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gosmigenergy · 1 year ago

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KINKTOBER 2023 / Day Nineteen

( Triple Frontier Boys x F!Reader )

BITING/SCRATCHING / PIERCINGS/TATTOOS / MARKING

Summary: You decide to give the boys a little surprise but some unwanted company scuppers your plan.

Day Nineteen of @absurdthirst's Kinktober

Rating: Fluff

Warnings: Mentions of piercings, mentions of family/family members, no use of Y/N

Word Count: 2.5k

Author’s Notes: I apologise for this fic just becoming a ridiculous fluffy palette cleanser 🙈

“Are you sure about this?”

Your friend wasn’t, what was about to happen was not what she had in mind when you asked her to come. You had asked her to come because you needed moral support, someone to hold your hand but you couldn’t bring the boys, this was for them… mostly.

The pair of you sat in animal print armchairs, surrounded by black walls, a series of pricing posters opposite.

“When you asked me to come, I thought you were just getting your ears pierced.”

“I changed my mind.”

You didn’t, this was a decision that came into fruition a few weeks ago. You’d booked the appointment to give some lee-way incase you changed your mind but you didn’t, you were adamant about this.

“Does your ‘boyfriend’ mind?”

You rolled your eyes at her, “Not at all.”

The boys didn’t know anything about this.

A woman popped her head out the door and called your name. You get up from the chair and wipe your clammy palms on your jeans before walking over. You take one last look to your friend who smiles upon seeing your worried expression.

“Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.”

It was several hours later and it wasn’t fine.

Even though you flipped through the aftercare leaflet and checked on the band aids stuck to your tits, you felt unbelievably itchy. This was worse than any kind of torture Santiago can come up with, all you wanted to do was lay on your bed topless and let them breath, instead you’d stupidly invited all of them over this afternoon.

When the door knocked, you were greeted with Santiago, Frankie and Will. The three of them came in and you shared a hug and a kiss with each other them as they entered. You leaned out, expecting Benny to be there.

“Where’s Benny?”

“Oh,” Will turned round. “Apparently the fire alarm went off during training, he’ll be over later.”

Shit, the one time you wanted them all here.

“Everything alright?”

Frankie could sense something, he wasn’t sure what. You were never really bothered by one of them being late but you chewed the inside of your lip and scrunched your eyebrows. That wasn’t it though, there was something in the way you were holding yourself, it wasn’t quite right.

“Yeah, it’s fine, I just had something to tell you all.”

He scoffed, “Hope it’s nothing bad.”

You held your hands up, “No, no, it’s good.”

You hoped it was anyway.

Santiago was already pulling out the beer he’d brought, he assumed they’d be here for the night.

“If it’s that important you can tell us now and Benny later,” he says, looking back at you.

“I’m sure you boys can wait.”

Santiago’s eyes narrowed, you hadn’t been this nervous since arriving at the bar a day after he gave you his number.

You took the beers to pop in the fridge, asking if any of them wanted a coffee instead. Frankie gladly accepted your offer and Will wondered if you had tea. Santiago decided to talk to the pair of them whilst the kettle bubbled away loudly.

“She’s hiding something.”

Frankie jutted his chin, “You noticed it too?”

Santiago put his hands on his hips, this was serious.

“I need to know what it is.”

“You gotta be patient, man,” Will said, shaking his head. “Benny’s going to be a couple of hours tops.”

This was the first time you heard Will speak Spanish, he mentioned he could and his brother, even if it was a bit shit.

Santiago couldn’t wait a couple of hours nor Frankie, neither of them were built for surprises. They shared a quick glance, thinking the same thing.

“Think we can break her?”

Santiago smirked.

“I may not be able to understand you but I know you’re talking about me,” you call from the kitchen.

Frankie folded his arms to his chest, brows furrowing.

“What are you thinking?”

“Will, what tea do you want?”

His baby blues flick from one man to the other.

“Whatever it is you’re planning, I ain’t getting involved.”

He walks away to join you in the kitchen, leaving Santiago and Frankie to come up with a scheme.

Whatever they planned, they didn’t implement it straight away. Maybe they were leading you into a false sense of security before they all jumped you but only time will tell. The four of you mostly talked about the week and the next few to follow, the conversation veering towards Halloween.

“You must have done fancy dress, Santi. Not even when you were home from the barracks?”

“No, I don’t like Halloween.”

You gasp, “Does that mean you don’t like Christmas too?”

He shrugged, a nonchalant expression on his face. You dramatically fall against Frankie’s shoulder and groan.

“Stop, Santi, you’re breaking my heart!”

“He hasn’t already?” Frankie quips.

Santiago flips him the bird.

“He’s just playing with you, sweetheart,” Will pats your leg. “He’s the most festive out of all of us.”

You shoot up, “Really?”

He sips his drink, his dark eyes focused on you. He was never going to tell, you’d find out in a couple of months.

There was a knock on the door.

“I hope this is Benny,” Frankie says as you leap from the couch, “the suspense is killing me.”

You glance over your shoulder, you roll your eyes, “It’s not that bad.”

Taking the door handle in your hand, you open it and what is behind is most definitely bad.

The two women in front of you squeal and go in for heavy, bear squeezing hugs which you have no way of avoiding and fuck, does it hurt.

“Hey, aunties.”

The boys all look to each other, Will stopping Santiago from making his escape.

“What are you doing here?”

You were smiling but dying of embarrassment on inside. Of course, your aunties would turn up unexpectedly when you had three guys sat around your living room.

“We were in the neighbourhood and thought we’d pop in for a coffee.”

“I wished you’d called, I’ve got guests over.”

“I’m sure they won’t mind us intruding,” the one batted you out the way.

Actually maybe them arriving was a good thing, maybe it could save you from whatever the three of them were planning.

“Oh, you didn’t tell us how good looking they were.”

Frankie choked on his coffee.

“I thought you said it was just going to be us.”

Santiago had snuck into the kitchen with you, using the excuse of giving you a hand and bringing out the used cups. He was helpful but now this was an interrogation, he pressed his body close and whispered in your ear. He couldn’t be mad at what was happening, it just threw a spanner in the works, you were meant to be calm.

You were far from it.

“It was, I didn’t expect my family to rock up unannounced.”

He opened one of your cupboards and pulled out two more mugs.

“So are you going to tell them?”

You hum curiously.

“What you’re going to tell us?”

“God, no!”

“Why not, they’re family, right?”

You put one hand on the counter and turn to face him, other hand on your hip. Your stare drilled into him, you knew exactly what he was trying to do and it wasn’t working. If you were going to make it a staring contest, he could do it all day however the smirk coming to your face was interesting.

“I guess,” you shrug, “though I’d have to tell them why you three were here too.”

You knew what trick Santiago was pulling to get you to blab, it wasn’t going to work.

He arched his one eyebrow, “I’m going to punish you later.”

You smile back at him sweetly.

“I was hoping you would.”

Picking up four empty mugs, you head back to the living room and he follows with yours and Will’s teas. Miraculously a packet of cookies had appeared on the table and your aunties had distributed them evenly.

“Now that you’re all sat down, how did you all meet our lovely niece?”

All the boys look to you.

“It was actually at Will’s brothers fight.”

Your aunties couldn’t let that go.

The conversation had been going for over forty-five minutes and they still kept bringing it up, in awe that their sweet niece ended up at some sort of cage fight. You were getting fidgety and agitated, the urge to scratch overwhelming and it was all you could think about, none of them had seen your foot twitch like that.

“I’m just going to pop to the bathroom.”

You flee the room before anyone could stop you.

This was no longer the time for games, Santiago shared a glance with Will, he was the best man for the job. Will excused himself, using taking the mugs out as an excuse to leave the room. After placing them in the sink, he went in search of you, knowing full well that weren’t in the bathroom.

There was a rap on the door.

You stood in front of your full length mirror, inspecting the band-aids, questioning whether to just rip them off.

“It’s just me, can I come in?”

You pulled your top back down, “Sure.”

Will came in, giving you a soft smile.

“Please tell me Santi didn’t put you up to this?”

“I came of my own accord.”

“Thank god.��

Perching at the edge of your bed, he joins you, his thigh rubbing against your own.

“This afternoon hasn’t exactly gone as I planned,” you laugh because otherwise you’d cry.

“What a day for Benny to be late, huh?”

“Even if he was here, they still would have turned up and that may have been worse.”

Will wasn’t going to push you any further if you didn’t want to but it was very clear you needed to get something off your chest.

“Promise you won’t tell Frankie and Santiago what I’m about to tell you.”

“I didn’t tell them about you squirting, I won’t tell them this.”

You played with your fingers, taking a breath before you spoke.

“I got my nipples pierced.”

That explains it.

The overly conscious hugs when they arrived, how you winced when your aunties hugged you when they probably shouldn’t have.

He rubbed the back of his neck, his tell.

“Doesn’t that make them more—“

“Sensitive,” you scoff. “Yeah.”

“That bad?”

“The itch is fucking tortuous, I should probably let them get some air but…”

“That’s why we need Benny?”

“That’s why we need Benny,” you sigh.

Will told you to take off the band-aids and you forced him to face the walls, he could hold Santiago and Frankie off.

It was getting rid of your aunties that proved another hurdle.

He suggested pretending you had spontaneously felt ill, that’s why you left the living room so quickly and why you couldn’t come out of the bathroom. Yet you knew full well that they would insist on seeing you no matter what and you, for sure, could not keep up that charade. You considered texting another family member to come and get them however that meant another person seeing the boys, which would be the discussion at the next family get together.

This was harder than you’d thought.

“We’re going now, love!”

You and Will looked at each other with scrunched expressions.

Returning to the living room, your aunties were finally leaving. Frankie was coming around the coffee table to say his goodbyes, Santiago approaching the door, smiling and delivering kisses to their cheeks.

“We can’t forget to say goodbye to you either.”

Your one auntie walked over to Will and wrapped an arm round his frame, definitely squeezing his shoulder as she hugged him. You chaperoned her away before she took another opportunity with any of them, questioning whether she’d hug Frankie, who adamantly reminded her she had.

Ferrying them out of the door, you gently hugged them and said you’d watch them get to the elevator. They weren’t exactly subtle about what they were saying about the boys, the sound travelling into your apartment making them chuckle amongst themselves. The down arrow flashed above their heads and they said their goodbyes one more time before they were lost to the elevator doors.

Before you even got back into your flat, Frankie and Santiago had you surrounded.

“You forgot to mention how handsy your one auntie was.”

“Did I?”

Frankie took a step closer and your eyes met Will, who was holding back, smiling, knowing what was going to happen.

“Santiago’s traumatised.”

Santiago nodded in agreement, “I think you owe me something.”

You instinctively fold your arms over your tits even though you’re wearing that top and they can’t see shit.

“No…”

They noticed the way your arms are sitting.

“I don’t.”

You lean as they crowd you.

“Honey, what are you hiding?”

“Will,” you cry desperately, “help me.”

You look to Will and he throws a hand out, “Just show them.”

Frankie and Santiago turn to Will who remains pokerfaced and then to you again, studying you from head to toe. You sigh, unravelling your arms before motioning for them to move back and this is the first, they’re following your orders.

You bite your lip, glancing to each of their faces, Will being the only one smiling back at you.

Taking the hem of your top in your fingers, you slowly lift it up and over your breasts to your chest, showing them your nipple piercings.

Frankie’s tongue darts over his bottom lip, Will’s eyebrows raise.

You hear a creak from behind you.

“Why have you just left your door open, what the fu—“

Benny freezes, eyebrows knotted at the scene he sees in front of him. His brother and Frankie blink at him as you try to look over your shoulder, Santiago juts his chin to him.

“Come look at this.”

He tosses his bag to the side, making sure the door slams behind him as he strides over, Santiago making space for him. His eyes immediately fall to your bare breasts and the new nipple piercings shining back.

His confusion is replaced in an instant with unadulterated joy.

“No, Benny, no touching!”

—

Later that evening, you sat on the edge of your bath whilst Will inspected the piercings, cotton swab in hand. He pressed it delicately to the skin and you still flinched.

“Sorry,” he whispered.

“It’s ok,” you say, the sensitivity was a bitch.

He unwrapped a plaster and cover your nipple back up before doing the same to the other, he offered to do this and you were happy for the help.

“You didn’t have to do this.”

You did.

You smile sheepishly, “They might not last that long.”

Part of you couldn’t believe you had, you just thought it would be nice to treat them all but maybe this was a step too far.

“Well, at least give us a chance to have a play with them.”

The woman at the shop warned you to be careful for the first few weeks of having them done, hence why you were so sure in covering them for the time being, though you knew the boys couldn’t wait.

“Don’t worry, you will.”

#kinktober 2023 #triple frontier x reader #santiago garcia #frankie catfish morales #will ironhead miller #benny miller #fluff #kinktober

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icaruskey · 1 year ago

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Once again, this is @pillowspace's AU that I'm kinda going AWOL with. I just want to make something a little more cheerful after leaving Y/N struggling to get home last night.

Clone AU is being a bit prickly, but I think that's mostly cause I want to draw for it rn and I'm still in the throes of color separations whenever I have a spare moment on my tablet. But that'll be done soonish I think? By the end of the week for sure because I need to start making my mylar sheets soon.

Time Loop whump fic will likely be pecked away at throughout the day to deal with school stress. This is just a quick palette cleanser since to me HD Y/N is a bit in the middle personality-wise.

TL is a lot more extraverted and kind, and Clone is the one most likely to cause the DCA to experience the first animatronic heart attack if they ever spoke because every other word would be fuck. HD is one of those people who recognizes the struggle they're in, but they can also find the good moments and appreciate them all the more while giving the bird to everything making life actively harder for them and their little brother.

"You sure you're fine." Gretchen sounds doubtful, but you smile and keep working.

"Positive. Look, nothing really happened in the grand scheme of things, right? I'm not hurt."

"Your hand is bruised, and you had to cancel your cards," Gretchen says, and to prove a point, she grabs your hand.

You flinch, pulling back. "I made it home in one piece and nothing really valuable got stolen," you reply archly, shoving the last of the books towards your friend. "Go put these away. I need to check the computer room to make sure no one needs help."

"This conversation isn't over," Gretchen warns, even as she pushes the cart away. The library is fairly quiet at this point in the day, early in the afternoon, before school is let out and you all get inundated with kids and teens looking to kill a couple hours before their parents get home. It's the perfect time to make sure everything is clean and ready for kids to play.

The computer room is actually pretty quiet, though there is one brightly colored splotch of a person in the corner. You can hear them tapping slowly at the keyboard as you check each computer, wiping things down and logging out of a couple accounts. Eventually, you've made it to the corner with the stranger, struck by just how tall they are.

"Is everything all right?" you ask brightly.

"O-oh!" The stranger is clearly startled, so you take an extra step back, just for safety. "Yes, sorry. I think we, I, signed up for an hour? Has time. passed that fast?"

"No, sorry. There's a timer in the corner, here." You tap at the monitor helpfully. "I didn't mean to confuse you. I just wanted to know if you needed any help."

The stranger doesn't reply, instead fidgeting with what you're guessing is a scarf around their face. "Is your hand okay?" They ask, and you quickly withdraw it, tucking it close to your chest. "I don't mean to pry. It just looks painful."

"Ah, well." You grimace, remembering that Gretchen is going to be on you the moment she's done with her returns. It's easier to hide in the computer room, and besides, what's the likelihood this stranger will talk to her? You decide to sit, still achey from last night and exhausted from a lack of sleep. "I was mugged last night."

"You were what?" The horror in their voice is less grating than it was with your friend, and when you smile, it just feels tired, not forced. "You can't possibly be okay after that!"

"I kind of have to be. It's making some of my duties today a little harder though. I can't exactly balance heavy boxes with this hand, and my coworkers are sweet, but if I don't do my work, I think they're going to send me home." You curl and uncurl your hand slowly, biting the inside of your cheek to keep from grimacing. "And I need the money, so. Here we are, you know?"

"Here we are," they agree, a bit distractedly. They pecked at the computer a little longer, apparently thinking as they suddenly turn back to you. "I can help you move those boxes. I-if you'd like I mean."

"Oh?" You pause, thinking. "Oh, uh. Sure! If you're sure that is. I --- yeah, it'd be really helpful, but you don't have to. You signed up for the computer and oh fuck, I've just started spilling my guts out to you."

They flinch when you curse, muttering something in the middle of your rambling before holding up one gloved (gloves indoors?) hand. "It's all right. We, I, like to help. Just point us in the right direction."

"Okay," you saw, drawing the word out until it's more a sound than a word. "You can help this time. But I'm going to have to do something in return."

"That's not really---"

"Nuh uh," you interrupt, wagging a finger (from the unbruised hand), in front of their face. "Fair's fair, and if you're helping me, I'm helping you. Consider this a rain check."

"Fine," they say, turning to log out of the computer. When they stand, you feel very, very small. "Lead the way, Mx. Librarian."

"That's Librarian Clerk to you," you say, a little teasingly. You do take point, walking through the library to where you and Gretchen had packed away the Halloween decorations. "And what do I call you?"

"Sun," they say, and they take the first of three boxes without so much as a grunt of exertion. Tall and strong. If you were a lesser person, you would be jealous. Maybe you are anyway.

"Sun," you repeat, and it's an unusual name for this unusual not-quite-a-stranger. You lead them towards the back, fiddling with your keys to find the one for the storage closet. "It's very nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too."

#human disguise au #dca #fnaf dca #fnaf daycare attendant #daycare attendant

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cafeleningrad · 3 months ago

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Hi ! 📺 🍦 👻 🏆 (or just tell and don't show if u prefer) 🧑‍🍳,

Hejhej! Thank you so much for the questions, they come at the ideal time to think about things not related to academic texts.

📺 What did you think of the last movie you saw? Longslegs (2024, dir. Osgood Perkins) Remarkable cinematic capability which are absolutely lost on terrible dialogue, and, if possible, a stupid script. I want my ticket money back.

A Taxi Driver (2017, dir. Jang Hoon) Like in Memories of Murder this is a movie in which I can forgive historical inaccuracies because a) the creators simply weren't privy of any previous information b) these are stories about the actual life under the Chun dictator ship, made with the pretense to talk about this difficult political time. It is a highly affective movie, not sensational in depicting militia violence. By the way, the scene in which Hinzpeter and Kim Man-seob receive multiple food gifts by the citizens of Gwangju is perhaps the most Korean things ever, I would immediately believe that this would have happened. It is a really good movie, and such a needed palette cleanser in seriousness, writing of very humane behavior and speech after Longlegs. (And through some research I found multiple contributions by Hinzpeter in which he openly critizes Japan for building it's bubble economy on neo-colonialism in Korea. There definitely was a lot of genuine investment in telling this story.)

🍦 Top picks for a 3 scoop ice cream cone? Once again, I need to mention how spoiled rotten I am with creative ice cream flavours in my city. So a new 3-scoop combo: Saffron, Acerola, Cinnamon-Plum

👻 Dream halloween costume? Good question. Probably something with elaborate horns and a skull mask. I still have materials for Lady MacBeth, so maybe one autumn?

🏆 Could you give us a short show and tell about an interesting object in your room? Okay, alright believe me now that I do indeed own the following: A relative's father once studied in Germany in the 1950s. There he acquired a historical Civil Law book from 1900, the year the German civil law was finalized and came into force. Given that these civil codes were also adapted in Poland (well, in Poland's case more enforced, yes including some very hyperspecific paragraphs about bee ownership), Japan, Russia, and China, it is quiet the influential little book.

🧑‍🍳 Do you have a food or cooking (or eating) tip for us?

Please do invest into a wet stone for your kitchen knives. It doesn't have to be an absolute haute cuisine tool. But blunt knifes are much more likely to cause you injuries by slipping, or being much harder to get through material.

For ideal cookies or shortcrust pastry, first mix all dry ingredients, and then work them into the butter. The butter should be the center of kneading. The dough will becomes silky smooth, ideally mixed.

🍺 If you ran a themed bar what would the theme be? Hehehe, just last week I was in the curfew bar in Copenhagen which was brimming with charm and style. The owner really lives out his passion for everything vintage and classy. (If ever in Copenhagen, it's a blast!)

Beginning with: Every good food place is one run with passion by someone who really does stand behind their cuisine. It just shows in the service, the quality, and staff how invested everyone is in the meals, and service.

But I think I would like to run a place which is very open to people not wanting to drink alcohol, which will be treated as an equally legitimate choice. So the alcohol free cocktails will be as fancy, varied, and creative as the alcoholic beverages. For style I would probably go with Norse fishing village cottage. Mostly it's comfortable, somewhere were people can warm up. So the seats are comfortable, maybe there even is a little library. Maybe laying it all a big thick on the mermaid and lobster decor. The cocktail names on the menu are hillarious with various cold needle etching illustrations.

Ah yeah, the house will have it's very own bar cat.

#Lewis' ask box management

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woosh-floosh · 2 years ago

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IDW Sonic Issue 58

A new issue came out this week! Yippee!!

Last issue I focused a lot on Lanolin because I thought she was the star of the issue, being a new character and all. This issue I think the star of the issue is.... Thomas Rothlisberger?

Yes!! This is Rothlisberger's first penciling job for a WHOLE mainline issue! He did about four pages in issue 43, a story in the 2022 annual, and the majority of Imposter Syndrome! However I think the thicker lineart and strong cel shading made his artwork look a little stiff. I think the thinner lines more subdued coloring by Matt Herms really brings out more of the character in his style.

And Holy Shit the character!! Rothlisberger draws characters with such fun goofy expressions and there's so much movement in all the character poses! Wow, just makes you want to get up and draw, doesn't it? He also brings a lightheartedness that I think has been missing from the comics a while.

As much as I love ABT's interiors his style does seem to give off an overly serious tone. I think from all the fun banter and character interactions it's obvious this arc is supposed to be more lighthearted and fun that I didn't really pick up on from the previous issue. It makes sense after watching two incredibly traumatized children self sabotage themselves that we would now pivot to something lighter. Chao Races and Badnik bases followed the metal virus saga as a fun palette cleanser, and that's one of my favorite arcs! We also get a more healthy depiction of how to move past and deal with trauma from Whisper, it's nice to have her back!

There's a lot of characters running around this issue but I think Flynn handles it well! The more emotional stuff is only handled between three characters and all the fun bot busting is left up to the bigger team. The last arc felt a bit narrow in scope of characters which made sense for the emotional intensity and themes, but I missed having all my favorite guys on screen! And now team dark's about to show up too?? Guess we'll have to wait till next month!

#idw sonic #idw sonic 58 #sth #yes!! I am going to continue to write these because they are fun ^_^

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pastelwitchling · 10 months ago

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How's everyone's reading going? I always struggle to pick up more than kindle unlimited sports romances when school and work start, but I'm really pushing myself past that stress in small ways.

Here are the books I'm currently reading, just finished, and am hoping to get to soon that I really wanted to talk about:

The Sun and the Star (read): This book is pure serotonin. It's one of the longer Percy Jackson books, but I never felt the length for a single second. There were definite moments where I could tell someone other than Rick Riordan had taken over writing, but that doesn't change how fun and romantic the book was. What an absolute treasure.

Scoring Position (read): kindle unlimited mlm hockey romance. I just finished this today actually, and it ended up getting a lower rating than what it had been for most of the book, but I'm still glad I read it. It did offer a good palette cleanser, and though I didn't end up loving it the way I'd hoped I would, I would still recommend it for a nice time.

Under the Whispering Door (currently reading): I tried reading this a few months ago and DNFed after chapter five or something. I felt like the humor was hit-and-miss, I thought Wallace was a little too annoying, but I knew that I didn't want to DNF it for good. Why? I really liked Hugo, Mei, and Nelson, and the teashop. I thought there was some good potential there. I have to drive a lot to school and work, and I figured that since I couldn't enjoy reading this physically, then maybe I would have a better time on audiobook, annnnd... yeah. The narrator is phenomenal, I would highly recommend this audiobook if you couldn't get into the paperback. He has a way of reading in SUCH a funny way that I was suddenly laughing at lines I didn't think were funny the first time. I've got less than 3 hours of the audiobook left, and I'm having a great time. It's not anything groundbreaking, and I think the first half was very slow and repetitive, but it really has got me thinking about death and life a little bit more, and I really enjoy these characters. I now love Wallace, he's hilarious and becomes so easy to love, and I can't wait to see how this story ends.

House of Sky and Breath (currently reading): Anyone else really have trouble reading physical books when they're super stressed or overwhelmed? That's kind of where I am. I'm annotating and tabbing my paperback copy, I'm 10 chapters in, but I feel like I just don't have the strength right now to physically hold a book, you know? The first book in particular already took me so long to read because of its length (you're not Order of the Phoenix, STOP trying to be Order of the Phoenix, not every story can carry that kind of page count!), and now I just feel like I'd be going through it faster if I can read it digitally. I won't get my ebook copy from the library for over 2 weeks, so I might just try to read as much as I can now, and then finish with the ebook. I know the big spoiler at the end, but beyond that, I have no idea what happens in this book, and I can't wait to find out.

Books I want to pick up next:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part of last year's reread so that I can start this year's reread. I'm afraid, but it must be done.

Percy Jackson and the Chalice of the Gods: I think I was subconsciously waiting until after the show ended to dive back into this world, and I'm just ready to spend all day with my favorite demigod (and satyr) trio.

House of Flame and Shadow: Is this a shock to anyone? I should've read HoSaB sooner so I would be ready for this book now, but I overestimated by reading speed, so here we are. I hope to get to it before any spoilers start circulating.

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries: I have more books on my physical TBR, but this is one of the lightest and I think I need that.

The Paladin's Shadow: 'Nough said. Anything by Tavia Lark is gold.

I love talking about books so much, so please do let me know what you're reading now, how you're feeling about it, what you'd like to pick up soon. It's always fun to me to discuss books, and I'd really like to talk more about them on my tumblr from now on. I still have it tagged rin reads if you want to filter that out though.

#rin reads #rick riordan #the sun and the star #under the whispering door #tavia lark #harry potter #hosab #book #books #booklr

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firespirited · 1 year ago

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Today was the usual mixed bag. Readmore for animal death (not my pets)

Ended the day with another Barbie bad cam viewing as a palette cleanser, noticed more outfits this time around. Such a delight.

Started the day with quick chores then tomorrow's grocery pickup by the replacement carer we managed to find for a full 2h a week 🙃. (Usually we pay someone happy to work off books but thought this agency might be a little more thoughtful). It just is, so we're making do.

I walked one dog after the other at daybreak. I've been slowly taming the very scaredy Gargouille, he now comes slowly close for scritches and a peanut.

Yesterday someone left out a bunch of near new shoes and I carried them home (a small part of why my shoulder hurts) as they were roommate sized. She kept 4 pairs.

The rest was bagged and ready to go to the second hand store. I left the sandals, marrocan slippers and some large boots. As with all previous clothing or electronics dropoffs, they were thrown into the bin even though we have multiple clothes bins and second hand drop off points in town.

I find that very odd, someone clearly wants to share their cast offs and someone else doesn't want that left out more than half a day and tosses it instead of using the two second hand stores (clothes are less than 5€ each like 5€ would be for a coat, the point is to reuse and teach folks repair)

On the second walk for Lily (i can't handle both dogs, they both walk very differently because of the age difference and both have strong temperaments), the walk goes by the cemetery and sis had said she'd seen someone complain about a dead cat. So I went to the bins opposite the gate and there he was, a large ginger cat, flattened by a car and rotting under the bins. We're supposed to take them to the vets for incineration but I'm not able to and he'd been there a while. I acted on instinct, grabbed him with a dog poop bag and placed him inside the bin 1 and started looking for bags to wrap him in. In bin 3 there was a ripped bag of school papers and junk so i emptied it out and gently placed the cat in it, tied knots in the top and tear. It's not the burial or sanitary incineration he deserves but it felt so disrespectful to see him just decaying on the tarmac.

Bin 2 contained 2 stainless steel branded dog bowls - they'll go to one of the local animal rescues. I didn't dig further, I was feeling drained from a dozen different emotions about that ginger cat. This is a caravan parking lot on weekends so it could have been from abandoned dogs. We're a small tourist town on the road to large tourist destinations.

Last week I found a muzzle and collar at the car wash and I don't know if it's one of the dogs that's been spotted loose in town. Animal control has already caught two who are now up for adoption since vacations started in july. The stray cats and dead cats are adding up as people who rent their house out for the summer leave for *their* vacations and holiday makers drop off their cats during a pit stop.

They'll probably do another massive "catch, spay and release" for the cat population in autumn.

As much as I rant about outdoor cats killing wildlife and our neighbours who let their dog roam at night (she's a sweetie who sits most of that time on their doorstep), the fact is that it's easier to talk about than the culture of disposing of pets. Even if the best case scenario works out, it's a huge amount of volunteer work and the new owners have to discover the animals quirks and fears instead of a simple form and a small fee when you surrender them.

The law is very slowly catching up.

I'm far happier with the new age of no-consent laws but it would be nice to see some lawmaking about pet owning : some basics to agree to before you buy and fines for not just the cruelty but the chaos for animal control, drivers, vets and shelters during the summer hols.

I got Lily in july 8 years ago from a local shelter. Talia was a surrender to the same shelter around Christmas. So so so worth the expenses and work.

#saf #Ramblings #Warning dead cat discussion

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zyrafowe-sny · 1 year ago

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This WIP Wednesday Game has been extremely helpful lately! I'm going to give this a try this week, but there is an above-average chance that I'll fall behind (partner tested positive for COVID yesterday after we'd managed to avoid it thus far).

File names:

The Sad Tale(s) of Jody Scab: a long-neglected The Owl House multi-chapter about a minor OC in a fic I betaed. I really want to wrap up and post at least one chapter of this ASAP, but am including the two other WIPs as possible palette cleansers.

Hello! My Name is Gregor: a Nimona one shot featuring Science!Ballister and Meredith Blitzmeyer in my take on the movieverse. While this isn't as high priority as Jody Scab, I do want to post this before the next fic since it provides backstory.

phantom limb pain (prosthetic arm removal is a love language): originally conceived as a Nimona one shot but has transformed into a multi-chapter. This is a huge stretch for my skills as a relative newbie short-form genfic writer (the Goldenheart ship isn't the only thing going on but it's a subplot).

Here's a snippet of phantom limb pain (last week I jumped ahead a few chapters to one of the original scenes that inspired the fic in the first place):

Before he could talk himself out of it, he captured Bal's hand and kissed it softly. He felt him stiffen and wondered if he'd overstepped, but then Bal relaxed, interlaced his fingers through his, and snuggled in close. His slightly overgrown beard scratched the back of Ambrosius's neck - an unfamiliar but not entirely unpleasant sensation - and the warm huff of his breath made his skin prickle.

Ballister inhaled deeply before letting out a small sigh. "You still smell like lavender," he murmured into his ear.

"You still feel like home," Ambrosius answered, echoing words they'd said to each other countless times as cadets. Before the world had turned upside-down.

"Even when I'm the big spoon?" He felt Bal's lips form a smile against his hair.

"Even then." Ambrosius tightened his grip on Ballister's hand. "It's a little different, but not bad."

There was a metaphor there somewhere, he mused ruefully. Maybe a simile.

Apparently, he wasn't the only one to think so.

"Sounds like my new arm." Bal made a valiant attempt to sound lighthearted, but a slight tremble gave away his uncertainty.

It killed Ambrosius that Bal still believed anything about himself could be less than. "Your new arm is an engineering marvel that you should be proud of, as much as I hate that I chopped your arm off in the first place."

Bal started to protest but Ambrosius kept talking before he could manage to get a word in. (And before he lost his courage.) "I was actually thinking that it sounds like us."

At first there was silence, and Ambrosius' heart dropped. Maybe even that was too much, too soon.

When Ballister finally spoke, his words came out slowly and carefully. "'Us' as in you and me as individuals, or 'us' as in, well, Us?" The part of Ambrosius' brain that wasn't panicking was impressed at how well Ballister managed to communicate the capital letter.

Perhaps he should have rehearsed this first. "Both, I guess."

And there was that uncomfortable silence.

Again.

Ambrosius' heart dropped further and further with each passing second - at this rate it must be somewhere in the vicinity of his knees, he thought a little wildly - but then Bal brought their still-linked hands to Ambrosius' chest and squeezed firmly but gently, careful to avoid his burns.

"We'll be better than 'not bad,'" Bal promised. "Both 'we' as individuals and 'we' as We."

WIP Wednesday Game

It’s WIP Wednesday, time for a little accountability, sharing your work, and getting a kick in the pants.

Here’s how it works:

In a reblog of this post (so people can find you in the notes) or new thread (w/ rules attached) if you want to play on your own, post up to five (5) filenames of your WIPs; not titles, file names.

Post a snippet from one of them. Snippet must be words you wrote in the last 7 days. We’re posting progress here. If you haven’t made any, go make some and come back to play!

After you’ve posted, people can send you an ask with one of your file names. You must then write 3 sentences in that file. If the filename is one you can't share from (for example, an event or gift fic), write 3 sentences on it anyway, and then 3 more on another to share.

That’s it! You can invite others to join in, or just post. I’ll be searching the reblogs to find people to send asks to!

If you’re reading this, you’re invited!

If you see someone posting a WIP Wednesday Game snippet, send them an ask! Make them write.

Requested/Friend event mentions under the cut! If you'd like to be pinged next week, let me know!

Friends @fiore-della-valle @redbirdblogs @greenbergsays @idkfandomwhatever @luckyspike

@obaewankenope @mad-madam-m @anonymousdandelion @geometricfractal @prettybirdy979

@eriquin | Requests @aparticularbandit @madnessfromthemountains @makeroftherunes @MauveLilyWilliams

@1attheedge @whimsicalmeerkat @kidsomeday @lizhly-writes @skyderman

@adhdavinci @owlbearwrites @anachronismstellar @anyctibius @rilannon

@lazinesswrites @zyrafowe-sny @dreaminghour

#wip wednesday #wip wednesday game #my wips #sometimes I write #the owl house #Nimona

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ninjago-bingo · 2 years ago

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June recap: introspective!

woot woot! We’re officially wrapping up our first month of ninbingo round 2, and I want you all to know that we have 40 submissions so far. Let that sink in. 40, and last year, we capped out our bingo at 50.

Are you guys excited, because I am!

Because there are so many entries, I’ve split this recap by genre into the broad categories of angst, fluff, and introspective. I separated the entries using my best judgement, but if you’re the creator and would like your work(s) moved, just lmk!

art (low res; click on the link to go to the original post):

Day off and time by @sebilini

The original four ninja have time off on the same day, so they met and are chatting about their old adventures. A lot of time has passed.

Lights and magic by @sebilini

Clouse’s last happy summer

fic:

A Little Brother (Of Sorts) by @ninjas-that-go. || tumblr || ao3 || prompt: small

Perks of being an older sibling number one: being taller than your little brother. For now.

Blue-Black by @k1ngtok1. || tumblr || ao3 || prompt: contrast

Sometimes, even when he was quiet, she could see flickers of green in between his fingers or licking at his heels with his quiet footsteps. They weren’t normally a part of his color palette, and it was only sound that set off the colors. Her gut told her something was up, and if Kai had taught her anything, it was that Smiths always followed their gut.

His name didn’t match his colors, after all. Green cursive didn’t complement blue-black.

Deep down you know, You weren't built for fighting by @unknownuncut. || tumblr || ao3 || prompt: protective

Five times the ninjas protected Lloyd and the one time Lloyd protected the ninjas.

My Papa’s Waltz by @/k1ngtok1. || tumblr || ao3 || prompts: parents and reveal

“Sorry for not telling you earlier.” Cole says in lieu of a response, “I was still trying to figure it out for myself, but-“ he pulls his father’s hands away from his face and holds them, “You might want to sit down for this. It might take a while to explain everything.”

“I canceled all my plans for the week after I saw the news. I’ve got all the time in the world for you.”

Cole revels in the warmth that spreads through his chest.

Sibling Bonding ft. Dragon Hermit by @/unknownuncut. || tumblr || ao3 || prompt: animal

“Kai!” Nya pushes through the crowd to get over to him. She stops before him and keeps wanting to reach out to touch him but kept her hands away. Almost as if she’s afraid to touch him. “You okay? You’ve been missing for an hour, the others said that you and someone else went into the mountain.”

“I’m fine, just tired.” Kai finally sat down on the ground with Nya crouched down so to help him if he needs it. “Just some idiot that wanted to see if the legend of the Flame Sword is true or not."

so he was sent to bed by @21st-century-ninja. || tumblr || ao3 || prompts: parents and acceptance

“Oh, Kai, why couldn’t you just have gone to a shop?” his mother scolds, once the doctor has left after prescribing a cleanser and instructions to call her back if the infection spread. “If you had to do that to yourself, dear, why didn’t you have a professional do it? It’s not like we don’t have the money.”

It’s true. Kai’s definitely got the money for it.

or:

the fine line between filial piety and puppetry, told in a series of vignettes about earrings.

Strong In The Real Way by @/unknownuncut. || tumblr || ao3 || prompt: strength

Normally, Jay would be dragging his feet and complaining to Zane, who would be sitting with his mother and helping with the paperwork. That’s when it’s just Jay and his dad but not today.

Kai and Cole had decided to come out for a surprise visit.

We’ve Come A Long Way From Where We’ve Began by @ace-of-spaces. || tumblr || ao3 || prompt: smile

Their time is up.

After thirteen years, eleven months and four days, Ninjago no longer needs them. It is able to protect itself now.

It was symbolic, in hindsight, that their last day as Ninja ended exactly as it had started all those years ago; just the four of them in the courtyard of the Monastery of Spinjitzu.

You’re Not Alone In The World…You Have Me by @/unknownuncut. || tumblr || ao3 || prompt: contrast

Lloyd couldn’t sleep and asked Cole to take them to the store.

@weekend-whip @crappy-coffee @grollow @master-of-cosmos @roantheboat @art-i-sticks @viioletpixels @miserable-flamango @frozensoapbubble @thepenguisalive7 @marsipain @destinymanticor @obsessedbee @master-of-fluff @legogeek33 @applecranberryjuice @abunnsburrow @mitzle @ice-emperor-zane @curious-corvius @ninjago4life @kumamoo-hq

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mmvalentine · 4 years ago

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In the Stacks | Feysand

College students AU. Smut. Naughty, public smut that I dare you to read in a crowd.

Rhys was late to the study group. Feyre had been there for a half hour with Mor and Amren and was ready to strangle them both. The former had been mainlining energy drinks all afternoon and was now bouncing up and down in her chair, and the latter was alternating between snapping at Mor and muttering under her breath as she worked out equations out loud. This was especially unhelpful because Amren was doing an advanced course and having irrelevant equations being spoken aloud while Feyre barely understood the maths she was supposed to be doing was more than unhelpful.

Feyre was just about ready to give up when the boys finally clattered in, jerseys mud-stained and with testosterone rolling off them in waves.

"Relax ladies, we have arrived!" Cassian announced, throwing himself into a chair next to Mor. Azriel sat down on her other side, kicking his sports bag under the table. "Thirty-five minutes late," Amren growled. "Sorry, practice ran over." Rhys kissed Feyre on the cheek, then in one smooth motion lifted her, slid into her chair, and placed her back on his lap. He smelled of grass, fresh sweat, and Rhys.

"To be fair, the bat boys need all the practice they can get," Mor said, eyes flashing. "They're playing us next weekend and we are undefeated this season." "The Illyrian Bats will crush the Nightmare Queens," Cassian said. Mor just shrugged. "Hasn't happened yet," she said. "Yes, yes, you all play Lacrosse. Now sit down and be quiet, some of us are trying to work," Amren said. Feyre stared at her, the irony astounding. Amren didn't notice.

While Cassian and Azriel busied themselves pulling out books and laptops and pens, Rhys wrapped his arms around Feyre's middle and buried his nose in the spot where her neck met her shoulder.

"How was practice?" she asked him quietly. "It was good," he said, his lips moving against her. He nipped her earlobe, and then murmured, "Why do I always want you so bad when I've been working out?"

Feyre swatted him away. "Down boy," she said. "We're in public." Rhys sat back in the chair, and toyed with a curl that had come loose from Feyre's braid. "How's study going?" he asked her. "It's alright," Feyre said. "I like it better when you're here." Rhys kissed the back of her neck. "I'm sorry we were late." "It's okay. Maybe you can help me though, I've been stuck on this question for the last twenty minutes."

Rhys scooted the chair in closer to the desk, and looked over Feyre's shoulder at her open book. Under the table, his fingers slipped under the hem of her sweater.

"Let m be the slope of the tangent line to the graph of y equals x squared over x plus 2 at the point minus 3, minus 9. Express m as a limit," Rhys read out loud. Meanwhile, his nails scratched lightly over her belly, and Feyre leaned back into him instinctively.

"I don't get calculus," Feyre complained. "I've read the problem so many times it's just meaningless now." Rhys' hands smoothed over her thighs, and then clawed back upward. He squeezed her hips as he spoke.

"Okay this is not so bad. You got the previous question right, so you can get this one. You just need to substitute the new values into the same formula you used last time."

Now Rhys' hands were travelling back over her legs, his fingertips grazing Feyre's inner thighs. She shivered a little.

"I got it for the last question, but for some reason I can't repeat the process," she said. "Alright," said Rhys. "Give me your pencil and I'll write it out for you."

Feyre leaned forward and reached for her pencil case, and as she did, Rhys gripped her hips and rolled her over his lap. She was shocked to find him hard beneath her, and sat up in surprise.

Rhys plucked the pencil from her limp fingers.

"Thanks," he said. "Okay so, here look I'm copying this same formula, and the new values are substituted right here."

Rhys's voice was perfectly level. But while he wrote across the page, his free hand had snaked down between Feyre's legs. His fingers stroked down the seam of her leggings, then pulled back up slowly.

"What are you doing?" Feyre hissed at him. Rhys looked at her, his face innocent.

"Helping you with calculus," he said lightly. But his violet eyes burned. "Right so, since we know the coordinates are minus 3, minus 9, we can plug those straight in." Under the table, his fingers found the sensitive spot at the apex of her thighs, and rubbed against it.

Feyre's knees jolted up at the sensation, and hit the table. Four pairs of eyes looked up at her, and Rhys' fingers stopped.

"Are you alright, Feyre darling?" he asked, wide eyed. "Fine," Feyre forced out. "Shall I continue?" Feyre just nodded.

Cassian gave her a weird look, and then returned to the argument he was having with Mor and Azriel. Amren glared pointedly at her as she reached for her eraser, her writing having been jostled. Then she, too returned to her work, and Rhys started moving again. Moved his hand up and then inside her pants, hidden under the desk. Feyre bit the inside of her cheek and tried very hard to hold her expression still.

"Okay," Rhys said to her. His fingers slid down the hot, wet core of her. His voice remained level, but she could have sworn she felt him shudder slightly against her back. "So now the equation has all the information and we can solve it. Now you do the next question." He handed her the pencil, and it shook in her grip.

M = she started to write, then had to stop. Rhys's index finger was sliding very, very slowly up into her. She was horrified. She was delighted. She needed more.

Staring hard at the desk and trying not to go bright red, Feyre's hips rocked involuntarily. Seeking more, more, more.

"That's it," he said. "Keep going." His tone completely neutral, nodding toward the page.

Lim, she managed to write, the words now shaky on the paper. Then the pencil snapped clean in half, and Rhys very calmly reached out and picked up another. He pushed a second finger into her, and started to move them in and out. The heel of his palm leaned into her clit.

"They don't make pencils like they used to, do they?" Rhys said. "Here, try again."

Feyre reached out, but only got as far as putting her hand on his, and then her insides clenched and her nails dug into his palm.

"By the way Feyre, Azriel and I were talking about the party after the big match next week," Rhys said, a little too loudly. "What do you think? Are you going to come?" "Um," Feyre stuttered. "Don't you want to come, honey?"

The edges of Feyre's vision went black. Holy fuck, she thought. She was going to come, right here, in front of all of their friends.

All of a sudden, Rhys pulled his hand away and stood up. Feyre was tipped out of his lap, and her hands caught the table as her knees gave.

"Actually," Rhys said, "if you're struggling with calculus, I found the older text book much more helpful than the current one. Let me see if I can find it for you."

He took Feyre's hand and walked around the corner. She followed, dazed, and as soon as they were out of sight from the group Rhys picked up his pace. Half-dragged her all the way through the stacks, deep into the dark shelf maze, and then when they were far away enough from the rest of the students he spun her around and kissed her.

Feyre's back hit a shelf with a dull thud, and she twined her arms around Rhys' neck with a soft moan. She licked at his lips, and when their tongues touched Rhys lifted her up and hitched her legs around his waist. Feyre, so far past caring that they were still technically in a public space, grabbed at his lacrosse shorts, pulllng them down in the front. Rhys pushed his hips against her, and her hands found the ledge of the shelf behind her. He yanked her leggings down, and next thing she knew, he was inside of her.

Feyre bit down hard on her lip to keep from crying out. Rhys' head fell onto her shoulder, and he let her adjust for a moment. Then they were moving, desperately, frantically. Pulling at each other's hair. Fucking in the stacks.

In what must have been record time, Feyre broke suddenly, her back arching and her head knocking against a row of books. She held on tightly to Rhys as her climax wrung her out, and then Rhys' hand hit the shelf beside her shoulder and he was coming, too.

In the dark, dusty space between the books, Rhys and Feyre breathed hard. Feyre laughed sliently, shaking in Rhys' arms. He grinned at her through the shadows, and used his undershirt to clean her up. Then he looked around them, made sure the coast was clear, and sauntered out, casual as anything.

Feyre squeezed his hand, following, and pulled a random book from the shelf. Rhys looked at her quizzically.

"Well we can't very well come back empty handed," she said, and Rhys laughed a lovely, dark and glittering laugh.

****

Just wanted to write you lovely things a fun little one-shot as a palette cleanser before I get deep into the next chapter fic. Hope you enjoyed the smut-fest my darlings x

TAGLIST: @ghostlyrose2 @highladysith @stardelia @feysand-babies @tillyrubes10 @ratabrasileira @live-the-fangirl-life @maybekindasortaace @annejulianneh111

#feysand #feysand fic #acotar #acosf #oneshot #rhysand #mine

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xmystophalesx · 2 years ago

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Best New Heavy Metal Releases Week of August 5th, 2022

Going to try something a little different with the layout. Hopefully to make things easier to find if you are just looking for something in particular. Going to separate the albums by highlight albums, genre standouts and finally good albums that are worth a listen if you simply enjoy the album. Had a request to break it down by genre but thought that might get a little messy as a LOT of albums could conceivably fit into multiple genres. Either way, I hope this helps a bit. Let’s get to the highlights.

Exilium Noctis-Fragments of Apocalypse (Black/Death/Symphonic)**

You want something heavy? I don’t mean just your ordinary heavy; I mean, like HEAVY with all the letters capitalized. Like snap your neck heavy. Like destroying a mosh pit heavy. If that is what you want, this band has everything you need. This is an absolutely perfect mix of Death Metal and Black Metal. One genre never dominates the other and the result is that super heavy sound. This album seriously feels like a weight on your shoulders. The symphonic elements are interspersed perfectly and add an epic feel to the whole undertaking, which makes it feel even (you see a theme here?) heavier. May want to consult a physician before listening to this album.

H.E.A.T.-Force Majeure (Hard Rock/Heavy)**

If you enjoy all the genres Metal offers like me, you may need a little palette cleanser after the Exilium Noctis album. This is about as far in the other direction as you are likely to get. Insanely catchy Hard Rock that has that definite nod to the Glam Metal of the 80s but sounding very modern at the same time. This is just music that will put you in a good mood with sing along choruses, memorable riffs and shredding solos.

Starstrike-Legacy or Destiny (Heavy/Teaditional)**

This was one of the very last additions to the list this week. The logo and album cover just screams Traditional Metal and that is exactly what you get. The band is from Germany and you can hear every earmark of that German Heavy Metal sound throughout the album. If you were to put Accept, Gamma Ray, Paragon, Victory, Primal Fear, Helloween and Bonfire into a blender, this would be the result. Yet another debut album….how these bands are this good, this quick is amazing.

Preterist-Blood Moon Rising (Power)**

I have almost no info on this band. I know they are from the US and they have that European Power Metal sound down to a damn science. Think of a mixture of Stratovarius and Sonata Arctica and you will get close to their sound. Upbeat and catchy with those over the top sing along choruses and shredding guitar solos. Drums with plenty of double bass action and perfectly placed fills. If I had one very slight nitpick, it would be the production could be better. The bottom end doesn’t really come across for my liking. That could easily just be a me thing. Hopefully, I can find out more information about this band.

Perish-The Decline (Melodic Black)**

Time to get back to some feelings of anger, despair, and isolation. Those feelings are palpable on this album and they dive headfirst and wallow in them. The various guitar tones they used to convey those feelings really make this stand out and personally, I think it is a brilliant move. Oh, and did I mention this is a debut album? This is WAY too good to be a debut album. The songs are expertly crafted, and it even feels like they took care with the running order, as it feels like the songs build on each other.

Something else worthy of note. When I went to their Bandcamp page, they have a special edition box set of this album for sale. That isn’t really noteworthy but where the box is from certainly is. It is locally made at a factory next to the label office, which employs disabled people. If you purchase the box set, it helps these people out and if you want to throw a couple extra bucks on the Bandcamp order, the extra money goes directly to this cause. A Black Metal band with an album this furious, but still doing something to better their community? That deserves some praise!

That will do it for this week. I normally try to keep my vinyl purchases to only the pick of the week, but man, that is going to be difficult this week. If you have an opinion on the new layout, let me know. Until next week and, as always,

BANG THY HEAD!!!

All worthy of a listen if you like the genre

*= standout in that genre

**=best of the week regardless of genre

Best of the Best

Exilium Noctis-Fragments of Apocalypse (Black/Death/Symphonic)**

H.E.A.T.-Force Majeure (Hard Rock/Heavy)**

Liminal Shroud-Al Virtues Ablaze (Melodic Black/Atmospheric)**

Perish-The Decline (Melodic Black)**

Psycroptic-Divine Council (Technical Death)**

Starstrike-Legacy or Destiny (Heavy/Teaditional)**

Preterist-Blood Moon Rising (Power)**

Genre Standouts -

Bernatchez-Grief (Symphonic Black/Death)*

Amon Amarth-The Great Heathen Army (Melodic Death/Viking)*

Sun of Dead-Path of the Warrior (Black/Folk/Death)*

David Readman-Medusa (Hard Rock)*

Phrenesy-Fears Apocalypse (Thrash)*

Toxik-Dis Morta (Thrash)*

Ominum-Monument (Thrash/Death)*

Rotting Empire-Buried in the Past (Melodic Death)*

Early Moods-Early Moods (Traditional Doom)*

Circle Creek-The World is On Fire (Heavy/Hard Rock/Sludge)*

Creeping Cats-Losing Strength (Heavy/Traditional)*

Yelbegen-Kafir-I Azam (Black)*

Worth a listen if you enjoy the genre -

Soulfly-Totem (Thrash/Groove)

Draugur-Reflexio (Atmospheric Black)

Stormbound-December (Symphonic Heavy)

Reternity-Cosmic Dreams (Heavy)

Witchslayer-Witchslayer (Heavy/Traditional/Doom/Speed)

Ryker’s-Ours Was a Noble Cause (Hardcore)

Quantum Twilight-Hypersonic Demolition (Power)

Leaving Eden-As Above So Below (Hard Rock)

Annihilation Text-The Order (Death)

Evil In-Age of Immortal Darkness (Death/Thrash)

Triumvir Foul-Onslaught to Seraphim (Death)

Fleshrot-Unburied Corpse (Death)

Van Diemen-Sarcophilus Laniarius (Melodic Death)

Dagger Threat-Weltschmerz (Death/Melodic Death/Hardcore)

Perish takes my Pick of the Week with a debut that is WAY better than you would expect. 5 Solid bulldogs beating the heat out of 5!

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danwhobrowses · 3 years ago

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WWE Summerslam 2021 - Initial Reaction and Review

It's been a big week for wrestling in general, and now we have the Biggest Party of the Summer in the books, uncharacteristically airing on a Saturday.

It's been a while since I've run down a WWE PPV, time and apathy does have a bit to do with it, but since this is a big 4 and given what happened in Chicago there's definitely curiosity over how WWE would respond

Spoilers for Summerslam 2021 Below, I will be discussing the winners and moments so watch the PPV first

As usual I will indicate in the title who was the person I expected to win before the match started, but instead of Bold this time I'll put them in Italics with the whole match card being in bold

Kick-off

A long-ass kickoff was majority promo and interviews, not any contrarion drabble this time which was good. It was kinda sad to see Asuka on the packages but nowhere to be seen on the card.

I did like the sign guy of 'McAfee = Ratings' because he's kinda right, he has been great on commentary. I did not miss that dude in the Fiend Mask though, or the Lily Doll.

I will reiterate though that Sonya Deville is wasted right now, let her back in the goddamn ring, SD's Women's Division does need it and they make her look like a goof as Assistant GM.

Also apparently the Mysterios vs Usos aren't good enough for a promo package, not like it's a title match or anything... plus the disrespect still there, 'I wouldn't wanna work with my dad' they say like Rey isn't a multi time world champion with a huge wealth of experience.

The Miz and Morrison came in with a water truck to a mixed pop of cheers and boos, this moist gimmick ain't great but props for both guys being dedicated to it, it was short enough not to overstay its welcome too.

Ugh, Logan Paul is here...

Big E def. Baron Corbin (Pinfall via Big Ending) We had a new announcer from a Tiktok competition winner called Raine, and you know she was really good at it.

Corbin entered to boos hugging the MITB briefcase he stole, unable to afford entrance music it seems even though he's getting a PPV paycheck. To his credit he looks ultra disheveled, and when the ref had to pry the briefcase from him he looked super forlorn. I dunno why he's wrestling in a shirt though wouldn't that make it dirtier?

When the bell rings E does basically go right at Corbin, Corbin got a shoulder block in but then got caught in a belly to belly - despite protests - then a belly to backp. E missing the apron splash as Corbin senses a countout win, at 7 he leaves the ring to hit E against the ring post to try and eke out more time, demanding that the timekeeper keep the briefcase in his sights. E does return to the ring but his spear goes right is sidestepped into the ringpost, then thrown into them two more times, but only gets 2.

Corbin continues with some momentum with a sidewalk slam for 2, but his chokeslam is reversed into a rollup for 2 then a stretch muffler. He escapes and hits the Deep Six for 2, then 1.8, Corbin then stumbles to the briefcase, considering an exit before being hit with a lariat. E throws Corbin into the ring, but Corbin rolls right out, grabs the briefcase and tries to run around the ring only to be pounced into the barricade by Big E. The cat and mouse chase comes to an end, Corbin elbows E to get some room to roll to the other side of the ring but E catches him with that suicide spear he does, the briefcase is dropped and the straps are off: Big Ending for 3.

Shots of Logan Paul are hilariously met with huge boos as Big E finally reclaims his briefcase to a pop.

It was a nice little match, good palette cleanser and a nice and clean competition, Corbin had no chance in winning but it was a solid way to warm up the crowd for the main ppv.

Our final bit of the kick-off was discussing the UNI main event, though I feel like losing your job is a higher stake than winning your 17th world title. Also they had to force in the shucky ducky which was dumb.

Main Show

Raw Tag Team Championship: RK-Bro [Randy Orton & Riddle] def AJ Styles & Omos (c) [TITLE CHANGE] (Pinfall on Styles by Orton via RKO) Starting the night with some fun as Riddle comes out in a garish snake print outfit with a cerise pink lining, Orton didn't get the fashion memo thankfully but his hologram snake was cheesy. Riddle interacted with the crowd and had the multicoloured holo-doves while Orton mainly kept to himself. AJ and Omos came out together, though Omos had no theatrics, looking like a bouncer being invited to dinner still.

Orton and AJ started the match, Orton with the early advantage and tagging Riddle in for an assisted backflip for a 1 count, AJ rolls out the ring frustrated then tags in Omos, who just ragdolls Riddle; Shoulder Block, big clubbing blow then a delayed powerslam - an interesting glance over to Orton as well as they smile at each other, almost like Orton approved. Omos tries to deadlift Riddle with a wristlock but Riddle scrambles into a sleeper, but is flipped off then flattened in the corner. AJ tags in, platforming Omos for a Tornado DDT for 2, Riddle tries to fight out but runs into a backbreaker as AJ tells Orton 'you're next'.

During the rest hold, the crowd rallies Riddle back into the fight, AJ looks to have reclaimed an advantage and throws Riddle to his corner, but Riddle turns it into a dropkick on Omos, then dumps AJ out the ring. Riddle tries to tag Orton but AJ grabs him, enzugiri by Riddle allows Orton to make the hot tag. Clotheslines on AJ, a forearm to Omos - but it only stuns him, doesn't even fall to the floor, backdrop and another forearm to Omos that again fails to drop him. Clothesline to corner and a powerslam, this time Orton drops Omos out the ring by dropkicking the knees, draping DDT gets Orton feeling the RKO, but Omos drags AJ out the ring, then catches Riddle's dive to chokeslam him onto the apron. AJ stuns Orton with a jawbreaker on the ropes and gestures Omos to finish Riddle, but Riddle escapes the lawn dart and pushes Omos into the ring post. AJ though catches Riddle with his backflip reverse DDT on the outside, he misses the Phenomenal Forearm, but stands his ground against the RKO attempt, he rolls up for 2 and then lands into an RKO for 3.

It didn't last long but it was a fun opener, it was time for a title change and RK-Bro was a good choice. It's a shame Styles has to be the weak link but you can't be surprised that WWE continue to protect Omos.

Alexa Bliss (w/Lily) def. Eva Marie (w/ Doudrop) (Pinfall via DDT) The Lily hologram was fucking horrifying as Bliss carries the doll and puts it on the corner turnbuckle. Bliss weaves Eva effortlessly, she tries a waistlock but gets elbowed off. Eva gets a punch and a hair yank then...poses. She grabs Lily and starts slapping the doll, then slapping Alexa with the doll. Alexa then goes on the attack, clotheslines then a senton for 2, she puts Lily back as Eva argues with Doudrop. Alexa misses the Twisted Bliss and Eva gets 2 twice, a kick to the gut and a DDT finishes off Eva.

Post-match, Doudrop only looks smugly at Eva and grabs a microphone, announcing Eva as the loser, stealing her gown and walking away as Eva insists she made Doudrop.

This match didn't need to happen, in fact it could've just been a segment, but at least WWE were sensible in not having Eva Marie win against a former women's champion. They also didn't do any spooky shit and put the narrative mainly on Doudrop being free to hopefully be Piper Niven again, once again it didn't overstay its welcome.

Mario Lopez (who?) interviews RK-Bro on their title win, Orton cuts his normal promo but gets stumbled by trying to fit 'Bro' into his '3 most deadly letters in wrestling' catchphrase.

US Championship: Damian Priest def. Sheamus (c) [TITLE CHANGE] (Pinfall via Recknoning) Immediately after the interview Priest was already on the ramp, in blue gear with the USA and Puerto Rico flag on his tights, he did his archer pose to set off his tron. The Tron had a bit of an issue with Sheamus' opening, Sheamus wandered in with his face guard and coat. Sidebar, I still don't like the US Title design, it's better than the old one but not by much.

The two start by locking up, some solid chain wrestling shows that Sheamus has the power but Priest has the agility. After a pump kick, Priest hits a Falcon Arrow for 1, he has a bit of a nasty landing with his mid-rope flip senton out the ring, his heel clipped Sheamus' head but Priest's back had a hard landing on the floor, not easy to get distance when you step off the middle rope. Despite a flurry of kicks, Sheamus focuses on the back by throwing him into the ring post, belly to back and also an Irish Curse lead to a Camel Clutch, but Priest escapes that, Sheamus picks him up but Priest elbows out, so then he tries to powerbomb and Priest rana's out of that. Momentum is short though as Sheamus gets a powerslam for 2, a Dublin Smile and a Beats of the Bodhrán but he cuts the count short to slight the crowd's chant. His timewasting is punished by a Tornado DDT from Priest, they trade blows and a lariat floors Sheamus, a spinning leg lariat from the top rope only gets him 2.

Priest sets up the Reckoning, but is picked up for a rolling fireman's carry slam, Sheamus slowly climbs the turnbuckle, giving Priest time to look for a chokeslam, but Sheamus shimmies along the ropes and gets a massive rope-assisted jawbreaker, top turnbuckle clothesline and an Alabama Slam only gets 2. Sheamus angrily talks shit at Priest, Priest slaps him but Sheamus headbutts him back. He sets up the Brogue Kick but Priest gets the Big Boot and the South of Heaven, but it only gets 2. Priest tries the Reckoning but his back won't handle the weight, he tries a Disaster Kick but runs into a knee to the face, it's only a 2. After being furious with the ref Sheamus tries the Cloverleaf, but gets rolled up for 2, he catches Priest in a heel hook in the middle of the ring, with no ropes to reach, Priest reaches for the face guard, ripping it off of Sheamus. Madness in his eyes, Priest unloads on Sheamus' face, causing Sheamus to cover up and release the hold, a flapjack into the top turnbuckle stuns Sheamus for another spinning Leg Lariat and then a Recknoning for 3.

A nice technical match, had some creative spots in there and Priest winning was nice to see after the Miz/Morrison feud lasted forever. I do dislike that they said it was his first title 'in WWE' though, because he was NA Champion in NXT, which is still WWE Cole. I don't think I liked that the face guard is what undid Sheamus, the dude who likes to fight shouldn't really lose to insecurity. But third time's the charm with the Reckoning.

Afterwards we had a promo for NXT TakeOver. We got a backstage talk between Rey and Dom, Dom apologizing to Rey for the SD incident and Rey forgiving it immediately, noting to stay focused on the match right now.

SD Tag Championship: The Usos (c) def. The Mysterios (Pinfall on Rey by Jey via Splash) Immediately after the promo they left the curtain to their entrance, the yellow, white and pink was...a choice, kinda miss the comic book attires. The Usos came out with the Leis and their regular gear.

Rey and Jimmy started lightning quick, Rey setting up a 619 with a rana but Jimmy rolling out of the ring, eating a basement dropkick. Jey's intervening is stopped by Dom who drops him sluggishly into his brother before he's tagged in, Rey hits the baseball slide splash and Dom the crossbody. In the ring Dom's second crossbody gets 2, three amigos by Dom but he shifted Jimmy too close to Jey, who managed to tag a leg, meaning that Jey throws Dom off the turnbuckle when he tries a Frog Splash. Jey taunts Dom after hitting him into the ring post (who has had a lot of mileage already), gesturing him to try and tag his father before cinching a headlock, Dom tries to fight back but is thrown to the other corner, Jimmy is tagged in and they hit a Backbreaker/Ax Handle combo. Jimmy taunts Dom the same way, diving headbutt for 2, the Usos spend too much time taunting Dom in their corner as the younger Mysterio staggers the twins with elbows, his rush for his father is cut off by a very nonchalant uppercut by Jey (McAfee literally yelling HADOUKEN was amazing). Jey continues to posture after suplexes and more taunting, they look for the third suplex but Dom hooks his leg, reversing it into a twisting neckbeaker.

Rey gets the hot tag as Jey tags Jimmy, planting the Uso with a tornado DDT for 2. Seated Senton and a forearm to Jey on the Apron leads to Rey walking into a Superkick for 2. Both Usos stalk Rey, looking to do a pop-up Powerbomb, but Rey ranas Jimmy out the ring, Jey gets him with a superkick to the gut, then a superkick to counter Rey's springboard crossbody, he hits the Splash but it only gets 2. Jey looks frustrated and tags Jimmy to set up the double splash, but Dom cuts Jey off, he tries to suplex Jey onto the apron but Jey drops him with a front-facing suplex instead. The delay is sufficient though since Rey rolls away from Jimmy's splash, headscissors setup, 619 for a big pop, he goes for the Frog Splash but Jimmy gets the knees up. Superkick by Jimmy, tags in Jey, double Superkick, splash by Jey and 3.

*sigh* Can Rey stop being pinned? It's not like Dom doesn't know how to take a pin. It's, it's sucky really, I've said it enough times but Rey deserves more than this given his popularity and past title wins, WWE would not do this to the likes of Edge or Cena, Angle or Goldberg, hell they wouldn't even do this to Eddie and yet Rey gets this treatment as thanks for being full time. Granted, it took like 3 finishers to down him but come on, compare the light pop this match got when everyone knew the Usos were winning with the pop Rey's hot tag and his 619 got, he still has it and they won over the crowd, with more time and narrative to their match it could've been a classic. I'm just sick of seeing one of my faves lose so much you know, if the story is Dom's inexperience then surely he would be the reason for defeat, rather than Rey being ganged up on.

Tiffany Haddish (who??) interviews Priest on his title win, apparently Priest hates bullies and he's happy...not as cool as his NA title win in the hot tub though. Summerslam could've fit in a hot tub

Rick Boogs then shreds the guitar as he welcomes King Nakamura. McAfee is dancing like a goof again on the table and Nakamura's crown falls off, but he makes up for it by playing the IC title like a guitar with Pat. He's disappeared after the Belair/Sasha package though...kinda confusing why that was there.

SD Women's Championship: Bianca BelAir (c) vs Sasha Banks CANCELLED As Bianca enters with SD Women's Title prints on her gear, the announcer says that Sasha is unable to compete, so Carmella is fighting in her stead. A shame but obviously not intended.

Bianca BelAir (c) vs Carmella INTERRUPTED Props to McAfee for noting the collective disappointment. BelAir looks disappointed too and tells Carmella that she's gonna dish out her frustration on Carmella. The title is aloft but then

Becky Lynch is here

Cameras are not showing enough of her on her return as Bianca buzzes, the crowd is on their feet. Becky's got a thicker mane than I remember, maybe it's the curls, a new shirt of 'The Man's back in Vegas' is worn by Becky too as she soaks in her pop. When the cameras stop long enough to focus on Becky she is looking extra lean. She attacks Carmella and dumps her out of the ring, she tells Bianca she'll be right back and throws Carmella into the steps, before standing off with Bianca. She grabs a microphone and asks for a title match, BelAir mulls it, but eventually accepts.

Becky Lynch def. Bianca BelAir (c) [TITLE CHANGE] (Pinfall via Manhandle Slam) Both women are amped up, Lynch offers a handshake but the moment they touch, she socks Bianca, Manhandle Slam and 3. Becky celebrates as BelAir looks stunned and a little shafted, Becky does gesture no hard feelings but, BelAir does have hard feelings.

It's a big pop for Becky's return, though I would've rather seen you know, a match. I love Becky, she's been one of my favourite women's wrestlers in WWE before she was even The Man, and I am psyched she's back, but BelAir vs Becky could've been a good match. we didn't need the Carmella stuff either just have BelAir call an open challenge in Sasha's absence. Also as thin as the SD Women's Division was Becky probably would've fit more for the Raw Women's Title situation, since we last saw her vacating it and that shit's on heavy life support, plus I was kinda hoping that Bianca could beat Sasha but Sasha would win later down the line so we could build Liv Morgan for a title win, I guess October's draft could still open it up. But yeah, happy to see Becky back.

Wrestling Olympic Gold Medalists Tamyra Mensah-Stock and Gable Stevenson come out next, I know WWE have been hot on Gable but after the scripts' comments on Simone Biles it feels forced. Tamyra was at least happy to be here.

Extreme Rules promo is next.

Drew McIntyre def. Jinder Mahal (Pinfall via Claymore) Jinder comes out first, Veer and Shanky only able to stand at the ramp and go to the back. Drew comes with his sword to summon...smoke? You can see how dull that sword is too.

Drew starts the match strong by throwing Jinder in the corner, kicks and chops followed by throws, he motions for Claymore but Jinder rolls out the ring, cutting him at the legs. Jinder's attempt to regain momentum is countered with a belly to belly, so next he tries to appeal to their past friendship but Drew isn't having it. He tries the Futureshock but Jinder kicks him in the face, stunning him for 2. Knee drops and knee chokes are followed by clubs to Drew's head and a choke, but Drew powers out and hits a Glasgow Kiss (which they called a Glaz-gao kiss, it's not that hard to say Glasgow), some more Belly to Bellies leads to a Futureshock and a kip up, 3, 2, 1, Claymore, 1, 2, 3.

McIntyre stepped over Jinder as he celebrated, Veer and Shanky tended to Jinder and then Drew grabbed his sword and started swinging...like the face he is trying to murder these dudes for tending to their boss.

Okay. Easy pop having squashed Jinder, did this need to be on PPV? Probably not, this and Bliss/Eva could've been done on Raw, rather than steal time from Usos/Mysterios and a potential Becky/BelAir banger. Nobody really got over or elevated with this.

Raw Women's Championship: Charlotte Flair def. Nikki A.S.H. (c) and Rhea Ripley [TITLE CHANGE] (Submission on Nikki by Charlotte via Figure Eight) Uncharacteristically, Nikki came out first to nothing, not a pop or a boo, it kinda sounded like fake crowd noises when we had one pop. Rhea got a mini pop next, but loud woos for Charlotte? Don't buy that especially given how she's meant to be the heel. She's in kinda Thanos gear too. The pops were louder for Rhea when her name was announced, Nikki's was mixed and Charlotte had some boos.

The bell rings as Charlotte shoves Nikki, telling her to get out the ring. Rhea shoves Charlotte but Nikki dumps Rhea out the ring, a Monkey Flip to Charlotte then a Rollup on Rhea for 1. Charlotte dumps Rhea as the two tussle, Nikki coming back to boot Charlotte off the apron as part of a bulldog on Rhea. Rhea keeps trying to keep a hold of Nikki but Nikki keeps rolling her up. Charlotte throws Nikki into Rhea like a spear then lariats Rhea and exploder's Nikki. Rhea and Charlotte trade advantages around the turnbuckle, Charlotte fights off a Nikki crossbody and powerslams Nikki onto Rhea, she tries the moonsault but Rhea gets her feet up, Nikki rolls her up but Rhea pulls her off, tries the Riptide but Nikki shifts her weight to splash her. Nikki headscissors Charlotte but is booted by Rhea, Charlotte then boots Rhea and taunts her, Rhea then starts finding energy, a Northern Lights for 1 but Charlotte then regains momentum, a huge big boot to dump Rhea out the ring, but Nikki then tornado DDTs Charlotte for 2. Basement Dropkick to Rhea gives Charlotte time to catch Nikki but Rhea german's them both, Missile Dropkick to Charlotte by Rhea only gets 2 as Charlotte flees to the outside. The two trade blows on the outside, to be flattened by Nikki's crossbody.

Pulling Charlotte in the ring, Charlotte resists the suplex, but Rhea comes in to double up on Charlotte, only for Charlotte to reverse it to a double DDT, Flair chops are suppressed but Charlotte still manages to fend off Nikki and Rhea, Corkscrew Moonsault on the outside takes the two out. She drags Rhea in but Rhea gets a boot, Nikki tries to roll up Rhea but only gets 2. Rhea's limping a bit but still kicks Nikki and cinches in her Inverted Cloverleaf, she dodges the Big Boot from Charlotte (perhaps inadvertently) and locks it into Charlotte, but she rolls through and gets the Figure 8, which is broken by Nikki's knee drop. Nikki hits a Purge but it's broken up by Rhea, she sets another Riptide but again Nikki counters this time with a Reverse Tornado DDT, dumping Rhea out the ring. Nikki sees Charlotte prone, setting up the Crossbody, but she misses, Charlotte locks the Figure 8 and taps.

Abrupt finish, it was a really well-worked match selling the chaos of the triple threat. But I never felt like Charlotte was in danger of losing, Nikki wasn't working because they rushed her new character without getting her over, so of course WWE were gonna fall back to ye olde Charlotte title win. The narrative didn't help either, she seemed like the babyface and again, didn't feel threatened, I never saw the opening for Charlotte to lose. In a vacuum it was a good match, as a whole though, since Rhea won the title at mania nobody's gotten over, they made an absolute hash of the Charlotte feud to the point where we didn't even feel invested in Rhea getting a win back, then we fast tracked a cash in. The only one who profited here was Charlotte, who got to add 2 more title reigns to her name on paper, had Becky came here to make it a 4-Way and won, it'd probably have been more hopeful because now, who is next? Asuka's AWOL, Shayna's buried, Alexa's on spooky shits, Rhea's broken, Nikki isn't getting over, who can Charlotte face at this point?

Edge def. Seth Rollins (Submission via Crossface) Dressed like some aristocrat, Seth entered first half smug half focused, it may've dragged on a bit long. Edge didn't come out to Metalingus, but instead he came out in the fires of the Brood, with the dark sunglasses, fire and the elevated platform to boot, but then Metalingus came out to give the people what they want.

The bell rings but there's a long pause to soak in the crowd investment. Edge has the early advantage with a swift punch, every time Seth tries to lock in on Edge he hits back, annoying Seth as he mulls outside the ring. He tries the Pedigree but is again dumped out the ring, this time Edge follows and throws him around the barriaces, Rollins returns to the ring but is knee'd out, but gets some advantage by dodging the Baseball Slide and driving Edge into ye olde Ring Post, then against the steps. Neckbreaker only gets 2 as he continues to focus on the neck with chokes, stomps and slingblades, another neckbreaker leads to another 2 as Seth taunts Edge about it.

A diving knee by Rollins gets 2 as Seth kicks around Edge, he tries another neckbreaker but Edge reverses into a backslide for 2, Flapjack and a tackle into the turnbuckle, Seth fends off Edge at the turnbuckle though and hits the Frog Splash for 2 but for the second time Edge rolls into the corner to avoid the stomp. Rollins pulls Edge to the turnbuckle, but Edge hits him with a top turnbuckle spinning neckbreaker, Flapjack onto the top rope, Edgecution for 2, Rollins stuns Edge by driving him into the Turnbuckle, but he misses his knee strike into an Head Yank for 2. Edge goes up top but Rollins turns it into his Superplex/Falcon Arrow combo for 2, he sets up the Stomp but misses, tries the Pedigree but Edge wriggles out, Glam Slam by Edge for 2, nice homage for Beth there. Seth gets back the momentum though, Jawbreaker on the ropes then a neckbreaker on the ropes, Edge dodges the stomp on the apron though and throws Seth into the ring post (not ye olde ringpost though it's a different one) and then a spear through the ropes into the outside. A bulldog into the apron LED only gets 2, but now Edge is setting up the spear, but Rollins counters into a Pedigree (Pat mustn't have watched Roman vs Seth before because he said he has never seen that counter) but it only gets 2.

Rollins climbs up top looking for the Phoenix Splash, he lands on his feet and rolls away but walks into a spear, 1, 2, No. Edge now looking for the Killswitch but Rollins clubs then kicks Edge in the back of the head, he tries the Stomp but Edge rolls and catches the boot, turning it into an Edgecator, Seth reaches for the ropes so Edge tries to pull him back, but in releasing the hold he gets rolled up for 2. Edge then tries the Crossface, rolling to the center of the ring, but Edge slams his head into the mat and reapplies it for the tapout.

A nicely worked match again that managed to showcase a lot of Edge's past bag of tricks. The second I was wrong about too, I expected Seth to get some momentum to try and challenge Roman like he had been teasing before this feud (on that note, where's Cesaro? Miss that dude), but it was definitely something for the fans to cheer about. The narrative of avoiding the Stomp was also good for the storytelling, Seth doesn't lose anything in defeat either, he's took 2 spears, 2 crossfaces, Edgecator and the Edgecution.

MITB 22 is announced on 4th July at the Allegiant Stadium, Vegas (the same venue as tonight). Expect there to be a Murica match in there. In addition attendance today is 51k. We scope back around to Miz and Morrison's kickoff thing, mostly getting a jobber entrance. The moist jokes were worst this time around as they marketed the 'Drip Stick 2000' which neither had. Who did have it? A very wet and long-haired Xavier Woods with a cocktail stick in their mouth and a 'New Day Order' shirt. Woods convinces the crowd to rally into shooting them with a water gun, though it didn't really get a pop in the act, dumb shit really but whatever Woods' new look is I dig it.

WWE Championship: Bobby Lashley (w/MVP) (c) def. Goldberg (via Ref Stoppage) Lashers out first...no sanctity it seems. He's walking into the ring with purpose, his pose has no pyro though, kinda a lukewarm smoke that'd make Revolution 2020's explosion smirk. Goldberg does his usual entrance, lots of quick camera switching again. Dude looks a bit top-heavy tbh, skipping those leg days. Lashley paces across Goldberg's periphery, it doesn't look like there'll be underestimation in this fight.

They lock up first, a bit of strength testing, Goldberg tanks a shoulder block, grounding Lashley with a flying shoulder block, then a body slam. Goldberg is keeping the advantage with corner attacks and clotheslines but Lashley clubs at the back. He sets up a Jackhammer for insult to injury, but Goldberg keeps his leg hooked, he tries to lift Lashley but can't follow through and gets hit with a flatliner. No sympathy from Lashley as he clubs at the back of the head before uncharacteristically going up top, which Goldberg punishes by throwing him down, Goldberg looks for the Spear but MVP yanks Lashley outside, only for Goldberg to spear him on the outside anyway.

Goldberg sets up a second spear, but as the ref focuses on Lashley rolling out the other side, MVP thwacks Goldberg's knee with his cane, distracting Goldberg long enough to be chop blocked. Chokeslam makes Lashley look for the Hurt Lock, but he can't connect the fingers, as Goldberg escapes though he gets chop blocked again, causing Goldberg to leave the ring. Lashley follows, lifting him up and charging him knee first into the ring post twice. Struggling to stand, the Ref throws the match.

The match is over but Lashley continues to attack the leg with a steel chair. Gage Goldberg attempts to jump but gets wrenched with a Hurt Lock. MVP tries to assure that Lashley wouldn't have known that he was attacking Goldberg's son but it means little, Goldberg insisting he's gonna kill Lashley, meaning this feud isn't over.

The heat was right, the delivery was wrong. We've seen people beat Goldberg clean, I don't see why Lashley, who has beaten people who have beaten Goldberg clean, couldn't do that himself? Needing MVP's help flattens the statement made.

Camera work got a bit wonky there when promoting the Main Event

Universal Championship: Roman Reigns (c) def. John Cena (Pinfall via Spear) Cena's the first to come out, sporting a Super Mario-esque shirt showing his 16 world title reigns, the reigns also shown on the tron, they actually mentioned Ric Flair this time. The Bronze Statue hologram for Roman is still tacky, but he comes out flanked with his cousins and Paul, smoke again instead of pyro - I wonder if they weren't allowed to pyro. Heyman whispers the Usos to leave Roman to walk the ramp. I spotted an 'Anyone but you Roman' sign in the crowd, before McAfee makes me smirk again by calling Roman an 'absolute stud'.

Roman's a little ginger about locking up with Cena, but is goaded into it, winning the shoulder block. A second lock up leads to a Cena roll up for 1, trying to call back to the go home smackdown, another schoolboy for 2 but Roman laughs it off. Roman doesn't lock up again, kicking and clubbing at Cena while mocking the crowd, a lariat is reversed into another rollup for 2 but gets him back with a reverse lariat (he used the back of his arm, like a chop lariat), a Suplex by Roman leads to a 2 count, then the rest hold. Cena tries to break but Roman smacks him, another suplex for 2 then he dumps Cena out the ring, Cena blocks the punch and tries to flurry back, but is whipped into the steel steps. After some posturing Roman smacks Cena headfirst into the steps again, then posing with the belt as he claims that the crowd needs him, he saunters to the ring but walks into another schoolboy for 2, leading to another punch.

Roman insists that Cena can't win like this, but in his gloating Cena almost lifts him for the AA, which Roman counters into a DDT for 2. Roman almost looks bored, telling the hard cam that he's not apologetic about hurting Cena, Cena once again tries the forearms but when he tries the flying shoulder block he runs into an uppercut. Roman mocks Cena for having only five moves, but again it's a rollup for 2, this time Roman counters with a sleeper, Cena tries to fight but Roman puts his body weight on him, he tries again and Roman uses his weight again, only this time Cena launches him into the corner and follows up with a clothesline. Then come the shoulder tackles, the twisting front drop, but as he tiredly goes for the 5 Knuckle Shuffle, Roman snaps in the Guillotine, Cena tries the Jackknife pin for 2, the hold is broken but this time it's a Superman Punch. Roman wastes too much time though and his spear is countered with a kick, this time the 5 Knuckle Shuffle hits, AA, 1, 2, No. Heyman's having heart palpitations ringside but Cena's locked in the STF, Roman makes the rope to break the hold and leaves the ring, but as Cena looks to follow he's hit by a Drive By.

Roman looks to put Cena away with a Spear on the outside, but Cena counters it with an AA through the Announcer's Table, he drags Roman back into the ring but only gets the 2. Cena goes up top, looking for a dropkick maybe, but he's caught into a powerbomb for 2. Roman seems to be prepping his Superman Punch, but Cena rolls for 2, picks up for the AA but can't lift him all the way, allowing Roman to hit the Superman Punch for another 2. Roman is getting irritated now, Cena's been in his head after all, he goes for the Spear but meets ye olde ring post. Cena pulls Roman up for the Avalanche AA, he lands it, 1, 2, No! Cena taunts Roman this time, quoting his entrance theme then mocking the Oooowaaah, the Spear is cut off though, instead they trade blows, one Superman Punch, two Superman Punch, Roman declares he is WWE and lands the Spear, 1, 2, 3.

Roman stands over the prone Cena, but then the noise is heard. Brock Lesnar is in the building, and he still has the hipster look. Cameras lose control again as Heyman finds a conflict in interest, dude is absolutely jacked though. He approaches Roman in a staredown, but Roman just leaves the ring to close the night. Apparently off-air Lesnar then attacked Cena.

You know what would've made this match better? If the conclusion wasn't so forgone after Smackdown. Did anyone actually think that WWE would let Roman quit? At least before Roman's career was at stake there was a 10% chance Cena could leave as the winner, which would've made the nearfalls much more believable.

As for Lesnar, well, Vince always wanted Roman/Brock to be the main level feud and he's always getting his way. It'll draw, but it only puts paper over the submarine window that is the problem.

Conclusion

A good PPV though. I don't think there was any match that was awful. And that's kinda saying something with Eva Marie involved. Some segments and matches were, legless perhaps, stuff you could've be done with or even just put on Raw which is a shame because that took time from matches, as I said I would've liked to actually see Becky and Bianca wrestle and the Mysterios get more time.

The returns were good, I suppose Chicago definitely had nothing to do with that. But I'm not gonna be sad about seeing Becky Lynch again.

My main problem is probably how despite the big card, there was no doubt, I mean I got all but a couple of matches right on this card and it was because the matches were all built so obviously, those two frankly I predicted because I expected a bit more swerve. Part of it could be the fatigue of all the good wrestling we've seen so far but compared to other PPVs where I've felt on the edge of my seat or shaking in my ribs I just felt cosy, like it was a casual watch.

It was certainly not bad, definitely a good outing with good wrestling, but there is room still to improve on the narrative, and camera work like seriously learn to linger, immediate snap cuts throw people off. New directions are ahead to fulfill that so hopefully WWE can find a course to get back on.

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