#also your style is immaculate op

[tecnestheim962]

I’m:

In shambles.

Deceased.

In awe.

Inspired.

It’s so beautiful. He’s so gorgeous in your art style I love it.

But what about all those voices in the night? Whispering the things that keep me from a normal life Everything almost fits together right But in the end I don't belong inside a normal—

experimentation ft. one oscar pine

[buttercuparry]

If your take on many of the characters in the asoiaf series is based on the metaphor of toilet cleaning, with a few jabs thrown in that does nothing but reinforce the same lame ass take that you and your fellow people in the fandom circle agree on, then that in fact is no more clever than a brick resting on a dirt mound.

Now this is a funny post I guess. A clever post, OP thinks for sure. They preface it by saying that the best metric to judge someone is by finding out how, they feel about toilet cleaning. And of course, they say, since Asoiaf is about a bunch of noble borns, their aversion to toilet cleaning shines through in immaculate detail. The few exceptions out of those nobles are included in op's post, but the final conclusion is that all but one of them is normal about toilet cleaning.

And I absolutely have no qualms with Op's conclusion. To each their own after all. But since, in their very own style, the post has the same old flavour of insinuating that Arya Stark only plays at being disadvantaged after Ned Stark's death, I felt like I should impart some more flavour to balance it out.

As we see in the above excerpt of Op's toilet cleaning adventures, it is implied that the problem Arya has is with the toilet cleaning in itself. For those who are still confused, the metaphor of toilet cleaning references the manual labor that goes in running a castle- scrubbing floors, fetching water, delivering messages etc. So the way of life a lowborn is forced to live in Westeros. I can't help but see how even when op uses the word "slave" in reference to Arya's position in Harrenhal, it never really got translated in their understanding of what slavery means. Being a slave/prisoner of war in Harrenhal meant that this wasn't an employment. This was the complete ownership of Arya by those who instructed her and thus by those, who had the command of the castle. Pretty sure that slavery which has been the running theme of Grrm's books is said to be unbearable even when the slave is wearing the golden collar in place of chains (remember Daenerys?). In my understanding, Arya hates herself and everyone involved less for the toilet cleaning and more for the fact that this toilet cleaning is forced on every single prisoner of war, and they can't say no because saying no leads to death. Like pretty sure she witnessed a girl getting raped every night and when the girl finally said no by attacking her rapist, she was promptly cut down. I also have this passage that details what led up to Arya's toilet cleaning slavery at Harrenhal. Let's have a look shall we?

Their captors permitted no chatter. A broken lip taught Arya to hold her tongue. Others never learned at all. One boy of three would not stop calling for his father, so they smashed his face in with a spiked mace. Then the boy's mother started screaming and Raff the Sweetling killed her as well.

Arya watched them die and did nothing. What good did it do you to be brave? One of the women picked for questioning had tried to be brave, but she had died screaming like all the rest. There were no brave people on that march, only scared and hungry ones. Most were women and children. The few men were very old or very young; the rest had been chained to that gibbet and left for the wolves and the crows. Gendry was only spared because he'd admitted to forging the horned helm himself; smiths, even apprentice smiths, were too valuable to kill.

They were being taken to serve Lord Tywin Lannister at Harrenhal, the Mountain told them. "You're traitors and rebels, so thank your gods that Lord Tywin's giving you this chance. It's more than you'd get from the outlaws. Obey, serve, and live

Obey, serve and live. That's the toilet cleaning op of the excerpt references to. And then there comes the topic of Arya mellowing out to the toilet cleaning (slavery) after her very own "murder-by-proxy spree". Now I don't mean to assume, but it feels like op has gone down the same drain of Arya the murder baby trope, where it is believed that murdering people is just another way for Arya Stark to decompress after a stressful week at work. When a slave is forced to slavery, and gets the means by which they can attack the slaver to strike down their chains- I am pretty sure it is natural that they would feel some type of way about it. They would feel that now they have some control and is no more the toilet cleaning mouse. The regaining of agency is the difference between the mouse and the wolf. It is less about toilet cleaning and more about agency since, Arya "the once toilet cleaning mouse" seemed to voluntarily want to be a part of the crew onboard of a ship. Now idk much about sailing, but this I can say, being on a ship earning your keep involves a looooot of toilet cleaning for sure.

I have no more energy to dissect the last throwaway statement but I am happy it is finally being recognized that the death cult is truly a way to cope, when half of your family is dead and you can't do anything about it because the people in power have caused that death. Hopefully it would soon translate into seeing the list as a coping mechanism too and no more bullshit about being a mindless murder baby

[ss-3dproject]

Research !

In order to properly procede with the project at hand. some research is required in order for me to properly understand and utilise the tools I have at hand, and be able to use them to their fullest capacity.

What is Maya?

From what I can see, and the time I've used it yesterday, Maya is a 3D modelling and animation software that can be used in all types of media, whether that be TV or Video Games to make massive environments or characters of many different art styles.

Here are some of the amazing things that can be achieved with these two short videos below!

Here you can clearly see the epic environments and immaculate storytelling that can be captured by utilising this software.

Examples of Maya being used:

Within the video game industry, a lot of very popular games have used Maya in the past, including some that you've definetly heard of. For example, did you know Black Ops 3 was made with Maya? Or the Assassins Creed series? Two great games with amazing story telling made with the help of this very handy piece of software. Additionally, you have such other great games as Ratchet and Clank, and the Uncharted series which are known for being fantastic games to play. Lastly, there is also the Last of Us, which has been remastered about 4 times now, so the less said about that, the better. But, it does have a good story and quite enjoyable gameplay so it is still a notable example to mention nonetheless.

Now onto a slightly different topic.

Health Packs/Healing Items, and their usage in games:

Depending on the game, a healing item can come in quite literally many different forms. Whether that be a potion, an item used to regain health points, or even just a flat out medical kit.

For example, in the Legend of Zelda: Tears of The Kingdom, you heal your hp by consuming food items that you either found or cooked yourself.

Here, we can see one player (I don't play Zelda so this is somebody else's image, I apologise) who has grinded out what seems to be a maximum stack of golden apples in which the description shows that the apple will heal your health by 2 whole hearts which seems quite good as, from the little knowledge I have about Zelda, I'm pretty sure your hearts deplete in quarters, so this is basically 8 whole hit points healed at once.

Next you have Fortnite. This game has slowly changed over the years so the way to heal has changed too. Going back to the start of the battle royale mode, before the game really took off, there were only two ways to heal. That being the bandage, and the Medkit. The bandage only heals 15hp per use, to a maximum of 75 out of 100hp. Meanwhile, the medkit is a direct upgrade to the bandage and heals you immediately to a full 100 out of 100hp, with the downside that it takes 10 seconds to use rather than the 3 of the bandage.

(This was the best screenshot I could find, I'm sorry). But now 7 years on, there have been a multitude of new ways to heal in the game. This ranges from consumables on the ground like apples and corn, to harvesting the local wildlife for consumable meat, and even fishing for- well, fish. This shows that Fortnite has grown away from the standard stereotypical healing item to have its own identity.

Lastly. you have Halo. Halo has an interesting history with its healing item as, although it hasn't changed much, the reasoning behind why part of it changed is very funny. Originally, its health packs looked like this.

Pretty standard. Red plus symbol to show that this item is for healing, and it's clearly a case of some sort. But then their health pack changed to this.

The change, besides being higher quality of course as this is from a newer game, is the fact that the red plus has been swapped out for an H. I assume the H is meant to stand for healing, or health, or some such similar term, but why did they change it in the first place? The Geneva Convention. Using a red cross in video games breaks both the Geneva Convention and British law. Why? Because misuse can be considered to be a war crime.

On the Red Cross' website, they say this:

This means that several video games have unironically and unintentionally committed war crimes.

Anyways- I think this research will come in handy for me when it comes to working on the 3D project as I now understand that healing items are able to come in all different shapes and sizes, as well as changing entirely as the game continues. All I need to do is not use a red cross to symbolise the health item, or I have committed a war crime.

[sungbeam]

𝐑𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐒!

HEY !! HEY YOU, YEAH YOU!! remember to give these authors and the fics all the love they deserve! if u liked what u read, reblog it or comment or send in an ask !! cool, ty <3

a/n: hihi everyone! again, i wanted to extend my appreciation to all my fellow writers with this post (ik it's not a lot compared to how much all y'all do 😔), but if you'd like more fic recs, pls do check out my other blog @luv-beam!

**NOTE: lol 🤡 i do apologize if my bias(es) show per group !! i love every member of every group but some rot my brain a little more than others 🤧😭 i also haven't done a lot of reading lately ,,, this is an accumulation of like three months

NCT

his same, old, safe bet (jeong jaehyun) — @jaehunnyy

not finished just yet but it's off to a brilliant start !! we love yn's "bitch who r u" attitude toward jae lmaoo

swiper no swiping (lee donghyuck) — @/xosimo (linked my rb bc they deactivated 😭)

I WAS SWOOOOONING like omg hyuck is so attractive pls and just the unfolding of events and the build up? yes.

inevitable (na jaemin) — @korijime

dude the vibes r so immaculate in this piece, like the soft sort of atmosphere and the low-key confession style mwah

SVT

11:23pm (kwon soonyoung) — @xuhuihuis / @.maiademia

okay i admit i'm a little obsessed w this (maybe cuz it was my request so i must promote) but it was also written so well and hoshi is so nOm

love on the air (hong jisoo) — @suhnshinehaos

joshua hong 😔✨ ugh such a romantic,, both of them r two idiots in love but isn't that one of the best tropes?

pocket money (choi seungcheol) — @ethereal-engene

found this realistic in a good way!! cheol would be so cute all flustered and he *would* catch non-carat eyes too no doubt 👀👀

the way seventeen breaks your heart (performance unit) — @moonsolie

broke my heart </3 into seventeen+ pieces </3 if i love angst, then this was my ride or die

i less than three you (xu minghao) — @junshine (they deactivated unfortunately :( but i'll link my reblog!)

although op deactivated, pls do continue to read and enjoy their work :') it was so well written and i loved it so much

"i'm here. it's ok. you can cry. i've got you." (kwon soonyoung) — @holdinbacksecrets

comfort to the max ; i cannot tell u enough how much i loved this like ,, oh god i found this when i was not in a good spot and it just made me feel ,, seen?

order up (yoon jeonghan) — @leejungchans

my love for trickster jeonghan is thru the roof 😔😭 this was so so cute (and funny watching jeonghan not get the reaction he wanted skcjdj)

vernon heist au (chwe hansol) — @freakyfriedrice

i LOVED the uncharted movie and to be blessed with this au ?! like dream come true omg i loved this beyond words ; flustered vernon >>>>

TXT : i'm sorry txtblr i was and am in a beomgyu crisis.

nap of a star (choi beomgyu) — @blue-jisungs

omg literally mE WHEN?! (´Д⊂ヽ soft moment to the soundtrack of clownery, my favorite </3 u know u like them gyu õ_ó

8:55pm (choi beomgyu) — @4ure2

dUUDE the imagery in this one? i felt so many things, and this man goes and says this 😔 denial fr but sighs ,, that's love ig

balance game (choi beomgyu) — @yeonjunszn

low-key down bad for this trope, like /bruh/ u like ur best friend?? own it?? ; also this is funny asf even tho beomyn r lichrally dumbasses 🤕🤕

2:37am (choi beomgyu) — @ijhyo

now THIS was simply UNCALLED FOR my heart cannot take this like goodbye. this is all i want.

SKZ

king candy (han jisung) — @petrichor-han

how can i not put this hanji fic on here õ_ó READ IT, it's so cute and a holiday staple for me atp

poisoned fangs (kim seungmin) — @petrichor-han

i have so much to read from rain's m.list and i don't often read like horror-ish things? but i thoroughly enjoyed this one (i also have a weird thing for morbid reads 🤡)

probably up (bang chan) — @loveliestfelix

why we love christopher bang chan (´Д⊂ヽ ugh there was something so warm, mellow, and comfortable about this one and the ambiguity of potential lovers was also super refreshing

6:26pm (bang chan) — @daydreaminskz

i've actually never seen this kind of situation written before, and tbh i'm so here for it like the domesticity and chan being cute as always (i'm sorry but i might have laughed when he fell 😭💀)

10:43am (lee minho) — @cleyellow-wood

i honestly really love how this was written, like there was something abt op's style and the way lino was portrayed as well that hits the spot

tag, you're it (lee felix) — @loveliestfelix

read the warning so u aren't too surprised, but u will still need a box of tissues ; literally sHivers from this one

ENHA : lmao let's not talk abt my jungwon brainrot either 🤡

you're mine (yang jungwon) — @goldenhypen

em's stuff always makes me like 2489292x more delulu that's a fact like it's short but too sweet i 😔

bookmark (park jongseong) — @crystalsoobin

so so dang cute — even if he did call reader a nerd ig 🤕🤕

kisses nonstop (yang jungwon) — @goldenhypen

this woman posted this on my birthday as if it would not sHOOT ME THRU THE HEART ?!? LIKE U EXPECT ME TO BE OKAY AFTER THIS??

closer (yang jungwon) — @palajae

tbh read this during physics and i am not ashamed bc it was so cute and the pacing was mwah and oh god yANG JUNGWON (´Д⊂ヽ

ATZ

midnight kiss (kim hongjoong) — @i-write-some-stuff

i love whump aus part 28472993 OP U WROTE HONGJOONG SO WELL AND SO AHHHHH

11:54pm (choi san) — @stayarmytinyzenmoa-l

i will say this again and again but this lives in my brain rent free and i need to stalk crys' masterlists once i have the time 😔

june+july fic recs

[cnwolf-brainrot]

Oh my goodness I've been staring at them for an hour now THEY ARE SO CUTE HOLY COW, I love this so much!! Awww Kurt really needs this TLC, I love both of their expressions here so much ahhhh

Hi another Weapon by Name post uh,,,, I had an oddly specific thought about how Kurt thinks his hands are ugly and that those claws probably need some TLC so: manicure

[colorful-horses]

💐 ?

💐 - who’s your favourite mlp blog?

I don't know if I have a Single favorite blogger, so heres a list of some of my absolute favorite pony bloggers:

🎨 MLP Art Blogs

@cassettepony - Such a unique art style. Cannot stress enough how unique her art style is! It's very stylistic and the colors are POPPIN- they're so saturated and pretty! Her art reminds me of jolly ranchers,, I also absolutely love the exaggerated expressions and how she draws EYES (when the corner of the mouth slightly clips over the bottom of the eye.........immaculate) + She does something really special that I never see any other pony artists doing, which is giving the ponies little chin hairs or 5 o'clock shadows (I. i don't know what it's called please forgive me). It is so special and cool to see, and it's so recognizable! I ADORE Cassettes art and I've always been too shy to say hi so uhhh. Hi! 👋

@msponies - ponies drawn in mspaint. HIGH QUALITY posts here. I am so inspired by their use of colors- the RANGE in some of these posts is crazy. Some of these drawings have such extremely unique color combos that you wouldn't think would work so well together, but msponies is just a master at using a color palette to its full potential its actually crazy! Their Trixie drawings are some of the best, and I cant help but admire how bold their backgrounds are (yea I know that kinda goes hand in hand with the whole color palette thing but i just really like their art); the bold colors and the dark outlines are so scrumptious

@celebrationcastle - They don't update extremely often, but when they do, you kno its gonna be a top tier post. They have a very flexible artstyle, and they post fanart for every generation. They were the ones who made that Valentines Pinkie Pie design that popped off a while ago, and for good reason; they are extremely good at drawing and designing. Like, they've completely mastered the artstyle of g3 and g4 (and probably every other gen. its nuts), and their g5 fanarts art probably my favorite I've ever seen (sunny starscout, my beloved). Everything they post is a banger. Their blog is just such a big inspiration to me :,)

📖 General MLP Blogs

@yodawgiheardyoulikeponies - absolute FAVORITE pony collecting blog. OP is SO sweet and her collection is AMAZING! I absolutely adore her photos and her posts, and her enthusiasm about collecting is so infectious. The positive energy on her blog is absolutely pure sugar, and I just really cannot stress enough how much effort she puts into her posts. She makes little pony photo shoots! And makes little stories out of them!!! It's so fun to just sit and read through. I always check her blog after new merch is released just because it's it's interesting to read about a Pony Veteran giving their input on modern toys. 1000/10 I love this blog

@ahorseofeverycolor - I only have notifications on for like. 5 or 6 blogs? And this is definitely one of them. They regularly post about ponies and horses (okay, they mostly focus on Breyers, but thats not a negative to me at all- I got my first Breyer the other day BECAUSE of this blog, lol), and their blog is just so clean and organized! They post about so many different kinds of ponies, whether it be comparing flat-footed release to concave foot releases, or custom ponies they made themselves, or just really cool pony finds that aren't necessarily obtainable (prototypes, special custom ponies commissioned by hasbro by professional artists, etc) but are really cool to look at!!! I really like this blog!!!

@mustcollecthorses - This is a blog that I have a super bad habit of opening and then scrolling through for like. 2 hours straight, lol. It's a mix of reblogs and original posts, so it's really my Ideal pony blog; usually when I hear about pony news, it's because he reblogged it! It's a very focused blog, so it's definitely a good one to follow if you need some more horses on your dash! He recently made an edit of Hitch from the new 5 pack to give him brushable hair, which I absolutely love (why did they gotta give him sculpted hair umu) I also like that OP leaves tags on the posts he reblogs! I don't know if it's just me, but I always like a blog more if they add tags with input about the toys and news and things like that. It adds some personality and a Vibe to the blog and I just really like it!!!

ok thats all! i of course follow a bunch of other pony themed blogs, but those are some of my top favorites, and ill limit it to 3 per category for the sake of simplicity. please consider following them! They're all so cool and talented!!!

--

send me pony themed asks

[canary3d-obsessed]

Restless Rewatch: The Untamed Episode 03

(Masterpost)(Previous Episode) 

Warning: Spoilers for all 50 episodes!

 Wei Wuxian demonstrates the purple nurple technique of the Jiang Clan

Should’ve Used Trivago

The Jiang Clan’s reservation got cancelled while they were on the road, so they are going to wander around this small inn for hours being fussed about it, rather than trying another inn. Yes they say the other inns are all full but…so is this one, now. 

The Jin Clan sends an advance party to fancy up the inn for them.

Fuckboi Wei Wuxian

Wei Wuxian decides to use his considerable powers of prettiness to get them a room.  He drops some poetry on Mianmian and brazenly flirts with her before shifting to properly introducing himself and asking for a room. 

This actually works.

...until her boss shows up.

(Much much more after the cut!)

Worst Person // Best Jin

Jin ZIxuan is an ass and a snob. 

I guess we have to give him credit for having a beautiful sidekick and never hitting on her, given that his dad is a rapist and one of his half-brothers is (reputedly) a sex pest and the other half brother is (definitely) an incest perp. But I feel like it doesn’t take much to be the best Jin of his or his father’s generation.

The Jin folks are snobs and talk about how great their fancy and expensive stuff is. It’s an interesting contrast with true connoisseur Nie Huaisang, who loves everything that is fine and beautiful and can quote stacks of poetry off the top of his head, but is not even a little bit of a snob. 

This Tea Smells Like Farts

Ok, let’s talk about generation names in the Jin clan. Ru is the name for Jin Ling’s generation, hence his courtesy name Rulan. The name for the current generation is apparently Zi (子), because both Zixuan and his jerk cousin Zixun have that as their name.  Sect Leader Jin Guangshan would seem to be using the generation name Guang, but then names his son Jin Guangyao so…the whole system breaks down. 

Anyway, my point here is that even considering generation names, if I had a baby and named it Zixuan, and my sister-in-law promptly had a baby and named it Zixun, I would slap her. 

Find you a lover who does not make you feel like this 

Jin Zixuan is mildly intrigued by his betrothed, and expresses it by being rude to her in front of Wei Wuxian, starting a chain of events that will culminate with Wen Ning’s fist going all the way through Jin Zixuan’s chest.

Side Note: Look at these young Jiang Brothers and their casual shoulder hugs. Sigh.

Wei Wuxian’s Combat PlayBook

When Wei Wuxian wants to throw down, he starts with smack talk, moves along to boundary crossing, then to direct threats, and then brings out a weapon if he hasn’t won already. 

Here he starts shit with Jin Zixuan by complaining at him for taking up too much space and having too many sycophants.  Then he goes for the unwelcome shoulder touch. 

Having been sufficiently provocative to get someone to draw a sword and threaten him with physical violence, he shifts to formal verbal sparring. 

This gets the other guy to back down, because even at this age no-one actually wants to tangle with Wei Wuxian, and Wei Wuxian gets to claim the moral advantage, although he still doesn’t get to keep his hotel room. 

Actually Not A Fan of My Sister’s Betrothal

Jin Zixuan and Jiang Yanli have the first of many, many moments of heterosexual ineptitude together. Wei Wuxian quickly rescues them.

Hi, I’m Young Master Cockblock.

Neither of the boys understands what Yanli sees in Zixuan and neither do I, at this juncture. He does improve later after multiple beatings from Wei Wuxian.

This Is The Day Your Life Will Surely Change

Yanli’s encounter in the Inn is the first step toward the inexorable end of the three of them as a unit, although it’s still a long ways off. They are all growing up and she and Wei Wuxian are both going to fall in love at summer camp, like in a 1980s teen movie but without the virginity betting (presumably). 

Meanwhile poor Jiang Cheng is going to be swept along just trying to keep up with events, which becomes the story of his life for the next two decades.

Welcome to Transylvania

We meet Wen Ruohan. He is boring and he sucks. Also I’m summarizing the Transylvania parts out of order because they break up the rhythm of the story. And are boring and suck.

We meet Xue Yang. He seems nice.

Wen Ruohan’s living room is like a shitty nightclub where everyone is too drunk to dance except Xue Yang.

Dee Jay: Undead undead undead, Bela Lugosi’s dead

[OP can’t get a video to embed in this post with looping enabled, so the alternate version of this joke has its own post right here. That will teach OP to get fancy.]

Anyhoo

We meet Wen Qing. She is the bestest most wonderful girl in the world but this isn’t actually when we find that out. 

Right now we just find out that she is absurdly pretty, that she loves her brother deeply, and that she is helping Wen Ruohan with his “take over the world by murdering cultivators” project. OKAY, PROBLEMATIC, BUT SHE IS THE BESTEST GIRL OKAY? 

Gatekeeping

The Jiang Clan don’t get another inn but they do manage to change into immaculate white robes while they’re out on the street, so - nice work, Jiang Clan. Be free!

They get stuck outside the gate because they don’t know that the secret to getting into Cloud Recesses is to set the gate guard on fire. 

Walking Thirst Trap Hanguang-Jun

Lan Wangji shows up and everyone except Yanli, who is already in love with Sir Golden Pants, makes thirst faces at him. Including Jiang Cheng tho he will never admit it. One girl in the background is actually biting her knuckle. 

Note: Lan Wangji knows exactly how fine he is. Look at his fucking hairstyle. 

He is sixteen years old. The only person in the entire cultivation world with fancier hair is Nie Mingjue, and that’s because he indulges his dìdi’s braiding hobby. 

Wei Wuxian loudly stage whispers that LWJ is their key to getting in and LWJ is is like, not fucking likely, person I didn’t glance at yet. 

But then Wei Wuxian says a smart cultivator thing about the puppet dude, and Lan Wangji turns around and has the first of many long mutual staring sessions with this boy he totally isn’t going to like at all.

Jiang Cheng has a bad feeling about the future: a 2-frame gif

Unrelated gardening note: the red-crack puppet is more commonly grown in Gusu and Dafan, while the black-line puppet is native to Yiling

I Must Arrange a Date with this Uninteresting Boy

The rest of the evening is a series of tests that Lan Wangji puts Wei Wuxian through. Wei Wuxian doesn’t know this and Lan Wangji probably doesn’t exactly know it either. 

First he sends WWX back to town to get the invitation. Yes, go get it. Not your entourage; YOU, talky person who thinks he can manipulate me and is smart and looks...intriguing. Go find it and come back. 

When Wei Wuxian complains, Lan Wangji silences him, which is literally the most boss move he could have used on smooth talking Wei Wuxian. 

You tried, Fuckboi.

Would you like to try some more because I think I would like you to try some more

Jiang Cheng is the Better Baby Brother

Sorry, he just is. Wei Wuxian is all about being taken care of and adoring Yanli without actually doing much for her. Jiang Cheng is the one who thinks about her feelings and giving her what she needs, even to the point of arranging that wedding rehearsal dinner so she can be with her favorite brother again -- the favorite who isn’t him, much as she also loves him. 

Date Test 1: Can You Get In.

Once Wei Wuxian is definitely gone, Lan Wangji shows up again and collects the entire retinue, guaranteeing that Wei Wuxian will be stranded outside the gate when he gets back.  LWJ doesn’t wait by the gate; he goes and waits up on the roof instead of going to bed or whatever else he’s supposed to be doing. Because he already knows the route Wei Wuxian will be taking. 

Wei Wuxian passes the “get in through the wards” test with no problem besides a minor headache and bent fingers. 

Is that Xiao Zhan’s hand or did they use a double-jointed hand model?

Date Test 2: Fight Me (Lan Wangji’s Combat Playbook)

As soon as Wei Wuxian shows up on the roof, Lan Wangji picks a fight with him. 

LWJ fights all the time; he’s perfectly comfortable when he’s fighting and it’s a good venue for him to express himself. His style is graceful and aggressive. 

Attack attack attack strike a pose, vogue, you know it.  

He starts by going all in on swordplay, but that doesn’t gain him the advantage; Wei Wuxian fends him off without ever drawing his sword. Which is probably the hottest thing that has ever happened to Lan Wangji in his young life.

Do you like me better when I’m horizontal? 

Next Lan Wangji deploys the pettiness by breaking WWX’s wine. Then when Wei Wuxian starts insulting him he upgrades to next level pettiness by dropping another silence spell, this time with the added bonus of preventing WWX from drinking. 

Wei Wuxian’s Combat Playbook, Redux

Meanwhile Wei Wuxian is running his own fight routine, starting with a charm attack, which doesn’t work at all. 

Are you admiring the moon? 

He keeps trying to de-escalate for the first phase of their fight, until they reach a pause and he reflects that Lan Wangji has real skills. As soon as he makes that determination he goes on the offensive - with words. 

He very formally says he’s too busy to continue fighting, and turns away, which is a pretty solid roast when you say it to someone who’s been trying really hard to kick your ass. Then he continues defending easily until Lan Wangji uses the wine against him. 

At this point the gloves come off, with Lan Wangji lecturing Wei Wuxian, Wei Wuxian making ad hominem attacks, Lan Wangji forcibly shutting him up... 

...and then throwing him on the floor in front of Lan Qiren and Lan Xichen. 

Sincere Grief for the Death of our Colleague

Lan Qiren and Lan Xichen feel really bad for their disciple who has been horribly turned into an undead creature. Ha ha j/k

Date Test 3: Face the Authorities

Lan Wangji gets to pick Wei Wuxian’s punishment.  This probably won’t awaken anything in him. 

Surprise surprise, Wei Wuxian actually passes the Authority test with flying colors. Lan Qiren doesn’t like him, but listens respectfully to his thoughts about the undead cultivator. And Lan Xichen clearly does like him.

When Wei Wuxian learns that Lan Wangji was nice to his sister, his entire demeanor changes, to such an enormous degree that Lan Wangji starts to run away.

He’s not going to let this boy (who has passed all the tests oh no he passed all the tests) make out with him in front of his family like he is obviously planning. 

But once again, Wei Wuxian’s cultivation knowledge captures Lan Wangji’s attention and breaks through his reserve. 

This Hardy Boys moment is the beginning of their cultivation partnership.

Lan Wangji is brave but is extremely constrained: by the authorities in his life and by his own rigid reserve. Wei Wuxian is brave and is also free. His companionship gives Lan Wangji an opportunity to engage with a much broader range of the things that interest him than he’s ever had before. 

After Wei Wuxian has been sent to bed, Lan Wangji stands outside and -- just as WWX had suggested at the beginning of their date/fight -- admires the moon, with an expression that’s anything but upset. 

Sure, sex is cool (probably), but have you ever analyzed a walking corpse with a beautiful boy in the moonlight?

If you’ve got your true honey Life can be pretty funny If you've got money, money to burn Rooty toot toot for the moon It's the biggest star I've ever seen

The Fine-as-Hell Brothers

Alone together, Lans Xichen and Wangji talk over the various things on their minds. 

Xichen: What the fuck is up with you? ...Rooftop fights and dropping spells on boys?

Wangji: You and uncle were ignoring me so I was making my own fun

Xichen: Yeah, we are dealing with this zombie situation; shit’s going to hit the fan

Wangji: what are you going to do about it?

Xichen: fuck-all

Wangji: Well, you can rely on me

Xichen: I totally do. So how about you get to know this Wei kid, he seems like a fun ride.

Wangji: *death glare*

Xichen: You know, since Dad died you’ve become even more uptight. I wonder if I’ve been too strict with you?

Wangji: Um, you think? 3000 fucking rules, dude. Fortunately I’m not going to go off the rails and fall in love with my polar opposite and cause havoc in the cultivation world or anything like that.

Xichen: good, me neither

Outtro

Writing prompt: Lan Xichen’s secret nightly letter to his Mom’s memory or spirit (your choice), in which he confides in her about his day. May be written in flute solo form. 

(As always if you use this prompt feel free to post a link to your fic in comments!)

Soundtrack: 1. This Is The Day by The The  2.  Bela Lugosi’s Dead by Bauhaus 3. Rooty Toot Toot for the Moon, Greg Brown version 4. Madonna, Vogue

Bonus: FineAsHell-Jun

Episode 04 Restless Rewatch coming soon!

[44insects]

uhh hi im the original anon who asked abt ur art style: (to the person who rbed) ofc you cant "own" an art style but there is a certain kind of uniqueness that goes into art styles??? not only because the artist themselves create it and is inherently unique bc its by their own hand but bc they also put their own spin on things. even if it is similiar to other artists, its still their own!! omg its v rude to insinuate that theyre copying bc they resemble other artists >:( the reason i asked is bc ik art styles can b v personal and i think sometimes i get *too* inspired so i have to be wary im not copying if the artist isnt comfortable w that. plz dont use my shortcomings to attack op???

anyways @ insects, ilysm u r doing amazing 🥺 the vibes ur art gives off r immaculate 🥺❤

hello! thank you for your additional input, i think that person probably knew they were doing something kind of odd or rude since they made a burner account to do it, but i really appreciate everyone’s support on the subject! thank you for liking my art <3

this is probably the last thing i’ll be saying about this whole thing! i think it was good to talk about and a learning experience, but i’d like to think about something else now! ^^

[sordidmusings]

@feral-artistry THEM. COWBOY VER. OPEN FLOWY SHIRT. IMMACULATE.

And op, your style is phenomenal!! I love the take on blending detail/realism with anime and such. I also love all the texture you have going on!! And the expressions - the exPRESSIONS 😩🫠🫠🫠 so well done and they capture Law so well you’ve really just fuckin nailed it. I mean come on, the slight furrow in her brow to match that smirk??? And the intensity of his stare while still keeping most facial muscles relaxed?? So so good 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

cowboy law u r so important 2 me

[formulaorange]

Saturday Anime Update - May 8th

Slime Diaries (Tensura Nikki) Episode 4 - I've watched the first portion of the show up til now and it's so cute! I love the main series so much, I'm so glad there's content coming out until part 2 releases. But - RIGURD scares the absolute shit out of me!!!! I get that his eyes are usually dark in the main series but with the new style he looks terrifying. And also!! They gave Hakurou a moustache?? Like why does his face look so weird, and BENNY, his face is so square/round?! Beautiful still but different.. vs everyone else, even background characters look normal so why are these 3 so different??? Anywho - looking forward to the rest of this show, very wholesome.

Bishounen Tanteidan Episode 4 & 5 - This is starting to get a lot of fun, we get to see how Doujima blends in with the squad and I loved the councilman from the other school, those kinds of characters always make me happy, like Gin ichimaru from Bleach. And as always - style is immaculate (or Aesthetics?)

Charlotte Started this on Wednesday, I'd honestly never heard of it until recently and it's a super fun concept, haven't formed much of an opinion on it yet - to be continued! Sentouin, Hakenshimasu! Ok I watched the first episode of this and I'll have to continue it another time. I just can't get into it with the over the top ecchi stuff, I think I can only handle one show like that at a time and right now I'm already watching How not to summon a demon lord so my slot is full until that's over. Slime Taoshite 300-nen, Shiranai Uchi ni Level Max ni Nattemashita Anime names keep getting longer and this was a real pain to type out. Another isekai, this one has very little goal but is a nice one to put on, as an immortal witch who's op af deals with different fantasy characters each episode in her supposed slow-life reincarnation. Not a good show, but fun to watch. Tenchi Souzou Design-bu (Heaven's Design Team) I started this one a while ago but since there's no real story I've been slowly working my way through it. I don't know that I've watched many educational animes before but this one takes the cake. It's a fun take on how animals were invented if different planets were behind their creation. They also talk about legitimate traits of the animals and do a little feature at the end with real footage (rather than animated). Fun to watch and very educational. Shaman King This one i'm a little disappointed in. I watched the first few episodes but really just can't get hooked on the story or the style. I think that had I watched it when I was younger it'd be fun to re-watch now, but it's clearly targeting those who grew up with it or a younger audience. Because of this - this one is gonna be D R O P P E D Upcoming Monday/Tuesday update: To your Eternity - Episode 5 Tokyo Revengers - Episode 5 My Hero Academia - Season 5 Episode 7 Edens Zero Kyoukai no Kanata (Beyond the Boundary) Odd Taxi

[lemonietrinket]

Mishap ||| Yuta x Reader

Summary: Yuta is not known for his woodwork skills. He is also not known for any common sense that would also come with it. However, good things can be made of the worst scenarios, and Yuta is not completely inept—no matter what Winwin tries to assert. Genre: Comedy Warning(s): Some swearing (2x s**t) Word Count: 2361 Theme Song: Rock it For Me - Caravan Palace AN: I tend try to make my oneshots gender-neutral but in this circumstance, this is a fem!Reader. Sorry if this puts anyone off :(( Also this is written in 3rd person so, that’s a thing? Anyways this has been a long time coming (remember that yuta fic i mentioned i was writing back in like november of something? this is it bois) so I hope the wait has been worth it

~~~

Yuta had made a mistake.

This wasn’t unlike Yuta who, known for many talents such as his sharp tongue and wit, as well as his dashing good looks, was not particularly known for rationality and sense.

And—yes, perhaps in hindsight he should have asked the landlord how thick the apartment walls were, and yes, perhaps he should have requested Johnny’s help in the matter, who, though lacking in the same departments as Yuta, did possess more of a proficiency in woodwork. However, that would require more than three levels of sensibility—an area of which, Yuta was steadfastly stuck at level two. 

And so, there Yuta lay, crooked upon the debris of his IKEA shelving he’d been attempting to attach to his wall; the lower half of his body in his apartment, the rest... well, that was in next door’s.

Now normally, he would have presumed, this wouldn’t have been such an issue, lacking the grand scale characteristic of Yuta’s mishaps. The person who inhabited the next-door apartment was very busy, he’d rarely bumped into her, and when he had, it was always notably a very brief encounter. Always in a rush, Y/N was a good neighbour, Yuta knew. Never one to bother a soul, she was respectful, determined and very focused upon her job. Yuta also had discerned—from that good wit I mentioned earlier—that she was also rather easy to fluster.

He hadn’t inclined to discover it, and was rather startled to find it, but the first time he spoke to her and he’d met her gaze, she plundered from the realms of reserved and controlled into (oh he couldn’t help but describe) a bumbling, blushy mess.

Which was cute.

But he never had intended to encroach on your personal space. You were career-focused, and he probably also had too little time, if he was quite honest with himself; in the end, he figured that your story was not for his co-authoring and thus he would, quite rightly, let you be. 

However, Fate—or was it Misfortune?—had other ideas.

Because this was a Yuta-scale mishap. 

As not only was Y/N in the front room of her apartment when Yuta ever-so-suavely-and-totally-not-accidentally flung himself through the wall, she was also only garbed in a very, very small towel. 

.

Truth be told, this was another action of Fate or Misfortune, as Y/N had, in fact, messed up her timings again.

Keeping on top of all the small, consistent tasks of her job that each day held was an easy enough assignment. However, the ability of micro-managing seemed to not have seeped into her home life, hence laundry day had been the most recent victim to pay the price.  Thus, Y/N had relinquished her exit from the shower to be garbed in a spare, slightly-bigger-than-average handtowel.

It did the trick—it wasn’t as if anyone was going to see her, right?—and all seemed well, even as her boss who out of poor mind—or was it spite, because quite frankly why would a man in possession of a soul call on the landline after being begged eight times to not do so for the sake of a humongous phone bill—rang the landline to enquire about the progression of a report she was managing.  She headed into the main room, shivering at the chill emanating from the window left ajar out of habit, and answered, carefully and intrinsically masking her exasperation so he would be unprepared for the earful he was going to receive the next morning.

The wired phone that seemed like a good idea at the time (which was based on the vintage style, block baby blue matched to the curtains and looked chic as hell—just a shame the lead didn’t extend beyond a couple of feet) hung loosely in her hand, held at just a distance so the cold plastic wouldn’t come into contact with her bare skin and brand her with stab of iciness.  Even as the man tumbled through the wall and onto her silver carpet.

Her eyes drifted across the cacophony of torn plaster, scraps of tawny grain strewn amongst the immaculate sea of grey, before they rested upon the sheepish smirk of the man pretending that this hadn’t impacted his confidence in the slightest.

“Hey.” He flashed a gleaming smile. Though upside-down, it perhaps appeared slightly more menacing.

Y/N screamed. It was uncharacteristic, but a reflex nonetheless and she sighed at herself exasperatedly, willing her body to move towards something to throw instead.

Yuta’s grin immediately slipped from his face, as he spun himself onto his front, a palm levied in an apology. “Sorry, I’m so sorry, this was a mist—”

Y/N clutched at her towel, haphazardly trying to pull the hem further down her thighs, while not letting it slip from her torso, her feet twitching to head towards the kitchen. 

Yuta felt his throat tighten out of sheer embarrassment, snapping his eyes closed and pushing through with his frantic apologies. “Oh my god, I’m so sorry, I’m not looking—I won’t! You... I...”

Watching him tilt his head away, his eyes no longer trained on her, Y/N managed to retrieve her rationale, as well as her breath. “What the hell are you doing?!”

“I...” he swallowed, hand falling to support himself on his elbows, “was putting up a shelf—”

“A shelf? You’re in my apartment!”

He glanced back, biting his tongue to stop himself remarking ‘only half’, he knew this was not the time for jokes, and kept his eyes firmly closed. “I know, I’m sorry, I misjudged—”

“Yeah, no shit!”

“—the wall, I’m so sorry, I—”

“Stay here!” Y/N ordered. “Don’t move! I’m not discussing this with you right at this moment, when I’m not...” Words faltered as she was reminded of her bare skin.

“No, of course, I’ll be right here, I promise. Please, do whatever you need.”

The sincerity in the strange man’s voice shocked her, to say the least. She still wasn’t going to leave him to his own devices, however. A spark of inspiration hit her, as she snatched her mobile from the end table, propped it up on the sofa and set the camera on record.  Then she slipped back into her bedroom, throwing herself into the first clothes she could find.

Yuta very hesitantly opened his eyes once he heard footsteps pad away and a door close. 

The first thing his eyes met was the mess he’d made on her lovely carpet. The next thing was the sight of just how little of the shelving remained, with bits of wood scattered like a shipwreck upon a silver ocean. The final thing was the phone propped op on the couch opposite, no doubt recording his moves.

Smart, he thought, as he sheepishly waved at the camera lens.

Y/N returned very quickly, slipping back through the door, her eyes focused upon the man sat like a schoolboy amongst his carnage. Dressed in unmatched pyjamas, her features were harden in concentration. In her hands was a wooden pole, fashioned with a metal hook at the end. Yuta swallowed thickly. She was holding it most definitely as if she knew how to use it to make it hurt. 

And Yuta couldn’t deny that she probably did. 

“What’s your name?” she demanded, after several seconds of eyeing him up and down.

“Yuta. Nakamoto Yuta.”

“You live next door?” 

He nodded compliantly. “Always have done. I was here before you moved in.”

“How long?”

“Sorry?”

“How long were you here before I moved in?” Her eyes searched his for something. Yuta couldn’t tell what however.

“I...?” he stuttered. He didn’t know what to say to that, or to reassure her. “I don’t know, really. A few months? I haven’t really been counting anything.”

She stared him down, eye to eye, weapon brandished to her intruder. He raised his head further, palms raised in surrender, slightly fearing the worst.

Then she put down her guard, hook knocking the floor. 

“I recognise you now,” she sighed, looking at him with disdain, “you really are my neighbour and you really did just break through my wall because you really are that shit at woodwork—Jesus. Christ.”

How she hadn’t recognised him at first astounded her too. He had grown out his hair, yes, and he seemed a little broader, but his eyes were the same dark spools of wonder that she’d accidentally stared into for too long in that one encounter. And anyhow, it wasn’t as if the small changes made him look any different, it just made him look more...

She caught her words before she finished that sentence. He fell through your wall, she asserted in her head, you cannot go anywhere near words like that around someone dumb enough to—

He cocked his head quizzically. She was talking as if she knew him, after all.

Y/N discarded her weapon—which he now recollected was a tool to pull down the ladder on the side of the building—against her sofa which she collapsed onto, retrieving her phone languidly. It was as she pressed the button to stop recording when she glanced at him.  She paused. “Mark? Friend of yours? He told me one time that you’re not exactly the best at woodwork.”

He couldn’t help but smile. “Oh Mark! Mark Lee? Yes, yes, good friend of mine!” It was only then that the realisation sunk in. “Wait, Mark said what—?”

“You didn’t hear anything from me,” Y/N sighed, leaning forward to get a closer look at the mess of the wall and on her floor. “Well, that must be a good... what? Tenner? Down the drain?”

Catching onto her question he shook his head. “No, 30. Plus hinges.”

Her eyes widened. “Jesus.”

He picked at one of the slabs, splintered at one end and snapped completely at the other. “Yeah, I made the mistake of choosing one of the slightly more expensive units...”

When he looked back up, Y/N was shaking her head desperately, brow creased and vision narrowed upon the hole in the wall.

“Yuta! You—” she exclaimed, hesitating before looking at him. Her eyes were pained, breath shaky as she clenched her fists at her knees.  “Do you have any idea how much that is going to cost, Yuta?” she managed. “I can’t afford barely any of the prices required to fix that! Do—do you know how much your stupidity is going to cost me?!”

The words fell from his lips without a moments hesitation. “I will pay for all of the repairs,” he said earnestly, “I’ll cover all of it.”

The woman was stunned to say the least. Her breath stopped, silenced, and hung in the air as if it had been snatched away from her, as she stared into his eyes, searching for honesty.

“You’ll pay?”

“Yes.”

“For all of it?”

“Yes.”

“You’ll take full responsibility?”

“Of course!”

“You’ll pay f-for the hole?”

“Yes.”

“And the re-plastering?”

“Yes.”

“And the paint?”

“Yes!”

“And my broken plant pot?”

“There was a plant pot?!”

She pointed to the scattered soil and ceramic shards to his right, and the overturned shrub bowed amongst it.  “Yes, his name is Jeffrey.”

“I’m so sorry Jeffrey!”

“It’s ok he’s a strong boy.”

“Thank god. I’ll pay for Jeffrey too.”

“For his lavish new pot?”

“He’ll have the best damn pot in the entire garden centre.”

Honesty was all that she found.

She straightened in her seat. “Well that’s going to be a lot of money.”

“It’s fine,” he waved a hand, “it’s my fault entirely, and besides, you’ve got better things to spend your money on.”

She frowned. “Like what?”

He glanced around her apartment’s living room. “Fancy things no doubt. Things to make you happy, things to make you smile. Things you need to distract yourself from all the mess required to fix the huge ones stupid men make of your walls.”

She laughed softly at that. Though she stopped herself, there was something about the way he spoke that meant she couldn’t help but be amused, even in spite of the situation. His voice of silk, ebbed with a lilt of something, and flowed through her head like streams of water flowing back to the sea on a sun-kissed beach.

“I think you’re right,” she hummed, rising to her feet. Stepping carefully towards the carnage, she outstretched a hand. “Need some help, Mr Nakamoto?”

He took a glimpse down at the pieces of wood and plaster and bits that made up a wall. A glimpse was all he could muster though, as he felt his eyes be drawn back up to meet yours again. He felt the need to stare into them for as long as he could, not that he could deduce quite why. “I think I could use some, Miss...?”

“Y/L/N.”

He took your hand, levying himself out from the carnage with your aid.

“Thank you, Miss Y/L/N.”

“My pleasure,” she replied, curtsying swiftly with a scoff as she headed towards her dining table.

Dusting himself off and checking the scale of the mess, he only looked up when she returned. He accepted her open laptop with open arms, but confusedly to say the least. It was logged on, with the cursor flashing along the search bar. 

“Y/N...?”

She peered over her shoulder coyly. “Well, you promised to get me the best pot for Jeffrey. You’d better start searching for it.”

He grinned, feeling relief wash over him. Sitting on the sofa where she had been perched, he placed the laptop upon his thighs.  “And once I find it?” he enquired neatly, eyes glimmering at the back of her head, caressed with tresses catching the setting sunlight from through the window.

Slapping a replacement pot found from the depths of her cupboards on the table victoriously, Y/N stepped over towards Jeffrey laid strewn on the carpet. Cradling him in her hands, she made her way to temporarily re-home him. “Well then... I guess you’d have to take me to the shop and buy it for me.”

Gazing at your back, he felt his lips twist into a smile, catching onto what you were inferring.

Maybe this wasn’t a mishap after all. Perhaps it was a Yuta-scale twist of fate, instead.

~~~

AN: im sorry this is so late, but its up now!

i tried real hard to funny i hope i succeeded :((

thanks for reading!

Masterlist

[breadknight-likes-things]

Gears V Final Thoughts

I’m a huge fan of Gears of War, both as a series of games and as a franchise full of characters and lore, and Gears V is one long love letter to both these aspects.  Picking up a month or so after the end of Gears of War 4, Gears V follows the story of Kait much more closely, but it doesn’t abandon 4′s other new characters by any means.  All in all it makes for an almost perfect package of a campaign for me, only held back by one very odd design decisions that lead to prominent pacing issues at a couple points.

The Good:

More Like “Gimmie Myrrah This Story”!: Gears of War 4 had a simple but effective story, it was more concerned with showing the world of Sera bounce back even as it slides into another conflict than anything else.  Gears V is much more in depth, analyzing it’s existing characters to great effectiveness, introducing more fresh faces that get far more fleshed out than you’d assume and, this is the big one for me, clearing up a plot hole from Gears of War 2 that’s been bothering me since 2008. To say too much about the story would give too many spoilers, but suffice to say it’s easily the best one Gears of War has ever had. Stop And Pop Still Won’t Drop:  Gears of War’s gameplay has always been excellent, even the first game with it’s terrible writing and limited selection of weapons still plays pretty damn well today, but it’s refined to a science in Gears V.  There’s just the right amount of weight and speed mixed in with the movement controls, the changes to the shooting to add more recoil to the guns is a little odd at first but makes you wonder how it ever worked without it once you get used to it, and enemies are even more aggressive and intelligent in finding ways to flush you out of cover or keep the pressure on in the games immaculately designed firefights. There’s only a handful of new weapons, like the Lancer GL (Grenade Launcher, and believe me, it rules) and the Swarm’s “Claw” machine gun (that looks like it’s held together with nails and tape and fires as erratically as you’d expect), but all of them serve to introduce some great variety into your combat options.  Most of all though Gears’ shooting gameplay still just feels good, even if every other part of this game had bombed, and failed miserably to achieve what it was going for, if the shooting was still the same I’d probably still be singing this games praises to the end of time.

Jacks Back, Jack: Jack is an odd part of Gears of War because he really never did all that much, being the little invisible robot friend who followed the squad around waiting for someone to say, and I quote, “Jack, rip that door!” before he decided to do anything.  Well in Gears V not only is Jack back, he’s a fully featured mechanic to be used in single player and a full playable character on his own in co-op!  Jack can retrieve weapons and ammo from the battlefield, lay traps, pulse the world to reveal enemies and even mind control select bad guys to fight on his own.  It might sound like he’s a little too much of a Jack of all trades (NOW I GET IT), but using him in the heat of battle never stops being fun and useful.  Also, he occasionally still rips some doors, so don’t worry, you purists out there.

The variety of locations is top notch, including a few nostalgia laden surprises you definitely won’t expect.

The Bad:

Lets Ruin The Paci-Er Uh, Get Back To The Skiff!: (To Preface this point let me just say, I’m glad The Coalition tried....but....) So Gears V made the bold decision to have the bulk of the game set in two large open world areas, one you navigate via a skiff vehicle with a handful of side missions doting both the open worlds you can stop to inspect in-between the main story missions which all both function as and feel like traditional Gears of War levels from series past.  This open world style simply doesn’t work.  The side missions are so few and far between that they truly don’t add anything meaningful to the game except for a handful of generic firefights.  The open worlds are gorgeous to look at and the Skiff is fun to drive, but both end up being utterly pointless 5 or so minute roadblocks to continuing the story of the game.  Again, I’m glad The Coalition tried something new, but this is about the defition of a swing and a miss.  They didn’t lean into the open world enough to re-define what Gears is, but they did lean in just the right amount to cause friction between what they thought they were making with these sections and what the rest of the game actually is. The open world sections were a great idea, and expanded upon I think could work with some refinement, but as they are here only serve to ruin the story pacing with odd roadblocks and travel times that feel like just enough of a chore to be annoying.

[art-appreciation-posts]

Starting on the left,

i’m IN LOVE with the makeup!! It kinda reminds me of a sub genre Gyaru style makeup with the way you’ve used the highlighter /positive

Also the fact you incorporated your artist signature into her hoops is GENIUS and literally such a cute detail.

This applies to both designs but the detailing on the furs is literally immaculate! From the shading to the cute little sparkle details colored into it?! I’ll say it again, IMMACULATE!

The shading and highlights on her skin looks flawless and I swear you could use this drawing as the PERFECT basis for a cosplay. I could literally see someone walking around a convention looking exactly like this.

Your usage of color in the highlights and lowlights of her hair is SO CUTE. The little streaks of pink really bring out the whole design and color palette.

THE TOP ON THE RIGHT??? OMG HOW??? ITS SO PERFECT??? TEACH ME YOUR WAYS???

Thank you Op for this amazing design piece 🙏

some slay abbies for the soul

[xetastheband-blog]

TOP TENS

So while we’re on tour we’re going to post top 10 lists of songs we listen to on the road. Leading up to it, here are some of our favorite songs to drive long distances to.

TOP TEN SONGS TO DRIVE A LONG WAYS TO

KANA

1. Mt Eerie - No Flashlight Ok this is pretty much one of my favorite albums ever in existence top-to-bottom-front-to-back so I can listen to it almost any time and feel good. BUT it is also an amazing mental/emotional journey and very good for taking in new, unfamiliar stretches of road and terrain. I have always loved Phil Elverum’s production style and storytelling and this is one of those personal gold standard albums that will always dictate some part of my own work. 2. CAN - Vitamin C I love rhythmic, repetitive music and luckily it’s perfect for covering long distances/getting a lot of work done, both of which tour requires a lot of. CAN is always a great pick, full of great patterns, sounds, cadences to think about and stimulate your brain while the world goes by. Also sampled by a lot of hip hop artists and beatmakers, so I think it’s good to know their catalog to better understand hip hop beats. Knowing history hardly ever hurts. 3. Protomartyr - Pontiac 87 I love this band so much. I had a friend who worked at Urinal Cake Records (who put out their first album) who shared it with me (friend-to-friend, a personal recommendation) with the warning that, “they are gonna be your new favorite band.” and it was true! I loved them immediately and started promoting them as rabidly as people do sports teams. This album, The Agent Intellect, came out right before we left on our last tour and became our staple/fallback. This song in particular makes me think of being in a van with David and Jay.  4. Sibylle Baier - Colour Green Jay gave me this LP for my birthday after I went on a long Connie Converse kick and I can’t get over how good it is! I love listening to her voice and the way she tells the story in the song is really nice and not boring. The production sounds really good cranked up in the car, like you know when it’s *almost* too loud for acoustic-y music? It works really well as quiet room music but it’s really fucking good super loud. Try it. 5. Male Gaze - Ranessa This band’s first LP was floating around in my section when I was assigned to it (I deal with “Punk” and M-N in the Rock/Pop sections at a record store) and I gave it a listen just based on the look of it (it’s got a tripped black and white pattern but still looks kinda punk) and TOTALLY DUG IT!! I really love a good baritone voice (Calvin Johnson, Bill Callahan, Echo and the Bunnymen, Dark Blue) and they’re really snappy and post-punky but still got LOTS OF HOOKS. First album is a little more post-punky, second album is poppier but in a good Flip Your Wig-era Husker Du kinda way. 6. Deep Time - Clouds One of my favorite Austin bands, I used to watch Jennifer Moore play in the Carrots when I was in high school, and really admired her. She worked at the co-op grocery for a while and I would buy sandwiches from her at the deli there. I don’t think she knew how intimidated I was or how much I admired her, but I recently played with her in my other band, Foreign Mothers, and she complimented my guitar playing and I died of happiness. Deep Time’s LP on Hardly Art is really good and listening to it always makes me happy. 7. Avalanches - Wildflower Great driving album! Again, this came out before a trip XETAS took to play in McAllen, and I associate it with being in a van with David and Jay. The first album is also amazing, both are great for the road. 8. Tribe Called Quest - We the People I CAN NOT STOP LISTENING TO THIS!!!!!!! I listened to Tribe in HS and never thought this would happen and that it would be so immaculate. I *liked* the new De La album that came out (and I was def more of a DAISY girl than into TCQ back in the day) but I keep finding shit on this album that blows me away. Even the clean edit is good! DANG 9. Tom Tom Club - Genius of Love There are very few perfect songs in the world. This is one of them. 10. Breeders - Cannonball This song captures the feeling of MTV and being a rocker and doing stupid band shit with your friends. I know older people hate it because it was the buffer music on MTV for about a bajillion years but it still gives me a really fun feeling like I’m never ever gonna grow up or die.

[spacemash]

lawzo charm points for your consideration:

zoro constantly attracts the need for medical assistance, law would probably enjoy the medical marvel that is a normal human guy who can just beef up his biceps on command

that time they spent in the submarine offscreen was actually the closest one piece has come to being a slice of life romcom including "there was only one bed (because zoro found his way into law's room and was already asleep when law got there)"

you can make an up to 12 sword style joke if you ever need a smutfic title quick

theyre actually pirate married (oda spoke these words onto me in a dream)

the comedic potential of a zoro timeshare contract between law and the rest of the strawhats

the angst potential of the luffy hypotenuse in any configuration as you see fit

chopper's big brother and his cool and scary surgeon boyfriend!!! woah!!!!

law and chopper commiserating over how much zoro sucks as a patient would be really cute so btw

remember when law was cool w people dying for the sake of the plan then zoro was like ok and then law was like wait no--??? like i know op mentions it in the propaganda but i think it bears repeating :]

law would get more sleep with a boyfriend who enjoys to nap

there is something to be said about knowing the depths of one man's loyalty while acknowledging that you do not have a monopoly on this aspect of his, that though you may be a captain he loves you are not his captain, and that regardless of this you know that he will love you just as fiercely still, and presented with a man willing to die you cannot help but yearn for him to live still (with you)

then there's also knowing that this man was present for your captain, in a time when your captain needed you most but you could not be present, and this man had held in his hands your captain's heart and had to keep him from the brink of death because you failed to be there for your captain, and maybe there is envy but above all there is gratitude and you know that even though he thinks himself an ill omen of death that he is not and he is fully capable of nurturing life,

zoro's hierarchy of needs include swords and swordsmen and law very handily fits the criteria

if you are a fervent believer of the one true gospel (goth fam) then i need to tell you law perfectly fits into the aesthetic of it ergo he would make a wonderful son/brother-in-law

do you ever worry abt one of ur fellow warlords dating ur son? dracule mihawk didnt think he had to but with the power of lawzo u can inflict this upon him

their height difference is good :]

friendly reminder that they spent a lot of time together in that submarine,, you know how it gets in close quarters,,,

law calls zoro(-ya) by his first name and roronoa-ya when he is grumpy at him

that one scene on zou,,, the one where law leans into zoro's personal space,,, what did that mean torao law what were u trying to do,,,

law slicing the lab in punk hazard automatically makes him a 10 in zoro's eyes

both of them have pierced ears u know what this means??? sentimental earrings exchange!!!!

the ship is a very good avenue for sword jokes

zoro licks blood off his swords sometimes so i dont think the room-ing out organs thing would be anywhere close to a deal breaker and could even be bonus points in his book

they both enjoy the superior grain (rice)

lawzo is capable of being very cute and funny and fluffy or being angsty and tragic or being just two dudes who surprisingly get each other, the range is immaculate the variety it offers is the spice of life

theyre both kinda based off the same pirate so you can argue theyre soulmates basically

room is very convenient when dealing with swordsmen who have a tendency to get lost

imagine fanart of law's hands groping zoro's chest, now understand this exists and you can thank law and zoro shippers for their hard work, perhaps consider joining the cause,

read Cut My Feelings Off Clean by Augment

One Piece Shipping War - Round 2 Side B

ZoLaw art by @jack-pictures. Check out the original post here!

Propaganda under the cut.

Propaganda for Sanji x Law:

North blue bitches unite!! Law is definitely a nerdy fanboy who fell in love, just look at the gif i submitted. Also remember the extremely gay way law landed on sanji's shoulder in wano? Other ships could never!

Why have one traumatized north blue twins when you can have two?

North Blue boys and their trauma

Propaganda for Zoro x Law:

they're just both really good at sword play :P

Grumpy swordmen? What's a better ship?!

Sword guys, great way to go from releasing tension to topless and sweaty and close together, Zoro gets lost and Law enjoys wandering so they just go on walks together, both incredibly intense in what they do, both unlikely to back down, understand each other reasonably well, Zoro can deal with Law's brand of stupid/crazy/D

I think their interactions are fun :)

Law: "Let them kill you! Be ready to die for the plan!" Zoro: *is ready to die for the plan* Law: "NO!"

They have ao much in common! Both are swordsmen and they both have cursed swords (at least one). They're both pretty deadpan but not above getting into shenanigans with luffy. They just fit!

Two moody, broody swordsmen who are really bad at expressing their feelings, but deep down, you know that they are softies. They would bicker with each other but at least understand that the sarcasm is like a love language. They can at least share that mutual respect of having to be the strong one, especially surrounded by a crew of silly goofy guys.

They are perfect together because they are both massive nerds who think they're just so freaking cool, but they're not. Literally every time everyone else is freaking out about something they're like "pfft losers." But THEY are the losers.

It's two guys who are obsessed with Luffy who are in love, it's swordsman x swordsman, it's the two straight men together, it's jock/goth. I just think they would have nasty sex and I'm into it.

Both of these poor gay boys accidentally fell in love with the most aroace mf in all the blues. So they fuck each other to cope.

[chiripepe]

Final Notes on BloodBorne

I platinumed Bloodborne yesterday. All I was missing was one ending. What a fucking good game. It was worth waiting for, it was worth avoiding all the spoilers for. What a good game.

I wanted all my characters to have a different weapon set up after I realized how unique every weapon is in this game very early on. Trick weapon wise they do but gun wise they all use the Evelyn. Its just the best gun in the game and my favorite. The blunderbusses are very slow and unresponsive, using an Evelyn is like having a parrying shield with you without the drawback of low damage absorption. The ONLY draw back I can determine is that you have to get your bloodtinge to a certain level to quip the gun and the Evelyn, because it fires a single shot, can miss. But that can be mitigated by learning enemy patters, which you have to do anyway, and positioning yourself accordingly for the parry.

My first character Soltio (which is like the first character I make in every Souls game at this point) ended up using the Kirkhammer throughout the game after a short bout with the axe. The hammer’s a very well rounded trick weapon except for hammer form where I think Ludwig's sword probably outclasses it but I never traded up. My main weapon ended up being the funeral blade NG+ and onwards because of the move set and style. Its just pretty and that shinng sound it makes as it slices through shit, I love it. Since it can’t be buffed I use gems that add fire naturally for the effect on beasts. Its fine that I skipped Ludwig’s blade anyway because I’m gonna go for the Moonlight blade when I get the DLC since more than likely it will scale amazingly with his current build. I also used the Tonitus A LOT with this character because its just such a good weapon if not a little OP with that lightning buff trick considering all the Old Ones are weak to lightning.

With my second character, Cybelle, I went right for the rifle spear because I thought it was an awesome weapon from the instant I laid eyes on it. I liked it but she ended up being a Cainhurst knight because she uses the Chikage and Reiterpallasch. Both are great weapons, the katana cannot be buffed but its SUPER strong and scales with both skill and bloodtinge for massive damage but has terrible durability and drains your HP so I only use it for very dangerous enemies and bosses. The rapier gun though can be buffed so I mostly use that with the shell, fire or bolt paper depending on the situation. The thing is that in trick form using it as a gun is not really worth it since the Evelyn is much better anyway but can be tricky and surprising in PvP. I overlooked the repeating gun because I was turned off by the double bullet usage but with this character I think it makes sense because of her high bloodtinge so I’ll try that later. Also, the biggest drawback with her is crowd control is terrible with thrusting weapons but I managed.

My last character, Desiderio, was all about the stake driver which I also fell in love with on sight. Very fun weapon and very straightforward with only the trick R2 taking so long to charge its not really worth it. Near the end though I started using the beast claw and that really blew me away so that’s where he stands now. I tried using Ludwig’s rifle and the blunderbuss a little bit but always ended up going back to the Evelyn cuz it just feels so good. I think I’ll get his strength up to 30 and give the cannon a spin though I don’t see anyone using it so I doubt its worth it honestly but who knows?

The only weapons I haven’t really fucked with are the starting ones... but I’m not really at all interested in them as much as I am in the Logarius Wheel and Blade of Mercy. I’m considering making a fourth character but more than likely I’ll just do a NG cycle with these weapons using one of the above characters with the most ideal stats for one or both weapons depending on how they scale or whatever.

GREAT GAME A+ 5 STARS IMMACULATE EXPERIENCE.