#They made very clever creative builds too

[royalarchivist]

Phil: Wtf is THIS? WHOAAA! 😨 Jesus fcking Christ!

Phil: ...Do you ever get the feeling that you're just playing the game wrong?

Dapper & Ramon: [Nodding vigorously]

Phil: [Cracks up] We gotta get outta here, dude. We gotta get up– we gotta get out. How tf do we get out of this place?

Throwback to Phil seeing Aypierre's massive factory for the first time.

[ckret2]

bouncing off that anon's ask, who would you ship Bill with *outside* of Gravity Falls? Literally any media go ham with it

Invader Zim for exactly one reason: their voices would be sooo annoying together. Imagine it. Imagine the dirty talk. Absolutely atrocious.

This isn't a ship but I think he should hang out with Team Rocket. I mean I guess it could be a ship if you wanna find a way to fit him into the polycule. They've got plenty they can relate to each other on: complicated relationships with parents, being special in your species in a way that makes you a freak/outcast, seeking family via criminal gang, trying to accomplish ONE evil task for like a billion years and somehow no matter how many people you try to manipulate or how clever your cover stories and creative your plans you just canNOT do it...

But mainly I want him to give them terrible advice and horrible help on their criminal ambitions while trying to get them to build him a portal. They waste 50 episodes on 50 different portal-building schemes while Bill gets progressively more irate, and in turn they get equally furious at this annoying talking Ghost-type they can't touch or make go away. Poké balls work on him but he immediately pops back out even madder, which does nothing to help him persuade them that he's not a Pokémon.

Anyway within a month they'd all die for each other. In a very emotional moment when he thinks they're about to be killed and there's nothing he can do about it, he'd tell them they would have made fine Henchmaniacs; and then when they inevitably survive he immediately takes it back.

I think Bill and Unicron would hook up and I think Unicron would make Bill worse. I think he's one of the only beings in existence that could make Bill worse. Bill's got a self-destructive streak a mile wide and Unicron would exacerbate it. They'd break up cordially and then slowly grow to loathe each other more and more in retrospect. Bill would still booty call Unicron when drunk and Unicron would accept.

this isn't necessarily a ship but imagine if bill and getaway teamed up

The Princess in Rainbow Brite and the Star Stealer. Bill would promise her a diamond the size of a star and she would build him a portal in less than a week. Bill would compliment her interior decor sensibilities and she might actually compliment his appearance because he's very bright, and that would be enough for them to decide they're besties. They'd get champagne, trash talk their enemies, and bully the plebs like a couple of high school mean girls. They'd make out while completely wasted and deny it when they're sober. Each of them privately thinks the other one is their pet.

Grendel from Grendel. Bill would initially hook up with him expecting him to be the monster equivalent of a party frat boy and then they'd talk philosophy in a dark cave for 18 hours straight and mutually feel like they're not alone for the first time they can remember. They'd make each other worse and then fix each other and then Grendel would die in battle and Bill would get worse again.

I think he could have something with Frankenstein's monster, too—original novel version, not movie version. Similar reasons to Grendel: strong sense of alienation from parents and of isolation from everyone else in the world; feeling of having been created as something totally singular, feeling of having a perspective no one else shares; self-identification as the monster in the narrative of their own life... Plus with the monster Bill's also got "life inevitably culminates in killing my own dad." Bill met him because he was actually trying to get Frank to build him a portal—he's like the first scientist trying to do major projects using electricity—but then ended up more fascinated by the science project than the scientist.

[obeymematches]

Hi! I was the one who requested the daughters one. Can you write it for the undateables?

sure thing bestie🫡 sorry I made you wait 💔

With his Daughter

Diavolo:

● As the future Queen of Devildom you'd think his daughter is the perfect little girl in pretty dresses holding tea parties with her stuffies....

● My sweet summer child...

● She's a menace.

● You know girls usually take after their father. Diavolo is a fully grown adult and he can still be a menace.

● Can you imagine what he was like as a toddler ?? ● His little girl LOVES speaking her mind and Diavolo is very supportive of this habit. He adores how little kids think; and say the obvious. He damn sure won't be getting in the way of her freedom.

● Little girlie also likes to climb trees, play in the mud, prank the staff, if you get her one of those electric cars from the Human World she'd never get out.

● Likes to yell and throw tantrums; this is the only behavior of hers which Diavolo dislikes, though he is very patient with her regardless. Explains to her why she is being too much right now BUT let's go get icecream instead just to calm down.

● Think of Muffin from Bluey. Exactly.

● She is hectic, she is faaar from perfect, but his daddy doesn't let anyone tell her off or make her feel bad about it.

● As the other parent.... you hardly can rest with this two but if anyone, it's you who can slow them down a bit if this is not your style.

Barbatos:

● He has experience raising kids, though usually sons.

● He was not prepared for his daughter to steal his heart so effortlessly though.

● He is absolutely in love since day 1. She was just born and now he'd do anything for her.

● Though she is not going to be so spiled to do whatever she wants, she must learn to be nice and polite - though I think she is a much calmer kid than Diavolo's, for example.

● She likes to pick flowers, play on the swing, dress pretty, and she likes to give kisses. She also likes to help her daddy cook!!

● Her dad is so proud of her, even when he is tired he refuses to rest unless they had playtime.

Simeon:

● Antoher person with experience; though the infant stage is new for him as well.

● He'd absolutely love his child no matter the gender, but his little girl is a copy-paste version of him of course he is obsessed.

● Gets up every single time she cries, does anything to calm her down, has endless patience. ● Hardly ever gets frustrated even when he hasn't slept well in years. Truly a perfect example.

● Likes to go on trips as a family!!!

● Very soft-spoken with her, explains everyting as many times as needed.

● His daughter isn't too spoiled but she has everything a kid needs. Has simple toys, non of that loud flashy stuff.

● Loves to read her stories inside, in the garden, on the road, doesn't matter he just wants to make sure his baby is set for a good, creative, happy life.

Solomon:

● Okay I doubt he was the protective kind BEFORE becoming a father..... and he is not going to change AFTER becoming one either.

● Kids must learn how the world works right?

● It is the best for her to experience everything.

● Yes he is there to calm her down, provide aid, etc, but he is not going to stop her from touching a thorn for example

● Like superglue his daughter is right there with him at all times. He can only use the toilet if he manages to leave without her noticing.

● I loove to imagine him carrying his daughter on his shoulders!!!

● Ah imagine him playing blocks with her 🥹 Building the prettiest castle just for her to destroy!

● Likes to wear matching colored clothing with her

● His heart breaks to shreds when she refuses to eat anything he cooks... there is no going back from that. Easily the worst feeling he had in the past centuries.

● His daughter is very clever for her age at all times. She might tutor some of her classmates if she likes them.

AN: did you know the base of your personality is inherited from your parents? yes you might change on purpose here and there, yes society, your culture also shapes you as you grow, but the base material you have to work with is inherited

AN 2: i have no clue where part one is but i trust it is on my blog somewhere 👉👈

[ladyjenise]

Thoughts on why Ganondorf makes "that face" in Tears of the Kingdom

I'm several months late, but I didn't want to post spoiler stuff when the game was fresh and, frankly, I had quite a whack summer. So here we are.

Anyway, onto the meta: my thoughts on why Ganondorf makes "that face" in Tears of the Kingdom.

Yes, this face:

One of the first things I want to do is credit some rad metas that helped me along in my thought process:

-Discussion of Ganondorf's facial design from a technical and creative standpoint

-Discussion of Ganondorf's outfit

And now to the actual meta! Will include spoilers for Tears of the Kingdom.

When the screenshots of Ganondorf making "that face" first hit the internet, there was a lot of lol and wtf, which was fair. Most people weren't that far in the game yet. Actually, not sure it was even out yet (there was an early leaked ROM floating around at some point pre-release). I don't want to dwell much on people's initial reactions as I think if you're here reading you've already processed your initial feelings on seeing it. And your initial reaction of LOL WTF is fine. Out of context, it probably made little sense.

But let's talk about context: Ganondorf makes this face after killing Sonia for her Secret Stone. He's literally laughing over her dead body as Zelda calls out vainly to the fallen queen. It's a very heinous, dramatic act. And I think, in context, that confused people even more because his face, on first glance, feels over the top and silly for such a serious moment. However, it's not there because Nintendo's devs don't know what they're doing. At least, that's what I'm trying to argue here.

Let's discuss the build up to this scene in the story chronology: Ganondorf tries to use moldugas to attack the fledgling kingdom of Hyrule. It goes badly because Rauru, alongside Sonia and Zelda, are able to use Secret Stones of the Zonai to fend off the attack. It's a very lopsided victory.

Ganondorf takes a moment to pout before observing the Secret Stones. Ganondorf correctly observes that brute force will not be enough. Not one to sit back on his failures, Ganondorf is clearly already hatching a new plan. End of scene.

We next see Ganondorf at the court of Rauru and Sonia, bending the knee in what we know is a false act of fealty. Of course, this scene is a reference to the plot of Ocarina of Time (where we spy on Ganondorf through a window as he bends the knee to the King of Hyrule, who is out of the shot). it's also a glimpse of Ganondorf the schemer.

If you had not met Ganondorf before playing Tears of the Kingdom, you might actually think Ganondorf is just a mindlessly violent guy (and he is that too, don't get me wrong). You might not have expected this dude to roll up to the court of Hyrule and start playing the political game. His character design looks like the exact kind of guy who could punch your head clean off your body. Just look at him:

He's a brick wall. He looks like a big tough guy, and maybe he's just some big dummy who only understands violence. It's a stereotype Nintendo has subverted again and again with his character. And there Ganondorf is at the court of Rauru serving backhanded compliments like a pro. And while Rauru assures Zelda that he knows Ganondorf is up to shit, he's really got Rauru convinced that he can handle him. As we shall see, Rauru was mistaken. But that's Ganondorf for you. His character is about subverting expectations. This is what makes him so very fun.

Even his costume, with the reversible robe, tells you a lot about who he is. On the outside, a calm, clever, cultured man. On the inside, he's ready to fuck your shit up. I love it.

Back to the scene.

After assuring Rauru he simply wants to play nice and have the protection of Hyrule, Ganondorf serves some cunty lines implying Rauru is an interloper and an outsider etc before leaving. And it's at this point I noticed that when Ganondorf takes his leave, he makes this really flourishing move with his arm that made me stop and think.

You can probably find the scene online somewhere, but here's a screenshot of what I mean:

And note that he also uses his sleeved arm, creating that extra diva flourish as he goes. We also get a real good fast look at how colourful and different his sleeve is. He's turned his back to Rauru and the others after swearing his fealty. His changeable nature is displayed to the player. It's a nice wink and nod to Ganondorf's later betrayal. Only Zelda has a real inkling that he's really, really bad news and probably shouldn't even be there. But if you've played Ocarina of Time, you understand that Zelda isn't listened to until it's too late.

Returning to the flourish itself: Ganondorf didn't have to do this. And Nintendo didn't have to waste animation time having him do this. But they did. And they did it again when he laughs over Sonia's body. And they do it again when he swallows his Secret Stone. They just. keep. doing. it.

Why?

Why do all this extra dramatic animation for Ganondorf?

Those familiar with kabuki (a classical form of Japanese theatre) are probably screaming KABUKI, and I would agree. I didn't immediately get there at first only because my background was in another form of classical theatre: Greek (ask me about my unversity minor lol). I'm not going into a deep dive on either classical Greek theatre nor kabuki because that's a lot, I'm not really an expert or super familiar with the details, and I also think their Wikipedia pages will probably give you a decent summary of what you might want to learn details on. However, classic Greek theatre is old as shit and has a lot of great stories with characters you'll recognize. I recommend.

What I need you, dear reader, to understand about classic and ancient forms of theatre is their emphasis ON emphasis. It's a lot of what we might think of as exaggerated elements, over-the-top forms, and straight up spelling shit out to the audience. Real archaic shit. Because the world we are watching in these memories IS archaic to Link. There's 10,000 years between the memories we see and Link's time. It's like we, as Link, are viewing a kabuki play or a Greek play about stuff that happened then. It makes perfect sense to have Ganondorf act like he's in an ancient play. And that's how you get shit like this:

This is all theatre.

But why is ancient theatre so weird? It's not. We think it looks weird because it's unfamiliar to us. Most of us don't grow up watching ancient plays. Even those of use who read Shakespeare in school are usually sweating through the now-archaic English (it was only 400-ish years ago!) You're not equipped, and that's cool.

And honestly, if you are familiar with Ganondorf, he truly is a creature of theatre. Just look at this castle he builds in Ocarina of Time:

He destroyed Hyrule Castle to build this giant fucking castle levitating over a pit of lava. Like why? Because he CAN. Because he can't do anything in halves.

Also, his outfits. Look at this shit. He can't tone it down. I don't think he could if he tried.

Coming back to Ganondorf's face when he kills Sonia: when Ganondorf's face contorts and he starts to laugh evilly, we are told in very certain terms that he's made a critical choice. If you weren't sure before, you're being told now: He's evil. There's no going back from this. And he's embracing it. There is zero remorse. Killing her was the act he needed to move from man to monster. It's very important that you, the player, understand this. It's a moral thing. And I don't mean like "If you like this character after you are a bad person" type of thing. That's not what I mean here (and what people who have weird obsessions on the internet often misunderstand just so they can start fights over dumb shit). What I mean is that the storytellers need you need to understand your character's motivations for wanting to fight this guy.

And the next scene plainly shows what I'm talking about: Ganondorf takes the Secret Stone and literally turns into a demon king. He's no longer a man. He's this other, immoral being now. Bye bye, human Ganondorf, hello monster Ganondorf! That's it.

Going back to his eating of the Secret Stone, which changes Ganondorf from good ol' demon king to the for realsies demon dragon, he says some lines about giving up his "body" and "mind" and, frankly "everything", just so he can win. But also it's a desperate last attempt at keeping hold of the power that has so horribly blinded him to the truth.

That last part is ironic for Ganondorf, a man who was clever enough to get into the heart of Hyrule, steal their powerful relic, kill the queen and ALMOST become king. Because that's his ultimate failing. He's smart, clever, and his wins get the better of him. His addiction to power means he never stops to consider he might have weaknesses he cannot yet see, or that, as Rauru warns him, his arrogance and blind faith in his own abilities and talents might be his downfall.

In a way, the story is just as much about Link searching for Zelda and Zelda trying to figure out her role in the world as it is about the fall of a powerful man. Is it tragic that Ganondorf let himself become so corrupted by power that it would slowly transform him from man to demon? I guess it depends on who you ask, really. (I think it's fucking cool)

[kissesandarsenic]

I'm going to gamble and say trick as it no doubt gets the creativity flowing.

One of my biggest kinks is corruption and being made worse ... the problem is I am also often easily embarrassed but being teased about it also gets me worked up. So I wondered if you could build a scenario which plays on both these aspects. You already know about tease and denial from a previous ask (not cages) so make of that what you will.

Hard limits are the same as you list on your blog, probably adding pee, sph and sissification stuff.

Love reading your posts and I'm really enjoying the current series with salt. Enjoy 😊

Ohhhh just had a great idea for this with the help of a friend.

You start dating a girl. She's confident, funny, insanely clever and also very Dominant. You're head over heels for her in no time and desperate to please her.

Problem is, it's hard to fully satisfy her. Especially when it comes to sex. Don't get me wrong, you both have fun together. But she gets bored of the same old thing. She wants more from you and you, a people pleaser at heart, are all too willing to give that to her.

So she comes up with a fun little game for you both. One that lets her exercise control over you and relish in you squirming.

You are going to give up your ability to orgasm and leave it up to her discretion. She controls them now, and you're much to obedient to slip up and take that right away from her. To earn an orgasm, you have to upload a video of yourself onto a porn site.

It starts off simple, to an extent. You still struggle and squirm uploading the short thirty second clip of you stroking your cock, but the way she rides you after and calls you her good boy, makes it worth it.

When you try upload a similar video however, your Domme laughs at you. Surely you didn't think another faceless thirty second jerking video with the sound muted would suffice a second time. If you want to cum, there needs to be more.

So maybe you increase the length or add moaning. That earns you a second orgasm. Want another? You have to up the ante. Wear a collar. Record in public. Write degrading words on yourself.

Don't think about how you're slowly gaining traction on your account as the views go up and up. Don't think about that fun little tingle you get every time a stranger comments about what a good little slut you are, showing yourself off online. Definitely don't think about how far you've fallen and how you'll likely never feel right cumming again without a camera pointed at your cock as you debase yourself.

It's just a bit of fun. You're definitely not getting worse.

Right?

Trick or Treat Ask Game! Send in a fantasy with a "Trick" or "Treat" attached and I'll elaborate on it!

[achurchinthesector5slums]

hey guys one of my favorite hobbies is analyzing the ff7 remake trilogy soundtrack and taking note at how the composers hint at or use certain motifs for certain tracks

like one track that has stood out to me recently is Mako Overdose, (the boss theme for the specimen at the Gongaga rector). while it does transition to the Those Who Fight/Let the Battles Begin motif about halfway through the song, the first half is a dramatic mix of the Shinra inc theme and Jenovas theme WHICH IS SO AWESOME AND CLEVER!!!

the specimen of course was made by hojo, who obviously works for shinra, but also the inclusion of the scale played at the beginning of jenovas theme signal that this isnt just another one of hojos horrible experiments, it implies this is specifically a jenova experiment which definitely influences or at the very least builds up to the following scene were cloud attacks tifa bcuz of jenova/sephiroths influence (i personally with the info we have right now in the re trilogy and my reading of the og game view them as one conjoined being)

anyways i love the clever use of motifs in soundtracks, remake especially does a good job of being creative enough with it that no motif feels too repetitive

[cyberrose2001]

hi hope you're well, a kinda long text coming...

with all the requests FILLED (literally) with joy with optimus, I shall be the one to break it HAHAHA so... can you do like a scenario where the reader and optimus are happy living their lives with the sparklings (imagine triplets!!!) everything is perfect but then........

optimus wakes up from his dream and realizes it all, the perfect family is not real, the reader is not alive, not being able to live with it, he suffers everyday bc of those dreams, he traps himself in this "reality" of his dreams (like that episode fr tfp on Megatron's mind) and isolate himself

hope that's not to sad >:) and if you're comfortable writing this, if not sorry.

Thank you author ❤️❤️❤️

TFP Optimus x human!fem!reader

you're very welcome anon!! this took waaaay too many drafts HAHA but im quite happy with it now, this is such a sad concept and now i just wanna give op a hug :(

I should also mention that I left the details of the sparklings biology unspecified. Whether you prefer them to be cybertronian, human or half-and-half is up to you! <3

Warnings: Angst, SFW

Word count: 1436

“Optimus, honey?” The wonderful voice of his lover called out to him. Closing the front door behind him, Optimus breathes a sigh of relief. Her soft voice calling out his name plays on repeat in his processor. “Is that you? Could you come and help me for a second?”

He had no idea how he got so lucky, to start a family with who he considers the most beautiful specimen in the known universe. Together, they both created three sparklings, all triplets and it was further proof that either Primus or another deity of life had seen the good that Optimus had done and blessed him with both her and sparklings. The day he found out that she was pregnant with them was the first time in his life that he experienced pure joy, the second time was when she gave birth to his little ones and officially became a sire.

With a soft smile, Optimus follows her voice to the playroom of the quaint house he calls home. He is thankful that mass displacement technology exists, allowing him to comfortably live in the house with his family. He observes from the doorway as his sparklings play with stuffed toys and little building blocks, making an absolute mess of the room. He clears his throat and leans against the doorway with folded servos, “I hope you young ones are going to help your mother with cleaning up.”

Three small heads perk up at the voice of their sire, all of them dropping their toys and bouncing over to him. He kneels down and gives his two sons a strong hug, pecking them both on the heads with kisses.

“Daddy!” The last born of the three calls out to him. Optimus chuckles softly as he opens his arms for her, embracing her close to his chassis. Now Optimus is not the one to pick favourites with his sparklings and loves them all equally, but his only daughter was the first one to hug him whenever he came home. She was also the one who took the most interest in his stories of when he was the great leader of the Autobots, constantly begging for her sire to re-tell them as a bedtime story, with the more graphic details left out. It makes the inner archivist within Optimus swell with pride that at least one of his sparklings has taken a liking to the history of his home planet.

“Hello, my sweetspark.” Optimus nuzzles his faceplate to her nose, enjoying the little giggles that erupted from her. He picks her up and places her on his hip, a servo supporting her under her bottom, “Did you have fun today?”

“Yeah! Look what I do!” His toddler babbles as she points to a large tower made out of the small plastic blocks. It wasn’t very impressive by Cybertronian standards of what sparklings can do, but it doesn’t matter to Optimus, he will gush over anything that his kids build or draw in order to expand their creativity.

“Did you build that?” Optimus smiles at her, “How clever of you, honey.”

She nods eagerly, a big grin on her face, “Mommy helped!”

“Did she?” He looks towards his wife who was kneeled on the floor, stomach swollen with the life of another sparkling. She was sorting out the seemingly endless pile of toys that was thrown about on the floor. Optimus can’t help but admire his wifes devotion to their children, playing with them even when heavily pregnant. The incredible and important job of being a mother is something that Optimus has learned and respected during his time on Earth, especially after witnessing it firsthand.

“I did, now could you help me get up off the floor?” She chuckles, a hand rubbing her pregnant stomach.

Optimus carefully steps over the toys to walk over to her. He offers his servo and she graciously took it, pulling her up off the floor. She huffs a little bit and tries to catch her breath, bent knees trying to brace the weight of her unborn child.

“Thank you, love.” She sighs, lightly tracing the servo that still held onto her hand, “You would think I’d learn from my previous pregnancy to not get on the floor.”

Optimus laughs softly, readjusting his daughter on his hip, “It is probably not the wisest decision.”

She laughs, reminiscing the memory of her stuck on the floor while she was pregnant with the triplets, and he can feel himself falling in love with her all over again. She is absolutely glowing, and Optimus can’t help but bask in her natural beauty. Leaning forward, he presses a chaste kiss to her lips, smiling through it as he hears their sparklings protest as most children do when they see their parent’s smooch, “Yucky, Daddy!”

 He pulls away from the kiss and brushes a servo across the tight skin of her stomach, feeling the little kicks of their soon-to-be newborn. Optimus doesn’t want to jinx anything yet, but he prays to Primus that it is another little girl.

She smiles and places her own hand on top of his, sharing the moment together. But Optimus does not notice that her smile faltered for a second.

“Optimus, you know that this can’t last forever.” His wife whispers quietly so that the sparkling he held can’t hear.

Optimus perks his helm up to look at her, confusion plastered on his face, his gentle caresses on her stomach halting for a moment, “What cannot last forever?”

She reaches a soft hand out to caress his faceplates, a small tear threatening to spill down her flushed cheeks. Despite being incredibly confused at his wife’s turn of behaviour, Optimus felt a need to comfort her and returns the gesture to wipe her own tears away.

“It’s not healthy for you… you need to wake up.”

Taking a step back, digits leave her face as he nearly trips on the carpet. The words that just left your lips made his spark sink to the floor. There was no way that Optimus was dreaming, he refused to believe, not when everything that has happened within the last few months felt so real and genuine. As quick as he felt his spark sink, the cosy home that surrounded his family began to crumble and disappear around him, falling into an endless cold void. The weight of his daughter on his hip was no longer there. The softness of his wife’s hand had disappeared. Optimus was left with nothing but the darkness of his empty mind. And at that point, Optimus felt his own optics lubricate and fall down into the void, the last echoes of his wife reaching his audial receptors.

“Optimus…”

“Optimus.”

“Optimus!”

Optics snap open, scanning the ceiling above him. In an instant, he sits up right on the berth below and vents heavily. He looks around carefully at his environment and realises that he is in his berthroom on the Autobot base, it feels lifeless.

“Hey, hey, take it easy.” A gentle yet firm voice reassures and pushes him back onto the berth, “I heard a distress signal from your internal instruments, is everything alright?”

Optimus recognises Ratchet, but the old bots words are drowned out by his processor running on overdrive. His wife, his sparklings, and his unborn little one are no-where to be found. Frantic optics flicker around every inch of the emptiness of his berthroom, hoping and wishing that they would be waiting just outside the room or hiding somewhere, playing that fun earth game called hide-and-seek that he enjoyed playing with his sparklings.

Ratchet notices the distant look in his friend’s optics and places a servo on his shoulder to try and ground him to the present, “Optimus, you’re fine, it seems as if you have just experienced a nightmare.”

His grip on the berth was hard. That was no nightmare. That was his life, a life that has now been taken away from him as a cruel punishment. All Optimus had ever wanted was right there in his grasp. He didn’t care about his friends, and he didn’t care about the Autobot cause anymore.

He just wants his family back.

“It was not.” Optimus whispers out, vocaliser stuttering. He knew Ratchet wouldn’t understand the monumental loss that he had just suffered, but Optimus could not deal with his old friend at this point in time. Just as Ratchet was about to question him, Optimus lets out a pained sob.

“Please…” He held his helm in his servos as lubricant began leaking from his optics once again, “Just leave me be.”

[kyriefae]

The Flux/Series 13 was a super fun series. (fair warning; spoilers ahead)

Am I a fan of the fact we were starved for content for so long just to get 6 episodes and a few specials in like what 3 years? No. But the episodes we DID get were so great!

I could feel the intent to inspire wonder in the world-building of the Whoniverse again. I heard lines purposively written to punch out a few cheap laughs while moving the plot forward. These are things that are inherent to the legacy of Doctor Who. Whimsy, coy humor, and satire.

Where certain plot points had fallen short of expectation, it was clear Chibs had taken at least some of that feedback and applied it to making the 13th series a memorable one.

Also:

Karvanista! Who's a good boy?! 🤗 Wait, hold on, maybe that's too presumptuous. Who am I to judge anyone's moral status on appearance alone? 🤭

Such a fun character with a classic Doctor Who "secret backstory". On a deeper fan appreciation perspective, this series was and still very much is a sandbox for creative innovation.

The side characters we met in these 6 episodes felt so well established and grounded in the narrative. Eustacius Jericho facing his death in a poignantly heroic way, Vinder & Bel's love story, Dan's earnest appreciation of Liverpool (and most importantly history), heck even Claire was worth her salt as someone to revolve the story around.

Was she captivating? Well, we're talking about narrative structure here so *clearing throat; failing to hide obvious blushing* no? I mean, no. She's really just a vessel for the Weeping Angels to have a voice which makes for an interesting plot device but it also sidelines her own independent will in the story. Still, when that's a "weak point", you're doing well!

Also, Yaz was incredible and I felt like we were finally able to grasp at her individual companion status. Prior to the departure of "the fam", she was the prototypical companion choice but we were splitting time with Graham & Ryan. A common fear people had before the series came out was the inclusion of Dan Lewis being an obnoxious and obvious replacement for Graham... but I don't believe his presence in the story had that lasting effect.

In fact, I think of the scenes we had with Yaz, Eustacius, and Dan as being a time for Yaz to shine in particular as a leader. Clever, calm, and concerted in her efforts. Yaz's demeanor is the only reason that facet of the journey was successful. Her relationship with the Doctor was empowering in that way we impact others through positive experiences. She pushed herself to become more motivated as our time with her moved along and we were rewarded with a meaningful degree of success in her arc through this story.

Plus her love for the Doctor felt so real; so fated to be one-sided.

Rose's romantic attachment to 9/10 had the advantage of an entire plot built around her; elevating her importance to the Doctor as a being we came to know, for a time, as Bad Wolf.

With Yaz, she is, in fact, an ordinary human who doesn't get to have some immense cosmically significant role with a title that gets plastered across the whole of the universe for the Doctor to piece together like a puzzle. She is an incredibly smart and capable person; she is also mortal.

Say what have you about Yaz + 13 (and I have my opinions too of them never kissing) but the Doctor keeping a distance from Yaz while acknowledging her feelings was still rather intentional and thematically moving.

You learn you're this being known as "The Timeless Child" and you've lost innumerable lifetimes of memories while beings you encounter ON THE REGULAR are persistently trying to tear the universe like a chew toy for their pleasure? Sorry, love. Maybe attachment to a human isn't a wise choice after all...

It's a decision made in a moment and a moment is all Yaz & the Doctor have. It adds levels to the tragedy of a romance with such a being that can travel all of time and space.

"All of time and space but no room for me?"

-a line I may have written for Yaz before it was all over

🥹

Maybe I'll write some fan fiction one day around The Flux. Around 13 & Yaz. Maybe something with Karvanista & a version of the Doctor forgotten to time.

Anywho, I love this show. I love it for all it's many eras. I love it for many different reasons. I truly believe value can be had in finding those aspects of enjoyment even when one Doctor or one era speaks more to us individually because what does the opposite hold? What does boundless criticism of "the writing" ever truly amount to?

The internet is teeming with "expert opinions" on how Doctor Who should have been made after every new season but gods is it the rarest thing to find people who choose to love it for everything it has already been and everything it can always continue to be...

That's all from me for now, my lovelies. 💞 Take care, get a shift on, and snack on something that brings you a little joy. 🍪 Kisses.

[smytherines]

do you have any hcs for precanon curtwen? how they got together, what they were like etc

Oh for sure I do!

I think they were probably paired up together for missions over the span of a couple of years, and had all this romantic & sexual tension that they convinced themselves was all in their heads, before they actually got together. They had long enough to build a friendship, a partnership, and they're both afraid enough of the consequences (both personally and professionally) that they don't want to even consider making a move.

I always imagine it as something goes wrong on a mission, someone gets hurt, or maybe they have a spectacular success and are high on adrenaline, and Curt impulsively kisses Owen because hey, this guy is attractive and Curt has a crush. Owen is just kinda stunned by it, and Curt pulls away like "oh shit he's gonna kill me," but really Owen has been infatuated with Curt for ages and just assumed Curt wasn't interested.

I could see Owen having an inkling that Curt is into men, but assuming that if someone as cocky and confident as Curt hasn't made a move, it must mean he isn't interested. So Owen has just been pathetically pining for him. I think Curt has been pining too, but because he just kind of assumes in that young closeted queer way that nobody else is "sick" like him, that confiding in anyone will get him in trouble. And in my headcanon, Owen is bisexual, so perhaps he's had affairs with women and Curt assumes that means he isn't interested in men.

Anyways, I love thinking about them in a relationship, even though it breaks my heart. Because realistically Curt and Owen probably only saw each other a handful of times per year, so everything they manage to build together is based on these little stolen moments. I think they start casually hooking up, killing time on missions, but it very quickly becomes something more. It almost has to. You don't get a lot of time to date as a spy, and even less as a gay spy. So even just the act of repeatedly hooking up by default sorta makes them the most important relationship in each other's lives- especially because they were such good friends first.

I personally don't think pre-fall curtwen were as toxic as a lot of people think. I don't really see any evidence of that in A1P1. I mean they both seem to be little freaks who get off on danger and violence, and I'm sure constant distance and secrecy and danger took their toll, but for me A1P1 shows two men who love and respect each other, even if they bicker and mess with each other.

One thought I keep coming back to is that they sneak off for movie dates, mostly because I love classic films and get really into imagining them reacting to the many gay subtext films of the early 50s. I think they sit in the darkest part of the theater and only their legs are touching, and maybe if there's nobody there one of them will put his hand on the other's thigh and it's almost a real date.

I think they'll go to bars- not underground gay bars specifically, but bars where a lot of queer people just happen to congregate, and sit at a booth or a table, and drink together and find little ways to be discreetly affectionate.

I think Curt thinks it's adorable that Owen is a kind of a nerd, and tries his best to pay attention when Owen goes on a ramble or a rant about boring tech stuff (but gets bored and starts trying to make out with him instead). I think Owen is fascinated with how Curt's mind works, how he's seemingly so chaotic and disorganized, but in a crisis he is absolutely cool and calm and comes up with clever, creative solutions for problems.

I think they loved each other, they knew each other so well that one could barely finish a sentence before the other picked it up. I think they were a bit codependent, and the distance started to gnaw away at them towards the end, but they were each other's favorite person in the world. They trusted each other more than anyone else on Earth. They missed each other desperately, but tried their best to put on a brave face every time they had to part. I think they sent each other coded love notes and presents and found excuses to request each other on missions. I think some of their pillow talk included imagining little scenarios where they could run off together and never have to be apart again, and it starts as a fun thing but gradually gets sadder and sadder for them as they realize how impossible that would be.

(That's all I have time for right now but I might pick this back up later)

[polaroid-petals]

🌿 Tangled in Dreams of Light and Shadow — Masterpost

This is a masterpost for my fics, artwork, and ideas in this verse. It will regularly be updated with artwork and new information. Last updated on the 1st of July 2024.

Stranger merely exists as a concept. A functional metaphor for the human conscience. A figment of the imagination, an allegory, a dream—call it what you will, he is not real. Since the day Blackspace spat him out as a clever visualisation of the Dreamer’s guilt, he has known more than anything that he is but a theoretical concept devised with a single goal. An existence he scarcely questions, for it is not within his nature to stray from his purpose. With Omori defeated, Basil is assigned to tending Headspace as its gardener groundskeeper. The Dreamer is rebuilding his dream to be more reflective of reality without being the escape it was meant to be. His purpose was met and the boy he serves may start his journey towards recovery, but when Stranger finds himself not only alive, but banished to the dark realm he was born from, he can’t help but wonder. Why did he persist? Why has the Dreamer allowed him to stay even after his work is done? And if he is nothing more than a theoretical concept, then why can he think? Why can he feel? Hurt? Love? What is he?

---

Tangled in Dreams of Light and Shadow is a Stranger-centric exploration of Omori's good ending, and what happens to headspace and its denizens after the final fight with Omori is over. 

Sunny’s creativity is far too pivotal to his identity to simply abandon the fantasy world he has been building for the past four years. Confession or not, his trauma cannot simply vanish overnight, and so neither will the two guides who have brought him to this point in his life. Not only does Omori persist after that final duet, but as a representation of Sunny's conscience and his still-to-be-resolved guilt, so does Stranger. And inexplicably, whenever the two are asleep at the same time, Basil's real-world consciousness seems to join Sunny's in his headspace dreams.

Central stands the philosophical question of what it means to exist, especially when one’s existence is intrinsically subjected to another’s fickle fantasy and nothing about one’s life is real—or should be real in the first place.

---

🌿 Characters

This story focuses on Stranger, Sunny, Omori, and Basil.

✷ Stranger

The dark star. The forgotten polaris. The admission of guilt, grievance, and conscience.

No creature on earth has had its path in life carved out more clearly than Stranger. Nameless and faceless, sculpted in approximation of someone who matters—yet never graced to be the one who does. When he finally achieves what he was made to do, the promised end to his miserable theoretical existence is ripped from his weary hands. Even when his final task as a jailer presents itself to him, he finds misery over success. An eternal anomaly, it’s a mystery why anything would ever be so cruel to allow him his existence, yet he persists. Even through exile. Even through death.

No man could ever hope to kill his conscience, but what difference does it make if it lies forgotten in nightmares with a reminder of what it once failed to do? Tormented by questions of purpose and fate, the bitter sting of being neglected and abandoned by his dearest Dreamer bites almost as venomously as the knowledge that he has regressed to his old ways that created the very being he now represses.

One day—if he dares uphold foolish optimism—the Dreamer might remember that there still lives an entity within the darkest recesses of his mind and offer an answer to the existential mystery of Stranger’s sapient nature. 

And if not, Stranger may have to reclaim his role as an unwanted guest in this sickeningly perfect dream.

☼ Sunny

The Dreamer. The wayward lamb. The eternal sun that has blown life into this flourishing world.

Sunny may have forgiven himself and faced the truth, but that doesn't mean that he stops dreaming. All the work that was put into headspace, all these colourful characters and whimsical worlds—he simply can't abandon such a formative creative project, even if it is rooted in a foul darkness. The emotional damage would far outweigh any benefit.

As he navigates his new life in the city, his dreams remain a sanctuary for him to take refuge in. Headspace is disjointed, but his renewed interactions with his friends and his endeavours in therapy help make way for a more mature dream that means to explore his psyche rather than suppress it.

Like he has in the past, blackspace and its denizens were pushed out of headspace, this time not to suppress but to organise for cleanup "when he is ready". He has not been ready for some time, and people are starting to notice. If he wants to get better and avoid falling back into old habits, he will have to unchain his nightmares eventually and find a way to live with them in harmony.

It's a question of whether he's prepared to continue facing himself and learning during this arduous journey.

☾ Omori

The misguiding shepherd. The domineering puppet. The guardian who broke his vow to attain his god-given goal.

Omori was once meant to be a protector—and when he carried out his role with so much precision that it nearly ended his ward, he was instead vanquished and removed from his precious Dreamer’s vicinity. But as Sunny’s trauma cannot vanish overnight, neither could Omori, no matter how deep the coils of the nightmare they tangle him up into may be.

Just as the Dreamer will always dream, Omori will always find his way back to him, regardless of how well he is imprisoned. He does not meet the scorn he expects and is instead extended a hand. In this new world, separate from the Dreamer yet able to follow in his footsteps, Omori is more than a little lost. After having spent so long constantly wary, tasked with maintaining and repairing a volatile dream under constant attack by monsters, this second chance in the form of retirement has him more on edge than it soothes him.

Though he was once the embodiment of a child’s trauma, his physique seems to have begun to change as the Dreamer works through his issues. Stunted as he may be compared to his original, he appears older and wiser with each passing day. He maintains that the Dreamer made a mistake and that he is in grave danger, but everything he learns about his new life seems to contradict his worldview. He is no longer the carapace of that scared little kid who needed someone to keep him safe, now his own person. Worse, he seems weaker, burdened with the harrowing effects of his own post-trauma and his newfound human emotions that torment him every chance they get.

A warden cannot operate without an endangered ward, so Omori may seek out new threats elsewhere when none present themselves.

☘︎ Basil

The flower boy. The tender gardener. The one whose eyes once glowed an eerie red.

From the moment he guided Sunny home and gave him his blessing to tell their friends the truth, it was evident that his bond with his best friend ran deeper than was apparent on the surface. Their joined coma may have been the first time they dreamed together, but it would be far from the last. More and more frequently, Basil finds himself inhabiting a colourful scape when he goes to sleep, and no one can quite explain why or how.

That hasn’t gotten him out of the bad spot he’s been left at since he gouged out Sunny’s eye and drove his shears into his abdomen. Having faced not only the fallout of Mari’s death, but also the aftermath of Sunny’s confession head-on, it will take time for him to come to terms with his actions. Unlike Sunny, he hasn’t managed to forgive himself, and the journey towards accepting his past may be tough. He’s older and wiser now as he navigates his trauma and recovery with Sunny, but that doesn’t change how much he has suffered during those four years.

Still, as the one who chose reality over fantasy, Basil has been given a curative role in headspace. He tends to Sunny’s dream, ensuring that he can’t use it for the wrong purposes again and that he uses it to support his life in the waking world, not avoid it. He has met some odd versions of people he knows, including his own, and this dreamscape is quite puzzling, if not downright terrifying—but he must have been given this opportunity for a reason.

If he supports his friend on his journey towards recovery, maybe that can serve as the atonement he needs to finally redeem himself.

---

🌿 Relationships

All of the main four have ties to the others, be they platonic, romantic, or the blazing embers of hostility from whose cinders may yet flourish new bonds. 

The relationship between Sunny and Stranger as creator and creation stands central. The main romantic relationships are Nightshade (Stranger/Omori) and to a lesser degree Sunflower (Sunny/Basil).

This section will be gradually updated as each dynamic gets its art and story

Omori & Stranger

Linked fic — Brittle

To an outsider, one might consider that there is very little love between Omori and Stranger. Gestures and words that mimic love, perhaps, but no actual love. 

Whether what they have is sane or lovely matters very little to either. Despite having once been adversaries, Stranger and Omori are two sides of the same coin, and they were always going to drift together eventually. Even if they still clash frequently. Even if their relationship is more than volatile.

They may not share a traditional relationship, but they treasure what is there. It matters very little how others judge their bond.

Stranger → Omori

Stranger has never hated Omori. He’s been frustrated by him, and he has on many occasions wanted to wring his neck and torment him until he’d let go of the Dreamer. He has faced him as a vessel and eventually an antagonist, yes, but within that complex matrix of feelings he holds for him, hatred has never been one. 

The truth is that Stranger quite adores Omori and can’t help but to dote on him, no matter how often his efforts get rejected.

It has never been Stranger’s purpose to hold feelings or opinions, yet Omori was the first to make him understand that perhaps he came with a defect. His grievances, his fury at the Dreamer, and his desire to see him rise above his weaknesses only ever served to attain his goal. But not what he feels for Omori. It seems to serve no purpose, and yet his soft spot for Omori has been visible from day one.

Stranger’s intrinsic love for the Dreamer seems to have carried over to Omori, but their unique bond’s effect is that Stranger has fallen for him despite all the hard-to-love parts of Omori. And in the end, Stranger is his own person. He has chosen to embrace these feelings as his own, not some disembodied copy foreign to himself.

Their relationship is rocky, in part due to Omori’s purpose, in part due to their past, but being given another chance in headspace has offered them the room to grow closer. You could even say that Stranger is happy with Omori.

Omori → Stranger

To say that Omori hates Stranger is an understatement. To say that Omori loves Stranger is an equal understatement.

Stranger is a conundrum that frustrates Omori. He doesn’t make sense. Omori’s feelings about him don’t make sense. One moment he’s smug that he’s left behind in blackspace, the next he’s crawling through nightmare guck because he’s worried about him. When did he become so weak?

Maybe it has to do with his shifting age, or maybe he deals with Stranger differently now that the threat is gone. Whatever happened, Omori isn't so sure if he's happy with this change.

But he can’t deny that when he lets Stranger in, his life is better. Despite having once been staunch enemies and Stranger having led the Dreamer to his doom, Omori can’t deny that the outcome of closing the distance between them isn’t so bad. So long as Stranger keeps the affection that Omori is very well entitled to coming.

Might still claw out Stranger’s eyes.

---

🌿 Links

AO3 series

Brittle (Omori & Stranger)

[welcometololaland]

hello love, R for the alphabet writer asks pretty please? 💖

rae 💜

using this ask to apologise in advance to everyone and anyone but i really felt like doing an ask game so here i am, on your dash.

R: Which writers (fanfic or otherwise) do you consider the biggest influence on you and your writing?

typically, my sources of inspiration include: things i overhear on the train in the morning, internet memes and rogue things that happen to me that i swear would ONLY happen to me. but although i take inspiration from many sources, influence is a different question?

when i started writing fic again, i was deep in the 2021 rwrb obsession and i think my writing was heavily influenced by the work i was literally INHALING at that time.

i think first and foremost i took so much inspiration from @clottedcreamfudge. I mean we all know CCF has depth, but the slightly ridiculous edge to some of her fics felt so on brand for me, and i think reading a lot of the CCF archive taught me to lean into that. the witty dialogue, the pacing, the clever use of side characters to build the story - nailing that is my writing dream.

i feel very inspired when i read any @indomitable-love work because the amount of care and precision written into basically every line of siobhan's fic is incredible. reading ATG was a masterclass in how to take characterisation to another level, and how to build an emotional arc that is hard hitting and makes sense. i had so many 'oh, that really ticked all the emotional boxes for me' moments in that fic. it is truly a treasure.

as we know, i didn't write smut pre-2021. i truly didn't even READ smut. who knows why? anyway i was so convinced i could never write it, UNTIL i read the great works of our lord and saviour aka. you aka. Ms. Rae Rmd-writes Railmedaddy. The ficspiration of the neighbours fic took me out and made me realise like hey...there is actually a lot of skill to this and maybe i could? learn it? and i'm still on that learning journey but i think the think about your E rated scenes is that you weave so much emotion into them - there's a purpose to every smut scene, even if it's a PWP it's driving characterisation in some way. which makes it all very intentional. i find that very inspiring.

i also have to credit @everwitch-magiks for inspiring me every day to be more intentional with my word choice and edit better and WRITE LESS because the amount of stuff evie can pack into a 3k fic is honestly out of this world. but long before i became a ridiculous overwriter, i have been inspired by evie's characterisation (her alex always sounds so perfect to me, in particular) AND her creativity. there are canon fics and then she goes and writes a space AU and also a figure skating AU and magical realism and hashtag soulmates aka. the most beautifully meta thing ever, and a whole fic based around AITA? she has breadth and it makes me kind of mad.

ANYWAY. there are many more but i've already gone on for too long! thank you to everyone who creates stuff for me to read, i know i'm picking up things all the time, and it wouldn't happen if people weren't so damn talented 💜

Fic Writer Ask Game

[agentnico]

Tetris (2023) Review

Not going to lie, but using “The Final Countdown” as a song for your movie trailer immediately means the marketing team from Apple TV+ deserve a raise! That song slaps!!

Plot: Henk Rogers discovers Tetris in 1988, and then risks everything by travelling to the Soviet Union, where he joins forces with inventor Alexey Pajitnov to bring the game to the masses.

You hear a movie titled Tetris is coming out and one has to wonder if we have another Emoji Movie on our hands, where we’ll get little tetra shaped characters goofing about in some animated mathematics world trying to force an unfunny joke upon our poor heads. Then we get a random celebrity cameo like Orlando Bloom voicing an L-tetromino and making a joke that his character’s full name is Legolas. Actually, wouldn’t mind seeing that last part, just saying. Regardless, Tetris isn’t actually some ridiculous animated affair based on a pop culture phenomenon, but instead is the backstory for how the game was brought to the world masses. So no talking tetrominos, but instead we have ourselves a legal drama.

Look, before you all shut your eyes away upon the news of another legal drama, this movie is actually surprisingly engaging and the story of the battle for the licence of worldwide distribution of this little game is filled with twists and turns, as well as an element of spy espionage, due to the original game owners being Soviet Russia. That’s right, there’s an element of the Cold War in these proceedings, with Henk Rogers and others trying to persuade the Russians to sell them the rights, however as known the Russians don’t trust anyone. Speaking of the Russians, the communist backdrop is handled really well, with this idea that when in Moscow you’re always being watched, as well as digging into the corruption of the Soviet regime. Even Gorbachev shows up at one point, thought that element I imagine didn’t happen in real life and was more so added to up the ante of this film. 

Speaking of upping the ante, even though many scenes revolve around characters sitting in rooms discussing legal stuff, the movie also involves car chases. That’s right, the writers definitely added a bit of a fictitious element to this story to make it more exciting for the casual viewer. I enjoyed that. It made this movie stand out more from others of its genre, and of the said car chase as well as other sequences, there are visual moments where the screen turns into this very early shonky computer graphic pixelated look, which I found to be quite the clever little gimmick. This backed up with an 80s techno soundtrack as well as various renditions on the classic Tetris theme made for an overall exciting watch.

Taron Egerton as always is super likeable and charming as Henk Rogers, in some ways channelling a young Gary Oldman, although maybe its just the Jim Gordon stache. The character of Rogers himself is the typical underdog one loves to root for. He’s the reckless entrepreneur who bets his entire house and life on this one game that he believes has the power to become something massive. He’s described by one of the other characters as “stupid but honest”, as Egerton leans into that heavily. His friendship bond he builds with the Tetris game creator Alexey Pajitnov (played by Russian actor Nikita Efremov in a very endearing way) is also really delightful, and a scene where the two of them go to a Soviet nightclub is a highlight. Roger Allam and Igor Grabuzov relish their villainous roles, and Toby Jones pops in doing some kind of European accent, though hard to pinpoint exactly which one.

Overall I really enjoyed Tetris, and was surprised at how the creative team managed to make this story as engaging as it is. Also naturally there is an element of nostalgia, as like many back in the day as a kid I used to enjoy rinsing Tetris. I even had a little handheld console that was designed specifically for Tetris. It wasn’t the branded stuff like the GameBoy (though I had that too for Zelda and such); it was literally this little Tetris console my dad got me in Russia, and that was the beginning of my screen addiction, which later turned into my smartphone....dark times. Regardless, a solid watch and currently my favourite film so far this year, though that’s not a difficult feat seeing as thus far this year’s movie releases have been really average. I look forward to the inevitable Rock, Paper, Scissors movie!

Overall score: 7/10

[bandhyukoh]

[Eastern Standard Times] Hyukoh and Sunset Rollercoaster: The Indie Collaboration of the Year

This interview belongs to Eastern Standard Times. December 5, 2024. By Andrew Yee.

Eastern Standard Times: How would you introduce yourself now? What is the most important thing to know about who you are today?

Kuo: I'll introduce myself as a lead singer, guitarist and music producer from Sunset Rollercoaster and the owner of my label Sunset Music.

OHHYUK: I'm OHHYUK from HYUKOH and I play guitar, sing, and I am also the producer for HYUKOH. While he (Kuo) owns his own label, I’m on the label DooRooDooRoo and I mainly focus on the creatives.

Eastern Standard Times: What were your first impressions of each other?

Kuo: Shy, but still brave. He does things. Just in a shy way.

OHHYUK: Very clever and talented, and very smart. When I first met him, I immediately realized he’s something really different, and he does his job very well.

Eastern Standard Times: Both group’s last releases were in 2020. Why did this feel like the right comeback project?

Kuo: It was really exciting. From the beginning, we didn't expect that we were going to do such a big project. 

We just thought we were going to just make some music, maybe two songs, three songs, a small special EP. But slowly the ambitions started growing during the process.

OHHYUK: I remember from 2017 to 2018, suddenly there were so many collaborations happening. I wanted to collaborate with the other musicians, but I didn’t want to make just one single or one track, and when I asked him (Kuo) to make an album, he agreed. I think it’s a very interesting collaboration, and was something I was waiting for.

Eastern Standard Times: Did you feel nervous about releasing music again?

OHHYUK: Are you nervous?

Kuo: No, not really.

OHHYUK: Yeah, me too. 

Eastern Standard Times: What are your memories of the first songwriting camp at Music Village 1939 in Gapyeong?

OHHYUK: Uh, the food was… bad.

Kuo: It's a small town. And I think we didn’t expect we were going to have really good food over there, but in the end, we found that we were eating the same food over and over again during the whole week. But I don't care about the food because we somehow still made really good music. So even though the food was bad, I think it was still worth it.

Eastern Standard Times: What is the process like creating music with ten different musicians? Did you approach every song in the same way?

Kuo: We created four songs in our jamming sessions in Gapyeong. And the other eight songs we created on the internet, file swapping. We also went to a friend's house, and he had tons of synthesizers set up, so OH and I just jammed over there and finished the arrangement of 'Antenna' (also listed as 'Aaaannnnteeeeennnaaaaaa'). I would say we had a lot of different approaches to making the album. 

Eastern Standard Times: How did traveling to Seoul and Jeju Island influence the songwriting process?

Kuo: When we went to Jeju Island, the album was almost done actually. We somehow agreed to make one more song over there, but we still don't know what to do with it yet. 

OHHYUK: The trip was actually a vacation. It was snowing, so we were stuck in the Airbnb, but there was a pool, and nobody was swimming. So we just used the pool as a reverb hole, and we were recording in the swimming pool and some other rooms. It was really fun.

Eastern Standard Times: What does ‘AAA’ mean to each of you?

OHHYUK: Something good.

Kuo: Something reliable, trustworthy. Your time is guaranteed.

Even though English is not our native language, somehow we still make music in English. We love the way we approached it and tried to build a space for all our written lyrics. We tried to describe a situation so it isn’t a narrative and everybody can project their own idea about the music or the album. 

I think AAA has multiple meanings and everybody can put their own idea into it. That’s how we interact with people. 

Eastern Standard Times: During an interview in 2020, Kuo talked about music being its own language that connects people. Why does this idea resonate so much with both of you?

OHHYUK: Because we are from different cultural backgrounds, even though I can speak Mandarin, we still have little differences. But music is really simple. If you play something, then you know whether it’s good or bad. I think this kind of approach makes everything easier. 

Kuo: I think music is a language for sure. It‘s even built into our genes or animal instincts; when you hear something, you will get emotional feedback from it. So it's a certain kind of communication, subconsciously, I would say. So that's why I think everybody has this ability to communicate, even through music or frequencies.

And I think that that's why we have this bond to make music, I think our frequencies somehow match together.

Eastern Standard Times: How are Australian audiences different from other crowds?

Kuo: We’ve been to Australia before. And I think in Asia, our fans are usually more quiet, but every time we go to Western countries, especially Australia, people get more excited. Australia is kind of special because it's mixed with Western countries and Asian countries, but I can tell people get more excited.

I think people move their bodies with the music more. In Taiwan, people just sit there and it feels like they're judging us. They're happy inside, exploding inside, but the way they enjoy the show is by staring at us and judging us, and that’s how it is. 

Eastern Standard Times: Where would you love to perform next?

Kuo: Antarctica. Play to some whales.

OHHYUK: Actually, India.

Kuo: Oh yes, he wants to go to India.

OHHYUK: I’ve never been, so I really want to have a show in India.

Eastern Standard Times: What’s something we don’t know about each of you?

Kuo: My and OH’s birthday is only one day different. Mine’s October 6th.

OHHYUK: And mine’s October 5th.

[tomyo]

Coming back around to my opinions on the animation now that DandaDan's anime is finally beyond what I initially saw.; I can't fully tell what it was that had upset me with the compositing initially because the problem has mostly gone away. It could be they updated the episodes after the theater release, it could be that the saved the budget for later episodes and ep1 being lackluster affected the feeling overall, or it could be I focused on the wrong things.

I definitely think no matter what airing a tv animation in a theater created a bad experience since the audio mixing and line work. I will also say if they had aired episode 4 in theaters, I probably would've felt a lot better after the experience.

The backgrounds got better for me but the character design can still be a little iffy, not as odd as Tallkarun but I still miss the manga's boxier features. Still grateful the fulfilled the potential of Okarun's hairstyle.

If anything, the most substantial aspect is the creativity of the cuts in this episode. When I was in the theater, they showed an interview segment in which the director expressed being a composition otaku and this really really really felt like that was sleeping through here. I feel really conflicted?? I think the first major one is the zoom to the eyes for memory to which I both like and kind of wish was just a normal cut. It's a very clever but I think I always built the tunnel scene in my head as a very slow creepy horror; a little darker shadows and more tension that the zoom can kind of destroy. It especially hits hard because Turbo granny counting and Momo's capture are some of my favourite early panels. I do think Okarun's eye cut works a lot nicer though because the jump to a close up if his eyes isn't as dramatic. The helicopter legs while very saru-esque I think was the best result one could expect from that plot point and I love the details they added in like Okarun grabbing for Momo to brace her and the two taking milliseconds to wordlessly get into piggyback mode again. On the opposite hand I HATE the running through town cut. Having them run throughout the town in some wide still cuts could of added some world building character and by doing the weird cg first person with the shadow people only made me feel more like there were corners cut. To add to it they had that really effective shot of them starting in the foreground before running further off only to be stopped by the crab. Now imagine, several cuts of them running through the street with no issue only to have the crab come in on the third or fourth cut? It's like taking the wrong turn in a maze or someone you thought you got away from shouting Boo! From behind you. But I'm guessing the whole point of it was to save on budget for the all out moment which actually fleshes out that part extremely well and helps build up an exciting finish. The final cut change is catching the train, it's actually a smart cut of them flying away when Momo grabs it but admittedly my feral momokarun brain misses the close up of her holding him.

The final part is how they changed plot points??? For some reason??? Nothing major but I noticed they took out the part where they notice the girl's faces on the back in exchange for a set up shot to Momo's train gambit. It's kinda an FMA situation where you still get to the same point in the end but the choice reframes how you feel about it. As you can guess I kind of prefer the manga version mostly because I think it adds to feeling the same surprise as turbo granny felt from it but in terms of good film direction the later makes more sense. There's a lot of little things like that that are give and take, like the designs I keep harping on. On one hand, I think they made Okarun look like a more competent design but the side effect is he looks too cool for the loser of a guy he's meant to feel like (no hunch, slimmer and less baby faced, fringe creating a more conventionally Shonen protag appearance). I think that's the same thing in general I feel complaint over, that to some extent Science Saru packaged the series into a cooler Shonen appearance when imo the manga at points conveyed a slower more contemplative pace (I think a lot about DDD's face close ups and how they feel out of a 90s romance like To Heart or Kare Kano). Sometimes it can feel like the desire to express DandaDan's quirkiness sadly undercuts the quieter moments. The sayonara scene though held up pretty well despite me wishing for a little more pause and an extra cut of Momo (the cut to black tho, 🤌)

Some final final praises; I like how goofy Snake Granny moved, again big praise to the cute extra bit with Okarun protecting Momo, In general Okarun's voice has been perfect and really captures the spretrum of cool Shonen dude to petulant child having a tantrum, it was exciting to finally hear Momo-chan and the first use even almost sounded like a -tan imo, and the little added scene of being scolded by the police was a thoughtful touch.

[cloth0]

I'm writing an AndyxOscar fanfiction.

The adorable dorks have monopolized my mental abilities like it hasn't happen with any ship in YEARS, and I had to find an outlet of some kind. I didn't really want to promote it, first because it's all really messy at this stage, and secondly because sadly I have a track record of abandoning creative projects left and right, and it would be really depressing if this is yet another one.

But lately I had one big-brain* moment, and I had to share.

It's about the moment when Andy's surgery scar comes up for the first time - because in an AndyxOscar fanfic you need a poignant moment about that - I mean, c'mon, a scar from an actual heart surgery? How can you not use that? (sry Ed)

At this time, they're just chatting in a cafè, and Andy mentions he had a surgery at some point when he was little, so he had to stay in the hospital, ofc in a private room, which was lonely and sad as heck, etctec. But Oscar he's a curious old lady.

Oscar tapped gently on his cup for a moment. “Can I ask you something?” he inquired tentatively. “It’s personal, you really don’t have to answer if you don’t want to...”

The other took a sip of his tea, smacking his lips. “Sure, what’s up?”

“What was the surgery for?”

“Ah, that.” The dry interjection immediately made Oscar regret his improper curiosity (yes, it’s Andy, the definition of oversharing, but how belittling is it to think that the man wouldn’t want some privacy on such a delicate matter? Especially from a coworker. Shame on you, Oscar Martinez, you old snoop). Andy put his cup down, slightly shaking his head. “Dick too big,” he declared gravely.

Oscar risked choking on his coffee.

“Tragic, really,” he continued, fighting a mischievous smile, clearly very pleased with the reaction in front of him. “They couldn’t do anything.” 

“Aaaand, just like that, the moment was gone,” Oscar managed to sentence between the last coughs.

“I still struggle with that condition to this day.”

Oscar raised an amused eyebrow. “How old are you again?”

“You’re laughing, so, probably, same age as you.”

Yup, I felt really clever about this. Really proud.

I just really love this kind of scenes, where they're not really flirting, just building up this nice and warm friendship, but also there is a tiny little bit of flirting , y'know? Like, "Kevin would giggle" kind of flirting (which is def in my top 3 flirting kinds).

*my brain is not very smart tho

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: “Breaking Ranks”

Ezra acquires some friends and Imperial disguise gear, let’s jump right in.

This show is so pretty sometimes.

The Imperial Dome and the factories look almost like a blight on the scenery in this shot; they look like they’re constructed of completely different materials and they’re distinctly obvious even under the same light.  It’s really quite a lovely use of light/dark color balance.

And pan down for our introduction to the cadet training academy, which as you can see is a completely different building from the Imperial Dome, fandom.

*grumbles*

In distinct and clear contrast to bright homey colors of the Ghost, the Imperial facility is of course clinical, colorless, and sterile, yet another example of the Empire’s austere authoritarian aesthetic.

The only splash of color anywhere are the helmets of our four named cadets.  (And honestly most of that is probably just Doylistically so that we can tell who’s who when they’re moving around the obstacle course.)  Everyone else is faceless and indistinguishable.  Ezra’s sigil is a heroic red, marking him subtly in Rebel Alliance colors.  Oleg’s is duplicitous green (also symbolizing his apparent ambition and avarice), Jai’s is calm blue and Zare’s is clever/creative yellow.

Ngl, hearing Dante Basco’s voice always throws me, my brain hears Zuko and it is super distracting.

Love how Ezra can’t resist a chance to be cheeky lol.

Aresko and Grint making note of Ezra’s uncanny skill and marking him for suspicion AKA Example #45 of the Empire’s relentless persecution of Force Sensitives.  If you’re just a little bit too good at what you do you get pulled aside and assessed for midichlorians and Force potential.  In Legends EU they tested Wedge like five or six times because they refused to believe he was just that skilled lol.

Ahh the camaraderie of students stuck in a horrible school together. <3

Chopper’s Imperial paintjob is a bit more rudimentary and crude this first time.

Kanan having very understandable apprehensions about putting his barely-trained padawan in the midst of a bunch of Imperials.  Don’t think about the anxiety this poor man is having, recalling all his early years of hiding and suppressing and being on the run, looking out for enemies on every side and never knowing who he could trust, and now projecting all of that into his parental worry over Ezra. :)

Kallus barely paying attention to Cadet!Ezra lol.

There hasn’t been much to say about the music thus far, it’s all unique to these scenes, but there’s a bit here where Ezra’s infiltrating the office that’s reminiscent, in instrument choice note progression, of cues used during the Death Star bits in A New Hope.

So we’re agreed that the kyber crystal shipment that Kanan and Hera are trying to stop was 100% going towards the Death Star, right?

Early fandom was pretty certain that the “five year plan” later mentioned this season was leading up to a Death Star reveal and, to be fair, a lot of kyber and doonium they were mining from Lothal was being used in the Death Star project, but no one actually guessed that the Empire’s interest in Lothal was a tad more personal and unique.  (Thrawn’s pet TIE Defenders and the World Between Worlds.)

Kind of a shame they relegated the continuation/conclusion to Dhara’s story to tie-in materials, it would have made a good plot arc in the show proper, especially given that the Force Sensitive children in Season Two were likely being kidnapped for the same endgoal: Project Harvester, one of Palpatine’s many efforts to subdue and control and “manage” free-range Children of the Force.

It was one of the tasks he gave the Inquisitorius, focusing more on capturing and recruiting new baby Force Sensitives rather than hunting down Order 66 survivors.  It’s quite possible that children captured under Project Harvester eventually get drafted into the Inquisitorius but it’s also hinted that they’re experimented on or meant to become some kind of telepathic spy network for Palpatine.

In any case, not a pleasant outcome.

*ALLY ACQUIRED*

Ezra probably wasn’t a stranger to having to backstab “friends” as a street orphan but he’s definitely not enjoying it.

The ruthless hyper-competitive Social Darwinism of the Empire evident in how Aresko encourages the backstabbing here.

Zare playing the part of confused low-level peon that no one tells anything perfectly here, lol.

And Ezra’s trusting enough that he openly uses the Force in front of him.

Zare’s little astonished double-take with his eyes ha ha.

I don’t think they ever confirmed whether or not Jai was actually Force Sensitive, or just talented enough to trip suspicion.  Either way, still probably a good thing Ezra decided to stay to extract him.

(It’s six episodes in and Ezra’s selfless Jedi instincts are already growing, aaaah character development!)

Sabine totally digs Ezra’s hero complex.

Another small note about Ezra’s character development: He now has confidence that they’ll come back for him. :)

Kanan having a small freakout when he hears Ezra didn’t get extracted. <333

Am I the only one who headcanons that Jai’s mom had him a little young?  I dunno, I just kinda get Impoverished Single Mother vibes, maybe that’s why Jai was eager to rank up, even when he heard about the Inquisitor.

Ahhhh one of the classic themes at last!

Ezra jumping in to take the stun shot for Jai, making up for knocking him off last time. :)

The separate sequences are tightly intercut here, great editing work.

Lol the boys sound a little bit shrill here.

The kyber explosion is beautiful.

For the sharp-eyed, the Phantom can dock both forward and backwards.  Kanan parks it nose in into the socket this time.

Rebel Alliance fanfare right here.  And Ezra’s theme once we cut back to him.

SHUT UP AND LET ME HAVE THIS, IT’S CUTE.

Lol Zeb pulling up the speeder and filling it up with kids like it’s a mom van.

Grand looking piiiiiiiiised ha ha.

The warm lighting in this last scene here is lovely, underscores the heartwarming little moment here between Kanan and Ezra nicely.

So the best part of this episode is definitely the fact that we’re already seeing character growth for Ezra, and to a lesser extent Kanan.  Aresko and Grint get a couple humanizing moments that make their eventual offing even more shocking, we befriend a couple allies that come into play later, get glimpses of how the Empire propagandizes their youth, and the first hints of the Empire’s nefarious behind the scenes machinations start bubbling towards the surface.

A solid episode, if relatively low-stakes.  I don’t think I ever quite worried that Ezra would be caught this round (unlike the absolute stressfest that was “An Inside Man” and “Through Imperial Eyes”) but it was still engaging to watch him infiltrate enemy territory and pull a few friends out with him.

It’s the girls’ turn tomorrow. :)