#and 2) I'm those things and I think it's COOL to have an alien be those things SOOOO there!

[loverboybrightsideghost]

one of my favorite clark headcanons that i have (that is completely unsupported by canon) is that he's transgender by kryptonian standards. martha and jon kent raised him as a boy and as he grew up he never had any reason to doubt it at all, he was like yeah i'm a boy, makes sense. and then he gets to the fortress of solitude for the first time and it turns out how Gender works on krypton was just Different enough that clark doesn't really fit the kryptonian standards of whatever he was supposed to be. bonus points because this makes him feel like even more of an outsider as a kryptonian, even if he's the last one left.

[laurellala-comics]

A couple of years ago I made a few comics about an alien shapeshifter named Shiv that tried to look as hot as possible to distract everyone around him from how out of place he was. It worked on everyone except his butch lesbian coworker who hated his guts and kept pointing out his weird behavior (it's ok, they become besties later). Here's some snippets from that:

other highlights from this comic:

Shiv was an actor who played an alien on a tv show for children that was basically The Wiggles in space. It was called Silly Space Squad (or SSS pronounced like a snake sound)

Shiv understood conceptually that some people were more attractive than others but didn't really get it on a personal level (aro ace king), so he moved in with 3 male models so that he could study them intently and copy how they looked

Vampires were also real in this universe, but this was glossed over because the alien thing was more important to the plot

[sysig]

I am not immune to any cutes - including Rick and Morty cutes, unfortunately (Patreon)

[canichangemyblogname]

Actually, no. The shippers in the 911 fandom who primarily complain about Tommy and his past don't actually care about Tommy's past or his actions that contributed to the previous toxic workplace environment and harassment at the 118. Not everything is about a fucking ship, believe it or not, yet the only time they bring up his behavior is in relation to shipping. And because the only time they bring up a valid critique of Tommy's character is during shipping "discourse," I'm convinced it's not brought forth in good faith. Finding a way to tie everything to a ship—especially things like racism and misogyny—is cheap and tasteless. Not everything is about "shipping;" shut up about the shipping.

I don't think they actually want to discuss how white queers contribute to the marginalization of others, including other queer people, by weaponizing the patriarchy and/or white supremacy in their favor because so many of them are fellow white queers themselves. They don't care about how Tommy inadvertently, because of his past, provides a realistic portrayal of how white queers divide or hurt the larger community because of an inability to find solidarity with people of a different background, culture, or race (especially if it would "inconvenience" them or if it does not directly benefit them, like Chim saving Tommy's life). White people would rather choose misery and isolation over standing with or up for non-white people. White people are generally not willing to put in the work to build community; they'd rather contribute to the system or fly under the radar to avoid being shunned by the structures they, and the Ol' Boys Club, benefit from, like white supremacy or the patriarchy. Most white queers would rather be complaisant, complacent, and complicit. It's the white queer's adherence to oppressive systems that divide the community, not people's calls to tear those systems down. And it's only the white queer who can change their perspective on this.

Tommy only has himself to blame for his jealousy and alienation from a supportive and familial community, and only he can take the steps to ameliorate the situation. Tommy was an absolute fucking dick to Chim and Hen, and that has had long-term consequences on his life. Only he can correct for his behavior. He contributed to a toxic work environment, referring to Chim as a Chinese takeout delivery man, actively participating in Chim's hazing, and telling Chim that he did not like the man (mostly because he didn't know him). He would later call Hen "bitchy," and the men of the 118 would leave the "domestic work" to her as they did Chim, actively contributing to her hazing. He did not (verbally) stand up for her, iced her out, and also contributed to a homophobic work culture that made same-sex attraction the butt of jokes. He contributed to this toxic culture to fly under the radar, and that directly hurt people he should have extended a hand to.

Unfortunately for most of the fandom, this is, ultimately, a show that loves stories about redemption and resolution. And there is actual, explicit (meaning, non-subtextual) evidence that Tommy has put in some work to remedy what he did and who he was (including being able to 1.] own up to his past actions, 2.] understand how he hurt others, 3.] recognize why he did what he did and how that it is an explanation, not an excuse, and 4.] begin to make amends or rectify the situation, like reporting Gerrard and changing his mind about Hen and Chim). Hen and Chim would not have invited him for drinks regularly if they thought he was "irredeemable." The 118 would not have thrown him a going away party if they disliked him. Chim would not call in favors from Tommy on more than one occasion or even describe him as "so cool" if they weren't—well—cool. Eddie wouldn't enjoy ring-side fights and basketball games with Tommy if he didn't enjoy the man's company. Tommy also clearly refers to the type of man he was in the past tense, implying change over time. It can be argued that he has not put in enough work, but that's not what's being argued. We're getting bad faith arguments that Hen, Chim, and Eddie hate Tommy or bad faith arguments where Tommy's past actions are only brought forth as some sort of "gotcha" when a fan prefers canon representation over homophobic fan fiction tropes. You don't have to like Tommy, but making up non-textual reasons to dislike him is absurd.

Tommy, as a character in a narrative, provides a lesson for the general audience (GA), the majority of whom are white. It's not just important to see queer people on screen; it's important to see white people learn and change and admit they were wrong. It's also important that the show—well—shows the GA that whiteness and man-ness affect people's perception, position, and treatment. Tommy isn't just a gay man; he is a white gay man, and this has had a direct impact on how he navigates the world and how the world interacts with him. Gerrard treats men like Sal and Tommy differently than men like Chim or women like Hen, and staying in Gerrard's good graces—like the good graces of oppressive power structures—requires one to conform to a very narrow definition of a "real man," like being straight, white, palatable (like... not kinky, not risqué, not queer, all the things the fandom seems to actually hate Tommy for), and not helping oust regressive figures from positions of authority for the way they treat your coworkers. The audience got to see how Tommy went from being the prodigal son to being openly mocked by men like Gerrard. And it's important to show the GA that someone can and will be happier if they go against the grain and that admiration from men like Gerrard means very little in the grand scheme. Tommy is happier now after having been "rebuked" by men like Gerrard than he was when he strove for their praise and acceptance.

It's also important to show that men like Gerrard and his beliefs belong in the past, even though they exist in the present. This is a network TV show. A non-zero number of men like Gerrard catch this show weekly. It is still important to show that Gerrard is not the "type" of man anyone should aspire to be. His beliefs and actions are not commendable, and the show is very heavy-handed about this. The show is going to once again compare Gerrard ("bad captain") and Bobby ("good captain") to show how Bobby has created a good legacy at the 118. It began this parallel with Bobby Begins Again, continued to reinforce Bobby's good legacy in Buck's coma arc, and then revisited how Bobby has had a positive influence on the lives of the 118 in his season 7 montage. Now, the show is going to compare and contrast him and Gerrard to reinforce how important Bobby is to those around him. The show will also continue its inadvertent parallels between Buck and Tommy, showing how Buck is a different man under similar circumstances because he has had good influences (re: Bobby, Hen, and Chim) in his life. Buck and Eddie's relationship was shaping up to be very similar to Tommy and Chim's relationship: oppositional because of one-sided disregard and dislike, but it didn't because they had a good influence: Bobby (given the rather... fucked timeline, Tommy was likely newer to the 118 when Chim joined and, like Buck, his hostility and posturing were also likely influenced by insecurity and a desire to secure his position at the table).

Most unfortunately for many, the show is also going to show how Tommy has changed due to the same influences (re: Bobby, Hen, and Chim). They wouldn't have re-introduced both Tommy and Gerrard and mentioned their dynamic on more than one occasion if they weren't going to do something with that. Season 7 set up Tommy's upcoming arc very nicely. He knows the man he was, he knows the man who shaped him into that, and he knows how and why that was wrong. We'll get Tommy confronting his obvious daddy issues, jealousy, and desire for community (and why he didn't get a family-like dynamic at the 118, re: Gerrard *and* Tommy's own behavior). Tommy has been explicit about this, literally telling Buck that he envies the relationship the people at the 118 have and mentioning that he was not a good person, and this played a part in why he didn't have the same rapport.

9-1-1 is not a perfect show, but it does reflect some of the positive changes of our time. It's important to see representations of comp-het—like Buck, Tommy, and Michael—and how it negatively impacts people's character or relationships, and then how they—the character—can amend that. It's important to see stories that depict how silence is complicity and how refusing to be silent—as Hen refused to be—makes change and changes minds. It's important that the show reminds the audience that Hen is a black lesbian and that this has impacted how people see her and treat her, but that she is just as capable, if not more so. This includes men like Chim. Because I see nearly none of the people who "critique" Tommy in the name of "shipping" ever bring up how Chim has leaned on the patriarchy for support and a position at the table. He may have been the kindest to Hen, but he was by no means normal about women. And it is important to see how non-white men benefit from the patriarchy even as they are victimized by white supremacy. It's also important that the show shows the GA that non-white men are not affected by white supremacy equally, as Michael and Harry have had discussions about blackness and police brutality, a conversation that Chim is never going to have to have with his children, but that doesn't mean that Chim won't have to one day have a discussion with Jee-Yun about how and why some people treat her differently.

But the fandom approaches everything in a very... Catholic way. They don't approach this from the view that people can change and should be pushed to change; rather, they shun people like they've been marked by original sin. The structures we live under have deeply affected each and every one of our worldviews. "You are not immune to the propaganda" includes your personal philosophies and ideologies as well as the things you were taught since you were a child, consciously and "subconsciously." But, people would rather condemn everyone else as "irredeemable" than look critically at their own behavior out of fear of being "one of the bad ones." They'd rather *not* accept the fact that everyone has learning and changing to do as that would reflect upon them, too. This leads to being very resistant to being told that you're mistaken, you've hurt others, or that your behavior and beliefs contribute to repressive, dangerous, or toxic ideas (and we've seen a lot of that; y'all do not create safe online spaces). This leads to a lack of personal change as well as a lack of change at the interpersonal level because rather than teach or challenge, they stick up their nose and turn the other way. "Their barbaric bigotry; my enlightened neglect."

So, really, they've learned nothing from a character like Tommy.

[tigressaofkanjis]

My biggest pet peeve in Transformers media and fanfiction sometimes is that Transformers aren't treated as aliens. They are referred to as aliens, they obviously are aliens, but they never feel like they are aliens because they are always written or seen as having all human mannerisms or features usually. Human posture, human noses, human mannerisms, humanoids...

What about TFA's cat noses or TFP's helm noses? One of the reasons I think those two shows have peak designs is because they have this lack of uncanniness to humans design wise. I'm not looking at a human being as a robot, I'm looking at an alien robot, ones that have claws, ones that have different body types that blend with their vehicle modes, ones with horrific mutilations and designs impossible by human standards. I love seeing that type of stuff in Transformers because to me, it makes them feel alien without completely changing the premises of similarities to where we can't compare their culture or likeness to humans. The films (mostly 1 and 2) showed off this as well.

Another thing I really would like to see in Transformers media is non-human interactive qualities. What do I mean by that? One thing I've noticed is aside from techno-organic species, regular Cybertronians do have a few qualities found in animals. Engine humming I believe was once used as a form of purring in the films and in some of the cartoons. Humans can't purr; cats can, and that small detail is always interesting to come across because it's like "wow, they have this feature that shows off a trait found in Cybertronians. That is so cool." You have them with multiple voice boxes for mechanical, natural, and human-like tones which is also an animal trait. Bumblebee is self-explanatory in most universes being able to still make sounds yet not talk. They have sensors across their body that don't act like the basic human receptors. Most animals can do more than just feel through certain points of their bodies. They can taste, smell, or even hear a hundred times better than a human being throughout various body parts, and Transformers have been hinted to have this ability too, especially through their servos. It's stuff like this that expands upon their existence as aliens.

They have extreme durability, their body morphs to extremes and can also double as a moving weapon (most obvious of course), some of them can make ungodly roars and creature-like noises to warn or show their threatening demeanor (Megatron's dinosaur-like growling), some can have two rows of teeth (a flat base in front and fangs hidden behind), and some of them have mimicking animal-like features (Starscream's bird-shaped feet with visible expansion the same as organic foot padding with similar distributive weight physics in a few universes) despite having no beast mode. There's probably more I can't think of on the top of my head in canon, but all those things are not heavily used as they should be to make them feel alien. They can still hold some relation to the humans they interact with, but I think a lot of Transformers are more than just metal "humans", you know?

Depending on the universe in fanfiction and who you encounter who writes it or not, you have several things that are always cool to see. They have to sparkbond (merging of hearts) above everything else to create a sparkling's life force with interface as just the extra for physical coding features. I've seen people use the non-canon heat cycles which are, of course, our fandom way of making a type of breeding euphemism akin to an animal's cycle. You have the common phrasing of nuzzling, heightened senses, armor and certain parts of the helm acting like fur or ears where it raises and flattens per their mood, and some Transformers have limb dissonance where if necessary, they can convert between bipedal and quadrupedal stances (best example is Bulkhead and Lugnut from TFA who have long arms but short legs and they have the bulky structure where they could possibly run like an animal briefly and the physics of it would work).

So, you have all these different things a common Cybertron most likely would be able to do or have but a human couldn't, and it's never utilized to their full potential. I would like to see people address the nature of Cybertronians as alien and not be afraid to make them alien. I think that's the biggest flaw in our franchise is that everyone is scared of making the Transformers not the humanoid "norm" and getting ridiculed for it. Like, they're aliens, you can make them act however animal-like or completely batshit insane as you want them. You can give them powers, animal-based senses, and behaviors hidden among a human thought process. And technically, you wouldn't be wrong to what they could be as a living creature in the universe by doing so. They aren't humans; they look humanoid, but they aren't us. Why should they have to be in every regard?

Thank you for reading my TED Talk.

[chaotic-archaeologist]

https://nypost.com/2024/08/28/world-news/boy-4-accidentally-smashes-bronze-age-jar-that-was-at-least-3500-years-old/

Your thoughts?

Personally, I'm kinda sick of museums being required to cater to kids so much. If you're going to do this open air exhibit, kids who don't know how to keep their hands to themselves just shouldn't be allowed in. The glass is there for this very reason.

Actually, I'm with the museum on this one. Is it unfortunate that the vase was broken? Yes. Was the vase a valuable piece of the past? Also yes. But I think the museum did something very cool by not having the artifacts behind glass and are handling this with good grace and the sense to make this a learning opportunity.

Sometimes we overlook the fact that museums often attempt to arrest or freeze artifacts in time. They are kept in controlled conditions to prevent them from deteriorating and even treated to reverse damage. Many things on display on museums are elevated beyond their original value, alienated from their original purpose, and closed off from interaction.

It's incredible that this jar survived as long as it did—and its age is what makes it special—but at the end of the day, it is still a jar. It has now experienced the thing that happens to pretty much every jar that has been or will be. After all, decay is an extant form of life. (If you want to read a very well written and interesting take on decay and archaeology, check out this article by Caitlin DeSilvey.)

The article I linked above provides some important context and the update that the museum is planning on using this as an opportunity to teach about the conservation process. The jar's story is not over; it is being pieced back together and in this next chapter in its life it will be able to tell two stories: one of its life and the other of its rebirth. The museum's approach embraces that, exactly like the Japanese art of Kintsugi.

I also agree with the museum's decision not to punish the child or his family. Things go wrong in museums all the time despite their highly controlled environments, and this is why they have artifacts insured. Sometimes the thing that happens is a child, and by and large museums do not seek damages.

I would encourage you to rethink your stance on museums and children. Museums are for everyone. Children have a right to experience museums and what they have to offer just like anyone else. There are also many studies that discuss how going to museums benefits children.

In this case, perhaps the exhibit design was slightly flawed, but the four year old boy accidentally knocked the jar over because he was curious about what was inside and wanted to investigate. Curiosity is exactly what museums should be encouraging. In an ideal world that curiosity would have been channeled into some other kind of engagement, but the folks who work in museums have a lot on their plates and cannot plan everything perfectly all the time. Even if they could, they often do not have the resources to do so.

Finally, the AP article mentions that the boy and his family were visiting the museum to get away from Hezbollah rocket fire. Regardless of your opinions on the current conflict, everyone deserves to have a safe place to exist. That museums can serve as those spaces is an honor.

I commend the Hecht Museum and the people working there. They 1) successfully provided a place of learning and refuge, 2) opted not for a punitive approach—which is often the default Western model for justice—but a compassionate one, and 3) are using this twist of fate to create programming that will further engage the public.

@museeeuuuum and @museum-spaces would you care to comment?

-Reid

[zorlok-if]

One more sneak peek today because you all deserve it (and I have a busy week at work coming up lol so I probably won't be able to post much).

This leads to a page with 35 possible thoughts of cool things that randomize each time you load it and rotate through as you select them, you get to pick six:

If you selected "Mary and Terry get what's coming for them":

Image 1:

"Imagine what it means to be cool and I can look inside your mind again."

There's a flash of panic, a flush of adrenaline. "No!" Tommy cries.

"Why not?"

"Why not?!" His voice cracks. "Because I don't want to go through that again!" Tommy gestures emphatically at his chest. "I don't want to be hurt."

"I understand that, but as long as you let me in, it won't hurt. You won't feel anything at all." Tommy's eyebrows raise. "Look," the demon exhales heavily. "What you experienced only happened because you rejected my presence."

"But, even if what you're saying is true, how am I supposed to not do that? I don't know how to just let people enter my brain."

"Fortunately, it's rather simple. Imagine yourself opening up your mind and welcoming someone in. That's all it takes. I promise, Tommy." Its tone shifts and its volume drops to a near whisper. "Open your mind to me and you won't get hurt. You have my word."

Tommy's instincts beg him to say no but, for whatever reason, he trusts this being. "Okay." With a deep breath, he forces his muscles to relax, to drop the knotted tension they've been carrying since he first entered this house.

Just picture a door. The front door of his house immediately pops into his head. Tommy reaches out, swings it open, and steps to the side. It feels oddly cold. Like he's let in a draft. "I'm ready."

"Great." Suddenly he feels like he's being watched. If Tommy wasn't paying attention to it—expecting its arrival—there's no way he'd notice the alien presence. The demon speaks directly into his mind. "Now think of what it means to be cool."

Image 2:

Hmm... what is cool?

Mary and Terry getting what's coming to them

Leaving a conversation by putting on a pair of sunglasses

The feeling of finally beating a really hard video game level

Levi's keyblade collection

Guys who wear eyeliner

Image 3:

The presence vanishes from Tommy's mind. His eyes flutter open, blinking rapidly as his vision readjusts to the intense light from the portal.

"Interesting." The demon leans back. "Who are Mary and Terry?" It asks. "You had very strong feelings around those two."

Tommy winces. He feels a book hitting the back of his head. Hears jeers echoing down the long linoleum corridors. Sees Jin make guilty eye contact, then jog off to catch up with Mary. "They're a couple of... jerks." Tommy spits out. "Really awful people."

"Hmm." The demon growls, but it sounds almost delighted. "You want them to get what's coming for them. That's what you thought."

"Yeah." Tommy admits.

"Am I what's coming for them?" There's hunger in the demon's voice. So much so that it sends shivers racing down Tommy's spine.

He hesitates. What does he want? He wants them to pay—they have to pay. But what would that look like? Does he just want them to apologize? ...or does he want them to suffer?

"Maybe you are," Tommy whispers without thinking. "Er, I—I don't know! I'm not sure." That's too big a question for tonight.

[karlachismylife]

Juju's Masterlist

god i love how they look at each other when i place pictures like this

Figured this might be needed! As I am planning to spam-reblog so much cool stuff...

Hi, I'm Juju (or Juju Starr more formally XD), 22 yo and in this blog I primarly write things on the rarepair I came up with, Karlach (Baldur's Gate 3) x Soap (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, reboot trilogy by default).

However, I also write things in both these fandoms with other characters, different ships (including other ships with Karlach and Soap), poly ships, x reader and x OC. There are NSFW ones and I will be checking every blog interacting with them, so minors and ageless blogs DNI, please.

Requests are open! Send in anything <3

*also I have no idea if I'm using the word blurb right, feel free to correct!

The masterlist itself is under the cut!

First mention of Karlach x Soap (a little overview of the ship dynamic)

I Might Have A Type (a post mentioning how the ship was born, trust me, there's concrete evidence of them being compatible)

All things Karlach x Soap (thoughts, fics, little ideas and concepts - simply sorted by hashtag)

Karlach x Soap fics

Morning Routine (blurb, fluff, 238 words) - Karlach, Soap and shaving

Birds of a Feather (blurb, fluff, 271 words) - Karlach and her dynamic with task force 141

They're Horny (blurb, smutty (NSFW), 228 words) - Karlach is horny and Soap is horny, but there's a difference (there's not)

Explosive Love (blurb, fluff, 105 words) - what it's like when you have a demolitions expert and a walking bomb on your team

Not Fair (blurb, angst, 457 words) - Soap is there when Karlach breaks down after the death of a certain bastard

Restless Fingers (blurb, fluff, 130 words) - one word: fidgeting

Scar Twinsies (blurb, fluff, 245 words) - surviving Hell and blowing shit up leaves similar marks

Practice Makes Perfect (oneshot, fluff, 932 words) - something from Soap's weaponry catches Karlach's eye and he does not miss an opportunity for a date

Tactic Tactile Affections (headcanons, fluff, 764 words) - it's not just about kissing and fucking!

Baby Fever (blurb, fluff, 260 words) - can you imagine their babies tho (C)

Is It Visual Stimming or Is He A Romantic? (oneshot, fluff, 945 words) - something about smouldering coal is just so mesmerizing... what are you looking at, Johnny?

Hey Skullboy (blurb, fluff w/angst, 467 words) - Karlach shares with Ghost not only his sergeant, but also trauma

Solar Eclipse mini-series (2 parts)

Total Eclipse of the Heart (mini, fluff w/angst, 1286 words) - dog tags can be so many things, learns Karlach when she spots an unfamilar piece of jewelry among other alien things Soap brought from his world (part 1) Worshipping the Sun (mini, fluffy smut (NSFW), 4201 words) - solar eclipse is beautiful, thinks Johnny when he looks at his circular dogtags blocking out the glowing light of Karlach's engine. He wouldn't mind seeing a thousand of those as soon as he gets a chance to make the little steel plates bounce on her chest (part 2)

Introductions (blurb, fluff, modern!AU, 105 words) - what Soap would call Karlach in modern!AU

Two of Us Wearing Raincoats (headcanons, fluff, partially suggestive, partially modern!AU, 2855 words) - requested domestic fluff, a lot of it!

Love Texting (blurb, fluff, modern!AU, 96 words) - what their texting looks like (Karlach is illiterate, Soap is Soap)

(Be)longing (blurb, suggestive fluff, 190 words) - Johnny and collars, am I right?

Bath Time (blurb, fluff, 246 words) - sharing a bath to save time

Good Night And Joy Be To You All (oneshot, angst or hurt/comfort with hopeful ending, 1233 words) - Karlach finds Johnny standing on the edge of a cliff and knows all too well what it's like to miss your home

Afterglow Kisses (drabble, fluff, 646 words) - they make love, they kiss with love, they are in love

Karlach x Ghoap (Ghost x Soap) fics

Package Deal (blurb, fluff, 135 words) - tame one golden retriever, get one free

None Are Free Until (blurb/idea, angst w/fluff, modern!AU, 558 words) - anarchist!Karlach and everything complicated because of that

All The Leaves Are Brown (oneshot, fluff with a bit of hurt/comfort, modern!AU, 1463 words) - anarchist!Karlach, Soap and Ghost in the face of impending cold of the autumn

Call of Duty fics

Random Characters Assortment

Their favourite body part/touch headcanons (Price, Ghost, Soap, Gaz, Nikolai, König, Valeria blurbs, fluff, partially suggestive, no use if Y/N gn!reader-insert, can be read as character x character too, 1367 words) - their favourite way to touch you and such

Task Force 141 Ensemble

Their reaction to you playing datesim games (individual oneshots, fluff, partially suggestive (NSFW), no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 5073 words) - how do they find out and what do they think?

You're a character in their favourite game (individual blurbs, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 786 words) - how do they approach you in-game?

The Queen of the Clan || Series masterlist (hyena shapeshifter!AU, no use of Y/N fem!chubby!reader-insert) - when you decide to shake up your life a bit and partake in a trip with a documentary crew, you have no idea that meeting an unnaturally friendly hyena and have it mark your backpack would be only the beginning of weird things to come. Whatever will you do when a leaderless clan of four male hyenas chooses you as their matriarch?

You're having a bad time after sex (individual oneshots for every man + poly 141, hurt/comfort, NSFW, dark themes, no use of Y/N gn!chubby/fat!reader-insert, 7351 words) - due to hormonal withdrawal after sex you spiral into a severe episode of self-loathing and body image issues, but you have someone to comfort you

You got sick (individual drabbles for every man + poly!hyena!141, fluff, partially suggestive (NSFW), sickfic, no use of Y/N gn!sick!reader-insert, 1834 words) - their rection if you got sick

You have chronic illness (poly 141 headcanons, fluff, sickfic, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 2388 words) - the way they care for you if you have chronic illness

Mini force 141 headcanons (poly mini 141 headcanons, silly fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 1104 words) - what if task force 141, but reaaaal smol? (Inspired by a tiktok)

Task force 141 VS head massager thingy (individual drabbles for every man + poly!hyena!141, fluff, tiniest bit suggestive, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 1038 words) - their complicated relathionship with the head massager

Thoughts on task force 141 and weed (individual headcanons, 748 words) - my limited perception of the topic

Task force 141 VS cute puppies (individual headcanons, fluff, 628 words) - if they need to take care of puppies, what's their approach?

Task force 141 VS raccoons (individual drabbles, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 2265 words) - how do they deal with raccoons that come to your home?

Task force 141 carving Halloween pumpkins (individual drabbles, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 2425 words) - what's their technique when it comes to creating Jack-o'-lanterns?

Forehead kisses (individual headcanons, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 569 words) - them giving you forehead kisses

Soap

Rushed (blurb, fluff, 78 words) - what some consider rushed, Johnny considers almost too late

Mohawk Appreciation Time (blurb, fluff, mentioned Karlach x Soap but Soap-centred, 249 words) - I do not condone calling his mohawk stupid unless it's fully affectionate!

Emotional Support Dog (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 1132 words) - when you're struggling with work-related stress, Johnny's there for support

I'm In Love 100 Times (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 485 words) - when you look at Soap, you almost choke on your love for him, but he's there to rescue

Don't You Forget About Me (oneshot, silly fluff, no use of Y/N fem!reader-insert (reader is Soap's mother), 1208 words) - your son is a troublemaker, but he's a good boy (and you're just as stubborn as him)

Masochistic Kid With a Split Lip (oneshot, hurt/comfort, no use of Y/N gn!sergeant!reader-insert, 1106 words) - Soap gets messed up on a mission, but he's just as irresistable

Fear Of the Depth (blurb co-created with @killerpancakeburger, kinda hurt/comfort or a little angst, mentioned Soap x reader but Soap-centred, 334 words) - what would Soap's one fear be?

Elevator Story (blurb/irl storytime that is very Soap-coded, fluff I guess, 277 words) - a story from my real life that was just too good to not tell

Gratitude From The Top (Of His Lungs) (oneshot, short smut, no use of Y/N gn!bottom!reader-insert, 569 words) - sometimes Soap whimpers when you let him finish inside

Gratitude From The Bottom (Of His Heart) (oneshot, short smut, no use of Y/N gn!top!reader-insert, 639 words) - sometimes Soap whimpers when you finish inside

Ghost

Now They Ain't Got a Prayer (oneshot, hurt/comfort, no use of Y/N gn!military!reader-insert, 1479 words) - after a mission goes not like planned, there's a heavy feeling in the air, but there's something even heavier in your chest

Flutter Into the Skies (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N fem!girly!reader-insert, 1277 words) - Simon is being a menace while you're trying to get ready for a friend's wedding, but you have your ways to take revenge

And We Just Disagree (oneshot, hurt/comfort, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 900 words) - arguments are an unpleasant, but unavoidable part of life, and good thing you and Simon can resolve them well

Chains Of Love (oneshot, hurt/comfort, no use of Y/N gn!civilian!reader-insert, 929 words) - dating Simon Riley wasn't an easy job, but an honest talk might save you from falling off this tiring swing

Wanting To Hold You (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reder-insert, 1534 words) - Simon is a menace, so why can't you be a menace too, just to put him in his place for once?

People Are Strange (oneshot, no use of Y/N afab!reader/self-insert, 2917 words) - you're in your own artistic world when someone who says he's your neighbour knocks on your door (this is very-very my self-insert)

Gaz

I Need a Hero (oneshot, fluf, no use of Y/N gn!civilian!reader-insert, 538 words) - Kyle is finally getting a medal and you're just happy for your man

Come On Baby, Light My Fire (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!civilian!reader-insert, 887 words) - you finally get to celebrate Guy Fawkes Night, with Kyle by your side no less

Temptation When I Look At You (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader, 2229 words) - going out with friends for a board game even turns into you poorly executing your flirtint skills and... scoring a date?

Price

I Need My Love To Be Here (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N fem!reader-insert, 715 words) - while your husband is away, you daughter is being a little troublemaker. But you're both good enough girls to recieve a special gift!

Valeria

Desnuda Tu Mente (oneshot, suggestive, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 1015 words) - your life depends on the will of her blade, and you're absolutely thrilled by it

Ghoap (Ghost x Soap)

Help! (blurb, fluff, 213 words) - thoughts on Simon Riley and The Beatles

Fem!Ghoap mini-series

Wrestle Ye (oneshot/blurb, fluff, 751 words) - what would fem!ghoap be like and how would they fall in love? (Spoiler: with a bang) No Woman Left Dirty (oneshot, suggestive fluff, 1192 words) - how does Soap find her way into Ghost's apartment? And why does hair length matter?

Nikprice (Nikolai x Price)

Sleepy (blurb co-created with @devil-in-hiding, fluff, partially suggestive, no use of Y/N fem!mom!reader-insert, 498 words) - waking up on rainy mornings is hard, especially you have the weight of responsibilities for your baby and home on your shoulders. Unless there's someone to share the burden...

Hesh

Standing For Something (oneshot, hurt/comfort, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 660 words) - getting ambushed and shot isn't exactly pleasant, but your Lieutenant is a good man and makes everything a little better

Baldur's Gate fics

Dammon

Forged Under the Stars (oneshot, fluff, no use of Y/N gn!reader-insert, 1157 words) - at the Tiefling Party Dammon comes over to sit with you under the stars

will be re-working this thing

[archibaldtuttle]

Alien : Romulus - a 7/10 reason to stop making Alien films

This review will be spoiler-free

When I came out of the theater yesterday, after having gone through a viewing of Alien Romulus, I caught myself agreeing with my friends - this was pretty good!

And I am beyond poisoned about the Alien franchise since Ridley Scott got his grubby paws all over it with Prometheus. The only reason I made the effort to move my ass to the theater to see this one was because he wasn't directing (and also I didn't have to pay for it) (thanks sib).

I knew Alvarez from two of his previous films, the 2013 remake of Evil Dead and Don't Breathe. I am pretty mixed on both - they demonstrate solid filmmaking abilities and (in the case of Evil Dead), a deep respect for franchises he's adding to. However they are also a little heavy on the jumpscares for my taste, and in the case of Don't Breathe I just can't praise the film without having to mention that the third act twist is gross in an entirely unnecessary, shock-value way, that does nothing for the film thematically.

That did give me some hope for Romulus however, because that third act twist told me Alvarez likes talking about rape and impregnation. And contrary to Don't Breathe... that's right at home in Alien.

So what about the film then? It's good. Solid premise, I like that we're finally, finally, seven films in, seeing the planet-side society that births all those rundown spaceships. Good pair of main characters with on one side a demonstrably resourceful Rain and on the other a very nuanced look at the franchise's synthetics with Andy. The others are more forgettable but I can't blame that too much on the film - they're well characterized in a few short scenes and that's all I can expect really. The build-up is solid, the various ticking clocks and sources of tensions well established.

What I find particularly notable is the really good setpieces and the use of facehuggers in a way I've wanted to see for a long time. Very good physical effects supplemented by good to ok-ish CGI. The writing is very heavy-handed - I wish more people looked at what O'Bannon did with exposition before they write their own Alien scripts. I do give credit to Alvarez and his co-writer Sayagues for the cool concepts explored and the way they thread Andy's character exploration through them.

The editing is mostly blameless - I wouldn't call it great or even that good, especially with how hectic it gets during some more action-ey scenes, but you can tell Roberts isn't specialized or even used to horror films. I guess he took from his experience on Pressure which would explain a lot... The score is really good, one of the highlights of the film in my opinion - I've liked almost all I've heard from Wallfisch so I wasn't surprised to find out he did this one.

So why did I give this review a very baitey title. It became clear as I was watching the fourth, then the inevitable fifth act unfold, that we were, collectively, scraping the barrel on what can be done with Alien. Prometheus and Covenant, beyond the fact that they were garbage movies, were already trying desperately to find new things to do with the concept. Romulus succeeded, for the most part, in finding new ways to twist it into something interesting, something we hadn't seen before (or at least not entirely). And I'm pretty sure that's it.

I don't want more directors to spend months racking their brains to try and find three or more scene setups that haven't already been done in seven main films, two AVP films and countless video games, in order to string them together into a coherent 2 and a half hour flick. I don't think it's impossible, Alvarez clearly demonstrated that he could do it and I'm pretty sure other people could. But why waste so much time, talent and energy on a series that objectively does not need expanding upon?

I know why, it's because the current studio system is allergic to anything that doesn't have brand recognition. But I think it's sad. And I think it would be a lot more gracious to put an end to a franchise after a pretty good film that did all it could to honor its predecessors rather than try to keep squeezing more out of it until it turns into the horror version of Star Wars.

[cyren-myadd]

Rant about Eywa theories

Eywa is one of the most interesting concepts in the Avatar universe, imo. The concept of an interplanetary consciousness that every native organism can "interface" with is so cool. One thing that really fascinates me about Eywa is how she goes about "protecting only the balance of life" as Neytiri explained to Jake. As of Avatar 1, Eywa did not react to the human threat mining and destroying the forest for several years, nor the genocide/abduction of the Sarentu clan, even though Eywa would've been aware of what was happening when the Na'vi shared their memories with her soul trees. She only reacted to the threat AFTER she was exposed to human memories of the destruction of earth when Jake interfaced with her via his avatar body, and then again when she interfaced with Grace’s human body. The reaction was similar to an immune response within a body attacking a foreign virus, with native fauna mobilizing to attack anything that registered as alien. One interesting thing of note about the immune response is that the animals were not physically connected to Eywa when they attacked, which means Eywa can somehow send commands to organisms “wirelessly.” This phenomena could also explain how the atokirina conveniently show up to stop Neytiri from killing Jake. Anyway, the immune response won the final battle of A1, in A2 we saw the immune response can't protect Pandora in its entirety. The recoms could get past the immune response undetected, and Bridgehead and the whaling ships didn't face an immune response at all.

Another interesting thing about Eywa we learned from the original script for Avatar 2, is that she is confirmed to have caused Grace’s pregnancy. Norm describes Kiri’s birth as “parthenogenesis,” which is a biological process in which an egg produces viable offspring without sperm from a male. (idk if the script needs a spoiler warning, so I'm putting one just to be safe) Based on the fact that Jake describes the pregnancy as “a mystery,” we can assume parthenogenetic birth isn’t something normal to the Na’vi’s alien reproductive cycle. On earth, parthenogenesis is only found in invertebrates and some plants. Assuming that Na’vi reproduction is somewhat similar to earth animal reproduction (which I think we can safely do since the Sully children clearly have inherited different traits from their parents, implying that they get half of their DNA from each parent just like on earth, but they are aliens so I could be completely wrong here), Grace would’ve had gametes inside of her avatar’s reproductive system, which are cells that only contain half of the genetic material to produce a viable offspring. A complex, multicellular organism like a Na’vi couldn’t exist without a full set of genes, so in order to produce a zygote (a new cell with a full set of genes that can grow into an embryo), the other half of the genetic material must’ve come from somewhere else, and the only place it could’ve come from is Eywa herself. This means that Eywa, to some capacity, can create or at least copy and reproduce genetic material. Since Kiri is so similar to Grace, it’s possible the other half of her genes are just a complete copy of Grace.

From all this we can conclude some things about Eywa.

We know she is not:

All powerful

All knowing

A “god” in the traditional sense

We know she is capable of:

Storing memories, including memories of the deceased from the last time they connected with her

Making decisions to react to threats based on those memories

Interfacing with an alien’s nervous system

Commanding fauna

Sending signals to organisms without physical contact

Creating/changing genetic material

What is still unclear is how Eywa’s consciousness works. Is she:

A sentient individual?

A hive mind of the deceased Na’vi?

An amalgamation of consciousness built from memories?

Something akin to a biological artificial intelligence?

Now that we’ve established the things that are confirmed about Eywa, I want to get into some speculation about what else she might be capable of. Note that from this point on I’m being purely SPECULATIVE and I’m not saying any of this is for sure possible in canon, I’m just coming up with hypotheses based on info we already have. After the end of Avatar 2, it looks like Jake and the Na’vi are planning to make their stand against the RDA, but if they want any hope of winning against the RDA’s superior technology, they’re going to need a combination of a Na’vi war force and divine intervention, just like in Avatar 1. The question is, how will Eywa help them? The one form of defense we’ve seen from her is the immune response, but that can only go so far. It can be fooled by avatars and recoms, and it is not strong enough to attack a heavily fortified base like Bridgehead. Eywa is going to have to step up her game, and I’ve created three theories on how she might do that.

📢potential spoiler warning for the last theory!📢

Theory 1: The 880 Virus

Project 880 is a screenplay James Cameron wrote in 1995 that eventually morphed into the Avatar we know and love today. One element in 880 that never made it to Avatar was the counter-viruses. For every earth virus the RDA brought with them to Pandora, Eywa created a counter-virus that would stop it, protecting both native organisms and the humans from getting sick from the viruses ever again. The RDA was even planning to create vaccines using the counter-viruses and sell them back on earth. At the end of Project 880 when the RDA is forced to retreat, Jake tells them that if they ever come back, Eywa will unleash a deadly virus that will wipe out any human that dares set foot on Pandora again. Even though Project 880 is not canon, I could see James Cameron revisiting his old idea to help the protagonists shake off the RDA forever. The problem is they’d need to find a way to protect the friendly humans like Spider and Norm.

Theory 2: Avatar Kiri

Between the parthenogenetic birth and Kiri’s ability to control vines (seen in The High Ground comic) and anemones (seen in Avatar 2), the movies are clearly setting up for there to be something special about her. In both the comic scene where she controlled plants and the movie scene where she controlled the anemones, the characters around her expressed confusion that she could do so, from which we can assume those are not normal abilities of a Na’vi. Since Kiri is also established to have a deep connection to Eywa, it is possible she is meant to act as an “avatar.” In the original context of the word, an avatar is a manifestation of a deity in mortal form, so Kiri would act as an avatar for Eywa. Since Kiri is a person and not a… whatever Eywa is, she can make her own decisions and react quickly to problems without having to absorb memories first. There’s no more information to speculate about what other abilities Kiri may develop in the future, so unfortunately, there’s not much else to discuss here that we can base on any evidence.

Theory 3: If you can’t beat em, join em

📢Here’s where we’re getting into potential spoiler territory.📢 In the BTS footage for Avatar 2, there were some scripts accidentally shown which described some very interesting scenes: Spider, breathing without a mask, and Kiri confessing to Mo’at that she caused it to happen. There was also some concept art shown in Las Vegas that depicted Spider with a neural queue plugged into the underwater spirit tree with Kiri. Full disclaimer, it’s entirely possible these are scrapped ideas and will not be seen in the Avatar franchise, but for the sake of this hypothesis, let’s assume they’re legit. I’ve seen a lot of people asking the question of HOW would this happen, but I haven’t seen anybody asking an equally important question: WHY? I’m very interested in the HOW and maybe I’ll make a discussion post on it later, but for my hypothesis let’s just talk about the WHY. Even though Kiri claimed responsibility for it, I don’t think this is something she could do without the help of Eywa, since Na’vi aren’t established to have the ability to radically alter other organisms. So why would Eywa want to give a human kid the ability to breathe the Pandoran air? Sure, he’s Kiri’s friend, but Eywa has never intervened to save an individual’s life just because people cared about them before (otherwise we’d still have Neteyam RIP). As Neytiri said, “The Great Mother protects the balance of life.” Eywa did not intervene to stop the destructive mining or protect the Sarentu, she only intervened AFTER Grace’s memories showed her that the RDA could potentially cause planet-wide destruction like on earth. So if she gave Spider this life-saving ability, there must be a bigger reason for it other than just Kiri wanting him to survive. My hypothesis is that Eywa has realized what a massive threat the humans pose to Pandora, and that her immune system response is insufficient to protect her biosphere. Her solution is to behave like a virus and weaponize the humans against themselves. When a virus infects a healthy organism, it “hacks” into healthy cells and reprograms them to attack uninfected cells and produce more viruses. Eywa will “hack” Spider’s biology the same way she “hacked” into Grace’s nervous system to interface with her, and will “reprogram” him to breathe the air and have a neural queue. Spider is already loyal to the Na’vi, so she doesn’t need to do anything further to him, but what if she repeated the process with other humans? Any human who gained a neural queue would be able to experience tsaheylu and the connection between all living things. Humans who are already loyal to Eywa would be able to fight back better with their new abilities, and it would give Eywa more access to more memories to gain a better understanding of the enemy. Humans who are loyal to the RDA would be more inclined to switch sides after experiencing Eywa’s consciousness, much like Jake did. I’m aware this final theory is a bit more out there than the others, but it spawned from me trying to answer the question of WHY would Spider get the ability to breathe the air and I felt like there had to be a bigger reason than just Kiri wanting to save him. Unlike Kiri, there’s not some special significance about Spider (other than his connection to Quaritch, but I don’t think Eywa would care about that) that would make him vital to the fight against the RDA, so I thought, what if he’s not special, he just happened to be the first piece of a much larger plan? And the result is this theory.

What do you think of my theories and do you guys have any of your own to share?

TLDR: Eywa is really cool, and in the future I think she could possibly defeat the RDA by unleashing a deadly virus, giving Kiri special powers, or "converting" Spider and other humans.

[smiling-stel]

Speaking ab the cover art from a Design pov *aside frm the comments that Cale looks out of character in the lore standpoint of vol. 2 art

(spoiler free, dw)

◇ TLDR; vol. 2 cover is beautiful, but it couldve had better color synergy. I can see why the artists did what they did, its just not my fav.

. man I'm just happy to have an official English print lmao, ill take what I can get

---

At first I didn't like the red shirt cause it was too much the same color as his hair. (Like if it was a darker or desaturated maroon, I feel it would've looked better, at least so he isn't matching with his own hair-)

. But now taking a step back n looking at vol. 2 again, zoomed out, I actually think his Face is the most jarring part [more on that later ◇]

◇ . The bright red of the shirt being lit by a yellower light, altho matching w his hair, actually isn't so jarring to me anymore cause I noticed two things

◇ 1) his pants are also tinted red (if my eyes aren't deceiving me) meaning compared to the background and the other two characters, Cale *in his entirety* is a red-toned silhouette -> this is a illustrative design strategy where the artist assigns a group of colors to a specific subject n *Restrictvely* uses the Hue Differences to their advantage. In my opinion, its a good choice in making him contrast and stand out. You can definitely Tell he's the main character with just the cover art.

. BUT it can also give off an Outlandish or alien feeling because (in this case) Cale is the ONLY red in the scene. Theres no balancing of red tones from his character to the background At All (e.g. the artists doesnt add Any red to the surroundings so his character can "fit in" with the scene- like as if you photoshopped a guy in sunny lighting into a dark room, the lighting differences is jarring n you can tell the guy is just slapped on top [not saying the artist did that at all, but the way they painted Cale to stand out feels jarring in that sense). While this does an insanely good job at putting him in the spotlight, it perhaps does Too great of a job, making him feel isolated or strange compared to the rest of the piece.

. (Then again, you can justify that that was the goal. To isolate Cale n show hes alien from a lore standpoint as he's "not from this world" as an isekai story)

◇ 2) but we're forgetting this is a COVER art. It's not Just an illustration to be pretty. To break my earlier point, altho Cale IS the only red in the *Illustration,* this art piece is - fundamentally - a Cover Art. It has the Title thats a part of its design <-<-<- And if we looksey at the title, what do we see? Red and warm tones. Like what other thing thats only reds? Cale Henituse himself!

. The Title IS the balance I said was missing in point 1). My theory is thats Also why the artist tinted the lighting on Cale to be warmer n more yellow, so as to use the yellow orange in the title (and the contrast of cools n warms from the focal points to the rest of the art) to their advantage. It helps add reds to the lower half of of the piece where the only warm tones are Choi Han's hand (the other character) and the fleeting window curtain; both of those details being at the edges of the piece and Both very small so they hardly have an influence on the overall design.

. So the title, taking up the majority of the lower half of the piece, draws the warmth down n assists in balancing the overall cover design.

So the reds have now been explained, but why are the whites so white now?--

◇ . Earlier I had said Cale's face was the most jarring part of the cover. And I still fully stand by that sentiment. Its the same idea where the reds do Too great a job isolating Cale; the whites do Too great a job contrasting w the background n the two other characters - who are black n cool tones - to the point where it Heavily draws the eye, practically in a violent manner.

. The extreme paleness is quite lore accurate for Cale's character, who hes isekaied as, but the extreme lighting Highlighting just his face compared to Choi Han's face is an extremely bold design decision (again, not a bad thing as he IS the main focal point, but adding onto the Isolating Spotlight trait going on)

◇ Ok then, but why's his jacket also so freakishly bright white? I heard from a fellow lcf fan (love discussing w you dawg <3) that they think the jacket is the worst part of his cover design.

N I agree. The reds standing out can be justified as a design strat, his face is the focal point so thats why that stands out, but why the jacket??

. Here i am on my artist apologist era <3

◇ . The jacket being blindly white is (probably) to Dampen the Harshness of his face being so bright.

. Altho the guy looks great in white ☆°• with how extreme the lighting is in this cover art, I think the artist wanted to balance the laser beam that is Cale's face paleness by spreading it out to his jacket, specifically that left collar fold ( i think that's called the lapel?)

. Basically by making the jacket's collar also intensely white, the artist gives their best attempt at trying to make Cale's skin less jarring so as to not make it so ridgedly highlighted. Like black ink spilt onto fresh paper, they tried to spread it out so its not so condensed in high contrast. ...But that only made the jacket join in on the uncanniness- TTvTT

---

(Posting the pic again so yall don't gotta scroll far o7)

Other notes I've noticed n wanted to just point out while I'm here looking through the Design Lense ☆°•

☆ The red of Cale's hair and the red of his shirt n neck scarf sandwiches his face, making it stand out even More. Ealier I said the contrast of the vibrant red to the paleness makes his face draw the eye, but thats also thanks to the *position* of the colors! Not just the colors themselves B) isn't that so cool (tell me yes even if you have to lie-)

☆ The lighting on Choi Han's cape, chest, to face -> the window arch -> to Cale's entire person being lit up + how he's wearing a long white jacket

. It all creates this general arch of light tones and highlighted features which surrounds and hugs the title! The artists really knows how to use their darks and lights !!

☆ Choi Han's entire person, Cale's pants, and our lovely Roan Miru (the dragon) are the only deepest dark black tones in the entire piece! The privilege of being the subjects <3

☆ cale looks crossed eyed lel

. Im glad I'm not the only one who struggles with eyes still

. Or maybe this artist did it right n I just don't know how to draw eyes- (very plausible tbh)

Man I love artists

---

All in all, Im not a fan of vol. 2 cover art but I can see why the artists did what they did

◇ . One of the most important things of commercial art is that its visually pleasing, regardless of design, lore, or even logic. The design choices are golden but putting them all together couldve been done better. Not that the art is ugly in any way. Its still gorgeous af, there just couldve been more balance or overall color synergy.

This is just my opinion anyways :D! No hate anywhere <33

[paradoxbeta]

what do you think the ancients looked like under their masks?

ANON THANK YOU FOR ASKING I COULD CRY TEARS OF JOY

The short answer: Human-like, but dubiously. Very colorful, ornate, and diverse. Heavy on body modification: piercings, implants, tubes of all sorts, and dramatic face/eye changes are everywhere. It's hard to describe one thing they all are, because they're each so different.

The long answer: (my ocs are here!)

Okay, so, important bare minimums: They can have pretty much any skin tone, and come in all of the patterns and markings you can think of (whether they were born with them or had them added.) The default Ancient eye is exactly like a humans, but people can and often do get changes to their pupils and sclera/eye color. They have "hair" that sort of looks like worm grass. I figure some kinda splatoon inkling type logic applies when taking into mind haircuts and buzzes and all that. They generally have elven, goat-like, or other non-human type ears. Most if not all of them have openings in their bodies for tubes a la cyberpunk, because Ancient fashion gonna Ancient fashion.

Now for the fun/personalized part. Their faces!

Ancients come in a range from the most humanoid to the least. Note that "animaloid" is an EXTREMELY nebulous term and not exclusive to the one shown in the picture. I'm not yet sure how something like this would come about. I like to think this is a result of generations upon generations of extreme genome modification, or "animaloid" Ancients are a subspecies/branch off of whatever the humanoid Ancients are, OR they're the same species, but just have an insane amount of genetic variation. This is an issue for me to figure out another time. Regardless, there is no strict line between what constitutes an animaloid and what constitutes a humanoid. Both are bipedal and have a variable amount of pectorals/arms,* with the primary differences being in the face. There are some Ancients that you can look at and immediately classify as one of the two, but most of them fall somewhere in between, like "humanoid" Ancients with exaggerated facial proportions or "animaloid" Ancients that are just close enough to human looking that it becomes difficult to put a label on it. Trying to classify individual Ancients is often a fruitless endeavor, but having the general spectrum in mind is important.

*Can have 1-2 pairs of each: note that an Ancient with one pair of arms may have 2 pairs of pectorals but an Ancient with 2 pairs of arms cannot have only 1 pectoral set. Ancients with 2 pairs of arms are rare.

As mentioned a million times prior, Ancients are super gung ho about body modification, and things we deem extreme in human society are probably only uncommon or even unremarkable in Ancient society. Obviously, not every Ancient is making themselves into the next Rolf Buchholz. Some are more conservative about changing their body, some are more extreme. But the general idea is that not having ANY sort of change made, be it as minute as an ear piercing or as dramatic as horn implants, is bizarre.

I know there's other possible takes on the Ancients that are much more separated from human aesthetics, and I love those! But I wasn't really concerned about the spec bio-y aspect this time around. I have enough alien aliens in my roster already, so my Ancients are entirely a product of me having fun without much concern for making them super believable. Hopefully they look cool enough for that to be a valid excuse.

And finally, some pictures of my Ancients, because it's hard to get the full scope without examples. Some of these are from wips I hope to post someday, so you might see them again later. Also I'm trying to format them all nice and next to each other so they don't take up so much space, but tumblr is losing its mind right now so if it doesn't format right then whoops.

[mukuberry]

Read Drama Queen bc I've seen a few discoursey posts about it on reddit. I've seen alot of takes on it, mostly that it's racist/xenophobic/anti-immigrant, that it's mocking racist thinking or that it's anti-colonialism and anti-upperclass. Personally, I'm going with the idea that it's satirical and critising xenophobia, but there's only 2 chapters atm so it's hard to get a proper idea as of now.

I mean, Kitami literally kills one of the aliens for the terrible terrible crime of bumping into him and not apologising, he and Nomamoto then eat the corpse and go out to kill 5 more who have done nothing other than happen to cross paths with them. The title "drama queen" is a mocking way of saying someone overreacts to small things, which fits the two perfectly- it feels like obvious satire to me, I'm honestly not sure how people can see it otherwise.

But it could still just be the authors edgy revenge fantasy, right? Except it's extremely obvious that the 2 characters are very unreliable narrators when they talk about the oppression they face at the hands of the aliens. Nomamoto talks about how she's forced to work in inhumane conditions by her abusive alien boss, and while said boss is undeniably abusive, she blames him for conditions that he himself is suffering from. However, he isn't refusing to turn the A/C on like she says he is, out of all the workers he's the one who's visibly overheating the most and this overheating is explained to be why he's in such a shitty mood. The cooling spray he has clearly doesn't work well, and it's extremely hard to believe he's just refusing to save himself from the heat so the other workers can suffer more- it's much more likely the A/C is out of his control and is in the hands of his higher ups, who don't care about those lower than them, whether they're alien or human.

As for Kitami, he talks about how his family was killed by a drunk alien driver, but the police refused to catch them because the world works in the aliens favour and the cops didn't want to disturb peace between aliens and humans. Except later, when Nomamoto's boss accidentally burns to death infront of her and the other workers walk in on her standing next to his corpse, they all scream at her for not calling for help and just watching- but no legal action is taken against her. It's said the cops are called, but there's no real investigation at all, she's simply fired and that's the end of it. It's apparent there isn't some huge bias towards aliens in the legal system like Kitami says, but rather the system as a whole is just extremely neglectful, the only (maybe) cop we ever see is at the end of chapter 2 after 6 alien murders have already been committed and it's impossible for them to ignore- and even then it's a single cop who is introduced with them puking on the street. You'd think with a system that favours aliens, they'd send multiple of their best for a potential alien serial killer/kidnapper, no?

Idk, again there's only 2 chapters out so it's hard to make a proper judgment, but either everyone is assuming the worst and are taking the narrative shown at face value or i'm assuming the best and being way too optimistic about it.

[forabeatofadrum]

2024 Writing Round-Up

It's the last SSS/WW for the year and I have nothing to share, since I finished Ever After and am not itching to start something new (and I'm back on my Persona bullshit). Luckily, @that-disabled-princess tagged me in this writing round-up, so I am doing that instead. Please enjoy my bespoke banner.

I posted 10 works on AO3, with three being WIPs. I have published 85,165 words in 2024. Oh boy, let's get into it under the cut

I did actually publish stuff in January and February, but those were multichaptered things, and I am putting the works in the months I finished them/last updated them.

So, with that said, let's start in March!

MARCH 🪻

February Friday Event 2024 (Radio Silence, gen, WIP)

I have written 2 of the 4 prompts for the February Friday event. I started the other two, but I just.... haven't finished them. I should. I liked what I have written for it. Completing this fic wasn't a priority and it shows. Oof.

吃了吗? (Glee, Tike, 1.564 words)

Part of the series that explores the Asianness in Glee, and yes, it was me projecting on Tina again. Tina feels disconnected from her Korean heritage due to her adoption. Oop. I really, really liked this one and I think it's one of the best titles of the year. Yes, the title is Chinese, not Korean, since it mostly takes place in a Chinese restaurant. Mutual, ��吃饭了吗？

APRIL ❤️

All of me loves all of you (Class, Charlie/Matteusz, 2.598 words)

A story idea that I have had for years and I'm glad I finally wrote it down. Charlie is an alien, gasp! And he only looks human. In this fic, he shows Matteusz his alien self and reflects on his human disguise. I'm really, really happy with this one and it's one of the reasons that my love for Class reawakened this year.

MAY 🌻

Just Some Guy (Carry On, Snowbaz + Matt/Leslie, 15.664 words)

HONESTLY ONE OF THE BEST THINGS I HAVE EVER WRITTEN, if I may so myself. It's Snowbaz's 7.25's canon years at Watford from the perspective of someone who doesn't give a shit about them. I fucking love this fic. I fucking love MCD (Matt Christopher Davis) and I loved writing how disinterested he is in the whole Chosen One shenanigans. It makes for a fun fic, but it also makes sense if you look at the state of the world. So many people keep living ordinary lives while weird shit happens, and MCD is just ordinary. He's just some guy.

JULY 🌼

Find My Way (Legally Blonde, gen, 1.358 words)

I was on a Christian Borle binge during the summer, so I rewatched the musical Legally Blonde and this fic is a missing scene. Vivian realises what is happening and decides to break up with Warner and back-up Elle. I think it's neat.

OCTOBER 😺

What's in the name? (Glee, multi, WIP)

The first multichaptered installment of my Asianness in Glee series and it's all about names. It's partially me trying to make sense of some of Glee's choices, and me lifting from my life again. I have published Wes and Yu-Jin's and Tina's chapters. The one for Blaine is not written and I have started the one with Mike and Tina. I'm struggling with the latter, especially since I don't really understand Mike's circumstances either.

Ljubili se (Glee, Klaine, WIP)

Ah, yes, the fic that I love but also regret. I've started it for the 2023 Klaine December Challenge. I am just stuck on it, even though I have cool stuff written for it. I just don't know what to do with this one, to be honest. I want to finish it, but I have also realised that I don't like writing it anymore because I am so stuck on it. I am waiting for the inspiration to strike and for my passion to be re-ignited, because do I regret it? I also like writing it when I am writing it. And I am excited to share what I have for later chapters. There's a lil moment where Cooper tries to flirt with Denise and Quinn and Blaine are standing there like🧍‍♀️🧍‍♂️. I will see where this fic will take me, I guess.

The Mars fic (Glee, Klaine, 56 words)

An inside joke that is a sequel to an inside joke! BOOP! I peaked here.

DECEMBER 🕯️

All's fair in love and war (Class, Charlie/Matteusz + Matteusz & Quill, 16.646 words)

The story that deserves better, since it has, like, 9 hits, but hey, that is what happens when you write for a small fandom. Which is a shame, cause this is also one of the best things I have written this year and I also enjoyed it a lot. I loved delving into the morality of the show Class through Matteusz, who is a middle man in-between two people with extreme conflicting opinions. And he loves both of them. Please watch Class, and read my fic after that!

Ever After (Glee, Klaine, 30.624 words)

The fic for the 2024 Klaine December Fanworks Challenge, which I did finish! Blaine is living in the kingdom of Daltonia, and Kurt is stranded in this place, so Blaine tries to help him get home.... to another world. I had a lot of fun, especially since I stopped Ljubili se for it, and it reminded how much I love writing Klaine. I also liked my world building here. I just think it is neat. I really enjoyed this one. I think I left some things open, since I didn't have room for more, but December was Ever After thought almost 24/7.

And now, the weather: @quizasvivamos @coffeegleek @caramelcoffeeaddict @raenestee @tectonicduck 

@nightimedreamersworld @urban-sith @you-remind-me-of-the-babe @bookish-bogwitch @confused-bi-queer

@special-bc-ur-part-of-it @larkral @cutestkilla​ @wellbelesbian​

@artsyunderstudy​ @facewithoutheart​ @shrekgogurt @rockitmans @bitbybitwrites 

@whatevertheweather @shame-is-a-wasted-emotion @esilher @kurtsascot @blackberrysummerblog 

@nightimedreamersghost @ivelovedhimthroughworse @thnxforknowingme @martsonmars

[hoodedjelly]

Pardon the double ask, I’d also love to hear your thoughts on some Inanimate Insanity questions if you wouldn’t mind!

Thoughts on the Shimmers? [I personally find them super fascinating but there’s so little lore to chew on!]

The MePad tragedy… Do you think they could fix him, seeing as they have two very capable people who already built a whole person?? [You can probably guess my thoughts on this XD]

Favourite charcter(s)/character dynamics? I myself have a soft spot for the begrudging-turned-close friendships we see, like with Nickel and Balloon, MePhone and Floory, and Lightbulb and Paintbrush!

I'll do this ask first cause i wanna spice things up and talk about ii now.

Thoughts on the Shimmers? If i'm being honest i don't have any strong feelings about them. when i was watching ii i did get spoiled on bots new look and the whole time i was just like "oh they must come from that egg!" and then the egg became an egg creature from an egg species. So i was just like "OK I GUESS WE DOING CIRCLES NOW????". I was hoping for a really cool looking alien design, but i accepted that they are just eggs. I'm crossing my fingers for the next season to talk about their lore more, and just other alien species maybe since now it is confirmed there are more then just cobs and ii. How did cobs know about the shimmer? was he a fucking space war criminal??? there must be more objects out there that's not made by mephone. it honestly makes me really excited!!! i know they're not going to go straight onto the lore stuff for season 4, but i'm just so excited on who would even be the HOST next season, is there even gonna be a host???? SO MANY QUESTIONS AND IM EATING THEM UP!!!

Thoughts on MePads Death: mepads death was very much a shock for me, i'm in the ballpark where there's no way they're just going to leave him dead, cobs is dead, they can raid his place for parts. there's test tube that can save him. like there's so many variables that CAN save him it just makes sense that he would come back. But they can also be fucked up and evil, keep on going on the theme with "death is forever now" and that starts with mepad. I fear mepad is just another one of those burning questions i can't wait to see get answered on season 4

Favorite character(s)/character dynamics: OH JOY HOW I LOVE THESE CHARACTERS! i do love the bright lights group a lot, fan, test tube, paint brush and lightbulb. Have a soft spot for the final 2, suitcase and knife, but i think that's just because I've been around them the most the whole season. LOVE bot, floor, mepad and mephone4. I'm also very smitten on mephone3gs, i love his whole "space adventuring super hero from the 50s" voice, it's the right amount of cheese for me and i eat it up. My favorite dynamics are just the same fav characters i listed. fan and test tube are just two autistic nerds in love. paint brush and light bulb is a dynamic i constantly eat up "the hot head and they happy one". when i saw them i knew ii got me and there was no escape from my predictable self. i do actually like knife and pickle a lot! mephone4 and 3gs is a dynamic i can't wait to see in the next season. mephone got a new older brother thats a badass space adventuring super hero LIKE COME ON THATS SO CUTE. the last scene with them hugging literally makes me tear up every time. I can only just imagine, depressed mephone just like eating his life away on the couch and sg3 is just trying to help him with his space captain attitude.

anyway here's this little doodle of my fav group that i forgot to post

[talesfrommedinastation]

My Redneck Neighbor Doug has watched The Bad Batch Season 3 opener:

LEEEEET'S GET READY TO RUMBLE!

This is more pithy than normal: Doug's been busy with work, as have I. But I'm determined to hear his thoughts on The Daddy Warcrimes 'n Company so here we go!

These were all via text messages, btw.

CW: Doug Doug's as you know Doug will do. Away!

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Episode 1: 'Little Orphan Blondie's Shit Internship at The Museum of Science and Industry'

Poor Little Orphan Blondie, stuck in The Museum of Science and Industry in a shit summer job because they got bills to pay. Except they got rid of the dinosaurs and walk in heart and filled it with gross shit.

Hey look, they still got the coal mine exhibit! Man I miss Chicago.

(Doug, that museum has never had dinosaurs. “What, since when?”)

MUTANT JIMMERS EVERYWHERE! Aw, Little Orphan Blondie gave one her chicken nuggets! And it’s shy, aw, I hope it’s okay.

Poor Mutant Jimmers…she named her?! Swear to Christ Almighty if that dog gets Old Yeller’d I’ll just lose it. 

That freaky alien thing that ran the mall on the ocean looks sad, I bet she wishes she fell into the water and got eaten by a shark or something. I wish you did too, lady. 

The Sons of Robocop really are everywhere, they must be a cult or something. They look cool, I’d join, why not. Think they get 401ks?

Oh man, Daddy Warcrimes is down bad. Poor Daddy Warcrimes. Man, all my clone boys are stooped and sad…this ain’t good. 

At least Little Orphan Blondie can craft! Man, she should start selling those at the Museum of Science and Industry’s gift shop. Maybe Tarkin can bring one back for the grandchildren he’s not allowed to talk to since the restraining order was put in.

Oh, there’s Stepsister Beth, she seems on edge. Must’ve gotten divorced recently, don’t blame her ex, I bet she screamed at him for leaving cabinets open who knows. How do her eyeballs not hurt after wearing those dumb glasses all day?

Episode 2: 'Night Elves and Neverland Ranch'

The night elves from Warcraft invaded Star Wars and got horns or something and now they have a castle that looks like a boss level in Diablo IV or V or how many Diablo games they got now.

Now they yelling at people and throwing them in the basement today. Makes sense, gotta fight the orcs and stuff. Think they fight the orcs in the basement?

The Night Elf Horned Queen hired Daddy Rambo and Julio to get people, I guess they’re turning into Boba Fett or something. They got her son's horn back, guess that's good. Oh they need new paint jobs on their armor.

Do they end up in the basement in the Diablo Boss Level? No? And off they go! 

Daddy Rambo and Julio are in their homeland of FLORIDA! Hell yeah, SPACE FLORIDA! And they’re bringing the talking trashcan with them using straps! Go Julio go!  Yeah, boa vines, this is TOTALLY the Everglades! 

Escaped clone boys! Oh man! Shit, is Neverland Ranch in the jungle? Oh man–oh, they know what they’re doing. Good kids. Real good kids. Oh what happened to the rest of them? Oh Meat Muffin, this ain't good :(.

You know what? Them clone boys are smart, take it back, this ain’t Space Florida, this is Space Louisiana! Them baby boys gone get feral and run off into the bayou and live in the caves and now you know my origin story, Meat Muffin! 

If this was Florida they'd just end up working the late shift at Zaxby's and smoking rocks in the parking lot. We know better, we French and all.

I bet they’ve been living on nutria and half-empty chicken boxes from behind the gas stations. Resourceful scrappy kids and I can tell its making Daddy Rambo proud.

Oh holy SHIT, there go them vines! It's like the kudzu all over again, maybe this is LaFourche Parish?

See, them boys are definitely white trash, Mandalorian rednecks. Look at em, living in the woods and hijacking a plane, but they good kids, saving their brothers. Even saved the robot too. 

Man, all the feels, them poor little boys. What will they do now?  Oh, they're going to Space Daytona! Good, wait, I saw the trailer, doesn't the Empire invade it? THIS AIN'T GOOD MEAT MUFFIN!!!

Wait...where's Toaster Strudel and Rex?

Episode 3: 'Blondie Got a Gun'

Well here's the Emperor. He wants to be immortal. Gotta make that other movie make sense or something.

Where's Darth Vader? Is he running the government when the Emperor is running around giggling?

Don’t you DARE kill Mutant Jimmers, you damn droid. I hate that ugly assed stupid thing. It looks like its scarecrow daddy fucked a microwave and then left it enough money to go to Planned Parenthood but instead spent it on crack and there ya go.  

Oh shut your goddamned yap, Jimmy the Scientist. I bet he gloves that hand up because he keeps shoving it up his own ass and that's why he walks funny all the damn time.

The Emperor also has a Diablo IV or VIII boss level all to himself too at the Museum of Science and Industry. How many Diablo games are there, Meat Muffin?

YEAH, LITTLE ORPHAN BLONDIE! GIT ER DONE!!! They're out! Oh wow! There she goes with Daddy Warcrimes! Kill em all and let GOD SORT THEM OUT! That's my GIRL!!!!

Blondie’s got a gun 

Blondie’s got a gun

Her whole world's come undone

Shooting droids is FUN!

GO MUTANT JIMMERS GO!!!! 

YEAH BLONDIE DADDY WARCRIMES AND MUTANT JIMMERS!!!!!!

I AIN'T A BULLS FAN BUT REPEAT THE THREE PEAT! YEAH!!!!!!

....so when we gonna get Toaster Strudel and Rex? Next one? Where's my reg boys?!

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Tagging those who missed my Cajun neighbor. LOOKS LIKE REDNECK DOUG IS BACK ON THE MENU, BOYS!

@skellymom @amalthiaph @eyecandyeoz @cdblake1565 @sued134 @merkitty49 @supremechancellorrex @yeehawgeek @wrenkenstein @techs-stitches @deezlees @autistic-artistech @perfectlywingedcrusade @auntie-venom @megmca @thecoffeelorian