#acab except (some) fictional ones

[lorata]

ok i was flippant yesterday bc i had been working outside in a heatwave all day and was tired but i'm still stuck on this. i'm not discoursing on the hunger games blog i promise but like. ok. professions are not ontologically evil. that's too easy. it's systems of oppression and the choices made by people in those professions and the ease with which said systems automate those choices.

acab doesn't mean that becoming a peacekeeper (cop) automatically strips every bit of good from you, it doesn't mean that you have now become an Evil Human and are irredeemable, it means you have chosen a profession that has, within the system you exist in, itself chosen to align with systems of oppression and power, and that your actions now feed into those systems no matter how good your intentions might be. hence -- no good cops because the only good ones are dead or burned out trying to 'be different' and left. it's not because becoming a cop you stepped through a doorway and the good inside you was magically burned away in some arcane ritual

people like it to be easy, they want evil to be something inherent and easy to point to but it's not! it's choices, it's always choices. in fiction especially but i hate to tell you it's in real life as well. someone is choosing to do that. they can also choose to stop. history is littered with the stories of people who -- damn the consequences -- chose to stop. like -- sorry i bang on about this constantly but everyone makes choices, and everyone can make ones that cause real, systemic harm, even people who adore their kids or bake pies for orphans or ride motorcycles and have ADHD, even you, even me. especially you, especially me.

which, obviously, is exactly the point with peacekeepers? sloane calls the cops when her stepdad abuses her and they have drinks with him instead. electra's brother and a bunch of kids are killed in a massacre bc they ran in guns blazing to the wrong address and the whole thing gets covered up. petra's PK dad was given the choice of lose his job or abandon his family and chose his job, and then she was injured in the arena and is THIS CLOSE to losing faith, so brutus takes her to all the local PK galas for her PR tours and she gets to feel proud and important and valuable and that reinforces her indoctrination instead. they provide her emotional wellbeing -- still supporting the regime. selene meanwhile dngaf about the rules but she loves her dad and her uncle and looks up to them, so why not follow in their footsteps, meanwhile (as xanify said) the program takes a kid with undiagnosed ADHD, channels all her energy into weapons training and uses her for Evil. they give her belonging -- still supporting the regime. emory's mom was a second-twenty local beat cop in a sleepy quarry town, never told emory any of the tales of when she worked out of district, only said be grateful for your district, so emory learned that peacekeepers are kind and honest and helpful and didn't interrogate that until MUCH later. alec and creed love their mother but when she has an uncanny ability to get the truth out of them joke that she used to be an interrogator -- this is a family joke that the boys don't think about, because it's not real to them at the time. it's real to adora and it's real to the people she tortured and that moment is meant to be a stumble.

joseph, i'm not even going to go there, except i guess to say that showing someone who participates within an oppressive system to be a complex and human person rather than one-dimensional Evil is not advocating for that system OR excusing their actions, it goes back to the choices thing again, trying to remove that little moment of comfort and disconnect that says 'only evil people do this and i am not evil therefore i am absolved of responsibility'

re: two vs the capitol PKs that comes from canon where plutarch says that in the capitol getting sent to the PKs is a punishment for like, debt or minor crimes or whatever, but in two it's an actual industry, so i just assumed that the capitol PKs are shipped off to the ass end of nowhere until their sentence is commuted (like snow in tbosas). they don't have the same training or indoctrination into the system so they'd mostly just be pissed off and bitter and apathetic

(lol my wife also adds: some of the above comparison is the difference between a local cop in rural tennessee and the NYPD -- PKs in the capitol have way more power and privilege and will be far more disconnected from the people than rural ones; someone closer to their community will be far more likely to connect and empathize with the people there, which is also why I have the elite PKs (scouts) rotated so often, so they don't manage to make those connections)

so like. yeah, it is propaganda, the whole district is propaganda, and all of the characters are fed it from the day they're born. but there's also meant to be that layer of interrogation of the concept

on that note i am just an author trying to make a story land and it's not going to land with everyone! if people read it and feel like it's not doing that, if they feel like i'm giving a pass to the PKs because i write about characters who are good people then that's valid!

[brucewaynehater101]

I just thought of the comedy potential in a Superkids summer camp.

I imagine the other members of the Justice League are super impressed with the robins and want their children to have basic training so they have a better chance at surviving. So they ask Batman about it. He says no (probably because the idea that he can train kids to survive is a bit triggering to him), so they ask Nightwing about it and he's delighted to organize with his siblings.

This would be for the youngest of heros/children of heros so think Damian and younger. Except for Damian all the Bat kids are camp counselor. Some rapid fire thoughts:

Dick and Barbara are the main camp counselors. They sometimes have to leave camp because duty calls (I mean, all of them have to at some point). Dick would teach the kids how to properly fall, a lot of knots and some fun beginners acrobatics. The kids love him because he's great at retelling stories at the bonfire. All of the campers are trying to piece together his love life because it sounds chaotic.

Barbara teaches the kids basic tech skills, how to properly use comms and how to spot cameras and mics. She and Jason may not be as outwardly protective as Dick but they understand the danger of being a hero's kid (Gordon counts as a hero to me). The kids think she's fun because she's always up to mess with the boys, but she's also the one that talks about the serious stuff. When Dick gave them the talk about the importance of their safety at first they didn't take him seriously. It's Barbara who (with tact of course) makes them understand they're not invulnerable, and everyone needs training.

Cass might get overwhelmed at times because communication doesn't come easy to her and kids are particularly prone to misunderstanding things (sometimes on purpose). She still enjoys it tho, and considers it good practice (Barbara is really proud of her). She teaches hand to hand combat and hr marshmallows are always perfect.

Jason is conflicted. I think he would have a lot of fun pulling pranks and teaching the kids how to aim with different weapons (non lethal of course), but the premise of "these kids have a target on their back" hits a bit close to home. He's definitely broken down about it at some point. He hides it well and tells amazing fictional bonfire stories (that aren't the plot of classical books reimagined)

Steph is the local expert in disguises and teaches the kids different accents and how to change body language. She's also extremely chaotic and helps the kids pull pranks on the rest of the counselors. The kids love her impressions and she provides voices for Dicks stories in exchange for marshmallows.

Tim is having a lot of fun and I imagine him and Dick are reminiscing about Young Justice/Teen Titans a lot now that they're surrounded by kids. He teaches the kids how to be stealthy and probably introduces them to the art of "always having a backup plan for your back up plans". He corrects Dicks inaccuracies when his retelling his own battles (and provides evidence with Barbs). He would also be amazing at telling horror stories.

Duke would be the one helping the kids find creative uses for their powers. Since they're still young a lot of them are still figuring it out. He also helps non metas to spot the weaknesses in superpowers. Also he, Jason and Steph definitely give the kids the ACAB talk (Tim offers to distract Dick and Barbara). He makes visual aids for bonfire stories (sometimes he makes Dick look derpy because that's how siblings work).

Damian hates the whole idea at first. Sure, he gets to spend time with John but he could have done that without a bunch of bumbling idiots around. And half of those are not even his siblings! He considers it beneath him, he doesn't need to learn what he knew at five. He starts helping the other kids out because "he just can't stand to watch such incompetence". The kids start going to him for advice and at first he's very annoyed but eventually he realizes that they're looking at him as some sort of camo leader. Then he gets really flustered about it (especially when some of them start calling him friend). Dick and Tim high five behind his back, it was the plan all along.

(Damm this got long sorry. I would love to hear your ideas on possible interactions or other things the bat kids could teach the kids. I really don't know much about the younger gen)

I don't know much about the younger generation as well :( I really like this idea, though! And you're absolutely fine. This ask wasn't that long and was super enjoyable ^^

There's a ton of cute ideas that you've mentioned with the batkids and campers. It kind of got away from me, but I started to wonder about them making camp an annual event.

They could extend the camp out to people who have powers in general instead of just heroes kids. The camp would be disguised (even from some parents who don't know their kid is trying to be a vigilante or has powers). It's a great idea to give the kids survival techniques, connections, training, etc. The fact that it's over the summer also helps so that the kids can focus on school during the school year.

The camp is funded and slightly looked over by the JL, but it's mainly headed by the batkids. Some of their hero friends also help out over the summer if they want to and can.

Eventually, they start to have organization for what's being taught. They have many many classes taught by different heroes, vigilantes, anti-heroes, trusted contacts, etc. They want the kids to have fun, but be safe. Here are some of their classes:

First Aid/Medical Help - All campers are required to have some sort of first aid class on their schedule. They can test out of the lower levels, but most end up repeating a class. It's been 10 or so months since they last learned the material. The camp is certified to allow campers to get a CPR certificate if they complete this class.

Stealth - various levels on staying hidden in different scenarios, blending in, or getting away enough to hide

Disguises - This includes keeping and maintaining a secret identity

Hero Ethics - This class goes over various laws in place (regionally, nationally, and internationally), the impact of capes on the community level, etc.

Vigilante/Hero Arrests - Basically how heroes make arrests, how this holds up in a court of law, necessary steps, evidence gathering, etc.

Power Safety - how to safely experiment with your power, when to use it, how to use it, etc.

Fun with Powers - how to let loose a little, enjoy the moments, and be free with any powers. It also allows campers to feel more confident and reassured.

Water Fighting/Rescue - They use the lake to demonstrate how to help people, how to fight various villain types over water, and how to calm down panicked civilians in water. They also have classes geared towards teaching people to swim or row

Arts, Crafts, and Police Sketches - Usually for fun, but the higher levels help people with making quick witness sketches

Dance and Movement - teaching folks how to move their bodies in various ways, how to incorporate dance into they fighting, how to dance in general, and how different movements create different effects

Being Prepared - backup plans for the backup plans

The Downsides of Being a Hero - older campers are eligible to take this class so that they are aware of the consequences of this path. Once you're in it, it's hard to let go. They want people to make informed decisions (they aren't discouraging heroics. Rather, they are chatting about the ugly sides people don't usually talk about).

Life Essentials - cooking, cleaning, sewing, taxes, etc.

Survival - How to survive in all types of scenarios (rural, urban, in forests, deserts, etc.)

Night Classes - stuff they teach after it gets dark (navigating in little to no light, for instance)

There's probably more, but this seemed like a solid start. They have campfires, lots of free time to explore, trails to hike, those blow-up water things, plenty of games mixed around, treasure hunts, capture the flag nights, etc. They want the kids to be safe, have people they can turn to for advice, but to still be kids.

My response doesn't really focus on the batkids, but you can try to assign who teaches what, which friends get dragged into camp, how all the logistics are handled, who's playing music over the intercoms, fun pranks they do, and other stuff.

[justpostingsh1t]

i often say that things 'trigger' me but idk i kind of exist in a constant state of being 'triggered' the things that happened to me are on my mind 24/7 and i will continue to monologue to myself about it even when a different alter than me is in front. my ultimate special interest is the fact that i was diddled as a kid and i can't stop thinking about it no matter what i do. on a good day it's in more of a detached academic manner and i think about how my own personal experience reflects the prevailing systems of oppression etc etc. on a middling day i sexualize it. on a bad day i am filled with nothing but blind white-hot rage until it shuts me down and i can't do anything else. i guess it's just because of my Male Socialization but that's really the only thing i can bring myself to feel about it most of the time. i'm just fucking pissed like why did that happen and why did no one care. why does still no one care. why the fuck is he still out there doing that. it drives me fucking NUTS and i regularly fly into homicidal rage about it. anyway below the cut is some little short fiction in which i imagine killing my abuser in a leftist revolution a la the killings of clergy in the spanish civil war. enjoy?

the church sits there on the street in the center of town where it always did, right next to the poverty-stricken streets of downtown and the modern landmarks of the library and the gentrified restaurants, symbols of the pure progressive utopia that was this solid-blue city where the democrats had unquestioned control. except if that was true of this town it wouldn't be in flames. the fury of the masses wouldn't be exploding onto the streets after centuries of living under the yoke of a brutal and decadent bourgeoisie. the cathedral sits there as the pinnacle of reaction it always was no matter how much it pretended to care about the liberal values of its congregation.

the wealthiest have already fled, but he was never rich enough for that, or perhaps he is just unlucky. either way i know he is hiding in there. barricading himself from the people he has preyed on in his desire for power and profit. these barricades are nothing and they fall easily. we smash the pews and cover the stain glass walls with graffiti. ACAB, NO WAR BUT CLASS WAR, and NO GODS NO MASTERS are its new decorations. we desecrate the image of this hateful god with glee, because what is it truly worth? this building likes to pretend it is as the same as the huge churches from the medieval era in rome or dublin or prague but it is nothing but a pale imitation of them built not even a century ago. this same hall in which i ate the communion wafer off his hand and wore the altar boy robes as i walked down the aisle is simply a monument to the brutal colonization of this land and the inferiority complex towards europe that sits at the heart of this country's farcical identity.

he is hiding in the basement, as i expected him to be. that was the same place he always took me to be away from prying eyes after all. i am there first because the others are too busy in their desecration, which i am glad for. it means i can be the one to do it myself.

he is praying, pleading to the lord above for his life. it is not god to whom he should be praying. he doesn't recognize me at first. understandable, i am an adult now, no longer a helpless child as was so arousing to him. once he looks in my eyes though i see recognition pass through his face, giving way to utter despair. of course he remembers me, no one else could feel such pure and distilled hatred towards him. gone is the arrogance in his eyes i saw from him every day when he beat and violated me. when he fetishized me for my supposed innocence and purity while taking those things away from me. unfortunately for him i am not innocent and never have been; his death will be catharsis because i have no capacity for empathy within me, certainly not for him.

this is the man we used to all call 'father.' he is still wearing the cloth and still pretending it means something. i am struck by how generic he looks. he appears to me the same as every other catholic priest wearing these robes all over the world, because there are countless others like him who are all just as morally bankrupt.

"please don't kill me," he says. "forgive me. forgive me. i am sorry. i am sorry." he babbles. he cries. how pathetic. this is his true self behind all that awful bravado, just the same as every other who decides to defile a child to feel better about their pathetic existence.

i say nothing. i have no forgiveness to give, and his begging on his knees means nothing to me. if he wanted it to mean something he shouldn't have hurt me in such a way, and shouldn't have done it to so many other boys besides me. what is he even apologizing for, i wonder? the fact that he joined this institution and was ordained solely so he could enact his fantasies of abuse? who knows. i don't think he knows himself, and no matter his performance i doubt he feels any true remorse.

i point the barrel of my revolver at his forehead and pull back the hammer slowly, so he hears the click and it tolls the bells of his demise. even still i choose to make it quick. he does not deserve any sort of drawn out execution or torment because he is nothing in the end. he is only the product of a society that turns children into commodities and homunculi so they may receive our cruelty. if it wasn't me doing this now it would be the others in a firing squad. i pull the trigger and the crack of the bullet leaving the barrel fills the room, bouncing off the walls and overwhelming my hearing for a split second until it is gone just as quickly.

the life is gone from his eyes, and his blood stains the walls behind him. the bland gray walls and plasticy tables. this is the true image of this religion behind the elaborate architectural facade. a boring and banal system of control. i pour kerosene on his corpse and throw a match on it soon after. the remains quickly fill with flames which begin to engulf the room, as they will soon engulf the entire church. this is what it deserves. it will burn and so will the vatican itself one day, and only then will we be truly free.

[wanderersrest]

Some More Idle Thoughts on Patlabor!

So I've been sick these past couple of days, which means I haven't been able to work on the Iron-Blooded Orphans post. However, in the time that I was sick, I was able to read through some classic giant robot manga.

Which included Patlabor. And now I have more thoughts about the series and those lovable goofballs of SV2 Division 2. So here are some more of my thoughts on Patlabor.

Nagumo is Different in Every Timeline

I love that SV2 Division 1 Chief Shinobu Nagumo feels like a different character in each timeline. Like the OVA/Movie timeline has her as someone with a checkered past (and that's all from Patlabor 2, by the way), while the TV timeline has her be the more level-headed of the two division chiefs of SV2. Meanwhile, the Manga timeline has her as more of a hothead, though she's later written to be more like her TV anime counterpart. And yet, the core of her character is still there in all three versions: she's the hard-working, more reliable chief of SV2.

The TV Anime Timeline Still Has the Most Rounded Out Cast

Reading through the manga has reinforced my opinion that the TV timeline has the most rounded out cast. And as before, it's due to the fact that the TV anime (and by extension the New Files OVA) are more episodic in nature that they get to flesh out all of the characters. Though when the OVA and manga timelines do dedicate time to specific characters, it tends to be a bit more fleshed out. Great examples of this include how the OVA handles Gotoh or how the manga handles Kumagami and, amusingly enough, the peeps at Schaft Enterprises. But in terms of a rounded cast, both pale in comparison to the TV cast (just think about this: one of my favorite things about the manga is that Shige doesn't show up until closer to the end of the manga, not because I dislike Shige, but just because of how often he shows up in the other entries). None of this matters all that much, as the way Patlabor works in my mind is that a lot of these character traits are shared between timelines, as Patlabor is best enjoyed holistically and not as separate timelines that try to do their own thing.

Except Ota. Ota is Universal

If there is one character who remains the same throughout all three timelines that aren't the forward and backup of Division 2's first unit (that's Izumi and Shinohara, by the way), it's the living embodiment of ACAB himself, Isao Ota. I don't know what it is about SV2's resident gun nut, but he's one of the characters where their personality remains largely unchanged throughout the various entries. Even in Patlabor 2, Ota is still the hot-headed gun nut we know and love.

Granted, there are some nuances with Ota as a character. Famously, the insurance episode in the TV timeline plays on the fact that Ota does try his best not to cause so much destruction and mayhem. And in the case of that episode, it's just bad luck. But more often than not, Ota's hot-headedness tends to get him into more trouble than its worth.

And it's great. It's why Ota's such a lovable gun nut. He may be the living embodiment of ACAB, but he's my living embodiment of ACAB.

Conclusion

Patlabor will always be one of my favorite series out there. I think a big part of that is due to it being one of the first giant robot series I watched that wasn't either Gundam or Gurren Lagann. Like last time, I do think if you ever get the time, you should give the series a shot. Now, hopefully, Patlabor EZY will come out in the next couple of years...

This is a work of fiction, but in ten years? Who knows...

[coldflasher]

Joe flr character bingo? 👀

sorry anon i was outside in the garden planting raspberry bushes. anyway this is SUCH a good one and I am kinda mad there are so few squares I can tick off for Joe bc i genuinely love him but not like That

Joe is such a comfort character for me in a very diff way. he makes my daddy issues go brrrrr cos THIS is a dad. THE dad of all time. if i could pick any dad ever to have instead of mine i think i'd pick him.

I think he's so fucking funny first of all. it's my fave thing to put him in a fic and just. mess with him. im poking him with a stick. im watching his blood pressure go up. i'm making him deal with leonard snart and he's about to explode every time they're in a room together. i just. have so many affectionate feelings for him and his seething hatred of this man. and the earth 2 version where he's exactly like that but to BARRY? iconic. no notes. rip earth 2 joe you were a bitch and i miss you sm

THAT BEING SAID there are things about him that make me go "you should have faced more consequences for that. go sit in a corner and think about what you've done." namely bullying iris out of being a cop (acab etc. etc. but still shitty of him), the whole thing where he was like BARRY, WHY DIDN'T YOU ASK MY PERMISSION TO MARRY IRIS (and iris AGREED 🤮🤮🤮 who the fuck was in charge of the writers' room that day, i just wanna talk), the fact that he can be overbearing and controlling of his kids and very jaded in a lot of ways... idk he's a flawed character and every character needs some negative aspects so none of these things affect my love for him but sometimes i am shaking my head in disapproval...

as for canon. this is true of everything but MAN did they drop the ball with him towards the end... i get why they had joe quit ccpd given the political situation at the time and i support that 100% but first of all, having a Black character go "hey the police force in my city is inherently corrupt and i can no longer be complicit in its enforcement" (true and correct) while their white hero just does not acknowledge that corruption and continues to work for the same establishment completely uncritically was... perhaps not sending the message they intended... i mean it's honestly almost funny cos that is very much a reflection of the actual systems but. maybe they could have thought about that one a bit more...

and they really should have given joe something else to do cos he ended up sorta directionless after that. in fairness i know jesse l martin has back problems so i think them having him sitting down chilling at home as a stay at home dad was perhaps borne of necessity in a lot of ways but they defo could have done more interesting things with the character. im not OPPOSED to sahd joe but it does seem like a bit of a waste cos it would just be like. every episode joe shows up for a pep talk then goes back to being the full-time stay at home parent for a child we literally never see except one time when a window explodes in her face, which brings me to my NEXT point---

writing joe out with LITERALLY like 8 eps to go? stupid. again i respect that jesse l martin had HAD it with this show (tbf who hadnt by this point) and he wanted out, of course he had every right to do that, but purely based on the context of the show, i hate that they had him leave central city like that and move so far away when we were so close to the finish line. HAAATE it. the show was basically on life support from that point on. it was possibly worse than when we lost cisco. joe was the heart of it, man. it just wasn't the same :(

but yes I LOVE JOE, he is the only fictional dad i respect and i love ruining his life

[basalamander-corner]

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[emphasisabled]

callum and chrys are both undiagnosed nd - audhd and ocd respectively. callum has a feeling something is Up with him. chrys thinks his brain is 'completely normal' and it Absolutely Is Not and that will explode his brain him to realize.

callum struggles primarily with impulsivity, emotion regulation, sensory issues, a general sense of overwhelm, a need for control, and activating. he both needs novel experiences - leading him to often pick up and leave as the urge strikes him - and things to stay the same. for example he might pick up and go to greece at random but if he gets back and finds his best friend dramatically changed his hairstyle or he has new neighbours, that will fuck with him.

callum has telepathy in most verses which both allows him a greater ease in navigating social situations and the ability to 'download' skillsets such as languages and get ahead school-wise. however he cannot download muscle memory. this leads to him being pretty advanced in most academics, allowing him to move one grade ahead (but not too far for socialization purposes) while being pretty dodgy in athletics and the fine arts. he's a band kid through and through, however. he can play the guitar, the drums, and the keyboard at varying abilities (he's weakest at the drums), and he's a fantastic vocalist and pretty decent lyricist. he likes to perform in bars but he doesn't busk.

when callum doesn't have telepathy, he still shows great adeptness at reading undercurrents to the point it can be a little creepy. this, however, becomes something he's taught himself to enable him to navigate and he maybe. went a skosh too far with it lol he also has some problems with butting in and finishing other people's thoughts because of this. he can't entirely tell when that may or may not be appropriate.

callum's element is water and his season is fall. he doesn't believe in horoscopes outside of entertainment value.

callum was adopted - his parents and bio parents were friends. his bio-parents may have gotten eaten by truck-kun? unsure. he doesn't know what nation he's from and this has left him with a sense of internal emptiness. he has a pretty low opinion of The Man and his opinion is ACAB even tho his mom is the police chief. in fact, that largely strengthens his opinion because he's seen first hand the ways cops can look after their own - and has even benefited from it insofar as selling weed goes.

he self-harms via other people, chasing after older and often abusive men. this largely stems from being groomed by one of his teachers. callums self-esteem, suffice it to say, is pretty shot after that.

in addition to lyrics, callum likes to write fiction. fanfiction, and eventually he also finds great success with his murder mysteries and thrillers. he does not publish under a pseudonym, of the opinion that 'callum gray' is pretty suitable just as is.

that is also in addition to the fact that callum has no wish to hide himself and wants to take fierce pride in everything about himself - but he also still doesn't really know himself all too well despite outside appearances. and though he wants to take pride in himself and love himself, he's in a constant battle with very deep insecurities, self-hate, and The Traumas. he just masks very adroitly, and so even though it should be obvious there's a lot happening there via him finding his way into a string of abusive relationships and accidentally knocking up ren, well. it's not.

callum is a pothead and will drink socially, or to unwind from a tense day/to treat himself. he uses pot more than he drinks, though, and he's very reliant on it in the emotional addiction sense. he prefers sativas or hybrids. if he ever gets diagnosed and medicated he'd probably be able to cut way the hell back but alas, what's a lad to do except self-medicate to function. after his boyfriend sterling ODs and dies he stays firmly away from the hard stuff, that being the one and only time he tried it.

alongside ren he's a partier and a club goer - he does this to try and lose himself. despite this he also tends to lose himself completely not on purpose via dissociation and derealization.

if he doesn't like someone, callum will troll them. he'll troll the fuck out of them. he also tends to match energy and has difficulty divorcing his own reactions from other people's emotions. if someone yells at him, he's gonna yell back.

callum Might go grey early as a result of his leg getting chainsawed off? unsure. callum gets together eventually with terry after terry punches his boyfriend-of-the-moment and asks him out. this becomes the healthiest relationship he's ever had until this point, meaning terry has his full loyalty and devotion. a couple years after highschool graduation (when chrys is a bit more stable) they move away. sadly, the house they end up in has a demon in it, and that demon really wants a vessel with telepathy. callums natural shields mean he's not getting in though, unless perhaps he's worn down? so the demon possessed terry, and shit goes to hell. terry fights it and is able to stop his body from doing anything truly horrendous... for a while. the exhaustion gets to him eventually. by this point, the demon has figured that callum isnt about to be a vessel for anything, but he can still be used for parts, and so. chainsaw.

concerned once they fall out of touch, and then getting a horrible portent, chrys and ren speed over and bust in before he can get more than a leg off, chrys going for terry while ren goes to callum. the police and paramedics arrive shortly after, having been called by their neighbours (some elder gays cus hell yeah) who have long been concerned about what the HELL is going on in that house. callum, having been fully aware of whats going on inside terrys head, has refused to leave terry to fight alone, so doesnt consider this a break up, requiring terry to tell him point blank theyre done because terry cant stand the guilt. and also he's in jail so. theres that. callum is pretty miserable about this but stubbornly maintains at least a friendship with terry, and somehow gets swept into being ren and chrys's third. this was a long time coming :3

note - the main verse relies on the theory of planes. sol's species is from one plane of existence that neighbours the earthly one very closely. 'demon' in this case refers to the inhabitants of a different plane, who effectively are psychic vampires (they both have psychic powers and feed on energy) in addition to being flesh-eaters. 'angels' are similarly another species from yet another plane of existence. less afterlife focused more fucky physics focused - some of the bible stories may have some truth to them like that angel who's all 'hey here's some fire you idiots lmao' but it's not quite the religious understanding. tokens or prayers of any religion can potentially repel demons but moreso as items/chants to channel/focus the person's own power of will as a matter of belief, sort of like a placebo. people can sometimes stumble from one plane to a neighbouring plane accidentally if a hole opens up, or people with immense magical power can punch holes big enough to climb through but small enough so they don't destabalize 'the wall'.

or they're sol, who's so smart he can invent technology thatll do that for him lmao

callum considers himself an agnostic. his friends tend to refer to him as 'dove' as a nod to the origins of his name (callum from colombe -> dove. chrys started this trend) and to his sense of innocence and peaceable nature. trolling people is a symptom of callum in a bad headspace - when he's in a good one it's quite the opposite.

callum oscillates between soft boy and grunge for his wardrobe aesthetics. expect crop-tops, jeans, leather jackets, band shirts, and even collars - in addition to oversized sweaters, florals, those plastic chokers, and pastels. his favourite colours to wear are grey, red, and blue.

callum, when he can focus, is an avaricious reader. he prefers books to television, but when he does watch TV he prefers action flicks and romance, especially if they star kiera knightley. he has an extensive music collection (vinyls, tapes, CDs, recorded concerts) and guitar collection, though he only has the one keyboard and no drum set. this is largely due to his apartments size.

callum identifies as gay, and there's some genderfluidity going on there too. he's more nervous about experimenting and showing the latter than the former, but does start to dip his toe in when he's approaching/in his 30s, largely via jewellery. he doesn't like makeup but that's more a sensory issue - however he's not unfamiliar with wearing it as a fag and to hide bruises.

callum tans pretty easily, but his winter/self-isolation shade is a bit paler. callum doesn't have any pets, but he does have an affinity for dogs. the family he was adopted into is large and loving but, due to the size (many siblings) somewhat inattentive - which meant callum sadly slipped through the cracks a bit. he loves his family, but is generally closer to the masters cus holy crap, the patriarchs are two married men????? WOW!

callum makes use of coloured contacts to suit his whims. his natural eye colour is a dark brown. he doesn't need eye glasses. callum is self-conscious of his smile because he has crooked teeth. he has a beauty mark below his right eye.

callum is capable of learning telekinesis, and through this 'control' over elements so long as theyre readily available. hes got full control over his telepathy, something that was self taught. if he eats a demon he'll end the world so uhhhhh dont do that

when callum uses weapons, his favourite weapon is a staff. idk when he learns how to use a staff. but thats what he'll use. fighting isnt precisely his jam, and he favours the staff because it keeps his opponent at a distance and can be used non-lethaly.

callum makes use of a wheelchair on high pain days, but otherwise is generally pretty comfortable with a prosthetic leg.

callum is sarcastic, loyal, devoted to the end, insecure, neurotic, sweet, supportive, and maintains an air of innocence. his inner nature leans toward serenity and placidity, making him a great mediator and parent and friend, but when he's in turmoil, well. the waters get choppy - beware if you're on them. his libido is average.

voice and guitar style inspo - chris cornell. notable songs - moth, nothing left to say but goodbye, call me a dog, the day i tried to live, fresh tendrils, murderer of blue skies, nearly forgot my broken heart, sunshower, dead wishes (do come true)

appearance inspo/reference - michael hudson

chrys likes to think he's the earth element of the group but. he's not. lmao

chrys's element is lightning and his season is summer.

chrys is also undiagnosed nd. he has ocd, and this snowballs into anorexia. he's got pretty intense imposter syndrome probably in thanks, at least in part, to the ocd as well. chrys battles with intrusive thoughts, often very mean ones, scrupulosity (in ethics/morals/social standards, not religion), and ofc perfectionism. his compulsions largely come out through checking, ordering/cleaning, and keeping a strict routine. if hes hella messed in the head, he counts and taps to number 4 repeatedly, and will pick at himself.

chrys subscribes to 'the all american boy' image which means he has to be a straight, sweet, male jock in his mind. while chrys adores soccer and track and field, he also happens to be very bisexual and agender ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ he doesn't even know what agenderism is, being a 00s kid, on top of all the everything else so. suffice it to say, he's tangled up in so many knots. and he's buried himself pretty deeply in the closet.

the hilarious part is that his parents didn't even do it to him. nobody did it to him. well i guess except Society, but chrys came up with all those Things He Needs To Be largely independently.

his is easily a very average, happy, mid to upper class upbringing, with his mother in botany and his father in high end antiquities. chrys is all set to graduate highschool with honours when said parents die in a car accident, leaving him and his little sister orphaned, sitting on a stockpile of money, under the eyes of greedy relatives.

suffice it to say, chrys's plans for university are thoroughly kiboshed, but he somehow manages to handle the situation very well and raise his little sister also as well as he's able. he throws his whole self into raising her and managing the family business - which, when his parents were alive, he wasn't even sure he wanted to even though it did engender a natural curiosity of history, archiving, and archaeology within him. chrys goes from a tanned and short haired paragon of healthy handsome youth who was pretty popular, to a quite pale, quite long haired, quite slim, quite isolated young man. (maybe instead of cutting their hair as an act of grief, his nation traditionally grows it out?)

he tends to wear his hair half up half down with hair forks, leather barrettes, and clips. he's still very much putting significant effort into his appearance. he doesnt let on that he knows he's good looking, as he considers that rude, but he knows. and he's a vain lil shit.

his favourite colour is blue. chrys needs eyeglasses, and has frames in a whole host of colours that, when his little sister alex is young, he lets her choose. if she doesn't want to bother, he generally, ofc, defaults to the blue. he also favours clear, and red frames.

chrys works hard to maintain a demeanour that is gentle, kind, and sweet. a lot of this is natural, but he very much has a just as natural manipulative and jealousy streak. chrys doesnt really need to be the only The Best.......

he just needs to get his way.

this comes well in use when his extended family members on his dads side come panting for the $$$ after his parents deaths. at some point, a young cousin from his moms side comes to live with them - stephen.

to this end, chrys is also quite cat-coded. he internalizes all of his stress so nobody else can see it, he self-isolates, he's got high affection, and he's also a bit of a diva. marshmallow soft on the outside, habanero chocolate on the inside. lowkey, he's a backstabby mean girl. this is mostly separated from the intrusive thoughts, mind, though it still comes from a place of insecurity. he resents people who he sees as better than him. ren and callum are two of these people. however, he is fully aware of ren's feelings for him, but plays it off as though ren is joking/he doesn't understand/etc... all while falling for him back~ ren's efforts to seduce him sweeten chrys's attitude to him considerably. chrys is not immune to flattery.

chrys also loves keeping plants. not a garden so much as a huge bevy of potted plants. they make him feel good, and connected to his mother. he is, also, a keen reader, but he also likes his video games, drumming, and quiz shows. chrys loves snakes, pythons especially. he's also the drummer of the group, and very good at it. it's the one thing he's got to let out his anger, effectively speaking, in addition to soccer.

chrys is probably the only person in this friend group who isn't a pothead or a boozer. he's rigid with his sobriety, at first for scholarship reasons and then because he's landed with raising his 7 year old sister. (if he does fall off the wagon, his preferred poison is pills - addies and benzos)

chrys is also mixed race. mom is native and angel and dad is white. their nation is completely made up. angels are technically bird fae that humans romanticized (you could make a religion from this!) and this results in them having beautiful singing voices and some other fun traits that tooooootally arent stolen from omegaverse tropes not even a little bit. until chrys got his wings, his family had not had anyone with them in so long a time that his mom thought it was a silly myth. suffice it to say, she and her hubby are very surprised it is, in fact, NOT.

his temper is deeply, DEEPLY buried. at approx 16 he earns his wings by killing a guy who tried to kidnap alex and his wingtips are red to reflect this. this is likewise how he unlocks his electromancy. this is a pretty traumatic incident and leads to him going off the rails a bit - afterwards, he makes a transition from mean girl style shadow-bullying callums abusive BFs to straight up just kicking their asses. deserved honestly lol

chrys doesnt really have a traditional weapon - beyond smiting people with lightning and his own magically razor sharp wings anyways.

he was closest in his childhood to a boy named sterling, whose parents were excessively shitty. to this end, chrys ensured he was fed and supported and taken care of. he freaked out and broke another kids arm because they were bullying sterling. this is why he pushes his temper down so deeply as this was not well received by his parents or by himself - he frightened himself badly. to emotionally support sterling, he often put aside his own wants and needs as well because he learned they were secondary - something reinforced by being an older brother. in their first year of highschool, sterling and callum get together, but sterling ODs and passes away, very nearly taking callum with him. chrys is the one who finds them, long after his childhood best friend, brother in all but blood, died. suffice it to say, this leads him to be very protective over callum - even if he thinks he hates him cus tsunderisms. this, too, was a very traumatic incident. obviously

his parents got him into therapy but he never really bought into it all the way, though it did equip him with the ability to fake it better. he's out of therapy for a little bit by the time his parents pass away, and afterwards simply doesnt have the time. his decline is visceral, and leads to him being hospitalized. with the love and support of husband ren, who homewrecks his way into chrys's closet until chrys actually wants to come out (rip girlfriend briggandia/briggie :( you poor dear, you didn't deserve this), he gets into treatment for his ED. his ED is largely linked to his OCD by way of counting (number 'superstitions') and order. by the time he's in his 40s, he's thickened out considerably, and he's the healthiest he's ever been for it. chrys also has zero problems stepping up to help co-parent ren and callum's kids, even before he and ren officially get together.

he/him is very much a default for chrys. he might they/them later, but by that point he'd also be so used to he/him that there wouldn't be much of a point. if he was a 2010s/20s kid, he'd be more inclined. he'd be all up to date with the lingo, he'd have a bi and agender pride flag, he'd experiment between he/they/xem

but alas, he gets The Closet, because he gets the 00s timeline where that was less commonplace culturally speaking, and knowledge wasnt as widespread.

his libido is average to low, and he's more than fine with asking ren to wait for YEARS to become sexually intimate with each other - in part as a means to test his lil homewrecking boyfriend about how bad he wants it and in part because thats just simply his preference.

chrys, in some verses, goes full alt with a bunch of tattoos, bleached and dip-dyed red hair, guyliner, the works.

chrys has a fairly dry sense of humor, when he lets it out, and can get a bit tsundere. again, cat-coded lowkey mean girl.

also in at least 1 verse he is instead a very sexy demon.

voice/music inspo - the exies, the neighbourhood, highly suspect

inspo/ref: Jeremy Dufour

[luqalbuq]

anúncio/news

Há algum tempo atrás, falei sobre as coisas que eu estava produzindo. Para quem não lembra, lá vai:

Estou trabalhando em três filmes diferentes:  uma animação experimental (esse ainda está muito longe de terminar).  Um documentário meio ficção (ou algo assim, ainda não tenho certeza, só sei que esse será meu projeto principal para os próximos anos). Um filme que recentemente desengavetei e que trabalho nisso desde 2018 (esse era o filme "Não agora", que mencionei faz algumas semanas e que o reengavetei).

trabalhando com as cinemanipulações (dei um tempo nisso, produzi só um ou dois vídeos).

em breve farei mais uma temporada de Lentidões Amazônicas (acabou que produzi duas temporadas!).

acabei de terminar um curta que espero em breve falar mais sobre ele (o curta é "O Grande Jardim", que mencionei recentemente)

músicas do Coletivo 91, como sempre (novo EP sairá em outubro).

E eu não mencionei na época que vou produzir um videoclipe para cada música do Coletivo 91 (exceto as músicas de trilhas sonoras). Eu não tinha mencionado porque esse ideia veio só depois.

A while ago I talked about the things I was producing. For those who don't remember, here goes:

I'm working on three different films: An experimental animation (this one is still a long way from being finished). A half-fiction documentary (or something like that, I'm still not sure, I just know that this will be my main project for the next few years). A film that I recently unshelved and have been working on since 2018 (this was the "Not Now" film that I mentioned a few weeks ago and that I re-shelved).

working with cinema manipulations (I took some time on that, I only produced one or two videos).

soon I will do another season of Lentidões Amazônicas (I ended up producing two seasons!).

I just finished a short that I hope to talk more about soon (the short is "The Great Garden", which I mentioned recently)

songs from Coletivo 91, as usual (new EP will be out in October).

And I didn't mention at the time that I'm going to produce a music video for every Coletivo 91 song (except soundtrack songs). I had not mentioned it because this idea came only later

[fagcrisis]

i am asking abt funerals. my starwars knowledge is tiny but my interest in fictional funerals is large please do tell

THIS GOT INCREDIBLY LONG I APOLOGIZE

okayokayokay. i actually had multiple extremely long posts about this on my old blog but theyre like lost media (unless some of my old star wars mutuals have them but i think only like, nick and lucky remain)

coruscant is the capital city of the galactic republic in star wars, and i mean that literally, because the entire planet down to the core and up to the very border of the atmosphere it is a city. it was originally inhabited by zhells and taungs, the latter being the spiritual (if not biological) ancestors of the mandalorians, who lay claim to the planet city because of this connection and its the cause of their conflict with the republic. stream vode an

theres a criminal lack of stories that utilize the incredible potential coruscant has (in my humble opinion), save for one legends book i havent read and a level in a game i havent played. i think coruscant being the melting pot for the entire galaxy's cultures and species could create really interesting areas and conflicts that would be worth exploring if star wars was good instead of very bad (except for andor). i also had a series of posts theorizing about different districts having humidity controlled and even flooded districts, areas where the air is not filled with oxygen and so on. me and @katschipper have an oc named kees, they're an ex jedi turned pizza delivery guy and i would also love to talk more about him and the conflicts and such he encounters (id also love to write things with him but we cant have everything im a busy man)

so anyway now that you have context. coruscant is a planet city with either trillions (canon) or one trillion (legends) inhabitants. law enforcement is shown to be ineffective at the best of times, and straight up replaced with jedi in some cases (you should ask me about my thoughts on this also) and even if they were effective, acab. crime and poverty run rampant through the city, housing is a nightmare, healthcare is basically nonexistent in the lower levels, the corpse per hour ratio must be INSANE. where the fuck do they put all the corpses

we very rarely see funerals in star wars, and save for a few theyre almost all jedi funerals. the jedi also have interesting funerary rites you should ALSO ask me about, by the way, and ive heard there is a great funeral scene in andor but ive yet to watch andor (im on it guys). the only funeral that actually takes place on coruscant that i know of, is in the clone wars and it's a jedi funeral. so beyond this point is purely headcanon zone

because on coruscant social standing is extremely linearly tied to the levels, i came up with two main places where people are laid to rest.

the first is necropolis districts. because coruscant originally was just a planet like any other, populated by the ancestors of humanoid species and more specifically mandalorians im assuming (based on my knowledge of mandalorian funerary rites, also super interesting, ask me about that) that some sort of mass grave situation must have been going on as that is how mandalorians bury their dead. after the taungs left and the city gradually enveloped more and more of the continents and eventually oceans, having cemetaries in every city must have become incredibly ineffective with the amount of dead

coruscant is comprised of levels that are split into districts. the lowest levels of the city are not officially inhabited, haunted by strange creatures and PROBABLY RADIATION ASK ME ABOUT NUCLEAR CORUSCANT. i think on every level there must exist one, if not more funeral district, a necropolis spanning half a continent housing more dead than the level has people. sanitation has to be on POINT in a city of this size, and due to space restrictions people cannot afford to not burn their dead. that is a right reserved only to the richest of the rich, just as sunlight and breathable air is. because coruscant is repeatedly shown to be a hypercapitalist society, taking inspiration from cyberpunk media (aka really weirdly orientalist i could also talk about this for ages) i'm assuming a space for the ashes of a loved one, or even a nameplate you can bring flowers to, is a luxury few can afford. the industry around death is massive with necropolis districts being surrounded on all sides by generations of families who have made their living off the funerary industry. funeral districts are not solemn, quite the opposite, bustling with life and new corpse deliveries to the incineration rooms every hour.

a moderately well off person living close enough to the surface to be able to dream of seeing the sky one day only has to start worrying about their final resting place probably around the time they retire, but for poorer families on the lower levels it is a constant worry just like making rent every day. diaspora species and cultures that require more complicated funerary rites have traditions that specifically grew around the restrictive laws of coruscant. ashes or the bodies of the desceased cannot be kept in the home, and being discovered with them after the allotted mourning time comes with a hefty fine or a long stay in a prison colony where your family will never get your body back from. certain workplaces offer insurance for your corpse up to 3 years after your death, so your family does not have to worry about the rent for your grave while they mourn, but obviously these jobs comes with a way higher risk of injury or death. when a child is born their parents have to consider where they will be buried. coruscant, the beating heart of the galaxy, is a planet obsessed with death.

as the skyscrapers of coruscants reach ever higher, and as the lower districts begin to be choked by their corpses the upper crust of coruscant must consider a new approach, and so as always, they turn to the sky

there are four naturally formed moons that orbit the planet, centax 1, 2 and 3 and Hesperidium. Centax one is a penal colony (also interesting but not relevant) 2 housed a jedi training facility for a bit and then palpatines weird ass legends bullshit, and 3 was blown up by the fucking yuuzhan vong i forgot that happened jesus christ star wars is stupid. the planet is also orbited by so many artificial moons and satellites to the point where direct entry to the athmospehere is a challenge and many ships just dock on stations around the planet and their passengers and cargo take shuttles to the surface.

i think there are maybe a dozen funeral stations orbiting coruscant taking away precious airspace from way more important things, where you can pick out of several options for your body after your death. these include being completely suspended in time, surgery on your barely cold body so you are even more beautiful and the people who visit the station (because im sure they do, its the weird ass shit rich people tend to do) can be jealous and marvel at how much better previous generations were. these stations are as much exhibitions of the wealth and power of the desceased, as places of mourning, if not more so.

if you really are rich, if your family has maintained their power and their money for enough generations, maybe you can be buried in real soil on centax 3 (before the yuuzhan vong blow it up) and brag about it to your less rich friends at parties, and list the benefits of natural decay to the environment, as you sip imported wine they made in the orphan crushing machine or something

regardless of social standing the obsession with death is rampant throughout coruscant and many people commit egregious crimes for their body to be disposed of exactly how they would like, even disregarding their actual life in the process. coruscanti movies and books and music are extremely concerned with the subject and many romance movies are about couples dying together on their own terms or someone attempting to bury their beloved according to their wishes. sanitation workers are somehwat demonized due to this. many parents wish their child would be born force sensitive, so they can be buried in the jedi temple with their body intact, instead of whatever fate they will have as a civilian. many of the pushback against the clone army when they were initially introduced to the public was due to the fact that many generations grew up romanticizing the warriors who fell in the mandalorian wars and were buried on other planets in real soil

its been a bit since i wrote star wars meta but man i fucking missed it! as always you are welcome to argue with me about any of the points brought up (in fact please do) and if youre interested in anything i mentioned here i love to talk about the version of star wars that lives in my head and is good instead of bad. i swear i will watch andor

[itsdappleagain]

welcome to my blog! here's everything you need to know.

⭐️MY ART FIGHT IS: itsdappleagain⭐️

⋆ you can call me dapple or oliver! or just "hey you" works ⋆

⋆ i use any pronouns. this includes neopronouns! ⋆

⋆ ESCAPED CONTAINMENT posts you may know me from are jesus on T and Show About Women. ⋆

⋆Carmen Sandiego posts you may know me from include this carmen can't drive comic, missing footage from the fishy doubloon caper comic, julethief barbie redraw, and many others lol ⋆

⋆ my most active fandom is carmen sandiego, and more recently shoot from the hip and severance! however, i also engage in some select mcyt, arcane, wings of fire, warrior cats, and probably most kid's cartoons you could name. i also enjoy musical theater; my favorite show is heathers. feel free to ask about any fandoms you want :) ⋆

⋆ i have a whump sideblog! @aughhaughaugh uhh its whump (hurting fictional people) so at thy own risk. ⋆

⋆ that being said, I rarely tag things well, if at all. the only exceptions are if I've been specifically asked (feel free to do so) or after a new episode of something i engage with comes out for spoilers. ⋆

⋆ you can find me as itsdappleagain on ao3 and most things. i write mostly angst and whump for carmen sandiego! check out this one, I'm proud of it. ⋆

⋆ i enjoy acting, singing, writing, drawing, and dabbling in animation in addtion to whatever crazy craft or project catches my attention for a few weeks. its the adhd baby ⋆

⋆ UNWELCOME: terfs, maps, j.k. rowling supporters and harry potter fans, queerphobes, trump supporters. fucking obviously ⋆

⋆ ACAB ⋆

⋆ my qp polycule is the amazing @jackie-shitposts and @emily-prentits 💕💕 i love you so much ⋆

thanks for stopping by! have a lovely day :D

[arbitrarygreay]

I watched all of Killjoys with @mimeparadox! - This being my third time through seasons 1 and 2, I probably enjoyed Dutch-D'avin the most I ever have, really seeing what the show was trying to convey with that relationship. That said, I still do not like the show's attempt to make them do insipid romantic fluff at the end of S4 and S5. They still work best as comrades. - There is no best season of the show. S2=S3=S4 > S1 > S5. S2 is the best the show does with its class conflicts, having discarded the Pretty People Dramz of S1. S3 is the most coherent in its character themes, everything lensed through the tragedy of Dutch and Aneela. S4 does the most payoff for all of the relationships in the show.

- Oh, poor S5. This is the first time I've rewatched it, and I did still have a good time. Basically, S5's weaknesses all have to do with it being the final season. The Prison arc is actually quite fun...so long as it has nothing to do with The Lady. In general, the show is not as good as when it remembers that they have to tie things up and finish off this alien invasion storyline. They're great at the serialized character/relationship elements, less good at the serialized plot parts. - The Prison arc shows that Lovretta could definitely be the showrunner for a classic spy competence porn show a la Nikita. - The Lady is still great as Khlyen's third failure as The Worst Dad to Murderous Teenage Daughter. The reason I love her as a garbage fave, whereas Angel's Connor is a (hah) narrative killjoy, is that The Lady's behavior does not cause the other characters to betray themselves. For the most part, The Lady incites the others to do more competence porn, whereas Connor just incited tedious interpersonal Dramz (with maybe the exception of the return of murderous Fred). - mimeparadox and I have discovered across watching multiple shows that the best character archetype is an ultra-competent slightly neurotic uptight character getting blindsided by their Feelings (bonus points if said Feelings are romantic). We have named this archetype Paris, named after Paris Gellar from Gilmore Girls. The Paris is such a powerful type, especially as a Big Bad, that Killjoys does it twice in a row, with Aneela and The Lady. - Intriguingly, I finally saw what the show was trying to do with a series-long arc for Johnny. - In S1, the seeds are planted for the fact that Johnny wants to do more than survive, he wants to have a stronger emotional anchor than just being with Dutch (he is Dutch's gravity, but the reverse isn't true). In S1, this manifests in his being intrigued by Scarback spirituality. In S2, this manifests in his becoming more invested in Westerley's class politics (with Pawter) than Dutch's more self-centered investigation of the Hullen. And in S5, he decides that being a rootless Killjoy isn't viable in the long term. He doesn't want the warrant to be all. - Of course, the execution gets muddled, because Johnny on the mission Fun Train is entirely too compelling, as are his dynamics with everyone else on the team. Note how S3 and S4 aren't mentioned above, as in those seasons, with the exception of the Hackmod Arc, Johnny is focused on Dutch's war with Aneela and The Lady. The fact that there's no issue with the character dropping his series arc for two seasons shows that this arc isn't really critical to his character at all. - And that's exactly the conclusion that the show itself comes to, with the Oneyer absence tossed aside in the end for a "one for the road" of indefinite length. - Part of this, though, is not a betrayal of the series arc because at the end of the series, Johnny is not still simply a Killjoy, for whom the warrant is all. He's a new Level Six, and so has a purpose to genuinely care about (which also happens to enable his pursuing the other missions he wants on the side, like The Factory). - I got a better sense for Dutch's series long arc, too, which was really interesting, because she is never actually a hero in her own motivation. She is basically selfishly motivated from beginning to end, but just slightly growing the circle of who she considers under her protection. Dutch's driving motivation at the beginning of the series is to flee anything that might impinge on her personal freedom. Then, she decides to fight back instead of flee, which means that she seeks having just enough power to do so. S4 is about how she balks at the responsibility that comes with it, which we discover is rooted in how she's having an identity crisis about her biological family. In S5, she comes to a more stable place in her identity and how much responsibility she's willing to take on to defend her home, but grapples with some of the remaining things impinging on her emotional freedom (the loss of the certainty of Johnny, and then cycle of Khlyen's abuse). - Which is to say, it's pretty cool that we get to have a science fiction where where the central protagonist gets to be basically a shameless charismatic hedonist. She's all but said that she's basically outsourced her morality to the rest of her team. This is a rare character complexity for any genre show protagonist, much less a lady. And it makes the writing extra impressive for setting up the plot and world so that such a protagonist gets guided into doing heroic actions entirely on following a selfish priority through the incentive gradients. - This is all really only possible because Turin is a good boss, though. If she had a RAC supervisor who played power politics with her, she'd be toast (and probably quit the RAC to fly away in a heartbeat). Of course, that Turin is a good boss is meant to illustrate how the RAC is a an outfit that takes in misfits, people who are loathe to (and already failed to) play traditional social politics as opposed to mere sportsmanship competition (thing-oriented people over person-oriented people). They have to be the kind of people who could ever believe that the Warrant is all in the first place. - Killjoys never truly grapples with its politics. I stand by my previous stance that this is a good thing, because the very core build of its protagonists prevents that. This show, ah, kind of embraces ACAB as a good thing, nothing of which to mention how Delle Seyah and Aneela becoming allies therefore results in a "yasss genocidal girlboss aristocracy slay" conclusion? ("Colonialism is good if they appoint an emotionally invested immigrant warlord as governor") - Killjoys' broader wonky politics doesn't bother me, because FUN TRAIN! DO NOT STOP THE FUN TRAIN!! Seriously, there were definitely plot holes in this show that never went away, and I did not really care because almost every given moment of the show was delightful. The lore of how Hullen/The Green worked was laughably inconsistent, and I did not really care because the lore was whatever it was at the moment to enable storylines that were really fun. In fact, joking about the inconsistency of the lore therefore became its own pleasure, because it still did not detract from my enjoyment of canon. Altered Carbon shows how the prestige version of Killjoys would have been no fun at all. Down with Prestige TV. Which isn't to say that I've changed my mind on character vs. world-building as source for plots! I remain dedicated to my apathy to Wynonna Earp, which is a show which nominally builds its world/plot to service character, but leaves me cold. What Killjoys has, in contrast, is a rock solid world-building foundation, and then we watch the fireworks of character reacting to the setting and each other, with characters themselves serving as expressions of world-building. This is why Killjoys' writing is weakest when it has to plot for the sake up wrapping up plot and character threads, instead of plot as per how character interactions with the world organically develop. The way this doesn't contradict with the above is that Killjoys firmly declares what parts of the world-building are really important, which is the setup of institutions that determines the power-dynamics between any two given characters. Plot elements that aren't about that can be wishy-washy without therefore making the characters look incompetent. (With the exception of "stick a knife in the necks of all of the Hullen already!" because that's a very tangible action anyone can do, as opposed a squishy genre detail.)

[noszkass]

garrison "grady" oliver knox jr.

thirty two. podcast host. amateur sleuth. casey deidrick.

grady: [looks deeply into your eyes; pats your knee, sympathetically.] grady: “i don’t care.”

content warnings: mentions child neglect, parental abandonment, missing parent, (suspected) death of a parent, alcoholism.

dominant traits. opinionated, surface level arrogant, judgmental, creative, sarcastic, invasive, blunt/crass, antisocial, stubborn, self-aware, unyielding, grudge-holding, mouthy (read as: "brutally honest"), insensitive, protective, intuitive, reactive, self-reliant, observant, adaptable, impulsive.

fictional parallels. connor welsh (htgawm); jess mariano (gilmore girls); jughead jones (riverdale); stiles stilinski (teen wolf); nancy drew (cw nd); veronica mars (vm).

○ his name is grady. no one calls him garrison, not anymore. not since his mother was around. i say around, and not alive, because she isn't dead. just missing. a town native who moved away when she was pregnant with him, but brought a lot of the darker parts of miriam's well with her. he was raised on unfinished stories and embellished half truths about the place his mother grew up in─the place he eventually called home at fourteen─and, ultimately, is probably responsible for his interest in all things unexplained. and his father, well... his father is around georgia, somewhere, he supposes. they haven't spoken for a while. believe it of not, a relationship with your son doesn't cure at the bottom of a bottle.

○ his life pretty much always baseline sucks and his attitude and demeanor mirrors that. which is fine since grads is the type of guy who makes more acquaintances than he does friends. and even more enemies than that. he will casually put his nose in your business because "that’s my job" and he makes no apologies for who he is.

○ when he was younger he wanted to be a journalist, a photographer, and novelist and you can tell. too curious for his own good and heavily believes in not only checking his sources, but questioning everything. he's not afraid to stand up for the things he believes in or for the people he finds deserving of it, and has very little issue or care to what what consequences these actions might breed. he also may or may not be a coffee addict.

the corner booth at the local diner; twilight zone background noise; the smell of coffee seeping from moist skin; sweeping honesty; not only is the truth out there, but it also probably sucks; ring around the rosie was about the black plague; anti-social social club; dry sarcasm over milkshakes; swear jar that has his name on it; the company misery loves; mean nerd aesthetic; late nights in the studio with great music and a constant opinion.

plot hooks.

○ his family. well, his mother's family. the people she left behind, whatever's left of them. possibly an aunt (preferably his mother's twin, who he had no idea existed, so imagine that shock) who took him in when she went missing at fourteen and any potential children she might have? because cousin relationships are great and no one has your back or will kick your ass quite like family. can't imagine them being well off, more like town trash and maybe this aunt was the best of them. ○ veronica mars needs clients. ACAB indeed, but sometimes people need solutions to problems that a corrupted small-town government isn't capable (or willing) to get them. what does that mean? for the low price of [insert negotiation here] this knox boy will go out of his way to find the answers you need. husband fucking the secretary? photos will hold up nicely in divorce court─not to mention i'm a ~fantastic photographer. you get the idea. sure, it's not the prettiest (or cleanest) job, but it's easier to make money off liars, thieves, and cheating spouses than you might realize. especially in a small town with such an ugly history. ○ the unlucky barista/cashier/counter girl. it'd be nice to have a little back-and-forth relationship with someone who might work for his aunt? i imagined [his aunt] owns a coffee shop or cafe (or something of the sort) and he's always in there helping himself to free coffee and snacks and likes to poke and prod this person when he's bored via asking a million intrusive questions or just being his curious, obnoxious self. taken by noor ♡ ○ co-hosts of the night shift. well, it's not the doomsday podcast, certainly not with their following, but like a lot of people who find their way to miriam's well, they share the same basic general interest (unsolved mysteries, serial killers/true crime, paranormal/ghost hunting, lore, extraterrestrial, etc.) except, grady also likes to use his platform to bitch and moan about other things that happen in town. some topics more pointed than others, and often about public officials he has no business putting on the air and his fellow casters probably hate him doing. no one likes a target on their back. ○ pizza buddy + longtime friend. someone (preferably someone he considers close/from when he first moved to mw) who will go with him to flying saucers at two am for "out of stock" garlic knots (and/or an employee he bribes with🍃for said knots 👀) because he's an actual human garbage disposal and he hates himself just enough to like the aesthetic and that entire plot sounds fucking awesome?? bonus points if they both used to work there when they were younger, and now this shit is habit/a bastard tradition at this point. ○ doomsday descendants. characters who are part of the families who have abduction histories that he can interview and broadcast on his podcast─also pick their brain about every little detail and absolutely get on their nerves in some way or another.

[bunnygirlrbs]

Listen to me.

Daichi Sawamura. Is possessive in the softest way.

He comes home one afternoon, after his morning shift ends, and he sees the tv is off. You're not in the kitchen, humming as you cook your mutual favorite lunch. There's no stereo playing the traffic report or weather report.

Something's off. The house isn't ever this unsettling and quiet. So after he removes his gun holster, his badge, and shoes and jacket, he makes his way to your shared bedroom.

And he hears something he hoped he'd never have to come home too. He hears you crying.

He knocks on the door, and he waits till you open the door. (Even if that takes a few minutes cause you're trying to calm yourself.)

You look so fragile, like a scared little deer in the headlights, to him. And he asks in the gentlest, warmest voice. "need a hug?" To which you nod, and melt into his broad, bulky stature.

He gently closes the door behind you both and sits you on the bed, so you're curled up like a little kitten, on his lap.

He helps you catch your breath, and waits till you give him a nod, letting him know he can ask what's wrong and what made you so upset.

Which he does ask you, very gently, still somewhat anxious that even his voice could shatter you like glass, if he wasn't quiet and soft enough.

And you tell him that while you'd gone grocery shopping, the clerk had asked you how your family was doing and you had brought up that your husband, Daichi, was doing his daily police patrols, and some nasty teenager or maybe the kid was in their early twenties, had started harassing you and belittling Daichi and you, and telling you all cops were pigs.

(LISTEN. I'M ALL ABOUT ACAB BUT DAICHI IS MY ACCEPTION.)

And it had really shaken you, since no one's ever had such a verbally violent reaction like that.

And Daichi is momentarily angry, that some stranger, especially some dumb kid, would even think that's okay. But he lets it go, and immediately starts soothing you.

With every soft kiss he gently presses to your lips / jaw / neck / collarbones, he's whispering praises to you and possessive words like "I'm yours, and I'm never letting anyone make us doubt that." And "I belong to you, and I'm not letting anyone rip us away from each other." And "Ya think I'd ever let anyone make you feel insecure in how much I fucking love you to death? Never. Fucking. Ever."

And now he's got you below him, and you're both only in undergarments. He's body worshipping you and whispering about how he'd remarry you a billion times over if he could, to show everyone that he's proud his soul is yours and only yours.

And when he's fucking into you, he's slow and careful at first, but then it becomes carnal and feral and protective. He doesn't care if the neighbors end up reporting a noise complaint. He's gonna make damn sure, that you're never this distraught, never this insecure, never this heavy hearted, or shaken up out of fear, ever again.

As He marks you up he's lost count of how many times you've cum on his thick cock, as he's cum inside of you. Three? Four? Maybe six? He doesn't care. All he knows is he's obsessed with you. He's addicted. He's really yours and you're really his. It drives him wild. It puts him in awe. And all he knows is he's gonna breed you for as long as he deems fit, and as many times as it takes.

He cums inside you again, and that's the one that makes him exhausted. He nestles his head into your neck, and he admired the little bulge in your tummy.

And you can bet your ass he's cockwarming you as you finally rest together.

DAICHIIIIIIIII 💝💕💞💘💕💝💞💕💘💝💕💞💝

I love himmmm ugh he would be so comforting 😭 and he’s so BEEFY he could go hard for so long and then he just collapses onto you like a weighted blanket while he’s still inside of you, keeping allllll his cum in 🥰

and yes acab except for my fictional police officer husband mr daichi sawamura thank you

[hale-of-stiles-heart]

I'm watching one of those b movie action thrillers or whatever and it's so dumb but I have a lot of thoughts

it's about a cop with a history of excessive violence who gets put on the case of a cop killer - and the audience is supposed to root for the cop lol

they showed the killer shoot a cop and go "die pig" and it was unintentionally hilarious

the new transfer to the police unit is a gay guy and all of the other cops (except the protagonist) treat him like shit bc of it

they fucking graffiti'd "Porter Nash sucks cock" in the bathroom like???? good one? ya really got him on that! congrats! y'all understand how gay sex works lol

the killer is played by the dude who played Baelish in GoT and he just shot a cop played by the guy who was Gendry in GoT - again, unintentionally hilarious

ok angry cop and gay cop are bonding

angry cop just showed up to gay cop's place totally outta the blue, criticized the fact he was eating a tv dinner and told him he needs to eat some real meat, then sat directly across from him with his legs spread ridiculously far apart

angry cop fell asleep in the chair and gay cop covered him with a blanket then cooked him breakfast

angry cop made a joke about gay cop trying to get with him the previous night and gay cop just went "I held myself back" and they both laughed

i stg I would lose my mind if this movie ended up having them hook up, like it would be so great

like yeah ACAB, including fictional cops ofc, but I think it'd be an interesting addition bc that's the kinda gay rep I think should be more common in movies - with it just happening rather than it being the focus the way they do it with straight or m/f relationships in movies

fuck I really am having too many thoughts about this dumb movie

[fuckwritersblock]

I’ve seen a few posts asking for recommendations for romance interactive/visual novels and finally I decided it would be better to just post about it rather than replying. Note that I have been playing this genre for years but I also am picky. There are some games that I have played which I would not necessarily rec*.

Interactive Novels (Purely text based)

The Wayhaven Chronicles (Mobile, Steam)

Creme de la Creme (Mobile, Steam)

Tally Ho (Mobile, Steam)

**Fallen Hero: Rebirth (Mobile, Steam)

Visual Novels

Arcade Spirits (PS 4, Switch, Xbox One, Steam, itch.io)

Choices (Mobile)

Dream Daddy (PS 4, Switch, Steam, Humble, Mobile)

A Rose in Winter (Steam, Itch.io)

You should also watch out for “Best Friend Forever” (Switch/Steam/Itch.io) and download the demo. I also personally have not yet played “Butterfly Soup” but I hear great things about it.

If you want to know more about the games along with the pros and cons are for each game (in my opinion) check under the cut. but it is. Long.

Interactive Novels

The Wayhaven Chronicles - Fantasy/romance. You play as a detective who has been tasked to solve a murder in your small town of Wayhaven. You have been tasked with agents from a mysterious agency, Unit Bravo, to help you. But are they all that they seem? 

Pros:

Sexy vampires. (This is not a spoiler it’s literally in the description of the game.)

The writing is incredible. Mishka Jenkins knows the tropes and uses them expertly.

The romances are all very good in their own unique way.

All of the characters are well developed and interesting.

There are two books of this series out!

Cons:

ACAB. And you play a detective at a station where there’s literally a state where you either are “by the book” or “bend the rules” so like. Not great.

There are two books out of seven for the series so know you will be left wanting more.

You can play as non-binary and there are a couple of background non-binary characters in the story but there are no non-binary romances.

Creme de la Creme - Adventure/romance (if you’re into dark academia, this is for you). You play as a student sent to a finishing school and are expected to bring prestige back to the family name.

Pros:

This plot takes some turns y’all.

You can play as non-binary and there also can be non-binary romance options!

There is aro/ace representation!!

Hannah Powell-Smith is married to a woman so like nice.

Cons:

There is some commentary that sometimes works well and sometimes falls flat. Mainly the critique on power and the upper class works well until the endings where many still benefit from this without characters putting much more thought in it.

Tally Ho - Comedy/Romance. Inspired by Wooster and Jeeves. You play a servant living in London during 1930′s. You work for Rory Wintermint, and must accompany them to their Aunt Primrose’s estate. Hijinks ensue.

Pros:

Light and fun and adorable.

Romances 

There are some really funny moments in this.

Cons:

This was one of my first interactive novels and I have spent hours and hours on this game and there are still achievements that I have absolutely no idea how to achieve.

It’s a light and airy game so know that if romance is your thing, it doesn’t delve as deep into those relationships as other games on here.

You can play with they/them pronouns but there is no other non-binary characters.

Fallen Hero: Rebirth - Action/Superhero. You play a former hero that has started acting on your plan to become a supervllian. You must work against your original crew and that gets. Complicated.

(**Heads up, this is a very good game it’s not romance-focused. I also have not replayed it in some time. and other people could describe it better than I have. So if this short description sounds interesting, I recommend looking it up on tumblr + other areas.)

 Pros:

Immersive and thoughtful small details.

The romances are complex and certainly not easy, but that’s certainly a strength of the writing.

Malin Rydén self-describes as “unapologetically queer”

Cons:

Not so much of a con but something yall should know! This game handles heavy topics as your character descends into villainy. Your character experiences depression and a variety of Rough Stuff. Keep that in mind if you are also in a rough place mentally rn.

I’m gonna be real with ya fam and I think this could just be me. There were multiple parts of this game that I felt lost in. I could not fully understand what was going on. BUT I also feel like in many places that is the intention for the character to feel disorientated so take that what you will.

Visual Novels

Arcade Spirits - Dating Sim/Comedy. You play as a depressed person who was just fired. You are convinced you are suffering from a generational long curse. Your phone matches you with a job at the Funplex arcade with various characters. Will you ensure the arcade survives? Will you find love along the way?

Pros:

this is GOD-TIER visual novel content y’all!!

The system that they use for stats are unlike anything I’ve ever seen but it’s leagues ahead. You do not have to be constantly monitoring your stats as you would typically for other games.

Made with so much love for the content and attention to detail. 

Diverse cast that are all so fun and lovable in their own way.

You get to create your MC’s hair/skin/clothes color and then you’ll see them throughout the game?? WILD.

Cons:

BECAUSE this game was made with love and and attention to detail, if you have absolutely no interest in the world of video games you may feel detached.

The character creator is very limited. Which I do get to a certain extent with all of the different shots they draw the MC in. But I hope you want your character to be thin with a lot of angular facial features 

Choices - An app where there is a series of stories you can play “chapters” of using keys, which replenish every couple of hours.

Pros:

It’s a very focused on modern romance stories, but there are also such a variety of different genres of books! Fantasy (Blades of Light & Shadow), Historical fiction/romance (Desire & Decorum), Thriller/Horror (It Lives in the Woods). I have PLENTY of recs if you hmu.

There are...Many a good romances in these tho like I have blushed and sighed and daydreamed about these stories.

Cons:

You need patience for this game. It’s a free app and therefore has a system where you need to understand the key system and be patient to collect “diamonds” to purchase premium choices.

Many of the books are gender-locked where you can only play as a woman.

Choices has been criticized that they need better treatment/more screentime for their characters of Color. They have said they are committing to do better, but we will see.

Same has been said about their wlw romances.

Just as there are good stories, there are also stories that have something to be desire. I have varying issues with some books that have plot holes, unengaging writing, etc. These are good for you to play to earn more diamonds though.

Dream Daddy - Dating Sim/Comedy. (This game was the talk of the town when it came out in 2017 but in case you weren’t in the genre at the time!!) You are a single dad who is moving with your daughter Amanda to Maple Bay. You meet other single dads and date them while also trying to be a good father to your daughter.

Pros:

This writing is sharp as a tack. The comedy is on point and this game does a great job transitioning into serious moments.

There are awesome little mini-games that you’ll find in these!

The characters of each datable dad first seem like caricatures, but their backstories are complex and have depth.

The character creator is chef’s kiss v good. AND you can play as a trans dad like how neat.

Cons:

There have been plenty of conversation about cons for this game but frankly I don’t truly believe it has a con for what it is.

If you’re not a pun person this game will be. Difficult.

A Rose in Winter - Romance. You are playing as Rose, a girl who determined to prove herself as a knight. She has found herself at an inn and must choose between a series of Princes to help on their journey.

Pros:

Cute stories!

Except for the green prince which is heart-fluttering. (and if you play, I recommend playing last)

Adorable art.

Cons:

This reads more like an ACTUAL visual novel. Your choice (besides the initial choice you make on which prince you pursue) means little, if there is choice at all.

It’s definitely simpler than other games on this list but that’s not a bad thing as much as you should know!

*Please know that I did not include The Arc*n* on purpose! I used to really love that app but the way certain things were handled (both IRL and in the plot) I would not recommend it now.

[staruplatinum]

lowkey scared rn for my safety bc of all of this (police) and i just wanna ask what you think giorno/the vento aureo cast would do?? would they join protests, give out supplies or stop cops or anything?? with don giorno too i wonder what would happen

Hey Anon, ive been meaning to answer this I’ve just been caught up with oil painting.

In all honesty, I know we all need an escape and a break from the things going on in the world. But this? This is not something that I am taking lightly. Black people face racism every day, and while I am not American I hear about everything that goes on there - it’s terrifying. I couldn’t ever imagine the fear POC go through daily.

I know your intentions with this ask were genuine, as I know everything going on is scary, but I don’t want to compare fictional characters or write about them in this situation - when real people are losing their lives, getting hurt + injured in riots by police.

I haven’t said anything on this blog because I like to keep it strictly JoJo related, but I think it’s important that I speak up and make this clear to anyone else:

I am here to talk/vent to if you need, regarding everything happening in the US. I am canadian/Italian, so I don’t know everything that’s happening but as I said - you can vent to me. ♥️

If you don’t support BLM, unfollow me :)

Don’t come on my blog or say “ACAB except Abbacchio!!” Because - once again - HE IS FICTIONAL, and was the prime example of a corrupt cop.

Don’t send me asks like this one above. I will not answer it.

With all that being said and out of the way - here’s some links below on where to donate, petitions to sign, educational sources + info and ways you can help!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSrT26HMWX-_hlLfiyy9s95erjkOZVJdroXYkU-miaHRk58duAnJIUWKxImRkTITsYhwaFkghS8sfIF/pub

This blog is 100% BLM positive ♥️