#and i never saw it and i never intended to! so!!! epic

[front-facing-pokemon]

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for letting a friend think my husband is cheating on me? A few months ago, my husband (30s) told me (also 30s) he has an adultery kink, but has no interest in actually cheating on me. His proposed compromise was that I could dress up a little different than usual, put on a wig, whatever, and then we could roleplay. A little weird, but I MUCH prefer him communicating stuff like this and working with me rather than the alternative. plus, i get to invent a character and give this fictitious homewrecker a tragic backstory; always fun. I'm thinking about giving her an epic revenge quest to explain her daddy issues. Anyway, I genuinely do like dressing up and I bought the wig anyway, so sometimes I go out in public dressed up as my Homewreckersona, and the long and short of it is a friend saw me with my husband, did not recognize me, and assumed the worst. The next day she called me up like "honey have you considered killing him" and I didn't know what to say. I can't just say "oh, I'm indulging my husband's kink in public." I cannot explain how much I do not want to talk about our sex life with anyone who actually knows me irl. I have to look these people in the eye. Also, she's the type who would tell me his kink is inherently abusive or something and I think it's ultimately harmless if this is how he's playing it. My married life, my choice, right? But anyway, I lied and tried to be like "oh her? yeah I know her. they've been friends for years and there's nothing weird going on. they're like siblings so don't even worry about it because he's not cheating I promise" and for sure she didn't believe me. So in effect, by lying, I have accidentally convinced a gossipy member of my friend group that my husband is cheating on me and I'm clueless about it. If five more people haven't been served the nonexistent tea by Friday, I'll eat my hat. AITA for letting him take the fall on this one just so I can avoid the excruciating embarrassment of admitting to kink stuff? PS: for anyone convinced he really does want to cheat, I tested him a little when he first brought it up and asked if there was any particular look he wanted me to go for (just to see if there might be a specific person he wanted to cheat with who I was intended to emulate) and he said no, whatever I picked would be great, because for all that he had the kink conceptually, he'd never actually wanted anyone but me. I know I'm biased but that's the cutest shit

[apomaro-mellow]

King and Prince 30

Part 29

Steve wasted no time appearing in town to challenge Jason. Eddie accompanied him, keeping a low profile as the horse he rode on again. Steve dismounted when they got to the butcher’s shop and Jason came out immediately as if summoned. He probably just saw them through the window the moment they arrived.

“Well look who decided to grace us low folk with his presence.” Jason’s apron was bloody and he was wiping it off his hands also.

Steve’s expression was stony. “Did I ever make you feel low? Even when we were alone?”, he asked.

“I always knew there was something off about you. That alone was enough.” Jason tossed the red stained cloth over his shoulder. “Why are you here?”

“I want you to rescind your blasphemous lies. I am no longer an agent of my homeland. I didn’t come here intending to invade this kingdom.”

People began to gather, first because of the brilliantly black horse, so rich and fine, then because of Steve who was equally fine. Folks began to murmur, speculating that this was the man who had their king so enamored. Jason was good at both gauging a crowd and turning them to his favor. And he saw opportunity.

“What happens if I refuse? I haven’t been shown any proof to the contrary.” Then he projected his voice. “Will you smite me? Or will His Majesty? If I’m wrong, reveal it to be evident. But if I am simply silenced, everyone here will know your true face.”

Steve’s frown deepened. “Will you not seek a more honorable path?”

“And what, pray tell, is the more honorable path?”, Jason questioned as his parents stepped out, curious about the wealthy looking man on their porch.

“I challenge you, Jason Carver, to a duel”, Steve said.

Jason smirked. Something about it reminded Steve of a predator. But he stood strong. The best man would win and that was him. Jason held out his hand, smears of blood still on it.

“I accept.”

Steve held his own hand out and shook it. But then Jason didn’t let go on the downswing as the crowd’s whispers began to rise. Steve tried to pull his hand back but Jason held firm. He took too many steps forward until he was in Steve’s space. 

“You’re going to regret this.” He was grinning still until the horse whinnied and pushed his head threateningly between Steve and Jason, causing Jason to rear back.

“Easy, easy, I’m fine”, Steve soothed, petting the horse’s snout. He continued to shush them as he got on its back. “A messenger will be forthcoming with the details.”

----------------

The duel was set for a week’s time and in the following days, Eddie unfortunately saw Steve less and less. It wasn’t for lack of trying too. When he heard that Steve was taking on knights in the training room, he had come right over, gift in hand. They were gloves for his lovely hands so that he would never need to touch the likes of Carver ever again.

But before he could even enter, Dustin barred him, hand in his face.

“You can’t come in”, Dustin said.

“And why on this green, verdant earth, not?” He wasn’t in the mood for whatever Henderson was playing at.

“Steve told us he can’t be distracted while he trains.”

“I wouldn’t be a distraction”, Eddie argued.

“He specifically said, ‘if Eddie comes, don’t let him in’”, Dustin echoed.

“Mhm, but since when do you listen to whatever people tell you to do?”, Eddie challenged.

“Steve promised to show me a disemboweling move if I did”, Dustin said. “You got something to top that?”

Eddie highly doubted Steve was going to follow through with that promise, so he wasn’t going to one-up him just to satisfy Dustin. If Steve wanted to focus on the duel, he would respect that. The door opened and Lucas stuck his head out, allowing Eddie to hear the ruckus going on just beyond it.

“Dustin! Get back here! It’s so epic!”

There were cheers at least a dozen strong that supported Lucas’ claim and Dustin rushed to get back in and shut the door behind him, leaving Eddie all alone. He sighed, forlorn, before picking himself up. If Steve was throwing himself into this, so would he. It had been some time since he had to make a show of power to his people.

Eddie coordinated the dueling venue, erecting an arena in a dusty, flat area. During fall and winter, it was a congregation for demobeasts as it got cold and hard. During the warmer parts of the year though, it was either empty or frequented by youngsters playing their own games. By the week’s end, there was a view box for the king and his entourage, benches for the other spectators, and a ring in which the fighters would battle.

It wasn’t just people from the town immediately outside the castle that came. Word traveled fast and people from neighboring cities came as well. When dawn arrived of the duel, Eddie wondered if there would be proper accommodations. In the form of a raven, he flew over the duel grounds and saw that while the morning mist was still evaporating, people were already gathering to claim their spots.

That all suited him just fine, he decided. He would be announcing his courtship officially and the more ears the better. 

The sun rose higher and the time was nearly here. Eddie had behaved and not distracted him at all, but he couldn’t resist coming into his tent as he prepared.

“Did you-did you cut your hair?”, Eddie nearly squeaked as an attendant tied leather to Steve’s shin.

“I do that sometimes for the summer”, Steve said, sitting on a stool. It wasn’t much of a change to be honest but it still drove home how Eddie hadn’t seen Steve in days. Just a couple inches off his hair felt like an immeasurable distance.

“You look as dashing as ever”, Eddie said easily, taking steps forward then realized they weren’t alone. “You may take your leave”, he ordered.

The attendant left, closing the tent behind themselves. There was a crowd ebbing and flowing outside but they were in their own little world now. Not a servant or chaperone to be spoke of. Eddie knelt down before Steve and finished the job, tying up his other leg. Steve was suddenly very conscious of his own breathing, of the way Eddie’s eyes focused on the task before him, of the tip of his nose, of the way his hands lingered. 

In order to tie down the protective layer, he had to touch his calf, the back of his knee, his ankle. His clothing stood between skin to skin contact, but that didn’t stop the touch from warming him. It was the reverent way Eddie did it. It was having a king on his knees. It was Eddie adding something to protect him.

“In case you were wondering, this is why I couldn’t have you watch me train”, Steve said, his voice just ever so slightly breathless.

Just to be cheeky, Eddie kissed his clothed knee. “I heard you put on quite the performance.”

Steve moved to stand and Eddie helped him to his feet. Their only point of contact was their hands and yet it felt like so much. Not for the first time, Steve was trying to remember why he wasn’t allowed to kiss Eddie right now. He wanted to. Eddie wanted to. And Eddie seemed to have the same realization as his eyes met Steve’s. He brought the prince’s hand towards him to kiss the tips of his fingers, then the palm of his hand.

Eddie’s lips ghosted over the inside of his wrist when a blast of fanfare broke the illusion of privacy. But there was a moment still, where they both considered stealing just one more second to act on their desires. But then Eddie pulled away.

“Our public awaits”, he said, starting towards the tent’s opening.

Steve walked out with him, but they had to part ways so that Steve could enter the arena and that Eddie could go to his viewing box and announce the start of the duel, as well as lay out the terms to all in attendance. 

“Enjoy the show”, Steve said with a wink.

Part 31

Taglist CLOSED

@thesuninyaface @only-evanescent  @snakeorsquid  @ignoremyworld  @theclichefortunecookie 

@goodolefashionedloverboi  @just-a-tiny-void  @0body0disphoria0  @cinnamon-mushroomabomination  @samsoble 

@jamieweasley13  @y4r3luv  @xtkxkrzrizir  @un-knownperson  @greekgeek24 

@justdrugsformethanks  @potato-of-the-lord  @notaqueenakhaleesi  @swimmingbirdrunningrock  @queenie-ofthe-void 

@nebulainajar  @lil-gremlin-things  @nicememerino  @robininblue  @hornedqueenofhell 

@anne-bennett-cosplayer  @moomkin77  @here4thetrama  @bookworm0690  @autumncrocusandladybug

@lil-gremlin-things @littlebluejane @puppy-steve

[gothamite-rambler]

"I'm a poison... I couldn't save them," Nightwing cried, the fear toxin invading his mind.

A/N: Whelp, I cried while writing this… I kind of regret knowing so much lore about Nightwing, but that song from Epic the Musical: The Wisdom Saga really felt right for him, and I got this idea from a TikTok video too. Yeah, it fits perfectly. Love you, Nightwing.

Context: Scarecrow escaped Arkham and released a stronger strain of his fear toxin.

In the ensuing scramble of fear affected Gotham citizens and the batfamily trying to ease the insanity, Nightwing's mask is knocked off... and every fear, regret and shred of guilt is unlocked from his buried memories.

Barbara (on comm): Nightwing? Nightwing, can you hear me? What are you whispering?

Nightwing (whispering, slightly louder): All I hear are screams.

Barbara (worried): Nightwing, it’s not real.

Tarantula (in his head): Nightwing, get away from the ledge!

Nightwing stepped into the middle of the road, staring blankly ahead. His hands trembled with fear as he noticed a knife on the ground. In the pandemonium a stray weapon laid on the ground— but to Nightwing it was a visceral reminder of his worst nightmares. He picked it up, not as a weapon, but as a lifeline to his fraying sanity.

Red Hood (standing behind his brother): Nightwing, get out of the road.

Nightwing (voice trembling with fear and guilt): You don’t know what I’ve gone through… You don’t know what I’ve sacrificed…

Red Hood stepped back, confusion etched across his face as he observed Nightwing staring at his shaking hands, stained with phantom blood. His grip on the knife tightened, wavering between the urge to use it and the desperate fight to resist.

Nightwing: Every comrade I once knew… Every friend… I saw them die… And all I hear are screams.

Silence enveloped him, Barbara and Red Hood begging him to break free from the horror unheard. Yet, the only voice haunting him was that of Tarantula’s—it seeped into his mind like poison. She was behind him… she was too close.

Tarantula (in a fake sweet tone): It will be fine, dear. Come back inside, dear. Love of my life, come back to paradise.

Red Hood (who appeared as the Tarantula in Nightwing's confused and frightened mind) took hold of his arm. To him, it was a gesture intended to pull him to safety and offer assistance, but in Nightwing's eyes, it felt like an attempt to hurt him once more. He recoiled, wrenching his arm free and stepping back in fear. All he could see was her—the woman who had exploited him at his most vulnerable.

Nightwing (clutching the knife arm in fear): Please… don’t hurt me.

Red Hood (confused): Hurt you?

What he hears…

Tarantula (Circe lines): Think of your past, and your mistakes. They'll be the last mistakes you'll make.

Tarantula (as Red Hood) stepped closer, but Nightwing could only cling to the knife as his breathing grew heavier.

Nightwing: Please… Tara- Catalina… Stay away from me.

Barbara covered her mouth in shock, her heart aching to be there to help.

Red Hood: Catalina?

The image of Catalina grew clearer before him, her malicious smile reminiscent of that night weighing heavily on him. The pain surged as he brought the knife closer, the blade just inches from his skin.

In reality, Red Hood's heart raced as the truth dawned on him. He remembered the whispered rumors about this woman who had shattered a hero’s life—he never learned the hero's name.

Red Hood: Nightwing… were you…?

Nightwing (clutching the knife): Let me close my eyes.

Tarantula (as Red Hood spoke to Barbara, demanding to know who Catalina was): I know your life’s been hard; I’ll stay inside your heart.

Nightwing (closing his eyes): All I hear are screams…

Tarantula (creeping closer): I love you, my dear. I love our time here. Life would be so much worse—

Red Hood (but all Nightwing hears is Tarantula): Life would be so much worse if you had died.

Nightwing (forcing back tears): Just let me close my eyes.

Red Hood: Please stay away from harm. Stay in my open arms.

Nightwing (trailing off): All I hear are—

His eyes widened as he noticed the knife rising toward his chest. But then he froze in horror as he saw a young Jason standing before him—the brother he failed to save, the one he discovered was gone too late.

Young Jason: This life is amazing when you greet it with open arms.

Another familiar face appeared—Tim Drake at the age of loss, the moment he lost his mother.

Young Tim: How much longer 'til your luck runs out?

Nightwing: I’m sorry…

His mother emerged next, a visible head wound marring her beauty, her smile faltering, hands clasped as if praying.

Mary Grayson: Waiting, waiting, waiting… My baby boy, I’ll be waiting.

Nightwing (the knife trembling in his grip): I’m took too long...

Young Jason: Whatever we face, we’ll be fine if we’re leading from the heart.

Within that torment, a version of Barbara materialized, a gaping gunshot wound in her stomach clawing at his heart.

Young Barbara: How much longer 'til the show goes south?

Nightwing: I can’t go on…

Current Red Hood (trying to remain calm): Nightwing, stop.

Barbara (on the comms, trembling): Nightwing, wake up!

Current Red Hood: Oracle, I got this!

The cacophony of voices began to overlap, engulfing him in chaos as he clutched his hair with one hand, the knife locked tightly in the other. Panic surged within him, his breath coming in quick gasps. Red Hood, witnessing the depth of his brother’s despair, realized the danger—the knife was raised, and his brother was on the verge of self-harm.

Current Red Hood (begging): Nightwing, fight it, please!

All he could hear were screams—cries, death—an agonizing paralysis that made him feel utterly helpless.

Nightwing (resigned): This is the price.

Tarantula (baiting him): We pay to live.

Nightwing (mindlessly): The world does not.

Tarantula (smirking, her voice more demonic): Tend to forgive. Do it… plunge the knife into your chest… for them.

Young Jason (bleeding): No matter the place, we can light up the world. Here’s how to start.

Young Tim (sobbing): How much longer…?

Young Barbara: Until we all fall down?

Mary (bleeding): Waiting, waiting, waiting…

Nightwing raised the knife higher, Red Hood's eyes widening in terror, sensing this was his only chance. He lunged toward his brother, but all Nightwing could perceive was his bleeding younger brother.

Young Jason: Greet the world with open arms, greet the world with open arms.

Nightwing tried to scream, but it came out as a weak whimper, charged with terror as he prepared to cut into his own flesh. Just as he was about to plunge the knife, something seized his arm, intervening in time before the blade could find its target. It was an embrace, but not Tarantula's—real and solid. The haze around him shifted from the ledge to the stark reality.

He wasn’t on that precipice anymore; he was in Gotham, in the heart of the street, the air thick with fear toxin. Red Hood, masked for protection, was the only one holding him. Nightwing trembled, fear and rage intertwining, the remnants of Scarecrow’s toxin gnawing at his mind.

Nightwing (voice trembling): Poison… I’m poison.

Red Hood (comforting his sobbing brother): You're not poison. You're nothing she told you. It’s okay… bro, I’m here. She isn’t here to hurt you… Nobody will hurt you.

Red Hood tightened his grip as Nightwing slumped forward, sobbing against him.

Nightwing (reflecting on those he lost or failed to save): I couldn’t save them… I couldn’t save them.

Red Hood (his typical jaded tone giving way to desperation): I don’t know if you can hear me, but you did everything you could, and you’re a hero. You’re one of the few people I can genuinely call a true hero. Please, don’t let the toxin take you down.

Nightwing (desperate, convinced he’s all alone): Forgive me… Forgive me…

Red Hood: I forgive you… because you're my brother and I love you.

Nightwing drew a deep breath, feeling a wave of calm wash over him. Though his mind was still shrouded in darkness, the presence holding him anchored him in reality, slowly dispelling the nightmarish visions that threatened to consume him.

[gastoninadress]

Frustrating things people are getting wrong in the new Thunder saga in Epic the musical (spoilers for Thunder saga):

- Odysseus did have Eurylochus holding a torch when they passed through Scylla’s lair. He completely intended to kill him. The reason he lived is because he gave away his torch after he saw the men getting eaten.

- Eurylochus has every right to be mad. Not just because Odysseus had just shown that his crew was now disposable to him, but also because Odysseus literally just tried to KILL HIM.

- On the other side for Odysseus this was by far the safest option. The danger motif didn’t play once during Scylla because Odysseus was never in danger.

- Would a starving crew that just found out their captain was okay with letting them die just to get home mutiny? I think so, especially if he’s about to murder the second-in-command. Screaming “I won’t let you stand in my way” doesn’t look real good for you Odysseus.

- A bunch of people are saying that the crew was stupid for having killed the cows. Eurylochus was the one that killed one, and he tells Odysseus “you know we’re never making it home right”. He was prepared to die, he just wanted to die in comfort. Odysseus freaking out and trying to save them was probably a surprise for him.

- Was Odysseus right to sacrifice his crew? Debatable. His crew would have easily sacrificed him for their own lives. Odysseus had a whole arc on how he was a monster now, and how his family had become his sole motivation. Considering everything, it made complete sense for his character. Especially after the mutiny, since he now had his crew as an obstacle rather than a group he was leading.

-I’ve seen some things about how Odysseus was stupid for listening to the words of a siren for directions. In the original, Circe is the one who gives him directions, and the reason Scylla is the only option is because the other side of the route holds Charybdis. If they had gone that route him and his entire crew would have died. Circe was also the one who told him about the six torches, but I think in this one he is implied to have come up with it himself.

-People calling him stupid for listening to the siren also need to know that in the original, only his crew put beeswax in their ears. Odysseus had his crew tie him to the mast and then they basically watched him go crazy and try and get out of the ropes and into the water until they passed the sirens. Odysseus has always been this way, this is obviously why Athena chose him.

[whumpdreaming]

My introduction!

Hi! My name is Heather (they/them). I've been a lurker for some time, but I now realize what I've been writing has been whump all along, so.. hello!

My first encounters with whump were in Sunday school 😭😭 some of those kid's bible books were insanely whumpy for no reason at alI, and then it's only now I learn what the term actually is. I speak decent French (getting back into it after not using it for a few years), I intend to go to culinary school and become a professional chef, and my main fandoms include Overwatch, Baldur's Gate (not into it as much anymore, sadly), Epic: The Musical, and Ultrakill and FNAF (which I don't write much fic for).

This blog will never contain NSFW content! Kink blogs and antis please DNI!

What this blog will contain:

Whump (obviously)

My own writing (lots of drabbles, occasionally some of my more involved work ; aka my two big projects, a BBU story since that setting grabbed me by the brain as soon as I saw it for the first time, and various Overwatch characters getting whumped to hell and back --- I don't see enough talk about Cole Cassidy's big sad puppy dog eyes)

Lots and lots of reblogs since that's easier than actually writing 😅

Keep in mind that this isn't a NSFW blog and I won't be posting anything sexual/explicit, but I'm a fan of intense/graphic whump and things can get pretty dark. In those cases, there'll be a warning at the top of the post along with the content listings just to make sure everyone stays safe!

Some of my favorite tropes:

Living weapons!!

Gore (I'm not a fan of major character death, so I like it best when a healing factor is involved if it's very intense)

Parental caretakers

Transition/weight gain in recovery

Recovery in general, especially when difficult!

Lab whump!

Pet whump!

Chronic pain (totally not coping with this one)

Dehumanization!!

Vivisection!!

Panic attacks

Emotional distress of all kinds

Sickfics!!

If you send me any asks or requests or interact with my posts or say literally anything nice about me whatsoever I will give you my firstborn child

Some of my favorite whump blogs that inspired me to make a blog in the first place: @painonthebrain @whumpninja @defire @whumpwordsoftheday @sowhumpshaped

@sickfictropes @allthingswhumpyandangsty @writinglittlepains @whumpyourdamnpears --- sorry in advance if you didn't want to be mentioned! 😭

That's about it for now!! Thanks for reading!

[orcasoul]

That Time Again

A/N: Just a little (well it was intended to be little, but, oh well) drabble here because I can't help but think how Din, spending most of his adult life alone when not with the covert, and not knowing much about a woman's cycle, would be embarrassed when he accidentally thinks she's injured and feels bad for embarrassing her too. I think after the initial awkwardness, he'd be such a sweetheart about it ☺️

Warnings: Fluff, mention of periods.

Word Count: 1,333

The hunt didn't exactly go to plan, screw that, it was an epic failure! You and Din had just managed to get away by the skin of your teeth! You'd never been so relieved as when you saw the Razor Crest come into view, Din lowering the ramp by his vambrace. Once safely inside, with the ramp secure, you slump back into the cold steel wall, enjoying the icy chill seeping through your top into your sweaty skin as you catch your breath. "Well that didn't go well," Din panted as he leaned against the opposite wall.

"No shit," You shake your head through a half chuckle, half moan, "So what's the plan, now?" With his breathing finally under control Din stands tall, every bit the confident Mandalorian, even when he's not trying to be. It just naturally oozes from him. "He's scared and desperate now. He knows we're after him, so he'll keep running. I just didn't expect him to have so many men protecting him. But I'll get him, don't worry about that." Raising an eyebrow, you counter, "You mean we'll get him." "No!" came Din's curt and authoritative relpy, "It's too dangerous for you now."

"Din...," you begin protesting but he continues. "I've been doing this a long time, so trust me when I say I have to do this alone. This one just got much more complicated. I can't focus on the target and protect you at the same time. We're lucky we got out in one piece." Reluctantly you agree, but can't help but feel butterflies in your belly at Din's protectiveness of you. It's at times like this that you think, maybe he does feel the same way.

Locking that thought away you push off of the wall and begin to walk away when you hear a modulated gasp and feel Din's gloved hands grip your shoulders, stopping you in your place. "What the-," "You're hurt!" Din's voice quavers as panic grips his chest. You turn your head, utterly confused, trying to see where he's looking. What the hell? He's looking at ...my arse? "What? I'm not hurt. what are you talk-," Oh shit! Your eyes widen and your cheeks burn red as you realise what has happened.

You spin around, slowly backing away, trying your best not to stammer, but failing miserably. "Its n... not what you... you think. I'm... I'm fine." Din straightens, surprised by your weird response. "You're not fine, your bleeding. Let me-," "No!" He stops at your raised voice. "I'll take care of it. Trust me it's nothing." "It's not nothing." Now Din is raising his voice, clearly frustrated which in turn is making things worse.

Maker can't he just let it go? Can the universe do you a favour and open a black hole to swallow you now? He's really going to make you say it, isn't he? "Why won't you just let me help?" Din's asks exasperatedly, walking closer to you as you back away. "Cause it's nothing!' you insist, your stomach in knots. "Stop saying that!" Din blusterd. You drop your head into your hands, pressing the heels into your eyes, embarrassment burning through every inch of you. "For makers sake, Din! It's my period, okay. I've bled through!"

Silence follows your outburst, causing you to look back up at Din, who's stood stock still, if you didn't know any better, you'd think he was a statue. "Oh...," he mumbled, awkwardly. "Yeah... 'oh'," you scoffed. "I... I'm sorry... I didn't mean-," "It's okay," you blurted, right now not knowing what was redder, the blood on your trousers of the blood in your cheeks, "I'm just... gonna... go," you pointed over your shoulder to the fresher. As you shower, you realised that you'd been so eager to escape that situation that you'd forgotten to bring clean clothes with you. "Aw, shit," you grumble to yourself. Well, hopefully he'll be in the cockpit.

You open the fresher door, peaking around carefully. You've already had one embarrassing moment today, you don't need another. To your relief, you're alone. You sigh and look down, and that's when you see the neatly folded pile of clean clothes on the floor, right in front of the door. You smile as you pick them up, taking them with you into the fresher to change. Once you're clean and presentable, you head up to the cockpit, knowing you can't avoid each other on such a small ship. So you'll have to, as they say, suck it up. But when you open the door, your met with an empty room.

"Din?" no answer. "Din?" you shout louder, but still, no answer. That's odd. He never leaves without telling you. Maybe he's just as embarrassed as you? Maybe he can't face you right now? Before you can dwell on it any longer, you hear the ramp lowering. You slide down the ladder to the hull to see Din walking up the ramp with a brown paper bag in hand. He stops a couple of feet in front of you, the atmosphere clearly awkward.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you, Din-," you begin, desperate to dissipate the discomfort between you both. "Please don't apologise," Din lifts a hand to stop you, "I'm sorry. I didn't realise.... if I'd known, I wouldn't have...," Din clears his throat and slowly holds the bag out for you to take. "What's this?" you smile as you take the bag and look inside. Your heart melts at the sight. Inside, there are sanitary towels, tampons, a moon cup, heat up gel packs, pain relief and even a big bar of chocolate.

You feel like crying. Kriff, this man is so sweet and so kind. Could he be any more perfect? If you hadn't already fallen in love with him, you would have now. "Din...," his name leaves your mouth in a whisper, while holding in the tears. You look into his visor, hoping you're making eye contact. "You didn't have to do this. Thank you! This is... so sweet of you." "I wanted to help," he replied, softly. "I didn't mean to embarrass you earlier," he added after a moment. "It's okay," you shrug, feeling the embarrassment melt away by the second. "I think we were both a bit embarrassed."

"Yeah," Din chuckles, his shoulders losing some of the tension in them. He still feels bad about the situation, but seeing your eyes light up at his gift means the world to him, just as you do. Damn it, if only he could tell you how much he loves you. He's fearless in every aspect of his life, except when it comes to you. "Look, I don't claim to know much about 'this'," he emphasizes, "but I want you to know you don't ever have to feel awkward about it around me. We're a team, and if there's anything you ever need or anything I can do to help at this time, you can always come to me, okay?"

Your eyes soften even more and you're sure you're looking at Din like he'd hung the stars right now, but you don't care. You want him to know how much you appreciate his kindness and scincerity. "Thank you, Din. That means a lot." You can't help the beaming smile on your face right now. "You know...," you begin, teasingly, "for somebody who says he doesn't know much about 'this', you sure knew what products to look for."

"Well, I might have asked the lady working in the store if she could help me pick out the best things," Din confessed, in a playful tone. "And this?..." you wave the chocolate in front of his helmet, grinning like a fool. Din shrugged and you just knew he was grinning under his helmet too. "She also said some women have cravings, so I thought, best be prepared." "We're sharing this," you tap the bar against his breast-plate. Din chuckled, shaking his head in amusement, "Whatever you say, Cyar'ika."

[utilitycaster]

I listened to the WBN Fireside on my way to work and there were two things Brennan said, one of which stood out to me as something I really agree with and one of which I really disagree with so I figured I'd make this post (the disagreement one) first and then the agreement one.

The latest episode of WBN had a scene that the characters were not present for nor viewing in any way. It was recorded without their knowledge, though they did listen to it when the episode came out, and on the Fireside Brennan said that such scenes should be used quite sparingly, given the nature of actual play, but (and I apologize, I haven't relistened and the transcripts aren't out) because the antagonists aren't present where the PCs are, it's useful at times to have a scene to keep them in the narrative for the audience.

I firmly disagree. I think that while it's true that actual play has a limited POV (if the characters don't see it, you don't see it), I have, in a lot of actual play fandom, never once seen a situation when it added to the story. Granted, WBN is ongoing, so I may eat my words here, but I am doubtful for a number of reasons.

Speaking as one small fraction of the audience, I am in possession of narrative object permanence. I do not in fact assume that when the PCs are in one part of the world, the rest of it grinds to a halt. In fact, something that skilled GMs do (including, frankly, Brennan himself most of the time) is quietly advance the plans of people who are offscreen. This is also not abnormal for the genre. Lord of the Rings has multiple POVs at different times, but never that of an antagonist; we learn of this through rumors, espionage, and Gandalf's retellings. Sprawling epics like A Song of Ice and Fire or the Stormlight Archives or the Wheel of Time make use of a wide range of third person limited viewpoints as well, not all aligned, but we don't see every move by every faction (and frankly, as a fan of that kind of book...I still think most of them could leave a bit more on the cutting room floor). Limited third person POV is not a weakness of Actual Play; I'd argue it is both a strength and a requirement. The story is driven by the player characters, and they cannot act on something they do not see.*

I'd also add that in this very specific situation, the audience saw the subject of the cutscene, The Man in Black, literally three episodes ago, which was a day ago in-game. He was brought up extensively in the discussion two episodes ago. If someone forgot? That's on them. We have not gone months and months without him making an appearance. I do think it's possible for villains to be poorly developed because they do not cross the paths of the characters enough (this is, as many of the people reading this likely know, a blog that loves to dunk on the cardboard-like nature of Otohan Thull's virtually nonexistent personality and motivations) but The Man in Black is sufficiently a banger of an antagonist as to not be so easily forgotten.

Finally, and this might just be me, but because I know how Actual Play and D&D work, I must admit the second I realized this was a no-PC cut scene I found it pretty hard to pay attention. In fact, it did the opposite of what was intended. Instead of eagerly awaiting news of how The Man in Black was waging war, filtered through whatever information Suvi, Eursulon, and Ame could obtain, I was zoning out while he talked. I think part of why I like Actual Play is that it usually leaves me, even with 4 hour episodes, wanting more. Cut scenes leave me wishing the cut scene hadn't happened.

*brief tangent: this doesn't, in my opinion, apply to the scenes in Downfall that the viewer sees but which weren't captured in the Occultus Thalamus. The story of Downfall is ultimately a story about the gods - they are the PCs - and the dramatic irony enhances the story-within-a-story aspect. It's important to the audience understanding of the gods to see the whole thing, and it's a valid choice that Bells Hells only see what occurred while the avatars were physically in Aeor. It does, however, apply to contemporaneous happenings in Worlds Beyond Number.

**This also doesn't apply to long DM monologues in the presence of players. The C3 solstice scene has been compared to a cut scene, but actually it's important that Bells Hells sees it. If one of the Wizard, Witch, or Wild One had managed to find a way to, even at a low level, scry or similarly learn of the Man in Black's doings? I wouldn't have minded it. I adore the Hakea vision scene. It's specifically that I'm in fact here to see what the characters see.

[howlsofbloodhounds]

About Nightmare being a cult leader kind of figure, here's the thing:

Nightmare has absolute authority in the castle.

Everyone who joins him is made to change their name (none of them are called Sans anymore despite that being their actual name) (fun fact, you can absolutely read this as Something New Chara grooming Killer into a cult-like mentality way before Nightmare ever got there)

The castle itself is basically a cult compound. Only members of the cult are allowed in it, and they are not allowed to leave.

All the henchmen are cut off from their friends and families (Horror is the one who suffers from this the most, but Killer's AU also exists out there and is full of monsters, and Cross is highly discouraged from talking to Epic, Ink, or Dream).

Nightmare also has complete control over the finances of those under him, and I don't think we talk often enough about how fucked these guys are even if they ever escape because they have had no work experience for years and they have no money to help them get a new start. They're simply screwed.

Nightmare probably doesn't have the tightest grip on information control because Killer just knows stuff for no reason and that's very hard to avoid. However, by controlling Killer so thoroughly he does, at the very least, get to control what the other three learn. And he definitely has a way to spin things to make the Multiverse look even bleaker and more miserable than it is. And of making those under him feel as if they will never be accepted anywhere else. (After all, he doesn't have to make up the fact that they're wanted criminals, he just has to show them the fliers)

I don't think I even need to touch on emotional control with him. That's literally his hobby. And he's got quite a few tricks in his sleeve (direct soul tampering, emotional manipulation, tormenting his subjects with his shapeshifting, his negativity aura...).

Like, I don't think anyone intended for it, but the way Nightmare's gang is often portrayed is a cult. Of course, this can be pushed even further with Nightmare having them all practice thought-stopping techniques to keep them from having doubts, encouraging worship of him, breaking down his henchmen's boundaries, and capitalizing on their weaknesses. And none of those would feel out of place, but without them, this is still a cult setting. And these guys are gonna get fucked up in a uniquely cultish way

This reminds me of that post i saw before about how Dreamtale’s village was like a cult..looks like Nightmare really picked up a lot of tricks.

Especially the bit about killer already being groomed towards this mentality. He’d probably play the role of grooming the others too, honestly—either coming from a place of sadism or genuinely thinking he’s helping (for however much he cares to do so), them “learn” and survive.

And you’re definitely right about how all of them would be fucked if they tried to leave, and not just because of nightmare. Im honestly suprised killer even had the three people who were willing to try and help him. although the only one who seemed to have any consistent plan and approach was color.

Would be interesting if more people approached the gang from this angle.

{ @stellocchia }

[sailorsplatoon]

So apparently Captain (Agent 3) has a secret gig as an underground DJ called “DJ Sango” who is popular and did an epic rap battle with Marina. How would the Agents, Idols, Four and Acht react if they found out that Captain was secretly DJ Sango? And how would Captain react to them figuring out her big secret? (For an added bonus I’m gonna say that Acht admires her musical talent and has a celebrity crush on DJ Sango)

Okay I got really excited about this ask because I learned about the existence of the Low Water Party (the rave that DJ Sango and Marina’s DJ battle happened at) at few weeks ago and I have not stopped thinking about it since.  

Pearl and Marina probably already knew about Captain’s secret, since Marina was the one doing the DJ battle with her, and Pearl was at the same rave doing a rap battle with Cuttlefish. I’m going to say Callie already knew as well since she also performed at the rave, along with Octavio (which is a piece of canon lore that I am freaking out over by the way). However Marie, Shiver, Frye, and Big Man had no idea about Captain’s DJ persona. Marie is surprised both to find out that Captain can DJ and the fact that Callie went to the rave where she DJed at and didn’t tell her. Shiver thinks it’s cool, but also insists on Deep Cut being invited to perform at the next Low Water Party. Frye only uses it as an excuse to tease Captain, seeing as now she may be a threat to Deep Cut’s music career. Big Man is really impressed that Captain not only knows how to DJ, but that they were able to keep it up for 8 hours in her battle with Marina. 

Eight is just mad that he wasn’t informed of the fact that this rave had happened, since he would have loved to go. He insists on hearing Captain DJ the moment he finds out because he wants to hear how good she is. Neo just thinks it’s super cool. It wants to learn how to DJ from Captain, and constantly pesters them to teach it. Four loves it. They kind of tease Captain about her DJing career, but they’re also super impressed. 

Acht definitely had a celebrity crush on DJ Sango before realizing she was Captain. They were at the Low Water Party as well, despite never appearing on stage and still being sanitized then. Though they didn’t really have emotion when they first saw DJ Sango, once they got into the Memverse and started thinking about it more was when their celebrity crush started. Four even supported it before learning DJ Sango is Captain. After finding out, Acht drops the celebrity crush because it’s gotten very very awkward. 

Captain is horrified that they’ve all found out. She intended to keep her persona as DJ Sango a secret forever. She didn’t like that Pearl, Marina, and Callie knew, and now everyone does. Although she does enjoy the attention, even though she’d never admit it.

Thank you for the ask!!! I kinda wrote a lot… I got excited.

[star-going-supernova]

Glamrock Circus Baby is a thing and she operates in the ice cream parlor at Bonnie Bowl. If you wanna do the GlamMike headcanon, with Elizabeth still possessing Baby, just A LOT calmer now, then that would be an epic, and also very worrying, rivalry.

Prompt from Hydrangea_Cherry9 on ao3! This is pre Security Breach, if SB even happens in this AU. 

Sibling Rivalries Never Die

Glamrock Bella Bunny, the rebranded and redesigned Circus Baby, wasn’t a terrible host for Elizabeth Afton. At least she wasn’t stuck in a mechanical clown anymore, though she hadn’t quite decided if the red and pastel pink bunny—because heaven forbid the pizzaplex have a human-ish animatronic—was actually better. 

(It did soothe something in her tormented, tattered soul that this animatronic didn’t have any mechanism for snatching innocent kids. She had maybe been in a better mood since she didn’t have to live with being stuck in her murderer’s body.) 

The best part of her new twisted existence was the company. And she didn’t mean Bonnie, who Bella saw and interacted with most often. No, there was nothing like a bit of schadenfreude to lift one’s spirit (pun intended). 

She threw a handful of plastic spoons at Glamrock Freddy, the current host for her older brother. It was a slow day, and there was no one at the counter to catch her misbehaving.

“Seriously?” he said, more annoyed than any child would ever hear the great Freddy Fazbear be. “Real mature, Li—Bella.” 

“Get lost, Freddy. Or can you not read?” She pointed over at the hand drawn sign that Monty had been happy to make for her. A great big red X slashed over a sloppy crayon depiction of Freddy’s face, with BANNED written above it.

“Oh, for the love of—I’m here to see Bonnie. Not you. It’s not my fault you’re stuck in the bowling alley.” 

“I prefer ‘defending my territory,’” Elizabeth said with a haughty sniff. “And if free roaming makes you so high and mighty, then you can go wander around elsewhere and wait for your boyfriend to join you.”

Michael sputtered. “We aren’t—Bonnie’s not my boyfriend!” 

“Mhm, sure.” She roughly scooped a generous ball of strawberry and unceremoniously lobbed it at his chest. “Oops. Guess you’ve gotta go get cleaned up.” 

“You’re such a brat,” he snapped, snatching up a handful of napkins to try and mop up the mess of pink ice cream splatter. “You can’t still be mad about last week.” 

Bella wasn’t an animatronic particularly suited to hissing and gnashing her teeth, but Elizabeth was nothing if not furious and determined. “If it wouldn’t get me decommissioned, I’d jump over the counter right now and rip your arms off, you pathetic excuse for a—”

“What’d he do?” a child’s voice interrupted. 

Circuits sparking in surprise, they both jumped. Michael stumbled to the side, revealing a boy who had been standing behind him. It was hard for an animatronic to be shocked into shutdown, but seeing the absolute spitting image of their dead younger brother staring back at them with a mischievous sort of fascination did the job. 

Michael choked out a yelp before his eyes went dark, and Freddy unceremoniously toppled over to the tiled floor. Elizabeth—and she would gloat about this later—lasted a moment longer, her mouth flapping with her speechlessness before her core overheated and forced a reboot. 

In the final moment before her vision cut out, she would have sworn she saw a copy of her brother beside and a bit above the boy, as if floating. And that second Evan, the see-through one, looked as surprised as Elizabeth felt. 

[kotamagic]

Content warning for psychological distress on this week's Lore Olympus is real. Don't say you weren't warned.

Last week saw Apollo nigh-forcefully working with Persephone to fix the Mortal Realm crisis. With whatever it was Ouranos gave him, it did what it needed to do. At least, for a little bit.

Not only is the bastard clearly and knowingly making the experience miserable for Persephone, but also his plastic smile looks more fake than usual.

Is that ichor leaking out of his eyes? I hope he's in extreme pain from this little show of his. Fucker deserves all the agent he's put others through.

Next, the douche-canoe goes on a shpeal about how Ouranos "helped" Gaia control her powers. She never needed help with her powers. All that Ouranos did was use them for his own gain.

Everything Apollo says about Gaia needing "fixing" is a lie. Further, he blames her marriage to Hades for causing the extreme winter.

He uses it, as predicted, to lead into ordering Persephone to marry him. That gets him numerous ABSOLUTELY NOTs from across the board.

I can't even begin to imagine how horrifying this is for Persephone. This purple Olympian shit stain is desperate to get at her powers. He thinks he's king and can bully everyone just because Zeus is out cold and he's king's son.

I do wish Artemis would show up at some point. Technically, she's got just as much claim to the thrown as her brother, plus the benefit of common sense and decency.

THE QUEEN SPEAKS!

Welcome to the latest shit-show, Hera! She comes out spouting just about everything the other Olympians and the readers have been thinking and feeling.

I particularly love her emphasis that Persephone "so obviously despises" Apollo.

Oh, this was the cherry & icing on the cake!

With the camera still rolling, she outs Apollo for manipulating Hebe into running away. With her piece spoken, she moves onto the next matter at hand.

DAT EPIC MIC DROP THO!!!!!!

Hera intends to fix several things at once by doing what is possibly the most dangerous thing.

Kronos has stated that he won't cooperate unless he's given his "Golden Traitor" back. Hera knows it's dangerous. Her vision from a few chapters back showed her likely getting either killed or completely wrecked in a direct confrontation with Kronos.

And yet, she's willing to take that risk, not just for herself, but others as well. Persephone has been kind to her in multiple ways; the least she can do is give something back.

Maybe they'll save Hades. Maybe they'll save Melinöe. Maybe they'll kick Kronos' ass. Maybe they'll get Persephone's spring powers back. Maybe they'll even find the cure for Zeus. There's so much that can come out of this that the extreme danger feels worth the risk.

We shall see.

BONUS:

ARES VS APOLLO (with everyone else now), ROUND 2!

FUCK HIM UP, ARES! I WANNA SEE A LOT MORE ICHOR ON HIS UGLY FACE NEXT WEEK!

ANYWAY, THANKS FOR COMING TO MY LO POST!!!!!!!

[number-1-kuaidul-fanboy]

What are you main thoughts on arc v and what you like and don’t like about it?

*Cries out in agony*

Okay fine I'll talk about Arc V.

So... I don't know/remember if this has necessarily been a trend on Tumblr the way it has been in my Discord circles but uh... I have a habit of referring to Arc V as my least favourite Yugioh series.

Now let me clarify. By "least favourite" I do not and never have meant "worst". I have stated before that I love every current Yugioh series and believe they all have entertainment value.

Arc V is not a bad series. It has a lot of genuine merit that I would be remiss not to talk about.

That being said, my overview is going to be critical so don't like? Don't read.

1 The duels, even if they were starting to get a little too complicated by this point, are very fun and breathe life into match ups I otherwise wouldn't care for. Looking at the Arc V duels purely based on the cards and plays, I'd say they're a step up from the overly boss monster reliant but otherwise decent Zexal duels and leagues above the slog-fest overly complicated combo ridden duels of VRAINS.

2 The first season of this show is legitimately fantastic. It has some occasional whatever filler episodes here and there but overall it sets up the characters and story really well and is just fun and engaging to watch in general.

3 The way this series depicts the horrors of war, and how it's not necessarily a black and white issue. Arc V takes a more nuanced approach to this and shows characters being groomed or brainwashed into the cause on both sides, not just the fusion dimension. Serena, Sora, Dennis, Reira, even Yuri to an extent that the show didn't show too well- they're all just children forced to fight in a horrible war and Serena, Sora, and Dennis in particular have really interesting arcs and such fun personalities that they are among my favourites in the show.

4 The foreshadowing and ultimate payoff of certain elements is really satisfying and on my first viewing, eclipsed a lot of the problems Arc V had. The show truly does feel grand and epic and the ultimate reveal of the backstory, Zarc and Ray's stories, how the dimensions split, all of that is really well done and interesting and definitely the most interesting parts of the show on rewatches. But... speaking of rewatches...

I'll admit, I really loved Arc V when I first saw it and declared it my second favorite Yugioh series at the time, beating out Zexal and DM but not GX. It was when I rewatched Arc V that the cracks showed and... my god were they big cracks.

Rewatching the Synchro dimension arc after finally watching and liking 5Ds made me notice how much of the unique riding/turbo dueling elements were taken out in favor of just regular dueling on motorcycles with the occasional action card. But that's a small issue compared to how terrible the social commentary aspects were in the Synchro arc, even without comparing it to 5Ds.

Oh Shinji how they dropped the ball with you.

I'll try to keep this brief but I think the fact that the Synchro arc demonized protesters is incredibly disgusting. And sure, you can claim that the protesters weren't demonized specifically for rioting but for wanting to oppress the rich but you know what? Making all of the protesters, who had very valid reasons to protest by the way, out to just be trying to oppress the rich is still disgusting and I hate it. The way the narrative presents it, it really feels to me like this arc ends with Yuya ultimately forcing his "never fight, only pacifism" beliefs onto LEGITIMATELY OPPRESSED PEOPLE WHO WERE FIGHTING FOR THEIR RIGHTS only to be told "no no no, just talk to your oppressors instead!" which historically, DOES NOT WORK and is a disgusting message to perpetuate, even if it wasn't what the show intended. And this Yuya problem of forcing his ideals onto others along with his character development going in circles are things that do not go away after this. It's a problem with the entire show after the first season and the reason I don't really like canon Yuya very much.

All of this, and also Yuzu's character being destroyed, kills that part of the Synchro arc for me, which is a HUGE part, and the fact that very little actually happens to progress the overall plot for this entire THIRD OF THE SHOW is really frustrating. There's some character development here and there, some arcs being less useless than others, but in terms of major events for the overall story, it really feels like the plot just comes to a screeching halt for most of this arc, with the only things that happen being Serena and Yuzu getting kidnapped, Dennis's betrayal, and Sora's honestly kinda rushed but still decent redemption. So nearly an entire third of the show is both a boring or enraging slog AND doesn't further the overall story I was actually interested in. GREAT.

Also I hate Roget. I don't have any deeper analysis there, I just hate his guts and not in a fun love to hate villain way like Amon from GX. I just hate him and wish he wasn't in this show.

So... the first third of Arc V is great and the second third throws a lot of what made that first third great into the garbage and is so frustrating that I've declared it my most hated Yugioh arc in all eight shows so far. So... where does that leave the final third that most people seem to hate?

...to be honest, I'm in a weird middle ground where I find this final section of Arc V to be both underrated and also not very good. It's... a mixed bag. I have a lot of the same problems with it that most do: the way the show dropped the ball with Reira's arc, Leo Akaba getting off scott-free for being a war-mongering genocidal maniac, the non Yuya and Yuzu yu-boys and bracelet girls becoming irrelevant the way they were by the end, Rin and Ruri getting pretty much nothing but macguffin status, the creepy mind control shit in general, the Battle Beast arc. Just. The stupid ass Battle Beast arc.

Fuck this arc.

And I have some problems that I feel might be unique to me but are major all the same: the legacy characters, especially Asuka and Edo, being poorly written with Asuka overshadowing Yuzu then being sidelined and treated horribly in her duel with Yuri (still one of my most hated duels in the entire franchise) and Edo being incredibly inaccurate to and disingenuous of his character in GX with his arc being incredibly rushed and also feeding into that Yuya problem of insisting "pacifism will resolve everything!" that I mentioned earlier which also logically should not have worked on this version Edo.

Basically, I DESPISE these duels:

And on top of all of that, I don't like the Z-Arc duel. It's got some funny moments in the dub and I like the concept of it but it just goes on for way too long. For how many characters butt into this thing and how obvious it is that none of them are gonna win until Reira steps up (shouldn't have been her, should've been the bracelet girls or actually Ray in some form) it goes on for so damn long and it's just not fun. I feel no desire to rewatch this thing.

Soooo why did I say this arc was a mixed bag when I've had so many negative things to say about it? Honestly, it's just a lot more fun to watch than Synchro arc was. There's more variety in locations, it's not a tournament so the match ups are more surprising and varied, and like I said earlier, the pay off to all the foreshadowing, mostly from the first arc, is really strong. The grander story is back in focus and there are more good character moments sprinkled throughout than there were in Synchro arc. I don't care for Kaito that much in Arc V, or even Zexal II for that matter, but his duels are still fun to watch, I particularly enjoy his duel with Dennis, if just for Dennis.

And while I don't like how overly long the Z-Arc duel is, I still enjoy parts of it and the build up to it is genuinely fantastic. Nearly everything that happens from the Z-Arc backstory up through Yuri vs Yuya and all the duels in between are quite possibly the peak of the entire show. Declan standing up to his shitty father and reinforcing his loyalty to and belief in Yuya is amazing and exactly what Revolver's arc in VRAINS should've been, I love Declan and Riley's duel, Yuri gets to be a fun villain for a while before getting discarded, it's all really great stuff. Maybe it's partially my Declan bias, I really love him, he's my favourite character in the show, but these duels are peak.

Also, apart from the stupid aspects of the ending that I already discussed, the last eight episodes are just. Genuinely good in my eyes? People say they bring the plot to a screeching halt but to me, those episodes are an epilogue, and a pretty good one for the characters the show kept around. I unequivocally like the way Dennis's arc wraps up. I like Shun's duel with Yuya. Shun having to accept his sister and best friend are gone but finding happiness in knowing they do still live on in a way is pretty much the only good thing to come out of forcefully fusing the Yu-boys and bracelet girls. Also Jack and Yuya having a goddamn interdimensional turbo duel is still one of the coolest concepts for a duel EVER. And Declan vs Yuya right after it is a really fun duel with a very good emotional core. Still absolutely LOVE that moment of Yuya understanding and sympathizing with Z-Arc. All these parts are a great way to wrap up the series, even if a lot of the stuff around it isn't.

It's definitely an arc, and show for that matter, of peaks and valleys and sadly, a lot of those valleys really aren't worth trudging through to get to the peaks for me. Arc V, to a more major extent than 5Ds, is the kind of show that I don't feel compelled rewatch in its entirety, just the parts I really like (or need to rewatch for writing reasons or something).

So overall I do like Arc V but it is the Yugioh series I have the most problems with.

[berlinini]

some Thoughts about the 02 show (while the days of ltwt show recaps the length of essays are gone, I thought I'd share some stuff)(this of course got kinda long anyways, I am nothing but predictable!)

first of all it's so interesting to go online after a show and "consume" the show through different perspectives... I was in the pit close to the sound booth and could see a tiny Louis like tunnel vision (and not even always - I had to look at the screens a lot more than any previous shows). I had never been to such a big venue and it felt like the arenas I'd be previously - it's so hard to gage. Anyways when I saw Louis' IG post I realized how far I was and seeing pictures and videos of the venue - I truly hadn't realized the sheer number of people. Also the lights project from our POV seemed to have bombed but seeing the videos, it did create the intended effect. Also I was so far that I had to ask the gc for the color of the pants (#purple #slay) and only in the encore, when there was a camera on Louis' entire body, did I notice the shoes (unfortunately my eyes deceived me into thinking they were Nike). I missed all the little quirky faces and interactions that I now see in gifs. HOWEVER I did not miss the several times Louis teared up including during Chicago and during his speeches and I tell you my heart was bursting. I love that he talked a bit more than usual - I think he said something like "I can't put into words... well let me try" and he said everything so perfectly! The reference to his dreams and the "we" - I just listened to him and thought how much I love him. His special thanks to his band was super sweet.

setlist: HOTH safe! If I hadn't known DMD was back on the setlist I wouldn't have recognized it. No 7 :( I tolerate Angels Fly but tbh I don't understand how it's there and not like Headline or Always You or FEARLESS. High in Cali was hilarious because you could tell weed isn't legal in the UK lmao - the vibe was so different than back home. 505 still so good and now I can sing every single lyrics but in a very oh poor me, the show ruined my 5 x 505 streak this year since it's now 6. But 505 Laval you'll always be #1 in my Heart <3. We Made It is still the It Girl and Silver Tongues... I doubt a closer will ever come this close (hehe) to how fucking epic it is. Tbh I could hardly tell when the string section was playing but I'm glad I had a show with strings! Me still in LTWT mode wondering why the pyro didn't go off during Walls only to be told there hasn't been any for this tour ouuuups. The Megamix SLAYS so hard and the special effects were SO cool! I did miss the classic rainbow lights for SIBWAWC cuz the lasers didn't reflect on the crowd as nicely but the clouds and at the beginning of ATT were beautiful.

Talking about lasers I was eyeing this guy in the soundbooth that I'd never see before and was clowning about him being there for the LIVE ALBUM RECORDING. I even took notes to figure out later where he works (spare a thought for tumblr user bbrox who has to put up with my insanity). ONLY to figure out 1 hour later that the guy was the special lasers guy as made so obvious by the fact he packed up his stuff after Saturdays in a box that said "laser fx triangle C" lololol. Sometimes I think it's good to clown for nothing - be humbled!

I saw most of the crew in the soundbooth - the person I was with was trying to spot the Tomlinsons while I was looking for Oli and K and was mentally putting a check on names for the sound and lights guys - priorities! (Blaming Red Rocks for having us go down the rabbit hole of every single member of the crew)

Oh yeah the KMM lights! It was kinda spontaneous? He had a little shy smile like he was telling himself 'look at this lot' and it was soooo adorable. I'm glad I got to be a part of it <3 Which pretty much summarizes this whole show - witnessing a moment in history.

Finally - TANK TOP LOUIS WITH MY OWN 2 EYES!!!!!! And what a tank top!!! #blessed #cantspellslutwithoutlt

Everyone's been saying being a louie is for life and that just keep getting stronger and stronger everytime I get to see him perform! Can't wait for future shows!!!

[nancydrewwouldnever]

This is going to be the epic "SHOOT YOURSELF IN YOUR OWN FOOT" phase of his life and career.//

Nancy, this is a dumb question, but let's assume this is PR, and I believe it is. How did Chris and his team not see this backlash coming? And once his team threw his fans under the bus by calling them toxic, well this is what he gets.

Now, some of the GP think this is real, and I think they are losing interest because this relationship is giving them the ick.

Chris and his team need to have their “come to Jesus moment” soon if they want to salvage his career. The reaction he got from the Ghosted trailer was not good.

For some reason, they seem to be doubling down on the AB card. It's like they can't see or don't care she is not good for his image.

Look, here's the thing: take whatever you believe is the "true" nature of the relationship out of the equation. Just, leave that aside for a moment.

The "true" nature of the relationship at this point is completely moot, because since Pumpkingate this has now become a PR show. THIS IS NOW PR, BECAUSE IT HAS BECOME PR SINCE THEY DECIDED TO TREAT IT AS A SOURCE OF PUBLIC NARRATIVE. Once they decided to use it as a public image spinner, you have to focus on how this "relationship" is fulfilling that mandate.

So, is it fulfilling that mandate? The mandate of portraying what both PR teams attempted to sell, the "serious" "over a year" "never more in love" "private" couple of their publicly shared PR narrative? And, is that narrative, if being effectively conveyed, helping add value and positive attention to the participants? (Because, literally, that's all any PR is, a hopefully value-addictive narrative.)

Both questions answer no.

None of their attempts to craft the image have been successful in doing so. In fact, several have backfired and left many viewers with an oppositional view to the narrative. So, you have a failure to craft the PR correctly, in a way which resonates with intended target audience.

Then, you have the blowback of the PR failure: neither participant are seeing added value long-term from the PR campaign. Sure, she got a lift at the time of the WN season premiere/pap walk. But that was negated by her principle PR delivery vehicle (her IG) being shut down. And we saw her IG stats plummet after one day back. I do not think her Paris appearance will make an impact, but we'll see with the numbers tomorrow.

As for him - do I even need to summarize that? The consistent buying and cleaning show his team, at least, is aware that the plot has shifted against them, but they seem to have no good idea for how to get it back on course.

There's no point in arguing how people see this anymore, other than to say how they're seeing it is in no way benefiting either him nor her.

This whole thing is a big dud.

[the-monkey-ruler]

Could we have an analysis of A Chinese Odyssey part one and two? Although I feel that the third part breaks the message of the first two a little? but I don't know, I'm very ignorant about the matter, so I'll apologize if it's more complicated.

Lucky for us there is someone who has done an Analysis of a Chinese Odyssey from the perspective of its cultural impact on other media in Transforming Monkey Adaptation and Representation of a Chinese Epic By Hongmei Sun. If anyone has the time I would highly recommend reading her book or just skipping to the chapters she talked about it in Chapter 4 From Fighter to Lover The Postsocialist Hero in the PRC and Hong Kong.

I shall try to SUMMERIZE a whole chapter below that I think really helps frame how the Chinese Odessery was interpreted though so open at your own cost. Please note this is me just REPEATING what the article says if you really don't want to read the book (BUT YOU SHOULD).

And yes you are right Anon MANY people did not enjoy the third movie as it went against everything the first two movies were about with lost love, rather feeling more like a cash grab made to milk people's nostalgia and adoration of the films. Some people might like it but PLEASE know that it was never intended for the first two films and often feels way too disconnected.

The Postsocialist Hero in the PRC and Hong Kong

Sun Wukong up to this point (the 1990s) has been framed in media as a revolutionary hero (best-known example in the Havoc of Heaven 19060s movie). Chinese Odyssey 1995 coproduced by Hong Kong and mainland China, starring Stephen Chow as the Sun Wukong was one of the first movies that challenged this image of him and redefined the character at the turn of the century. The film subverted the heroic image of Sun Wukong and replaced it with a comedic character who is also a romantic interest. This was his transformation from a "fighter" to a "lover" and while it didn't do well in Hong Kong, it was horribly popular in Mainland China due to the messaging of the movie changing dramatically. The creative "misreading" of the original film has led to its success due to the audience connection during a time of social transformation and widespread anxiety about changing sexual mores. This led to a postsocialist hero for the large population of young people who became its fans.

THE DAHUA PHENOMENON

When first released in Hong Kong and mainland China in 1995, A Chinese Odyssey was a box-office failure. The film’s slapstick humor was initially unappreciated and it was highly criticized for straying too far from the original source material. But two years later, when the film was shown on TV film channels, it caught the attention of college students and grew a large fan base on college campuses in the mainland. For a while, A Chinese Odyssey was vigorously traded in the bootleg disc market. Fans of A Chinese Odyssey, known as Dahua fans, instead of criticizing the movie for deviating from the original, or changing and subverting the images of the characters, Dahua fans found a new aspect of Sun Wukong's story that spoke to them. Audiences saw themselves represented in this Sun Wukong themselves and the story as reflecting the problems they faced in their lives. Even Academics paid attention to the popularity of the film itself but also to the special phenomenon created by its influence over popular culture, which is called “Dahua Culture.” These articles focus on a wide range of aspects, including postmodern culture, adaptation, intertextuality, cultural studies, Internet culture, performance, language, time and space, and also include creative writing, leading to A Chinese Odyssey’s appeal to both fans and academics is steady.

Many fans of the movie express the “postmodern” factors in Stephen Chow’s “nonsensical” style, and the subversive pleasure that audiences derive from the film’s excessive play with the grotesque and the violation of social norms. Stephen Chow transformed the story of pilgrimage into a slapstick comedy where gods, pilgrims, and demons were usually treated with awe and were now a humorous outlet in a political environment where authorities are supposed to always be respected.

The following example demonstrates the kind of analysis that circulates among fans:

If you double over with laughter when watching this movie, it means you have a sense of humor. But if you’re still laughing when the movie is over, you actually understand nothing of the film. When the film is over, if you find your face is covered with tears, you have come to understand the first layer of its meaning. If after all your laughter and tears you are stunned, not knowing whether to cry or to laugh, you understand the second layer of its meaning. If you sit there speechless, dejected and despondent, not knowing where you should go, you understand the third layer of its meaning. A Chinese Odyssey is an allegory. Hidden within the shell of an ancient myth, it appears to be a very funny and sad, bawdy but pure love story, but actually it is about the problems caused by the uncertainty of time and the hesitation of the individual.

Joker’s transformation into Sun Wukong represents the spiritual journey that a man experiences growing up, and Tripitaka and the Bull Demon King each represent different social powers around him. Many fans speak about their experience watching the film repeatedly, and how their understanding deepens after each viewing. Another fan writes about her understanding of love, which changes through the years in which she watched the film repeatedly:

From the 1990s, when she was in elementary school, until when she graduated from college, the film in her eyes has evolved from a horror film to a love story, from an avant-garde film to a love story that is all based on a lie.

A review about the author’s deepened understanding of the film after college:

I suddenly understood the beginning of the movie: A young guy who is talented but does not respect rules (Sun Wukong) loathes the big and important cause that he is assigned (the pilgrimage to India). He especially cannot bear the nagging preaching of his teacher (Tripitaka), but the rules and regulations in the world (Guanyin) won’t let him go. In order to transform him into a devoted pilgrim, Tripitaka - and Guanyin have reached an agreement: let him get reborn and start anew five hundred years later. Such a foreordained beginning.

The review goes on to state that Sun Wukong’s “Havoc in Heaven” takes place during the golden era of four years in college. After he leaves the campus and finds a job he realizes that all his talents and personality do not matter underneath the mountain of Buddha’s palm. In short, while A Chinese Odyssey subverted Journey to the West’s status as a revered classic, it managed to establish itself as a classic. The parody did not just ridicule the gods and teachers in the original story, but it also drew new images for the main characters, establishing new meanings related to the audience. It influenced later adaptations of Journey to the West and deeply changed the normal depiction of characters such as Sun Wukong and Tripitaka.

ABSTINENCE FROM SEXUALITY IN JOURNEY TO THE WEST

In the novel Journey to the West, themes of the body and sexuality are sublimated due to the nature of the story as a religious allegory. Sex is a formidable sin from which all of the pilgrims must abstain and Bajie is the only one who shows weakness toward the temptation of sex. For that, he is repeatedly tested, warned, and punished. In contrast, Tripitaka has sustained his virgin body for ten reincarnations, and it is believed that eating one piece of it is sufficient to grant the consumer longevity. Many demons want to eat him, and sometimes female demons want to have sex with him. If Tripitaka has to constantly work against the idea of sexuality and make an effort to abstain from it, for Wukong sex has never been an issue.

In his own words, he was born without xing. When Patriarch Puti asked him about his xing (surname), he took it as a question about his xing (temperament/nature) and responded that he did not have any temper (xing), and had never lost his temper (yisheng wu xing). This statement also holds true if we take the liberty of relating the pun of xing to sexuality. When it was clarified that the question was about the surname that he would have received from his parents, Wukong responded that he did not have any parents, since he was born from a piece of stone. Puti was delighted upon hearing this, saying that the monkey was born of heaven and earth. Although the narrative of Journey to the West never explains the ways in which Wukong’s birth from stone functions as an asset, it is clear that his parentless birth (a birth that is not as a result of sexual activity) distinguishes him as a model for religious practice. Quite relatively, throughout the journey, sex simply never constitutes a temptation for him, as if his mind cannot fathom the idea of sexuality.

The correspondence of the five members of the pilgrimage group with the Five Phases of Chinese philosophy with Wukong related to Metal (Jin) and Heart/Mind (Xin). Metaphorically Wukong functions as the mind/heart of the group, which is focused on defeating demons and directing the group toward the religious holy land. This is perhaps why the narrative of Journey to the West consistently refers to Sun Wukong as the “heart/mind monkey” (xinyuan). If the heart/mind of the pilgrims should be directed toward attaining Buddhist sutras for the world or attaining Buddhahood for themselves, the body that is attached to worldly pleasures constitutes obstacles for the heart. For Zhu Bajie, the obstacle of the body is significantly greater than it is for Tripitaka. But for Sun Wukong, his body does not stand in the way— born from stone and smelt in Laozi’s elixir furnace, his body is built for battles and transformational magic, not for the sin of desire.

Sun Wukong’s body actually contains many details —from his birth from the stone to his transformation training, to the numerous bodily tricks he plays when encountering demons during the journey— but the writing about the body is paradoxically for the purpose of eventually transcending it, and his physical capacity greatly facilitates that process. The 1960s adaptation emphasized the heroic aspects of Sun Wukong and reconstructed him as a brave warrior who fights against the oppression of the feudalist heaven controlled by the Jade Emperor, and a true pilgrim who can see through the disguises of forms and catch the White Bone Demon despite her transformations. What is unchanged from the religious “heart monkey” to the communist revolutionary monkey is the agreement in his “heart” and his body, originating from his miraculous birth and well suited to the purposes of pilgrimage and revolutionary cause alike.

BODY VERSUS HEART: HUMANIZATION OF THE MONKEY KING

In contrast, in A Chinese Odyssey, the Sun Wukong’s story becomes one of the body working against the heart. With the entire story focusing on Joker’s romantic adventures, love and sexuality become central themes of the film, and the meaning of “heart” in “ heart monkey” changes to refer to love. A Chinese Odyssey gives Wukong (reborn as Joker) a mortal human body, and Joker’s adventure involves various sorts of mistreatment of this body and a focal point of the camera. Joker appears near the beginning suffering from a severe injury where even his his legs soon give out, and he can only walk upside down with his arms. His body continues to be treated cruelly as he is seen falling into a pit of feces; trapped by a spider net; breaking his own teeth; being beaten, burnt, and repeatedly trampled on by his gang members. His private parts particularly become the target of trampling quite a few times.

When Joker and Jingjing fall in love, in the short moment when they were together, sex was never consummated. Paradoxically, the narrative of this film about love seems to focus unmistakably on castration. Whereas part 1, Pandora’s Box, tells the adventures of Joker’s body, part 2, Cinderella, becomes the story of his heart. But just like the mistreatment of the body in the earlier part, something always goes wrong with his heart in part 2. Joker spends this part of the journey in denial: of both his love for Zixia and his identity as the Monkey King. It is only by means of the literal separation of his heart from his body that he is eventually able to find and recognize his heart—he is killed by Ma’am Thirty, who cuts open his chest and takes his heart out, so he sees it with his “eyes of the heart/soul” (xinyan). At this moment, after his heart leaves his body, he becomes the Monkey King, who has to put the golden ring on his head to control his worldly desire.

Later, when the new Sun Wukong is faced with a hard choice between saving his true love Zixia and saving his master Tripitaka, the golden fillet tightens to make sure he makes the right choice. With its depictions of the body and the search for love, A Chinese Odyssey seemingly delivers a message that is diametrically opposed to that of Journey to the West until the ending, when it hits on a conclusion that is much in agreement with Journey to the West: abstaining from worldly pleasure. The last scene of the movie sees the group of pilgrims set off once again on their journey to the West, when they come across a couple, the exact replica of Joker and Zixia, repeating the scene that Joker once experienced when he refused to kiss “Zixia” and profess his love for her. Possessing the body of the replica Joker, Sun Wukong embraces “Zixia,” gives her the requested kiss, and tells her that he will never leave her. Having done this, Sun Wukong leaves the body of “Joker” and sets off on his journey, leaving the embracing couple behind. Although this ending provides Sun Wukong the chance to make up for his regret by means of the body of the substitute, it also concludes the separation of the body and the heart, permanently.

By the same token, although the film is replete with sexually charged language and images, sex is never directly represented. Sexual expectations are subverted and rebuffed. The story of the conflicting body and heart of Joker ends with a symbolical self-castrating action, when we see Sun Wukong eating a banana, on two occasions near the end of the movie, with peels dangling at his mouth and the banana bitten off. These scenes, echoing the trampling scene described earlier, epitomize the conflicting relationship between body and heart. Although they no doubt create a humorous effect, part of the “nonsensical” style for which Stephen Chow is known, the Monkey King image created by such effect forms a stark contrast to that of the successful and capable fighter in earlier adaptations.

Now that he knows love, his body is working against his heart. Thus, the new Sun Wukong must bear the vexing challenges of life, just like a normal human being. It is this contradiction between body and heart that has become the source of inspiration for many Dabua fans who see the story as reflecting their own: the dreams of the young heart and its obstructions in reality.

BETWEEN DEMON AND DEITY

Sun Wukong has lost the godly control and coordination of body and heart that he enjoyed in Journey to the West. But the film still resists a simple dichotomy between deity and demon as blurring the line between the demon and the god is a major endeavor of the narrative. Not only does the film question the categorical nature of the Monkey King, but it also ridicules the differentiation between deity and demon. Wukong is reincarnated as Joker as a punishment for his demonic behavior, but he repeatedly refuses opportunities to be transformed back into the deity Monkey King. When he realizes that he has finally become the Monkey King reincarnate, seeing the image of a monkey in the “Mirror of Demon Revelation,” he immediately throws the mirror to the ground, tramples on the mirror (and his predestined identity), and runs away. Thus the final transformation into Sun Wukong at the end concludes the human Joker’s resistance with his eventual submission to his predestination (or the pressure of the social environment, in one Dahua fan’s interpretation).

The question of “deity or demon?” as a major theme is represented by what Zixia asks Joker when she first meets him:

“Deity? Demon? Thanks.”

Indicating her immediate need to categorize Joker as a deity or a demon, the question reflects her interest in detecting disguises. In her short earlier encounter with Erlang Shen and the Four Heavenly Kings, the gods transformed into humans to deceive her. Gods such as Erlang Shen and his team are represented as quite ungodly, their conversations indicating that they all have ordinary humanlike faults and concerns. Demons identified by the mirror turn out to be as lovable as their human disguises: Jingjing is devoted to love, and Ma’am Thirty sacrifices herself to save her partner and baby. The triangle formed between Joker, Jingjing, and Zixia involves a human, a deity, and a demon, and the fact that they fall into different categories never constitutes a problem for them as the narrative presents the human side of all beings, including their frustrations, their desires, their dreams, and their fears.

The line between deity and demon is also blurred in Journey to the West itself. In the sixteenth-century text, Sun Wukong himself goes through the identity transformation from a demon (a king of monkeys who occupy a mountain and claim it as their territory without recognition from authorities), to a deity recognized by the Taoist authority (first as the imperial horse keeper, then as the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven), and finally a Buddhist pilgrim who eventually attains Buddhahood. This upward transformation from an outlaw to a recognized deity was deliberately overlooked by the socialist adaptations, which downplayed the importance of social recognition either from the Taoist or the Buddhist order but only emphasized the idea of rebel and the metaphor of the journey. Hence the Monkey King was simply represented as a heroic rebel of oppression or a devoted follower of the path for socialist construction. In contrast, Joker’s transformation in A Chinese Odyssey moves in the opposite direction from Sun Wukong in Journey to the West. Refusing to return to the monkey-deity identity, Joker prefers to remain as an outlaw.

In this film, for the first time, he is given the right to ask questions about who he is and what he is doing. His heroic halo taken away, the Monkey King once again becomes the down-to-earth nobody, a humanized antihero who speaks to the sympathetic audience.

REINCARNATION, REWRITING, AND THE STORY OF HONG KONG

The story of the Monkey King’s reincarnation can be read as one of rewriting. Guanyin and Jade Emperor were official rewriters of Sun Wukong’s story: they dislike the version in which Sun Wukong rebels against Guanyin, and give him another chance by reincarnating him as Joker. Joker, however, after being reminded of his identity in his previous life, which he has completely forgotten, chooses to run away: he does not want to become Sun Wukong, the protagonist of the “Journey to the West” story already written. Instead, he makes as many revisions as he can and tries to lead the story in a direction of his own choosing. From this point of view, the entire movie is about the tension and conflicts of the two rewriting plans operating in opposite directions. Although Joker battles to be the writer of his own life, in the end he has to give in to the dominance of Guanyin’s rewrite. Despite his resistance, in the end his memory and identity as the Monkey King is regained, or, more accurately, reconstructed. Joker’s own effort to rewrite his story can be seen from his repeated time travels.

When he finds out that the Moonlight Box can take people to other times, he tries to go back in time to change what happens to Jingjing and hence change his own love story. But his timetravel plan never works out and he travels back five hundred years by mistake and thus begins the unintended love story with Zixia. Joker’s plan eventually has to yield to divine intervention. Before his story reaches a happy ending, his life is taken by the spider demon, and his spirit faces Guanyin’s master plan: the Monkey King’s golden headband and golden rod are waiting for him. Although taking on the mantle of the Monkey King is presented as a matter of choice, there really is no alternative, and the film portrays this transformation as the saddest moment. Solemnly and ceremonially, Joker raises up and puts on the fillet, repeating the lines he once insincerely spoke to Zixia:

“Once there was a genuine love devoted to me, but I took it lightly. When I have lost it, I know it is too late to regret.”

It is as if he uses the last moment as Joker to redeem the lines that he performed badly before, but this time with complete sincerity. This sincerity in his last words about love proves the tragic nature of the unwilling transformation into Sun Wukong. Among all the Journey to the West adaptations, A Chinese Odyssey is probably the one that most emphasizes the tragedy of being the Monkey King.

The film’s demonstrated anxiety over transformation in general, and Joker’s frustrated effort to work against the divine plan in particular, builds a significant link to the story of Hong Kong. The transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to China in 1997 had been a great concern in Hong Kong in the 1980s and 1990s. Whereas in mainland China the transfer was expected eagerly as Hong Kong’s “return,” in other parts of the world it is referred to as the “Handover.” Anxiety and doubt about the Handover are expressed directly or indirectly in popular culture. The reference to Hong Kong in the film A Chinese Odyssey is unnoticed when it travels north, despite its popularity and the abundance of discussion about the meaning of the story. The transformation of the “Journey to the West” narrative into a love story took Dabua fans by surprise and has been a major focus of their discussions.

Fans rather relate to the story to their own social reality and seem to have neglected the abundant references to the social transformations in Hong Kong either in the major theme or through specific scenes. For instance, the film has a scene of the entire group of pilgrims stranded in a town on an isolated piece of land that has been blown up by the Bull Demon King with his magic fan and is floating slowly toward the sun. Wukong tries to push the island back with his golden rod but his individual effort cannot overpower the gusts created by the magic fan. For a few seconds the film freeze-frames on a distant shot of the bloodred sun (communist China), occupying almost the entire screen, with the small island (Hong Kong) floating irreversibly toward it, and the single Monkey King trying desperately to stop its motion. The scene poses an urgent question to the audience: Will the pilgrims be able to escape?

The answer is yes, when the magic works: all pilgrims narrowly escape using the Moonlight Box, which transports them to a different time-space right before the island explodes. As comparatist Ackbar Abbas has noted about films from Hong Kong, “almost every film made since the mid-eighties, regardless of quality or seriousness of intention, seems constrained to make some mandatory reference to 1997.” Even though A Chinese Odyssey is a spoof of a mythical story, the reference is quite clear. Joker’s situation corresponds quite closely to the “floating” identity and the problematics of the “deja disparu,” as Abbas discusses; with the slipperiness and ambivalence of his true identity and the rapid changes of status, he is unable to see what is right in front of him, and when he does see it, it is “always already gone.” The desperate scene of the floating island moving toward the sun creates a pressing sense of crisis. Despite all of Sun Wukong’s effort, the city disappears after all, indicating a quite pessimistic view of the future of the “floating city.” The image of the “floating city” (fucheng) is used frequently in popular culture as a reference to Hong Kong.

CREATIVE MISREADING, POSTSOCIALIST HERO

Many Dahua fans are college students, the film resonates with those who struggle to find their own identities in an authoritative regime. Frequently discussed themes include impossible love, the struggle of the individual against society, and eventual submission to social pressure. The Joker with whom Dahua fans identify is the rebel who is doomed to fail but who nonetheless remains the rebel— that is, until he eventually has to give in to an indomitable external force. A common analogy discussed by fans is the comparison of Joker’s resubmission to authority once he dons the golden crown of the Monkey King to the increased censorship of the Internet after 1997.

The creative misreading of A Chinese Odyssey has created a new image of the Monkey King for the mainland with Joker establishing himself as a “postsocialist” hero. This new hero replaces the images of Sun Wukong as a “revolutionary” hero that were created and popularized in the 1960s in works such as Havoc in Heaven. The term “postsocialism” develops the idea of postsocialism in response to Deng Xiaoping’s “socialism with Chinese characteristics,” indicating that the Chinese socialism in practice is not exactly socialism (nor is it capitalism), scholars in Chinese studies adopt and adapt the concept for different purposes. The postsocialist nature of the image of Sun Wukong is evident from the relationship between the people and the system. If a socialist system means people have faith in the socialist discourse, it becomes postsocialist when this faith is lost, even though ideological control from the leadership is still strong and is currently getting stronger. There exists a discord and discrepancy between the expectations from above and grassroots-level practice.

Instead of the kind of collective identification with common ideals established in the socialist period, the postsocialist hero is interested in his individual agenda, which often includes focusing on his personal struggle to challenge the authorities that want to control him. A Chinese Odyssey indicates the postsocialist turn of Journey to the West: from here on, major adaptations of Journey to the West almost always present the Monkey King as a postsocialist hero (with one exception that will be discussed below).

A Chinese Odyssey makes Sun Wukong a rebel again: he had already experienced the five hundred years of imprisonment and become a pilgrim following Tripitaka, but now he no longer wants to follow the prescribed narrative. And not only is he no longer willing to obey the command from above, but he also loudly lets the world know of his intention. This Wukong expresses a challenge to the ideological authority of the contemporary regime. Even though in the end his resubmission is unavoidable, his ridicule and rejection of authority is already enough for the audience to consider him a hero. Soon after, the rise in A Chinese Odyssey’s popularity presents an opportunity to rewrite the story of Wukong as well as other main characters in Journey to the West.

The “post” of postsocialism is reflected in the spirit of rebellion, the lack of belief in authoritarian control, and the challenge to authority; on the other hand, the “socialist” ideology and the government that represents it still maintain a strong presence. In contrast to the socialist revolutionary Monkey King produced during the 1950s and 1960s, who celebrate his victory in the end, both of the postsocialist Monkeys are doomed to lose. Joker has to fight hard for his right to disagree, and eventually, he gives in. The audeince can relate the story of Wukong to the forms of compliance they have to endure in real life. The popularity of A Chinese Odyssey lies in the sympathy that the readers share with Wukong. They grieve over these sad stories just as they grieve over their own problems.

These adaptations are all engaged with the major contradiction of Journey to the West: why would Monkey, once a brilliant rebel, become a model Buddhist pilgrim? It is the ways in which the readers approach this contradiction that determines to a large extent their understanding of Journey to the West. One common theme shared by these three texts is the central issue of thus, looking for his identity is a major struggle for Wukong, and it is a lonely one. He is no longer presented as a member of the pilgrim team—only he himself can solve the problems he experiences, and only from within. Joker refuses to become the hero Sun Wukong, and in this action he remains the rebel. It is because of his own journey/pilgrimage that he is able to accomplish his recovery. Does the ending suggest that the time for Wukong to become a rebel and troublemaker has come again? New adaptations follow the same track in which variants of Wukong, though they may be presented with varying degrees of humor or seriousness, are always marked by a shared sense of loneliness. His struggle has turned inward: finding his identity and his inner strength.

Adaptation of Journey to the West continues, and those receiving public praise have a common theme: rethinking the transition of Sun Wukong from a rebel to a pilgrim, and depicting Sun Wukong rising up as a rebel again. Wukong’s failure and dejection at the beginning and his ultimate transformation into a rebellious hero earns the audience’s sympathy, and their identification with him ensures interest in the project of such revision.

Three other noteworthy examples of postsocialist-oriented adaptation are: The Monkey King (2014), Monkey King: Hero Is Back (2015), and “ Wukong,” as sung by Dai Quan on Sing My Song (2.015).

The Monkey King (2014), was a box-office success but a critical failure. Expectations for the film were high, but the top reviews on this site point to a central issue: Monkey is not presented as a rebel but rather as a naive demon who is manipulated by Bull Demon King; he willingly admits his “mistake” and wants to help rebuild the palace for the Jade Emperor. One reviewer calls the writer of the story “a Wu Cheng’en who works for the Propaganda Department,” and The Monkey King is seen as an educational film promoting the mainstream theme of cooperating with deities.

Monkey King: Hero Is Back (2015) was a success both at the box office and in critics’ reviews. The film focuses on the moment when Monkey has just been released from the mountain after five hundred years of imprisonment. A dejected Monkey who cannot find his power all through the film, he is irritated, instigated, and finally inspired by a little boy named Jiang Liu (Tripitaka’s boyhood name), who believes in the greatness of the Great Sage he knows from legend. At the very last moment, Monkey rediscovers his magic power and defeats the demon Hundun. The short moment of Monkey regaining his magic in the end, lasting for only two minutes, wins the audience’s heart. Many popular reviews note Wukong repeatedly yelling throughout the film, “ I can’t do it, I can’t do it,” a frustration that aligns his character with normal human beings, in contrast to the radiant hero he finally becomes. The most popular review on douban.com states: “Every Chinese will fall in love with Sun Wukong. Each generation has its own Sun Wukong. I think this film can serve as a good first Monkey King film for children of the new century.”

Why does the audience respond to the Wukong in this 2015 film so positively while regarding the 2014 film as a failure? The different attitudes toward these two films point at the significance of the rebellious quality of a postsocialist hero. 2014 accepts what is offered him from both deities and demons, including evil plans that masquerade as friendly help and that eventually result in the havoc in heaven. 2015, however, does not just accept. He searches, he questions, and he fights against his limits, echoing the examples of A Chinese Odyssey.

The third example is the song “Wukong,” written by Dai Quan. The lyrics describe Wukong’s internal journey and struggle from a firstperson point of view. Explaining the reasons he wrote this song, Dai ays his identification with Sun Wukong is due to what he believes is the “spirit of Wukong” (Wukong jingshen): rebelliousness, variability, optimism, and persistence, which has encouraged him in his life as an artist. The bitterness and loneliness that Dai Quan’s Wukong experiences in his individual struggle, and the freedom this Wukong seeks, are particular traits of the postsocialist Wukons. "Wukong” sings at the refrain,

“What is the use of my Iron Rod and my transformations? There is no cure to the anxiety and frustration. Golden band on my head, unspeakable pain.”

But when it repeats at the end, the message turns positive, a victorious Wukong singing the last line:

“Watch my rod—it reduces all problems into ashes.”

The conflict between the golden fillet and the rod is notable in this short song. Engaging with this major conflict, Sun Wukong tries to use his rod to break free from the limitations of the fillet. This is a clear contrast to the socialist Wukong: the revolutionary who is invincible, and the loyal party supporter who does not complain about the golden fillet. After all his failures and frustrations, the postsocialist Wukong in the end manages to find something to celebrate, a sense of accomplishment for himself, as Dai Quan indicated in his statement:

“In the end, every monkey can become Sun Wukong.”

The monkey becomes Sun Wukong when he finds his lost ability to use his rod again. New adaptations of Journey to the West in recent years thus share several common features. The first is a clear individualist bent, as Wukong invariably goes through a personal struggle, the solution for which lies in himself, not in any external agency. Second, Wukong is no longer the filial protector of Tripitaka or true follower of Guanyin’s teaching. The once-suppressed rebellious spirit is back. And third, although Wukong still has to submit to heavenly authority, he is allowed to think, to search, and even to challenge. His signature Fillet, which is transformed into a bracelet in both Hero Is Back and “Wukong,” reflects this change