#The scene was very visceral I loved it >:D

[fishcop]

spoilers for ep 10 of the SUCKENING

Shilo gif :D

[rotisseries]

tired of people who want pjo movie references in the disney+ show. "logan lerman should've been-" i don’t care. "poker face in the casino-" actually i hope ms. gaga keeps her entire discography miles away from it. i don't care move on

[dollsome-does-tumblr]

saw speak no evil last night, which i really enjoyed! it proved to be my very favorite kind of stressful movie, i.e. a slowburn thriller where people go to a beautiful and remote location and then Things Go So Wrong! it reminded me a lot of other faves ex machina, men, 10 cloverfield lane, the menu, ready or not, the recent blink twice, etc.

just some thoughts about this movie (spoilers!)--

+ i really enjoyed all the gender role stuff going on in this one a whole bunch. this is, of course, a classic gothic romp in my eyes. therefore, watching the dad -- down on his luck, feeling emasculated by his female family and by life not favoring him as much as it was supposed to! -- get seduced by the alpha male andrew tate-y bs embodied by james mcavoy's character, like the dad was but a shrinking naive gothic heroine missing or even lusting after all the red flags, was SUCH a fun subversion to me. yes! yes!!!

+ every time that mackenzie davis's character tried to establish boundaries and they got run over and then she let it slide to be palatable, i viscerally FELT THAT. there was, of course, a big element of 'privileged people wanting to appear woke so they keep being boundlessly pityingly nice to the poor people', but even deeper than that, i think this was a great portrayal of how women in particular are expected to constantly accommodate and ignore their intuition. the bit with making her eat the goose. D: and it got worse!

+ i also really liked how in the big showdown, the mom and the kids were the ones who actually took out the enemies, and the dad was the only one without a 'kill' to his name. (though he did sacrifice himself by jumping off the roof, mirroring Accomplice Wife's self-sacrificial death!)

+ gosh, the dark implications re: Accomplice Wife's character were so harrowing - the victim becoming the abuser - and the fact that the little girl was being primed to follow in her footsteps ..... D:

+ i enjoyed that the kids were the ones who had the sort of Big Finding Bluebeard's Closet Of Dead Wives Reveal. (my bf pointed out that this is a bluebeard story, and it so is! my favorite!) that sort of ASOUE-y feeling of kids having to make it on their own because adults aren't a guaranteed source of safety. MAN, poor ant. :'( that kid had a HORRIBLE time. i really admire his persistence in keeping on fighting and trying to communicate.

+ i saw someone in the reddit discussion thread say that couple vs. couple is an underrated trope, and i agree! would love to see more of that in cinema.

+ love how the title operates both on the level of "this kid can speak no evil about what we do because we cut his tongue out" AND "don't ever say anything mean to people or you might hurt their feelings and what could possibly be worse than that (oh, this, i guess) 😬"

+ can't believe they did nick miller's favorite song cotton eyed joe so dirty like that. :( that scene honestly brought tears to my eyes from pure misery. the fact that some parents really do treat their kids like that ...................... (even if that wound up not being totally the situation in this particular movie). disgusting and heartbreaking.

+ the most a+ "eternal flame" use since gilmore girls.

+ after i watched the movie i read up on what the original film was like, and may i just say: that would have broken me psychologically in the movie theatre. thank god i didn't have to see that. THANK GOD! sometimes american optimism really works for me, honestly. if it's a gothic, then in the gothic, they've always got to make it out at the end!!! bruised and bloodied and haunted but still standing! so i'm really glad they did!

+ it honestly never occurred to me that people would thirst over james mcavoy in this movie, because he's so gross and horrible, but it takes all sorts to make a world, it turns out. the internet teaches me that every day!

+ anyway, i had a great time watching this! would definitely watch again! but gosh, was it a special kind of fun and stressful to watch it unfold the first time.

[biteofcherry]

Eva! I hope you’re doing well! I wanted to stop by and show you some love! But also tell you…

I have Dom Andy and his future sub on the brain! When I tell you I’ve been craving some Dom Andy…

Is there any way you can give a little tidbit…

A little idea on how that’s going?

Sweet Bella! 💖

Craving some Dom Andy, you say? I have to admit that I haven't thought much about him recently, nor written anything. Sorry! But I have this unposted bit and I'll gladly spoil you with it 😘

Ruby Slippers Masterlist

Ruby Garden Series

Andy Barber x reader; Dom!Andy Barber x submissive reader

warnings: b*d*s*m; Dom/sub dynamics; power imbalance; safe sane and consensual; mention of spanking (but none happening in this)

Too overwhelmed with everything shiny and new, and wicked, that you watched happen all around the club, you didn’t notice that the conversation between two Doms ended and Andy’s attention was fully back to you. 

He kept stroking your hair gently, seemingly untired of the soothing gesture since he started it.

He studied you as you looked around the club with eyes wide and curious; like a little apprehensive kitten wanting to explore the big world, but scared of taking a step. 

It’s been a while since Andy took care of a very green submissive. 

To be honest, he never felt ready for such a challenging dynamic, preferring his partners experienced in the basics and quickly attuning to his tempo. But your sweet, helpless expression pulled on strings inside his chest and caring for you - even in that simple way like guiding you through your first night at the Ruby Garden - fulfilled a certain need.

You didn’t notice Andy’s hand stilling on top of your head, until he tapped it. You turned your head and looked up at him, eyes wide in bewilderment from what you were watching as well from surprise upon realizing you were still kneeling at his feet, nearly naked.

“You look a little overwhelmed,” Andy traced a finger down your cheek and you couldn’t stop the pleasant shiver from rolling down your spine. “Is this the first BDSM club you’ve been to?”

“I’ve been to some.” You replied, with a dismissive shrug.

You hoped to sound cool about it, nonchalant even, as if you weren’t that pathetic as the Masters here probably saw you as.

However, Master Andy arched an eyebrow, his face displaying doubt.

“Which ones?” He asked and you realized there was no way you could lie to him, since he seemed to sense bullshit a mile away.

Was it his trait alone, or were the legends about real Doms true? Dominants that truly paid attention to a submissive’s body language and ticks, searching for all the signs of various emotions, not only focusing on what is pleasurable to them. 

Swallowing hard, you weaved your fingers together before replying:

“Um, to Strike and Red Room.”

You preferred not to remember those few visits, since they made you cringe and flee away before you got brave enough to join in any real scene. But they were clubs you stepped inside, so it wasn’t exactly a lie.

Andy’s blue eyes darkened, his forehead creasing in a frown. His fingers gripped your hair, this time pulling harshly enough to tilt your head back as he leaned down over you.

“It’s a good thing Anne brought you here.” He spoke calmly, but there was hard displeasure in his voice and you instantly felt like shrinking and apologizing. 

“Strike? Red Room? Those places are trash. Rape potential, not a ground for practicing safe BDSM. Just for risking getting your cute ass there you should be spanked.”

Sudden wave of heat filled your chest and seemed to spread through your body. It was a pinch of shame, but mostly it was a visceral reaction to the threat of having Andy’s big, heavy hand on your butt.

“Well, now,” Andy’s eyes sparked with interest as he noted the hitch in your breath and how your lips parted and pupils dilated. “I see you like spanking, birdie.”

Again, he read you so easily as if you said your thoughts aloud.

It took you a moment to find your voice. The pull on your hair and the overpowering closeness of Andy made you so excited, so thrilled. Reactions quite new to you, but which you welcomed with joy.

Then he said spanking in that low, velvety voice and you were wet in a flash.

“I-” you had to pause to wet your lips- “I don’t know. I’ve never been spanked.”

Andy’s eyes pierced right through you, dark and sparking with mischievous fire. He looked very pleased and excited.

“Oh, we will definitely do that. Soon, I think.” His grip on your hair eased and his hand slid down your neck.

“But first-” Andy stood up and gave you his hand, easily pulling you up to your feet- “let’s go exploring. I’ll walk you around, we’ll watch a few scenes and the equipment.” 

He kept himself in your space, not letting you withdraw from him an inch.

His warmth and the scent of his cologne wrapped around you like a hypnotizing haze.

One of Andy’s hands was on your ass, squeezing your flesh unabashedly; the other hand was wrapped around your wrist, thumb rubbing beneath the soft leather of the handcuff.

“And each time, you will tell me how much it arouses you.” His announcement and his tone made you drip.

You were quite sure Andy was very much aware of the effect he had on you.

“You’ll tell me what you want to try, what scares you and what you definitely don’t want to do. You will admit when something turns you on. And if you can’t find your big girl words, I will slide my fingers between your thighs and check with my fingers how wet that needy hole of yours got.”

Your needy hole was already wet and hot. You didn’t need to play voyeur to seek what aroused you, since it seemed Andy was it. 

“If I find you lying or evading, birdie,” he pinched your buttock, “I’ll punish you.” 

[ndostairlyrium]

Blabbering ahead about the game in my usual broken English lol

Warning: General, mildly spoiler-y stuff. But still spoilery. Dead dove, yada yada

I tried to avoid reading opinions as much as possible, so I could share my own without filters <<

...this will be a looooong post so I'm putting everything under the cut :'

I've enjoyed this game greatly.

I loved Rook, each companion, the more synthesized visual style, and the majority of the changes they did to make this game stand out among the others. In some parts, it really reminded me of Mass Effect, and those parts I truly adored in a visceral way.

I get the criticism about Rook's tone, but I didn't mind that they had a specific personality and you could work around it. They're a mess of a person, showing a great deal of immaturity in some parts, forced to call the shots, and to be a compass for others while trying to keep everything from falling from their hands. They're just not as player-nuanced (like, it's not on us?) personality-wise as Hawke, I think? Which is a bummer for some, and I get it, but I didn't mind :'D I'm one that deflects a lot with humor, that's my jam

I think I did good approaching this game blindly, and to keep going despite encountering some major disappointments along the way (y'all saw me complaining, I'm a "yes, but" hoe). In the end, I was enthusiast about playing it, I've been enthusiast while playing it, and I'm enthusiast now that it's over (in a very positive way).

Also, to me the combat system was super fun (I had a blast playing orb+dagger mage with the necromancer spec). I liked that it was more dynamic, that you were in control of your character only, and I adored the cheerleading going on within the team during the fights, also the action scenes were SO EPIC. There are a couple of cutscenes in particular that I watch on a daily and feel the tension on my shoulders as if I didn't know the results already :'D

Hate to bring out Mass Effect again, but... I felt that same kind of powerless urgency throughout Veilguard. Except that you're not Shepard, already a hero, you're a nobody in disgrace, somebody looking for a purpose, for then being hired by someone who has a history of dooming whoever he works with :'D in my head, my Rook has accepted because he needed something to go right. Very lol. Much lmao.

Again, bringing out Mass Effect. I always adored Mass Effect important NPCs outside the party, like Bakara for example. I experienced the same kind of attachment to those here, and I was truly frightened for some of them throughout the game, especially the ones I've known from Tevinter Nights.

...now, to the "Yes, but" that had me so frustrated to the point of wanting to stop playing:

I just wish a little bit more sensitivity by the team when approaching specific cultural references. These, along with stereotypes, have always been blatant throughout the games, and I was hoping that in this one we would move past them rather than the doubling down I saw. I can't talk on others behalf, but I could elaborate for hours on why the whole deal of Treviso and the romanticising of Crows (to the point of painting them as the good guys) are such a point of offense for me, even if I'm tired to explain that there's nothing romantic when organized crime takes control over an entire country and call it "patriotism". Moral code my ass. Glorification of mafia is never okay.

Don't pillage take stuff from real life if you're gonna turn them like living stereotypes and excuse that behavior by calling it "inspiration". It's cheap and disrespectful. Fandom has been repeating this for more than 10 years and nobody corrected this trajectory. That's sad, to say the least.

[baldurs-writers-3]

Horror: A Baldur's Gate 3 Fanfiction Rec List

This week, we have Horror! Check under the cut for seven fics that explore some of the darker and more frightening elements of Faerun, and as always, comment and kudos if you like them!

Hand, Hearth, and Home by ElleKhen (393,131, Explicit) Content Notes: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Body Horror Pairings: Astarion/Male Tav

This fic covers the backstory and in-game story of a warlock who was raised by a shadow-fey-possessed church. After being infected by the mind flayer tadpole, he meets a dream guardian who appears to him as a childhood friend and first love who he thought dead. As his party goes on with their quest, he is also forced to face the consequences of his shadow-cursed existence, and what that means for the people he loves.

Reccer says: I love that this fic is full of visceral, angsty smut and exciting action. But the author always follows up the hurt with comfort. They especially approach the Astarion romance with so much care, and do a great job of writing his voice. Due to the nature of Church’s magic, there are body horror elements especially when the story covers the events of Act 2. This fic expands upon the Shadowlands, Shadowfell, the Raven Queen, and shadow magic as a whole to depict terrifying sequences Church must face with his companions (and lover) beside him. I learned a lot about that particular D&D lore that way, and it made Act 2 feel a lot bigger and scarier than it originally felt.

A Dream of Silence by AbigailMoment (2,683, Mature) Content Notes: possible main char death Pairings: astarion/tav

An interactive story, where you have to save Astarion from a horrible nightmare of worst thing that Cazador ever did to him

Reccer says: Very well written with tons of replayability. Also you get to pet his hair

What Could Have Been by Bella1433! (119,228, Explicit) Content Notes: Dark themes, there are archive warnings Pairings: Tav (named) X Astarion

The maze scene, the race through the city. Astarion is a terrifying vampire lord in this fic!

Reccer says: Vampire lord acting like a vampire lord and being terrifying! Using his powers

The Tyrant, the Assassin, and the Corpse by aqeldroma (3,241, Explicit) Content Notes: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Murder Pairings: The Dark Urge/Enver Gortash

After the Hall of Wonders, the Dark Urge visits Gortash to test him in another way. When she finds someone already in his bed, the night turns predictably violent.

Reccer says: Pre-canon Dark Urge and Gortash pairing, set back when they are testing each other's limits. The horrific things happen to everyone in their orbit, naturally.

Hunger is Satisfaction by CountTavula (25,904, Explicit) Content Notes: Very dark content Pairings: Tav X Astarion

The psychological horror in this is extremely high and surprisingly so.

Reccer says: Its a thriller, psychological horror, not even a dark fantasy most times, just...dread

The Vanishing of Astarion Ancunín: The beginning by Gally (3,526, Mature) Content Notes: None Pairings: None

A glimpse at his last few days of life and the first terrifying minutes of his new unlife.

Reccer says: He wasn't an evil man, he wasn't a great man... he was just a man.

Bathed in Sound by Nikolai_237 (1,005, General) Content Notes: None Pairings: Karlach/Tav

In the Feyweird, not all is dangerous but most is unsettling. For instance, sometimes you find your partner just sitting in the middle of a bunch of floating whale skeletons.

Reccer says: This is my first concept fic for the Feyweird, my psychological horror playground, and for some reason people seem to like it. I enjoy writing creepy stuff and I love weaving horror into my work.

The above fanfic recommendations were pulled from our community for this weekly event. Have any questions about what this is? Check out the FAQ!

Next week, we’ll be returning with a character rec list, this time for Lae’zel! 

[gallus-rising]

mp100 horror fic recs 👻🎃

For a while now I've been thinking about mp100's amazing horror potential and how it really doesn't get enough attention. SO! For the spooky season why don't you settle down with a nice scary story ;D

All of these fics are complete and have no shipping. I've only linked 1 fic per author so this list doesn't get bloated, but all of these wonderful authors have other fics just waiting for you to read them ❤ Some definitely freaked me out more than others, but I'm not gonna give any particular ratings since "scary" is so subjective. All fics are properly tagged and you know your own limits better than I do.

Also feel free to add on your own recs!! My general reading preferences and parameters when making this list is only a small sampling, so please share any and all of your favs ❤ Hope you enjoy!

If you see an "N/A" instead of a Tumblr UN that means there wasn't one linked in either the fics' notes or author's bio. If you know the author or are the author yourself feel free to let me know so I can edit the post :] And now in no particular order I present:

The Immeasurable Dark: @tinkertoysdamn Immediately breaking my own "no ships" rule just this once because I can't resist a good House of Leaves inspired story! If you've read HoL is you know what's up. If not expect a fucked-up house and impossibly large spaces, funky text formatting and footnotes, maybe a minotaur. Ship featured is background established serirei.

a pilgrimage: @tooomuchtofu Divine Tree arc bad ending. Told from the PoV of an unnamed worshiper on their first visit to "the capital" aka an overgrown Seasoning City. Uses second person pov wonderfully to build the dread.

And Who Is Killing Me?: @sammisafetypin Koyama beats the shit outta Mob a little harder than in canon, hospitalizing him and delaying the 7th Division rescue arc by [TIME NOT FOUND]. The Awakening Lab kids are so minor I tend to forget they even exist, but oh my god does this author make you care about them! This fic is written with great suddenly swapping PoVs that keep you feeling off kilter without making you lose track of the story. It's the longest fic on this list by far but 100% worth every second of it. A real gut punch.

Adoration: (N/A) The Divine Tree takes a particular interest in Reigen. I don't think I've ever seen anyone properly touch on how creepy the Psycho Helm constructs themselves are like this fic has. God, those things freak me out so much. Features "shipping" in the sense of a sentient broccoli becoming fixated on a guy. Keep in mind that the Psycho Helms look like Mob if you think that'll squick you out, but for me personally it added to the horror.

Similarities: (N/A) Reigen receives a fucked up email. Ends on the sillier side, but BOY is that email fucked up!

The Water Ran Clean: @bandtrees A Mogami-mentors-Mob AU and a damn fine one at that. Love the sort of fragmented style it's written in, and the exploration of Mogami's fucked up moral code is great. There's some Choice viscerally described imagery here 👌👌 Features a drawing of Mob covered in blood just in case that freaks you out; but worry, it's not his :]

An Outlier Among a Sea of Common Denominators: @hebezunet A rewrite of the early Divine Tree arc that asks the question we've all been too scared to consider: What if the brainwashing was like cordyceps? In particular I want to highlight the opening scene where after eating the broccoli powder cookies Teru has to physically rip florets out of his body to resist being brainwashed. Very gnarly stuff.

Prison Surveillance: (N/A) Touichirou was a very bad boss so Hatori pulls a The Ring to torment him in Psychic Supermax Prison. Was written pre-season 3 so Hatori doesn't work for the government.

Stairs: (N/A) Reigen and Mob have a job in the woods. There are some stairs. Inspired by an r/nosleep story which the author links to if you'd like to check that out as well.

Fight, Flight, or Fraud: @cowardlybean So everyone's got a really specific supernatural fear, right? Something that could absolutely never happen in real life but when you see it in media it freaks you the fuck out? Mine is someone I know being killed and replaced by an evil doppelganger and I'm the only one who knows. I've not seen anything since The Magnus Archives that's properly captured that fear like this fic, which is some of the highest praise I can bestow.

In Quicksand: @ghoststrawberries Reigen catches a nasty cold and by that I mean he gets possessed. Very fun the way Reigen's train of thought and feeling shifts around as the evil spirit tries to influence him while he's unconsciously resisting it. The scene where the gang realizes Reigen's been possessed is a real "OOOOOH, SHIT!!!" moment, but I won't spoil ;D

Playing Human: (N/A) Espers and psychic powers might not be real but spirits are. Poor baby Mob is a ghost possessing his own dead body. Features Dimple as the bad guy.

Mithridatism: If I may be so self-indulgent to list one of my own fics here :3 Absorbing evil spirits while still alive was actively killing Mogami and I wanted to dig into that! Features my Signature™ (lol) "HEY, DON'T EAT THAT!!" style of body horror.

[eldritchamy]

Hi, its the former Feralist again.

The worldbuilding just really struck a raw nerve on first glance? On second glance it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought but it STILL infuriates me on a couple of points, mostly in implications that people failed to think through. I've calmed down about it, because it IS just kink, but there are parts of the worldbuilding that I still cannot touch without being viscerally upset.

(I could get into depth if you want, but once again, it is just kink; I don't expect kink writers to think about every last implication of their worldbuilding.)

Anyway, I am currently reading my way through Abscission, which is helping somewhat with certain things that upset me wrt disability and stuff. I'm really excited to read your suggestions!

Signed, A (Formerly) Committed Feralist

(P.S. *specific* things... What appeals to me wrt inevitability in D/s is less "I can MAKE you submit whether you want to or not" and more "We both know you'll submit, because we both know that you *want* me to dominate you", which is not always the vibe in HDG. Sometimes it is, though! And that's why I'm still here! Also that little bit near the end of Grand Folia where Celosia says something along the lines of "Its not that I'm an Affini and you're a terran and I'm better and you're lesser. Its that I would ALWAYS find you - in any time, in any place, in any form - because you ARE mine" really REALLY fucking got me.)

(P.P.S. I may have written a few hundred words of a fic about an Affini playing a convoluted game of cat and mouse with a cute, awkward, evasive little terran who may or may not be a feralist spy. The Affini can't make up her mind, because every time she catches her at something suspicious, there's always a perfectly plausible explanation! Its gonna drive her absolutely NUTS.)

It sounds like you're more into dubcon than noncon. On one hand, this is the noncon intox kink petplay bdsm scifi setting, so a certain amount of noncon is pretty baked into the world at a systematic level that you're either okay with or you aren't.

But on the bright side, there ARE fluffier options that skew more in the direction of what I think you're looking for, because the setting ALSO heavily features things like hurt/comfort, recovering from trauma, learning how to love yourself, and accepting that you deserve to BE loved and cared for by others.

Abscission is a really good one for a protagonist that consistently and very insistently reaffirms their consent at all times. Autumn is very sure about what she wants and frankly spends a lot of time bullying Solanum about not being afraid to give it to her.

From what you're saying, I think you would really like a newer story that's only 3 chapters in called Good Sensory. The tl;dr is that there's an independent human who's too ace and autistic to feel comfortable around most Affini (who tend to be very flirty and touchy and she can't stand a lot of their textures), and an Affini who is ALSO really ace and autistic instantly wants to give her the world. The Affini is VERY sensitive, patient, and accommodating with her neurodivergence and goes out of her way to be very direct about her feelings and intentions.

Marsha (the affini) literally has this internal monologue about Sally (the human): "I admittedly could twist her mind and dull her dislike of certain sensations, but it would be far more satisfying to simply alter her life such that she never experienced them in the first place."

The story was written basically in honor of how much the author (a very autistic woman) loves her very autistic partners, and the joy of giving them experiences that are comfortable for them.

In particular, I think you will REALLY like their first date in chapter 2, which is one of the most gentle and accommodating scenes I have read for all of HDG so far. It's SO sweet.

Someone in the server actually just collected a list of recommended fics that skew much more on the consensual side. NOTE THAT I HAVE NOT READ MOST OF THESE AND CANNOT PERSONALLY VOUCH FOR THEM.

Intake Interview Wild and Domestic Child of the Wilderness How To Tame A Polycule Fermata Art Exhibition Flotsam Heart Cross Pollination Surrogate Bloom Sycanthe Lantana Alone in the Dark, Together Germination Reading the Leaves Nurture and Acquisitions Perturbance A Normal Grocery Run During Which No Domestication Occurs No Gods No Masters (the primary storyline anyway) Hers to Have, Hers to Hold Petals and Vines Weeklong Stay at a J-Cafe (edited)

I AM currently about halfway through Petals and Vines and can absolutely confirm it's one of the cutest stories in the setting so far. I'm loving every minute of it. 500/10 adorable. Millie is everything, she is the light of my life and I would die for her. She's approaching DAWN levels of cute. DAWN LEVELS.

I would also add to this list:

Inosculate by SapphicSounds (the affini refuses to do ANYTHING with the protagonist until she explicitly asks for it)

Through The Looking Glass by PyxxieStyxx and TheMothCourt (the protagonist does get embarrassed/humiliated quite a bit, but she is VERY INTO IT and is given ample opportunity to back out or revoke her consent at any time, which she never does because she is having the time of her newly lesbian life right now)

I WOULD caution you against writing for the setting if you have mixed feelings about the worldbuilding, and especially if you haven't read some of the most foundational works of the setting like the original, Abscission, Divaricated, For A Better Universe, and a couple others. You should also familiarize yourself with the Rules and Axioms for the setting, as they're important for how the community functions as a creative space.

(The point is not taking things we like OUT of the sandbox to play with, it's bringing something of our own INTO the sandbox so we can play TOGETHER. But we play NICE in that sandbox, because we want the people who play in it after us to have that same joy we did. If your goal is to CHANGE something about the setting, then you're not playing the same game as everyone else in the sandbox.)

I'm pretty confident at this point that I have a good feel for the lore, vibe, and mechanics of the setting to comfortably start writing for it, but even I'm still holding off because there are some other Big Foundational Stories (Divaricated, Wellness Check, No Gods No Masters, probably Nurture and Acquisitions) that I want to experience and understand first, because when I'm ready to start contributing, I want to make sure I do it right.

Also, there actually IS a story literally CALLED Cat And Mouse, and it's one of the top 10 stories in the setting (sorted for Kudos on AO3). I cannot personally vouch for it because I haven't read it and don't know anything about it beyond that it's a Predator/Prey dynamic, but it has the same author as Good Sensory and her stories (though incredibly varied, tone wise) haven't let me down yet. Sheepwave is a very evocative writer and whatever kind of mood she's going for her in her stories, you're gonna REALLY feel that mood.

Sweet Poppy (one of her more famous stories) is a blood curdling psychological horror story. I am terrified of Poppy. She's easily the scariest Affini I've read yet. That's a HARD story to read if you can't stomach it, but it's very well done. It's the kind of story that you can't stop reading and ALSO it makes you sick to your stomach.

The only other story I've read from the setting so far that filled me with anywhere near that kind of nauseating dread was Independence Is Easy by SapphicSounds. If you're REALLY into doll kink, you might love it, but if you're not, it's absolutely a horror story. I don't regret reading it, but I was definitely way more into the first half than the second half. The protagonist DEFINITELY needed to be domesticated, but not by this specific Affini. I've seen lots of people be REALLY obsessed with it, but based on what I can gather from your tastes, I would NOT recommend this one to you.

In regards to the worldbuilding, the main thing to remember is that HDG is at its core a WILDLY SELF-INDULGENT kink setting where the most immutable aspect is that everyone deserves to be loved and cared for and given a better life. It was made by gay auDHD trans women FOR gay auDHD trans women, and the real fantasy is just that there will always be someone there who loves us unconditionally while accepting us for our truest selves and telling us that we deserve to not hurt anymore. All of the scifi worldbuilding exists to supplement that. The Affini are overpowered by design.

It's not intended to be realistic, it's intended to be wish fulfilment where inevitability is coming for you, and that inevitability is kind, and loving, and PROFOUNDLY horny.

[outofthemouthsof]

15-Day BL Challenge in 1 Night!

I'm more of a lurker than a poster but Tumblr's my fave place to wallow in BLness. My 2nd favorite place is the spreadsheet where I track the shows I've watched (172 completed in just over a year), so @negrowhat 's challenge was irresistible. I'm gonna cram my answers in one post. Here goes!

Fave OG Actor Pairing: Some of the ones I think of as OG are only like 4 years old, so this was tough. And the 18 shows that have gotten my top score aren't very old. But I went through those 18 and picked the oldest, and it was the 2018 Korean microfilm Some More. Because it's so short it's super rewatchable, but even if I wasn't able to watch the whole thing a half dozen times (which I have), I'd still have gone back & watched the sweet moments and sex scene about 25 times (which I have). So I guess my fave OG actor pairing is Park Chan Ung and Kim Joon Bum! How they got me so deeply invested in their love in mere minutes is beyond me, but they did!

Fave Rookie Actor Pairing: Does Japan do the CP thing that Thailand does? I don't think so, but one couple I wish had about a dozen more BL series together lined up are Kouhei Higuchi and Atsuki Mashiko of My Personal Weatherman! Their chemistry was visceral and they're too pretty to be believed.

Side Dish That Should've Been the Main Course: While I enjoyed the main pairing a lot, they were nothing compared to the crazy rollercoaster side plot (how'd it go from so funny to SO dark to so sexy to so sweet and wholesome like that??) of Vegas/Pete from KinnPorsche!

Fave Ship Dynamic: Obvs from answers 2 & 3 I am not against D/s ships at ALL. Also a sucker for tough-but-submissive-bodyguard with mafia-brat-prince. Honestly I like tons of different dynamics from innocent to toxic, but one that gives me major butterflies is a guy who thinks he's straight but when confronted with the idea of liking another guy, doesn't have a macho freakout or run away, just kind of straightforwardly & sincerely searches his feelings until he figures it out. And then takes care of his baby. Why's that so HOT and sweet? Some of my fave examples: Pete/Ae in Love By Chance, Le Jian/Amber from DNA Says Love You, and Ida/Aoki from My Love Mix-Up!

Biggest Flop: This is expectations vs. execution, right? There's loads of shows I've abandoned, some I've stuck with for no good reason, etc., that are way worse than what I consider my personal biggest let-down. I was so enamored of Perth from LBC that I assumed he could do no wrong, and the bully-to-lover, rich/poor pairings often do it for me. So I guess I just assumed Dangerous Romance would be amazing, and it was REALLY good for a couple episodes. It wasn't the worst thing I ever saw, but so much of it just ... felt ... flat. Very surprising.

Fave Line From Your Fave Series: Well I know my fave series--Cherry Magic Thailand was the most perfect, entrancing, heartwarming series EVER, OMG, it was staggeringly good and stuck the landing in a way few shows have managed. I can't really think of one standout line--the script was so on point & there were HUNDREDS of sweet tingly moments. There were some epic ones in ep11 tho: When Achi says "The voice inside your head is so loud" and Karan (the boldest he's ever been) replies "Don't worry; soon you won't be able to read my mind anymore." (But then clearly uses that power one more time to gain the sweetest nonverbal consent EVER.) Then, Karan: "Do you regret losing your power?" Achi: "I'd regret not loving you." (OMG how I squealed.)

Fave Villain: This was so tough. An over-the-top villain I loved to hate (and an actor I loved from his sweetie-pie green-flag role in SCOY) was obvs Heng Asavarid as Chalothon in The Sign. But an actor who was so excellent at being loathsome and malicious toward the main couple, with just enough of a redemption arc that I didn't totally despise the character by the end (but did hate most of the way through): Park Hae In as Eun Ji (Jae Won's ex) in The Eighth Sense. It was a typical "faen fatale" role but so well done. So a tie between 2 totally different takes on the destructive ex.

The Trope You Hate Except When It's "This Series": OK, "hate" is a strong word for how I feel about the drop-of-rain-makes-you-ill so love-interest-takes-care-of-you trope. It's OK. But holy SHIT is it overused. Holy shit. I sigh resignedly when I realize we're going there. EXCEPT. When P'Phayu goes to visit Rain in Love in the Air when he's sick, and his version of caregiving? Forcibly applying medicine in the form of a rectal suppository. It is so funny, weirdly sexy, very in line with their dynamic (doesn't get in the way of their romance moments later at all), & it shoves a big middle finger up the overoveroverused sick-bed trope.

Most Visually Pleasing Love Scene: Okay, THE scene in The Sign is the clear winner in my & many people's books. But there are so many runners-up: the post-race one in Love in the Air. Just about every one in Pit Babe (both couples) & My Personal Weatherman. (A lot of other faves don't quite qualify as visually or emotionally pleasing--lustfully pleasing should be a 3rd category in this challenge!)

Most Emotionally Pleasing Love Scene: Again, I have a clear winner: Cherry Magic Thailand. So full of emotion, so well deserved, so everything. Sigh. But lots of runners-up: same scene in The Sign, both kissing scenes in DNA Says Love You (tame but soo emotionally satisfying), Ray & Sand's camper reunion in Only Friends, the post-prison love scenes for both couples in Kiseki: Dear to Me, the 1st time in I Feel You Linger in the Air ...

Breakup That Should've Stayed Broken Up: Maybe it's because I try to be choosy in what I watch all the way thru or maybe I'm a big softy who tends to root for every couple no matter how lame. In all my completed shows, I could only think of 2 breakups where I wasn't at all invested in them getting back together (and maybe against it): Tian/Poon, What Zabb Man and Top/Mew, Only Friends.

Wedding You Wish You Had an Invite To: If we're talking weddings that actually appeared in the show, Achi and Karan's in Cherry Magic Thailand, obvs! If it's hypothetical weddings, I'd be desperate to go to one of ANY of the characters in Playboyy! I'd wear a bulletproof vest & bring my own flask of booze, but it would be the trashy chaos-filled social event of a lifetime.

Give 5 Good Boys a Gold Star: Just 5? OK, some I haven't mentioned yet. 1. Shin Woo, Light on Me, 2. Palm, Never Let Me Go, 3. Mohk, Last Twilight, 4. Thun, He's Coming to Me, 5. Neua, Secret Crush on You. Best boys!

The Top 5 Most Sad Boys: I'll limit it to ones where the suffering was kinda pretty, not just painful. 1. Way, Pit Babe, 2. Akk, The Eclipse, 3. Kaipa/Gaipa, Moonlight Chicken, 4. Hae Bom, Cherry Blossoms After Winter, 5. Kiyoi, My Beautiful Man

Bestest Besties: Just one? Gah! Fine, Pearl & Gavreel in Gameboys. She got those boys together in quarantine!

[diabolikpersonals]

sorry for such a broad question but in your opinion is laito a well written character relative to everyone in diabolik? i really Want to learn more about him but i also dont want to subject myself to All That and i just want to know if he's worth reading about or just a pile of interesting plot threads thrown together for shock factor and unfulfilled thematically.

like my current personal opinion (may be wrong) is that i dont feel satisfied with the idea of yui's love or proactiveness fixing laito in any way because it doesn't mesh well with the actual ideas surrounding his character and unpacking that love is not poison goes beyond romantic love or a singular place of understanding. additionally it doesn't feel earned it feels like a chore for the player to trudge though for the sake of reading. i dont want to read laito's story that bad if it's the case yet im intrigued by the things offered by his character like the processing of the deeply visceral way csa shatters who you are

I wanted to wait till I finished his CL to answer so I'd be fully caught up with laito's routes, but that'll take too long so.....!! I might change my answer later!! lmao

[tw laito stuff, csa and suicide, yeah]

I do think Laito's a well-written character but his stuff is really difficult to get through if you have certain triggers, so it's tough to recommend. Even beyond the csa stuff, Laito is in a real hurry to die and he makes several attempts throughout the series. There's a certain unique sort of awfulness, at least for me, involving scenes where a character fails a suicide attempt and then get even more upset and desperate about it. So I understand what you mean when you say you're not excited about putting yourself through it. They were the hardest routes for me to get through too :')

A lot of earlier games suffer from endings that are like "And the two lived happily ever after, and we're not gonna unpack all that stuff!" and Laito's routes are no exception, but if you can look past that and make it to LE, I wouldn't say that Laito gets fixed. He has an ending similar to Ayato's that's like, it feels like we fixed everything but in reality we couldn't overcome the core issue! They really seem to believe that Laito absolutely can't be happy or live a normal life the way he is now. He has to die and/or rewrite his memories to be comfortable loving someone. It's up to your tastes if that's satisfying or not, but I kind of love the bittersweetness of LE endings, and the way they feel like a happy ending until you think about them a little too hard.

What's interesting is that Yui's purehearted love often hurts Laito more than it helps him. He responds to love, from Yui or from his family members, with revulsion. There's jealousy when he interacts with straightforward characters like Yui or Ayato, like "If only I could be as simple and pure as you, but nope, I can't." He's very self-aware for a diaboy, which only makes it hurt more when he keeps arriving at the conclusion that he's rotten. He definitely makes progress, which is really satisfying to see, like how he gradually allows Ayato back in his life emotionally. But as of right now, the end of his arc is so, like, "I tried, really I did! But my perspective on love is fucked and I need a hard reset! Maybe I'll be normal in the next life but definitely not this one!! Bye!"

...So, it's hard to say if you'll be happy with it. I see a lot of mixed opinions concerning the LE endings. They often give the diaboy what he wants but not what he needs, so you're left going, "Wait, I don't know about this...!" A lot of people really hate these endings, but they actually get more interesting to me the more conflicted they make me feel...and oh boy, was I conflicted about this one! :'D

If it sounds interesting to you, too, and you don't mind some pretty brutal scenes along the way, give Laito's routes a try. His HDB will definitely make you mad though lol

[dangermousie]

Farscape rewatch: 2x11 Look at the Princess Part 1

This three-parter is one of my fave eps and I think classic Farscape: taking the usual scifi trope and remaking it into something unique. On the surface, the set-up is something that has been done before, not just in scifi but in adventure lit of Victorian era: our brave Earthling (or Big Game Hunter, or Aristocratic Englishman) ends up having to pretend/be the groom of local royalty. Because he is so awesomely superior and attractive, of course. See Prisoner of Zenda and 8 million other titles. But this is Farscape, so this is not the case at all. When John is being chased, it’s never anything good  (I keep thinking of the fact that when Farscape finally decided to do the good old ‘hero must have more than one woman’ thing, they had Crichton raped by Grayza. In general, Crichton’s uniqueness brings him nothing but misery.) Here, the ‘other culture’ is far superior to the Earth one in its advancement, it’s powerful and needs no favors from anyone. Moreover, there is no ‘love’ or ‘he is so attractive’ on the part of the ‘natives.’ The reason Crichton works is, precisely, because in this world he is the genetic screw-up so he works as a mate for Katralla whose DNA has been messed with.

Nor is John someone who falls for the exotic Princess, or heroically rushes to the rescue of the kingdom out of noblesse oblige. He fights being married tooth and nail and then ‘unheroically’ surrenders to it when faced with threat of being turned over to Scorpius, and then saves everything only out of desperation and at the end, he is confronted with loss: his inability to kill Scorpius, the fact that he will never see his future child.

You know, I’ve forgotten how sharp the dialogue in Farscape is and how easily is can alternate between heart-breaking and completely funny. I keep thinking of the scene with John and D’Argo where John talks to D’Argo about hope and how “I have hope or I have nothing” and it’s an utterly heartbreaking scene:

(D’Argo pointing out his alternative is brain dissection by Scorpius is so very on brand - there is never an easy out or a good choice and a bad choice, just a bunch of bad choices.)

But anyway, it’s heartbreaking...

But it segues right into the bit of cultural misunderstanding about what ‘best man’ means and it’s now funny.

(Side note - will always love that D’s objection to what he thinks is John is propositioning him is “I am in a relationship already” and not anything else.)

D is a really good friend to John in this. They’ve come a long way since s1. Only a good friend would tolerate being constantly interrupted in his activities with Chiana (I love that John is so freaked by his future he merely registers her there and continues talking). John needs a friend badly at LATP. He doesn’t know it, but his insanity breakdown has began for real (he tells Aeryn he hears Scorpy in his head and she shrugs it off as paranoia. It must be pretty awful for John to have the one person you fear and hate the most always present). It’s a shudder-inducing scene in retrospect as it would be bad enough if it were PTSD but as is (Aeryn’s asking if 80 years as a statue is better than Scorpius here shows how much she does not yet get just how damaged John got by all of this; she will by the end of s2 but the price will be horrific.)

He is trapped by the Empress (whom I am not a fan of. I understand the necessity, but people who have no problems using other people as pawns are not a fave. And the whole setup is seriously proof as to why monarchy is a bad form of government - they are one bad ruler away from disaster). And then there is Scorpy. I love that John’s reaction to Scorpy is purely visceral, unreasoning. He is terrified and the way he uncontrollably flashbacks to his torture is evident on his face, and he tries to jest and put bravado but it all falls hollow.

He cannot control himself. I don’t think anyone else, not even Crais or Grayza, comes close to eliciting such a reaction out of him. Crais did a number on him physically, Grayza raped his body, and both hunted him assiduously, but Scorpius raped his mind and that’s his most important faculty in the mad world he’s thrust into. (But I love that even with all of that, he still asks Katralla what she wants not just as a last ditch hope of escape but because he does not believe in forcing people.) And now, I want to discuss my favorite stuff: John and Aeryn. I find myself both very frustrated with Aeryn through these eps (until the end of ep 3) and understanding completely where she comes from. She might deny that her wanting this marriage off is jealousy but Chiana can see it. I think in a way Crichton can too, but he needs her to give him something, anything to indicate reciprocity, that she would one day want to have something with him. The worst is when she says she won’t come to the wedding. She pushes a lot and wants a lot but tries to give nothing in return and yes that is very unfair but she is terrified, being with John would be the first real relationship she would have and she cannot handle the exposure, not yet. She can deal with the sex but she cannot deal with feelings. Her ambivalence is totally encapsulated in the first scene: she scents her hair so John would notice and tells him so later but when he does, she freaks and pulls away. He leans in for a kiss and she kisses him back but then breaks off. No wonder John is going insane.  I always die a little of swoon when they discuss the hair oil and she says that she will tell Zhaan he found her oils pleasing and he responds, both frustrated and trying to convince her desperately: ‘It’s you I find pleasing. Oh boy. She desperately needs to make it all about sex (something she is used to and familiar with). Crichton only wants her for sex, he is a walking horndog on legs etc etc, because she wants to deny any of her own feelings and any of his.

After having seen the entirety of Farscape, I melt a little when she sees Crichton interact with the simulacrum of his child and she realizes that he would want a child, that children are important to him. But also - as I mentioned, this is one child Crichton will never meet and he just has to live with it, there are no clean victories (side note, I loved that John was the one who wanted the emotions and the marriage and the baby and Aeryn had to think long and hard; such delicious reversal.)

P.S. Rygel/Aeryn kiss will never cease being funny. But also extra hilarious in light of his becoming her baby’s surrogate later, heeee.

PPS Ain’t it the truth

[not-poignant]

Hi hullo,

Bit of a random question, I always did wonder what Gary was thinking in underline the blue in that one phonecall scene specifically when Christian was doing the whole claim repudiation thing, and Gary taking the guy off speaker and bringing the phone to his own ear (his face like a storm), before we get pulled away from the scene alongside nate (ominous!)

Aside from that, I love your work! The re-readability of your stories are one of the most underrated aspects of it imo. I love starting stories all the way back from the first chapters to ride out the wave of emotions I felt throughout the stories again, its very satisfying and I think that speaks to your skill as a writer

Hi anon!

Gary had a few things going on in that scene, so I'll break them down.

The first and most obvious is that he's simply furious that an alpha (Christian) has been allowed to abuse an omega (Nate) that badly, because he was deliberately dragging out the repudiation process. Witnessing Nate being abused and seeing / scenting his fear responses and not being able to immediately and viscerally remove him from that situation was extremely hard for him and Temsen, especially while controlling their pheromones to not lose control around Janusz or each other.

I then think as well, Gary is angry at the fact that he now has to make nice with Christian. He can't say 'you did too much / that was inappropriate / you were wrong to say those things.' This actually gets talked about in tonight's chapter of Underline the Black! But Gary's anger is also that he's the one who now has to do a diplomatic response when the thing he wants to do most is murder Christian.

The situation is incredibly stifling and frustrating for him on that level. He's not the one who'll get to caretake an omega, he wants Temsen and Janusz to do their jobs, he's aware that Hillview has fucked up if they've created a situation where something so agonising has to happen in the first place, he can't murder Christian as much as he wants to, and he has to be nice to a rapist/abuser.

So all valid reasons for him to be super angry, tbh.

I'm so so glad you're enjoying the stories so far! I love rereading myself, I actually often get more out of rereads because of the combined excitement of knowing when certain things are coming, or being like 'omg I forgot about this part I can't wait', or seeing things through a new light now that I know the ending or certain parts of a character's arc and can go 'ohhhh this is where this started to change.'

And because of that, I do try and make my stuff good on rereads! Reread value to me is everything :D :D

[eshithepetty]

hiii hiii ^_^ hiii what is your favourite mp100 amv? :D

HI HIII!!! Sorry for the late answer!! But ough... you've activated my trap card.

Honestly... and I mean truly honestly, I can't pick one. So I know that's not what this ask specifically asked, but, have just a whole list anyways sjhdgfsjdf

As per my last post, these are specifically less well known amvs, as I think pretty much everyone in this fandom knows of like, ???, 99%, Stressed Out and Kindness, for example. For these ones, I'm pretty sure none of them reach 1000 likes/notes (some don't reach even 100) (at the time of writing this, at least), but I assure you, that's not an indication of quality!! SO yeh. A pile of AMVs be upon ye (15 specifically for now).

Firstly, from Youtube:

DARK ARTS by pyrotechnicstars

Centers on: mp100 in general

This one's not as character centric as the rest of the amvs you'll see on this list, but i just Really love this one for how fluid and fun the editing is, and how the song just fits mp100's vibe very well imo ^^

maybe if i by kiwa

Centers on: Reigen

Such good cuts and scene selection :) really love when people choose a more introspective vibe with Reigen amvs. also it hit me with a surprise serirei reference that made me laugh, so hdhdhcf

All the Rowboats by hyrude

Centers on: Mob & Ritsu

The atmosphere in this one…. ough. I really appreciate when people choose to delve into the darker tones of this show, and this one really nails that !!

If I Was by ObsessiveBookworm

(@grocerystorephobic on tumblr)

Centers on: Reigen & Mob

Another introspective Reigen one! Specifically one focusing on his relationship with Shigeo. This one's really sweet,,, feels almost nostalgic in a way, really neat <3

Children's Work by ObsessiveBookworm

Centers on: Mob & Ritsu

SUCH A NEAT EXPLORATION OF THE KAGEYAMA BROTHERS…. the song fits them sooo well, its just. Augh.. Goes insane,,,,

Try To Change by Thamires

Centers on: Mob

Such a good choice of song.. I think this was one of the first mob amvs that I found and liked? Somber with a tinge of sweet at the end,,, :')

Former Lives by ObsessiveBookworm

Centers on: Mogami arc

Ooughggh;;,,, as i said, I really appreciate exploration of the darker sides to mp100, and this one is just. Augh. So well done, so gritty, so captivating despite being over a whole 6 minutes long. And I also admire it for the sheer challenge of making it, due to the length and how cut down this arc in the anime was, and how op made the best of it.. Love this one a lot…. <3

D o g T e e t h by flyweeabooty

Centers on: Mob

This one just,,, hurts…. so viscerally,,, I don't have many words for this one, just. Damn :(

With All Your Power by ObsessiveBookworm

Centers on: Season 1

The reason i'm labeling it as just season 1 is that…!! Its just!!! Such a great amv for that part of the story, with all the wackiness, the large cast of characters, the different parts going on and occasional tension and explosion of emotions…. its just sooo fun, i adore it !!!

The Whole World And Mob by ObsessiveBookworm

Centers on: Dimple & Mob

A RARE DIMPLE AMV!! And one focusing on their s1 dynamic as well! Honestly just such a silly and good time, this one genuinely makes me smile :)

....WAIT. AUGH. THERE'S A 10 VIDEO LIMIT???

...welp. Lemme take a moment then to put the other 5 in a reblog then, sorry for that jshgfjs. A brief intermission!! Watch these shrimp 'till then

[sketching-shark]

decides to give names to the bone spirits because I have almost nothing content of these two

Their fanon names are Gǔtou and Gǔ

this little friend here Báigǔ

what do you think

Can you think of other types of names?

If you had to give them a personality what would it be?

Do you think Lady Bone Demon could have been affectionate towards them, you know, to give her other nuances of personality by showing that she really is affectionate towards her own people?

Oh that's actually a pretty neat idea to have an entire yaoguai species made of bone people! And thanks for letting me know of some of the fandom lore @maidenofthecloud :D. That said, I'm very ignorant about how precisely naming conventions work for Chinese names, so I'd likely make some major goofs if I tried to come up with something fitting for the bone spirits (X_X).

In terms of personality, given how angry and hollow they look I could imagine them and Monkie Kid's Lady Bone Demon actually fitting quite well as being something like pretas, or hungry ghosts. Pretas are present in a number of Eastern religions, Buddhism included, and while as always keeping in mind that I'm not an expert on this topic, from what I understand the basic idea behind them is that they are the remnants of dead humans who as a result of their bad deeds are now tormented by insatiable hunger, desire or thirst. They do seem to often act as malevolent entities--they possess people and bring bad luck--but there is something very sad about them too because even though they've already died they're doomed to endlessly suffer the torments of desire without even the potential recourse of reincarnation.

As such, I think it could act as a potentially interesting layer to Lady Bone Demon's whole "save the world by killing literally everything & starting over" plan if she was driven to such a twisted form of compassion by seeing, interacting with, and even experiencing herself the kind of unrelenting torment that pretas go through, especially after seeing the deities live it up even though a number of them are responsible for some pretty heinous things that they more or less never have to answer for (though gods from Li Nezha to the Jade Emperor himself all have their own painful pasts). Like if she had viscerally realized just how much unending suffering is in existence, and how even adulated religions seemed incapable of addressing it, you could more easily understand why she decided to just throw the whole reality away. If they had kept Sun Wukong's og backstory it could have made her whole deal an interesting comparison/contrast to the Monkey King himself too, as in the classic he commits all kinds of violence to help his beloved monkey family; she'd just be doing something similar for her beloved pretas, but on a universal scale. Hell, throw in a scene too where the Lady Bone Demon tries to convince SWK of the virtue of her omnicidal plan because of the way even his own lifetimes worth of efforts resulted in nothing but suffering for himself and everyone he ever loved too! It would be a perfect opportunity to FINALLY get some insight as to why that monkey exiled himself for centuries in the first place if nothing else. Not to mention antagonists who are convinced of the righteousness of their actions no matter what are wonderfully scary, and showing how the Lady Bone Demon arrived at her ideas in the first place could really up the sympathy/creep factor!

That said, I know that setting up and exploring that sort of dark situation would likely result in a MUCH higher rating, and probably isn't the kind of thing that could be addressed in a careful and nuanced manner in a silly lego show lol. It is still fun to think about!

[exdraghunt]

Transformers One: a Review/Critique

I just got home from seeing Transformers One, and as usual, I have Thoughts. This means I must subject you to them. Spoilers ahoy

In the first 10 minutes of the movie, my primary thought was "Oh, this movie has a pacing problem", and at the end of the movie, I still thought that was true. When looking at storytelling, an oft-repeated phrase is "Show, don't tell." Which I think is at the core of the problems I had with Transformers One. It was a lot of tell, without a lot of show.

Let's look at the worldbuilding for a moment: there's not a lot of it. So, we are presented with a deeply stratified society with a distinct elite class and sub-class. But how is this actually explained to the audience? The opening scenes give us Orion Pax, a miner without a transformation cog, which makes him lesser. And a bustling city full of, presumably upper-class mecha, who (one assumes) do have transformation cogs. It's never really. .. explained how this works, though. How do some mecha end up sub-class and some not? What do the non-miners do all day? Did they. . . earn cogs somehow? Even after the reveal that all Cybertronians are born with cogs, but some have them removed before coming online, it's never actually explained how or who is dividing the haves from the have-nots. The "upper class" aren't actually shown to be upper class. They're just. Ordinary people, as far as I can tell, living ordinary lives.

In contrast, I want to bring up "Mad Max: Fury Road." This is a brilliant example of world-building a deeply unfair, classist society purely through visuals. We get impressions of how the Citadel works, even without someone telling us. At the top is Immortan Joe, who has the charisma and power to not only rule the community but to actually create a cult of personality with people willing to die for him. We see War Boys, young men of reasonable levels of physical fitness, ready to sacrifice for their leader. We see slaves, chained to cogs and wheels that make the place move. We see the lowly masses, begging and fighting for the barest sips of water. and we see the women, used for their bodies in a variety of ways. It is horrible, and the audiences gets a visceral feeling of how terrible and unfair this place in 10-15 minutes of camera work.

Speaking of charismatic evil leaders: Sentinel Prime. We're told that he's very important and everyone loves him, but I don't think we actually get to feel that. He gives a public announcement, and everyone cheers. I understand that this is intended to show the average mech loves their leader, but I don't actually connect to that emotion as an audience member. I want to feel that motivation too, to see and feel that Sentinel is a leader that everyone admires, even if I, as an audience member, am aware he's going to be a douchebag.

Which is why I thought D-16's character arc was kind of lackluster. I couldn't connect to his feelings of betrayal, because not only did I not feel betrayed myself, but I didn't feel like there was much build-up of D-16 *loving* and *trusting* Sentinel. He seems to admire getting to see/meet Sentinel as any average American might be a little starstruck meeting say, a President or famous Actor. But I don't get the impression that he *worships* Sentinel. The emotion of love should be as strong as the later emotion of hate. D-16's "I'm going to *kill him*" felt a little sudden not because "whoa death's a little much" but because I didn't realize D-16 felt quite that strongly about Sentinel in the first place.

Let's also look at the Prime that D-16 does worship, Megatronus. It's said by a few characters that "Megatronus Prime is the coolest Prime, the strongest, the best" ect. ect. But again, this is telling, not showing. Why is Megatronus the 'coolest Prime' according to several characters. This is treated like common knowledge, but nothing seems to back it up. It just seems to be a *wink wink nudge nudge* to the audience, who is well aware of what D-16 will rename himself, and a source for the Decepticon emblem.

Thinking of it, if the 13 Primes are an extremely important part of Cybertronian mythology and legend, wouldn't their names be common knowledge? The way everyone knows who Megatronus is seems to imply as such. Wouldn't it be obvious that 'Sentinel Prime' is not one of the 13?

Imagine if Sentinel Prime erased Megatronus from history and put his name in that place. If the core cast had met Alpha Trion and, upon being imformed that Sentinel is not a Prime, but was a junior aid to the Primes, asked 'well, if Sentinel isn't one of the 13, then who's the last Prime?' and Alpha Trion could spin a tale of some grand sacrifice of Megatronus to try and fail to stop Sentinel's plan, and of his name being erased from history. of D-16 taking on that name as a reclamation of the dead Megatronus, and reclaiming that betrayal, to create new history.

One of the problems with movies that reboot existing franchises is that they often rely on the audience to make connections with what they already know about characters instead of explaining things in the story. Let's look at the Elite Guard.

So, we meet Starscream, Soundwave, and Shockwave. As audience members, even someone only passingly familiar with Transformers is likely to recognize these characters (some of the most iconic in the franchise, outside of Optimus, Megatron, and Bumblebee), and additionally is probably aware that they are Decepticons. Thus, we know that they are destined to join D-16/Megatron.

There's also kind of a time-scale issue going on. Sentinel very prominently emphasizes that it has been "50 cycles" since the fall of the Primes. We, of course, have no frame of reference for how long a 'cycle' is, and since Cybertronians are mostly immortal, we also can't judge by character age or generations. But it must have been a long ass time, considering they abandoned the entire surface of the planet and built a giant ass city entirely underground, and all above ground structures are either irreparably decayed or just gone. But not so long that Starscream's crew isn't doing just fine, apparently.

The quick infodump that these guys were former guards of the 13 Primes who witnessed Sentinel's betrayal and thus are in hiding is. Sudden, and not even hinted at. No mention in Sentinel's early scenes that there might be "traitors" who are "sabotaging his regime" or anything of the sort. No mention from Alpha Trion that there's a large number of mecha also aware of the truth who maybe. I don't know. Might be willing to help our heroes? They just show up from out of nowhere to be the future Decepticons.

And why do they follow D-16/Megatron? Okay, he beats up Starscream and gives a brief little speech about killing Sentinel. Why do they willing exile themselves at the end after Megatron gets his ass handed to him by the newly minted Optimus Prime. Do they feel no loyalty towards the new Prime who holds the Matrix and was chosen by Primus himself? They are supposedly former Primesguard, and also supposedly follow the strongest victor in battle. So. Why keep following Megatron after he loses a fight? I don't think we are given nearly enough scenes of D-16/Megatron gaining their respect or admiration. (or of Optimus losing it) Instead, they go with Megatron at the end of the film because they have to for the rest of the Transformers story to happen.

(I do appreciate the fruity little portrayal of Starscream. 10/10, no notes)

In terms of pacing, which I mentioned earlier, it doesn't feel like the movie has much time to stop and breathe. Experience its setting, feel its emotions. Much of the film is just joke, joke, joke, action scene, action scene, action scene. Constant hits to the audience to keep their eyes on the screen, which I think also contributes to the complete lack of emotional connection I had with this film. To tell a story of love and betrayal, I want to feel that love and I want to suffer in that betrayal. Sometimes, that means letting the characters just. Slow down, and experience and show those emotions. Show D-16 and Orion trusting and relying on each other, instead of just telling us that they're best friends. Give us D-16 and Orion drifting apart, friction with eachother, as their idealogical differences rip them apart.

Speaking of idealogical differences, I found the entire "Don't kill Sentinel or you'll be just like him!" part very confusing. Killing the tyrant who betrayed and slaughtered the literal gods makes you as bad as him? But also, 2 minutes before that, Bee is killing people repeatedly for laughs. "Knife hands! I can slice this guy in half! Isn't killing people funny?" Yes, he's killing mooks, but there's no reason to believe that Sentinel's guards aren't also sentient Cybertronians. I guess it's okay to kill the bad guys' mooks, just not the bad guy himself? As our main cast gets into fighting for their lives for the first time, shooting guns and weapons for what (I assume) is the first time ever in their existence, maybe they should have had a conversation or a realization about what it means to kill another Cybertronian. But the movie doesn't have time for that. The emotional impact of killing someone only seems to matter when it's Megatron trying to kill Sentinel and not at any other time.

An establishing character moment for Orion/Optimus could've been him throwing himself into danger to save Jazz's life in the mines, but I feel the impact of the danger, the risk, the possible self-sacrifice is destroyed by the witty little quips, humorous dialogue, and lightning-fast pacing. I want to see an Optimus that is willing to possibly die if it means saving even one life. That's an important quality for this character to have. But the scene goes by so fast, it barely has an impact. Nor does it really give us an impression of Orion being a character the other miners respect and look up to (which would later make him returning to inspire the miners to rise up even more impactful)

I kind of wish that this movie had established Primes as literal Gods. (or Demi-Gods.) Imagine seeing people literally worship Sentinel as a God in physical form. The betrayal, to know that not only is Sentinel a false god, but the one who killed the actual gods. The implications of Megatron taking on the name of the most popular God (or, perhaps, taking the name of a betrayed and forgotten God), and of Optimus rising as a new God. I feel it detracts from some of the impact of the story to portray the Primes as some kind of Celebrities.

I think this story would have been improved if it had A. been spread out across a full season of a tv show, allowing for more time to build and develop characters and plots or B. breathed a little more and explored the emotions and motivations of the cast more.

As an aside, what the fuck is happening in all of the other cities on Cybertron? Business as usual? The movie only shows us Iacon, and seems to imply that Iacon is the only city on the planet. The whole planet?

[languajix]

Hello!! I come bearing asks on this fine Monday

N: Is there a fic you wish someone else would write (or finish) for you?

S: Any fandom tropes you can’t resist?

W: Do you like more general prompts, or more specific ones?

Hello!! Why thank you, it's lovely to hear from you! I know it's no longer Monday, but I hope your evening has been nice.

N: Is there a fic you wish someone else would write (or finish) for you?

Actually... If there was any way to have it still stylistically fit with the rest of the series, I'd wish to hand over all my thoughts and half-written scenes from the Leo-centric Hold Every Memory fic to someone else to finish.

I don't know. I'm struggling to find a theme, an overarching narrative, character development, something to tie it all together so it says something and isn't just. Scenes. I don't know what I want to say with it, yet.

S: Any fandom tropes you can’t resist?

I'm a big fan of Rise-Donnie-and-the-Technodrome stuff. I'm going to count that as a trope.

Connecting to something bigger than you, something that initially disgusts you on a level far beyond visceral, and finding freedom and power and kinship in it? Becoming something bigger than yourself? Being forcibly ripped apart and trying to come to terms with the fact that you can never be the person you were before, that it left with a piece of you, and you left with a piece of it, and you might never be whole again? Yes please.

W: Do you like more general prompts, or more specific ones?

It depends! If the Inspiration (fleeting, fickle, finite) doesn't spark, writing is not very much fun.

I do work with some general prompts from bingo cards on Dreamwidth, and that's fun because I get to do whatever I want without any pressure, but sometimes I struggle. I'm not very. uh. original? I guess? I'm not usually overflowing with ideas, and when I am, they're usually alternate takes on stuff I've seen elsewhere that - once I dive in to read - scratch my itch just slightly to the left of where I actually need it.

So perhaps specific prompts are better! Just do the thinking for me. As long as my inspiration cooperates, because that can be a dice roll on the best of days :'D