#Like proper shit and not skits

[retsuyachan]

Ohger pixiv fanfic be like

Me reading girajera fanfic: damn I want this kind of domestic writing for rakusuzu

Me reading rakusuzu: UH Im ok with xxx but not THAT DESCRIPTIVE GUYS

[cruyuu]

Oooh since you're on a Sukuita streak, I'm dying to know how you think Yuuji and Sukuna feel about each other in chapter 271 👀 that's a question that's been nagging at me since we don't see this new and enlightened Sukuna interact with or mention Yuuji (unfortunately 😔) But I can't help but feel there's some fondness there on both sides

Hi anon! I'm on a sukuita streak bc I'm currently trying to complete my re-read of jjk for my skit analysis but failing terribly because I'm busy as hell (+ they're on my mind a lot these days). Thank you for allowing me to yap a bit more about them in the meantime tho!

I'll start everything off with this: Everything's very subtle in these few last chapters and it's so subtle that some still think nothing's changed. It's there if you care but if you don't, it can easily go over your head.

Now, to answer your question, I'll have to state that my personal opinion is that the moment of Sukuna's change had started since the day of his reincarnation into Yuuji's body, but that he only acknowledged it in Chapter 271- when he finally called him by his full name. I'll keep it brief here but will offer a more proper explanation in my analysis. For now, I'll just put it like this: Sukuna was changing but wasn't admitting it to himself. He was fighting that and lost because of that. If he was still as unhinged as he was back in the Heian era and didn't give two fucks, trust me, the ending (and his relationship with Yuuji) would've been waaaaay different that it is now.

This opinion of mine has affected how I view canon in some aspects and hence, to me, it makes it plausible that their relationship would've been the same whether at Chapter 1 or post-embraced "change" (Chapter 268 and 271).

It would not be a total "change" with them skipping rocks and laughing and being all lovey dovey but rather... no longer extreme but sort of reluctant, awkward and competitive (with lots of teasing) friendship??? There would be similar vibe they had when we first grew to love them. I do think there would've been more pronounced fondness there after the acceptance.

The reason for all of this up above is that this is a shonen work and that they're labeled as enemies (meaning that if it was a different genre, you know damn well they'd be lovers...).

Anyway, Yuuji had officially joined the "favored by Sukuna" club when Sukuna called him by his full name and was "surprised" he'd take this "farce" so far. One thing that's known about Sukuna is that he tends to compliment his opponents and then say their name and Yuuji seemingly joins the trend... with an insult (but I'd call it a disguised compliment).

and yeah, I know, "How can I claim that it means something when he didn't compliment him nor his abilities?"

Well, that's the thing. There's always something different.

If there's one thing unique to these two, it's the fact that they're stubborn shits whose relationship is like a locked room mystery. The key is to pay close attention. Don't trust the words, look at the actions because it isn't that simple. That's where usually those who don't care fail to see the relevance and why they're confused with, for example, why Yuuji told Sukuna that he is him. It's because it's not directly stated, but rather hinted at, time and time again. These two have that sort of relationship, one extremely layered, with lies and deceit, and haunted by double meaning and subtext.

Yuuji was always the one (and I cannot stress that enough). If you've read this manga then you know just how yappy and weird Sukuna tends to get about this "insignificant brat" who he relentlessly mocks and teases and argues with and then claims he's boring. He's constantly doing the opposite of what he says when it comes to Yuuji, and as it happens, so does Yuuji too.

Yuuji is always singled out. Even if he blended into the surroundings and disappeared, Sukuna would still manage to find a trace of him because that's totally a normal way to think about someone you deem "insignificant". The same goes with Yuuji, who in his intent in stopping Sukuna, forgets about his act of being the embodiment of good (and claiming moral superiority to Sukuna) and goes on to cannibalize his half-brothers (which is... very Sukuna of him). This is even given more relevance when you remember Sukuna never ate someone in the story despite being proclaimed "a cannibal".

Still, this is why Yuuji no longer argues about morals with him and why his talk with him in 265 appeals to the fact that they are similar, more than they can even seem to admit and that arguing against who's right and wrong is pointless.

The reason why Yuuji is singled out is because he is the closest we'll ever know of Sukuna who doesn't talk about himself much. They may seem vastly different at first, but as you go deeper and deeper into the story, the lines between them start to blur and at times, even Yuuji's behavior is unexplainable because even he, too, doesn't act accordingly at times. They're both the same (said by Yuuji himself) and hence via them interacting with each other is how we learn more and more about them individually. Because, even if they are "the same", they are still different because their choices are what shaped them as well as how they view life (again, stated by Yuuji himself).

They're not your "everything is right there", but rather "everything is there if you know how to look". In my revisiting of Chapter 271, I realized that Sukuna had already stated everything there is to state. The fact that he's open with others, that he's capable of being weak, finding weak opponents "worthy", being killed, being defeated, being treated as a human being... all of that goes to Yuuji.

He doesn't need to state anything directly because he's quite a skilled liar:

Sukuna had lived for years. He wasn't defeated, instead, he accepted Kenjaku's proposal and sealed himself into fingers for a different purpose. That purpose was participation in the Culling Games. Why did he do that? Well he didn't give any explanation so we have figure it out.

Back then, there was no Itadori Yuuji and back then Sukuna was hailed as the strongest with no one there to equal him. He was feared, revered, loved, hated, but ultimately never defeated. Also, he was cursed. If this curse (as he calls himself) lived according to his principles, he'd be enjoying every second of his life, but in the Yorozu flashback he appears... very bored. That's the first contradiction that we have with Sukuna. The fact that he lives according to his own whims yet never appears satisfied nor happy. Hell the happiest he seems is in modern times, when he awakens in Yuuji's body and excitedly shouts about how much things have changed.

Now was Kenjaku's proposal just giving Sukuna more people to slaughter in the future? No. Seems pointless. Could it be that they were offering Sukuna a way out from the curse that he was carrying? Seems way more probable. After all, Kenjaku would go on to create Yuuji, and curiously, he'd be the one to take everything away- liberate Sukuna from his curse and offer him a different perspective, even offer to be there for him no matter what (which again, I cannot fucking imagine is actual reality... I still think 268 is a fever dream).

The truth comes out in the end, after Yuuji looks at his torn fingers, calls Sukuna's fingers harmless and smiles at the sky. Sukuna isn't even alive and yet Yuuji predicts correctly that he's harmless- as Sukuna would go on to say that he lost and that it'll be nice to take a different path in life. It's just confirmation that the fondness he has for him is there because he doesn't belittle him, doesn't make any negative comments but just... says it's all good and smiles. The same is true for Sukuna because he's no longer stubbornly clinging on to his way of "contradictory living" and is actually considering doing what Yuuji told him. He doesn't vehemently reject the idea (as would be expected), but rather embraces it.

Courtesy of Itadori Yuuji.

Again, to quote myself:

Sukuna had stated everything there is to state. The fact that he's open with others, that he's capable of being weak, finding weak opponents "worthy", being killed, being defeated, being treated as a human being... all of that goes to Yuuji.

This is what Sukuna had learned via Yuuji, something that he had no way of experiencing before, otherwise he would've changed a long time ago and wouldn't stubbornly cling to life nor make deals with Kenjaku who also longed for fulfillment (which they had found ;) ). It seems pointless to trap yourself just to kill more people in the future or cause "mass chaos" via the Merger, just because "the humans have different flavors". I bet he also had a great share of amazing battles and "unique flavors" even back then and besides, doing grand schemes for shits and giggles is a bit boring. Hence why "looking for a way out of his cursed state" / "change" is a more better explanation imo.

So! I went off track here a bit lmfao. But yep, Sukuna is quite a good liar. The change he was looking for- something which didn't bring him fulfillment back in the Heian era- was found in the modern era, where he shared a body with this brat who will ultimately "change the trajectory of his life".

Sukuna lived within Yuuji and even if he likes to pretend that he doesn't know him, he does. He knows him just as well as Yuuji knows him in return. The narrative spells it out. Both of them are extremely strong and quite perceptive about others so why in the hell's name would they not be about each other? It appears like they've just been blind or ignoring the truth until they had to face it.

Still, anon, I understand the feeling and I know it seems weird and off to just end it like that without discussing it in greater detail, especially after what I ranted about above. Their relationship is a clusterfuck and that's why I love them a lot because you can't exactly place where it lies exactly. It's ambiguous as hell, with both romantic, sexual, familial, hell all undertones there are. Are they enemies? Are they lovers? Are they just misunderstood friends? Nephew and uncle? Who knows (do not ask Gege).

Even if jjk has ended, it still feels like something's missing. The question and the definite answer. Here, the question is posed and has seemingly remained unanswered because Sukuna's dead and Yuuji alive. They've been separated.

So how will we ever know what enlightened Sukuna thinks about Yuuji? How do they truly feel about each other?

I talked about it briefly here (regarding Chapter 271 and how valuable it is) and I already discussed up above how I view them. How even if nothing's there, there's still something there and that something is a lot. It seems confusing as hell but it's the best explanation I can give you.

In short: Yes, there is fondness there post-Chapter 271 due to just how much these two had impacted each other and how the ending played out and I bet there's a lot of suppressed love which couldn't get out due to Sukuna being lowkey put off by emotional conversations and quite stubborn in his view of life and being "misunderstood". Yuuji is way more open emotionally and hence why he's all "sunshine and rainbows about it" while Sukuna is still being subdued about it... but not totally because even he admitted that he lost to Yuuji and that his "farce" got him good in the end (so much so that he'd love to meet him again if there is life again).

In true tragic romance cliche fashion, our fated lovers enemies do not make it but alas, it isn't that dark and the send off is extremely pretty imo. Sure, like I said, it's confusing if you don't know the details nor dwell on it but yeah. They are... just being them. I love them lol.

[ktwritesstuff]

The Professor (Pedro Pascal smut inspired by SNL)

Title: The Professor Fandom: RPF: Pedro Pascal, Hot for teacher AU Rating: Explicit Characters & Pairings: Pedro Pascal (professor of Latin American Studies) x Reader (bedraggled PhD candidate) Word Count: ~2000 Summary: As if that SNL skit wasn't going to launch a thousand smut fics... As always, lovingly beta-read by @bs-fangirl. Additional notes below the cut.

Notes: This is my first "real person fic," may God have mercy on my soul. Additionally, my Spanish is virtually non-existent; I've relied heavily on Google Translate and asking my coworkers questions on the sly, my apologies for any errors! As we all know, this is not a story about actual human Pedro Pascal, but the fictionalized version which lives rent free in our heads. And as proper fan girl culture dictates, we keep this shit locked down. But just in case:

This note is for actual human Pedro Pascal and Pedro Pascal only. I don't know why you would click "Read More" on a post clearly labeled "Pedro Pascal, Hot for teacher AU" but if you have, I beg of you LOOK AWAY, SIR. LOOK AWAY. If you choose to proceed, I will not be responsible for any trauma you may suffer as a result. Thank you.

For everyone else, I give you:

The Professor

Professor Pedro Pascal was the head of the Latin American Studies department at your small college.  You had never been in his classes as an undergrad–Latin American Fiction and Poetry, and a special seminar on the Magical Realism of Isabel Allende–but it was well known around campus that his family had fled Pinochet when he was a child, which granted him unsurprising street cred among your communist-leaning circle of friends.  He had been appointed the interim director of the campus’s Literary Center–after his predecessor was ousted for exposing himself in a virtual meeting. 

As the Center’s Graduate Assistant Director, it meant although he wasn’t technically your boss, you were suddenly spending an annoying amount of time working around the throngs of freshman girls who flocked to his office hours.  You couldn’t really blame them.  He was, if not an outright heartthrob, a reasonably good-looking college professor.  A strong face, with a short, rugged beard, a striking Roman nose, and deep brown eyes with the most charming crow's feet.  He had a lean physique, with a hint of softness at the belly, just this side of a “dad bod.”

His modest good looks combined with a cheerful disposition and a penchant for quoting the love poetry of Pablo Neruda were like catnip for liberal arts majors.  And although you were a card-carrying bra-burning feminist, you weren’t entirely immune.

“Professor,” his office door was open, but you knocked on the frame.  

Pedro looked up from the stack of resumes you had been sent to review before the selection panel for a new director.

“Coffee?”

“Mi angelita,” he sighed, rising from his desk to graciously accept the warm cup from your hands.  “What time is the first candidate arriving?”

“Noon,” you said.  “You, me, Dr. Monroe, the Provost, and Assistant Dean are sitting on the interview panel.”

Pedro looked at his watch.  

“Shit,” he sighed.  “I have Intro to Creative Writing at 9:30.”

“I’ll set up the conference room,” you said as he shoved his papers into his messenger bag, slinging it over his shoulder, still carrying the open mug as he raced down the stairs.  

“Thank you, Angel.  Thank you!”

It was a six month process to find a new director.  Six months of staring across the conference table, chewing on the end of your pen, pretending not to be affected by the way he leaned in when you spoke and stroked his thumb across his lower lip in concentration.  Or the obscene way he spread his legs in a comfortable chair while speaking with candidates in front of a panel of students.  

And having to do it all over again when your first choice–a student favorite–declined the position, to stay in New Jersey of all things.  You knew Pedro was relieved to have reached a conclusion; he didn’t care for the administrative duties or politics.  He wanted to teach, to be with his students.  You admired that about him, he appreciated your organizational skills (and the fact that when you made coffee it counted as a meal.)  You worked well together, but now that was coming to an end. 

It was past 9pm and you had already closed up the Literary Center for the night, but Pedro was still in his office, reviewing students’ papers.

“I’m done for the night, Professor,” you said.  “Is there anything I can do to help you get out of here?”

“That depends,” he said, with a wry smile that had you convinced he was only half-kidding.  “How’s your Spanish?”

“Hmm,” you said, stepping into the light of the desk lamp.  “¿Dónde está la biblioteca? ¿Como estas?  Bien, gracias.  ¡Qué lluvia!  And that’s all I’ve got.”

Pedro chuckled.  “I’ve heard worse.”

“That and un tequila, por favor.”

“Tequila,” Pedro repeated, intrigued. He reached into the bottom drawer of his desk, pulling out a bottle of Patron.  “That I can help you with.”

Your mouth fell open in surprise.

“Professor,” you deadpanned.  “I don’t know if you knew this, but alcohol is not permitted in academic buildings.”

"Lucky for me," he said, picking up the bottle. "I have tenure."

You laughed and Pedro laughed; you offered to run downstairs to retrieve a pair of glasses and a salt shaker from the kitchen while he finished grading papers in record speed.

“I worry about these kids,” Pedro said, three shots deep.  “I do!  The moment they hear something the least bit troubling, they refuse to engage with the material.  Our world exists in shades of gray.  They want things to be ideologically pure, when what they need is to learn to discern.  To question.  To decide!”

“I understand what you’re saying, Professor,” you said. 

“Pedro, please,” he interrupted you.  “Pedro.”  

“Pedro,” you repeated.  “I agree, but there’s no reason we need to elevate and spotlight the same tired canon of bigots, abusers, and dead white men year after year when there is so much more out there.”

Pedro downed another shot and pointed an accusing finger at you.  

“Look who’s talking,” he said.  “Your PhD is in Shakespeare Studies!”

“I know,” you laughed, pouring yourself another glass.   “I know, I’m a terrible person.”

“You are not,” he said, suddenly serious.  “You have an incredible mind and the most beautiful way of looking at the world.”

You felt languid and relaxed and warm.  You liked the way Pedro looked at you.  There was something undeniably romantic about getting drunk in the richly furnished office, with its leather armchairs and oak bookshelves, debating the merits of Nietzsche and bell hooks.   

“Okay,” you broke the silence.  “Okay, here’s a fun fact you can pass along to your successor.  There are 3 prints signed by Allen Ginsberg in this building, and you can see them all from this desk.”  

“There’s the one on the wall,” Pedro said, pointing to the framed portrait hanging above the bookshelf.  

“Yes,” you said, rising from your chair and moving to the other side of the desk.  “And there in the hallway, on the right, that's an excerpt from "Howl" they set in the printshop downstairs.”

You perched on the arm of his chair to get closer to his eye-level, pointing through the open door.  You slipped, nearly falling into his lap and he placed a hand on your back to steady you.  He smelled amazing, like old leather and warm spices.  

“And there, in the stairwell, you can just make out the top of his head on that linotype,” you explained.  “Do you see it?”

“I do.”

When you turned your head, Pedro was looking at you.  Perhaps it was the tequila, but you were almost certain he was staring at your lips, his eyes heavily lidded, smiling lazily.

“You look tired,” you warned.  You should have gotten up to leave, but you didn’t want to.  You didn’t want this warm, lovely feeling to ever end.  

“Just thinking,” he said.

“About what?” 

“Kissing you,” he said.  

You were almost surprised; you had spent so much time trying to convince yourself that your semester-long flirtation was a one-sided puppy crush.  You had been so busy with your research and recruiting and planning, you had forgotten somewhere along the way that you were a stone cold fox with tits and ass for days and enough sex appeal to blow the top off Mount St. Helens.

“You can,” you said, turning your body toward him.  “I don’t mind.” 

“I shouldn’t.”

“Fine then,” you turned to stand.

Pedro seized you by the waist, pulling you back into his lap and into a long, slow kiss.  His lips were surprisingly soft and his mouth tasted like salt and lime as his tongue brushed into yours with careful, confident strokes.  

“That was nice,” your eyes fluttered open as Pedro finally pulled away.  “You’re a good kisser.”

“You, too,” Pedro said.  “Again?”

You tilted your chin, touching the point on your neck, just below your ear.  As Pedro leaned in, working the beginnings of a hickey into your neck, you guided his hands from your waist to your breasts.  You pressed against him, moving to straddle his thigh.

“More?” Pedro asked.

“Yes,” you panted. You braced yourself on the back of the chair, one hand on either side of his head, grinding against his leg, feeling hot and wet as he kneaded your breasts with reverent appreciation.

“Mi amor,” he breathed.

“Pedro,” you held his face, nipping at his bottom lip.  

“Dime, lo qué quieres.”

“Fuck.”  His accent went straight to your cunt.  You ran one hand up his thigh, groping at the crotch of his chinos. 

Pedro let out an obscene moan and hoisted you up onto his desk.  He slid his hands up your thighs, fingers slipping into your panties.  He ran his fingertips through your folds, tracing circles around the swollen nub of your clit with an absolute shit-eating grin.

“Qué lluvia.”

You howled with laughter.  “I know that one!  I know that one!” 

“A huevo.”   

Pedro rose from his chair, bunching your dress up around your waist.  You pulled his shirt free from the waistband of his pants, running your hands up the warm skin of his back.  

“Want you,” you sighed.  “Want you inside me.”         

“Whatever you want, Angelita.”  

Pedro pulled your underwear down to your ankles, pausing to retrieve a condom from the wallet in his back pocket, like an over-eager undergrad, pulling down his pants to roll it on.  He pressed the head of his cock against your clit.  You grabbed him by the ass, wrapping your legs around him to guide him into you.  

Pedro flicked his hips into you with short, quick strokes, sending jolts of energy through your core.

“More,” you pleaded breathlessly.  “Deeper.”

Pedro lifted your ankles onto his shoulders, pressing into you long and slow until you could feel him bumping against your cervix.  You gasped, reaching behind you, scrambling for leverage, knocking the computer monitor off the desk.

“Oh no!” You turned, trying to catch it before it crashed to the floor.

“It’s okay!” Pedro said, taking your face in his hands to guide your gaze back to his eyes.  “It’s a shitty computer.  It’s fine.”

You moaned, letting your head fall back, grabbing for his chest with one hand as he fucked you.

“So soft,” he moaned against your ear.  “So fucking good for me, Angel.”  

“Give me your hand,” you said, guiding his fingers back to your clit.  “Up and down, right there.  Oh God.”  

You grabbed Pedro’s shoulder to brace yourself.  

“I’m close,” he warned.

“Not yet,” you pleaded.  “Just a little more.”  

You could feel your own climax building inside you.  You just needed a little more to push you over the edge.  

“Oh God!”

Pedro came inside you with a gasp as your inner walls clenched around him.  He slowly withdrew, supporting your legs, and easing you onto your back, scattering papers and pens onto the floor.  He kissed your neck and your breasts as his hands explored the curves of your body. 

You woke the next morning on the couch in Pedro’s office.  You were lying on top of him; your head on his chest.  He had his arms around you, your head was pounding as you squinted into the daylight.

“We got fucked up last night?” you said.

“Yup.”  

“It was nice."

"It was," Pedro agreed, kissing the top of your head as you blinked sleep from your eyes. 

"What time is it?”

You grabbed his forearm, turning it so you could look at the face of his watch.  

“Oh shit,” you gasped.  “I have Freshman Seminar in half an hour.”

“I already missed my morning classes,” Pedro moaned, letting his head fall back against the armrest. 

“Do you want to explain to Dr. Monroe why I can’t teach her class?” you said, rising from the couch and searching the office floor for your underpants.

“No,” Pedro said.  “She scares me.”  

You pulled your underwear back on, finding your bag, you used the satin scarf tied around the handle to cover the love-bites blooming on your throat and chest.  You dabbed concealer under your eyes and added a fresh coat of red lipstick.  

“Would you like to have lunch together? Not at the Caf. Somewhere nice, like a date.” Pedro asked, sitting up.  He looked endearingly child-like with his bedhead and giant brown eyes.  

You paused, checking your reflection in your compact mirror.  

“Can we do that?” you asked.

“I don’t see why not,” he said.  “You were never my student and after this week we won’t even work together any more.”

“Oh,” you nodded.  “Yeah, that sounds nice.”

“I’ll pack things up here and meet you after class.”  

You smiled.  “I’ll see you then.”   

[tobiasdrake]

What are your thoughts on the Nostalgia Critic?

Complicated.

I was a big fan of the NC in my twenties. I discovered him later than a lot of other people did but that's kind of normal for me, and it meant I had a lot of videos to go back and laugh at. By the time I got onboard, the anniversary movie "To Boldly Flee" had already officially ended the NC's run, before he failed out of his attempts to move on and be a filmmaker, and wound up coming back.

At the time, I really liked the format of "Wacky skits and personal plotlines mixed with video essay". Writing a story with characters and storylines and also riffing on existing media at the same time. It was basically a modern MST3K, which I'd never really been able to find accessibly.

But the thing that really grabbed me was Channel Awesome itself. The community of creators who would cross over into each other's videos and do collaborative projects and mix up their storylines together and stuff.

And I loved the movies. I watched all of them like dozens of times. It was so cool seeing these creators that I had parasocial relationships with going on adventures and fighting villains and stuff.

...but then things fell apart for Channel Awesome, and we started learning more and more about how shitty everything was behind the scenes for those creators. And how the channel was never really invested in those creators to begin with, and only cared about propping up the Nostalgia Critic.

It soured me on the whole thing, and made me stop and really think about the series. How a lot of those other creators that the channel was exploiting are doing what Doug does better than he does.

I'm not going to say Doug is untalented. He has a Jim Carrey-esque comedic talent, which is to say that he has a remarkable aptitude for flailing his limbs and making sounds erupt from his throat.

Doug's bread and butter is wildly over-the-top reactions, frantic body movement, and the kind of shrieking that will absolutely murder your throat. Which sounds simple but is surprisingly hard to do yourself and, with good comedic timing, can be very funny. He got big for a reason.

But. At the end of the day, all he's bringing to these movies is CinemaSins- or Zero Punctuation-level critique mixed with physical comedy, while other creators in his space were offering thoughtful, serious analysis.

And I like CS and ZP, don't get me wrong. They can be very funny when you remember that this is not a proper review but basically a comedy roast. I've always found criticism of those videos to be akin to sitting down to an hour-length special that's literally just stand-up comedians talking shit about Tom Cruise and going, "Wow, they are being very mean to Tom Cruise. Do they have to be so mean to him?"

But it's a very different sort of thing from, say, listening to F.D. Signifier explain the complete history of the legendary Drake and Kendrick rap beef for three hours.

Comedy isn't easy. But it's easier than the kinds of thoughtful critique that other creators who walked away like Lindsay Ellis or Dan Olson were doing.

And at the same time they were walking away, the Nostalgia Critic's revival was... underwhelming.

While the other collaborators were leaving, the NC was becoming an island reliant on his own stable of paid actors and divorced from the collaborations that made him big to begin with. And the passion just... wasn't there anymore.

It was pretty clear that he'd fallen back on doing NC because his attempt at branching out, his new series Demo Reel, never took off with audiences. The NC revival was Doug passionlessly returning to what made him successful and paid his bills. And it never felt the same after that.

After Change the Channel, it all fell into place. I wasn't enjoying Doug's passionless new videos because he was just going through the motions. I couldn't go back and watch the old stuff I used to love knowing how miserable the other collaborators were behind the scenes and how much Channel Awesome as mistreating them to prop up Doug. My parasocial relationship with him fractured after finding out how he treated the other creators.

(It's worth noting that his paid employees who he pays to support him came out in support of him during all that. The NC isn't some guy's internet show that he films in his bedroom, it's a company. Doug himself is an employee. He doesn't even own the legal rights to the Nostalgia Critic; He signed it over to an executive to manage him.

Tamara and Malcolm are not his buddies; They're his hired staff, so take their opinions while on his payroll with a grain of salt. This is a professional operation, which makes how unprofessional it all is appalling rather than endearing.)

And there were other creators out there, including the ones he'd mistreated, making the same kind of stuff he was making but better. So I made a choice to leave and never looked back.

[ultimateinferno]

TF2 updated so I'm taking this post out of drafts:

The TF2 Mercs are a part of the internet equivalent of the commedia dell'arte stock characters. Being automatically included in Source derivative software such as SFM and GMod, they're very easily available as premade rigs for amateur animators to use in their works. The simple, cartoony, and discernible designs make them very easy to read at any angle, which although originally used to be easily read in a competitive gaming environment, translates well to comedy skits. Unlike similar games such as Overwatch, where they're practically over-designed in a very definite artstyle, TF2 characters are lacking in accessories as a default. Generally wearing simple single color jackets, t-shirts and pants. In fact, the varied nature of TF2's cosmetic system makes them perfect as dress-up dolls, making it very easy to reuse the same base model and differentiate between them.

That brings me to their characterization. Even though most if not all have pretty well defined backstories and narratives, outlined in the supplementary media of comics and Meet the Videos, their baseline personalities can be easily transplanted into various skits and narratives with minimal introduction. Scout is a cocky jackass. Soldier is a dimwitted, overly patriotic American. Heavy is simultaneously soft-spoken and boisterous Russian who revels in violence. These simple yet understood personalities mean you can bypass proper character introductions by identifying who's in what role from the start, similar to the archetypes from the aforementioned commedia dell'arte.

You don't even have to be a fan of tf2 to grasp these roles. The ubiquity of SFM as free 3d animation software is a self supporting introduction. If you are unfamiliar with tf2's narrative, simply consuming a handful of these animations can get you up to speed.

Simultaneously, TF2's narrative is just as batshit as the fan animations that are inspired by it. You could certainly use other valve properties for similar reasons regarding animation accessibility, but TF2 embracing comedy from the start and the simple insanity of its characters means you can transport them to a wider array off stories while asking for a much smaller suspension of disbelief.

A Half Life animation is far more likely to be about Half Life than any given TF2 animation is about TF2. Many of them are, but way more are simply not.

TF2 as a property has a lot of staying power. 16 years now and even with minimal support from valve, it still soldiers on (pun intended) as a significant part of internet meme culture. I find it's notoriety akin to Hatsune Miku, where they're given a second life outside of the purpose of their original creation. They're less FPS characters, and more little dolls novice animators smack together for the entertainment of others.

And at the end of the day that's almost all it really takes. A significant slice of media engagement and fan works for the internet at large could not care less about Canon or the main narrative, even if its well regarded, because the biggest draw for many is simply taking strong personalities and putting them in funny situations. It's why incorrect quotes are absolutely everywhere despite the fact that a good 80% of them do not fit the original characters one bit. Meanwhile, TF2 as a property actively encourages it.

The following are all fan animations that have jack shit to do with each other or the original canon--be it in game, the original animations, or expanded comics--and yet they're still ultimately cohesive as these little shorts that play with the cast as archetypes, with their own recognizable appearances and roles. (Tucked behind Keep Reading to save space)

[princess-of-thebes-1995]

I want to add this moment in my series of A Life Bartered. But... It doesn't make sense or add up. So, it is up to you if you would allow this to the story or an independent skit.

It was almost a full day since you came back to the base in Hell's Gate. With the help of your "boyfriend". The Head of Security. Colonel Miles Quaritch of the Marines.

And of course, Corporal Wainfleet and your friend, Pilot Trudy Chacon.

It was obvious no one but the four of you knew of your situation and had to be kept a secret until further notice. Minus the doctor Quaritch hired to check on you.

Quaritch pulled the doctor to the side and asked him to give you therapy. You were like a lost soul since you found about your miscarriage.

The Doctor shook his head and said he was not qualified to be a therapist.

The Colonel glared in annoyance.

"Just open her up and I will listen."

.....

Out of fear, the Doctor made you sit from your bed and he asked about what you were thinking.

You didn't know that through the mirror, Quaritch was watching.

"I wish I knew the gender of my lost baby." You admitted.

The Doctor asked why.

"I wanted to name it and give it a proper funeral.

The thought of a small fetus sliding off between your legs and being a piece of meat. And perhaps an animal ate your unborn child.

Maybe a Viper Wolf. You cringed. You remembered after agreeing being Quaritch's lover, he explained how he almost got killed by that monster day one in arriving in Pandora.

You hated those beast more now.

"I get nightmares and see my dead baby."

The Doctor looked at your lovely face with pity. "A young lady your age wants to start developing maternal attachment to their child. It's natural."

Natural. You were an advanced human. A mutant. Able to breath the Pandora air and never aging and being the most beautiful creature. Might as well be a nymph and not a human. But, you were still mortal enough to lose a child.

You blamed yourself. The Colonel was manipulating Selfridge to stop funds. Your father's money couldn't be transferred that quick to your debit card. Earth was far away after all. So, you thought if you prostituted your virgin legs he would give you what you want and leave when done.

But, he was serious and loved you. Then a hideous Navi fancied you and demanded you for a cease fire.

In the end, you realized you loved the Colonel but your selfish actions killed your first born child.

What a terrible mother you were yet you never gave birth. If that made sense.

Ironically, the Colonel hated himself so much at the moment. He blamed himself for indirectly killing his first child.

If he didn't admit defeat and gave you up to that blue monkey. None of this shit would have happened. The Colonel wanted you to forgive him.

As for you, you want Quaritch to forgive you for not loving him back when he made the move on you.

Is it selfish of you to replace child with another and move on?

The barged in the room.

"You may leave."

[kitkatopinions]

What made you don't like coco? Other than the Nazi allusion of course which is fucked. No hate btw, just curious of your opinions. I only follow RWBY proper and don't read the spinoffs, I don't give a shit about her either way.

So outside of her allusion being Coco Chanel, there are a couple of problems with Coco in the canon content of RWBY that made me think she was an over-rated character even before knowing about her allusion, reading Before the Dawn, and seeing the Chibi skits with her in them.

She told Velvet to just... not fight in season 2 when Vale was attacked by Grimm. It was a pretty serious thing where civilians could've been hurt, and it could've resulted in a much larger fight if it didn't get contained, but apparently Coco didn't care about that as much as she cared about being flashy with Velvet's weapon later for some reason.

Coco's fight with the Grimm is one of the worst fights of the first three seasons, she seemed very stationary and took like five minutes to take down one Grimm which she took her sweet time to do and like, clunkily clumsily hit it with her purse and kicked it in the crotch (which is such frat-boy humor tbh anyway.) And it was all while this really high energy song was playing and us as audience members were supposed to be like "whoa cool, look at the upperclassmen!" But like... Comparing Coco's fight to any other main character's early fights, she looks much less impressive. This wouldn't be so bad if we weren't clearly meant to think she's super cool in that moment.

Those were just a couple of small things that made me a bit annoyed with her because I just couldn't see the appeal in a character that didn't seem to take a Grimm attack seriously and then seemed to not be that good at fighting when that was like all there was to her besides a vague idea that she liked fashion and was confident, two things you could get from other characters easily.

Then there's the books. I didn't read the first one, but I read the first like fifteen chapters of Before the Dawn and tbh I thought Coco was so annoying. Here's why.

She's super judgmental towards people she doesn't even know. She basically decides she hates Sun and that he's a talentless loafer and a horrible leader the first time you ever see them interact, and every time she thinks about Sun, she takes the least generous outlook of him and is making assumptions and thinking rude things about him. She also judges a girl Reese for the way she dresses.

One of the things that Coco takes issue with in Sun was him needing help fighting off a group of like four powerful adults who he saw stalking a woman and tried to help with that to make sure she was okay, and Coco assumed he must've been like hitting on her or something? And also made fun of him for needing help instead of just beating them, which to me felt also hypocritical as well as judgmental considering we saw Coco be unable to hold her own against one teenager when she was fighting with Yatsuhashi in the Vytal Tournament, like Merc was literally running circles around them both, and then she's like 'oh the guy who went onto the finals must be so much worse than me because he can't take on four powerful adults on his own!"

She is super prideful tbh in a way that's icky for a future badge carrying law enforcement officer. Three things that come to mind is one time she stood up and people fell silent and she inwardly reflected on the fact that it felt good that people were afraid of her, another time she inwardly reflected that one of her problems with Reese was that she'd put things to a vote with her team whereas Coco just made choices and didn't need any other input, and one time she went to save a civilian and when he protested that she called him helpless Coco threatened to abandon the guy to get attacked and one of her friends proudly thought about how she was super sadistic and it was cool.

Another thing that isn't cool in a future badge carrying law enforcement officer is that Coco seemed to really detest having to follow... Any sort of rules, and in fact a 'clue' that one of her teachers was possessed or something was that the teacher was doing things like telling Coco she couldn't do things she wanted to do and didn't have the authority to just walk around doing whatever she wanted. I don't remember all the details, but there was this strong element of them not wanting accountability or rules and being frustrated every time they had to follow rules.

Also I can't remember anything specific right now, but she kind of thought some weird stuff about people from Vacuo sometimes that made me be like ??? and in the first book (though I haven't read it) she does things like name the nightvision glasses Velvet gave her 'BunnyVision' which is a yikes, and especially coupled with her Nazi allusion, it makes her venom towards Vacuo born Asian Faunus Sun seem more than a little suspicious.

So yeah, those were reasons I collected to not like Coco from the book. Then there's Chibi.

In the Chibi skits, Coco calls Velvet "Bun Bun," which just makes their already uncomfortable dynamic worse and feels very microaggression-y.

In all Coco's skits, it was painfully obvious that whoever wrote them really really REALLY wanted EVERYONE to think she was just so so so cool. Like, they read like 'everyone clapped' reddit stories, and they specifically had like 'cool' rwby characters desperately trying to be as cool as she is, and everyone was fangirling over Coco who just couldn't care less. And it was just super annoying, like the more they hype up Coco and try to convince me that she's cool, the more that I look at her stupid Nazi-themed outfit and her bad personality and go "Huh?" Like maybe instead of trying to convince me to like her, the writers should've made a better character. XD

Aaaand the last reason I don't like Coco is because she has some of the most annoying fans in the entire rwby fandom. The glorification of Coco as some girlboss queen and 'great lesbian rep' who just cannot be removed from the RWBY lineup is just wildly off the charts. One time I made this post that was like "shouldn't we want more from our queer representation than a Nazi-inspired character? Shouldn't we be trying to get Rooster Teeth to retire Coco for the sake of the Jewish fans who are rightfully uncomfortable and tell them to make Velvet openly queer so she can head this extra content instead?" And people got furious with me, and I think I might've even got death threats for that. Also, the amount of times I've seen Coco stans attack Jewish people for complaining about her being based off of a Nazi... Like the response is always "you just hate lesbians," to Jewish queer people! Also, this is less important than the antisemitism but a Coco stan once got annoyed that my sister said not only should Coco never make fun of what another girl is wearing but that it was bold coming from someone who also doesn't dress in a way that's traditionally considered fashionable, and they started picking apart my sister's fashion sense and appearance. I'm sure there are some fine people who like Coco, but on a general whole they tend to be bad news, and the venom they defend their Nazi best girl with severely put me off of the character even more than normal.

So yeah, outside of the allusion, it's a combination of her just being not well done in her first appearance and yet framed as really good, her having a bad personality in the book I read where I didn't think she was fit to be a badge carrying law enforcement officer, her Chibi skits trying to make her the coolest of the cool in a really forced way, and her fans sometimes being terrible people. XD

[glassvines]

Thoughts On 2023 Favorites

TV Shows 1. Good Omens season 2: Oops, I'm obsessed again. You can make the argument that a second (and PHEW eventual third) season was unnecessary, but I disagree. It was nice to get a season that wasn't so breakneck in it's pacing. Everything slowed down a bit and focused in on Aziraphale and Crowley's shenanigans. Which, let's be honest, is what the audience wants. That being said, I liked everything else about it too. A cute/silly plot, fun new characters, and a devastatingly sad finale that left me distraught. I could not have asked for more really. (Except more kissing. Please tell me there will be more kissing.) 2. Lockwood and Co: A spooky premise that probably took a lot of effort to appear even semi-believable [as a tv show]. Yet, it was pulled off with flying colors. It was also perfectly atmospheric and charming, so of course netflix canceled it. I plan on reading the books.

Animation (TV & Films) 1. Murder Drones: 2023 was a good year for indie animation overall, and out of all of them Murder Drones was the show to win my entire heart. Perfect setup for horror and YA spoofing, but also well written enough that I enjoyed the character focus and progression as well. I'm psyched for the final two episodes set to release in the spring. 2. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse: If any movie of recent memory deserved a decent sequel it was this one, so I'm very happy it turned out as great as it did. One of the few comic-book films I bothered with in 2023. 3. Hilda season 3: Easily one of my all-time favorites from Netflix, so I'm beyond happy it has a great ending now. Gorgeous animation, a lovable main and support cast, and perfect chill vibes. Deserves a bluray release. 4. Elemental: Listen. Pixar's still got it this was so cute. You're forgiven for The Good Dinosaur Peter Sohn. 5. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem: So much fun tho. Love the current creative trend in cg films happening thanks to Into the Spider-verse. Also, the No Diggity scene was incredible. The movie has an A+ soundtrack. Anime (TV & Films) 1. Trigun Stampede: So relieved this turned out to be great, considering the original is a favorite of mine. Not a easy feat in the age awful, cash-grab reboots. 2. The Boy And The Heron: Honestly? My favorite Miyazaki film since Howl's Moving Castle. Genuinely moving and left me misty-eyed. 3. Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village Arc: This show is so pretty. Still surprised how well the series portrays it’s simple, compelling cast. Like it’s an effortless sort of thing (it’s not). 4. Suzume: Makoto Shinkai's last three movies just make me happy okay. Happy and hopeful. The best comfort movies ever. Video Games I have a steam deck now so you'd think I played a bunch of video games last year but, no. I didn't get heavily into much last year. Played some Hades though? Live Films || Note: I watched so many great classic horror movies this year that I had never given a proper watch. I would like to continue that this year!! 1. Talk to Me: Please make more horror movies Danny and Michael Philippou. This one was wild. 2. Dark City: The fact that The Matrix got four movies and this didn't get any sequels is a fucking tragedy. 3. Coherence: Love me a simple, creepy sci-fi movie with an interesting premise. Apparently, quite a lot of the film is improvised as well? That blew my mind. 4. Greener Grass: More films that just feel like one big Adult Swim skit please. This style of script is hysterical to me. 5. Caveat: This goes on my fave list simply for scaring the shit out of me lmao. Movies walk a fine line, when the intention is to make you uncomfortable for long periods of time. They risk being irritating instead of entertaining. Caveat had me shrieking at my tv (in a delighted sort of way).

Honorable Mentions 1. Lore Olympus 2. Nier Automata anime 3. Asteroid City + Wes Anderson's new short films 4. OPLA

Things I'm Looking Forward to in 2024 1. Dune 2 2. Second season of Severance hopefully! 3. Madoka Magica Movie 4: Walpurgisnacht: Rising?? Is it finally happening or what? 4. New Magnus Archives

Some Creative & General Goals for 2024 I feel like I was drawing a lot more in 2023! Still nothing worth posting online, but I'm making some progress I think (slowly but surely). Goals: make more art for my siblings when they request it, finish some digital art that I started, and finish the diorama piece I planned out. On the general goals I'd like to travel more! Particularly, I'd like to visit some national parks.

[piglet26]

Star Wars: The Last Jedi Rewatch

Well, here we go. The most divisive Star Wars maybe ever. No, that would be Rise of Skywalker or whatever it was called.

I never read the scroll. Probably should.

We open on The Resistance evacuating. I wonder how much time has passed. At the end of the first film The First Order knew where the Resistance was. Rey had time to leave. Ren healed up a bit.

ILM did a wonder job opening with the animation and the sound design is top notch during this film.

This slapstick skit with Poe and Hux is great.

Poe Dameron is someone you want on your team. Needed to learn some leadership skills, but he's a talented and brave man. Also Leia that Dreadnought needed to go so Poe got lucky with that one. I'm happy that Rian gave Poe more purpose this movie cause he needed the development.

General Hux my how you've tied my heart on the end of a string.

Finn, my boy! staying focused on his sole friend Rey. Once again I remind people that he literally has one friend in the world - Rey - who was ready to die with him and fight for him. He has no attachment to the Resistance he just met most of these people. It makes sense that his purpose would be finding his friend who he last saw passed out.

Ah here's the rub. Once again, any good will this film has bought so far goes down the tube once Luke throws his lightsaber. People mainly hated this film due to it's handling of Luke. I agree. I understand Rian Johnson had to come up with some reason Luke disappeared........ but this?! He abandons his friends and twin sister.

Where Rian Johnson succeeds is literally everywhere else. The scene between Snoke and Ren perfectly illustrates the imbalance and abuse between the two. The scene which I called "No More Daddies" where Ren smashes his mask into pieces is the beginning of his separation from hero/savior identifies. Adam Driver plays this scene perfectly mostly because unlike many other actors rage isn't something he's afraid to get access. He's very much like Al Pacino in that way. Also, please smash that mask to shit you're too gorgeous to keep that face behind a mask.

Luke Skywalker drinking Green Titty Milk. Yup, I understand why Star Wars fans HATE THIS. However, the impulse to run away to an island where it's literally just me, my dog and fish people......... I relate.

Luke "Where are you from"

Rey "Nowhere"

Luke "No one's from nowhere"

Rey "Jakku"

Luke "Alright that is pretty much nowhere."

Leia Organa is the strongest character of the OG3. Han Solo runs from his broken family and Luke runs from his failure. Leia just keeps soldiering on. Respect.

Once again as the First Order tracks The Resistance through lightspeed I wonder how The Republic won the last war and are currently this damn broke. How don't you have more impressive equipment, materials and a proper army?!

Poe Dameron "Permission to jump in an X-wing and blow something up."

Leia "Permission granted."

BB8 and Drones are the best.

[dolliesrot]

Yeah, even at their best the public is exhausting. And honestly how often are they at their best? :/ You're in the service industry too, right? I don't know much about art but I figure if you keep looking at the world, trying things, and having fun with it that's what it's about.

You could tell I was hoping you'd ask what movies, right?

Sunday

Dracula (The Dirty Old Man) (1969, William Edwards) Pretty repugnant, but it was amusing how they saw their movie was shit and then MST3Ked themselves recording the voiceover narration.

Devil Story (1986, Bernard Launois) I was deliberately trying to pick "fever dream" stuff and this qualified. Devil horses are hard to shoot.

Monday

Calamity of Snakes (1982, Chi Chang) Kind of a dud. I watched the "cruelty free" version, which doesn't show snakes being killed on camera but supposes that they don't mind being sprayed with fire extinguishers. Captures Taiwan (?) at a truly unfortunate moment for fashion. Morbid curiosity was not rewarded.

Viy (1967, Konstantin Ershov & Georgiy Kropachyov) Banger! Magic and witches and state-of-the-art Soviet special effects courtesy of Aleksandr Ptushko.

A Virgin Among the Living Dead (1973, Jesus Franco) Rewatch, but I previously had only seen the Wizard VHS version with the alternate clothed takes and the added terrible slow motion zombie scenes. Much better in this version.

Conquest (1983, Lucio Fulci) Vivid in its gruesome derivative patchwork brutality, in spite of looking like it was shot through cheesecloth.

Tuesday

Kuroneko (1968, Kaneto Shindō) Awesome. Spooky and atmospheric and features a kitty.

The Empire Strikes Back Uncut (2012, Casey Pugh) Warm and cuddly fun starring multiple dogs as Chewbacca.

Wednesday

Blonde Ambition (1980, John and Lem Amero) Easily the most charming and effervescent porno I've ever seen. Also deserving of praise that isn't so faint as to be backhanded!

The Cassandra Cat (1963, Vojtěch Jasný) Pretty terrific and beautiful fable. The cat had little wee glasses!

Lord of Illusions (1995, Clive Barker) Enjoyed the LA scenery and stage magic milieu. Unexpectedly terrifying turn from George's boss Mr. Kruger from Seinfeld. (Daniel von Bargen RIP)

Torture Dungeon (1969, Andy Milligan) What can one say about an Andy Milligan movie?

Thursday

The Boogey Man (1980, Ulli Lommel) I was unprepared for how great this was. A slasher ghost story about how childhood trauma follows you through life. John Carradine, couples therapist. I wept. Watch this one, Anna!

Shogun Assassin (1980, Kenji Misumi and Robert Houston) Finally got to hear all the skits from Liquid Swordz in their proper context!

Friday

Hell Comes to Frogtown (1988, RJ Kizer & Donald G. Jackson) Total male fantasy about how hot it would be if Sandahl Bergman wore glasses and had a bomb she could use to blow up your cock whenever she so chose.

The Night of the Hunter (1955, Charles Laughton) Rewatch. Classic. Needs no introduction. It is so good!

The Night of the Hunted (1980, Jean Rollin) Eerily quiet time capsule of a particular era of Parisian architecture. Also weirdly prefigures Memento, but with more nudity.

Perversion Story (1969, Lucio Fulci) Total male fantasy about how hot it would be if Marisa Mell did anything, in this case send you to the gas chamber by framing you for her murder. Really amazing time capsule footage of San Francisco, too. And there's a photographer character, those are always fun.

Oh and I watched a bunch of old Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies in there, too.

Yay The Fly! I've never seen The Hunt. I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you watched the one Mads Mikkelsen is in. :D Am I right?

Hope you're feeling better soon! Enjoy that time away from work.

Oh wowowow you managed to get through a lot! I have a hard time multitasking, which makes it hard to watch movies and paint :,c wish it wasn't either or, but god scrambled me that way so whatyyagonnado. DUDE I watched Night of the Hunter for the first time like two months ago and am pretty pissed off that I haven't watched it sooner! I wish the song about the pretty fly and the spider was on spotify 🕸️Also!! Thank you! You totally gave me some bangers I need to put on my list! (Probably gonna try and get to Viy, A Virgin Among the Living Dead, and The Boogey Man first!).

Also,,,, I think i'd bang him </3 religious psychosis and murderous nature be damned mans got a way with werds.

[slimmestslime]

just went to a con yesterday, pretty decently sized and wasn’t like. fifty people this time. was really fun though

(rambling \/)

saw sooo so many hazbin cosplayers and merch. lord fucking above i was drowning. BUT. i did see a cool as shit daft punk cosplay duo, some hyperspecific guys that im pretty sure handmade their cosplays from scratch. one guy’s stuff was like half articulated and it was a mecha type of thing. so that was pretty awesome. one girl came in on stilts for this like. monster-girl type cosplay? i could be stupid. but it was really cool

the merch booths were half/half. its convention prices As always, but there was some pretty banger shirts and stuff like terrariums and bonsai displays. There was a guy ripping us the FUCK off for 50 dollars a shirt (which were poorly printed), when directly across thw convention a guy was selling 3 for 50.

found a booth that i coined the Plushie Emporium because it was all entirely licensed plushies in like. a box you could walk into. was really cool but by the time i did my 10th lap or so i walked in. realized im five bucks short of buying anything in there nd walked back out. told the lady that i really liked her stock and i dont think she understood me. which um. i feel really bad for.

obligatory japanese food booth, and also two 3dprinted stalls which were neat. one of the stalls decorated like, ram sticks with a pokemon figurine and then other stuff. and im regretting not buying them now… fuck… and they had really nice 3d printed pokemon that were low-poly esque. …my only regret is not buying anything at that booth..

anyway! apart from merch, me and a friend attended some panels. one documenting 90s-late 2000s cosplaying, and another talking about oold old anime. and how anime evolved into the mainstream. both were pretty cool and funny. but we attended this one panell, “who’s line is it!” or, something. and its an improv panel. and holy fuck was it good. like it was rising improv artists doing really funny skits. was genuinely awesome

OH and. ONE person recognized me. he went “Hey Hank.” and i did the fucking thing where you freeze up and all you can say is “Hi!”. nd i felt like such ass i was about to go find the guy again and freak out and be like “YOU KNOW MADCOM TOO?!” but um. my friend told me not to worry abt it. but he was the first person to point me out!!! And of course he sounded like the fucking nerd emoji!!!! i think my brain forgot i Was indeed cosplaying as the wimbleman himself. and i just factory defaulted. sucks but whatever. he probably forgot by now (But i didnt

+before i forget, we played taiko and the controllers they had fucking Sucked. i dont know what wronged them but it SUCKED. i would have been FINE if i knew the KA placement WAS AT THE TOP OF THE RIM!!! I WAS HITTING THE SIDES!!! evil.

anyway. photos! Which isnt many.

^ obligatory wimbleisms, i didnt get many photos of my cosplay cause. i was mainly just Roaming around

^ funny stuff we found. and yes there was unironically good plushies there!! Really good. but then they had these too.

all in all. good convention. got myself a sakura miku figurine, wanted a nendoroid, Didn’t find any at all. but otherwise was fun. and this is technically my first proper convention, my first one was…. small. AND my first time cosplaying!!

i hope i can evolve Walmart Wimble out of the clearance section and actually upgrade the coat, figure out a better headwrap that isnt a cap, aand wire LEDS into the goggles. <- ( took engineering classes for 3 years, I Just Need Materials and a slight handholding. ) OH and bandages. cant forget about bandage wrap for the arms and head.

but yeah im sore as shit. :3!

[vitaminwaterreviews]

Agust D - Agust D

I haven’t done a proper hip hop album yet, so this was a cool experience. It’s obviously intended to be more lyrical than melodic overall, and learning about the background of the album feels kind of essential to understand what’s going on. So, if you’re gonna listen to this album, definitely check out the Wikipedia page first.

I think I liked the experience. I certainly enjoyed a lot of the songs, and I like the picture that the album as a whole painted. I’m not convinced by the musicality of it; I don’t think I’ll end up listening to most of these songs ever, I really had to pay attention to the lyrics to appreciate them. But a couple of them were enough that I’ll be able to enjoy them without the lyrics. Plus the last song was actually SO good. Overall rating of 7.9 but… I would kind of take that with a grain of salt. I’ve never listened to another album quite like this, so I have nothing to compare that score to, really. I think a rating of 7.5 would be more appropriate.

- So, funny story here. I never intended to listen to anything Agust D, ever. But then earlier this year, for like two weeks straight, D-Day was everywhere I looked. It was all over kpop reddit and it was all over kpop youtube and so when it finally came out, the Haegeum MV was recommended to me literally everywhere. And so I caved and watched it, and I liked it enough to listen to the album. So I saved some songs from D-Day, and that was all. Then yesterday I was like “I should check out his other titles,” so I watched Agust D and Daechwita, and I loved them. So now I’m gonna go through their respective albums and see what I can see!

Also holy shit I just opened up Reddit and the first post on my reddit is “What is being said in the beginning of Agust D?” from 8 minutes ago. If that isn’t a sign then idk what is lmao

Intro : DT sugA

Haha yep, here we go

E N E R G Y

The repetition of “STD” is funny. Like, is he aware of what STD means in english? Surely. But also it’s a pun, he’s Suga from TD. So he is STD, and also Agust D. Wordplay!

Also maybe I should watch lyric videos for these songs, considering it’s mostly rap…

8/10, I do tend to rate intros and interludes highly

Agust D

The MV is so cool. Like, it’s not just trying to be cool: it IS cool

He’s actually such a good rapper. Like I just love the way that words sound when they come out of his mouth

Lyrically, it’s kind of what you’d expect. “I’m great and you’re dumb, fuck all the haters, I’m a real rapper and way better than you too”

8/10. Very good, fun, but I want a bit more from it

give it to me

Woahhh the bell

Also this bass

Also this beat

I love the laugh

(I’ll probably be typing a Lot less because I’m spending more time looking at the lyrics)

7/10

Skit

Oh lol is this literally a skit?

Omg it is that’s so funny

Bro two orders of ribs? Oh I guess if it’s for both of you

Omg he’s totally breaking the 4th wall

“Yankie hyunh” lmao

Okay wait, do I even rate this? I guess I should

9/10, really really cool inclusion, fits the theme of the album well.

724148

Bassy, alright

He keeps referencing bang si hyuk, that’s neat

So far this album seems to be more lyrical than anything, but I’m not totally convinced by the musicality of it. Maybe I’d rate it higher if it was in English, but also, I know what he can do. He’s got more levels to go from this.

7/10

140503 at dawn

Lol he’s moaning like

Oh he’s typing

Lol

7/10

The Last

Do you hear that bass drum?

We do appreciate rapping about mental health issues

9/10

Tony Montana (feat. Yankie)

Ohh it’s Jimin? That’s neat

It’s snowing outside! Pretty

Interesting soundscape

Who tf is Tony Montana then?

“A fictional character and the villain-protagonist of the 1983 film Scarface”

“Embodying the possibility of a person rising from the bottom of society to the top, Tony Montana has become a cultural icon, as well as one of the most iconic film characters of all time.”

6/10 tbh. It’s FIne but definitely my least favorite so far

Interlude : Dream, Reality

Ok, a bit more mellow now are we?

8/10, solid interlude, fit the album, and a nice break from all the intensity

so far away (feat. SURAN)

Oh, we’re ending mellow too

Nvm, we’re ending powerful

Love the guitar solo too

I really don’t know whether to rate this a 9 or a 10. It was so so good. And I genuinely can’t think of anything it could’ve done better, so…

10/10

[bedknees]

welcome to beffys "holy shti that brownie was more potent than anticipated" weird hot takes

-I'm pre outside olivia Rodrigos target demographic but she's so good idfc the grudge made me cry like a bitch

-try grilled cheese with king Hawaiian bread and cooper sharp american. not rolls but bread. life changing

-yellowjackets deserve more credit as effective pest killer even though their lil cunts

-I like that moles are trending from a joke bc I get pure serotonin when I see them they're so cute i wanna cry

-devon palmer is the funniest dude on tiktok imo I laugh uncontrollably over his skits and shit

-September is also Halloween sry but Xmas enjoyers already butt in during Halloween month proper so idgaf

[heartshapedcreaturefromcriptoon]

Hell, they make Alastor sound like that now and don't even get me started on that "Hazbin Hotel Abridged" guy crossing children's cartoons over with adult animation all while doing a bad Alastor impression that just sounds like Hirsch doing the dorito and then surprise surprise, making all these skits where Alastor meets the dorito and then making an entire "abridged" for Hazbin out of that even after specifically saying that he wasn't even gonna touch because it's "already an Adult Black Comedy"....

And then Medrano just allows this because her taste in Internet Personalities, at least, is terrible and so all these unfunny, untalented, mediocre, unsettling, ugly men becoming the face of her fanbase at least in the youtube sphere is the best that she could hope for, I guess...

I guess your fanbase being bronifed to shit before your series even has the chance to debut proper is better handled when it's a semi furry thing already aimed at adult audiences, but now if only that adult audience would stop constantly crossing it over with things aimed at children....

Ooops I got started and went the fuck off!

every hazbin hotel comic dub that came out before 2024 has vox sound like bill cipher talking into a rotating fan

[luminarily]

these people are nuts. it's obviously the dad in the wrong and they're all blaming the mother. is this misogyny or what

[super-unpredictable98]

I Put a Spell on You (Misfits x Hocus Pocus Crossover)

Word Count: 2k Warning: Strong language, mention of death a/n: Here's my first contribution to @sheehalloween 2022. I hope you all understand I grew up watching this movie in Portuguese and only just recently watched the original, so I have no idea how to write the 1600s English the Sanderson sisters speak lol

(Masterlist)

"I don't see how this is any different from the Community Centre party," Nathan grumbled, hating that unfamiliar feeling from being so far away from home.

"What do you mean? You don't see a difference between a party at the Wertham Community Centre and a party in Salem? The city of witch trials?" Lydia laughed.

That year, she had the idea to take the gang to America so they could celebrate Halloween in style. As fun as the parties were back home, there's nowhere else in the world that takes the holiday as seriously as the USA. 

Kelly, Nikki, and Curtis didn't really adhere to the dress code, simply wearing dark makeup and clothes instead of a proper costume. 

On the other hand, Simon and Alisha were dressed as Lloyd and Yor Forger, his idea mostly because he wanted to see his wife in that black dress. 

Lydia and Nathan were dressed as Fran Bow and Itward from the game he had never played, but more often than not, he would accept whatever costume his wife wanted him to wear.

"Well, I suppose you'd rather do something else then?" Lydia asked. "We could hit a double feature of some old horror films, if you really want to we can try trick or treating..."

"No! We do this every year. Let's find a haunted house, not one with scare actors and shit, a real one! We're in Salem, there must be a real haunted house somewhere!"

"No way, you'll get there and you'll totally shit yourself," Curtis laughed. 

"You're the biggest chicken here, you'll just run away and leave us there," Kelly agreed. 

"Me?" Nathan screamed, extremely offended. "I ain't scared! I wanna see a real ghost!"

"Don't you see real ghosts all the time?" Simon asked. 

"Fine, y'twat! Then I wanna see a real werewolf! A real vampire! A real witch!" 

Right then, a pair of teenagers rushed into the venue. They all looked a mess and were absolutely terrified.

"Everyone! Everyone! Cut the music, it's an emergency!" The girl jumped on stage and grabbed the microphone from the vocalist of the band that had been playing. "We have a serious warning! You are all in danger!" 

"Fire! Is there a fire?" Alisha looked around. 

"Three hundred years ago, the Sanderson Sisters used to bewitch people, now they're back from the grave! The legend isn't a legend, it's real! This boy lit up the black flame candle at the house in the forest, and he's a virgin! I know it sounds dumb, but it's true!"

"He's a virgin? What a loser, am I right?" Nathan snorted.

Nobody was taking the group seriously, but to be fair it all seemed like a bit they planned, like some sort of skit. 

"What are they talking about?" Curtis asked. 

"The legend of the Sanderson sisters, they say three witches were killed centuries ago during the witch trials for eating the souls of children to stay young. They cursed the town with a prediction that said they would come back to life for one night if a virgin lit up the black flame candle," Lydia explained. "I read about it in the brochure, did nobody read the brochure?"

"You have to listen to us!" The boy, allegedly the virgin who lit the candle, took the microphone. "They're coming for your kids, no one is safe. They are brewing a potion to steal their souls! They're right there!"

"These kids are hilarious," Nate chuckled.

To corroborate the idea that it was all an act, the lights flickered and everyone cheered as three middle-aged women parted their way through the crowd. They wore elaborate dresses and makeup, the youngest was a beautiful blonde, the middle one was a clumsy brunette, and the oldest had red hair and huge teeth like a rabbit. 

"Nate was wrong, this party is way better than the ones back home," Nikki clapped, entertained by the act.

"Thank you for the marvelous introduction," the red-headed one said before she started to sing the song that was playing before they arrived, I Put a Spell on You. 

Everyone was laughing and having a great time, except for the poor teenagers and Lydia, who somehow felt like something was wrong. Nobody was that good of an actor, the kids were actually desperate.

"Don't listen to them! They're trying to bewitch you!" The boy pleaded, but it fell on deaf ears.

"Hello, Salem! My name is Winifred, what's yours?" The oldest witch climbed on stage, followed by her sisters.

"Nathan, do you smell something rotten?" Lydia asked.

"It wasn't me!" He held his hands up defensively. 

"No, you wanker, like a dead body! We all know that smell quite well, ain't it?" She looked around and her stomach twisted when she spotted a real zombie chasing the teens around the party while everybody danced. "Oh shit, oh shit, they might be telling the truth, we gotta get out of here!"

"What? No, you're bein' paranoid, this is fun!" He insisted. "Tell me you're not believin' this hocus pocus... Aren't you a little too old to believe in witches?"

"We're superheroes! Everyone is chanting what this old lady is singing, don't you think this is a little weird?" 

"Let loose, Lyds!" Simon giggled, looking like he was actually under some kind of spell. He was never that relaxed, ever, it just wasn't in the Bellamy nature. "Just dance with us!"

Meanwhile, on stage, the three witches were talking among themselves, planning their next move when Mary, the middle one, turned towards the audience with an evil lopsided grin as she sniffed something.

"Winnie! Winnie, I smell-"

"Children? Yes, you moron, there is a child right there! Now how do we snatch her?" Winifred elbowed her on the stomach.

"No! I smell... Immortality."

"Immortality?" Sarah, the youngest and prettiest one, gasped. "How come?"

"Oh fuck!" Lydia grabbed her husband's hand and made a run for the door, leaving the others wondering what had gotten into her. 

Seeing the young couple running away left it pretty clear to Winifred who was the immortal one they were smelling.

"Come on, sisters! After them!"

"Where are we even goin'? We don't know the town, we'll get lost," Nathan protested.

"Better to get lost than be eaten by witches! I refuse to have your pretty face fuel those old hags' youth potion." 

"What are you saying about us?" Winifred drawled, riding just above them on her broomstick. 

"Run!" Lydia cried, but it was hopeless. The witches were way faster flying than they were running.

When they reached a dead end, she started to think of a plan. She didn't have to outpower them, just outwit them. How hard could it be to bamboozle three women who died in the late 1600s? 

"What happened to you? What made you cry blood?" Mary asked, taking Lydia's face and squishing it between her hands. 

"Seeing your ugly faces!" She spat.

"Oh, how rude..."

The Fran Bow costume consisted of a yellow dress with a blue bow, a messy brown bob, a jar of red pills (which was actually her purse), and tears of blood staining her face aside from the fake blood covering her hands.

"Is the girl the immortal one?" Winifred asked.

"No, it's the gentleman, the nice gentleman behind this skeleton glamour," Mary said, referring to the makeup for the Itward costume.

"Can I play with him, Winnie?" Sarah giggled, jumping at the opportunity, her hands snaking under his blazer as she drew his gaze to her cleavage. "I love men with curly hair."

"So does my wife!" Nate yelped, not knowing how to react. "Look, you're cute, wouldn't push you off the bed, but I'm married," he flashed his wedding ring.

"That is not a problem, your wife doesn't need to know," she brought his hand to her chest and he quickly pulled it away, turning to check how angry Lyddie was.

"She already knows, I'm right here!" Lydia yelled.

"Is the immortal gentleman married to a child?" Sarah grimaced.

"I'm not a child, halfwit! I'm dressed as a child! I'm a grown woman!"

"They speak with interesting accents, Winnie," Mary pointed out. "Could they be travelers?" 

"Actually we are! We are from England, from a dark horrible place called Wertham. The three of you don't scare me!" Lydia crossed her arms defiantly. 

"Technically I'm from Ireland, but the point still stands," Nathan added quietly.

"Quit the chatter! You look thirsty, boy," Winifred held up a bottle with a smoking green liquid and tried to force it down Nathan's throat. "Just drink it, it'll be so much easier if you cooperate."

"He won't fucking cooperate! You're not gonna eat my husband!" Lyddie demanded. "You stupid old bitch!"

"Oh, quiet! Boooook!" The oldest witch called and a book with a leather cover and one eye flew into her hand. "Did you hear it, sisters? This foolish girl has no manners at all, I think we ought to correct her."

"How, Winnie? How?" Marry rubbed her hands together. "Can I kill her? She looks so plump, she must be tasty too..."

"And then I get to play with her widower!" Sarah added, bouncing in excitement.

"You bumbling idiots!" Winifred pushed the book against her sister's chest, nearly knocking her down. "Let us do to her what we did to the Binx boy, it worked so well the first time."

"You wanna turn me into an immortal cat?" Lydia winced. "Well, good fucking luck!"

"Twist the bones and break the back," she started.

"Itchita kupita melaka mystika..." the other two witches chanted.

Before Winifred could try to get the second part of the incantation out, Lydia punched her square in the jaw and Nathan simply watched it, marveled. It wasn't their first time dealing with supervillains and the solution was more often than not violent and simple.

The older witch fell with a screech and her sisters quickly rushed to help her up, muttering questions to make sure she was okay.

"You pest! Dirty harlot, how dare you?" 

Winifred pointed her veiny hand at the girl and a flash of green lightning left the tips of her long, bony fingers, but before her spell could have any effect Lydia covered herself and Nathan in a force field. The magic bounced back and hit the caster like a gunshot.

"How d'you like that?" Nate taunted. 

"The overgrown child is a witch too!" Sarah's eyes grew horrified.

"Yes! And the immortal warlock is already mine! Fuck off, you cunts!" 

"Warlock?" She gasped.

"I- I'm a man witch, yeah, I totally am!" Nathan nodded, producing a bottle of water out of thin air and proceeding to drink it. "I'm like Harry Potter!"

"Harry Potter? I think we knew him, wasn't he the one who died in that barn fire when he tried to roast a little girl like a pig?" Mary whispered.

"The point is, sisters, he is one of ours. You can't hurt your own, it's... Unethical."

"Unethical? Unethical... What does unethical mean, Winnie?" She asked.

"Clearly it is some sort of word from their corner of the world, how am I supposed to know?" Winifred hissed. 

"Unethical means it is morally wrong, you can't steal from another coven. We are already so few and rare to find, if you kill him for your potion, you are no better than the people who burned you at the stake!" Lydia proclaimed, still covering them with her thin blue field, scared of what they might do otherwise. 

The three sisters looked at each other completely confused. Was she... Right? Besides, wouldn't it be easier to just collect a bigger number of children, who are defenseless and wouldn't fight back? It wasn't immortality, but-

"We were hung actually... That isn't important. How did you become immortal, boy?" Winifred asked finally.

"Oh, that was easy! I was struck by lightning," Nathan explained.

"Struck by lightning, I think we can do that. Book, show me a spell to conjure rain!" 

While they were distracted by the idea to become immortal by other means, Nathan and Lydia ran the other way, escaping the dead end street and finding their friends waiting by the entrance where the Halloween party was.

"Where were you? We've been lookin' everywhere!" Kelly scolded.

"Sorry, we were nearly killed by witches, one of them wanted to turn me into a black cat and eat Nathan's soul!" Lyddie sighed, finally lifting their protection.

"Oh, I guess we've been in worse situations before," Simon shrugged. 

"Definitely, this was nothing compared to the Virtue virgins," Alisha agreed.

"Or the crazy guy from the video game," Nikki held her fiancé's arm.

"Yeah, they were pretty stupid... Does anyone fancy a drink? Just nothing green please," Lydia groaned, followed by the others as she headed to a nearby pub, hoping the black flame candle would go out soon.

Tag List: @seanfalco @firstpersonnarrator @elliethesuperfruitlover