed whenever they’re reminded of the cool things Lance can do.

- Lance has the strongest bond with his lion of any of the paladins. His connection with Blue is so innate that he can actually activate Blue’s abilities from outside his lion.

- The first one of the paladins to transform his bayard and the only one whose bayard can take three forms. And no, none of the three is a sword because what was the point of that, even??? Lance can wield his standard blaster, a long rifle, and dual pistols. The strength of theshots from Lance’s bayard can be consciously controlled—his thoughts and intentions determine whether a shot has the strength to kill or merely stun.

- Lance’s incredible aim isn’t a natural talent. Actually he’s spent hours and hours in a shooting range he found in the castle, working on perfecting his shot. Just like the gladiator levels on the training deck, the targets in the range keep getting harder and harder, but Lance is progressing very well. No one but Coran knows that Lance has been training so hard with his bayard, since Lance desperately wants to pretend his skill is all natural and has sworn Coran to secrecy. Coran covers for him by pretending he’s sent Lance off on absurd cleaning missions all the time.

- Is 1000% Coran’s favorite of the paladins. Coran won’t even try to lie if asked. Although Coran has never expressed it out loud, he sees Lance as an example of the brave, kind-hearted son he would have hoped to raise—if his son had survived the war. (On Lance’s part, although he’s also never shared this, Coran reminds him very much of his beloved uncle, who passed away when Lance was very young, but whom he still remembers well and extremely fondly.)

- After his uncle passed away, Lance’s aunt moved in with Lance’s parents permanently, and Lance essentially helped to raise his two very young cousins, Nadia and Silvio. Lance does have very good experience with children—unfortunately for him, what human children respond well to doesn’t always work for Galra kids!        

Lotor:

- Has not spent 10,000 years kicking about the universe. We’re not doing that weird “If he’s immortal because of the rift creatures then how come his governess is still alive?” plot hole song and dance routine from the actual show. Lotor was born after the war decimated the Alteans 10,000 years ago, but due to Haggar’s condition (aka being, you know, dead), he was essentially unable to live on his own and was placed in cryostasis very shortly after being born.

- Roughly 20 years before the discovery of the Blue Lion on Earth, Haggar used advancements in quintessence manipulation technology to successfully revive the infant Lotor. But she didn’t wake him for no reason—she has a very specific intention for her son, a long endgame plan, of which Lotor and even Zarkon are currently unaware.

- We’re also not doing that dumb “How could Haggar—the only remotely Altean-looking being in all of Zarkon’s presence—possibly be my mother?” plot from the show either. Lotor is aware that Haggar is his mother, although he has never been able to infiltrate her research facilities and therefore has no idea how an Altean scientist ended up where she did, looking like she did, and siding with the Galra against her own people.

- Because his parents’ past and his own origins are such a mystery, Lotor is obsessed with learning the truth of the war, the Alteans, and every hidden secret from that time period, including Voltron and the mysterious “rift.” He devours any information he can get on this period of history, and especially on Alteans, voraciously.

- But even though he’ll take any pieces of information he can get, Lotor’s real favorite obsession is mythology. He’s a deep lover of folklore and fairytales, bestiaries and local legends, and more than one assassin has traded a good story in exchange for having his life spared. Lotor may or may not hunt for space cryptids in his spare time. However, no single legend occupies Lotor’s mind as much as the legend of the mythical realm of Oriande, home of the ancient Altean alchemists. As practical as he tries to appear, Lotor has never given up his deep-down childish wish to be the one who finds the promised land of Oriande and prove it is real. But when he thinks back… Where was it that he first heard about Oriande, again? Who told him…?

- That entire thing with the hidden Altean colonies is just… not going to happen. The writers were bad and they should feel bad. Although Lotor has looked, after 10,000 years and plenty of centuries of hiding any Altean connections, distinguishing those who still have Altean blood has become essentially impossible.

- Part of the reason Lotor has looked for Alteans is that he was born with a bizarre grab-bag of Altean instincts and abilities and no guidance on how to deal with them, because he’s certainly not going to reveal to Haggar that he has unexplained talents like precognition and the ability to speak to planets. Growing up with half of his bloodline extinct has been ROUGH on Lotor.

- Speaking of growing up… Even though he remains the crown prince on official record, Lotor took the first opportunity he could to leave his parents’ sphere of influence, and he has not physically been back to Galra Central Command in more than ten years.

- Lotor is effectively a universal wanderer. Aboard his personal ship the Urbanus (a Destroyer-class star cruiser which has been heavily modified and improved by Lotor himself), Lotor and his generals travel wherever they like, both within the Galra Empire and outside it, dodging Haggar’s frequent attempts to re-exert control over Lotor and even more frequent assassination and kidnapping attempts from Zarkon’s enemies.

- Although Lotor has a very specific goal in mind, progress on this goal has been slow and painstaking, and he’s often left waiting for the next bare bones clue to chase after; this has resulted in the young prince having an unfortunate abundance of free time, which is dangerous for everyone involved. In between progress on his mysterious life’s goal, Lotor and his generals frequently get into trouble with small planets, local governments, militaries both official and off-the-books, giant monsters, and at least two hundred museum curators. They may or may not be wanted for grave-robbing in 13 different star systems.

- Basically he’s space Indiana Jones, if Indiana Jones was still 20 and also purple and also not being paid enough to be a good guy.

- All that said, as much of a devil-may-care rogue as he’d like to be seen, Lotor did spend all of his childhood under the thumb of the empire’s brutal authoritarian dictators, and he is therefore every inch a crown prince; as befitting one of his stature, he speaks eight languages fluently, flawlessly matches his formal dress to the occasion, knows exactly which piece of silverware to use when, can engage in political battles of wits and diplomatic machinations with the best of them, and has been training in armed combat since he was three years old. Lotor’s impeccable manners and steely leadership ability were literally beaten into him, to the point that now, even among trusted allies, he sometimes finds it difficult to turn off his cold, calculated princely persona.

- Not that his generals really let him get away with that kind of thing for long. Only those who have lived with multiple older sisters can truly understand the constant state of teasing and mortifying blackmail that Lotor lives in. On official record, Lotor’s generals are a crack team of terrifying bodyguards; in practice, they’re more likely to be dragging Lotor for all he’s worth than rescuing him. They might keep up formal appearances in front of others, but they’re effectively a close-knit family behind the scenes.

- It’s not a coincidence that all of Lotor’s generals are women; besides generally being awful, most Galra men make Lotor uncomfortable. From a human standpoint, Lotor is ridiculously tall and powerful; but from a Galra standpoint, Lotor is a thin, unhealthy-looking thing whose stature doesn’t command authority or respect in the slightest. It’s exhausting feeling like you have to constantly prove yourself, so Lotor prefers to spend time with a group that doesn’t invite negative comparison.

- However, it should be noted that a Galra man having only female friends has completely different connotations than a human man having only female friends—Galra women are, on the whole, considered more aggressive, bloodthirsty, and over-bearing than Galra men, so any Galra man who would choose to surround himself with that many women must either be out of his mind or incredibly badass.

- When asked what it’s like to live with four beautiful women, Lotor is basically ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ personified. Despite living together for years, none of the generals are romantically interested in Lotor and he’s not romantically interested in any of them.

- Many people have incorrectly assumed that Lotor and Axca are a pair, but Lotor helped Axca escape from a slave colony and she will never let another man touch her in her life. Axca is extremely grateful and loyal to Lotor, but given that Axca was Lotor’s first real friend, he’s just as grateful to her.

- If you think I’m killing off Narti, you’re out of your mind.

- Despite the fact that Lotor does not feel connected to the Galra Empire or the Galra as a whole, he’s somewhat more traditional and more likely to conform to Galra social standards than he wants to admit (even to himself). He insists that he has no interest in upholding the classic values of the Galra or meeting their expectations for how a prince should behave—but in truth, it’s impossible to fully kill that deep-down desire to just fit in. When push comes to shove, Lotor always finds himself falling in line with the Galra’s oldest and most deeply ingrained beliefs.

- With Lance in the “has never had a real kiss” club. Is not with Lance in the “wants a real kiss” club. Lotor is actually uncomfortable with being touched by strangers (36 assassination attempts will do that to you) and doesn’t make real friends, let alone anything closer, remotely easily. Some people are open books; Lotor is that one book from Harry Potter that bites people’s fingers off when they try to open it. Once you’re in his inner-circle, he’ll let you hang all over him, but before that, the space bubble is ten feet in every direction.

- Doesn’t actually put any special effort into his appearance. He just Looks Like That™.

- In fact, he actually kind of hates that stupid cowlick hair that’s always in his face but no matter how many times he cuts it off or slicks it back, it just keeps falling right back in his eyes. He’s basically given up at this point.

- His sword’s name is Eris and it was actually forged in the heart of a dying star.

- Kova the space cat hates Lotor. Lotor hates Kova. It’s a mutually antagonistic relationship. Somehow though, Lotor never makes any effort to get rid of Kova and Kova never takes the opportunity to leave. No one else understands it either, especially since Lotor gets along great with basically every other animal he meets.

- He’s not a pacifist by any means, but he is painfully practical and knows that, on occasion, sparing the life of one’s enemy nets more gain than indiscriminately crushing opponents beneath his heel. More manipulative than outright aggressive, he’s easily capable of twisting even the worst of situations to his advantage. Has an unfortunate tendency to be overly cunning—sometimes the tricks and twists he comes up with are unnecessarily full of flourish just because he thinks manipulating people like pieces in a board game is extremely entertaining. Riddles and mind games are Lotor’s favorite—the more convoluted, the better.

- Although most people refer to him by the basic “Prince Lotor” (Lotori Ahn in Galra), Lotor’s full name and official title is Lotori Kir Ahnja Avel i’ya ne Daibazaal, His Royal Highness Prince Lotor of the First Star. As the emperors and empresses of the Galra are said to be physical representations of the goddess, the firstborn children of emperors/empresses are always called “the first star,” after the supposed first creation of the goddess.

- Extremely competitive, but mostly about weird things—like sure he’s going to win if you challenge him to a swordsmanship duel, but challenge him to a staring contest? Your eyes will rot out of your head before this boy will blink. Do not think he will let you beat him in a spelling bee. More than once the generals have had to drag him away from getting involved in the bizarre competitions of the alien cultures they come into contact with. He was 1000% ready to learn to knit eight-armed sweaters with Rikrik fur, thank you. Would totally take up pig-farming JUST to win an Earth state fair.

- Likes to collect interesting artifacts and trinkets of lost civilizations by force if necessary. His ship is basically a floating museum at this point. The generals are starting to worry that they’re going to have add a whole ‘nother deck for all the war prizes Lotor wins himself. Lotor’s gathering hobby extends to games too—he’s a big fan of games that involve sets of items, like Renni, the Galra collectible card game. Would 110% be that Magic the Gathering nerd back on earth.

- In terms of other interests, Lotor is the picture definition of a Renaissance man. Although he’s not a flawless genius savant in every field, he is wicked smart and has studied a vast array of subjects; he’s a capable engineer, a skilled mathematician, a deft philosopher, a good scientist, and extremely well-read, and he is not going tolet you forget any of those things at any point in time. Lotor is always going to be better than you, please just accept your fate.

- Art is… another story. He might be able to sketch detailed architectural blueprints without breaking a sweat but ask him to draw a dog and you’re going to be in for some trouble.

And that’s more than enough for now I think! XD

[illusionlockarchive]

romeos huge rant on comedy, horror, and how they interlap

ok, so. full disclosure, what got me to make this post was this joke post right here.

so the initial premise is funny, haha okay. yeah. oh youre a kid and your punishment at school is that you have to stay at a room full of wasps. its funny because its absurd. it couldnt happen irl. youd think it wouldnt happen irl. youd hope so.

the thing about comedy and horror though? is that they actually operate on very similar concepts.

and that is, the absurd. the uncanny valley. what youre expecting the least. what youre not seeing and not registering. jumpscares are effective if at least to get you to jump, even if they are cheap. meanwhile, jokes where they completely twist your expectations to get you to laugh do the same thing.

it may be hard for you to believe me, but in the end, the bad ending of tattletail is the other side of the same coin as a joke that goes “i swallowed a tablet with some water. everyone on the apple store was terrified of me.”

i have not read the wasp story, but i can guaranteee you, i CAN imagine it being scary, if the right tones are used and suspense is built up nicely. with the right twists and turns, knowing when to keep things quiet and when to blow things out of proportion.

OR it can end up being unintentionally hilarious, if the characters in it are way too cliche to be real and feel more like caricatures of teachers and students, if things are rushed and details lose their meaning and value, if we are just to focus on being an audience watching a kid get chased around by a swarm of wasps, instead of putting ourselves in their place.

im neglecting to mention something though. horror is not the TRUE other side of the coin to comedy. no, thats tragedy. and im sure many more people have heard of that. the two masks used in theater, one happy, the other sad.

and now we come to two very interesting modifiers. im sure youve heard of the term ‘horror comedy’ to refer to a subgenre of horror that does have jokes and silly things still happening, and may not take itself all that seriously. but why is it a specified subgenre? because MOST horror is tragedy.

this is why, despite liking many horror games or even stories, in the end i still dont consider myself someone who actually likes horror as a general genre. most horror focuses on the seriousness of the faults of humans, on our fragility, on all we can lose or are even bound to lose, on the fear that what we feel so confident about having close to us can be snatched away in a second, that our sense of reality can crumble. most horror? doesnt end well.

comedies in general tend to focus on the absurdity of life, on how many silly, strange, or even uncanny situations can happen that can challenge us, but not in a harsh way, but in a way that, despite so many bad things happening, we still get to point and laugh it off and be okay at the end of the day.

literally, all it takes for a tragedy to become a comedy, and vice versa, is a tonal shift. when i told of my idea to create this post to my boyfriend, he backed me up, and told me “the difference between horror and comedy is in the soundtrack and silly sound effects”. hes right.

of course, there are things that you should have the decency to not laugh at, still. to keep your mouth shut and know when to reject. but good comedy knows how to stray away from that, and good tragedy knows how to handle it respectfully without making it torture porn.

so, as horror hinges on tragedy, on the fear that we all know we must face in our lives, because a scream is as natural as laughter, so horror comedies are born as an interesting paradox.

a year or so ago, i got the opportunity to watch the banana splits syfy movie. i was a huge fan of the banana splits as a kid, and would often watch their reruns. those silly furries meant a lot to me. but im not stupid, i know thats a horror movie, i went in kinda knowing what to expect.

it was a gore fest, and for about two or three nights i had trouble getting to sleep. i wasnt actually scared of my childhood friends in animal costumes, as i knew how absurd and irrational my fear was, but just the images of the massacre being fresh in my mind were enough to send me into a panic if i lingered for too long, which can happen, you know, when youre about to sleep.

(TW FOR DESCRIPTION OF A MANS DEATH AND GORE, IF YOURE SQUEAMISH JUMP TO NEXT PARAGRAPH)

i think a scene that perfectly blurs the lines between comedy and tragedy, as well as just plain horror in it, is the scene where a man gets killed by being put in a magicians box and sliced in half as a ‘magic trick’ by fleegle, the dog. as he pleads for his life, and his soon to be wife watches in horror and pleads for the robot dog to stop (yeah theyre robots in this, weird), fleegle continues to slice him in half and blood spurts out, until he is dead, and fleegle just happily and proudly showcases what he has done, as if he just did a real magic trick.

(END TW FOR DEATH AND GORE DESCRIPTION)

watching that was horrifying, of course it was. but at the same time, it was what i wanted and expected when i thought about “banana splits horror movie”. fleegle just did something completely absurd and entirely uncalled for. and what doubles the uncaniness of it is that it was supposed to be something harmless, a magic trick. think about this if it was in an adult swim cartoon. the same thing could still happen, but be treated as just a weird, gross joke. fleegle could even swear, say ‘heres your fucking magic trick damnit! oh you dont like it, well i quit!’ n then throw his hat on the ground and step on it.

they are essentially the same scene, but the cartoon version of it is presented in a way that shows full on just how absurd and unexpected it is, without any seriousness to it, probably without any moody music to accompany it. meanwhile the movie one focuses on the fear, grief, and horror of putting us in the shoes of a woman who just watched the man she loved be killed, with the shots being extra impactful.

in the end, the banana splits syfy movie is a horror comedy though, because most of the movie is spent finding the most creative, absurd, borderline funny ways for people to be killed off. as you watch it along, you dont know whether to laugh at the weirdness and absurdity of the events or to genuinely feel grief and fear over the bodies piling up.

i could also just go over a million other examples available to me right now. in fact, as of the time im writing this, i have the latest vinesauce corruption stream pulled on youtube. during corruptions, the most bizarre and absurd things happen, and often times, things get scary. we see the video game characters we love be deformed and twisted in ways that you can only imagine hurt, but they still act as if thats normal! so you cant help but laugh.

earlier today, i watched a gameplay video of bonbon. its a short horror game, with a very... different antagonist. i wont spoil much, because, i dont want to deter people from buying it. but i will say, there is a reveal at the end, which slaps you in the face with the realization that you have been played for a fool all along, and the developers would probably laughing at you if they saw you after youve beat the game. its a joke, and the fear that they cultivated so lovingly, is the punchline. your fear becomes a punchline. to me thats one of the highest forms of blurring horror and comedy, and one i prefer to some more gory and harsh attempts.

and i mean, i have to mention fnaf here, dont i? its a great example too, particularly because, if you look at the games by themselves, they generally take themselves pretty seriously as horror stories, minus a few odd cases or references. but they just have enough wiggle room that, if you look at them from afar, as an audience, you can take these characters youre supposed to be afraid of, and have fun with them, because it is pretty damn absurd, and even funny at the end of the day, that youre expected to be afraid of essentially big, robotic childrens toys. and thats when many fun, fan renditions that focus on lighthearted situations pop up. vanny herself is pretty funny even! the idea of a person who dresses up in a full fursuit to do crimes is pretty hilarious.

all in all, i think i just really appreciate how horror and comedy can converse with each other and how that says something about how we, as humans, are easily made impressed, made to be surprised and shocked, to jump or to laugh. and we are always looking for that thrill, it just depends on if youre looking for laughs or screams.

so yeah, maybe ‘wasp room’ can be a pretty good story. is it a horror story or a comedy? we wont know until we read it. (also if you made it to the end reading this holy shit i love you , i fully recognize i talked way too much)

[twilightprince101]

"SCOOB!” doesn’t feel like a Scooby Doo movie

I know I’m probably gonna make a lot of people mad by saying this, but I honestly need to vent about the story’s writing. There were some good parts I’m not gonna lie, but the writing is just... not the best. I’m placing this under a read more link, but please note that I’m not bashing you if you did like it. Everyone has their own tastes and I respect that yours are different than mine.

TL;DR, just because a movie is made for kids it doesn’t mean you have to dumb it down to be every other kids movie

So yeah. I didn’t like Scoob. I was really excited for this movie, genuinely excited. The trailers looked fun, the animation looked phenomenal and I was really excited to see Mystery Inc. brought back for another mystery. I’m a fan of Scooby Doo, not a hardcore fan but I like watching it from time to time. But coming out of it? I do not feel like I watched a Scooby Doo movie. The points that I have don’t really have a coherent flow to it so I’ll just go down the list.

-Turning Fred into the American Male Jock^(tm) character

One thing I liked about the cartoon was the dynamic of the cast. Daphne was the people person, Velma was the information specialist and Scoob and Shag were the “heart” of the gang while also giving an outsider perspective on matters. 

But a key here is Fred. He may not have been the “leader” of the gang, but one thing that he had was smarts. He was the person who set up the traps, he was good at thinking with his head. Yeah he liked the van, but that was just something he liked.

But this movie turned him into the dumb jock character I’ve seen so many times before.

Something I liked about the original gang was the synergy between them. While Velma was book smarts Fred was street smarts. One got the information and the other applied it. But the movie had Velma be the smart one while Fred just drove the van. Yeah it gave Daphne and Velma more time to shine, but at what cost? 

The finale scene with Ceberus really bothered me too. Instead of being tactical, figuring out a plan to force the big dog back through the door, he just runs in screaming and contributes nothing to the ending aside from a one off gag.

Look, I like having empowered female characters in media, but you don’t need to make the male characters dumb in order to do so. Even if this is a movie centered around Shaggy and Scooby, you can give every team member a time to shine. Have Fred come up with a trap! He is literally the trap guy! Even if you want the ending with Scoob and Shag bowling, he could’ve came up with a plan to at least distract it! Making male characters dumb doesn’t empower female characters, it only makes them smarter by comparison.

-The movie feels like it was made for Blue Falcon, not Scooby Doo

A lot of this movie honestly feels more like it was written around Blue Falcon and Dynomutt instead of the mystery gang. In fact, let me list the stuff that Mystery Inc. contributed to the plot, aside from cartoon shenanigans:

-Velma gave the exposition dump that Scooby was the key for the door to the underworld -Scooby and Shaggy, through their jalapeno ice cream treat, helped the Blue Falcon squad figure out that the skulls give off a heat signature. -Got Cerberus out and back into the door to the underworld

and.... yeah that’s about it. Aside from these instances and comedic relief, Mystery Incorporated-the cast the movie is supposed to be centered around-only serve as plot devices.

Sure Scoob and Shag’s friendship is one of the plot points, but it really follows Bryan’s ascension to becoming the new Blue Falcon more. The Scooby Doo gang feels like they’ve just been shoehorned in because more people remember them.

Sure there’s the argument that “Oh the movie is centered around Scooby and Shaggy though! They’re meant to be the comedic relief!” but that isn’t the point. Yes Scooby and Shaggy like to eat a lot, yes they’re not the brightest, yes they’re really scared of everything, but they can still be those things AND contribute to the plot! 

Like the fight with Captain Caveman for example! Blue Falcon literally says “You better call more friends” and then he calls in an army of cavemen. I’m sure a lot of people expected that horde to come into play, right? Nope! Just Captain Caveman solo-ing the entire group and giving Blue Falcon more reason to doubt himself living up to his father.

If you wanted to give Scooby and Shaggy their moment to shine outside of the ending, have them be part of the fight against that army! Have Scooby and Shaggy make up to fight back to back with their cartoon hijinks! That way you can make them feel like an actual part of the movie instead of just there to say “Ruh Roh!” and collect their paycheck.

Mystery Incorporated as a whole feel sidelined compared to Blue Falcon and his character arc. If you wanted to make a Blue Falcon and Dynomutt movie, make a Blue Falcon and Dynomutt movie.

-Even if the movie is meant to have Mystery Inc. as the focus...

Then what is with the ending????? Opening the gates of hell and fighting Cerberus?????? I know Scooby Doo hasn’t been shy to use the unnatural and paranormal at times, but the cartoon is all about old rich dudes using monsters as a cover up! That’s the main appeal of Scooby Doo. The audience knows that there will be a person under a monster mask, but the draw comes from how the gang solves the mystery surrounding it.

The beginning of the movie set everything up for this type of story well! The gang as kids bust a criminal who was pretending to be a ghost as a cover up to steal things. That is what the audience came for, it felt like a taste of what’s to come! But instead the plot takes a complete 180 and turns into a superhero cartoon show.

But let’s say the movie was originally written to be a Scooby Doo movie, not a Blue Falcon movie. Let’s say that Blue Falcon and Dick Dastardly were meant to be a part of a Scooby Doo story. That’s still fine! Again, there have been wacky crossovers with Scooby Doo in the past! But the finale with everyone fighting Cerberus throws that out the window.

If you wanted to have this written like a Scooby Doo movie, or even just a long Scooby Doo episode, have there be a twist with the legend surrounding the underworld. Instead of everything being magic, have it be a millennium-long con that’s been done by a rich dude’s ancestors throughout the years or something. Like, “the legend was used to hide the family’s stolen treasure throughout the years and Cerberus was actually a giant mechanical robot!” That would have been a fun twist! The people came for Scooby Doo, give them Scooby Doo stories.

-One final personal gripe with the writing

For the love of god, please. PLEASE! Stop copy pasting the exact same Act 3 best friend split up and reunion. I have seen it so many times it’s not even fun anymore. 

I’m not saying that the Act 3 split up trope is bad, really I’m not! But I have seen so many movies that have “oh I’m becoming more popular, I don’t need friends anymore” that I could literally predict how the rest of the movie would end and was right.

The trope can be good sometimes! You want a good example? Take a look at The Lego Movie 2-The Second Part. (Spoilers for the movie btw)

Around the third act of the movie, Rex and Emmet reunite with Wyldstyle/Lucy and try to form a plan to stop the wedding. For a majority of the story though, Emmet has been slowly influenced my Rex that the enemy is 100% bad and he can only rely on himself, nobody else. So when Rex suggests that Wyldstyle has been brainwashed, the movie could have taken the easy route and have Emmet take his side. 

But Emmet knows that he and Wyldstyle are close friends, have been together through two apocalypses and survived so he vouches for and trusts her. It’s only when the plan goes wrong-because of Wyldstyle losing connection with the team and her trying to stop the plan-that Emmet is given a reason to believe that she is brainwashed, leading to the two splitting up. 

You wanna know the best part?? This isn’t even a “You aren’t my BFF anymore!!” situation! Emmet thinks that Lucy is brainwashed, there is reasoning behind his decision to not believe her and it is believable! It’s been built up over the course of the story instead of just happening then and there! The third act split here is understandable!!

And I swear to god. Do not say that lazy writing is ok since it’s meant for kids. Just because something is meant for kids, it doesn’t mean that it needs to have the same plot as everything else. 

The Lego Movie is meant for kids. It is a movie about a kid’s toy and literally takes place inside the imagination of little kids. But the story is still really good! Sure it’s not the best movie of the decade, but it’s still really good! Kids deserve better written stories like this!! If you say that lazy writing is okay if the content is for kids, you’re saying that kids do not have the ability to understand and appreciate more than just a fart joke.

So yeah, that’s my thoughts on the SCOOB! movie. Long story short, people came for Scooby Doo, give them Scooby Doo. If you wanted a Blue Falcon movie, or even a movie about cartoons in general, then do that. Just don’t treat kids like they’re dumb when writing stuff.