#also why is troy baker so tall

[vancilart]

get fucked

[nathanielhoover]

Also, I take off my shoes as soon as I get in the house.

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[sol-korolevas]

BLUEBURN, part i of ii

pairing: higgs x reader

note: no one asked but here’s some fluff with emo troy baker (also a 1.5k followers celebration yayy!). and yes, i’m keeping up with my trend of giving titles that absolutely makes no sense and has a color word in it. reader is 4-5 years younger than higgs here, but both are over 18. 

“he-ouch!”

you jumped from your seat when you felt someone pinch both of your cheeks. almost slipping, you managed to keep your cap on just as you saw the perpetrator laugh meanly, crossing his arms as he sat on the edge of your cot. 

“oh wipe that stupid smirk off of your face,” you said, brushing off dust from your trousers. “and apologize!” huffing, you stood straight and placed your hands on your hips, staring at higgs. 

“apologize to me now, higgs,” he mocked, using his hand to form a mouth and moving it as he talked. “or else i’m not gonna talk to you for two minutes.” his voice was different, attempting to mimic yours. instead of letting go, you walked up to him, threw off your cap, and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. 

“i swear to god...higgs,” you said lowly. rather than go through with what you wanted to do, you let him go. he was much too tall for you to even try to move him off of your cot. no less intimidate him with that feeble stature of yours. so you huff again, crossing your arms across your chest as you sat down next to him. 

“looks like i win–again,” higgs said, sounding much too happy than normal. there was a jovial light dancing in his pale eyes; you weren’t sure if it will ever fade regardless of anything. “next time, try to go out more and exercise, okay honey?” 

“i do that all the time, for over ten miles,” you said, but before you could add on to your words, you stopped, realizing that he knew. instead, you rolled your eyes and flopped down onto the bed, tugging your sheets toward you. “higgs, please move.” 

“you’re such a spoiled brat, i swear,” higgs said as he lifted himself up.

you kicked at the air, only to feel his hand grab at your ankle. “hey! i wasn’t trying to aim at you!” 

“uh-huh, and i’m a god reborn–don’t try me, kid,” he said, gripping harder. this only forced you to kick with your other leg. this time, you were trying to aim for him. “what’s the big deal with the sheets anyway? they’re cheap and absolutely filthy.” higgs’ nose scrunched up in disgust, waving his free hand in front of him to get rid of the odor. 

“as you can see, supplies here are low,” you told him, finally giving up only to realize higgs kept his hold around your ankle. 

“yeah but, why are you holding your sheets so damn close?” 

having been caught, you suddenly felt heat crawling towards your backside as you attempted to turn your face away. higgs was looking at you intently with one brow raised. 

“why are you so nosy?” you replied. 

higgs suddenly lets go of your ankle and you took the chance soon after to curl yourself into a loose ball. you’re tired and half of your body was aching from yesterday’s delivery trip. so you didn’t notice as he settled beside you and leans back. 

“idunno, maybe i just wanna know,” higgs said with a shrug. he then turned and reached over to pinch your cheek again. “plus, i figured since we are childhood buds we should know each other’s deep, deep secret.” 

you attempted to bite the hand that was touching you, but higgs quickly retracted it as he tutted. 

“don’t bite the hand that feeds, [name].” 

“bullshit, you only got me this job and nothing else,” you said, carelessly wiping your ink-smudged face with the sheets. “i owe you nothing.” 

higgs made a fake shocked face as he placed one hand over his chest. “oh [name], you make me so sad.” when you said nothing, higgs slid closer, to the point where you swore you heard the beat of his heart. “next trip i’ll bring you a present.” he said it quietly, yet with such gentleness that you almost wondered if he was joking. but then you looked at him and noticed a subtle smile on his face. 

feeling hot again, you discarded your sheets and sat up. “if you say so, then you’ll have to do it, okay?” you then looked around, trying to figure out what he could bring you. in the past, higgs always gave you something pretty but useless. this time, you wanted him to bring you something that would be the opposite. “bring me a teddy bear, big enough for me to hug.” 

“a teddy bear?” higgs laughed, closing his eyes as he turned away from you. “oh honey, that’s–that’s kinda funny.” 

“i’m serious higgs,” you replied, half-glaring at him, “it’s not like i’m childish or anything...and it’s a good comfort item.” the last of your words came out small, barely a whisper. you didn’t really want higgs to know, but he wouldn’t take you seriously if you didn’t tell him either. you hunched over and buried your face in your hands. “it’s fine though, i get it.”

“now, why would you say that?” was higgs’ response, “i will get it for ya don’t you worry.” you didn’t need to look at his expression to affirm the seriousness in it. despite the sudden change, you still felt comforted by it. higgs may be dramatic and childish at times, but he was capable of a great deal of compassion.

for the first time, tiredness wasn’t the only thing lingering in your brain. you smiled, reaching a hand out to gently touch his palm. you noticed higgs’ fingers curling slightly as if he will hold your hand. instead, he withdrew and stood up. 

“i’ll be back with a bear for you after my next delivery,” he said, rolling his shoulders. before walking out, he paused, placing one hand on the wall, and turned to look at you. 

you realized that his gaze had turned soft. straightening your back, you asked, “what is it?” 

he grinned and shook his head. “nothing, go to sleep.” 

“good night higgs,” you said, scratching at the ink-stained flesh of your temple. 

[kaptainandy]

My Complete In-depth TLOU 2 Thoughts:

Yeah I know, y’all have already read through countless reviews and thoughts, but I gotta get my thoughts out there. So, continue under the cut for some somewhat coherent, essay-ish style ramblings. There will be a TL;DR at the end because this is going to be long. (Spoilers ahead).

Okay so my overall perception of this game is that it’s average and I’m slightly disappointed. I’m going to start with the things I really liked and enjoyed before I get into what I didn’t like.

The visuals and gameplay were solid and enjoyable with small improvements upon the first game’s already fun and interesting, gameplay. The NPCs felt less like they were following a track in terms of their movements and felt more natural. The dialogue between enemies felt more varied than the first game, and the addition of giving everyone a name made me feel more immersed and the reaction from other characters to their fallen friends felt more believable. I feel that overall, the development of gameplay from the first to the second game felt “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it,” and I think it worked out because it’s one of the aspects I liked about the first game. The addition of craftable silencers, varied stealth takedowns, ability to go prone, tall grass to hide in, cars to hide under, larger infected (bloaters and shamblers) now being able to destroy weak walls, etc. were fun editions that helped the combat feel less repetitive. And lastly, the areas of combat that included both human enemies and infected, (and later WLF soldiers vs Seraphite soldiers)  was really cool and felt more realistic for the world of the Last of Us. It was something I think the first game lacked and it was really interesting to choose who to take down first and let the enemies fight each other.

The level design was also great. I felt it gave the player a lot of options of how they wanted to traverse the area to takedown enemies and look for supplies. Everything felt huge and worth exploring. The player was rewarded appropriately for checking every nook and cranny, and the addition of going prone to fit under small spaces or breaking glass to get into locked buildings was a lot of fun. The first day in Seattle as Ellie was especially enjoyable as you got to explore the city and mark things on your map while engaging in dialogue with Dina. Every building held something new and acted as an opportunity for Dina and Ellie to banter.

The art direction was incredible and I don’t think I’ve seen a more stunning looking game. It felt like a lot of time and care went into the design of each item and every corner of every environment. My favorite environments were definitely the homesteads of the major characters/factions (Jackson, the stadium transformed into a village by the WLF, the Seraphite island, etc.) because it told the player more about what everyday life is like for these characters and how they’re similar and different. Also, the weather, time of day, lighting, and use of space (or lack there of) added tension and changed the tone in scenes and levels appropriately. I felt engaged in each moment. I think the best use of visuals and atmosphere to set tone and really immerse the player was in the lower level of the hospital during the Abby playthrough. It was claustrophobic, damp, dark, ominous, and it always felt like danger and despair were right around the corner. And the massive clicker cluster fight in the small hospital corner was one of my favorite parts in the entire game. What would have felt like a silly and dumb concept if encountered elsewhere, was actually legitimately terrifying and really cool due to the tone set from the scene. Seeing the effects of a ground zero site for infection 25 years later was really cool to see.

The music? A masterpiece. We have to stan Gustavo Santaolalla. What more can I say? He did a great job. If nothing else, give the soundtrack a listen.

The acting was incredible, as to be expected. The emotional moments were really sold and carried by the actors and the music together. Ashley Johnson, Troy Baker, Shannon Woodward, and Laura Bailey I expected to be phenomenal and they were, but I’d like to give a shoutout to the newcomers and more minor actors as well. I felt no one had a bad performance, or even an average one. Every performance felt genuine and made me more connected to the characters.

As for new characters, I felt Yara and Lev were the ones I felt the most for and were the best written. The inclusion of Lev being trans was really cool to see as a trans person, and I felt it was executed well within the story. Lev being exiled from the Seraphites for questioning their ways and attempting to transition while Yara fought to remain by his side and protect him, made them both interesting and likable characters. They had depth to their characters. Despite coming from an environment that seemed ruthless and unforgiving they both acted as voice of reasons and wanted to help others, which was their strength and their weakness in the end, adding to their complexity.

The story had it’s moments. I found myself being impacted more during light and happy moments more so than the traumatic and sad ones. I felt a lot of time was put into showing the love and care between Ellie and Dina, and I found myself smiling like a goober when they were being goofy or together or cuddling. This also ties into the LGBTQ representation, which I personally thought was well done as I briefly touched on with Lev. I understand and respect those who felt there was too much trauma forced upon the LGBTQ characters, and I agree with that when it comes to Ellie because the whole game was essentially torturing her. I’ll at least give Naughty Dog credit for avoiding the “bury your gays” trope when they very easily could’ve done that given the constant death in the world of the Last of Us. Treatment aside, as a gay trans man, the overall presentation of these characters I felt was realistic, respectful, and gave me hope for future LGBTQ representation in triple A titles. I know this is literally doing the bare minimum but we gotta start somewhere.

Now, as for things I disliked about the game, there was a lot and I felt the weight of things I disliked outweighed those that I like since the overall experience depended on them more heavily.

I’ll start with the small things that irked me, that could be somewhat excused and are more a personal preference. For starters, I felt the game was too long. After awhile it got repetitive and having nearly the entire game take place in one city (as opposed to the first game that took place across the country), the scenery got old pretty quickly. I feel like a lot of the traveling could have been cut. For example, instead of showing a cut scene where characters say “we have to get to x” and having to basically travel the entire way, it would’ve worked better had it cut to them being at or close to their destination, thus cutting back on repetitive combat. It didn’t feel super rewarding and it only sometimes resulted in something added to the story. In the end, I felt it should be exempt for a similar reason you don’t need to show a character’s entire traveling in a movie, it’s just unnecessary.

Another minor detail that bothered me was the shamblers. Not as a concept, because I thought they were really fun new enemies and added something to combat, but the fact that they felt thrown in with no explanation. Where did they come from? Are they only in the northeast of the US? What caused them? It’s mentioned briefly by one character (I forget who) that it could be a result of excessive rain, but it was just a guess and not further elaborated on.

The fact that events and characters of the first game that were influential to Ellie and Joel’s character seemed to be inappropriately forgotten about. I understand the game is meant to be enjoyed by people who haven’t played the first game as well as fans of the first one, but it could still be done in a way to cater to both audiences. It would also help people who didn’t play the first one learn and connect more to Ellie and Joel. Why was there no Riley-related dialogue for Ellie upon seeing “The Turning” arcade machine? Hell, Riley was never mentioned at all. Same with Tess. Bill was briefly mentioned, but not by name. Ellie’s mom still remained a mystery, and I don’t recall her being mentioned. Henry and Sam? Also never mentioned. Upon seeing Sam’s robot toy in Ellie’s room (which I thought was a nice touch) I would’ve thought he might’ve been brought up in discussion with Dina about past friends. I get that it could be implied Ellie has discussed her past with Dina and others before the events of the game took place, but you have an audience to think about. Essentially you have to think that if the audience didn’t see it or hear about it, it didn’t happen. I feel the omission of past characters and events was a disservice to the first game and was really disappointing.

This relates to something else I disliked: It felt like too much time was spent on characters solo traveling and being in combat and not enough on story and relationship building. I felt the time spent traveling alone as Ellie or Abby was far greater than traveling with a companion. The dialogue and interactions between Ellie and Joel in the first game was crucial to the story and relationship, and when the characters were apart, it made the player that more eager for them to be reunited. They were only ever apart when one was missing/injured or they were unintentionally separated and it made sense to the story. In terms of missed opportunity, I especially thought Jesse’s character was mishandled and wasted. Just as the player was really beginning to know his past and connect with him, he dies a seemingly (in my opinion) stupid death. Not only that, but there’s almost no mention of him or his death after it happens, and Ellie and Dina seem relatively unaffected. I felt like Dina’s character also could’ve been fleshed out better. She was one of my favorite characters, but the things we knew about her didn’t seem to impact the story or her character that much, especially the loss she’s suffered. Her thoughts about her sister’s death and Jesse’s death are barely touched on, and I just felt like I was left wanting more.

Jesse and Dina could’ve definitely been handled better, but at least I cared about them. I didn’t have those feelings towards anyone in Abby’s story (except Yara and Lev). This relates to the bigger problem with the timeline of events and the and the order they were shown in the game, but I’ll touch on this in a bit. Before beginning to know these characters, the only thing you know is that they were involved in killing Joel, and happy about doing so. Now the challenge was to get the player to like them, which the writers failed abysmally. I couldn’t even remember half of their names when they were brought back up. The most influential of Abby’s friends, aside from Owen, seems to be Manny and the only things we get to know about him is that he’s horny, likes to get drunk, and - much like the writers - tries to force other characters to like each other (i.e. Mel and Abby). He only exists to establish Mel and Abby’s relationship and to save and help Abby when they encounter Tommy trying to snipe them. Mel and Abby (who I will touch on extensively in her own paragraph because yikes) both seemed like miserable people to be around and their relationship seemed catty and to simply revolve around Owen. I’m kinda sick of having women characters’ relationships revolve around the fact that one of them used to date the guy that the other is now currently dating. It’s stupid and I couldn’t give less of a fuck if that’s the biggest roadblock in their relationship. Also Mel calling Abby a piece of shit seemed unwarranted based on what we knew. Like we knew Mel was against the brutality of Joel’s death, but the way she spoke to and of Abby seemed like there was something else that the writers forgot to tell/show the audience. Abby never did anything personal to Mel (that Mel knew of) yet Mel decides to hate her guts and be unreasonable? Nora was kind of okay and seemed like an actual decent person (aside from wanting Joel dead and them making that shitty comment to Ellie) in her relationship with Abby. She was willing to risk getting in trouble to help Abby, but we weren’t given enough time with her to make me give a shit, especially after what she said to Ellie. Owen had potential to be likable; he was charming, funny, a bit of a fuckboy, but nonetheless was optimistic and hopeful. But for some reason the writers decided to throw out any ounce of care we had for him by having him cheat on Mel with Abby in a shitty sex scene. 

Now for my thoughts on Abby. My thoughts about her also relate to my thoughts on the order of events, and a few other aspects I haven’t mentioned yet, so forgive me if my thoughts are a bit all over the place. I really really tried to sympathize and like Abby, but holy shit they fucked up every possible opportunity to create some sort of likability. For starters, it boggles my mind that they had her commit the atrocity that was Joel’s death as basically the introduction to her character. Not only that, but just mere minutes beforehand Joel had saved her life and shown her nothing but kindness and she goes on to torture him and continue to do so while his surrogate daughter begs and screams for her to stop. She shows no guilt both in the moment or afterwards. It doesn’t eat her up inside at all. Every time Joel is brought up by Abby and her friends, she wastes no time expressing how elated she is that she not only killed him, but did so in such a gruesome way. You really expect fans to even WANT to like this character after she tortures and kills the only other character (besides Ellie) that fans LOVED. And I’m not upset that Joel died, because I expected he would and there were a million ways it could’ve been done appropriately to both the story and fans. But the way he died and how early he died at the hands of essentially some nobody really rubbed me the wrong way, they essentially threw him away without any honor to the experience we had with him in the first game. So, that’s our introduction to Abby and her friends. Again, the writers had the challenge of trying to make us like her, but it felt like they didn’t even try. Every attempt to make her likable fell flat either due to an action that happened right before or after. Abby’s only expression of sorrow is after the death of her father and Owen. Manny’s death is never mentioned after it happens and she seems to act like it never really happened. There is no remorse when she kills Jesse and Tommy, or anyone for that matter. She and (seemingly most of the WLF) condone and even get off on torturing Seraphites (they’re terrible people but if you’re trying to make me like a character, I don’t think you should have them condone the torturing of anyone). Abby is quick to kill Dina even after learning she’s pregnant, to which she comments, “good” and only stops because Lev is an actual decent human being and gets her to stop. And the writers have the gall to try and compare her to Ellie; trying to be like, “see she and Ellie aren’t so different uwu.” Meanwhile, Ellie is crying each time she hits Nora; she just wants Abby, she didn’t want to have to torture Nora like that. Ellie is traumatized after finding out that Mel is pregnant after killing her. Ellie is constantly shown to be grappling with the consequences and feelings of her actions. She experiences guilt and shame while Abby is shown time and time again to not regret her wrongdoings. The writers really tried to push us to like Abby by having her care for Yara and Lev, but I felt she did it out of selfishness and needing to feel good about herself not because she truly cared for these kids.

Going back to Joel’s death, the gruesomeness wasn’t even warranted based on Abby’s reasoning. Abby’s dad didn’t get murdered in front of her and he was killed because he stood in Joel’s way, holding a scalpel to Ellie. Jerry’s death was quick and painless too. And I know people will be like, “but Abby was also mad because now there’s no cure because of what Joel did!!!” However, she had no problem wanting to kill, or leave Ellie alone despite knowing she was immune. Abby was never on a quest to capture Ellie or talk her into finding the Fireflies with her (which would have made for an interesting storyline actually), she wanted her dead too. Joel’s death was the most tasteless death of a beloved character I think I’ve ever experienced.

Also the order of events was really detrimental to the story and especially Abby’s character. The way that flashbacks were thrown in throughout the story after Joel’s death fell flat and made Joel’s death feel even worse. The Joel and Ellie flashbacks were honestly the highlight of the game because we got to spend time with the only 2 fleshed out and likable characters. Had they been placed at the beginning of the game and also showed more of their relationship after Joel tells Ellie the truth about the Fireflies, I would’ve felt his death would have been more okay (still shitty, but slightly better than what they gave us) because it would feel more unexpected and it would hit better emotionally after these moments we had with Ellie and Joel. Hell, the majority of the game should have been as it was advertised (which is another issue I’m gonna touch on shortly): the rocky relationship between Joel and Ellie after Ellie learns the truth and the two of them going on a revenge quest together, as Joel tried to earn Ellie’s forgiveness. The events presented in the order in the game also made it impossible for anyone to try to like Abby. We learn she commits the biggest atrocity and we know all her friends are going to end up dead, so there’s no emotional impact when we see how they die because we’ve known the whole time they were gonna be killed by Ellie. Both Abby’s character and the story they were trying to tell could’ve have been really great and interesting but it was just so poorly executed. 

The story itself seemed so amateur as well. It just boiled down to “revenge and violence are bad uwu” while giving the player no choice but to engage in said violence. They tried to create a gray area between good and evil like they did in the first game, especially with Abby’s story but they ended up doing the opposite. Also the weak use of animals and pregnancy to create emotional impact is just so easy. They couldn’t think of any other way to make us connect to the characters except “hey look they love this animal” or “this is someone who is going to have a baby under these rough circumstances” and it’s just sloppy writing especially because they use both tactics MORE THAN ONCE. 

The intersecting stories, themes of “what really is good/evil,” redemption of a thought to be unlikable character, and the death of a beloved character would have been so interesting and emotionally impactful if done right, but it felt like Naughty Dog chose every terrible option and outcome, resulting in the wet fart that we got. It felt sloppy with no honoring of the previous game or characters. We all cared, but apparently the writer’s didn’t. The ending with Ellie essentially being left with what she feared most, being alone, would’ve been way more appropriate had anything prior warranted this consequence. Not only is she alone, but Ellie loses the ability to play guitar, a way in which she remembered and felt connected to Joel. Like she goes through hell, and 99% of her actions are justified, yet she gets punished.

Lastly, I want to touch on the false advertising for the game. Normally, I wouldn’t be upset because movie trailers do it all the time where there will be subtle differences or added scenes that don’t occur in the movie, but this was a whole other level of fuckery. I get trying to mislead people to think something is going to happen only to steer them in a different direction, in fact I think this is really cool and fun when done well. However, this was straight up lying and essentially selling an entirely different game. Not only were these lies perpetuated in trailers and ads, but even in events such as E3. Neil Druckmann constantly harped on the idea that the game was going to be about Ellie and Joel having a falling out after Ellie learns the truth and how they navigate their relationship through their next adventure together. Yet the game was never about that, instead it was just a story about drawing shitty parallels between a beloved character and a new character who was destined to be unlikable from the start.

In the end, I think it’s still worth playing because I’ve seen so many mixed reviews floating around so I feel it’s best to make your own opinion. And if nothing else, it’s a fun experience if you’re just looking at a fun game to play if you don’t really care too much about the series or characters as a whole. Will I return to this game? Not anytime soon likely. But just being the fan that I am of the series I think I’ll try to get most of the achievements eventually, and to experiment with photomode because the visuals are so good. Even with how much of a disservice this game is to the series, I don’t think it ruins it for me. It just makes me love and appreciate the first game even more and I think they could bounce back from this, but they’d need to put in a shit ton of work to earn their core audience back.

TL;DR: As an addition to the Last of Us as a series, the game is a huge disappointment and disservice, but as a standalone game it’s slightly above average. The gameplay, music, and visuals slap but the story, characters, and relationship building (or lack thereof) suck. Naughty Dog lied in a highly scummy way to fans via advertisements and trailers. Fuck Abby. Stan Lev and Yara.

[darkspellmaster]

E3 2018 Thoughts on Bethesda

Second weakest presentation I thought in regard to how the set up was. Andrew WK did a great job with his song for Rage 2, but man, no one knew what to do and the audio made it hard to hear. Also the presenters jokes were…um��not that great. Plus though was the line about "fuck Nazis on every platform possible." Really liked that one.

Rage 2… I have no idea what is going on in that…because I couldn’t see any of the screens because it stayed on Andrew. While I appreciate that factor for seeing a great singer, I wanted to know what they were putting out for it. Maybe next time intersperse the singing and the on screen video? Again I never played the first Rage, so I have no idea what is going on with this one. I will say that having the very tall developer who was nervous and the average developer on stage was visually amusing in a Loony Toons kind of way, but seemed that something didn’t click right regarding the timing of the trailer and their talking. 

Finally got to see the trailer and I have to laugh about something regarding this trailer. So you got to see game play as the Ranger Character Walker, and I can already see issues coming out with the vehicles in regard to the camera. I’m sure that’s going to be worked on till it has to go gold. The other thing was that it seemed to be a cross between Mass effect and maybe Doom, and possible other games of a similar nature...Reboot’s episode that became the Mad Max Fury Road Movie...that’s it. Also nice movement from cut scene to playable moment, sound track sounds great. 

Funny moment...So I’ve been watching Troy Baker and Nolan North on their Youtube series playing video games. It’s rather funny and enjoyable to watch. Mind you these are old games, so retro. Anyway...Walker seems to be voiced by Nolan, and all I kept thinking was of his struggle to beat the Spiderman Atari game, and began to wonder if somehow parts of Walker’s days, when he’s not out killing things, are spent chilling out trying to beat old Atari Spiderman games. Just something amusing. 

Side note...I do want that talking head for some odd reason. 

Doom Eternal is coming out…yay? Not a Doom player, so I can’t say much on this. It’s nice to see the old suit back on, although my gut is telling me this may be an online thing like Microsoft’s new Halo game will be. 

Prey was an interesting game that actually got into your head and showed a lot about your character and person given it’s story. Prey MoonCrash should be an interesting one dealing with Mimics, and it looks to be a game of Hide and Seek. Not sure what else to say about it other than, find the Mimic. and also a VR game that will be coming out. I kinda felt bad for the presenters when their jokes didn’t land. 

Hey look we get an expansion to Wolfenstein II, Wolfenstein II: Youngblood. We’re going to play the twin daughters of the lead character from the latest game. Awesome. We’re going to be in Paris. Very cool. We’re going to be fighting Nazi’s again. Rockin! We got no game play…crap. While the trailer looked cool, I would like to know more about it before I put down my money on this. Also...co-op...am I going to die a lot...I think I’m gonna die a lot. 

Hey we have more expansions to Elder Scrolls online…Okay, and Scrolls Legends are getting stuff…alright…Oh and now you can play a mobile game of Elder Scrolls called Elder Scrolls Blades that you can play with one hand, and you can do it while you’re in a meeting with a boss. Yeah that really inspires confidence in your co-workers who are not fiddling on the phone. Does Blades look good, yeah, but I’m not downloading. If you like that, go for it.

Oh and if you haven’t gotten enough of Skyrim Very Special Edition, that you can now play on you Alexa….Bethesda, I think you’ve milked this game enough…although it was very funny, and you can actually play this…Yeah I’m Skyrimed out.

So what else do you have…Well we have a new Fallout Game that we debuted just a few Hours ago at Microsoft’s presser.

Fallout 76 had my attention for a bit. I loved the idea of it being an early story, the location using West Virginia was a nice change of pace from random locations, and certainly looked gorgeous in design. And the choice of song brought a tear to my eye due to Whisper of the Heart, but I like the song Country road. And the use of the urban legends and folk lore in that area came to light in the monsters and creatures that you run into. All awesome…until we get to the fact that you can get your hands on Nukes…um….why? How? What for…? Then the big reveal, oh by the way it’s all online with other people playing with you…And there went my enthusiasm for the game. At least the servers can be locked for just friends, but playing Fallout as a GAAS is going to be annoying because you can Nuke each other, which is something I pointed out with Skull and Bones. You have assholes who ruin the fun, and when they’re around you’re screwed. Also not a single player game, though you can play it solo…yeah….pass for me.  Also game play was basically walk out of your room in the vault. Fun?

Lastly we had two very short trailers for a new game coming out called Starfield…which made  me go, “what?” when I saw it. We see space, we see a planet, and we see a station…then a blast of white light and what looks like a hole and warping to some place…but that’s it. So not much on that front…

Oh and we’re finally getting an new Elder Scrolls game, Elder Scrolls VI. When is it coming, we don’t know, what does it look like, not much given it’s a landscape and a castle. Other then that, we got nothing. There are some hints that it might be a bit like Fallout 76, so I’m holding my breath on this. Given the way it was talked about...please don’t make this an online game...please. 

Over all I’d say a C for this presentation. Jokes didn’t always land, the videos, while nice, felt like someone was asleep at the wheel. While it was great to hear Andrew WK playing, the stream I was didn’t let me hear him properly so I couldn’t tell what he was singing. Nice Trailers, but I do think they need to work on the jokes. Glad to see the teams though getting shout outs. 

[batmanvillainswithcircularheads]

Hey do you wanna know what I thought of Batman: The Telltale Series? No? Well here it is.

Season 1

Not a huge fan of this Bat symbol. It’s not awful though. And Batman’s ears are a liiiiiiiiiiittle too short.

I’ve heard some people say they don’t like Troy Baker as Batman, but I think he does a perfectly fine job.

It’s neat that the game lets you choose the color of Batman’s equipment, though I think blue is really the only color that works for it. Also it seems a little weird that everything Batman owns glows. There’s a moment where he grapples up a stairwell and the levels of the building light up as he passes through them. Doesn’t seem very stealthy for what’s supposed to be a method of escape.

The visuals in this game are good. The animation can be a little stiff at times, but nothing too bad. The cell shading’s cool.

Batman calling Alfred “Al” is weird. Why does he do this? I do not like this.

Catwoman is really good in this. I like her involvement in the story. I like her and Batman. I like her voice. I like her costume, though the material seems kinda bland; I like it when Catwoman’s costume is a bit shinier. That gadget she has that lets her slide up walls is cool, I’ll be damned if I know how it works though.

Not a huge fan of Batman scrambling his voice. It’s not huge, and I get why it makes sense for him to do it, but I just don’t like it. There are a lot of times Batman has more personal conversations with people and having him talk through a machine in situations like that makes it feel kind of distant, like he’s hiding behind it. I prefer it when Batman just speaks in two different voices as Bruce and as Batman. Hell, Troy Baker’s surely got the vocal range for that; He’s Troy Baker.

It took me forever to realize what it was I didn’t like about Gordon’s design, and that’s that his mustache is too thin.

Harvey Dent is good in this. Would have preferred his hair be black though. And why is he so tall? Bruce looks like a dwarf standing next to him. I do really like how they build up Harvey and Bruce’s friendship in this. Seeing him try to fight his own transformation, and regret what he does as “Two-Face” immediately after he does it, is genuinely saddening.

Vicki Vale could have been a good character if they hadn’t wasted her on a twist. Having to choose between giving the evidence on Falcone to her or to Gordon was interesting. It would have been nice to see that carry out through the whole game. Also when are we gonna get redhead Vicki Vale?

The design for Oswald Cobblepot is... different. I guess it’s fine since he’s supposed to be him when he’s younger. Still, he’s pretty much gonna have to change every single thing about his appearance in order to actually end up looking like his old self. The bird-beak gas mask is clever. I kind of like that the “Penguin” persona starting off as a way for Oswald to commit crimes while keeping his own name clean. Personality-wise he’s good. By the end of the game he’s an absolute bastard and all you want to do is beat the shit out of him, which is about what the Penguin should be. Him being childhood friends with Bruce Wayne seemed a little weird and didn’t really add much to his character or the story. It’s a little Roman Sionis-y.

Actually hold on a second here the Penguin in this game is actually just Black Mask  - childhood friend of Bruce Wayne’s  - hates the Waynes because of what they stand for  - “legitimate businessman” who creates a masked alter-ego to commit crimes I’m not even complaining about that it’s just kind of weird.

Batman having white lenses in his cowl is interesting and it makes sense. I don’t really like it or dislike it.

The Waynes murder twist is what really kills this thing. It’s such a huge change to Batman’s origin just for the sake of a twist. The whole time through I was hoping they’d reveal that all of the evidence was fabricated, and when they introduced Falcone’s drugs I was holding out on the hope that they were somehow influencing Bruce’s memory, as contrived as that would be. Bruce revisiting his parents’ murder seems forced. I get that people block out memories sometimes, but apparently all Bruce had to do to remember the entire conversation that happened while his parents were being repeatedly shot was to think real hard about it. Has he never thought real hard about it before? Didn’t Bruce try to investigate his parents’ murder after it happened?

Bruce’s car turning into the Batmobile is dope. Wouldn’t work for most versions of the Batmobile, but since this is early in Batman’s career and the Batmobile is pretty close to a regular car, it works. The color-changing is great too. 10/10 Batmobile would like to see again.

I’m not really fond of Batman using such advanced technology like drones, a forensic scanner built into his glove, and lenses that let him plan out his moves in advance, so early on in his career. Like I get that Bruce is gonna have a lot of technology at his disposal, and it’d be stupid of him not to use it, but when it’s early in his career I prefer seeing him not have everything built up so much and having to rely more on what he can make on his own. Like it’d be one thing if he were just occasionally re-purposing some Waynetech inventions but these things look like they’ve been specifically made for Batman. The damned things are even shaped like bats.

I like the idea of Martha Wayne organizing special screenings of The Mark of Zorro whenever Bruce wanted to see it. That’s sweet.

The choice of whether or not to save Harvey is a pretty obvious one to include, but having it be a choice brings up some weird questions. If you save Harvey, he still ends up becoming “Two-Face,” so it’s not like you’re actually saving him from a life of crime. It seems like he was doomed from the start. Does Harvey’s face ever become disfigured in that timeline then? Does he just go on to have a lengthy criminal career as Two-Face, without actually having two faces?

Hey Blockbuster sure is a character who is in this and sure does look the way he does in this and that’s just about all that can be said about him

So if you save Selina, she’ll show up to the hospital with flowers, then change her mind, give you the flowers, and you walk into the hospital with flowers for Harvey. If you save Harvey, Selina doesn’t show up at the hospital at all, and you visit Harvey... with the flowers. Where did you get the flowers from, if not Selina? If Bruce bought the flowers himself, then why didn’t he also buy them in the timeline where he saved Selina? He didn’t know Selina was going to be there to give him flowers, so why did he show up without flowers? I feel like this would have been a good opportunity for the game to go, “hey look at that, your choices really do change things!” by having him not have the flowers if you save Harvey.

Where did Selina get that tank top from? She wasn’t wearing it when she took off her suit. It’s not like they’re opposed to showing partial nudity in this game; we saw Selina without a shirt earlier on, and we got a whole walking simulator of a half-naked Bruce. If they really wanted to have Selina be more covered up they could have had her put on the tank top after she woke up. Did she have sex with Bruce, put the tank top on when they were done, then fall asleep?

Meeting Joker in Arkham and seeing a glimpse of who he would become was cool.

I don’t really like Zsasz’s voice.

Batman comforting the Vale kid was a good moment.

Penguin’s monocle looks kind of silly. It’s a nice nod to his regular monocle, I guess.

Harvey’s arm catching on fire when you jam his gun is kind of overkill. The flames really burned through that much clothing and did that much damage to his arm and leg in that short an amount of time? Like give it a rest he already has two faces.

Why do grapple guns need to be connected to a computer?

The flashback to Bruce and Oz as kids is kind of weird. Didn’t really tell us anything we didn’t already know. Didn’t make me feel anything for Bruce and Oz’s friendship since I didn’t really care in the first place.

Oh no Commissioner Grogan doesn’t like me I wonder if this is gonna cause any tension going forward oh wait he’s dead now and we made up how sad

Y’know, Harvey’s “Two-Face” voice sounds real silly when his face isn’t disfigured.

“Cobblepot” slapped over the ”Wayne” in Wayne Enterprises in Comic Sans is golden.

heheh, Fal-Coney Island

I had forgotten Selina was in the game until that last part with her. It was a good sendoff though.

Using the reflection in Alfred’s glasses to find clues about the room he’s being kept in is clever. I like it.

The armored Batsuit is dope. The classic Batsuit is also dope.

“Blue... the same color as my tech. It can’t be a coincidence.” Yes Bruce it absolutely goddamn could.

Vicki already had a perfectly sound motivation for doing what she did, did we really have to learn her adoptive parents were abusive too?

I keep forgetting Vicki can levitate. Probably because she only does it twice in the whole game. You’d think she’d do it a little bit more given how useful it is. It’s kind of over-powered honestly. How does it work? Is it the same technology as her staff? Where did she get that from? What does it have to do with her character? Why doesn’t Batman start using stuff like this?

So if you choose the option that gets Alfred’s eye blown out of his head, he has an eyepatch. So throughout the rest of Batman’s career Alfred’s gonna be a guy with an eyepatch. Having an eyepatch is now Alfred’s thing in this world. Either that or Bruce gets a little bit of his ear blown off, which is less egregious but still kind of weird... still that shit’s gonna heal up the second he meets Ra’s al Ghul.

So if you go as Bruce Wayne, Bruce makes a speech, and if you go as Batman, Batman talks to Jim for a hot minute before the speech happens... so Bruce could have still made his speech. You didn’t have to choose between going as Bruce and going as Batman. Sure, Batman swoops in to save Jim once Random Attacker with No Motivation #389 drives a truck into Jim, but Batman had no idea that was going to happen, and he would have saved the day even if he went as Bruce.

“Oh boy, it’s gonna be tough to top that!” John he pushed someone out of the way of a truck it’s the least impressive thing that’s happened in this entire game.

The real shame about this game is that it didn’t need to have all of these twists to be “new” and “different.” There have been plenty of stories that focus on Batman’s early days, but this one was different in that it was a video game that had you go through his early days step-by-step, instead of just having it be the backdrop for a regular Batman adventure. Splitting things up pretty much 50/50 between your life as Batman and your life as Bruce Wayne is also pretty rare for a video game. Hell, the simple fact that this is a Batman game done in the Telltale style sets it apart from other Batman games in and of itself. They didn’t need to make Thomas Wayne a criminal, make Vicki Vale a terrorist who’s actually an Arkham, or even make Penguin Bruce’s childhood friend. This game was good enough without those, and would have been better off if they weren’t there.

Season 2 Episode 1

Haha what the fuck they made a sequel?

The Riddler in this looks baaaad. The hood just doesn’t work. I feel like it’s an attempt to make him look more “realistic,” but isn’t it more realistic for someone to wear a bowler hat with a suit than to have a suit where the jacket has a hood? When he first shows up at the casino he looks so out of place with his hood up. Bowler hats may be kind of flashy, but real people do wear them. It’s not like it’s to hide his identity, since he doesn’t seem concerned with hiding who he is, and the game goes out of its way to have his hood get knocked off in every encounter anyway. The hook on his cane is clever, but hacking and slashing at people doesn’t seem very Riddler. Him being a villain from back in Thomas Wayne’s days bothers me too. It means his career reached its peak before Batman was even around. He’s hardly a Batman villain then, just a Gotham City villain whose last fight happened to be against Batman. And then he dies.

New Batsuit looks good. I didn’t dislike the old one but I like this one a lot more.

Riddler tells Batman “you’re supposed to be the world’s greatest detective.” Would Batman really have already gained that reputation at this point?

Gordon’s mustache is bigger. I like it.

Seeing Bruce doing Batman work at rich people events is fun, though the “I’m looking for new thrills” excuse can only work so many times.

Hey, Amanda Waller’s in this.

Interested to see where Alfred’s condition is gonna go. I hope he’s okay. I hope they don’t kill him for shock value like everyone else in this series

Tiffany is annoying. She’s every “young genius” character.

Killing Lucius was stupid and needless.

“Please tell me you didn’t put him in danger.” “We didn’t know there was any danger.” “How dare you!” Well fine then Tiffany I’ll choose the Lie option then. The fact that you can do everything else right but telling Tiffany the truth will cause her to hate you is dumb.

So does no one else notices that Joke- John Doe’s skin is white and hair is green?

All of Riddler’s puzzles and the way Batman solves them are pretty clever.

Seems weird that the game gives you the option to let the other three agents die to save Avesta. Even if Avesta were to die, ti’d still be one death as opposed to three, and if you want to save Avesta it’d still be objectively better to let her take the first two sonic blasts, then choose her over the other agent for the third riddle since either way one person would die (not that the third riddle matters in the end, since Batman ends up breaking out before that). Yeah that causes Avesta to go deaf, but going deaf is still better than dying. It seems like an obvious choice given Batman’s morals.

So we get to fuck Agent Avesta, right?

Season 2 Episode 2

Bane’s tattoos look bad. And when his veins turn green they overlap with the tattoos, so it looks even worse. His goatee sticking out of his mask looks stupid too. The rest of him’s fine. I like his voice.

i’m getting tired of every introduction to Bane having him do the back-break pose, then not breaking Batman’s back. I get that you can’t do the whole Knightfall arc when you’ve got your own story to tell, but if Bane’s not gonna break Batman’s back then don’t bother teasing it.

That one purple button on John Doe’s vest is annoying and out of place. i hate it.

They’re kind of pushing this whole “John is obsessed with Bruce” thing a little too hard. It was fine having them interact in Arkham but now it seems like they’re using John’s fixation on Bruce as a stand-in for Joker’s fixation on Batman, instead of just having him be fixated on Batman in the first place. Really Bruce’s involvement with the villains in general is getting to be a little too much. Bruce interacting with white collar criminals in a sort of shady-business setting is one thing, but now he’s hanging around with full-on supervillains.

The “LOL WOULDN’T IT BE CRAZY IF BRUCE AND JOHN WERE GAAAAY” jokes are cringey please stop forever.

It seems like in this Joker is the one trying to impress Harley and Harley is the one who’s pushing Joker around. And instead of Joker turning Harley into what she is, she just decided to dress up like the biker version of a court jester and commit crimes using a sledgehammer because her dad died... as you do. So why then am I supposed to feel bad for Harley? Normally it’s because she was in an abusive relationship, but now she’s the abuser. If anything I should feel bad for Joker... who apparently is becoming the Joker... because of Harley? God this is like a fanfiction. And if Joker ever does end up being the one who manipulates Harley, why the hell should I care? If anything she deserves it since she was the one who started manipulating him. There are plenty of stories where Harley manages to pull one over on Joker, and they work because Harley’s getting payback for what Joker did to her. In this, she’s the one who started this whole thing. All of this is her fault. Honestly, fuck her.

Outside of that, Harley’s kind of annoying but she’s not awful. She’s got a few “Wouldn’t it be just QUIRKY if I did something really inconveniencing right now?” moments.

Bruce letting John and Harley into Wayne Enterprises is just reckless. It’s bad enough on its own, but when Harley starts physically threatening and putting her hands on his employees then good god he shouldn’t be letting this happen anymore. The whole thing is just irritating to watch.

Y’know, Bruce really oughta change up all of the secrets in his office if Penguin knows about them and is telling other criminals.

At this point Tiffany is just here to be an inconvenience.

I feel like they could have worked Matches Malone into this story, instead of having Bruce pretty much become a criminal.

Fries’ suit is pretty good. It’s missing the dome though, you can’t have Fries without his dome. His glove that can freeze things by touching them is neat, but I still prefer the gun. I also don’t really like his voice. His characterization’s good though.

Fries sounds like he’s voiced by the guy who voices Skullface. He isn’t.

I like Harley a lot more when she’s being more sincere instead of trying to be the most annoying person in the room.

Do... do we get to fuck Harley? I don’t know if I wanna fuck Harley. Or rather, I don’t know if I want Bruce to fuck Harley.

I don’t really like all the villains already being in full-on “villain mode” already. It seems like they just popped up out of nowhere, already established and organized. I wanna see how these people become supervillains, not just have them pop onto the scene in full costume, ready to start their life of crime. The only one who seems like he’s still in a sort of early stage is Joker, the one who would make the most sense to already be a full-on villain.

What’s the point in Bruce hiding his face during the heist if they’re going to call him by his name anyway?

Seeing Bruce try to reduce the deaths by beating up agents himself was cool.

Bruce seeing the Batsignal go up as he drives away with the villains, not able to do anything about it, is a good scene.

Interested to see what they do with Riddler’s dead body.

Hey look, Catwoman’s back.

Might add more when future episodes come out

[gaybriel-reyes]

UNSUAL ASKS 1 through whatever number it went to, I just saw it and legit can't remember. Do them all fam, am interested.

Holy Moly, this is gonna take a while. But I appreciate it, anon. Thanks for asking!

Spotify, SoundCloud, or Pandora? I´ve never used one of these properly but I guess Spotify??

is your room messy or clean? 4 out of 7 days it´s messy. Messy is its natural state

what color are your eyes? Dark brown

do you like your name? why? Yeah, I like its origin and meaning. Also it isn´t either common or weird, a nice in-between.

what is your relationship status? Single and ready to mingle

describe your personality in 3 words or less. What the fuck

what color hair do you have? Dark brown

what kind of car do you drive? color? Sentra, grey. But I don´t really drive often

where do you shop? The shops I frecuent the most are clothing ones and those are H&M and Pull and Bear (??)

how would you describe your style? (In personality, music taste, clothing...?) In every aspect I stick to comfort and what I like the most at the moment. 

favorite social media account. Tumblr and Facebook. In Tumblr I feel the most loved (lmao) but since I created a fake account in Facebook and joined some communities there, I´ve been having a lot of fun. Well, Tumblr for the win

what size bed do you have? Individual?? (I don´t know how it is called in English) Lemme tell you it´s small as fuck

any siblings? Yes, a little one. 

if you can live anywhere in the world where would it be? why? Already answered

favorite snapchat filter? The one with the mask (I don´t know how to say “cubrebocas” in English sORRy) with animal print in it. It´s perfect for me cause it covers half my face with it

favorite makeup brand(s) I don´t use makeup. Only for special occasions

how many times a week do you shower? Daily

favorite tv show? Already answered

shoe size? Uhhh in my country´s measure it´s 24

how tall are you? 1.56 cm (5″1 aprox)

sandals or sneakers? Sneakers

do you go to the gym? LMAO. I haven´t gone to the gym in months

describe your dream date. A night out in the city (my home city to be specific)

how much money do you have in your wallet at the moment? 500 pesos (aproximately 25 dollars)

what color socks are you wearing? Grey with blue dots

how many pillows do you sleep with? 1

do you have a job? what do you do? nope. I do wish I had one

how many friends do you have? That´s a fun question. I have a lot of internet friends but I only have one best friend which I could trust my life with.

whats the worst thing you have ever done? Too many

whats your favorite candle scent? Apple and cinnamon

3 favorite boy names. Emiliano, Antonio and I don´t have a third one

3 favorite girl names. Cassandra, Alicia and Julieta

favorite actor? (He´s a voice actor I hope it still counts) Troy Baker

favorite actress? Lupita Nyongo´o

who is your celebrity crush? Troy Baker again

favorite movie? Dead Poets Society

do you read a lot? whats your favorite book? Unfortunately not as I used to (ironic cause what I want to study requires lots of reading) and my favorite book is Sarah´s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

money or brains? bRAiNS

do you have a nickname? what is it? Fati or Fa

how many times have you been to the hospital? Just when I was born lol. I´ve never been hospitalized

top 10 favorite songs. Already answered and too lazy to put it again

do you take any medications daily? No. This week is an exception cause I´m sick :P

what is your skin type? (oily, dry, etc) OiLY AS helL

what is your biggest fear? Death (ironic cause I want to die 24/7. Hard to explain)

how many kids do you want? 2 or none. Kinda want a family kinda want a peaceful life

whats your go to hair style? Ponytail

what type of house do you live in? (big, small, etc) Apartment

who is your role model? My dad. Just not as close-minded as he is

what was the last compliment you received? Someone suggested to make me a fan club 

what was the last text you sent? Already answered

how old were you when you found out santa wasn’t real? 12. It went all downhill from there

what is your dream car? Mustang

opinion on smoking? Disgusting but I still do it sometimes oops

do you go to college? It´s almost time for me to

what is your dream job? Working at a place where books are edited

would you rather live in rural areas or the suburbs? Rural, but my dream is to live right in the city

do you take shampoo and conditioner bottles from hotels? No

do you have freckles? Nope 

do you smile for pictures? Just a slight smile

how many pictures do you have on your phone? 1, 080

have you ever peed in the woods? Yeah... It was an emergency

do you still watch cartoons? Anime doesn´t enter this category so no. (Not a big fan of anime anyways)

do you prefer chicken nuggets from Wendy’s or McDonalds? McDonald´s. Extra fact: I´ve never been to Wendy´s

Favorite dipping sauce? None

what do you wear to bed? A long, old blouse

have you ever won a spelling bee? No :( Haunts me till this very day

what are your hobbies? Play video games for the most part. I also like reading 

can you draw? Not really

do you play an instrument? I used to play guitar

what was the last concert you saw? It was September of 2016. Twenty one Pilots

tea or coffee? Coffee

Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts? I´ve never been to Dunkin Donuts but Starbuck is expensive as hell so...

do you want to get married? Yup

what is your crush’s first and last initial? A and R

are you going to change your last name when you get married? HELL NO

what color looks best on you? Blue??? 

do you miss anyone right now? At this very moment, no

do you sleep with your door open or closed? Closed. Don´t want any diabolic spirits to get in, right?

do you believe in ghosts? No???

what is your biggest pet peeve? Myself as a person

last person you called` My aunt

favorite ice cream flavor? Mamey

regular oreos or golden oreos? Regular oreos

chocolate or rainbow sprinkles? Rainbow sprinkles

what shirt are you wearing? A neon green one. I used it in training when I was a cheerleader :´)

what is your phone background? Already answered

are you outgoing or shy? SHY

do you like it when people play with your hair? IF YOU PLAY WITH MY HAIR IM ALL YOURS

do you like your neighbors? Mmmm... no

do you wash your face? at night? in the morning? At night

have you ever been high? No

have you ever been drunk? Nope

last thing you ate? A chocolate bar

favorite lyrics right now: Give me your forever, or at least just for a whileGive me never ending, or at least give me a mileGive me happiness, or at least give me a smileGive me forever for a while, give me forever for a whileQuit actin' like a baby, or at least less like a childGive me serenity, or at least just peace of mindGive me closure, or at least a phone callGive me forever for a while, give me forever for a while

summer or winter? I´m a summer hoe

day or night? Night even though it´s when i suffer the most

dark, milk, or white chocolate? Dark

favorite month? June

what is your zodiac sign. Gemini

who was the last person you cried in front of? My dad. It was months ago

[evangelionunitkenway]

Feel free to read!

Some OC questions 1. Your first OC ever? -A demon named Vincent Nasierela. 2. Do you have a personal favourite among your OCs? -Yeah. My Son, Mihalo. 
3. Have you ever adopted a character or gotten a character from someone else? -No. I tend to make characters for people instead. 
4. A character you rarely talk about? - Donnie Ducreaux. He's kind of meh. 5. If you could make only one of your OCs popular/known, who would it be? -Defiantly Mihalo! 
6. Two OCs of yours that look alike despite not being related? -Viggo and Mihalo. Viggo actually looks like Korean Mihalo. 
7. Are your OCs part of any story or stories? -Oh yes. They all are part of different, and interconnecting stories. 
8. Do you RP as any of your OCs? If you do, introduce one of your RP OCs here! -No, I don't really RP much anymore. 
9. Would you ever be willing to give any of your OCs to someone else? -No, because they are mine. 
10. Introduce an OC with a complicated design? -Oh Jesus. Dvorah and Ahkenaton. Armor, layers and long hair. 11. Is there any OC of yours you could describe as a “sunshine”? -Yes! Mihalo's twin sister, Radojka. 12. Name an OC that isn’t yours but who you like a lot -? 13. Do you have any troublemaker OCs? -All of them are. Their collective theme song is "Heathens" by Twenty-One pilots. 14. Introduce an OC with a tragic backstory -All of my guys except for Radojka. 15. Do you like to talk about your OCs with other people? -I would love to! But nobody talks to me really. 16. Which one of your OCs would be the best at biology (school subject)? - Mihalo is good at Biology and Genetics. A creepy combo. 17. Any OC OTPs? - VanGo, KiHa, TreVorrah, TheOn, RadoYosha. 
18. Any OC crackships? -ViHa. They would be together but Viggo creeps him out. 19. Introduce an OC that means a lot to you (and explain why) -Miha is important to me because he's like the self that I want to be. Confident, self confident, and awesome. 
20. Do any of your OCs sing? If they sing, care to share more details (headcanon voice, what kind of songs they like etc)? - Miha sings like Dero from Oomph. Viggo's headcannon Voice actor is English Troy Baker. 21. Your most artistic OC -Theon the Vampire. He paints like a beast. 22. Is there any OC of yours people tend to mischaracterize? If yes, how? -Viggo is not a chauvinist playboy. He's extremely charming and absolutely polite to his lovers. 23. Introduce OC that has changed from your first idea concerning what the character would be like? - Dorian, Miha's twin brother was a hacker in my early concept, now he's an ex-army guy who has a bakery. 
24. If you could meet one OC of yours, who would it be and why? -Either Miha or Viggo because they are so handsome and kind. 
25. The OC that resembles you the most (same hobby, height, shared like/dislike for something etc?) -None, but Miha and I sigh when we are bored and we both hate mushrooms. 26. Have you ever had to change your OC’s design or something else about them against your will? -Yeah. A whole race of creatures because they looked too close to another race that I was already made.
27. Any OCs that were inspired by a certain song? -I made an OC by the name of Nazzereno and he's based off of the song "Our Truth" by Lacuna Coil. 28. Your most dangerous OC? -Aeron because he's an angry alien shapeshifter. 29. Which one of your OCs would go investigate an abandoned house at night without telling anyone they’re going? -Miha and his brother Dorian would because they are both skeptical weirdos. 30. Which one of your OCs would most likely have a secret stuffed animal collection? -Luca would. 31. Pick one OC of yours and explain what their tumblr blog would be like (what they reblog, layout, anything really) -Viggo's blog would have pictures of himself, pictures of himself naked, videos of him doing things, and videos of himself giving out sex Ed advice. 32. Which one of your OCs would be the most suitable horror game protagonist and why? -Rado would because she's perceptive, extremely smart and she makes great choices. 33. Your shyest OC? -Between Luca and Nero, Nero is a 9 foot tall scared kitten. 34. Do you have any twin characters? - Yes! The Raznatovic's are quadruplets! 35. Any sibling characters? -The Raznatovics, The Iekha's, and the Ralïs's are all siblings. 36. Do you have OC pairs where the other part belongs to someone else (siblings, lovers, friends etc)? -Miha, who is Dorian, Radojka, and Luca's older brother is dating their family friend, Kiriean. 37. Introduce an OC who is not quite human -All of them are not human. 38. Which one of your OCs would be the best dancer? -Kiriean is an amazing dancer. 
39. Introduce any character you want -I made a new character named Ren Silla and he's an assassin of some sorts. 
40. Any fond memories linked to your characters? Feel free to share! -Well the Raznatovics are kind of like me and my siblings... Minus the fact that they are elves and we aren't. 
41. Has anyone drawn fanart of your OCs? If yes, maybe show a picture or two here (remember sources & permissions!) -No but I would love some! 42. Which one of your OCs would be the most interested in Greek gods? - Theon would because he's a natural scholar. 43. Do you have any certain type when you create your OCs? Do you tend to favour some certain traits or looks? It’s time to confess -I like all of my OC's to be tall. The shortest OC that I have is 6'1. Also everyone has a mixed race. 
44. Something you like about your OCs in general -They are all pretty, handsome, and intelligent. 
45. A character you no longer use? -A spliced dude named Teerowhyn. 46. Has anyone ever told you that you treat your OCs badly? -No... Nobody knows that I have OC's. 47. Has anyone ever (friendly) claimed any of your OCs as their child? -Yes. My sister when I showed her a picture of Luca. 48. OC who is a perfect cinnamon roll, too good for this world, too pure -Rado is. She's so sweet. 49. Which one of your OCs would most likely enjoy memes -Dorian and Miha because they are base dorks. 50. Give me the good ol’ OC talk here. Talk about anything you want
If you want. -So I'm currently trying to write a story about Viggo, who is 6'6 and his boyfriend, Vance who is 9'4. I don't know how size works apparently.

[oletherian-archive-blog]

RULES: tag seven followers you want to get to know better. repost, don’t reblog TAGGED BY: @libertinedeath  &  @ofalderaan TAGGING: you wanna do it. you go ahead c’:

&*- NAME/NICKNAME: chloe, this bitch. &*- GENDER: female. &*- HOGWARTS HOUSE: hufflepuff. &*- FAVORITE COLOR/S: red ! !  &*- FICTIONAL CHARACTER I’D LIKE AS A SIBLING:  uh ? not anakin that’s for sure. &*- NUMBER OF BLANKETS I SLEEP WITH: one. &*- DREAM VACATION: san Diego ( comic Con ) &*- WHAT I’M CURRENTLY WEARING: pyjamas and my jedi robe. &*- WHAT I POST: 90% Sandposting. 10% Drafts. &*- DO YOU GET ASKS ON A REGULAR BASIS? if it’s sand puns. Yes. &*- AESTHETIC: uh h ... shrugs. anakin. anakin is just aesthetic. &*- STAR SIGN: Capricorn. &*- LAST THING GOOGLED: why is hayden christensen so tall ? &*- FAVOURITE MUSIC ARTISTS: does troy baker count ? because he should. because him. &*- DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER BLOGS? @warcompass & that’s it. &*- WHY DID YOU CHOOSE YOUR URL? well.  he was a jedi ... who betrayed the order and became a sith lord.  therefore jedibetrayer.  also i’m pretty sure one of his alias was betrayer when i was filling out his about and i just  :/  sounds like a p good username. &*- AVERAGE HOURS OF SLEEP? i normally get less than five cause i have no self control. &*- LUCKY NUMBER: 10. &*- FAVORITE CHARACTER: anakin skywalker. ( are you surprised )... but also peggy carter. &*- DREAM JOB: professional lazy asshole. &*- FOLLOWING: 184  ( at the moment )

[impaler-prince]

1-169 :V ))

~{{A few my dick.

1: How tall or short do you wish you were?I am 5′8″. I don’t have a preference of how short or tall I want to be. XD;; I just want hott legs.2: What’s your dream pet? (Real or not)Fenrich. |83: Do you have a favorite clothing style?I’m rather alternative. I really lie Ouji and Victorian style. Wish I could look like a Brit Vamp everywhere I go.4: What was your favorite video game growing up?Growing up? Well, I WOULD have said Disgaea, but I couldn’t play the game until...a year ago. Growing up, it was between Spyro and Eternal Eyes. Even Pokemon. Like come on.5: What three things/people do you think of most each day:Uh. that’s...actually hard to say. First thing I think about is my computer. First person I think about is you...And my cat. 6: If you had a warning label, what would yours say?“Danger: RPs on tumblr. This thing is literally a piece of shit.”7: What is your opinion on [insert person/thing here]?Fucker said frogs. e_____e I am terrified of frogs...but I’m SLOWLY getting over them...just hate toads now...fuckin...LJK;DS;LF8: What is your Greek personality type? [Sanguine, Phlegmatic, Choleric, or Melancholic]Melancholic. I guess? So said the quiz I just took. Is that good?9: Are you ticklish?Like I’d say that in public.10: Are you allergic to anything?I am allergic to most processed teas and egg nog. That’s all that I really know about. 

11: What’s your sexuality?Trying to break being demisexual. It’s actually very torturous...but otherwise, probably pansexual.12: Do you prefer tea, coffee, or cocoa?Can I just have a coke?13: Are you a cat or dog person?I like either but I have cats and I love them all.14: Would you rather be a vampire, elf, or merperson?..............................................the fuck do you think?15: Do you have a favorite Youtuber?Markiplier. For sure. Chez Lindsey. And anyone who amuses me! 16: How tall are you?...5′8″17: If you had to change your name, what would you change it to?Vincent Prince. |818: How much do you weigh? [Only ask this if you know the user doesn’t mind!]...102 pounds.19: Do you believe in ghosts/spirits?Yup.20: Do you like space or the ocean more?Holy shit. Either is terrifying but...hm...probably the ocean.21: Are you religious?Hell no. 22: Pet peeves?Eeehhh...I’m too awkwardly joyous to think about my pet peeves. 23: Would you rather be nocturnal or diurnal [opposite of nocturnal]?Uh. Depends on how I feel. I like being nocturnal but I find myself getting more tired at night due to...things.24: Favorite constellation?The fuckin Libra, bitch.25: Favorite star?I don’t really have a favorite STAR...but I guess Beetlejuice. XD26: Do you like ball-jointed dolls?NO. because they’re expensive. ._.27: Any phobias or fears?Many. Fear of heights, falling, toads, clowns, feeling happiness or contentment for too long, the past. yada yada.28: Do you think global warming is real?Nah. But if it is, I won’t survive because I can’t swim.29: Do you believe in reincarnation?Ooooohhhhh YEAH. 30: Favorite movie?Strange Magic and The Nightmare Before Christmas...and almost anything original from Tim Burton. He is idol.31: Do you get scared easily?Not really. I’m paranoid constantly, though. 32: How many pets have you own in your lifetime?Holy shit. I’ve had a lot of dogs and only a few cats in my life. I don’t remember them all, sadly.33: Blog rate? [You’ll rate the blog of the one who’s asking.]1000/1034: What is a color that calms you?Purples and pinks calm me down, I guess. I really like red things, though.35: Where would you like to travel and/or live?Romania, Germany, Sweden, Austria...just...BEAUTIFUL countries with architecture! I want to see it all.36: Where were you born?In Hell.37: What is your eye color?Poop.38: Introvert or extrovert?In the middle.39: Do you believe in horoscopes and zodiacs?Fuck yeah I do. I am a star child.40: Hugs or kisses?Why not both, baby? ;D41: Who is someone you would like to see/visit right now?@smartmaomoo42: Who is someone you love deeply?Christopher Lee. But also this faggot. --> @smartmaomoo43: Any piercings you want?I wanna re-pierce my belly button. |844: Do you like tattoos and piercings?They’re alright.45: Do you smoke or have you eiver done so?I vape. That’s it.46: Talk about your crush, if you have one!They live under water and they’re blue and flops around.47: What is a sound you really hate?Crying babies and crying bitches. If there’s a difference. 48: A sound you really love?Troy Baker and @smartmaomoo‘s accent voice.49: Can you do a backflip?Nope. 50: Can you do the splits?Nope.51: Favorite actor and/or actress?Holy shit. Patrick Seitz, Troy Baker, Christopher Lee, Vincent Price. Holy shit.52: Favorite movie?Wasn’t this already a question?53: How are you feeling right now?Like drawing.

54: What color would you like your hair to be right now?Black or red. But I’ve wanted to go white for awhile.55: When did you feel happiest?November 9th.56: Something that calms you down?Music and showers.57: Have any mental disorders? [Only ask this if you know the user doesn’t mind!]I don’t...like talking about it in public. It’s kind of embarrassing.58: What does your URL mean?Valvatorez’s first special.59: What three words describe you the most?Me, myself and I.60: Do you believe in evolution?I doooooooo.61: What makes you unfollow a blog?Well, on THIS blog it’s if there’s way too much shit posting and not enough RPing. Please crack! I don’t care. Just if it’s nothing related to your /RP/ blog...yeah...I might unfollow you here. Just because I like to keep things in order on here. XD;; I’m a stressball.62: What makes you follow a blog?Again. On THIS blog, good writing, good character, interesting character, mutual Disgaea fandom people and good art! Any of the above plus a liking to RP but...too shy to ask. 63: Favorite kind of person:The kind that aren’t stupid.64: Favorite animal(s):Any breed of cat.65: Name three of your favorite blogs.I can’t. X’C I’ll end up naming off everyone...66: Favorite emoticon:

67: Favorite meme:

68: What is your MBTI personality type?Dunno. And too lazy to find out. XD;;69: What is your star sign?Libra.70: Can your dog roll over on command, if you have a dog?Fenrich might.71: What outfit out of all your clothes do you like to wear the most?Uh...being naked.72: Post a selfie or two?

73: Do you have platform shoes?Nope. I’m tall already. I don’t need them.74: What is one random but interesting fact about yourself?I am so flexible that I can bend forward and lick my own--...75: Can you do a front flip?The fuck is that?76: Do you like birds?I like eating them.77: Do you like to swim?I can’t swim and I hate water.78: Is swimming or ice skating more fun to you?...I will kill you.79: Something you wish didn’t exist:My ex.80: Some thing you wish did exist:Fenrich.81: Piercings you have?I have one in my right ear.82: Something you really enjoy doing:Drawing.83: Favorite person to talk to:I like talking to a lot of people. 84: What was your first impression of Tumblr?“KITTIES!!!”85: How many followers do you have?213. Currently.86: Can you run a mile within ten minutes?If it’s cold enough and my cat was being held hostage. 87: Do your socks always match?I don’t wear socks. |888: Can you touch your toes and keep your legs straight completely?Nope.89: What are your birthstones?The MOTHER FUCKING OPAL!! 90: If you were an animal, which one would you be?Serval probably.91: If a flower could aesthetically represent you, what kind would it be?A lily probably. Or a Poinsettia. Red, pretty, simple, festive...but will fucking kill you.92: A store you hate?Abercrombe and Bitch.93: How many cups of coffee can you drink in one day?None.94: Would you rather be able to fly or read minds?I’m afraid of heights and I already can read minds. Maybe a more accurate reading is required. Muwahahaa!95: Do you like to wear camo?It’s kewl. My parental figure was a Marine so I often see that shit.96: Winter or summer?Neither. Fall.97: How long can you hold your breath for?A long god damn time. 98: Least favorite person?...........................................................................................99: Someone you look up to:Anyone I look up to end up being the biggest cunt in the world. So...100: A store you love?Spencer’s. 101: Favorite type of shoesConverses and combat boots.102: Where do you live?Way deep inside your butthole, Morty.103: Are you a vegetarian or vegan? If so, why?I just fucking said I like eating birds.104: What is your favorite mineral or gem?

O P A L S

105: Do you drink milk?Straight shot. With chocolate and on the rocks.106: Do you like bugs?Gh!107: Do you like spiders?GH!!108: Something you get paranoid about?Everything.109: Can you draw:

110: Nosiest question you have ever been asked?All of these.111: A question you hate being asked?If I hate a question that’s being asked.112: Ever been bitten by a spider?NO. And I don’t plan to be.113: Do you like the sound of waves at the beach?Yeah. It’s nice.114: Do you prefer cloudy or sunny days?I prefer cloudy but if I’ve been depressed, sun is good to lift spirits. Vitamin D and all.115: Someone you’d like to kiss or cuddle right now:@smartmaomoo116: Favorite cloud type:Cloud type? Big and BLACK. The deadlier, the better. 117: What color do you wish the sky was?8D;;...If I say red it would be horrifying...But maybe purple!118: Do you have freckles?Here and there.119: Favorite thing about a person:Intelligence.120: Fruits or vegetables?BOTH ARE LIKE CHOCOLATE TO ME!!121: Something you want to do right now:Finish this.122: Is the ocean or sky prettier?Ocean. By far. It just compliments the skies.123: Sweet or sour foods?FOODS?? SOUR?? SOME PEOPLE CALL THAT BEING ROTTEN!! 124: Bright or dim lights?Dim. Of no lights.125: Do you believe in a certain magical creature?Vampires? Werewolves? Kangaroos? Yes.126: Something you hate about Tumblr:The prejudice people who say EVERYONE SHOULD BE GAY!!127: Something you love about Tumblr:RPing.128: What do you think about the least?This question.129: What would you want written on your tombstone?“May it be known that they really did know everything.”130: Who would you like to punch in the face right now?........................................................131: What is something you love but also hate about yourself?Uh...my self esteem. Being up and down.132: Do you smile with your teeth showing for pictures?No. NO.133: Computer or TV?Computer. 

134: Do you like roller coasters?NO.135: Do you get motion sickness or seasickness?I don’t believe so. I get car sick though. Was on a boat once and wasn’t bothered.136: Are your ears lobed or attached?No.137: Do you believe in karma?She’s my best friend.138: On a scale of 1-10, how attractive would you say you are?8.139: What nicknames do you have/have had?Ah, shit. Many. Vex, Keeper, Rhys, Tenshi, Valzy, Asshole...Baby.140: Did you have any pretend or imaginary friends?He’s real.141: Have you ever seen a therapist/shrink?I see a psychologist regularly. 142: Would you say you are a good or bad influence to others?Aaaahhhh...143: Do you prefer giving or receiving gifts/help?I prefer both but I’m always more happy to give than recieve.144: What makes you angryRight now? My numb arm.145: How many languages do you speak fluently?Uh...English, Spanish, little bit of Latin and German. Learning Welsh.146: Do you prefer boys, girls, and/or non-binaries?They. I am fluid.147: Are you androgynous?Good question. You decide.148: Favorite physical thing about yourself:How thin I am. But also self conscious about it, too.149: Favorite thing about your personality:My sass and salt.150: Name three people you would like to talk to right now in person.I’m too shy.151: If you could go back into time and live in one era, which would you choose?Re-enter the Disgaea fandom without him.152: Do you like BuzzFeed?HELL YES!153: How did you meet your spouse/girlfriend/boyfriend/partner? [If you have one.]FB RPs.154: Do you like to kiss others’ foreheads or hands for platonic reasons?Not platonically. If it’s COSPLAY AS A STAGE KISS, I’m fine but that’s something that is personal to me.155: Do you like to play with others’ hair?Depends if they like to have it touched.156: What embarrasses you?My old man does.157: Something that makes you nervous/anxious:A few things. 158: Biggest lie you have ever told:It’s my fault.159: How many people are you following?174.160: How many posts do you have on your blog(s)?1,701.161: How many drafts do you have on your blog(s)?12.162: How many likes do you have on your blog(s)?2,812.

163: Last time you cried and why:Uh...The day before yesterday. My ex.164: Do you have long or short hair?It’s short as F00K.165: Longest your hair has ever been:Down passed my knees.166: Why do you like, dislike, or have neutral feelings about religon?Because I lived with a town full of crazy ass Christians. 167: Do you really care how the universe and world was created?Not really. It’s life. Live it. Stop worrying about how it was made and just learn to love it.168: Do you like to wear makeup?No. Unless there’s cosplay. Because...ugh.169: Can you stand on your hands or head for more than thirty seconds?I can stand ON my head. |8

[kryssieness]

Why Actors Matter

I just finished my Chapter 3: Methodology draft of my dissertation. Now, it’s onto the Chapter 2: Comprehensive Literature Review (which is 25-50 pages), and then I get to edit the entire first three chapters before submission for preliminary oral defense!

THIS IS HAPPENING!!!! I’m, seriously, going to succeed at my childhood dream!!

I was 3 when I first saw Tom Baker and his fabulous hair, hat, and multicolored long scarf. It was my favorite thing in all the world and I wanted to be like Sarah Jane. I’d always hoped (and still do, honestly) that The Doctor would come and take me on an adventure. Then I got it in my head that I could be a doctor like him. But, I didn’t want to cut people open. Icky.

I was 8 when when my name’s sake, Christa McAuliff, boarded the Space Shuttle Challenger. I wanted to be an astronaut because astronomy and physics were super cool to me. I wanted to explore the universe and maybe find Luke Skywalker and marry him--or even run into The Doctor! How awesome would that be?! The day after the disaster, I was trying to wrap my 8-year-old brain around the fact that Christa had been killed in the explosion. I expressed as much to some of the older boys at my one-room A.C.E. school, and he turned around and snapped, “Her name was ChristY not ChristA. If it was ChristA, we’d have hoped it was you!” I blinked. No one had ever wished me dead, before. I started to cry and went back to my desk. I vowed that day I’d never go into science. I also decided I didn’t like my name very much.

In 1987, a new show came out on TV. I watched a lot of stuff with my Nanny (mom’s mom). I got to see shows like Doktari, NOVA, Newton’s Apple, Dallas, Hillcrest Blues, and now, this new show called Star Trek: The Next Generation. I was fascinated by it. It was no Star Wars, but it was still pretty neat. Reiker was kinda cute and Picard was so fatherly. I thought Troi was impossibly beautiful, and was trying to figure out why LeVar Burton wasn’t reading to me (but, it was really cool that he wasn’t because he was doing science!). But, the stand out on the show was Wesley Crusher. To this day, I still don’t understand the detest for that character. He was a boy, not too much older than me, in space! Doing space things! I had a new brother!! Well, at least, I wanted to be his sister. His twin sister, because that would just be awesome! Then he and I could communicate telepathically and do science things together. In space. And maybe I’d like my name again.

I started liking astronomy again, but I never pursued it as passionately as I had before. I was always really good at it. Physics was difficult because, math, but I still managed to pull As, much to everyone’s confusion. I had found a new passion: Acting. Johnny Depp was my inspiration there. I remember watching him on 21 Jump Street and wanting to do what he did. Then I picked up music because my sister played piano and I wanted to be just like my big sister! I chose to pursue acting and music in college. It was harsh blow to hear that I wasn’t good enough, despite how many other people told me I was (like my voice teacher who was renowned for playing the title role in Carmen, or her [now ex-] husband who was teaching at Rochester School of Music when he was 19). So, I took on an education background, thinking I could change the world through teaching.

I learned rapidly that I don’t like school administrators.

I tried to get into acting in CA. It turns out, I’m not the right type, whatever that actually means. I wasn’t pretty enough, or tall enough, or thin enough or blonde/brunette enough. And, forget about hearing me sing. No one was interested in that.

It took a former employer complaining about how awful gamers were as employees to get me thinking, seriously, again about my dream of being a doctor. I quit that job and have spent the previous 7 years working on, first, a Masters in Business Communication and Leadership Development, and now, a PhD in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, with an emphasis in training and e-learning, using applied gaming as my platform. 

I turn 40 on December 25 this year. I still hate my first name, but I’ll be your Doctor. I awkwardly admire @wilwheaton (and probably annoy him) because of his character, Wesley Crusher--and I still want to be his twin!--and Johnny Depp, along with Val Kilmer and Nicole Kidman will remain my ideals for acting from my childhood (Real Genius actually directly impacted my life, as well). I will forever look to Tom Baker and say “I love you for all you’ve done for me that you will never know. We’re all stories in the end and you....were the best one.”

[yahoo-shutdown-corner-blog]

Baker Mayfield is the next Russell Wilson

As we approach April’s NFL draft, plenty of comparisons will be thrown out surrounding Oklahoma’s polarizing quarterback, Baker Mayfield. And plenty of people will say he’s too small, or too cocky or too much like failed experiment Johnny Manziel.

While it’s easy to compare Mayfield – who plays with a massive chip on his shoulder – to Manziel, it would also be untrue. The reality is he’s far more similar to the Seattle Seahawks’ Russell Wilson than Johnny Football.

One NFL executive told me he thought Mayfield’s footwork was sound, which includes not throwing off his back foot very often. It’s true. Watch him instead opt to step into his throws, a trait of Wilson’s. He is also excellent while operating within the pocket and what he lacks in prototypical size and stature, he makes up for in grit and sheer arm talent.

Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield owns the FBS single-season passing efficiency rating record with a 198.9 mark, up from his record-breaking 196.4 clip in 2016. (AP)

Moreover, like Wilson, Mayfield, who is generously listed at 6-foot-1, 220 pounds, maintains superb consistency with his feet in the pocket and has the intelligence to manipulate defenses. He will often freeze a safety just long enough to then let his sensational arm strength take over and fire a bullet into a tight window. There is a certain level of fluidity to his game.

The old adage that a QB has to be 6-4, 230 pounds has been debunked. Future Hall of Famer Drew Brees and the perennial Pro Bowler Wilson are also around 6-feet tall and both own Super Bowl rings.

What about the system?

Wilson ran a pro-style system during his lone season at Wisconsin, while Mayfield ran the Air Raid, like Manziel – and Tim Tebow, Geno Smith, as well as Tim Couch.

Undoubtedly, a laundry list of Heisman winners – not just Manziel and Tebow – have failed as quarterbacks in the NFL: Robert Griffin III, Troy Smith, Matt Leinart, Danny Wuerffel, Jason White, Eric Crouch, Chris Weinke, Charlie Ward, Andre Ware, Gino Torretta and Ty Detmer are all prime examples.

How GREAT has Jared Goff been? #Rams

John Elway (first 24 starts): 4,261 yards passing, 25 TDs, 29 INTs, 6.6 YPA, 51.9 completion percentage, 65.9 passer rating

Goff (first 22 starts): 4,893 passing yards, 33 TDs, 14 INTs, 7.2 YPA, 59.8 completion percentage, 89.4 passer rating

— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) January 1, 2018

But consider 2016 No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff – not a Heisman winner – but more importantly, a quarterback who ran the “Bear Raid” at Cal. Goff ran spent a robust 99.8 percent of his pass snaps from pistol or shotgun running the spread during his final collegiate season. Those numbers mirror Mayfield’s during both his one season in Lubbock (he transferred from Texas Tech) and three in Norman. Keep in mind too, that NFL offenses have been transitioning more and more to shotgun over the previous two decades.

After a brilliant second season with the Rams, Goff has clearly demonstrated that a specific college system is hardly a barometer for failure. What matters most isn’t the system, but instead who is under center – or for that matter, in the gun.

With that in mind, consider that Mayfield had nearly full control of the line of scrimmage at OU, meaning he was afforded the opportunity to make any check he deemed fit. Again, this hardly guarantees success as a pro, but it shows that he is familiar enough not merely with his playbook, but with the opposing defense to consistently audible to a better play.

The rare athleticism and touch

Mayfield, who possesses a thick, durable and strong lower body, is as natural a runner as they come. But his remarkably deft touch throwing the football, like Wilson, is a huge plus. He extends plays extremely well with his feet and his genius is that he then possesses the physical fortitude to make tough throws rolling in either direction.

And he does all of this without the onslaught of turnovers that more highly touted prospects like USC’s Sam Darnold – whose 22 total turnovers this season bothers me greatly – UCLA’s Josh Rosen (nearly one interception per game for his career) and Wyoming’s painfully inaccurate Josh Allen (56.2 percent career completion rate) are accustomed to committing.

En route to becoming the first former walk-on to win a Heisman Trophy, Mayfield tossed just six picks this season despite averaging a healthy 11.5 yards per attempt and completing an impressive 70.5 percent of his passes.

A proven winner

Mayfield, 22, is also ready to play immediately. More important, he is ready to win. He’s won his entire life, guiding Lake Travis High School to a 25–2 record in two seasons, including a prestigious 4A State Championship. Not only was the Austin, Texas native 33-6 as a starter for OU, but he’s battle-tested too. In 17 career games verses ranked opponents, the ultra competitive Mayfield won 13 while amassing a stellar 46-13 TD-INT ratio. He never lost a road start at Oklahoma and twice reached the College Football Playoff.

In fact, Mayfield’s 131 touchdown passes are tied for the fourth most in FBS history. He owns the FBS single-season passing efficiency rating record with a 198.9 mark, up from his record-breaking 196.4 clip in 2016. He is also the first quarterback to finish in the top four in the Heisman balloting three straight years.

Mayfield never lost a single road game during his three years starting at Oklahoma. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

That same NFL executive told me he believed Mayfield, who captured three Big 12 titles in three years while at OU, would go somewhere in the middle of Round 1, if not the top 10.

Better yet, consider Georgia head coach Kirby Smart, who, after surviving the Sooners’ 54-48 in double-overtime during the College Football Playoff semifinal, told reporters: “He’s thick, he’s physical, he’s durable, he’s not going to get hurt very often. He’s plenty tall enough – look at Russell Wilson. So I don’t know what would be wrong with his measurables. As far as I know, these NFL teams are drooling for the guy.

“The guy believes he can make every throw. He’s seen every defense known to man. He’s made every check known to man. He knows how to check and adjust.”

Pocket passer

It’s worth noting that during his five seasons as a collegian, Mayfield – who also swept the college football awards by capturing the Maxwell, Walter Camp, Davey O’Brien and Chic Harley trophies – has morphed into a true pocket passer.

One of the main criticisms early on in his career, common in young quarterbacks, was his overzealousness to abandon the pocket when he felt pressure. During the Rose Bowl, he showed vast improvement.

Take the Sooners’ opening six-play, 65-yard drive, which culminated in a gorgeous 13-yard touchdown pass. The entire arsenal was on display as Mayfield went through multiple progressions and not only didn’t leave the pocket, but delivered a series of aggressive, accurate strikes. On the two designed rollouts, he fired a couple on-target bullets, leaving no doubt of his supreme arm strength.

Mayfield may not be for everyone, and that’s OK. He is as brash as he is talented, but he is a proven winner who comes to play in the biggest of games. That’s what being a top-flight NFL quarterback is all about. It’s why Russell Wilson has defied the odds and it’s ultimately why Mayfield will do precisely the same thing. Whichever franchise is lucky enough to draft him will be very happy for a very long time.

– – – – – – –

Follow Jordan Schultz on Twitter @Schultz_Report

Jordan Schultz is an NFL, NBA and NCAAB insider/analyst for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at Jordan.Schultz@Oath.com.

More NFL coverage from Yahoo Sports: • Why Andy Reid has to go • Report: Houston QB Kyle Allen to enter NFL draft • Blake Bortles: ‘There will always be people who always think I suck’

[humeresque]

Les Pinois: Trying-Hard French

(Being Filipino means trying hard to be French.)

You kneaux, in Maurice Arcache's "Cosmo Manille" and even among those on the other side of the railroad tracks, so many people are trying so hard to be French that trying so hard to be French has become an entire industry. We don't notice how much it's been thriving for years, but it's out there.

I guess everything started when the French Baker set up shop and introduced the masses to such panaderya alternatives as baguette and croissant. Le French Baker, owned by Filipino-Chinese Johnlu Koa, is still alive and well today despite strong competition from Le Couer de France and Delifrance. Le trick seems to be to insert "France" or "French" in the establishment's name, and ooh-la-la, the essence of cafe au lait and macaroni au gratin is captured in the tropical heat and humidity of La Manille.

Of course, years before French Baker, we were already fairly familiar with French parfums like Estee Lauder eau de cologne pour homme, French wines (Pinot Noirs, Merlots, and whatnot), and other things French and prefixed with French (bouillabaise, French braid, French kiss, French fries). There too was the popular TV animation character Pepe La Pew, who exuded those notable twin French excesses: romanticism and narcissism. Many of us instantly fell in love with his cursed self. But it was when the pan de sal in our lowly breakfast tables was replaced with garlic toast made from baguette that our French citizenship was confirmed, stamped with mainstream approval.

Next came the invasion of the French films. Le inventeurs of film-making -- descendants of the Lumieres -- treated us for free to watch le classics, from the snooty Cocteaus, Godards, and Truffauts, to the Luc Bessons starring Jean Reno.

Soon, full-blown French bistros and fine-dining restos became too numerous to name, starting from Au Bon Vivant to Le Souffle to any establishment you could name that is suffixed with -ette, -eau, -eaus, -eaux, and -oix and -ois. (Famed expat chef Billy King is now with Le French Corner in Alabang.) Of course, Pinois (enunciated with a flourish as /pin-wah'/) have to out-French the French, no?

Foreign language students next began flocking to Alliance Francaise to enroll in French classes to complete their false identity. I know of many friends and acquaintances who were not ashamed to proclaim they wanted to be French, or at least take up French lessons. There was Rica, who made me aware that Alliance Francaise used to be a stone's throw away from our office near Buendia cor. Pasong Tamo in Makati. There's Cathy who taught me how to pronounce "croissant" right but ended up French-kissing a true-to-life Frenchman instead. There's JJ who, getting tired of Spanish, is now switching to this other Romance lingo that sounds like he has a cleft palate and le UFO got lodged somewhere in his nostrils. I am also reminded of Net, who prefers to spell 'omelet' 'omelette' and pronounce it as /o-me-lay/, with much Gallic flourish.

Le thinkers or intellectuals among these Pinois are especially notorious in wanting to be Frenchified. Most of them have memorized the libretto to the musical play version of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables. (JJ corrects me superciliously, "It should be Le Misera'-bl, not Le Miserab'.") These Francophiles know their Renoirs, Monets, and Matisses (impressionist painters), Jacques Derrida (deconstructivist philosopher), Roland Barthes (literary theorist), Voltaire (satirical novelist), Camus (absurdist, existentialist), Michel Foucault (structuralist, postructuralist, postmodernist philosopher), Jacques Lacan (psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, philosopher), and Jean Baudrillard (sociologist, philosopher, cultural theorist, political commentator, photographer). They would also be not embarrassed to admit they know Alexandre Dumas (of Le Musketeers un le Menage a Trois fame), if push comes to shove.

Ask Pinoi tourists which place they want to visit the most, and they'll most likely say neither Holy Land nor New York, but "Gay Paree!," rattling off in a beat the sites they want to see: Eiffel Tower, Champs-Elysee, Arc du Triompe, and Louvre Museum for a view of le Mona Lisa...

Today, even building names and addresses are given the de-luxe spa treatment. I know a condo in Pasig called Parc Chateau. Parc Chateau? Am I in Nice or what? However, that one along EDSA near Guadalupe, called Parc Haus Suites, looks confused. Is Parc really the French version of Park, as in Marc as the French version of Mark, or should it be Parque? I dunno, but I'm pretty sure "Haus" is German, not French.

Curiously, we've long had, in fact, an entire booklet of lowbrow Pinoy French jokes meant to poke pun at this Filipino fondness for the French. I have heard people point out that "le quod" is French for "likod" ("back"), "le bag" is French for "libag" ("skin grime"), and "icé beau coup pour salé" is French Tagalog for "ice buko for sale." Of course, we know when to command the use of certain diacritical marks (the graves, the acutes, and the tildes) for this purpose. "Icé" is pronounced /ee-say'/ and "salé" is pronounced /sa-lay'/, and who cares what the real French people think?

The French being predominantly Catholic like le Pinois, it's small wonder that devotions to Thérèse of Lisieux, Lourdes, and the Miraculous Medal are commonplace too. Never mind that most of us still tend to say /Lur'-des/ instead of /Lurds/. A vestige of our Spanish trauma, surely.

Lately, our familiarity with the French beyond Jacques Costeau and Marie Antoinette and the guillotine is such that we have become intimately familiar with the finer points of French cuisine. We know what ratatouille is, we know that Alain Ducasse and Emeril Lagasse are celebrity chefs, we welcome Anthony Bourdain into our kichen with open arms and anxiously await his Guide Michelin stars. To demonstrate je ne sais quois or insouciance, we like to be served aperitifs, crepes, creme brullees, canapes, hors d'ouevres, nicoise salad, macarons, mousse, eclair, amuse bouche, pain and poisson, quiche, fondue, cakes with fondant and ganache, souffle, and lapu-lapu Meuniere, with bottled Evian or Perrier on the side. (After some time, it can get so tiresome putting in all the correct diacritical marks, don't you think?)

It has come to a point where we can't tell anymore whether Le Froge jeans, Le Tigre shirts, and Penshoppe tees are already Pinoi or as French as, say, Lacoste, Pierre Cardin, Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, Hermes, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent, and Francois Marithe Girbaud. And, yeah, I almost forgot Ungaro, the sine qua non of haute couture or something!

I have observed, furthermore, that the Ilocanos, for one, are really French behind their facade of burnt skin and tobacco smoke. Why? Simply because of this incontrovertible proof: the French word "quoi" (French for ‘what’) is no different from the usual Ilocano sound of hesitation, "cua." "Awan ti cua…" and "Anya ti cua…" suspiciously sound too much like "je ne sais quoi," oui? We do know too that the French people are passionate about their food to the point of being extreme. Being a gourmet to them means being able to slurp with relish such exotic concoctions as escargot -- much like the frog-inhaling and cricket-snorting Pampangos do. What other cultures regard as vile -- animal kidney, liver, entrails, perhaps even lungs and pancreas, the Ilocanos, not to mention the Pampangos, sautee with such pride and esprit de corps. Some French fine-diners like to feast on a certain bird in the wild called ortolan bunting, and the dish has to be eaten up with a blanket covering the diner’s entire head to savor the delicate flavor most fully. Most likely it’s an aliquot of subtle gamey flavor they’re trying to trap with surgical care and precision. That bizzarezerie -- a formal dinner among cloaked ghouls -- may be a turnoff to other people, but certainly not to confirmed epicures like certain Pinois.

If you think about it, the Pinois' fascination for the French dates back to how many centuries ago. Remember how the menu for the feast during the first inauguration of Philippine Independence in Barasoain Church, Malolos, Bulacan, was in French? Les menu, according to history professor of the day Monsieur Ambeth Ocampo (in his column in Le Philippine Daily Inquirer) comprised of: “Hors d’Oeuvre: Huitres, Crevettes roses; beurre radis; olives; Saucisson de Lyon; Sardines aux tomates; Saumon Hollandaise. [Entrees] Coquille de crabes; Vol auvent a la financiere; Abatis de poulet a la Tagale; Cotelettes de mouton a la papillote, pommes de terre paille; Dinde truffee a la Manilloise; Filet a la Chateubriand, haricots verts; jambon froid-asperges en branche. Dessert:Fromages; Fruits; Confitures; gele de Fraises; Glaces. Vins: Bordeaux, Sauterne, Xeres; Champagne. Liquers: Chartreuse; Cognac. Café, The.”

Ocampo further notes: “Hidden underneath the fancy French names are familiar Filipino dishes: Coquille de crabes was possibly torta de cangrejo a.k.a rellenong alimasag. Tagalog-style chicken giblets listed as Poulet abatis a la Tagale was chicken adobo.”

Turns out French was the lingua franca at the time, neither Spanish nor English. Unthinkable, right? But the antecedent Pinois didn't have a problem with that as neither us, latter-day Pinois, will have any problem with a French Renaissance any moment.

Food critic Doreen Fernandez, in her essay "Beyond Sans Rival: Exploring the French Influence on Philippine Gastronomy" (from the author's 1994 book Tikim: Essays on Philippine Food and Culture), also notes that a French cookbook was published in 1919 in Manila. Elaborately titled, as expected, the cookbook, Fernandez writes, has a cover page that "features a tall mounted French piece like those in traditional classic French cookbooks, captioned: Croquemboucheng caranuian. The word croquembouche (croque-en-bouche) designates 'all kinds of patisserie which crunches and crumbles in the mouth,' like chestnuts, oranges or cream puffs glazed with sugar cooked to the crack stage. The (illustrated) recipe instructs one in the assembling of croquignoles (egg whites and icing sugar baked in various shapes, similar to meringues), and is called 'caranuian' or ordinary, in contrast to Croquembouche a la Reina, which includes 'sweet almonds ground very fine.'"

Croquemboucheng caranuian? That's hilarious! Isn't that, wait, Hispanized-Tagalized French? Only the Pinoi can be trusted to do that.

Why do Pinois love the French so much that they are ready to trade passports any minute? My own answer is: they are apparently after the panache, the joie de vivre, the European sophistication and the fine taste and the high-mindedness of it all, a drastic move away from the native hickery and Hollywood vulgarity. But we already have the Spanish with us, so what do the French have that the Spaniards don't? They are both lustful for life, for sure, but maybe there's something charming about using consonants you don't plan to pronounce or vowels that mislead.

Does everything have to be explained away anyway? Let us just call the X-factor "Le French mystique" then, a big 'mistake' for which we are more than willing to be recolonized.