#and I'm not currently talking to anyone else

[twopoppies]

https://www.tumblr.com/twopoppies/768685561855787008/about-ts-theres-a-lot-of-larries-who-are-also?source=share

Hi Gina!! Sorry for diverting from the topic, but can you please tell me why people are so repulsed by Eleanor? I'm not exactly new here and I've been through the threads about her problematic behaviour during the early days like calling fans names and the whole racist bit she did with her friend (I personally took extra offense to that as an Indian woman) but I also think that she was very young back then and people do stupid shit when they're in their early twenties and don't always apologize for it even when they know better later (not an excuse, just saying that it was a long time ago).

Now I'm not saying that she's for sure a better person now or whatever, I wouldn't know honestly as I don't follow her. But I found her alright during Elounor 2.0 (I joined in 2021) like she posted him sometimes (gave good content honestly), they got papped here and there, when he toured she attended a couple shows. It was all quiet lowkey and straightforward as far as I know (except for the whole airport arrest scandal).

I also struggle with the idea of hating someone just because they're a beard (though a lot of those people end up exhibiting toxic traits seperate from the arrangement), because for that person it's a job/opportunity to further their career, they're not the ones closeting or oppressing the closeted artist. If not her than it would've been someone else just as easily.

I guess my question is, did I miss something here, did she do something during the last few years that warrants such hate? Or is it mostly because of her earlier problematic behaviour + the fact that she was a beard at all?

I ask because I think comparing her to OW (the most horrible ever) might be a bit excessive based on my current knowledge of her.

Thank you in advance!!

I don’t actually know anyone “repulsed” by her. She was hated in the first incarnation of Elounor—in part because some things she supposedly did that were racist/mean. But I think most of it has to do with how miserable Harry and Louis always looked and how she was used as a tool to keep them in line (which was the label/management’s doing).

I think there was this overall perception during the band years that she enjoyed upsetting Harry and that she had done some shitty things to him. Plus, there was a general consensus that her presence was emblematic of their closeting. So when they broke up in 2015 not long after all the craziness of 2014 and the big gay war, fans were really hopeful it was a good sign.

Of course, then we got party boy Louis and babygate. So, be careful what you wish for.

Elounor 2.0 was very different. Louis seemed to be in control of things this time and he looked far less miserable (although not exactly thrilled) and she was so low-maintenance as a beard. Other than the fucking E tattoo that he was forced to talk about incessantly (along with “me little lad” nonsense) in 2017, she basically made a few posts and showed up for a few shows and walked the dogs. She didn’t bother me in the least.

[allthingsfangirl101]

Unlike Anyone Else – Glen Powell

Masterlist

Glen walked into the coffee shop, hiding his cringe behind a smile when people started noticing him. He walked up to the counter and ordered his coffee from a very excited barista. This has been happening a lot more since his role in Top Gun: Maverick. It got even crazier after Twisters.

As he waited for his coffee, he stood off to the side, using his phone to avoid making eye contact with anyone. When his name was called, he walked up and grabbed his coffee. He turned around but pumped into someone.

"I am so sorry," Glen panicked. "Did I get any on you?"

"Don't worry about it," the young woman shrugged. He looked up at her, instantly noticing how beautiful she was.

"I didn't spill my coffee on you?" He double-checked.

"I'm all good," she chuckled.

"Coffee for Y/N!"

"Excuse me," the woman smiled. Glen was slightly shocked as she walked past him and got her drink. He expected her to walk back over and talk to him, but she sat down at a table in the corner. He couldn't help but watch her pull out her laptop from her bag. She took a drink of her coffee and over the cup, noticed Glen was still watching her.

She sent him a wink before going back to work. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him debating something. She hid her smirk behind her coffee when he made up his mind and walked over to her.

"Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all," she smiled as she sat back. "But can I ask you something?"

"Sure," he shrugged as he sat across from her. 

"You always stare at a woman after almost spilling your coffee down her shirt?"

"Only the special few," Glen winked at her.

"Last time I checked, there weren't twisters in LA," she smirked.

Glen chuckled awkwardly as he ran his fingers through my hair. "You know," he sighed, "for a second there, I thought you didn't recognize me."

"Please," Y/N laughed, "the second you walked in, everyone recognized you. I doubt you can go anywhere without being noticed."

"That is true," he sighed. Y/N studied him.

"You okay, Hollywood?"

"I'm fine," he laughed a little too forcefully.

"It's okay not to be," Y/N shrugged as she took another sip of her coffee. "After a rough day at work, I got to the nearby bar and drink and drink and drink. If it's a really bad day, I go home with a sexy stranger."

"That sounds like a wonderful plan," Glen chuckled. "What do you do for work?"

"I'm a lawyer," she explained, "currently working toward partner."

"That's awesome. You close?"

"Hell yeah," Y/N laughed. "I basically do everything in the office. Not only do I handle my cases, but my coworkers always seem to need my help."

"Damn," Glen smirked. He looked down at her empty coffee cup and had an idea of how to keep her here. "You got time for another coffee or do you need to rush back to work before the firm falls apart?"

"I've got some time," she shrugged. "If you're buying."

"I'll be right back," Glen winked. He stood up and ordered another coffee for her. As he waited at the counter, he looked over his shoulder and watched Y/N answer her phone. He watched as her whole demeanor changed as she spoke to whoever was on the other side of that phone call.

She hung up as he walked over. "Everything okay?" He asked, suddenly worried she might have to leave.

"Everything is fine," she sighed, not sounding convincing. "Just morons at my office that don't know how to staple paper, let alone talk to a client." She looked up, her face slightly reddening when she saw him staring at her. "I'm sorry," she said, her voice lightening up. "Work is just. . . a lot."

"Sounds like you need something stronger than a cappuccino," he tried to tease.

"That's for sure," she mumbled. "Then again, it's not even 10 o'clock. But I will definitely be making a stop at a bar after work."

* * * * *

They spent the morning, talking about their jobs and their lives. The entire time, Glen couldn't believe that this amazing girl didn't care who he was. Not once did she treat him like a famous actor.

Y/N sighed when her phone rang for the third time. "I'm sorry," she sighed before answering her phone. "What now, Caleb?"

Glen sat back and watched as her facial expression changed. "We have gone over this so many times," she sighed. "The case files are not. . . Yes, the client. . . You know something Caleb, I'm getting awfully tired of doing my job and the job of my assistant."

She hung up and her eyes softened when she looked at him. "I should really go. I'm half-expecting my office to be on fire when I get there."

"Well," Glen sighed as the two stood up, "if your office is on fire, call me."

"And what are you going to do about it, Mr. Hollywood?" She smirked.

"Run into the building and save you," he said like it should've been obvious.

"Can't have you doing that," she chuckled. She reached up and patted his face, as she added, "This pretty face is your job. Can't risk anything happening to it."

* * * * *

Glen tried to go about his day, but his mind was constantly on the woman he met at the coffee shop this morning.

"What's with you?" His manager, Andrew, asked when he walked into the hair and makeup trailer and saw Glen staring absentmindedly at his phone.

"Nothing," Glen stuttered. "Just. . . distracted."

"Who?"

"What?"

"Only a woman can make a man. . . distracted," Andrew laughed. "Who is she? Coworker? Neighbor? Friend?"

"Nothing like that," Glen sighed as he put his phone down. "Just a random girl I met at my coffee shop this morning."

"Wow," Andrew chuckled as he sat next to him. "What's her name?"

"Y/N."

"By the look on your face and the way you smiled when you said her name, something tells me you actually talked to her."

"I did," Glen chuckled. "We talked for over an hour, but her work pulled her away."

"What does she do for work?"

"She's a lawyer."

Andrew studied Glen as Glen thought about Y/N. "Did you ask her out?" Andrew asked.

"No," Glen sighed.

"Did you get her number?"

"No," Glen said, clearing his throat.

"Do you know what law firm she works at?"

"No," he said, looking down at his phone. "All I know is her name is Y/N, she is a lawyer, and she likes to go to the bar close to the coffee shop."

"There you go," Andrew shrugged.

"What?"

"You know where she's going to be, right?"

"Well, yeah. I do, but. . .Oh."

After work, Glen headed to the bar. The second he walked in, he searched for Y/N. His heart jumped into his throat when he saw her sitting alone at the bar.

"Fancy meeting you here," Glen chuckled as he sat at the bar next to Y/N.

"Really?" She smirked. "You just happened to show up at the bar I was telling you about this morning?"

"I always come here."

"Mmhmm," she rolled her eyes as she took a drink.

"Can I buy you a round?"

"How about more than just one?"

* * * * *

The next morning, Glen woke up to an empty bed. He ignored the feeling of disappointment when he realized Y/N was gone. He spent the entire morning, slowly getting ready for the day.

As he drove to the set, his thoughts were only on Y/N.

He thought about the coffee shop. He thought about the bar. He thought about the night they spent together. He thought about the feeling he got when he looked down and saw her asleep on his chest.

He hated himself for not getting her number. He hated himself for letting her leave without kissing her goodbye. He hated himself for not asking her out on a proper date.

He vowed to do whatever it takes to find her.

[sobx9]

My five favourites Jiara fan fiction stories (because why not)

I would like to give the biggest kudos to fan fiction writers, especially in the Jiara fandom. Seriously, some of the works in this fandom are sooo good and we, fans, really appreciate you! Especially now, when the ship has basically ended in the show, it’s comforting to go back and read works where Jiara is happy/has a happy ending.

I envy you for being able to write that well. I have so many ideas, story lines, even dialogues for JJ and Kiara in my head but I am really struggling to write it all down. I am trying to write my first fic right now but it’s not going well at all.

Here’s my top five:

around the world - RaeOfFrickingSunshine - @rae-of-fricking-sunshine

This one is a no brainer in my head. I read so it many times. The way it portrays them falling in love over the course of their “surf” trip, there’s something so real in this about how falling in love with your best friend can look like. I also love the other topics, JJ’s strained relationship with his father, Kiara’s issue with food and body image, the bond between the Pogues. Honestly a master piece that I could talk about for hours. Only issue? There’s not more of it. Yes, there’s a part 2 which is as good as the first one, but I would honestly die to have the first part told by JJ’s perspective with more scenes from their trip.

This “rant” from Kiara is still stuck in my head, because it’s so heartbreaking and true.

“You don’t know why I’m mad? I’m mad because Pope gets concerned when I walk alone at night in Berlin – one of the safest cities in the world. I’m mad because some guy feels entitled to my body when all I’ve done is dance with him. I’m mad because whenever I say I’ve got male best friends everyone assumes I’ve fucked you all. I’m mad because everyone says be careful and oh are you wearing that out as if it’s going to be my fault that something happens to me, even if it’s someone else doing that thing. I’m mad because me changing what I wear doesn’t stop that bad thing happening, it just makes it happen to someone else. I’m mad because I’m thinking what if I did do something, did I ask for it.”

baby i'm not even in a gown (the way you want me make me want you now) - RoseofWinterfell - @whitetrashjj

Honestly, I had a hard time picking out my favourite work from this author, they are all pure gold. But at the end I decided to go with this one. It’s shorter, light hearted, smutty and so much fun. This author writes the characters so well in all of their pieces, better than the show itself in my opinion.

Firsts- piglemousse - @piglemousse

Another great one and with much better story line for them after season 3 than what we actually got. I am a sucker for stories with them travelling the world.

the benefits of being under the influence(r) - noos - @kiekiecarrera

AU one, but JJ and Kiara are so in character in this. It has the enemies to friends with benefits to lovers trope which is always fun and is just beautifully written.

Enemies with Benefits and Beach Houses - Lis4 - @lis4ux

Another enemies to lovers one that’s currently being written. Big kudos to the author for keeping up with it during the season 4 fiasco. It’s something I look forwards to reading every weekend.

There’s so many more out there and it was very hard to pick only five. Thank you again to you authors for creating beautiful works to read!

If anyone wants to share their favourites, please do not hesitate. Or come scream at me about Jiara and OBX (well maybe not scream, I am a sensitive one)

[that-dreaming-dragon]

My answers under cut

1. when did you find out you are a dragon? I'd say roughly around when I was 9 yrs old.

2. what kind of dragon are you? A brightly colored, furred and feathered, shapeshifting, dream dragon. We are occasionally a star dragon as well. And maybe rarely somewhat of a sacred beast dragon?

3. when did you join the dragonkin/alterhuman community? Around 2019

4. what are some unique features of your dragon self? can be related to your body, your powers or your behavior. I am a different color in every major body parts, and can shapeshift. Sometimes behavior and mindset change here and there due to a form shift. We are made of stardust and other nebulae matters and can create solar systems or destroy it.

5. what do you think of the representation of dragons on earth? There are many and varied in mythology, folklore, and various media. The problem I have is people tend to forget. Damn DnD.

6. do you have memories of being a dragon in a past life or concurrent life? Just a vision or two, that's my kardiatype though, a white jade eastern dragon. Got nothing to do with my current selves.

7. what do your shifts look like, if you have any? I usually have phantom, sometimes maybe astral shift. I do get dream shifts, but they are uncommon. Mental shift is a weird one. I tend to be perma shifted. I rarely get envisage shift, and in occasion have berserk shift.

8. what does your species' diet? Don't know, probably dream matter, and our starry self may eat stardust? My kardiatype does eat fish and seafood though.

9. do you have a breath weapon? if yes, which one? Not us. Our vaguetype does breath starfire. I think the flicker spit element in general?

10. do you know your dragon body's size? I'm varied due to being shapeshifter. Star dragon is as well according to lore. Don't know what size the flicker or kardiatype is.

11. do you hoard? Kinda? It's hard to tell if this is "draconic instinct" or just "regular hoarding"

12. how does your draconity influence you irl? Behavior, largely. And preference to things. Sometimes thinking.

13. do you feel species dysphoria sometimes? Yep.

14. what did/would your habitat look like? My hearthome! Once I finish drawing it. Also ocean, deep under the sea~ And maybe amongst the stars.

15. are you territorial? can be a place(s) or other beings. Definitely, I know I'm territorial over my people. And my corner of spaces I claimed as mine (in my head).

16. what do you think about the dragonkin/alterhuman community? Errr, dragonkin or alterhuman? You can't say both as if they are the same. Alterhuman community is great, really awesome, the places I frequent and find myself in are welcoming, accepting, kind and understanding. That doesn't mean anyone can just go and stir up trouble though.

I didn't have the best impression of the dragonkin community. It wasn't till a year after I found the alterhuman community that I finally tried again. There's just quite an issue with dragonkind community here and there, you either know what I'm talking about, or you haven't encountered it, or you see it but don't realize it, maybe you are part of the issue, or maybe you just don't get affected by it. I'm not going to spell it out here.

17. do you use a special vocabulary related to your draconity? Not really I think. Well, not myself. I use fun lingo that my pocket communities came up with.

18. does your species have a special language or alphabet? Uhhhh, I'm telepathic. Not sure what star dragon uses. Kardiatype was Japanese. No idea about the flicker.

19. do you have a pack/clan or are you on your own? I have my circles that I call my own,

20. where do you spend the most time? outside in nature or in your cave (at home)? At home >.>

21. what is your favorite dragon media? is it a book series, a show, a video game or something else? I think the game Flight Rising. But beyond that, I do enjoy Spirited Away, Pokemon, and Digimon, though these aren't dragon-focused.

22. have you ever met a dragon like you or similar to you? Yup, fluff dragon unite! And I have met sourcemate :3 And also ones that are like my kardiatype.

23. do you consider your identity spiritual, psychological or something else? do you use these labels at all? All of the above and neither. The nonbinary of it all. These labels are not useful, plus there are metaphysical, philosophical, artistic, and others that people always forget beyond spiritual and psychological. I could grumble about this all day.

24. do you have any other identities beside being a dragon? Yup. I got a fictohearttype, a paratype linked hearttype, and I mentioned my kardiatype and the flicker which are body dragon but not me, plus three archetrope.

25. do you own any gear (tails, horns, jewelry etc.) related to your draconity? I got a smol tail, I have some jewelry except I don't wear jewelry, so who knows where they are. Oh, and pins!

26. how does your species communicate primarily? do you use speech, sounds/vocals and/or body language? Oops, answered too early, but telepathy. No idea how the other draconic type communicate.

27. is your dragon self animalistic/feral or sapient? I'm like a Mew, I'm a critter, sapient and maybe animalistic. Star dragon is sapient. Flicker is sapient me think.

28. do you have a visual description of yourself or something that looks similar to your dragon body? Yup. Orange furred, with lightly fuzzed red belly, bright yellow horns and gentle yellow mane, white feathered wings, pearlescent eyes with black sclera, three straight and sharp digits on each paw.

The others can be seen here.

29. do you have any body modifications (tattoos, implants etc.)? Nope.

30. are there any dragons/other dragonkin who inspire you? Yes, lots of them.

31. free space Awarararar!

dragonkin ask game

hey there! since this year, the year of the dragon, is getting to its end, i decided to come up with some questions for dragonkin and other draconic beings in the alterhuman and plural community. these can be used for personal use in blogs and are free to use for "draconic question of the week" pings on discord, for example. i will explain the reason for those and what i plan to do with them below the questions after the cut. i hope you will have fun with those.

questions under the cut

1. when did you find out you are a dragon?

2. what kind of dragon are you?

3. when did you join the dragonkin/alterhuman community?

4. what are some unique features of your dragon self? can be related to your body, your powers or your behavior.

5. what do you think of the representation of dragons on earth?

6. do you have memories of being a dragon in a past life or concurrent life?

7. what do your shifts look like, if you have any?

8. what does your species' diet?

9. do you have a breath weapon? if yes, which one?

10. do you know your dragon body's size?

11. do you hoard?

12. how does your draconity influence you irl?

13. do you feel species dysphoria sometimes?

14. what did/would your habitat look like?

15. are you territorial? can be a place(s) or other beings.

16. what do you think about the dragonkin/alterhuman community?

17. do you use a special vocabulary related to your draconity?

18. does your species have a special language or alphabet?

19. do you have a pack/clan or are you on your own?

20. where do you spend the most time? outside in nature or in your cave (at home)?

21. what is your favorite dragon media? is it a book series, a show, a video game or something else?

22. have you ever met a dragon like you or similar to you?

23. do you consider your identity spiritual, psychological or something else? do you use these labels at all?

24. do you have any other identities beside being a dragon?

25. do you own any gear (tails, horns, jewelry etc.) related to your draconity?

26. how does your species communicate primarily? do you use speech, sounds/vocals and/or body language?

27. is your dragon self animalistic/feral or sapient?

28. do you have a visual description of yourself or something that looks similar to your dragon body?

29. do you have any body modifications (tattoos, implants etc.)?

30. are there any dragons/other dragonkin who inspire you?

31. free space

the reason i made this ask game is because i will try to answer every one of the questions during the last month of the year of the dragon. this is a sort of "dragonkin ask game/challenge", and you can try it too, if you want.

thank you for taking a look <3

[teacupchimera]

sigh

[gazumirei]

the pressure fandom right now

[lunchtimebedamned1997]

Yay! I'm glad you liked the feast of crumbs bit - it really was just a plethora of delicious samples but no main course which really is such a shame after the brilliance of S1. It was just lacking that resonance :(

In this next bit I did want to talk about the Cait thing as discussion! Bc I'd genuinely love to hear your thoughts on why you feel it wasn't leaning that way! I hope you don't take the proceeding bits as me arguing, because that's not my intention, I just love looking into media and discussing it, feel free to ignore this if you don't want to engage further on the topic! :3

It's less so (imo) that Cait became a fascist and moreso that she participated in a governmental overhaul that had many makings of fascism within it. And by being a participant in that systemic descent, I decided to call it "Cait's devolvement into fascism" - specifically talking about how they looked like they were fully going to take us there, and then kind of waded in the shallows of the concept instead.

From Wikipedia (with my own notes in parentheses): Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement, characterized by a dictatorial leader (Cait/Ambessa), centralized autocracy (Cait), militarism (Ambessa), forcible suppression of opposition (Piltover vs. Jinx and then by extension the whole of the undercity (the checkpoints, the drastic increase in violence against the public, etc)), belief in a natural social hierarchy (Piltover believing they're better than "those animals" as Cait said), subordination of individual interests for the perceived good of the nation or race (Cait again - her quest for vengeance in her mother's name framed as a quest to protect the city - which in some ways it is, but her intentions as we saw are much more personally motivated than in S1), and strong regimentation of society and the economy.

So while I don't believe that Caitlyn is a fascist, I do think they were playing with some very potent themes, and really got Cait into some (extremely) questionable politics for her own personal gain. Caitlyn did manage to walk a lot of things back and institute some change in a positive direction (taking down Ambessa, giving Sevika her seat on the council, etc) but I do personally think the themes are there.

She also, like - did war crimes XD which isn't strictly tied to fascism per-say but oh boy is gassing ppl with the stuff that's implied to have given Viktor his terminal illness just - not okay XD

Anyway, the point i was trying to make in my original post was just that it seemed like they were taking Caitlyn in that direction, and then (like a lot of things this season - too many) just kind of dropped it in favor of focusing on other plots, leaving a lot of her arc and development to be implied rather than allowing us to actually see it. Leaving things feeling watered down and like - 'oh wow they're going there - oh okay nevermind... you're back? Okay sure, hell yeah, get 'em miss mongoose?' XD

I'd love to hear your thoughts (or anyone else reading this!) if you feel so inclined :3 I've only taken like a singular political science class at college years ago and live in the current political soup happening lmao - so there's a good chance I'm missing something that someone else has more knowledge about, and I'd love to hear other perspectives on this. I do currently feel grounded in my opinion, but I'm really open to having my mind changed mwahaha

Arcane S2 thoughts

(spoilers, obviously)

Most of this was sent to my friend Penn @pennedinblood in discord first, but I wanted to share it + some more on here too.

Okay, I now that its been a couple days and I've had time to think properly, have some thoughts about Arcane. This isn't going to be as specific and nuanced as I'd like, but I'll need more time for something like that.

Here's the thing... What we did get was good and I liked it a lot - for the most part anyway - but like - it wasn't a very good finale imo...

Like -

In season one they had this just fucking masterful foundation for such a nuanced discussion of class and oppression, of the cycle of violence, of how desperate acts may seem evil to some but are not always as simple as they seem and that one person's actions may influence the narrative but that it is the systems in place - and the willingness to follow systems that harm a disproportionate amount of the population for personal gain - that are the real issue. There were no real villains in s1 imo. It was just people making good, bad, or neutral choices, and they all interconnected and effected not only the plot, but the audiences' understanding of the corrupt system in place.

It forced you (if you're paying attention) to understand with visceral understanding both those of the oppressed and the oppressors; and in the midst of all of that we had magic and science interplaying beautifully against the good and greed of mankind.

AND just vast, resonant, deep interpersonal connections and development that you could feel in your bones.

and then in season two... we just kind of went - 'fuck that here's jesus and a witch ~~~ Magic war tiiime' Like?????

It touched on a few themes for sure, and what Jayce had to say to Viktor about disability and the purpose of people, or the value in imperfection and the point of life - as someone who's struggled with their health and other personal things I don't want to get into on the internet, that hit so hard. I hated Jayce in S1, and he won me over in act one of this season and just - didn't let me down. His arc was beautiful and I really really appreciate it. His connection with Viktor means so much to me. screeches into the void

But lets be so fucking real - they kind of (majorly) chickened out of their mass commentary on the opposing classes and working towards a better system that doesn't harm its people. and instead like - Vi's arc got completely fucked?

Like - oh okay so you ditched everything you were going to say and just made her a strong war pawn who can hit good and is gay coolcoolcool (sobs). Like, act one was so promising it really felt like it was following up on everything they had been working towards, and i loved seeing Vi having to make hard choices; watching her become an enforcer as the only way she could think of to deal with two disparate parts of herself - one that needed to put an end to the monster she feels like she created (Jinx, obvi), and one that desperately needed to hold onto the only person she had left (Caitlyn).

And Cait's devolvement into fascism was so intriguing and dark and I hated it in a good way, yk? Like I was like "oh fuck they made Cupcake unrecognizable in a fucking believable way wtf that's rad bro"

And then in act two they were just like 'HAHA lets not show you anything but the highlights of Vi's inner tumoil, then - wow look Jinx is here to tell her about Vander! - let's just never actually take a hard look into Vi's issues or personal arc ever again teehee - oh! And Cait's on our side again yay!' Like EXCUSE ME???

Vi had stood as one of the most important characters in the entire show. She is the linchpin between Piltover and Zaun - one of only two hinges that connects the two cites (the other being Viktor to a far lesser degree bc his roots are never explored, Singed is the only undercity person we see him go back to interact with, etc etc leaving Vi to be the only 'real one') And they completely sidestepped that - especially how she's also so connected to Ekko and the Firelights - which was just - never touched again - Ekko didn't even get to fix his tree! I get it, bigger fish but ffs - it's not a blaming character thing, it's a writing issue. I understand why Ekko had to focus on smth besides his tree lmao - it's that the writers just dropped this thing that stood so strongly for Ekko's fucking roots man (pun intended). Like - He's representing what Vander wanted to do. What Zuan could be. He is literally making a part of Zaun beautiful and supportive, and standing resolute against the system and saying "both of you are wrong, back tf up and lets talk" and they just got rid of that. I think it says a lot that that in particular was punted into the void.

I'm just not over that we never got to see him and Vi interact again dude wth - and I feel like that really speaks to how much they removed Vi from her point and purpose in S1. It would make sense if she needed more time to reconnect -esp after how Cait betrayed her - but to never actually talk again? Just glimpsing each other in the finale?

Don't get me wrong, I loved some of the time-suckers this season. Mel for one (who I also wasn't a huge fan of in S1 (I didn't trust her lol)). Everything with Mel, Vik, and Jayce was sooo interesting, and Ambessa was a great villain. She was imposing and horrible and yet there were very small parts of her that you could understand - but there wasn't enough time. Not with everything else we were also touching. Not without loosing so much of what we had been working towards. And even with the large focus, The Black Rose was this jumbled mess of ideas that didn't really amount to much besides giving Mel a powerup and probably leading us into the spinoff :(

I've been having trouble processing all of this because I'm shocked and upset because narratively, I didn't like it.

And I HATE that I didn't like it. I liked the individual scenes. I liked the concepts at play. But none of it was fleshed out!

That impeccable no-crumbs-left writing was suddenly nothing but crumbs. A whole feast of them. Nothing was really held together and it left each arc feeling like a separate vaguely-connected vignette rather than a whole story - let alone a satisfying conclusion to the previous season.

I'm genuinely angry because I wanted so badly to love this season but I just don't; not as a whole, not as an ending. Again, the individual moments were largely great, but good moments don't make a good story.

I just feel like they were trying too hard to serve LoL lore. Originally Arcane wasn't cannon-compliant with the messy lore of the game, and then a few months ago they came out and said that it was now considered canon - and I was excited bc I thought that meant that whatever they did would influence League - but I was wrong. I think it's very clear that Canonizing Arcane had the opposite effect. I think it's why they chickened out of their societal commentary - I think it's why the Champion deaths were so 'no body, no proof'. I think that it undercut all the stakes for the writers and made them forced to bend to the will of a lot more oversight from the higher-ups at Riot.

I don't know guys, how are you feeling? I'm really glad we got CaitVi cannonized (but I have things I wanna say about that too, esp. how their sex scene played into the sidestepping of Vi's arc (not that it happened, but the way it did - I can talk more about this another time lmao)) and I loved getting a timebomb kiss (again more Vi arc things I wanna say *sobbing and gnawing on my cage bars*) but yeah - anyway I gotta stop typing before I get too into-the-weeds of my thoughts. I'll probably make a big post about the specifics of how I feel they fucked up Vi's story in another post bc I clearly can't let it go XD

But fr tell me ur thoughts too pls I want to know what you thing even if - maybe even especially if - you disagree with me :3

Idk I've got to rewatch it.

It wasn't bad TV, it's still better than most things coming out right now... I hate that I can't just love it entirely rn raaaaaaahhh auhfalwoiha (help D':)

[iamfuckingsorry]

"Do you know where we are going next?" I asked ART.

Y'know what, I think maybe I don't need any more Murderbot books. I think maybe ending things here is fucking perfect and as much as I love Wells's writing I'm genuinely not sure it can get better for me.

Like, so much of the books are about MB learning how to be a person, about becoming okay with being a complete individual with everything it entails. The first thing it does once it's actually allowed to decide on its own is it runs away from it all (admittedly to go on a mission to confirm some things about its past, because it genuinely just wants to be *good*). It shoves all its emotions away as much as it's able to. Then shit happens, and it makes its first friends, makes decisions based on these friendships, goes through a lot of emotionally intense situations...

And we get to this point here. MB having zero doubts about going with ART says a lot about its relationship with ART, but it also says a lot about its relationship with its humans - it knows that wherever it goes, when it comes back, the humans will still be there. Its humans actively acknowledge its struggles with being a now-free SecUnit and MB is willing to entertain the discussions to an extent and share information about its deeply personal experiences. Hell, System Collapse ends with MB admitting it might be somewhat broken, but that's okay as long as it can keep doing its job, and agreeing to basically do counselling - this is the guy what would rewatch its favourite TV show again and again in order to avoid acknowledging it even had Emotions a couple books back.

Reading this, I know that MB will be okay. It has hopes and goals and genuinely believes in itself and it has an amazing support system that its willing to lean on for the first time in its life. I'm convinced it'll go on to do great things with ART. And that's really the only thing I need to know.

[lale-txt]

it's been over a week but i legit haven't stopped thinking about this

[coquelicoq]

my family being the poster child for divorce is interesting because on the one hand there are several people who child me considered just regular family members who are now no longer in my life in any capacity which was really destabilizing but on the other hand now as an adult the concept of relationships changing and ending is so normal to me and i feel like that's actually a really useful outlook to have. also, the fact that several of my relatives' current significant others annoy the crap out of me is more bearable because it's like, wellllll, just give them a few years and they'll be outta here. lol.

[l-carlyle]

[crixaflamma-the-second]

hang on.

youre telling me alloromantic people feel over the moon with joy when their crush likes them back, not an overwhelming sense of dread?

youre telling me alloromantic people regularly think about kissing the people they like?

youre telling me alloromantic people dont feel like they have to have a crush and spend the first month of school obsessively searching for someone they like?

youre telling me alloromantic people arent terrified of dating and commitment and all that?

youre telling me alloromantic people actually know what their "type" is?

youre telling me alloromantic people actually LOVE people romantically?

youre telling me alloromantic people dont have one vaguely romantic thought about a person and then force themselves into thinking they have a crush on said person?

youre telling me alloromantic people prioritize the people they have a crush on over their friends?

.

.

.

fuck.

[kyouka-supremacy]

---

[jlf23tumble]

Harry needed to get high to get through the night with his former lover. I'm joking but not. I'm glad they're hanging out again. Time heals all. Harry's been so much more public it's interesting too

Eh, idk that he needs to be high to hang out with Nick, but the entire THING*tm between the two of them is obviously fraught for them both, so I'm just glad to see they somehow connected (I will bet cash money neither one of them wanted that photo out there, though)

[discoreptile]

Beasties of Greenhollow soundtrack! Some tracks on this are from older projects like elphame but all of them have been reworked in some way. Most of them are entirely new. Enjoy!

[mosspapi]

(tw discussion of self harm/wound care)

Took the gauze off this thing to change it and it immediately fuckin opened wide the fuck up again. Had to use butterfly bandages to get it to even stop fuckin bleeding. And my parents come home tmrw night. Chat am I cooked here (rhetorical. I am absolutely cooked)