#Me after making everything into pixie lore because I can

[ringmaster-pixie]

im curious now what do souls taste like

is it safe for humans to eat souls

Ive probably ate worse

its probably better than not eating at all.

if humans can survive around 3 weeks without food… than what was keeping me going for 3 years?…

[our-hextech-dream]

i haven't seen anyone fully articulate what i personally felt disappointed by wrt viktor's s2 persona and ending so i guess i have to do it myself even tho i'm bad at talking!! can someone who is better at this just read my mind and say it fancier and more coherently?

agency, the loss of

i have seen people already mention the way disability came into play at the end and what a wild choice it was for jayce - born able-bodied and healthy - to be the one to tell viktor - trapped in a body that was actively killing him - that actually your disability is a part of you and made you who you are and you owe everything to it. ... huh? jayce (by which i mean the writers), do you think without his disability, viktor wouldn't have still been a genius? yes, viktor is disabled - that's not even remotely what makes him a compelling character and power player. it is his mind not his body that makes him who he is. the fact that he had to waste almost his whole life fighting against that body to achieve anything is the entire crux of his frustration - imagine what he could have dedicated his mind to if he weren't constantly struggling to find a way just to survive another year, another month, another week, one more day. have you thought about it? because he has. so yeah that whole conversation, trash. bruno mars just the way you are ass one direction that's what makes you beautiful ass argument. viktor was not going crazy over cosmetic surgery, he was trying not to die.

but it strikes me as just one more expression of an overarching theme for s2 viktor - that of the complete and total loss of his agency. (more on a meta level than in the show itself, but also in the show!) i said after act 1 that viktor had died in that explosion and jayce was going to be chasing that corpse until the end, and i was correct. viktor bounced from one mindset to another, never seeming to have any consistent ideology of his own that couldn't be changed as soon as the plot demanded it. at any given point he was just kinda... wandering around, doing some random shit with the powers that worked through him. gone was the viktor who used his own hands and mind to influence the world directly, to bend it to his will. i always always felt this and i stand by it - taking viktor's abilities as an inventor and scientist away and turning him into some arcane mage jesus figure was a mistake and a disservice to his character. arcane said no this boy wasn't smart or determined, his ability to build and invent and seek and learn don't matter and never mattered, he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and as soon as the arcane got its goop on him he just became the most specialest magic pixie dream boy to ever live and his own goals, dreams, ideals, morals, talents, skills, and hard work ceased to matter in any meaningful way. he never had to work to master magic to be able to use it to further his goals, because he immediately stopped having goals.

viktor became a non-character. he became whatever ideological and technological threat level the show needed to challenge to heroes and never more. he ceased to have any control or understanding over what was happening to him, rather he just gave up and decided to use his magic indiscriminately for whoever made the most convincing argument, a choice that would have been completely antithetical to his character up to that point if he'd still been alive. 'fuck zaunites, sure i'll turn them into robots so a foreign power can use them to attack and take over piltover and zaun, who cares. it's not like these are the people i've spent 30 years of my life trying to protect and save.' <- something viktor would never ever ever have agreed to! ever! no matter what! they have played us for absolute fools.

ambiguity, the loss of

the thing i wanted the most and was expecting because of the way viktor's original lore was set up was that the series would end with viktor and jayce unreconciled and with mutually exclusive worldviews, both fully believing they were right and the other was misguided but not evil or irredeemable, setting them up for future conflict. this felt like what was being set up when arcane made it a plot point that jayce was being convinced to turn hextech into weapons while viktor started getting unethical and unhinged with the experimentation. they both had good reasons to do what they did - and i'm absolutely not going to insult jayce's intelligence by claiming he was just manipulated into it by anyone, give me a fucking break - but the point was that both of them were doing something the other thought was misguided and dangerous. and they also felt that if they could just make the other person see their completely logical and rational pov, they could fix the divide between them and make up and be best science buddies again.

but then at the end arcane completely gave up on viktor having any belief in his own ideals. it just turned into 'aw actually he was just lonely all along and none of that science stuff or difference in morals or worldviews mattered bc he's got a buddy now and he's completely unequivocally on jayce's side. :)'

it was like. insanely selfish. as in, self-centered, concerned *only* with the self. the viktor i liked, and the one i wanted to flourish and hoped arcane would canonize, was someone who was entirely dedicated to zaun, to righting the wrongs of piltover and helping the people in the way he thought best - no matter what jayce or piltover thought about it. an ambiguous villain, just like all the other really well-written ones in arcane.

accountability, the loss of

viktor killed people. not sky, who was an accident despite his fixation on her; i'm talking at least a hundred or more zaunites during his stint as the machine herald. he ripped their minds out and made them play house with him, then turned them into weapons of war for ambessa's siege, and all of those people - primarily sick, desperate zaunites - died. this was always the entire crux of the conflict between (league) viktor and jayce giopara. viktor was willing to destroy people and use their bodies for his own gain unapologetically because he thought what he was doing was a blessing and the people were better off under his control because they would never feel fear or anger again. agree, disagree, depends on your view of free will and human nature, but the fact is that everyone who came to viktor hoping for a chance to be healed so they could pursue their own dreams and lives had those dreams and lives ripped away from them and they never got justice or even a single scrap of acknowledgement from the narrative.

in arcane, the horror of viktor's actions just... fade away into the background. viktor and jayce waltz off into magicspace together, leaving viktor's dead, ruined victims for piltover and zaun to deal with. he doesn't return their minds or bodies, he doesn't even seem to remember or care about what he had just been doing to other sentient living human beings. he's not sorry, he doesn't feel regret, he got what he wanted (a friend) and fuck everybody else.

because the narrative just shrugs and handwaves and says no no forget all that it doesn't matter it was just the hexcore or whatever, viktor becomes a flat, uninteresting character. he loses the depth that villains like ambessa and silco had, villains who had their victims validated by the story, who faced challenges in their arcs specifically because of the people they had hurt despite thinking they were doing the right or noble or most important thing. and not just the villains! even the heroes had to wrestle with the people they stepped on on the way to their lofty goals. but not viktor. he just floats away scot free, completely blameless, having no affect on the world and the world having no affect on him.

on arcane's status as the new canon lore and the Implications™

reminder that arcane is somehow supposed to tie into the world of runeterra at large, but now viktor and jayce both have been seemingly entirely removed from it. if it only mattered that they knew the people we'd already seen them interact with, okay, i guess. but that isn't the case. they both have a ton of connections to other champions - from regions other than p&z even - that haven't been introduced and don't have any plausible explanation for how they could have met in the past, which means they should have been set up to meet somehow in the future. implying that jinx escaped and has gone traveling the world is the perfect way to incorporate her in-game relationships with people like lux - she could have met her while traveling! but jayce and viktor don't get that plausible continuation of their story and development of further relationships - they just disappear out of existence. (ambessa also has this problem because they killed her, but unlike jayce and viktor she does have a huge amount of unexplored backstory where she could have spoken to (for example) swain and hwei and shyvanna at some point.)

note 1 - jayce and viktor are so old that they don't have any voice lines in game when meeting other champions. but other champions who are either newer or who have had voiceover updates do talk to them, which is how (aside from the old lore) you can infer that they do have relationships with other champions including ones who weren't in arcane.

note 2 - maybe riot actually doesn't care and none of the champions are really supposed to know each other or be involved in each others' lives canonically, they just have random quippy voice lines that imply that. which would fucking suck. having the lore of the game have no impact on the game itself and vice versa would objectively suck. if the characters talk to each other on the rift and say something interesting, i want that to have meaning. i want to be able to extrapolate the state of the world and the relationships between the characters from the things they verbally say with their mouths. i'm not arguing about this. the voicelines should be seen as the most high irrefutable canon that there is for the game because it is the ONLY source of lore in the game itself.

anyways there's my bible i guess. i miss evil laser robot viktor i want him to perform unethical brain surgery on me (fixing my adhd but also turning me into his personal puppet attack dog) and then give a weapon to a child so they can kill their bullies.

[nesswritesnonsense]

This Isn’t Writing Advice, It’s a Cry for Help

I am so sick of reading writing advice. It’s always just write, write, write. But what if I don’t want to? What if I want to daydream about my stories until I’m spiraling into Fae folklore, casually coming up with a title, opening line, and outline for a monster smut novel I never intend to write? (Pixie Dust and Fairy Fucks)

That’s what writing chaos is—it’s starting a story with an idea that spirals into five unrelated outlines, naming characters after inside jokes, and abandoning plot structure entirely just to spite the "rules" of how things are supposed to be done. “Ooh, you have to learn the rules before you break them.” No, you see, I already understand exactly why the fictional protagonist of my fake Fae smut gets trapped with her domineering Fae lover. I did the research. I know the Fae lore to back it up.

But I’m not that type of writer. I don’t write about that. Or am I?

Let me break down the writing process—or, more accurately, offer a cautionary tale—in a way you’ve never seen before. This isn’t about structure or discipline—it’s about embracing the chaos, because that’s where my creativity thrives. This is the beautifully inefficient process that works for me—feel free to borrow it, but don’t say I didn’t warn you. Proceed with caution (and maybe some emotional armor):

Existential Blank Page Panic:"What if I never have another good idea again?" The terror of starting. The blinking cursor feels like it’s mocking you, and you question why you even thought writing was a good idea in the first place.

Chaotic Word Vomit: Let’s just dump everything out and see what sticks." Ideas spill out wildly—some genius, some completely incoherent, some downright degeneracy (like Pixie Dust and Fairy Fucks, the smut that will never be written). But it’s all progress.

Procrastination Justified: "But first… let me clean my entire apartment." You convince yourself that everything else is critical to the writing process.

Research Rabbit Hole: "I just need to look up one quick fact…" 5 hours later, you’re an expert on an unrelated topic.

Outline Illusion: "If I make the perfect outline, this will write itself!" Spoiler: It won’t.

Epic Fuck This Moment: "Why did I think I could do this? This is garbage." Frustration peaks, and quitting feels inevitable. You beat yourself up and consider another hobby—and now you have an entire craft room that would put Michaels out of business.

Overthink Everything:"Is this comma necessary? Should I change my protagonist’s name… again?" You spiral into tiny details that don’t really matter.

Accidental Writing Moment:"I blacked out, and now there are words on the page?" Somehow, you’ve written something without realizing it. It’s not perfect, but hey—it exists.

Surprise Achievement Unlocked:"Okay, maybe I can do this." Euphoria hits—you made real progress, and it doesn’t totally suck.

Creative Delusion High:"This is the best thing anyone has ever written!" A fleeting but glorious moment of inflated confidence.

Editing Abyss:"I’ve read this sentence 47 times, and it no longer makes sense." Endless tweaking leads to self-doubt, and imposter syndrome sets in hard.

Disclaimer: I never claimed I was a professional, so if this so-called "advice" leaves you staring at a blank screen or suddenly pursuing a stained glass hobby, that’s on you. Chaos is contagious—consider yourself warned.

Identity Crisis Stage:"Wait… am I actually a writer?"You begin to question everything. Maybe you are good at this? Or maybe you’re just delusional?

Reset to Chaos: "Just kidding, back to square one." You realize writing is a never-ending cycle of nonsense. Whether you’re starting a new project or reworking the same one, the chaos continues.

[sasuhinasno1fan]

Long awaited kiss - Lukadrien June Day 11, 12 + 13

So I had the idea for Winx Club, it's not the same Winx Club au I've done before, this is different. I did try diving a little into the lore throughout the story but if it seems interesting, maybe I'll make a post about what I imagine this AU to be like. Anyway, it ended up falling into three prompts so I mixed them all. Enjoy.

@lukadrienmonth

Royalty Another fandom au Magic

Adrien- fairy of the sun

Luka – fairy of sea

Nath – fairy of art

Marc – fairy of stories

Max – fairy of technology

Nino – fairy of music

Kagami, kim, alix, ivan (dates mylene, fairy of nature) – specialist

Marinette, chloe, felix, alya – witches

Sabrina – goes from witch to fairy

Rose – fairy of joy

Juleka – half mermaid

________________

“What do you think?”

Luka looked up from his phone, texting the others and took in the sleeveless tailcoat with ornate embroidery Adrien wore.

“It’s nice.”

“Nice?”

“What he means to say,” a familiar voice said, as a near identical person walked off his own clothing platform and stood next to Adrien, “is that it looks better on me.”

Felix wasn’t wrong. The Witch was more fitting in the suit, with the cravat and knee-high boots, seeing it was more his style. His put together hair and all-knowing eyes seemed to tie everything together.

“What do you think? Can I be a better Prince of Solaria?” he asked, puffing out his chest and waving, Adrien rolling his eyes.

“Ok, not for me then.” He said, pushing his cousin off the platform and pulling up the screen again. Felix sent the outfit he wore to be bought and picked up under his name, the magic dropping and leaving him in his normal clothes before he dropped next to Luka.

“How long have you two been here? I thought the plan was to go to the beach?”

“Juleka is going to meet us there, she just has to get here from Andros. The others are exploring and we’re meeting the Specialist at the beach. Are the other Witches coming?” Luka asked.

“Marinette dragged Alya back to her home planet though she will be there for the coming out ball. She’s been getting flack for being controlled by Lila. As if half the school wasn’t under that fox’s spell. Literally.” Felix said. “They’re only bothering her because of her whole easy ability to use both fairy and witch magic, so half of them think she acts likes she better than she is. It’s like they’ve never had a conversation with her.”

Most of the Witches at Cloud Tower were, well, as nasty as their magic typing casted them as. They weren’t any nicer when there’d been a dark force operating from their school during first year and draining the school to summon dark creatures to attack everything with the Magix dimension. Not even when Chloe had been the person the dark force was after, her and her sister Zoe.

Second year revealed said force to be Lila, or whatever her actual name was. She managed to take control of Marinette and used her ability to use both sides to locate and collect to codexs of all the schools and Pixie Village to reach the Realix dimension and the Ultimate Power. Even after all that, it seemed they still stuck to being rude and mean.

“I’m assuming you took care of them?” Luka asked.

“Oh no, Chloe took care of that. No one is allowed to bully Marinette except her. But enough about them, let’s talk you two. How have things been since the final battle?”

Luka looked back at Adrien, who switched to another suit that didn’t look good. During said battle where Marinette was stuck in the mind controlled dark version of herself, the Fairies, Witches and Specialists tried fighting Lila, anything to get an advantage over her. Adrien hadn’t been there originally, at the entrance with Nathaniel to keep the monsters Lila had from storming them. Luka had been fighting against Lila and one of her hits managed to get him really bad, slamming into the ground hard enough his transformation dropped. His injuries were bad, like really bad. He didn’t remember much before Marinette snapped out of it and used her own healing powers on herself and the others, but he did remember Adrien begging him not to go.

And a kiss. Luka would have thought he was dreaming or hallucinating with the blood loss, had Adrien not gone completely red when he woke up. They hadn’t spoken about it since.

“Well, I’m here and the others are, around.”

“Uh huh.” Felix said. “You two haven’t said shit have you?”

Luka didn’t bother responding when Felix knew the answer already.

“Ok, this. this is the one.”

Luka turned from Felix’s knowing look to take in what Adrien put on.

“Wow. Much better.” Felix said. Luka was finding it hard to find words.

“Do you like it?” Adrien asked, looking nervous.

“You look amazing.” Luka was eventually able to get out.

“And on that note, let’s go pay and meet the others. Or you two can catch up on your own.” Felix said, trying to throw them a bone.

“Ah, it’s ok. Luka’s coming with me to the castle first.”

This was news to him but Luka nodded.

“Alright then. Food and then beach?”

“Well, we actually have one more stop, but you can go ahead, we’ll meet you there.” Adrien said, his order sent ahead and got off the platform, left in his clothes. “Luka has an appointment to get to first.”

___________________

The trip to the beach had been cut short when the waves went out of control. Luka couldn’t understand it, not knowing the reason for the near tsunami sized wave that appeared, only that he felt mermaids in the water nearby. Juleka had gone under looking for anyone, but she only caught the tail end of mermaid guards swimming away. The trip had been cancelled and everyone headed home to get ready to come to Solaria.

Luka was focused on his phone, biting his nail as he hoped to get a reply back from his mom. Mermaid guards were mainly in Andros and Luka’s mother worked at the castle in close quarters with the royal family.

“Nothing still?”

“No. it might be nothing but that wave was sudden. The sea was, I don’t know, not angry, but…I don’t know. it just, it wasn’t normal. Would your dad know anything?”

Adrien hummed, trying to think. His father wasn’t the best ruler and hadn’t been since his mother’s death. He was getting better, actually trying but for the most part, “Nathalie is the real person who runs the kingdom. We can ask her, assuming she’s not too busy. Dad’s on the Solarian Council but Nathalie really does the work.” Luka nodded, looking back to his phone, seeming to ignore the hair falling out of his bun. “I really like your hair. I don’t know if I mentioned it to you.”

During the final battle as the Specialist flew them to Lila’s castle, Luka had made a joke that if they made it out with minor injuries and Marinette back with them, he’d get his hair longer, a choice he’d been debating the whole school year. Luka tried arguing when Adrien told him of the appointment he made, that his own injuries weren’t minor.

“We all survived and Lila was defeated for good. If you don’t like it, just cut it off.”

His hair was now just past his shoulders when out and the blue in his hair was brighter with the new growth needing to catch up. Luka looked like a siren already in his fairy form, the longer hair made it even better.

“Thank you.” Luka said, tucking the strand back. “Everything is probably fine. we only defeated Lila, what, nearly 2 weeks ago? There’s no way that she’d regain any power that quickly, even if she could. She was essentially poisoned by Marinette’s healing powers eating into her own powers.”

“exactly. It’ll be fine.”

“Ok.” Marc said, exiting his dorm.

The group split up back to their schools after the cancelled beach day, most wanting to repack with Adrien’s invitation to stay at the castle for the summer. Those who went home, promised to be at the Solarian castle when the party happened the next day. Adrien was just hopping nothing bad would happen, that Luka’s worry over Andros was just a small thing that wouldn’t spell Lila regaining power and coming back.

“I’ve repacked my bags, but now I don’t have space for my books. Or Nath’s art supplies. He had to want to go traditional this year.” Marc finished.

“I have another bag under my bed. Just use that.” Luka said, fiddling with his phone before finally putting it down.

Marc went back into his shared room with Luka as Nino ran into the common area of their dorm.

“Alya asked for help convincing Marinette to come to the party. I have to head there before Chloe gets wind and tries her hand.” The music fairy said, grabbing his bag and pushing his suitcase towards Adrien. “Can I send my bag ahead with you?”

“Sure. call if Marinette still says no. I’ll beg if I have to. In fact, if anyone else is ready, we can head to Solaria now.” Adrien said, pulling his silver ring off his finger and tossing it, the ring turning into Adrien’s sceptre.

“We’ll be there later, you go!” Marc called, Nino agreeing as he waved and darted out the room.

Adrien shrunk all the bags and held his hand out for Luka to take. “Just us then?”

“Ready when you are.”

Arrival at the castle was quite subdued, just the way Adrien liked it. they were greeted by Nathalie and Gorilla, Adrien’s main bodyguard until he began school at Alfea.

“Your father is working on the finishing touches of your party.” Nathalie had explained when Adrien wondered where his father was.

Adrien decided not to question it too much and instead showed Luka the entire castle, from the gardens, the different hallways full of tapestries and finally, his favourite room of all.

“Welcome to the Hall of the Universe. Every single dimension is represented as a planet and it’s always spinning. The shinning one? That’s Solaria.”

“Andros, right there.” Luka said, finding the pale pink and blue planet that represented his dimension. “It’s kinda weird to think that if we decided to finish our fairy education on our own dimensions instead of accepting the invitation to Alfea, we would have never met.”

Adrien looked over at Luka, who was still focused on looking at his planet. He had to beg his father to let him attend Alfea. If he let him talk to Feragonda and have him be in a complete single, he wouldn’t have been assigned to the Kwami dorm, wouldn’t have found the amazing friends he had, would have never gotten the chance to meet Luka. he would pass on Lila and everything she did but everything else, he’d do all over again.

“What?” Luka asked.

“Oh, uh…nothing. Come on, I’ll show you to your room while I go find dad.”

______________________________

Felix picked up another jewellery box and opened it, blinding both him and Luka with the bracelet’s shine.

“Moons below, that’s gaudy. No surprise there though.” he said, looking at the not left with it.

Adrien was speaking with his father and Felix had arrived with his mother as Luka was trying to decide how to keep himself occupied. Felix wanted to poke around Adrien’s gifts and Luka needed advice and a bit of help, which was why he wasn’t stopping the Witch.

“Can I ask you something?”

“I asked my mother already; she doesn’t know what’s going on with Andros.” Felix answered.

That was helpful to know but, “it’s about my present for Adrien.”

“Oh. You know, you don’t have to get him something. Most of this is because this is Adrien being formally recognised as the heir of Solaria. That and a decent number of them wanted to thank him for helping to save the Magix dimension after Lila’s first attempt at control.” Felix reassured.

Luka pulled out a box from his jacket pocket and handed it to Felix. The necklace inside was simple, a gold crescent moon and dangling from it in the centre was a stylized sun with an opal set in it.

“the sun can open into a locket.” Luka explained, watching Felix find the catch and open the empty pocket. “I was hoping you can point me in the direction of Adrien’s favourite picture of his mom. And if you think it’s a good idea.”

“I swear to Red Flame Dragon, if you don’t tell him how you feel but he doesn’t get it seeing this, I might actually murder the both of you. yes I will help you get the picture. I know exactly which one.”

“Your highness, oh!” standing in the doorway was a woman wearing a stripped jumpsuit, an oversized white hat and obnoxious sunglasses. There was something familiar about her. “Prince Felix, what are you doing in here?”

“I’m allowed to be here. Luka, this is Audrey Bourgeois, Dutchess.”

And Chloe and Zoe’s mom. The one who made sure each daughter could only handle one type of magic, which got Lila’s attention in the first place.

Magic could bend either way, some more aligned with Light like Faires and other aligned with Dark, like Witches. A person could go either way, depending on what their magic felt most comfortable in, which was why Sabrina transferred out of Cloud Tower and to Alfea after the first battle against Lila. Marinette was one of those rare people who could handle both, despite being more aligned with being a Witch. Chloe and Zoe, however, could only ever handle Dark and Light respectively. Any attempt to dive into the other side didn’t end well. doing the spells together worked, but never apart. Lila needed someone who could do both which was why she went after Marinette next when Zoe and Chloe didn’t work out. their magic had been stolen and it nearly gotten them killed, all because their mother wanted her kids to be perfect and special.

Chloe was Adrien’s best friend and he’d promised Audrey full hell when he finally saw her again after they found out the truth.

“I hope Adrien will enjoy my present; the bracelet was expensive.”

“Oh, I’m sure it’ll shine bright.” Felix said, point to the box he just opened. “Can I help you?”

“I was just curious if he knew that his babysitter was leaving. I saw her things being removed from her room.”

“That’s because my father’s proposing.” Adrien appeared behind Audrey and Felix closed and tossed the box to Luka to hide in his pocket again. “Dad said he wanted to use the party as a way to have everyone here so he can ask Nathalie to marry him. I don’t mind, Nathalie is going to make an amazing queen of Solaria.”

That seemed to piss Audrey off. “But she has no royal breeding.”

“And yet, she has more grace and elegance than most members of high society I know.” Adrien said, quickly looking Audrey over and giving a fake smile. he’d give that to the Witches who wouldn’t leave Marinette alone for being friends with Fairies. “If you don’t have anything else, I’ll see you tomorrow?”

_______________________

Luka blocked the sun as he watched the Specialists ship touch down. Max had to of asked to give it a go because it was one of the smoother landings.

“The party has arrived!” Nino called out as the gangplank extended and let everyone off. Nino’s suit was much fancier than the one he wore for their first-year mixed school dance. There were still music notes sewn into the lapels of his jacket. “Luka!”

“Welcome to Solaria guys. Adrien wanted to come greet you put he’s been pulled in to helping his father make the surprise perfect.” Luka said, seeing Chloe walk down and head straight for him. She started to tug at his jacket. “Marinette ask you to do her job?”

“Why do you think I’m doing it? How else am I getting her off the ship?”

“Chloe, it’s a cropped jacket! It’s not supposed to go any lower!” Marinette, dressed in a pink dress Luka knew she designed herself, rushed down and moved Chloe away. “You look very nice. The gold detail looks like suns.” She commented, adjusting his collar.

“Honestly, it kinda matches Adrien’s outfit.”

“Does that mean we’ll have an answer to the ‘will they, won’t they’ debacle?” Nathaniel asked, the mix of colours working with his white suit.

“You, do not get to judge me.” Luka remarked. “let me know when you and Marc have talked.” Luka smirked as Nathaniel shushed him while Marc came down with Alix and Kagami. “We have a bit of time before we’re supposed to join everyone in the ball room. I can give you the quick tour.”

Kagami took charge as she normally did, leading the large group towards the back doors to the castle. Chloe pointed out a few things they walked around. They started up a flight of curved stairs when Luka spotted Audrey. She was leading a girl, probably about their age down the hallway they were walking towards. There was something about her short brown hair and fox-like eyes that seemed very familiar.

“Who’s that?” Zoe asked.

“Who cares? She didn’t see us and we don’t want to see her. Come on, before she hears us.” They all went in the opposite direction, though Luka kept looking over his shoulder. When brown eyes met his, his stomach clenched and he turned away.

“Are you ok?” Juleka asked, her black dress fitting her almost like the mermaid she was.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. anything from mom?”

“No, nothing. Honestly, it didn’t go through but every channel I checked says everything is ok. It’s the other mermaids I’m worried about. I haven’t heard from them either. Do you think Adrien would be mad if we headed for Andros tomorrow?”

Luka gave her a dry look. “you say that as if he wouldn’t shove all of us onto the ship so we can all go.”

“That’s very true. Speaking of Adrien, are you going to give it to him?”

Luka nodded. “Felix has it now. I’ll get it back when we go in.”

They eventually made it back downstairs and into the ballroom. It was amazingly decked out, fit for a prince but just understated enough that Adrien would love it. Roses with starlights were all over in vases on the table, green table clothes in all shades and the faintest piano music playing. Gorilla waved them inside before refocusing on his group of guards. Kagami, Chloe and Zoe seemed at ease surrounded by so many high members of society, while Marinette and Marc looked nervous.

“What if they know who I am?” Marinette asked, hiding her face in Alya’s arm.

“Then they know a highly skilled Witch who has the ability to use Fairy magic and that’s it. anyone else tries to dig deeper will be dealt with by being kicked out. or worse, by Adrien.” Felix said, appearing in the outfit he’d chosen, the sleeveless tailcoat still looking good on him. He slipped Luka the jewellery box before looking at Marinette again. “Or I can deal with them. Can’t let Chloe have all the fun.”

“Or maybe we save the scathing comments for after Adrien’s long-awaited party?” Sabrina suggested.

“At least until after the surprise. Adrien might kill us if it’s ruined.” Luka pointed out.

Many of the group asked for answers on what the surprise was but Felix and Luka continued to not say anything. Audrey finally made it in, obnoxious ballgown and all but thankfully she ignored her daughters, which left Chloe in a better mood. Kagami was just being talked out of using her Dragon Sword as a way to eat meat on a stick when trumpets started to go off and the doors at the top of the stairs swung up to reveal King Gabriel of Solaria. Dressed in his standard white, he walked out, head held high. While Nathalie was definitely the one who ran the kingdom while he dealt with his grief, he was still a king, no matter what a person said.

“Welcome everyone, guests and citizens of Solaria. Today is an auspicious day. Today, my son is recognised as heir of Solaria. My son has been at Alfea for the past 2 years learning to become a great fairy and with time, the Guardian Fairy of Solaria. But it hasn’t been without its challenges. He has done out dimension proud though, standing against the dark force once known as Lila with his friends and saving us all. I truly couldn’t think of a better person to lead us when the times comes. Please, join me in formally welcoming, Prince Adrien Emile Gabriel Donatien Athanase Agreste, Prince and Heir of Solaria!”

Gabriel moved, starting the applause as Adrien came out. the dark grey and tan of his tunic, like Luka promised, matched with the gold throughout. The crown on his head was delicate and fitting of a sun fairy. Adrien took his father’s hand as he led him down the stairs, where everyone bowed.

“I have one more announcement to make before the party formally starts. And not to worry, I have Adrien’s permission for this. as most of you know, I lost my wife 4 years ago, the Moon Queen Emile. I turned into myself and I admit, not been a good king after her passing. But this dimension was well looked after by one of her dearest friends and a person I don’t know where I’d be without. Nathalie?”

Not a look most people would see on the woman, Nathalie was surprised when Gorilla took her ever-present clipboard and pushed her to take Adrien’s hand. She started to look disbelieving when he joined the adults’ hands and took a step back.

“Nathalie, I don’t know where this dimension would be without you. I don’t know where we’d be without you. you’ve never given up on me and try as I might, it became hard not to ignore how it made me feel. You told me that you thought Emile would be my only love and how you were fine with that. You were wrong. She’s not my only love and I know what she meant now when she told me to always keep my heart full. Nathalie, even if I was not king, I would be forever lost without you and I can’t bear to lose another I love again. Will you marry me?”

Eyes shiny with tears, she nodded, Adrien leading the applause and cheering this time. He gave his father a small box, bouncing away as he continued clapping. Luka caught his eye, sharing a smile. it was hard not to be swept up in all the love. Adrien was fine sharing the spotlight with his father and his new fiancée but if Luka was going to do this, he wanted it to just be them.

“Please welcome the first dance of your king and future queen!” Adrien called, rushing over to his friends so the adults couldn’t say no. “Stars and suns, finally! I thought he’d never propose.”

“How long has that been brewing?” Nino asked, the only one other than Chloe and Kagami who’d interacted with Nathalie the most, not to mention Adrien’s father.

“pretty much since first year. Dad’s stuck in his ways and Nathalie would never overstep if she thinks she is. But before the final battle with Lila, when we were heading towards her hideout, I called him and told him he had to. I didn’t know if we’d all survive and I didn’t want him facing another loss alone.”

“Well luckily for him, Lila is gone and his son gets to spend the whole summer break with him planning a royal wedding. I already accept my invitation.” Alix teased.

“I think it’s a sign for us all to not take things for granted. And with that, to the dancefloor!” Alya decided, grabbing Nino.

All the pairs joined them, Alix getting Zoe to join while Chloe dragged Marinette. Sabrina had been quickly spirited to the dancefloor by a court boy who caught her eye.

“Should we join them?” Adrien asked.

“Actually, can I talk to you? I wanted to give you your present.” Luka said, pointing towards the open balcony doors. “Or are you not allowed to disappear just yet?”

“Not there. Over here.” Adrien led Luka to an alcove that was thankfully clear of people. They could see the ballroom even if they weren’t seen. “So, what’s up?”

Luka took out the box Felix had given him and presented it. “Felix was snooping at your presents and I know comparatively, this is pretty simple, but I hope you like it.”

“I’m sure I’ll love it.” Adrien reassured as he took the box. “Oh, it’s so pretty.” He said as he opened the box.

“The sun is also a locket.” When Adrien let out a stuttered breath and his smile got bigger, Luka said, “I know Nathalie has been like a mother to you and you’re really happy she’s joining the family, but I also know how much you love and miss your mom. Now you can always carry her with you.”

“Thank you. oh,” Adrien put his hand to his neck, fingering the high collar of his tunic. “I can’t wear it right now. The after party that Chloe planned, I have a different outfit. Will you help me put it on then?”

“Of course.” Luka promised. Now seemed a good a time as any. “I was also wondering if we could talk, about the final battle.”

Cheeks going pink, Adrien looked at the ground, keeping the box with his necklace close to him, like it was a pillow he wanted to hide behind. “W-which part?” he stuttered.

Luka took the smallest step forward, trying not to be discouraged by Adrien moving back. He was getting redder though. “I think you know which one. I just, I don’t want to think it didn’t happen, because I know it did.”

“You nearly dying isn’t something anyone would forget.” Adrien threw in.

“No, no I don’t think so. I know my Charmix wasn’t enough to keep me protected so my transformation dropped. I know I was hurt badly when everything hurt. I knew you were there, calling my name. your hands run warmer when you’re transformed.” Luka said, managing to get Adrien take one of his hands. “I know you were begging me not to go and I wanted nothing more than to tell you I wouldn’t. not unless you wanted me to.”

“You like giving people what they want.” Adrien reminded.

“And you like making people happy. Aren’t we a pair? I know, when it started to feel like it was fading away, you kissed me. I didn’t want our first kiss to be like that. I wish I kissed you when we were on the pavilion.”

After the battle, a party was had at Alfea and Luka had gone looking for Adrien who’d disappeared. He found him by one of the gardens, standing on the pavilion, standing in the moonlight. Sun fairy he might be, but Adrien was also made for moonlight. There’d been a charged moment when Adrien looked over his shoulder and looked at him and Luka regrated not saying anything then.

“Why didn’t you?” Adrien asked, finally looking at him.

“I’m an idiot? I can’t stop thinking about losing the chance to do it if I don’t say anything. Adrien, you’ve, enchanted me since the first moment we met. The more I got to know you and the closer we became; I just couldn’t help falling for you more. the song in your heart has been replaying in my head constantly. I want nothing more than write a symphony for it.”

Adrien let out an embarrassed laugh. “no need to go that far. You could just kiss me.”

“Can I? Kiss you and date you and be with you?”

This time, Adrien was the one to step forward, staring up at Luka. “I didn’t want you to leave because I didn’t want to lose a friend. I didn’t want you to leave because I couldn’t bare losing you, not before you knew how much I wanted to be with you.”

Not needing words, Luka started to lean down, Adrien closing his eyes when Felix came around the corner.

“Adrien, your dad – fuck!” he cried when the two sprang apart. “I have the fucking worst timing.”

“It’s fine.” Adrien reassured. “It’ll happen,” he promised, squeezing his hand in Luka’s.

Felix looked like he was struggling to walk away and let them have their kiss but he groaned and held out his hand like he normally did so he could drag Adrien places. “Your dad wants to really start the ball with a dance with you. I had better not see either of you for at least an hour after the dance.”

Adrien went to his dad while Luke rejoined the others, all of whom had looks on their faces like they had had a guess as to where they disappeared to.

“So, anything you want to tell us?” Nino asked.

“We confessed, but no kiss.”

“Seriously!” Zoe said. “We’ve been waiting for just that for like nearly 2 years at this point.”

“Hey, it’s not my fault.” Luka said as Adrien and his father went to the middle of the room. “Adrien still has duties right now. But soon.” Catching his favourite green eyes and gentle sunlight smile, Luka couldn’t help but smile himself. “Very soon.”

[imthepunchlord]

Different nonnie, but Liiri always looked like a cute but bland little nugget to me, so I totally get liking Ying Ying’s character design better. The red-and-yellow glowing color palette that all the Renlings have made it harder to appreciate square-on, so I’m glad you’re switching the colors up too.

Your full answer to that ask reminds me, concerning which of your Miraculous WIPs you’d want to use this three-tier Miraculous setup on, you could honestly just have the Wish made by someone using the canon Ladybug and Black Cat in any of the MULTIPLE in-show close calls up to this point and then just alter and/or rewind reality from there, because SCREW all the unnecessary changes, additions, and retcons that this show’s lore has pulled over the last five seasons. The Prodigious, Order of the Guardians, Native American Miraculous, Miraculous potions, time travel, and so on were obviously far too complex ideas for the ML crew to handle properly, and now they’ve decided to delve even further into the idea of alternate universes for the upcoming Miraculous Paris special on top of all of that, so forget it, might as well use the one still-useful canon-established setup of a Wish to clean it all up so you can use your new lineup in any idea you want. After Wish AU? An accidental dual-Wish is already built into the premise, with Adrien wanting things to be different and Marinette rejecting that, and you get to play with the PV world’s interesting plot setups, a main cast whose characters are slightly to-the-left in terms of personality and looks, and a Marinette who remembers everything contrasting an Adrien who remembers nothing. Off to Italy AU? Maybe it’s later in Season 4 or 5 where Marinette is just tired and she Wishes she had gotten the chance to be a hero with actual support and/or really live her life with trustworthy friends and family at the start of it all, with both the Miraculous powers and her grandmother’s availability to take her to live in Milan with her shifting accordingly. Fortune Favors the Brave AU? Maybe Alya swipes Chat Noir’s Miraculous in Hack-san during their brief introduction-tussle and has the “bright” idea of making the Wish to make herself the Ladybug hero from the beginning only to find that a) main hero life is a lot harder than it’s cracked up to be, b) she’s now one of the five most powerful instead of the two most powerful as Karma for making the Wish without considering others, pressing the importance of teamwork in this new life even more than in the old one, and c) her new kwami is understandably NOT happy about how Alya not only betrayed her former owner’s trust but also reset the universe’s established power balances due to her Wish being too broad. And these are just three examples off the top of my head. All this to say that you’ve been a wonderful part of the fandom even if you don’t interact with it as much anymore, and I don’t think you’ll have to worry too much about which idea to fit your new Miraculous system into when the time comes given your writing track record. With all the grief that the canon plot has given you and everyone else, it’s only fair that you get to use its built-in Deus ex machina to your advantage.

I'll say that chances are I wouldn't do an After Wish au for a lot of the ideas, cause most I want to work off starting off fresh and no one having any recollection of a previous timeline and acting like this is the norm.

Like, the Off to series would have this set up since "Lady Lion" would be a character for Off to Milan, and Pixie Girl or Butterfly Girl will have Mantis. And Off to London, Sebastian the waiter is planned to have Songbird.

So Off to series will either be splitting up the Bagua set or it'll be all randomized on where Miraculous are, and Fu only has a few.

But After Wish au could happen for some ideas, especially since I do like @nobodyfamousposts Lament ideas and their take on the Wish. How the new reality deals with you can depend on your actions, where fighting against the new setting and not liking the changes makes things worse for you, and how rough a set up you'll have can depend on how selfish or selfless a Wish is. It's a fun set up and scenario to think about.

And oh yeah, full agree with all the choices and directions the show went. I'm certain a lot of it came down to doing what other superhero studios were doing. Like Marvel is trying to get the multiverse going and DC dabbled in it with that Flash movie, so clearly ML has to do it too! Which, I will say, there is potential in playing with the multiverse. Back when the show just started, this was the show for aus. Any au you could think of existed. ML being a tv show and the cast are all actors, kwami swap au, inverse/pastel au that just swapped or changed up their colors, personality swaps, life swaps, reverse love square, enemies to lovers, rivals to lovers, ect..

So Ml could work off the multiverse and have fun with it, but that does require creativity and a passion for the show, which given their lazy or odd choices, you got to wonder how invested they are.

[insertdragonpun]

⚠️⚠️WARNING⚠️⚠️

This post contains graphic descriptions of violence and gore. If it isn't your thing, or if it's triggering, please mute the tag "apocalyptic comic idea" all of these posts tagged with this will contain violence and gore.

This post will also contain child death, graphic descriptions of injury, social isolation, minor body horror, and burning people. Everything will be surrounded by danger triangles if you wish to still read this post.

I swear in everything, and this post is no exception. I do not and will not say slurs.

You have been warned

⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️

Meet the twins Magnus and Ember! They are highschool freshmen and are ready to kick ass!

They live in an okay neighborhood. It's near a hospital since their mom is always sick. The smog of the city isn't good for a woman with shitty lungs, now is it? Their dad is absent, sending money to help pay for their mom's medical bills, but he isn't in the teens' lives at all.

Speaking of medical bills, because this is a dystopia and I've mentioned the questionable doctors on Dim's posts, their little family is barely scraping by. The twins have a long commute to their school since it's closer to the center of the city. It's cheaper after all and they barely have enough to keep their apparetment as it is.

So every day, the twins walk a mile to the bus stop, ride it for 29 miles (the fare jumps in price once you hit 30 miles. Thanks, Dystopia City) before walking the last 30 minutes to their school. I mentioned that it is in the middle of the city right? It's gonna be so freaky having all of the students wearing gas masks while attending class. (I'm gonna render the shit out of it once I get to it. It's gonna be awesome)

Anyway, today's journey was different than usual. As Ember was playing with the lighter she stole borrowed from the creep of a gym teacher a tall woman shot past them freaking out about something.

Oh! Lore time!

So I've been thinking it over, you know how height is kinda a big thing right now? Like people hating or short dudes and tall women? What if I just multiplied that by 20?

What I mean, is that this is a futuristic world and I think it would be cool worldbuilding if people got surgery to change their height and fit the "ideal" body type. Like women cutting of inches or even feet of their height via science that works like magic and dudes added inches and feet to their height on the otherside of this freaky little coin.

Dim is roughly 6ft (because I love me a tall woman.) This is not a commonly seen height anymore since only those who can't afford it are ever their natural height. So she is crazy tall to the teens (a bit of a role model in the eye of Ember who's been told she's ugly because she's taller than the dudes their age at school.) The only other tall woman they've ever seen is their neighbor [REDACTED] who is part of the military and can get court marshaled if she ever got the shortening surgery because it makes the patient extremely disoriented because they suddenly shrunk.

So the twins are obviously gobsmacked to see this giant lady with white hair rush past them.

"The fuck was that?"

"A distraction. C'mon we're gonna miss our bus."

"Oh shit!"

They make it to school and get some classes done before everything goes to shit. It starts with their teacher pausing in her lesson while looking at her book. Then something fast flies out at attaches itself to her face. It breaks her mask and ⚠️⚠️ (gore warning skip to next danger triangles to avoid) forces itself through the broken glass and into her eye.

She screams and goes down. The kids start scream because of course they do. Suddenly the class is filled with tiny little creatures flying out of the books at attacking people. (I'm tired so this isn't gonna be super descriptive.)

Everyone is panicking a few of their friends go down and stop moving. The twins are fighting for their lives but everytime they squash one of the creatures it just pops back up like a tiny deranged zombie pixie.

The class begins to fill with red, there is broken glass everywhere from the monster breaking the students' masks. Ember steps on a few shards, the glass cutting through her old shoes like butter. She swears clutching her wounded foot. ⚠️⚠️She looks up in time to see another batch of creatures pop out of a book laying open on a desk.

She got a very good idea.

Ember grabs the closest book, and pulls out a lighter from her pocket. A few of the pixies stop staring at her.

She smiles, and lights the book on fire.

With that the pixies scream and turn into ash.

The room goes quiet for a second. The two. Then the pixies rush to Ember. She runs around the room lighting as many of the books on fire, her classmates are running from the room into the hall, a place empty of monsters (at the moment) Magnus waits at the door for his sister.

⚠️⚠️(gore warning number 2 electric boogaloo. This one has body horror focused on the eyes. Skip to the next danger triangles) The pixies have broken through her mask at this point. There is glass in her eyes and it's starting to get hard to breathe. She can feel the mask dying as the room fills with smoke. The pixies are dying too. She grabs the last book setting it aflame, but just as she does pixies charge her eyes.

Their tiny hands scratch and claw. Digging deep into her sclera. An arm reaches into her pupil destroying the delicate nerves, sending waves of pain down her face. Her tears are turning red. The world has gone dark.⚠️⚠️

She stumbles forward into her brother's arms. Everything hurts and she can't see a thing. She's pretty sure he crying; pretty sure she's crying too.

Their classmates rush as a group to the next room down, ducking in when they hear shouts from the stairs.

The room is deathly quiet. Before small groups split off and talk in quiet tones.

Soon the quiet tones turned to silence filled with only quiet groans of pain and the sound of the door clicking closed. Everyone able left. Only the twins and the wounded remained.

"Hey Em. There's a screen in front of you." Magnus holds his sister tightly, there is so much blood running down her face.

"Yeah? What does it say?" She pulls them both to the ground, her head is starting to feel light.

"Uh. 'Congratulations, player! You have completed the tutorial!' What? 'Please wait while we develop your character based on your actions' it has a smiley face after actions. What the fuck is this?"

"You sure you're not hallucinating Mag? Pretty sure that should be me, with the blood loss and all." Fuck she feels really faint now. What the hell.

"I don't know. There was more to it but it just vanished before I could read it."

"Em?"

"What?"

"Holy fuck I thought you were dead."

"Too bad, you're not getting rid of me that easy."

"Hilarious. You still got that lighter on you?"

"Yeah." She held up her hand, arm shaking as if she was holding up the sky and not just a tiny lighter.

"I'm gonna see if I can cauerize some of the wounds here. Then we can head out after the rest of the class maybe."

"Dude what?"

"There isn't any sort of first aid kit in here Em. I need to do something, they're dying. You're dying."

"I'm not dying."

"And neither are they if I can help it. It would be better if we had some silver nitrate, but Im gonna have to do something. The weird fairy things were small, and so are the wounds. There's just a lot of them."

"I ain't stopping you, just don't be upset of the fire makes it worse."

So Magnus went around the room trying to cauterize wounds if he could, bandage the ones he couldn't with whatever he could. It would all have to be checked over by a professional eventually, but at least it kept the blood in?

[Congratulations, player! You have completed the tutorial! Please wait while we develop your character based on your actions :) NOTE: YOU ARE NOT IMMUNE TO ATTACKS WHILE YOU WAIT. ANY ACTIONS AFTER THIS MESSAGE WILL NOT COUNT TOWARDS YOUR CHARACTER. ]

"Huh."

"What?"

"I just got the blue screen."

"Weir-" before she could finish the word, she started screaming. It raked at Magnus's ears, clawing at his heart.

"Em! Em please!"

⚠️⚠️(body horror time! Skip to the next danger triangles.)He could only watch in horror as his sister writhed in pain. Chunks of metal forcing their way through her skin coated in red droplets that fell from the surface like water sliding off of oil. She screamed as it pushed against her clothes, crying as two new eyes formed in her sockets. Attaching wires to nerves forcing the last of her original eyes out of the sockets. ⚠️⚠️

Magnus threw up.

(For those that want to know Ember is a cyborg mage.)

"Mag?"

"Maggie?"

Magnus looked up from his spot on the floor to see her. Her uniform was replaced by a set of robes falling of her shoulders. (I'll draw it eventually.)

"Em?"

"Yeah."

"Holy fuck. You okay?"

"I... it doesn't hurt anymore. You got a screen too right?"

"Yeah."

"Do you want my hand when it does... this to you?"

"Please."

[Congratulations on surviving after the tutorial! All creatures you have destroyed will now be turned into skill points! NOTE: SKILL POINTS WILL ONLY BE ACCESSIBLE IN SHELTERS AND NEUTRAL ZONES. Your character has been decided! Welcome to the game, Cyborg Cleric, Magnus!]

Okay I ain't describing that again. Kinda the same thing except where the metal on the face is placed.

Time to talk about some fun stuff!

Why cyborg? Well, everytime someone uses some sort of technology to take down monsters it makes the game consider them a cyborg. It will also make their robo parts more based on what they used. In the pic it shows that Ember's fire magic is more controlled than normal fire magic because she used a lighter.

Now. Clerics. So you know by now that you can either, kill a monster, or kill a person to become a player. But you can also help people! It's a very rare class, because let's be honest people are probably more worried about killing the thing that's hurting their friends before helping them.

The twins are some of my favorites in this comic. I love them so much.

[rose-tea-and-strawberries]

One thing I like to think about is how Twisted Wonderland could incorporate elements from Disney’s 2d movies into their lore.

For example:

During a potions class, when Professor Crewel leaves the room, Ace starts mucking about and accidently adds a plant that’s basically used in Twisted Wonderland’s alcohol. This causes pink bubbles to form from the cauldron and transform into the pink elephants on parade that begin to create chaos and now the entire class have to figure out how to get rid of them.

Ace, Deuce and Yuu are with their fellow classmates on a camping trip and they’re all telling ghost stories around a campfire and two or three of their classmates bring up heffalumps and woozles much to Yuu and Grim’s confusion. Ace scoffs, saying that they’re not real and just a scary story people tell to scare kids (kind of like the boogeyman of Twisted Wonderland). When Fem!Yuu asks what those are her classmates answer her (maybe they start singing/chanting a slower version of the original song) by explaining that they ‘guzzle up the thing you prize’, making them up to be these monsters the same way Pooh, Tigger and Rabbit were teaching Roo in Pooh’s Heffalump Movie. Ace looks unimpressed but Deuce, Fem!Yuu and Grim (especially since the last two don’t know anything about this world) look scared. At some point in the night, food starts to go missing and then the class end up split up in the woods and everyone sees shadows of these heffalumps and woozles the same way Snow White saw monsters after she ran from the huntsman. When they can’t find Yuu Ace, Deuce and Grim believe that she’s been eaten by those creatures and they create a plan of attack to get revenge on those monsters for eating Grim’s tuna *Ace and Deuce turn to look at Grim* he means eating his henchman. Long story short, heffalumps and woozles don’t exist, their food was eaten by woodland creatures and everything was in their minds and now Crewel has to babysit a bunch of scared teenagers *sigh* great.

I also realise that the Headless Horseman song would be a cool campfire song for teenagers to sing to spook each other.

Since RSA is a hero school, I thought it would be cool if they have a pixie dust reserve as a gift from the fairies and Yuu gets told how to use it when she’s on a quest to save her friends (you bet her ‘wonderful thought’ would be with Grim and Adeuce) and her and the RSA boys do the whole she (we) can fly number. Also, imagine if at one point the gang end up trying to sail the Jolly Rodger.

The song Cruella De Vil, has been changed to Divus Crewel/Professor Crewel by the NRC students and the older years sing it to the first years as a sort of warning to how strict and ruthless their potions teacher is (and as a way to have a laugh because they find scaring children fun)

There’s a secret storage cupboard in Heartslabyul that houses the eat me cookies and drink me bottles. Only the Dorm Leaders and Vice Dorm Leaders know of this.

If anyone has any other ideas, I would love to hear them

[thesecondbatgirl]

Final Fantasy XIV: A Fandom Primer

I was going to do a really long post complete with pictures in the style of the old livejournal crack_van fandom primers, but you know what, fuck it, I am bad at that, so have a giant wall of text instead.

Except for this meme:

So have you tried the critically acclaimed MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV, which once again has a free trial that includes the first expansion and unlimited playtime? No? Well, I’m about to tell you why you should try it. (Minor spoilers through the most recent expansion)

One: The characters

Look, if I tried to list every single character this would be way too long, so instead I will just say that there is a character type for everyone. Do you like found family? Have so much found family it is ridiculous. Do you like gay dads adopting a teenage girl? Check. One of the best redemption arcs since Prince Zuko where the dude is basically “I am well aware that the things I did are unforgivable, nobody should forgive me, but I will dedicate the rest of my life to being a better person?” Also a thing. Smug teenage asshole learning that maybe he doesn’t actually know everything in the world and becoming a better person. Woobie cat boys who need a hug? That one villain who just wants to fight you because his life is boring and the only thrill he gets is in searching for the ultimate fight? Handsome knights who bring you hot chocolate when you’re sad and then (spoiler) die tragically in your arms? 

Two: The worldbuilding

Endwalker (the most recent expansion) brought the main story over a decade in the making to its inclusion, and the worldbuilding was just… amazing. I am (once again) replaying the game, because little details from the base game pay off in a big way later on. And you know, all three starting cities are run by women, so you have your choice of hot pirate woman who can totally step on me (... we totally get a female villain who does step on people later), immortal(ish) child (kinda) leader of the forest nation, and a very young sultana who leads the desert city and also eventually gets an arc where she’s basically like “fuck capitalism” and I love her. Not to mention all the places you go to in later expansions, which include the fucking moon (which is haunted). And there is so much lore that they’re literally going to have to put out a third encyclopedia to keep it all straight. Oh and all the pixies are canonically non-binary, they are great.

Three: The tropes

Look, name it and it has shown up in ffxiv. Bodyswap. Time travel. Alternate realities. You can literally bartend at one point so your coffee shop AUs can exist if you want.The tv tropes page is ridiculously long for a reason because I swear everything that could possibly exist does.

Four: the themes

FFXIV is really, when it comes down to it, based on one thing. The arc words of the story are “for those we have lost and those we can yet save.” The last expansion especially has been a rebuke of nihilism and an embrace of hopepunk. There is a textual acknowledgement that yes, life is incredibly hard and filled with pain, but life itself is worth living and that we together can fight for a better future, instead of giving into despair. Oh, and also fuck imperialism, let’s go destroy the colonizers, but let’s also get into why these sorts of things happen, and how do people move on after. 

Five: The gameplay

You can be every single class without having to be a new character. That is 19 combat classes (20 if you count the limited job), 3 gathering classes, and 8 crafters. Plus, they are about to make it so that you can basically do this single player if the idea of playing with others scares you. But the community is overall fairly friendly! There is still the tank/healer/dps (damage dealer) breakdown and I am not the person to talk to about healing, but even if you want to only choose one class and play that you can! Or you can keep trying things until you find something you like, there’s a class that will probably appeal to you.

Six: The music

Is a bop. The end. There’s a reason I have played literally 7500 hours of this game since 2015. Highly recommended, you should join.

Also if you like the Jedi, I swear it's one of the best portrayals of Jedi philosophy I’ve ever seen and why I’ve spent a lot of time yelling that the woman who wrote the last two expansions should write Star Wars.

(Oh, and if you RP, there is a VERY active RP scene.)

Download the free trial here: https://freetrial.finalfantasyxiv.com/na/ and you can find me on Crystal Data Center. (Although data center travel is coming soon!) And seriously, if you have questions about the game message me, I’ll answer, and make up a FAQ post if necessary. I love this game so much, and it has gotten so many of my friends through the pandemic.

[azurefaire]

I totally agree with this and part of this is one of the reasons that I love Disney Fairies lore.

In every version fairies are not born through normal means, and that means fairies are ace to me. Fairies rarely even have family like siblings! And their romantic attraction is different too.

There are only a few canon examples of romantic attraction in Disney Fairies that I can think of:

* Tink and Terence, especially in the books

* Clarion and Milori

* Rosetta and Sled

It defiently seems that many fairies are arospec or have alloace relationships.

Firstly, in both the books and the movies Tink and Terence are never official. In the books they are crushing on each other more but they are never offical. They both admire each other deeply and love to spend time with each other however and I think that's the basis for their relationship. But it feels like it is conditional until they put the label on the relationship (which they never do)

In Lord Milori and Clarion's case, they were both extremely devoted to each other but couldn't be together and everyone safe. Clarion decides to create a border to keep everyone and Milori safe, though she still loves him and this doesn't change when they were able to be reunited. After they can get back together their relationship can be resumed and it can grow and develop into something bigger.

Both these relationships feel like alloace crushes and relationships as their desire for the relationship feels very ace romance to me. To me, ace romance is about so much about intimacy than what I think of an allo romance . That's how I see it and based on how I identify.

The only relationship to me that feels like it was based on aesthetic attraction more than the others was Rosetta and Sled, but it feels like the attraction was stronger because the warm world and winter world was seperate for so long. So there are fairies that haven't met and therefore a stronger desire to meet other people.

Additionally, it is evident that human and fairy customs are very different. Depending on the media fairies can live a long time- not forever, and I think this is why friendships are so important to fairies. They don't count their age, but they celebrate their arrival day. And I think romantic relationship would need to be established after many shared experiences together to foster that connection. It seems like with all the free time, fairies focus on making their friendships stronger and bonds closer and it seems to be their priority.

It is implied fairies don't celebrate human holidays. They celebrate many different holidays however, such as the ones in the Pixie Hollow game. Many holidays are seasonal or little parties/social gatherings. No dances it seems other than the cultural "Fairy Dance" which is more of an elaborate dancing circle than like a prom. In the books, the fairies frolic and play many fairy games that often involve teamwork and strategy. Or they play pranks on other fairies. Everything fairies do seems to be to celebrate life and have fun.

Human culture is very divorced (get it) from fairy culture, it is taboo to use human manners. You say fly with you instead of hello everyone. I think it isnt seen as earnest to say hello or I'm sorry instead of I'd fly backwards. Or at least that's in the books, but in Great Fairy Rescue it shows how Lizzy and Tinkerbell are very different. So of course there isn't any weddings in Pixie Hollow, I think.

So, there is actually a canon spinoff with humans visiting the fairy world and a book called Wedding Wings. So, let me loook into the synopsis of the book real quick:

"Gabby is going to be a flower girl in a wedding! But a Never Land fairy hidden in her basket causes big trouble on her big day."

Hmm... I wonder if fairies don't have weddings and this is why a fairy snuck into the basket? I'll have to read the book then haha. But I haven't seen weddings mentioned anywhere else but there.

Also, I feel like the reason they don't have weddings is that they don't need to solidify their relationship in this way- they can just be together.

To me it feels like fairies are cupioromantic or demiromantic in nature if they are arospec. And there is the term "alterous attraction" which refers to emotional closeness. And they don't live in an amatonormative society so it is not romance prioritized in there society. Or priortized less than friendship which is in contrast to the Mainland.

This is canon to me now by the way.

When I was a kid & watched the tinkerbell movies/read the pixie hollow books for the 1st time, I assumed the fairies were all ace/aro, though those aren't the exact terms I would've applied at the time

See, since the fairies didn't seem to have any concept of marriage, and since they obviously didn't have kids the way humans do, I figured there was no need for them to date

So anyways, I've decided at the age of 23 that I was mostly right, in that all the fairies are ace, and a majority of them are aro as well, because I like the concept of an entirely asexual society that doesn't put a lot of stake in romance

[bellafragolina]

Excuse me, I'mma go for a rant if you don't mind

You know I make Makoto and Volo a thing (officially or not, they agre on it or not, they ended up together or not) right? I have some more reasons other than he's pretty dorky or a villain type of character

Where there is complexity in character's lore or characteristics, there's me about to prepare my fingers torturing the keyboard. Volo is a very interesting character to me not only because he's a villain but how much hypocrisy and "action contradicts the mean" his character bears. If you look at his Pokemons, his vision of a "better world" is probably quite different than what Cyrus gonna make because a "better world" sounds like he wants to contribute something, not entirely changing it but erase those that contain the potential to create suffering BUT his action says otherwise because you can't make things better without the help of something powerful so you can get in touch with your god, so he summons Giratina

As in Cyrus' case he wants a "perfect" world devoid of emotion, this kinda implies that he wants a world that perfect for HIS criteria and be the one that's right at the top of his world, now that sounds rather different from Volo right? "An ideal and better world without suffering" and "a perfect world devoid of emotion"

It's true that Volo might or may MEAN well but something about his trait what I see as "overconfidence" made his ACTIONS contradicts that, just like how he ranted on how the Pixie Plate shouldn't be used as a cutting board (despite it being possible) while he himself just gives away free stuffs (and he's a merchant), and his mean of making the world a better place while he just summoned what probably is the most violent Pokemon in the history of Sinnoh known for being AGAINST Arceus.

Now when we talk about these two men that's wbout to potentially harm the world, which is capable to be convinced that the world doesn't need any changes? That'd be Cyrus, because I believe he needs to see things from other point of view and not just his, his goal was because of his suffering he bears alone after all

And then there's Volo, he sees things from many sides and well aware of the suffering he felt, he loves Pokemons and Hisui despite him probably being one of the descendants of Celestica, now that would be a BIG contradiction if his goal is to erase the world and create a new one because it would make his goal be thrown out of the window and his love about ruins and myths also about what happened to Celestica. The problem is it's up to HIM whether he can change his character or not

Now if I think about it, Makoto is also a lucky one-

-🦀 anon

I honestly have nothing to say. You've written everything out so beautifully, and I have nothing to add that isn't just redundant of your own points.

Bravo, truly. This is a great look into the characters, and it makes me very excited to read about Makoto and Volo in the future. Super bravo!!

~Renee

[raeynbowboi]

Building an Embodiment of the Fairytale Princess (2.0)

This is nothing new. I’ve done this build before, which I’ll link right [here]. The post did really well, and people seemed to love the concept. However, since then, Mythic Odysseys of Theros and Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything have both come out, bringing with them not only new subclasses, but new features, spells, mechanics, and elements that I couldn’t take into consideration the first time around. So, I decided that rather than just adding a tag on post like I did before, I’d just remake the build with the new features being taken into consideration. Like before, the focus of the build is to create an embodiment of the generic fairytale princess and not any one particular character. So without further ado, let’s get into it.

Like before, we’ll be choosing Variant Human for our race of choice. We’ll channel Sleeping Beauty to be gifted by the fey with blessings of Beauty, Grace, and Song for +1 CHA, +1 DEX, and Performance proficiency. We also get a bonus feat, and thanks to Tasha’s, we can now take Fey Blessed for +1 CHA. However, if she doesn’t cast with Charisma, then substitute those CHA bonuses with Wisdom instead.

The generic fairytale princess is a maid of purest heart, so we’re Lawful Good. But for your more rebellious princesses, Neutral Good or Chaotic Good are also valid.

Background is obviously Noble for proficiency with History and Persuasion.

CLASSES & SUBCLASSES

BARD

This one seems pretty obvious. Bards love to sing and dance, like your stereotypical princess. Because Charisma is their top stat, and they have expertise, it can make them great negotiators, and allow them to excel in dialogue interactions.

GLAMOUR

This college is very fitting for a fairytale princess, as it is focused on making oneself as beautiful and charming as the Fairest of Them All.

LORE 

Lore bards share information, whether they tell stories, recite plays, share philosophy, or spread juicy gossip, the Lore Bard gets more magical secrets, and added expertise to make your princess an even bigger Mary Sue. In actual medieval history, princesses often learned to play instruments and sing, recite prayers or poems, or tell stories to visiting guests, and it was considered a part of her education and duty to do so.

CLERIC

While not every princess is a devout religious girl, their stories tend to be set in the medieval period when a good princess would have been expected to be chaste and pious. So on that front, worshiping a good deity would be befitting of such a character.

LIFE

The fairytale princess raises up those they care about, and nothing is more supportive and helpful than keeping your friends on their feet. The Life Cleric turns your princess into a kind soul who weeps for her friends and patches them up after the battle, turning your princess into a useful ally against the wicked witches and dangerous dragons.

LIGHT

Not all Fairytale Princesses are passive or support players. Those who lean toward Light are the princesses who stand as the Big Good of their story and battle the forces of Darkness with the power of the Light. Of the three Cleric options that fit the archetype, this is the best option for being a powerhouse in combat.

PEACE

Don’t get me wrong, I still hate this domain for wearing the skin of the Love Domain we were supposed to get, and you can absolutely still play it that way. How this domain went from Love to Togetherness to Pacifism is beyond me, but it’s a fairly strong subclass. The classic princess archetype is supposed to be gentle and kind, fitting for one who worships a god of mercy and forgiveness. It’s a value often toted as the strongest characterization of the early Disney princesses.

DRUID

My first time building the fairytale princess, I ignored Druid as an option because the wildshaping didn’t really make sense for a fairytale princess, but a lot of the Bardic Magical Secrets were used to steal Druid spells. However, thanks to the optional rules from Tasha’s, Druids can now use their Wildshape to summon fey that take on the shapes of animals instead of turning into the animals themselves, which makes Druid far more viable, as summoning animals is very in-character for a fairytale princess.

DREAMS 

The Circle of Dreams has heavy Fey associations with references to the Summer Court ruled by Titania. It also is strongly focused on healing, and has a very Fairy Tale flavor to it. It’s an especially great option if you want to invoke Sleeping Beauty, as you can cloak your party while you sleep and send messages to people through your dreams.

SHEPHERD

The fairytale princess is strongly associated with animal buddies, and nothing makes better use of that than the Shepherd Druid, which focuses on amassing an army of critters. What’s more, the Unicorn Totem is very fitting, not only because Unicorns only approach maidens with pure hearts, but Shepherds of the Unicorn Totem get empowered healing.

SORCERER

The sorcerer is born with a spark of something special in them, and a lot of fantasy royalty have magical powers that other people in their world lack.

DIVINE SOUL

The princess doesn’t literally have to be the descendant of the gods, as the original name for the subclass was more about being favored by the gods. Still, if you want to lean into the idea of the princess as the Big Good against the Big Bad, then having her be born with the spark of the gods inside her makes for a neat characterization.

WILD MAGIC 

With the new Sorcerer Shards as I’ve come to call them, we were introduced to the Feywild Shard, which was heavily geared toward Wild Magic Sorcerers, which seems to be WoTC’s way of saying that Wild Magic Sorcerers are the fey-linked sorcerous origin, so I’m including it because of our fey connection. 

WARLOCK

This is the only class where there’s exactly one good option, but it’s one that works surprisingly well.

ARCHFEY 

As a Warlock with a Pact of the Chain, your fairytale princess can choose to Find Familiar any cute little animal companion, or a Sprite to be your Fairy Godmother. Or rather, you can sign a pact with your Fairy Godmother, and use your Chain Pact to summon one of her emissaries to help you. The Archfey patron themselves can act as your Fairygodther, granting you and your party boons and aid where they need it.

WARLOCK INVOCATIONS

Agonizing Blast Armor of Shadows Beast Speech Eldritch Mind Eldritch Sight Gift of the Ever-Living Ones Shroud of Shadow Voice of the Chain Master

CHARISMA vs WISDOM

The big split in how you build your princess falls down the line between these two camps. The wise princess works better as a Druid/Cleric, while a charming princess is more of a Bardlock. For me personally, as much as the Cleruid fits the fairytale princess, the stereotype of the princess is usually that she is gullible, naïve, and overly trusting. Insight is a wisdom check, and something the classic princess archetype is usually bad at. Granted, Animal Handling is also Wisdom, but the Bard’s expertise can overrule a low Wisdom score. Think of it like a clash between Princess Zelda from the Legend of Zelda vs Princess Peach from Mario. Princess Zelda is wise and is much more focused on leadership and protecting her kingdom. Peach is more about the pretty dresses and having servants help her. They’re two very different camps on the princess archetype. Ultimately, which one you choose will depend on the type of princess you wish to invoke. The Classic Damsel or the Wise Matriarch.

SIDEKICKS

A new feature added in Tasha’s, sidekicks are secondary characters that can help the party and are basically simplified character builds with fewer bells and whistles. There are three main camps:

Expert. Experts are clever and knowledgeable, be they minstrels, librarians, pickpockets, merchants, or assassins. They can pick proficiency with DEX, INT, or CHA saving throws, and can be proficient or an expert with any five skills of your choice, and humanoids also gain proficiency with light armor, simple weapons, and two tools of your choice.

Spellcaster. Trained in the secrets of the Arcane, be they a priest, a fortuneteller, or a magical creature. They can choose proficiency with INT, WIS, or CHA checks, and can be proficient in Arcana, History, Insight, Investigation, Medicine, Performance, Persuasion, or Religion. They choose a roll to determine their spell list: Mage (Wizard), Healer (Cleric, Druid) or Prodigy (Bard, Warlock). The sidekick has access to the spell list of the classes their role aligns with, as well as casting with that stat.

Warrior. trained fighters, be they a soldier, a city guard, a trained animal, or a hired sword. They can pick proficiency with STR, DEX, or CON saving throws, and their skill options are Acrobatics, Animal Handling, Athletics, Intimidation, Nature, Perception, and Survival. Warriors can pick a fighting style: either Offensive to add +2 to attack and damage rolls, or Defender to impose disadvantage on hitting creatures other than them while within 5 feet of the princess.

Generic Princess Sidekicks

Humanoid Guard Warrior (bodyguard) Humanoid Commoner Expert (handmaiden, governess, etc.) Humanoid Magewright Spellcaster (court mage, or advisor) Any Beast-type Warrior (animal companion)

Fairytale Inspired Sidekicks

Seven Dwarves - Dwarf Warrior Fairy Godmother - Sprite or Pixie Spellcaster Prince Charming - Humanoid Noble Warrior Wicked Witch - Barovian Witch Spellcaster Beast - Gnoll, Jackalwere, Orc, or Troglodyte Warrior Puss in Boots - Awakened Cat or Tabaxi Warrior The Frog Prince - Awakened Frog or Grung Warrior Three Little Pigs - Awakened Pig Expert, Spellcaster, & Warrior Big Bad Wolf - Wolf Warrior or Awakened Wolf Expert Robin Hood - Redbrand Ruffian or Bandit Expert Djinn of the Lamp - Dust, Ice, or Magma Mephit Spellcaster Pinocchio - Giant Stone Statue Warrior White Rabbit - Awakened Rabbit Expert Cheshire Cat - Awakened Cat Expert or Spellcaster

There is no actual limit to the number of sidekicks your character can have, so in theory, your fairytale princess could have an entire posse of talking animals hanging out and helping her.

Skills, Spells, and Features

As a Variant Human, we got Performance proficiency alongside our Fey Touched feat, and as a Noble, we have proficiency with Persuasion and History. For everything else, we’re just looking to be a standard Fairytale Princess. So we should look to be proficient with: Animal Handling, Arcana, Religion, Nature, or Medicine.

BASIC FAIRIES

Dancing Lights Faerie Fire Healing Spirits Spirit Guardians Summon Fey Conjure Woodland Beings Conjure Fey

BASIC PRINCESS THINGS

Animal Friendship Command Heroism Speak With Animals Animal Messenger Calm Emotions Find Steed Warding Bond Zone of Truth Conjure Animals Mord’s Magnificent Mansion

SNOW WHITE

Armor of Agathys Mirror Image Beacon of Hope Aura of Purity Heroes’ Feast

CINDERELLA

Fabricate Creation True Polymorph Wish

SLEEPING BEAUTY

Sleep Phantasmal Killer Dream Wall of Thorns Dream of the Blue Veil

THE LITTLE MERMAID

Charm Person Shatter Suggestion Tidal Wave Compulsion Control Water Dominate Person Maelstrom Control Weather Tsunami Storm of Vengeance

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

Charm Monster Unseen Servant Tiny Servant Animate Objects Awaken Hold Monster Summon Fiend

Last time I built the fairytale princess, I gave her exactly 1 build. 18 levels of glamour bard and 2 levels of Archfey Warlock. But recently I’ve begun to instead put more stock in leaving builds open, showing instead the options that a player has to choose from. So, for this update, I’m not pushing for a specific build. I’ve laid out the appropriate spells, and the types of princesses that a player can strive to emulate with their spell lists. Consider this more of a guide to help you decide how you want to play your fairytale princess.

[kyogre-blue]

So because I might as well get all my crazy theories out, I'll put down what I think is Rosaria's deal too.

Now, Rosaria is officially a Sister in the Church of Favonius. However, she obviously has no particular interest in the church and outright scorns doing something like participating in a church event when Barbara asks her to attend.

Instead, to me, she sounds more like a cop, or more specifically a hard-boiled detective type.

She talks about arresting people, is good at persuading others to go along with her goals, has sharp ears, her talent is called Night Walk, etc. Her dialogue also talks about... a lot of things that aren't sister-like but do sound like law enforcement:

Rosaria: Otherwise, depending on your answer, I could've arrested you on the spot. We can't go turning a blind eye to hidden dangers can we? Why shouldn't Sisters have a sense of justice?

Rosaria: No, this is just a professional habit of mine. I sensed elemental traces in these tracks. Never hurts to be vigilant.

Rosaria: You know, little pixie, your ability to appear and disappear at will is very interesting... After committing a crime, you'd be able to leave the scene without a trace

Rosaria: Me? I'm alright. I got used to operating in adverse conditions a long time ago.

Rosaria: The word on the street is, he loves sketching. He'll hang around anywhere for a good landscape.

Rosaria: We've found your man, I'm headed back.

Rosaria: I've investigated everything else. The only items left on the agenda are these symbols. But for insurance purposes, I'd better make a copy... Hmm. This is now a location of interest, regular patrols should be set up here.

Rosaria: Now then. All things considered, I deem that you pose no immediate threat. Which is what I was hoping. I would have been one very unhappy Sister if you'd make me work overtime on your account.

I know some people joke about interpreting "your man" as your boyfriend (Albedo), but I feel it sounds more like a target or suspect.

This doesn't seem to be a function of the Church (at least on the surface), so I wonder if it has something to do with a shadowy group that has been mentioned operating in Mondstadt, in the description of The Bell:

One by the name of Kreuzlied traveled with the Wanderer's Troupe. Once a member of the ruling Lawrence clan, now a traitor and outcast. It was not made public what punishment Kreuzlied met with after the failed uprising. This in itself is a testament to his privileged origins.

Legend says that after being dismissed from office, his desire to continue the legacy of his fellow rebels led him to establish a secret society aimed at bringing down the Aristocracy. It is also said that he gave his full assistance to the enslaved gladiator when she revolted.

Further in the past, the popular rumor was that Kreuzlied's secret society was working constantly in the background, helping the Knights of Favonius keep Mondstadt safe through deeds that no knight should ever be party to.

It was even said that the Wolf Pup Rostam ran this organization in secret, behind the Grand Master's back.

The Wanderer's Troupe, Vennessa predecessors in rebelling against the aristocracy, are mentioned in quite a few artifacts and weapons. But this part is especially notable, since it links that lore with something more recent, Rostam.

Rostam is also notable because he and Arundolyn have a bunch of parallels with Kaeya and Diluc. We don't particularly have indication that Kaeya himself is connected to this, but seeing Rosaria with him (and Diluc) in the 1.4 trailer really makes me wonder...

Anyway, tl;dr, I think Rosaria is part of a secret group that protects Mondstadt from the shadows. She's basically a secret agent of sorts.

[foul-z-fowl]

Webtoons

I was inspired to write a post about my favorite webtoons and my thoughts on them, so buckle up for a hell of a ride.

Series used- Adventures of God, Small World, Brass & Sass, My Dictator Boyfriend, To Love Your Enemy, Love Me Knot, True Beauty, My Giant Nerd Boyfriend, The Four of Them, Lore Olympus, Luff, Brimstone and Roses, Miss Abbott and the Doctor, Prince & Knight, Sweet Cinnamon, Enjoy the show, Pixie and Brutus, Big Small Spoon, We are a Family, LMLY, A Matter of Life and Death.

Adventures of God-

Not for the easily offended, ESPECIALLY if you’re religious. At first I had my doubts, but this hilarious series won me over and I always look forward to the regular updates on Tuesdays and Saturdays. (Teo & Corey) 

Small World-

Sometimes they make me laugh, sometimes they make cry, sometimes I’m left wondering what the hell I just read. Welcome the world of Robin and Julian, the most adorable comic couple ever. Updates Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday (Wonsun Jin)

Brass & Sass-

Absolutely a contender for my favorite webtoon, I spend every day counting down until Thursday when it updates. The characters, their dynamics and just EVERYTHING is amazing, not in the least the adorable art. One of my favorite things is how Camilla still isn’t good at the trumpet after just a few months of practice. Her struggles with learning how to play (and with her cute tutor) are so relatable! (antlerella)

My dictator boyfriend-

To be honest, I read this for the same reason the artist draws it- for the butts! I discovered this through Adventures of God, after seeing what else the artist/authors worked on. While most of it is humor and fluff, the angst and the moral moments are buried in there, and I live for it. Updates every Thursday and Sunday. (Teo & Guy)

To Love your Enemy-

I’ll be honest, I almost dropped this one in the beginning. The plot lines seemed a tad confused, almost like the authors weren’t sure what direction they wanted to go with. But then, out of nowhere I just dug my heels in and read and just like that, I was in love. Updates every Monday and Thursday. (Junyoon & Taegeon)

Love me Knot-

I’ve always loved the mythology surrounding the red string of fate, and the second this popped up on my radar, I was hooked. The characters are adorable, quirky, and relatable. It also teaches several important lessons, including one I’ve always loved- Just because your soulmate is the best person for you, doesn’t mean they have to be the ONLY person for you. You can be happy with someone else. Updates every Wednesday. (sophia)

True Beauty-

I know, I know, everyone says that that ‘the love triangle took over’ , but I think in the last episode or two, the webtoon has really started to go back to it’s original message. It’s so crazy to think how far I’ve come with these characters. They’re no longer in high school, now they’re adults, whose careers and dreams sometimes interfere with their relationships and family. As only the second webtoon I ever read, back when I swore that I would never read webtoons for fun, it holds a special place in my heart, and is one of the only webtoons I have memorized the update day for- Wednesdays. (Yaongyi)

My Giant Nerd Boyfriend-

This Slice of Life webtoon has so many episodes, I’m still trying to catch up! But it’s safe to say Fishball’s hilarious down-to-earth real life stories are awesome. And sometimes very, very, weird. Updates Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. (Fishball)

The Four of Them-

To be honest, I’m only three episodes into this, and it’s already on my subscribe list.  Updates every Monday. (Mai Hirschfeld)

Lore Olympus-

Yes, I know it’s the top webtoon, and everyone has to be ‘not like other people’ and ‘quirky’ and ‘against the status quo’, but guys, that’s what made me miss out on One Direction when they were popular. I love Lore Olympus, and I love the character development. Persephone and Hades’ relationship is real. Also, this was the series that introduced me to webtoon. I was scrolling through youtube ignoring the recommendation’s for Helevetica Dubs dub of it, until I finally listened to it, and I was hooked. That was made me come to webtoon and without it, I would have missed out on several amazing stories. I do have one major problem though- I think Persephone is over sexualized. Updates every Sunday. (Rachel smythe)

Luff-

Oh my god. Luff. Where to begin. I loved every second of Luff. It took me on a roller coaster ride of emotion, and trust me, if the premise and the beginning seem cliche, that just makes the payoff of the ending all the more sweet. Luff was beautiful look and humanity, love, and relationships. Finished :(. (Arechan)

Brimstone and Roses-

I just started this one an hour ago, but what the hell. Brimstone and Roses seems alright so far. (Honestly, I’m kind of hoping Bea gets her ex back instead of ending up with the demon.) Finished (Mei Rothschild)

Miss Abbott and the Doctor-

Another recommend form Helevetica Dubs, this adorable, hilarious, heart-warming, amazing, beautiful series is perfect. And because the author is amazing, there are regular episodes where everyone is gender bent. Yeah! The best part about these Mr. Abbott and the Doctor episode is that things don’t always play out the same. 10/10, would recommend! Finished :(. (Maripaz Villar)

Prince & Knight-

This author has quite the talent for making EVERY all-to-short episode end in a cliffhanger, which is very frustrating for me. But, this is adorable, so it can slide. :). Updates Monday 6pm, UTC. (Tsuyonpu)

Sweet Cinnamon-

To be fair, only half of the update actually are part of the story line. But, hey the author knows how to write compelling characters who I would let be my friend in real life! Updates are fairly sporadic, but usually a week or two apart. (Glen_❤️)

Enjoy the Show-

Another one of my top contenders, this webtoon makes me cry in the spaces between updates. I found this series through a canvas creators collab, and I was HOOKED. The characters, the art, it’s all amazing. And the twist! ARRRRR, I was so mad I never considered that!! One of my favorite things about this series is anytime it looks like a character might be a love interest for out heroine, they are swiftly dealt with. Jailtbait? Self-explanatory. Gabe? He’s just a flirt. Updates are generally once a month or so, but the creator regularly participates in collabs! (Jenna A)

Pixie and Brutus-

You’ve probably seen at least one of these adorable comics somewhere besides webtoon, but there are actually a lot more than you think! Pixie and Brutus is about a tiny little kitten and an old retired military dog, and their friendship, and how protective Brutus is of Pixie, is adorable! Update are fairly random- sometimes the update are a month apart, sometimes they happen back to back. (Pet Foolery)

Big Small Spoon-

Big small spoon opened up a whole new world of webtoons for me. It introduced me to the Slice of Life genre, and the creator’s canvas collabs have brought me to so many of my favorite webtoons! This comic is adorable and drawn from the creator’s real life. Updates Tuesday ACST (a r v i e)

We are a family-

Even though this adorable webtoon only has 24 episodes, it definitely is another contender for my favorite! It’s just so precious and adorable! It’s about a young couple (Joon and Erin) who are trying to raise a baby (Edan), it’s veeeery funny (just be warned- it has an inappropriate content warning for a reason. Nothing’s graphic, just alluded to.) Updates roughly a week or two apart. (mocoso)

LMLY-

Short for Let Me Love You, this adorable series is about a boy who’s crush asks him to fake date her! The characters are adorable and I love the design for Leon (the boy) who has hectochromia (two different colored eyes). Updates used to be close together, but recently they’ve become every few months. (edbe)

A Matter of Life and Death-

Probably my favorite webtoon of all time. The characters are amazing, the idea behind the series is amazing, the art is beautiful, and watching the creator’s style evolve over time is such a treat. This series is truly amazing. Unfortunatly, the creator, the AMAZING BEAUTIFUL WONDERFUL SNIPSTER, has been dealing with some issues and hasn’t updates since May, and doesn’t intend to anytime soon. Speaking of Snipster- Snipster is so awesome she posts fanfiction, fanart, and alternate universe versions of her characters. Go to her Tapas for some highly NSFW extras. Updates not forthcoming for a while (and it ended on a cliffhanger!!!) (Snipster-webtoon Snarpers-Tapas) @the-snipster

Still here? I hope you found something good to read!

[365days365movies]

March 7, 2021: Onward (2020) (Part One)

Finding Nemo.

That’s my favorite Pixar film. Real talk, no arguments, and today’s movie? NOT dethroning it. This movie is so hard-wired into my brain, that the second I typed the words of the title, the theme song ran through my head, where it lives rent-free. It will be a cold day when I don’t find an excuse to shout “NEMOOOO!!!! I HAVE TO FIND MY SON!!” at any opportune moment. I will never stop swimming. Whenever I catch a Chinchou or Lanturn in a Pokémon game, I name it “Goodfeeling’sgone”.

SHARK BAIT OOH HA HA

YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND THE DEPTHS OF MY LOVE FOR THIS MOVIE.

...Ahem. So, yeah, I love FInding Nemo. For the record, the sequel ain’t bad. And also for the record, there’s only one Pixar movie that I consider to be bad, and it’s the one you’d think. You know, the one about ageism. The one where somebody dies by torture? The bad spy movie?

...the second one about cars?

Which means, YES. I DON’T THINK The Good Dinosaur IS THAT BAD! Not exactly good, but its gorgeous, and just kinda boring, not outright terrible. That Styracosaurus, though...that dude is great.

Anyway, off of Pixar for a sec, huh? What about fantasy? I’m a big tabletop RPG nerd, and I’m currently the GM for a Pathfinder campaign, a Pokémon RPG, and a Mutants and Masterminds game, while also playing in a Pathfinder game as well. Yeah, I’m a busy dewd. But what I’m saying is, this movie should be preaching to the choir for me. I’m a Pixar lover who plays RPGs. I’m ready for this. I’m ready for CGI Bright. Which is another way of saying, I’m ready for a version of Bright that doesn’t suck.

So, why haven’t I seen it until now? I mean...COVID-19. This film got FUCKED. But, no matter! It’s on Disney Plus, I’ve got Disney Plus, so let’s get this baby STARTED! Let’s get updated on some Pixar! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap (1/2)

OK, immediately digging the soundtrack over the Disney logo as we jump in here! Very ethereal, very fantasy, very LotR, I LIKE it, I LIKE it! And then...long ago, the world was full of wonder!

We get a view of the world of olde, with magic and many mystical, mythical creatures living together and adventuring. However, as magic wasn’t the easiest thing in the world to use, it eventually gave way to technology, fading away in a world now very similar to ours.

Basically, it’s about the same as our world, except for a few different races, and the fact that dragons are basically dogs, and unicorns are basically raccoons, which is fuckin’ fantastic.

We enter the home of teenage elf Ian Lightfoot (Tom Holland) and introverted now-16-year-old who lives with his mother, Laurel (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and his older brother Barley (Chris Pratt). Barley’s a tabletop RPG nerd who’s also a fan of the magical past. Said obsessions cause a strain on his relationship with Ian, and with that of his mother’s boyfriend, centaur policeman Colt Bronco (Mel Rodriguez).

After a discussion about Barley’s recent attempt to protect an old magical monument from destruction, he accidentally damages the sweatshirt that Ian is wearing, which was owned by their late father, Wilder. Ian rushes out, flustered, despite Barley’s attempts to bond with him. Well, looks like we have a sense of the plot for this one.

On his way to school, Barley stops to get some food when he meets Gaxton (Wilmer Valderrama), an old college friend of his father’s. From Gaxton, he learns things about his father that he never knew, like that he was bold and standout. From there, Barely pledges to try and be more self-confident, like his father.

Whiiiiiiich, doesn’t exactly work once he gets to school. He fails to stand-up to a jerky guy at school, he fails in his driving class, and he fails to ask other high school kids to his birthday party. But to be fair, Barley helps a bit with that last one when he shows up with Guinevere, his busted-ass van with a unicorn painted on the side. Which is supposed to be uncool...but I kinda dig it, not gonna lie.

After that, Ian completely flubs the invitation bit, confusing the people he was talking to, and disappointing himself in the process. He gets a ride home with Barley, and goes home to talk to a tape recording of his dad. Which is...beautifully sad, and somehow very easy to identify with. So, yeah, it’s gonna be that kind of Pixar movie.

Ian talks to his mom about his father at his age, asking if he was ever unsure. She says yes, but couples this with a surprise: a gift from his late father, who died of a terminal illness shortly after Ian’s birth. The gift is for both Ian and Barley, and was meant to be opened when they were both over 16.

She gets it from the attic, and they unwrap it, where it’s revealed to be a wizard’s staff. Which is weird, because Wilder was an accountant. In a pocket of the wrapping cloth, there’s a letter written by Wilder with the narration from the beginning of the film (that “Long ago” bit).

Also included is a spell, written by Wilder so that he could see who his sons grew up to be. This “Visitation Spell” would appear to be a way to bring Wilder back for 24 hours. Barley, being the magic-lover that he is, tries multiple times to cast the spell with the staff, but fails to do so, much to his and Ian’s great disappointment.

However, when Ian tries to read the spell out of curiosity later, the staff begins to react, and the spell begins to work. Barley comes in as this is happening, and the spell works...halfway. It starts to fail, and Barley offers to help, but Ian pulls the staff away, and the spell stops as the Phoenix crystal inside it shatters.

Looks like another bust, but it’s not a complete failure. And if you’ve seen literally any trailer for this movie, you know what happens.

Although it’s just his legs and feet, it’s still Wilden Lightfoot (Kyle Bornheimer...technically). The boys decide to try and complete the spell, but need another Phoenix Gem to do so. According to Barley’s “historically accurate” TTRPG, Quests of Lore, they will be able to find one by accepting a quest from the place where all quests start: the Manticore’s Tavern. And so, the quest begins!

The brothers and their half-dad board Guinevere and drive to the Manticore’s Tavern. On the way, Barley convinces Ian to practice some spells from the games rulebook, but they don’t work because Ian’s not invoking his passion (or his “heart’s fire”, as Barley calls it). Meanwhile, Laurel figures out where they’re headed, but doesn’t know exactly why...yet.

After the journey, they make it to the Manticore’s Tavern, which is now essentially a themed Chuck E. Cheese’s restaurant, owned and managed by Corey (Octavia Spencer), a very overworked manticore. Which is pretty great, not gonna lie.

They try to get the actual map to the Phoenix’s Gem from her in order to conjure their Dad, but she no longer sends adventurers on dangerous quests, mostly because she doesn’t want to get sued by any injured adventurers. When Ian argues with her about this, she IMMEDIATELY DIVES INTO AN EXISTENTIAL CRISIS/MID LIFE CRISIS!

It’s, uh...it’s kind of amazing. Having completely lost it at this point, she basically tears down the entire building with her bare hands and fire-breath. Unfortunately, the map to the Phoenix Gem is burnt in the process of Corey’s literal meltdown. However, as Wilden’s about to be crushed by a couple of falling beams, Ian taps into his heart’s fire.

Nice. They get out of there, and head out for the Gem, using a child’s placemat replica of the real map to make their way to a place called Raven’s Point. However, rather than just follow the goddamn map, Barley decides to go on much more dangerous road known as the “Path of Peril”, once again following the “call of adventure” and his gut.

Which...yeah, Barley’s not really considering the reality of this whole situation, which fits his personality. He’s a dreamer, despite the rational and reasonable solution in front of him. And, in case you weren’t sure, I’m pretty sure that isn’t a good thing.

Ian points out the correct point that what actually matters is that they send enough time with their father, and they do indeed take the straightforward path. Good! Barley listened to Ian’s suggestion after all. However, they hit another snag when the car breaks down, completely out of gas. Problem.

Meanwhile, Laurel makes her way to the Manticore’s place, only to find it on fire! She meets Corey, who tells her that she’s met her boys, and told them about everything...except the curse. Also, there’s a curse. Laurel, who is the best movie Mom ever, tricks a policeman interviewing Corey to diverting his attention away from her, and smuggles her into her car to help find (and maybe rescue) her sons. 

Stuck off the freeway without gas, a desperate Ian asks Barley if there are any spells that can get them more gas. They concoct a plan involving a shrinking and growing spell, but that immediately goes wrong as Barley tries to instruct Ian, only frustrating him further, and causing him to fumble the spell and hit Barley with it, making him tiny. 

They decide to head to a gas station, where a group of pixie bikers has just arrived. This backfires when Barley, lacking basically any common sense, ends up insulting the biker leader, Dewdrop (Grey Griffin) and her ancestors. Nice one, Barley. As they escape from the pissed off pixies, the tiny Barley is unable to drive, forcing the driver’s anxiety-riddled Ian to drive, overcoming his fears from earlier by force, being chased by the pixies all the way. It’s a pretty good sequence, to be honest.

Well, they escape the Pixies...but not the cops. And I think that’ll be a good place to pick up in the next part! See you there!

[darkpoisonouslove]

Winx Club Season 8 Thoughts Part 1

Here I am! The latest season of Winx. Can’t believe I made it here (especially after I sped through seasons 6 and 7). I am kinda excited about this because I am finally getting to watch the second part (I have seen the first one) and I think that after season 7, it really can’t get that much worse. Also, I am now used to the idea of the art style even if I still despise it completely and passionately. So let’s do this!

8x01:

- Who thought this art style was a good idea? And why did they have to bring the band back? That was so unnecessary. But at least the song in the opening isn’t bad.

- So... Bloom is the main vocalist but they just leave Musa to write all the songs? Didn’t think that could get more unfair and yet it did. Also, love how they changed the art style but Stella is still acting as immature as she has since season 4.

- Kiko is actually being acknowledged in the second minute? Please, tell me that will last after the lumens.

- Oh, wow, the plot is already starting? I am actually pleasantly surprised. Took them only two minutes.

- Ugh, not Obscurum! Pleaaaaaase!

- Lumenia is the star that lights Solaria? Does that mean it is the first sun of Solaria? Okay... That’s actually kinda cool.

- Oh, great! The one with all the info has amnesia! But actually, that might be a good idea because not everything is convenient for damn once! Edit: And Timmy and Tecna are back to being inventors! *happy sob*

- How is a scare supposed to trigger memories? By inducing a flashback of traumatic events? That’s cool but fear can also cause memory blockages. So idk about that. Lmao @ Kiko with that hammer, though. You might have the right idea, Kiko. We’ll come back to you once Twinkly gets annoying.

- The dissonance between the maturity of the Specialists’ voices and their FUCKING FACES! It is unbearable!

- Oh, Kiko is hitting on Twinkly? XD Jk. He just wants to cheer her up and it’s actually really cute. Almost makes up for them totally ruining his design.

- Not a song number! I am forewarning everyone that I will be skipping all of those.

- Omg! A scene of the Specialists talking? About their own stuff?!??! And them messing around with each other (read: mocking each other (and especially Nex)). We haven’t had that since... season 4? It was sorely missed, THANK YOU!

- Riven is back!

- And Knut is back! But wtf is up with Griselda’s voice? Also, how did they change her design the least, yet still totally ruined it? I cannot comprehend that! Lmao at her gestures at Knut, though!

- The memories of Twinkly actually looked pretty scary and traumatic. I can’t believe I am saying this but this season is doing a decent job so far and even more than that.

- Dammit, why do I have to suffer Butterflix again?

- I was gonna say that that was quick but the thing actually reappeared. That’s... pretty nice. Could be used to such a great advantage! And it was actually Stella’s spell that worked and not Bloom’s? They gave up on their obsession with Bloom to make this make sense? Um, yes, please?

- Okay, stealing starlight sounds like a rocking plan as soon as they explain well why the hell that is the goal here.

- Yeah, Stella, you are so damn cautious! Girl, you’re almost as impulsive as Bloom. (But XD @ “Caution is our middle name... More of a nickname, really”)

8x02:

- Twinkly: Where am I? Me: At Alfea. Shut up!

- Why does this show have such an aversion to letting Kiko sleep in peace, dammit?!

- Flora has a plant that takes care of other plants? Omg, that is so cool! And we’re finally seeing her care for the plants in her room again! This season is already better than seasons 6 and 7 combined.

- Stella could just use magic to shrink down that enormous suitcase.

- Omg, they’re spending time with their boyfriends again instead of just screeching at them for no reason whatsoever? Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Why are Winx mad that the Specialists didn’t tell them about Riven? What would it have changed? They still would have been shocked. And why the hell is Musa yelling at Riven? They broke up! He doesn’t owe her a schedule of his every waking moment! I hate this reaction.

- Why... are the outfits gonna let them travel in space? I mean, can you imagine how cool they could have looked in spacesuits?

- Wow, that’s a lot of pink. But that IS the Winx aesthetic to differer from the aesthetic shown in you-know-what.

- Why is the queen ruler of all the stars and not just of Lumenia? Otherwise, the star lore is pretty cool. I have to say that the whole thing with the rivers reminds of the Underworld a lot which is an interesting parallel to dwell on.

- Stella is pretty amazing in this already indeed!

- Oh, the crystal monsters. I remember those. They were really annoying. And I am not a fan of the upcoming transformation upgrade.

- Did the Specialists follow them there? Not the most unshady thing they’ve done but at least they’re helping. Also, I would like to point Netflix’ attention to the way their weapons look! Take a close look!

- OH MY GOD! Someone had a smart idea here! They are actually handling themselves even though their powers aren’t all that effective! Riven is saving Musa and being awesome! This is good enough to make me cry, wtf?

- Ooh, damn! Love the way Valtor’s mark showed up and how actually bothered by it they acted! That was cool and really created a good atmosphere!

- They saved the river AND they actually talked about the sneaking around in a (mostly) mature manner? And they resolved the conflict? RIVEN IS COMMUNICATING?????? This season is a fucking treat so far! Except for Musa being a goddamn primadonna!

- Valtor’s new design is also pretty close to his original one and yet... just NOT. IT!

- Cosmix time. Okay, the visuals are actually quite pretty (I especially love the fact that they look transparent at first; I have a feeling there’s a nice symbolism to this but I’ll have to think about it a bit more). The song isn’t bad either but it’s a little repetitive,

- They probably could have done better with the name than “star yummies” but it isn’t quite so bad. I mean, we’ve seen worse and this is pretty minor considering that they’re doing pretty well with almost everything else (so far and I hope I am not jinxing this).

8x03:

- Okay, the name sounds dumb but it’s accurate.

- I have to say that I saw the twist with Obscurum coming even if I was only clicking through the episodes when I first watched this but now I want to see if it was foreshadowed. Him saying he wants to rule Lumenia still isn’t enough foreshadowing but it does raise the question of why Lumenia specifically so it’s headed in the right direction at least.

- Nice move, Stella! And, omg, did Flora just use something that’s not vines? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am getting really hyped up over here.

- They’re thinking! They’re actually instantly adapting to the problems that they are facing! Man, this is even better than season 1! HOW? Not that I care. Just don’t let it stop!

- So Valtor is actually using starlight to buff himself on a magical level? And in season 1 they said that starlight was the purest source of magic (4kids). Is this... continuity between the first and the latest season??????? I am literally tearing up over here because I never believed this moment would come but it has and it is beautiful!

- Not a fan of the Valtor and Obscurum dynamic because it is just... a big no again, just like his working relationship with the Trix (except I can’t decide if this is worse because Obscurum is afraid or if s3 was worse because Valtor was leading the Trix on about *gags* you know (don’t make me say it)). Love the castle in the stars, though! So cool (even if it is also so very impractical).

- Man, Twinkly really is just a stand-in for the pixies, isn’t she? Same bravery and complete and utter uselessness balance.

- Stella is fucking shining and I am loving it! But did Obscurum just say “erase them”? You mean... this has actual stakes? And Bloom’s projection of the Dragon Fire makes sense because Cosmix is light-based? Musa is using an attack that basically acts like an earthquake except without the damage aka... safe for usage? I am going to pass out from happiness. Like, you don’t even know.

- THEY ACTUALLY LOST?????? And they are not giving up but... coming up with a plan???? That is smart??????????????????? I am in love with this season for now.

- They powered the core! And that will now cause Valtor to make a shift in his strategy! This season is actually dynamic! Goddamit, yes!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!

-  Obscurum to Valtor: “Something more intimate? You, me...” ... Why is he hitting on him? Bleh. But damn! The trap dimension has so much potential!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Oh, song time. Goodie. Why is Obscurum acting like he has the dancing plague? And, for fuck’s sake, why am I getting Christian Grey vibes from Valtor? Ugh! *shudders* Please, no! But he is actually taking Winx seriously and coming up with countermeasures? Um, yes, I will take that!

- Ugh, why are they having classes again?! I hate that part!

- Sky, you know where they were! But I actually kinda like the change to have Bloom be the one that doesn’t have time for dating instead of having her sulking over Sky being a prince and having royal duties the whole time.

- What do you mean that Griselda doesn’t know what is going on? This is not Griselda!

- Tecna, watch what you’re putting in your damn potion! I know Musa fucked up but you could have checked what she handed you!

- Aww, Tecna throwing a dance party to cheer Musa up was so cute! And look at Stella dragging all that luggage up the stairs on her own! She is precious (and devoted to fashion but this time in a not so annoying manner... so far.)

8x04:

- Dammit, why is Obscurum the first thing I see?

- Okay, it’s pretty cute how excited Bloom is. And all the rest of Winx helping Sky while at the same time judging him for not being better for Bloom and putting more effort in it. This is just the dynamic! I love it!

- Musical food? What the hell, Musa?! But lmao at the Sky and Flora moment there. And Musa and Layla’s reaction to his words. But he was right. Flora was the only one being useful.

- What picnic under the stars? There are no stars! It’s the middle of the day!

- Oh, why the drama now? Bloom also forgot their date in the previous episode because of her mission. Sky is doing the exact same rn! Hypocrisy much?

- “Your Great Malevolence” and “Your Vileness”? I don’t like Obscurum but his decorum is amusing at the very least.

- But if a star has to be attacked before it will alert them that they need to go there, they won’t be one step ahead of Valtor. They might be able to catch up with him but they are still one step behind him.

- A moving star. That was actually a cool idea although I am not sure how the hell that is supposed to work.

- Why have those lumens never heard of music? But damn, I am actually happy that they made the band plot relevant (for all of 3 seconds). At least make it have some purpose.

- At least Bloom actually also supported Sky while attacking him. She is literally the definition of mixed signals here but that’s better than her just being plain mad.

- Can they use the music to capture the star yummies in a trance? That would be nice and it would justify having the band in this season.

- Stella is having the time for a selfie while actually being super effective and handling that part of the mess on her own? Yes, please! Where was that in the previous seasons?!

- The thief is not “trying” to attack. He is attacking! But damn, Brandon made some good moves there! Are you telling me that we actually get to see the Specialists doing their own missions again plus a really cute parallel between Brandon and Stella? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love it!

- They’re being pulled in a black hole? Holy shit! This season is actually getting intense! And it makes sense? I am shooketh! Can Stella save them with her light, though?

- Oh, nvm! They’re gonna do it together. Eh, that still works I guess.

- The Specialists were really working as a team here and I have missed seeing that so much! It’s great to have the show acknowledge them again. It could have only been better if they didn’t look like first graders.

8x05:

- Oh, now the whole starship is being pulled into the black hole? That is actually cool! They are maintaining the tension for more than three seconds and they are showing how things actually function? Well, there’s a big surprise.

- I am glad that they are actually solving this but why couldn’t Stella generate stardust herself? She is the fairy of the sun, the moon and the stars. It would have been really interesting to see her do that and this season’s theme is right up her alley.

- Valtor’s failure is kinda amusing. But I feel a little bad about Obscurum because he literally has to walk on eggshells around Valtor. No one should have to be put through anxiety like that.

- Ooh, zero gravity plus invisibility device? That is so cool!

- I wish Bloom and Sky would have talked about their little drama with the surprise, especially because there was no need for it since the delay actually helped make things even better and much more romantic. And I am also not all that sold on the Beauty and the Beast vibes I am getting from this.

- Why is Musa acting like that again? Riven is trying to be supportive and take interest in her music. I know that he ran away but obviously something happened.

- Good thing that Riven is being competent while the rest are busy partying. He did pretty well considering that he just intercepted a planned heist and he wasn’t prepared.

- Aren’t you supposed to drift in space instead of fall as if there’s gravity?

- I am a little done with the ship being threatened yet again because it can’t move without the stupid core but I really want to see how Winx are gonna save it now that the ruby is stolen.

- Maybe if they try something else other than generic blasts they may be able to defeat it.

- Valtor was the one that summoned the black hole? And he is getting low on magic juice? That kinda makes sense now that he doesn’t have Dragon Fire anymore.

- O-kay. That strategy was semi logical. Not the best they have done but it could have been worse.

- Selfish? He is trying to save a whole planet! It wasn’t like he was stealing it for the money! No, I get it that his actions weren’t okay but Musa is being a bitch to everyone. And what she just said to Riven. She is refusing to give him a second chance but is acting like she’s the one who is making all the compromises here!

8x06:

- Why wouldn’t he be allowed on Eridia? Oh, he really fucked up the core.

- Oh, shut the fuck up, Orion! It is your fault it didn’t work because you were the one who broke the core and now it can’t hold the light!

- Flora is really rooting (whoops) for abandoning the core. Nice one! How the fuck does she think to save the plants without fucking light?!?!?!?!

- Can I throw Orion in the black hole? HE is the one who fucked the whole thing up because he didn’t know what he was doing and now he is yelling at them that they don’t have a plan! Even though they agreed to help him instead of throwing him in jail!

- At least Valtor is adapting to the situation on the go and coming up with new strategies. But Orion is such a fool. He is desperate but why didn’t he consider the question of why the hell Valtor would care? Obviously he has beef with Winx which puts him at the not-so-trustworthy column.

- Man, Riven is right. Orion is a damn actor and very good at playing them. That isn’t his problem, of course, but the Winx’. I just wish Musa would think instead of pout the whole time.

- Shut up about the goddamn plants, Flora! You can’t save them in any longterm way without fixing the core of the planet first!

- DO NOT make “starsome” a thing. It sounds ridiculous. It doesn’t even make sense!

- Riven is actually discussing how he feels with the other Specialists? And they’re having fun (even if it is at his expense)? Why does Musa refuse to see how much he’s changed? I hate the way they are just trying to make more stupid drama!

- You do not look like big lumens to me but okay. Twinkly has a serious crush on her friend, doesn’t she?

- Yes, we all know that Tecna is a genius. And that is why she doesn’t become pray to stupid love drama when there is no reason for any!

- How the hell was Stella supposed to know if it will actually be safer? She said it looked safer! There is a difference! Also, they are only now wondering why Orion left them on their own!

- Now you guys are screwed! But wtf, why did Tecna just covere her eyes instead of... trying to do something like the rational person that she actually is! And you have to love how they only had Flora and Stella arguing so that they will have to come together to save the rest giving the illusion that they are actually undergoing some development. But hey! An episode without a musical number!

8x07:

- What is this now? Are they trying to make us sympathize with Orion by showing some remorse on his part? It is not working!

- They made Obscurum a cheerleader? He seems to be suffering from Stockholm Syndrome, though he is not exactly a prisoner or hostage of Valtor’s. But still. There is some kind of similar vibes.

- Cool! They revealed that the star yummies are actually corrupted lumens. That was a pretty clever idea, not gonna lie. And it is totally on brand for Valtor which is also great.

- Well, I don’t see you, lumens, fixing the fucking core yourselves so you might wanna start appreciating the fact that they’re trying! They didn’t know the core was broken and wouldn’t hold the Cosmix light!

- And how do you plan on saving them, Orion? You have no idea what you’re up against and you just betrayed the only people that cared about helping you!

- Why is Twinkly not being corrupted like all the other lumens? They are different in some way that was never explained but it was already implied that the corruption works on ALL of the lumens! So what gives? Except obvious plot convenience, of course.

- So Flora actually tried something else and didn’t go for the vines at all? I am shocked... but appreciative!

- Why aren’t the plants answering? Are they too dead for words? But that spell was actually pretty cool! They made a little sun that also has nature powers added to it to shine on all of the plants at once! That was so clever and actually pretty creative! I love it!

- The nature defeating technology theme is a little misplaced I would say considering the way they fix the problem with the broken cores of the stars later on.

- Wait! Winx were transformed when the robot caught them. Why did they have to transform again and when did the transformations disappear?

- They didn’t actually fight the thing! So far their powers have been used very little for actual battle and a lot more in creative ways to restore the balance of the stars. That actually makes a lot of sense since that was what the Cosmix was for! I like it!

- Did they just make a magical sun out of Stella’s powers by boosting her energy? This was awesome!

- Why did they think Orion was the one that changed the lumens? They know that Valtor is the one working with Obscurum and commanding them! That was such a stupid guess and for what? To give Obscurum some kind of “witty” line for his entrance?

- Orion does have cool inventions but for being a genius creator he is being a fucking dumbass! Oh, now you want to be “united” with them. After you almost got them killed and your planet fucked over big time.

- Musa is gonna give Orion a third chance but she’s gonna keep being a bitch to Riven, huh?

- Wizgiz’ redesign is giving me nightmares. Why is he teaching them something that they have been doing literally since season 2 and just did not three minutes ago?!?!?!?! And why are Knut and Kiko painting the yard pink? Really? Just so that Winx can show what they have learned even though they’ve known it for about seven years now?!?!?!?!

- Submarine star? That sounds rocking. But wait, they are using Sirenix in the next ep? Why don’t I remember that? I have watched this... I think. Yes, I have. I remember the stupidity and Nex and Layla having a moment. So why don’t I remember Sirenix?

8x08:

- I thought Valtor was on the scene and then it turned out he was just in an illusion. *sigh* And why can’t he just go himself? He is not doing anything this season. Just sitting on his ass and bossing Obscurum around. It’s just... not Valtor at all. And what’s this obsession with fucking up Andros every goddamn time he shows up?

- Aww, Winx are being so adorable and supportive! Nex, too, though that is OOC. But I can’t understand why Layla didn’t just pick up the phone and tell Nex that she needs him to stop calling so that she can focus. What is so hard about that?

- I like this version of Stella’s fashion obsession. It feels a lot more natural and isn’t overtaking the whole group and the show.

- Well, they didn’t ruin Theredor and Niobe’s designs! That’s something. And Ligea looks pretty much the same as well. I don’t understand why they felt the need to fuck up Winx and the Specialists’ designs but okay.

- Why are they making Layla unable to remember three sentences? She can do much more than that and she has always been the most capable one of Winx and an exemplary princess.

- Oh, so they already mentioned that the queen’s brother disappeared exactly when Valtor showed up (How tf does she even know that? The flashback that was shown later plus the fact that no one seemed to know Valtor was back before Winx saw his mark in 8x02 contradict that.). That and Obscurum saying he wants to rule Lumenia plus Valtor’s obvious knack for corrupting and changing everyone that’s working for him, spill it all out.

- Pretty sure no one at that party cares about Twinkly but whatevs. As long as she isn’t on screen to be annoying.

- Nex transformation time!

- Sirenix is back (never has that ever happened before) and I hate the redesign even more than the original. Didn’t think it was possible. They have also fucked up the transformation sequence and made it more boring. Nice move!

- Why is Layla refusing to talk? Coming forth about her feelings is gonna make it better. I like that Nex is actually being sensitive here even if he never naturally changed to become like that and they are just writing him wildly OOC. But he was so much of an asshole that I prefer this tbh.

- How the fuck do Sirenix powers have no effect on “a creature of darkness”? They went on the Sirenix Quest to defeat Tritanus who was definitely a creature of darkness! The writers don’t even know what they’re saying anymore. At least they left Winx handling the shark even if their powers aren’t working on it. If they’d sent Nex after it and Winx after Obscurum, it would have been too convenient.

- I like the fact that they managed when their magic was useless against the enemy. At least the writers are being a little more creative in the battles by making them rely more on strategy rather than on their powers. I can accept generic blasts and beams if the idea is that that makes their magic so useless that they need to find a creative solution.

- Nex is rooting for teamwork? He really has changed. I just wish they would have shown that instead of just jumping the gun like that.

8x09:

- Why didn’t they try trapping the star yummies in a morphix net? Or something that Tecna made with her magic? Or figured out a way to close the portals that let the star yummies come and go?

- They’re gonna make THAT a problem? Breathing underwater without Sirenix? Not like Layla has been able to breathe underwater continuously throughout seasons 2-5 without the need for Sirenix. AND she also taught the others how to perform the spell. This is such a non-problem.

- They also changed the Sirenix spells, didn’t they?

- They have been in tougher predicaments. I hate how they keep making Layla despair without a reason because she has always had a damn fighting spirit.

- Oh, look! It’s the anemone stupidity. And how is Stella supposed to wake up when she is under the influence of the anemone sting? You could try a spell if you want to wake her up, Flora!

- You’d think the lumens of Andros would know their fucking princess!!!!!

- What was the big idea with rushing out of the cave if Layla didn’t have a plan? Also, she was the one that figured out the anemones attacked when they were provoked, yet she kept attacking. Stop fucking attacking them! It’s only making things worse! Jeez, it’s not so hard to figure out that you shouldn’t antagonize them.

- So the Andros lumens sing but the Peripla ones have never heard of the existence of music? Pretty damn solid. Also, they just sang the same melody the whole time even after Layla asked them for something extra beautiful.

- How the hell did she fill the morphix with air? Did she pull all the water out in the morphix shielding and only left the oxygen atoms inside to make up oxygen molecules? This somehow doesn’t seem normal but anyway.

- So what unspelled the shark? The light of Gorgol? The living star? The starfish star? They are really starting to fuck up this season.

- Love how they never said how many years old Andros is becoming!

- Why did they make the trap dimension look like a pinball machine? What was up with that? And why did Gravity Falls do it so much better?

8x10:

- So now Alfea is having an anniversary as well? And why the fuck is Twinkly only asking now about the meaning of anniversary when they already were at the anniversary party on Andros? And they really made “starsome” a recurring slang? I hate it.

- Why is Faragonda letting the students organize the anniversary? Also, not a fan of how these latest seasons are making Griselda and Faragonda look not so fond of each other. They definitely felt a lot more in sync in the first seasons.

- Lmao, love how Winx are roasting themselves. But I cannot believe that no one has said anything about Helia’s ugliest haircut... yet. They couldn’t have possibly fucked it up more after the season 4 disaster and they somehow did! Fucking spectacular! And why is Riven wearing a scarf? When the fuck have you seen Riven with a scarf? This is ridiculous!

- Love the way Flora and Helia just decided that they will be matchmakers now! But I do think that they should first try figuring out why Musa can’t forgive Riven before deciding she will trust him.

- Why didn’t Twinkly just sit on Riven’s shoulder instead of plopping herself down right on top of the controls? The zero gravity dancing was actually pretty cute but Musa could have tried just dancing with Riven. Or at least they could have said something about why she feels like she can’t even dance with him (because she feels him unfamiliar anymore or something).

- Hypsos looks so very familiar but I can’t place it. Reminds a little of Amentia’s kingdom tbh.

- I cannot believe that the Twinkly and Lumila storyline will actually have a bearing on the real plot. How did they manage? Though, I suppose I should be happy about that.

- Turning a constellation into an actual monster was a damn good idea! Although, the writers sort of implied that Valtor has the power level of a god which has not been supported by the narrative. He was such a stronger villain in season 3.

- So... what did they do? Did they send the Hydra through the portal that the star yummies use? I actually remember it being a bigger threat and harder to defeat. Is this really the end?

- Oh, look! They can reverse the star yummy corruption with the power of love! Cut to the wedding (of Twinkly and Lumila).

- I said wedding, not a fucking concert!

- Musa, I don’t even know you anymore! Since when doesn’t she want to be the center of attention! She was literally mad at him because he hadn’t called aka paid her attention! Besides, she’s a singer (which you couldn’t fucking guess from the fact that Bloom is the goddamn vocalist!). What do you mean that he exposed her? Those are just some outlined images projected! She is a lot more exposed when she sings on stage! This is so goddamn stupid! Season 2 Musa would never.

- And why are they making Flora and Helia fuck up their own sync over Musa and Riven? They should just not meddle and keep their own relationship in harmony!

8x11:

- I am so glad we’re getting rid of Obscurum soon. I have had it with him! “Go undercover as one of [Winx]”? What the actual fuck?!

- Why is the trap dimension a goddamn gaming universe? They are truly wasting its potential! And why not just shove Winx in there?!

- Flora and Helia have never had a disagreement before? Come again? And now she’s saying they never even had different opinions on anything? That is so totally healthy, you know. And the implication that that is how a relationship should be. Wow! Fucking spectacular move!

- Just don’t make Winx fight over the Flora and Helia situation! And that was a perfect example of why they don’t need to agree on everything.

- At first I agreed with the opinion I have seen floating around that the emogix are too specific but this is the Magic Dimension. They have teleportation. What is so hard to believe that they have code that can quickly animate specific actions with pre-coded visual parameters about every separate object in the animation?

- I want to see Griselda react to that fireworks explosion!

- That was the big talk? At least they said that disagreements are not inherently bad but still. This was just a damn non-closure to a damn non-problem.

- Well, Obscurum’s plan isn’t so bad but Winx have already not been welcomed by lumens. It isn’t so original.

- Why are Knut and Kiko coming along all of a sudden? Oh, that’s right! Because those lumens are ogres like Knut. How convenient!

- I don’t know what’s so hard to understand about the fact that the lumens obviously believe that Winx have come to steal their treasure and that is why they’re attacking them.

- Tecna needed an analysis to tell that the lumens think they’re enemies and want to steal their treasure? They said that! REPEATEDLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Was the core broken accidentally or on purpose? I missed that part but I don’t think that Valtor has caught on to the fact that breaking the cores will make it much harder for Winx to save the stars. Also, why did he never try to steal the Cosmix light that the Winx put in the dark cores? That would have been an interesting plan!

- Well, Convenient Knut is being awfully convenient! As was planned.

- So now the crystal is actually gonna serve as a core? Wow, what a cop-out.

- You’re telling me that Obscurum was actually the one that thought of the idea of breaking the cores on purpose? This season is really doing Valtor dirty. I just... I can’t watch. Why do they have to be like that?

- Also, he’s only now figuring out he needs to get rid of Bloom? He had that figured out at the beginning of season 3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

8x12:

- A wishing star that hasn’t been seen in almost a 1000 years? And he needs Cosmix to get near? How is enhancing his powers going to get him closer to the star if the problem is his darkness? What, is Cosmix gonna conceal his dark powers? Somehow, that doesn’t make sense. But damn, at least this thing is protected from dark powers so that malevolent wishes won’t be made.

- Bloom has her priorities in check and Sky comes third? After Vanessa and the mission? That is a nice change of pace, actually.

- Why doesn’t Bloom just use her goddamn magic?! It would have been so much easier! It’s hers! It’s not like she is forbidden to use it.

- Lmao, Obscurum is acting as if Valtor actually cares about him. And he thinks he’s evil? Wow, that’s cute.

- Is it me or does Vanessa look so much thinner than she used to? Not a fan of that.

- You’re telling me Bloom never made an album for her parents before? But I love the fact that they are sharing and Bloom tells them that she loves home more than anything. That was actually something that the show could have used about 4 seasons ago.

- Why do the Earth lumens look like Roman soldiers?

- Anyone else feel like the transformation of the star yummies into bigger entities is legit based on Pokemon evolution? It really operates the exact same way Pokemon evolution does.

- They’re mentioning the queen’s brother again? In what is not foreshadowing but a plainly obvious non-twist.

- Musa is really disgusted by the star yummies? They actually look pretty cute and fluffy to me. Kinda cuter than the lumens even. Not to mention that they can face monsters and whatnot but they can’t make themselves touch the star yummies? Some Guardian Fairies you are!

- Valtor feels like a nervous teenager about to introduce himself to his crush. What the hell were they thinking?

- I like the designs of the dark giants where the writings on them are concerned. They look like rune rings around their torsos and arms and I actually love the idea of that.

- The scene with Bloom and her parents was pretty good. I love the way she compartmentalized the situation and managed to be on all the fronts she needed to be on even if she had to ask for backup to do it. It was awesome!

- Valtor finally decided to show the fuck up! Halfway through the season! Love how Stella is sassing him! A little surprised that he knows her name, though.

- I don’t think that hugging that last form of star yummy evolution is gonna work. Might be a too big concentration of corrupted lumens in order for the hug thing to work.

- Goblin yummies? Oh, no. Stargoyles. Wow. Okay.

- I love the dilemma that Valtor presented! Bloom really can’t be in two places at the same time! I would be very interested (as I was the first time) if I didn’t know how this ended... aka in disappointment.

8x13:

- Backstory time! What the hell do you mean that Valtor’s life force was drifting through the universe? For years? After the Dragon Fire - that literally made up his whole being - was extinguished? And how the hell was he brought back with the power of the stars? Wtf?

- Bloom, it’s really not that hard to figure out that Obscurum is the queen’s brother! I guessed that the first time I watched this and I didn’t even know she had a brother because I had been clicking through the episodes!

- If Obscurum really thinks that being Valtor’s minion is better than being in the shadow of his sister, then she must have fucked up big time! And I mean, really big time!

- So the artificial cores are not supposed to be that small? That is just a prototype.

- I have a question - how fast do the Specialists’ ships travel for example? Because Twinkly says that she’s traveling at the speed of light but I doubt that the tech can go so fast. Aka my train of thought was what if there are planets in the Magic Dimension that are so far from one another that the people can never meet because the tech doesn’t travel fast enough? Since that seems to be the common method of transportation rather than teleportation which could totes solve that problem.

- I really wish someone other than Sky would be protecting Mike and Vanessa. And wasn’t Valtor saying that only he can stop the Stargoyles? “Cause the Specialists just got rid of all of them. At least the dark giants truly seem to be unstoppable.

- I was so hyped when Bloom said she’d give Cosmix to Valtor! It would have been so interesting to see how they would defeat him if he had Cosmix as well. But they just had Cosmix reject him? Because it has sentience apparently? That was such a fucking cop-out! Just commit to your best ideas goddammit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Why is Twinkly getting the artificial core to the Specialists instead of the other Winx? They need it inside the sun! Not on the surface of the Earth.

- Wtf? Didn’t Bloom send Twinkly towards the Earth? She is inside the Sun! What was that maneuvering?!

- So the dark giants would have been defeated when the sun was fixed anyway? Meaning that Bloom could have chosen to go help Winx and that would have solved the dilemma aka there was no actual dilemma, except she didn’t know that? Man, what a bummer!

- Poor Vanessa. Had her birthday almost completely ruined!

- Wasn’t the queen supposed to be powerless? But that moment was so emotional there! And I love the fact that she acted as an example to the lumens to have them freeing the star yummies and helping them change back. Does that mean that the part with the stars is over for this season, though?

- Not a goddamn concert again! Come on! Dedicate the song to your mom, at the very least!!!!!

- Where is Valtor? This doesn’t look like the castle amongst the stars. What happened? Oh, and you’re telling me he has no more magical energy?

- What the hell do you mean that the Trix have power like the power of the Winx? Icy’s power is literally an opposite of Bloom’s!!!!! What the fuck is that supposed to mean? I have been so confused about this ever since I first watched it over a year ago! But at least the Trix were imprisoned separately this time. Someone in this goddamn universe finally had a smart idea!

Part 2 is here.

[fipindustries]

list of comics i made so far

i already shared the list of all the novels i tried to write throughout my llife so i see no reason why not to do the same with the comics i tried to work on. no i should clarify, with my lists of novels there was a clear cut distinction between what was a novel and a short story so to parse one from the other was an easy task. it should be known that i wrote hundreds of shorts stories that i havent shared with anyone. now a similar situation occurs with my comics, i have done hundreds upon hundreds of little comics, short jokes, little skits and short lived strips through my life, so in order to give this list some weight and not make it longer than the bible the criteria i used was that it had to be something i did on a regular basis or that tells a self contained story with a beggining middle and end.

now without further ado, lets begin!

spike Vanderville (age 7)

you can tell i was way more into comics than i was into novels from a young age. done with pen and folded paper, it was the story about a young kid called spike, whose design was heavily inspired by bradley from sticking around, who had magical powers which allowed him to manipulate reality. it was a mix of harry potter and a series of illustrates short stories that came in a magazine in argentina. his best friend was a scarecrow with a pumpkin head that he had brought to life, his archnemesis was a fat bully.

curiously enough i was so passionate about this project even though i had no idea what i was doing and no talent that i actually did like three full colored issues of it. my family was really proud of me. sadly those comics are completly lost to time

andrew and the monkey (age 10)

this was the classical story about a boy and his best friend the talking animal. one page comedy strips done in pen and paper. nothing too clever, just a way for me to try lame jokes mostly stolen from spongebob squarepants. not much else to it. i tried to do like a revamp in 2014 but it was short lived, as you can see the jokes didnt get any less lame

FIP industries (age 17)

mostly done in digital. yes as you can see fip is something that has followed me my whole life in quite the variety of mediums. there were as a matter of fact multiple attempts to make this comic a real thing but time and again they would peter off as i saw that my skill was just not up to the task. i think i have talked more than enough about fip industries on this blog, one interesting thing is that if you follow the link you will come across a lot of proto ideas that i had before they cemented and took their definite shape in the novel (and even after the novel i kept retconning and retooling things over and over again, fip industries is an ongoing thing that will probably last my entire lifetime)

Disregarding Reality I (age 20)

the first iteration of disregarding reality, a humorous strip done in pencil and paper, a fairly short lived affair, lasting no more than 3 months. the entire premise of the comic was an MRA activist and a feminist live together, they are friends, they argue a lot. remember 2013 guys? back when this whole politics bullshit truly kicked off online? this was before gamer gate, mind you. but by that point i had seen more than enough of it on tumblr and i was like “someone should do some scathing commentary with wit and penache” and that someone had to be me. mainly inspired by commics like f@nboys and el goonish hive and a thousand billion others that were so popular back in those halcyon days.

i got bored of it pretty quickly and it wouldnt be until three years later than i would finally decide to re-start the project but until then...

Strangers in the forest (age 21)

here comes a rather productive era in my ouvre, ink and paper, based on a short story i wrote, its about an eldritch monster pretending to be human and a ghost girl, killed by her father. they have a dispute because the monster wants to eat the corpse of the girl but the ghost doesnt want to give up her bones because its the one thing that tethers her to the mortal plane. they eventually resolve their dispute. by this point i was actually, unironically trying my best to do comics which i felt looked professional.

Song of a nightmare (age 21)

another one based on a short story i wrote. ink and paper, a private detective wakes up in the middle of the night and sees a mermaid lying in bed next to him. he spends most of the comic trying to figure out how the hell is this possible. still one of my favourite ones and certainly one of my family’s and friends favourites as well. a rather poetic tale, strongly inspired by argentinian fiction and their propensity towards magical realism, i was reading a lot of cortazar back then.

Aika (age 21)

as you can tell i was on a fucking roll that year. ink and paper, this was a story based upon a simple and basic idea that i had in my mind for years and years. i always liked the concept behind the movie “the kid” where bruce willis mysteriously comes across himself as a kid. so of course one day i came up with the idea, what if you recieved a visit from your future self... but she was a woman?

this is probably the most aggresively trans story i ever wrote in my life, it is literally about a guy realizing they are trans and breaking down over it. here is the giant kicker, i did not realize at all what i was doing. i was completly unaware of what was going on here, i was still deep deep in the closet and not even realizing i was there. it really is astounding the honesty and the rawness with which i wrote this comic and it went all over my head. a perfect example of “im such a great ally lol”

oh also there is time travel i guess. my main impetus (beyond whatever my subconcious was forcing me to do) was my desire to make a complete clusterfuck of a story, i was a huge fan of homestuck, i had read fleek and demon, i wanted to do my own take on a hypercomplicated time travel puzzle plot. other things came out on top of it but i didnt noticed them. fucking hilarious

Hello Agatha (age 21)

a comedic strip about a wacky pixie dream girl having wacky adventures with her wacky friends, one of which is a man with a toilet for a head. what a gut buster, what a knee slapper!

there is not much to say about this one, wacky surreal comedy was always my favourite and so time and again i would try my hand at it but it is surprisingly hard to do!

The /co/ ventures! (age 20 - age25)

an ongoing project done in multiple mediums. i think i said more than enough about this in here and here. it was me practiscing comics, practiscing my humor and adding my tiny grain of sand to the 4chan culture. i am proud to say these comics were actually very well liked there and that i would be recognized without a name or signature of any kind, just on the strength of my style.

the vest kind of madness (age 22)

probably one of the projects in which i put the biggest amount of effort to make it look professional. traditional inks and digital colors. a crossover that i cant believe never happened in comics considering how obvious it is. Rac Shade, the changing man and delirium of the endless, the two flagship vertigo characters associated with madness. clearly a match made in heaven.

to this day im flabbergasted i seem to be the only one to think of this.

Disregarding Reality II (age 23)

another work where i have already spilled rivers of bytes explaining my thought process behind it. after having a no good, terrible, very bad day, finding my self aimless and without purpose, deep in denial and depression, i decided to give my self a big project to have something to get me out of bed every day. these three guys came from the depths of my mind to save me.

this time leaning a lot more on silly humor and surrealism than political commentary, still insanely proud of how much i managed to make this last, almost three years, well over 200 pages! and in here i found the inspiration and the creative energy to tackle all sorts of diverse projects of which we are about to see all about.

Mama Bird (age 24)

my masterpiece.

by far the best comic i ever did. a kid with a bird for a mom. hilarious, touching, heartbreaking. it was a concept that i had come up with when i was 21. back then it was supposed to be exclusively a humorous comic strip but then i found a dramatic angle for the story and that was when everything clicked into place. that was when i realized this was a comic i had to do. and i did it. it took me five months but it was well worth it. still insanely proud of this one

Soft boys (age 25)

a weird experimental little story where i decided to sit down and deconstruct one of the most popular superpowers. super elasticity. more akin to me just mashing my toys against each other than me trying to tell a serious story. i am actually really happy with some of the art here and some of the sequences presented. particularly the final one where a brick joke twenty pages in the making finally pays off.

Hexen Snatch (age 25)

a semi spinoff to my novel FIP industries, we focus on a side character that managed to survive after the events of the novel and how they’ll manage to survive further beyond that. insanely soaked by the magical world of pact by widbow i wanted desperatly to share my own take on magic, every page is accompanied by a little text where i expand upon the lore and the way magic is supposed to work on this world. i really like the prose on those snippets and the ideas they work almost more that the comic itself with which i was not happy at all when i was working on it. i didnt like the character design, i didnt like how the art in general was coming out, i didnt like the pacing of the story or how superficially we were getting to expore this world in the comic proper. i had to take a very long hiatus just to accumulate the will to finish the comic and once i did i feel it really petered off without much of a satisfying payoff.

on some level i blame the exhaustion and frustration that i came out of this comic with for the fact that i ended up quitting disregarding reality soon afterwards.

Maxplosive (age 26)

another project that has followed me across multiple mediums. came up with an idea for a videogame back in 2015. saved it on the back pocket for a while, used it as a story within a story on my novel fan.tastic, practisced a couple of animations with the characters and eventually decided that, if my skills at videogame making were not enough, i had at least more than poven myself as a comic artist so maybe that was the definitive medium in which this idea would have to exist.

the original idea was to tell the story in two parts, the first half would introduce the character and the videogame as if the comic was a playthrough of the game. all fun and childlike and innocent. then the second half was meant to explore the life of the main character as an adult, how being “a videogame protagonist” had ruined her body, her mental health and her life. i tried all sorts of weird stuff with the format here, using reciclable assets, static camera angles and generally presenting the whole thing as if it was a videogame.

sadly the project got too big for my breaches, i was fucking exhausted back then, swamped with a bunch of other projects, my job, other responsabilities, unsatisfied with the story and with no idea where to take it. eventually i got tired, decided to skip a day, then the day became a week and then the week became a month and by then i had to face the facts, i was just no longer able to continue the comic. and so i quit not only maxplosive but disregarding reality all together.

i still did the occasional comic here and then but it wouldnt be until the very end of 20-fucking-20 that i was finally inspired to tackle a new project, my newest one, my last one....

Lapsarian (age 27)

an interesting experiment, i decided to do the whole comic in one sit and then post it chapter by chapter on a weekly basis. a surprising result of this was that i managed to do in one month the same amoung of pages that would have taken me 5 months back when i started disregarding reality, is good to see that after al this time i still got it.

took me a while to get the hang of it again and find my own style once more but once i armed up it was smooth sailing for 40 pages all the way to the end. but what is this comic even about?

its... weird, with full disclosure and no shame, it is mostly a fetish story about big lizard creatures commiting vore. the milkman had already shown me that i could do those types of stories and no lighting would come from the heavens to strike me down so i said, why not as a comic? i like to think that beyond the fetish content it is still a decent story in its own right, an interesting feedback that i got from this is that people are suprised how earnest it is, one saying something like “this is the best pitch for a fetish that i was never interested in”

Conclussion:

looking back on this im surprised, turns out i was a lot more prolific and working a lot more regularly than i expected, in here are documented ten years of creative output that never seems to wane. it was fun to do the roundabout trip and see how my style, my technice and generally my work ethic evolved through the years. another nice thing to see is the multiple formats, the multiple tools and mediums i experimented with, i find myself constantly trying new things, new methods, new angles, new interesting ideas for how to make a comic (without even getting into what to make a comic about).

something i always knew about myself was that drawing is a fundamental part of who i am, it is something that just cant be taken away from me and that will always be a part of my life one way or the other, is good to see it so plainly, in black and white, on this list. here goes for what i might be able to do in the future