#and most aren't going to know that they're actually missing parts of the continuity because it only aired in a different country
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nrk super stopped listing the labyrint dramas as a single thing and now has a separate page for each one so now you just have to remember that it's
labyrint (nrk) s1-4 -> grompestreker -> daidalos befaler (lockdown special) -> los og lupus -> huset daida -> s5 -> daidalosas hevn -> volfram våkner -> monsterets hjerte -> s6 (in production)
but also, if you only watch the nrk version, you miss the lead up to los og lupus that is bulten krossar (a riddle series) and daidalos diamant, and there's another drama (i krampus klor) that's no longer listed on svt play, plus a season of the regular game show happens in between and a season of an additional game show (utmaningen)
all of which 1) introduce lupus, 2) explain why the teleporter isn't in use, and 3) explain the weird little room at the back of the control room where the hallway used to be
there's also another drama series in the svt version that's unconnected to anything, but is one of the better ones (mysteriet)
#absolutely RIVETING posting happening today#pun not intended but oh how i wish it were#also a bit displeased with the way the latest season of the svt show had a song that totally fit silya's style in a context that made sense#then the nrk version put it in the volfram arc & it feels forced#it's the sort of thing i imagine many kids would notice being off but they might not have the words to describe#and most aren't going to know that they're actually missing parts of the continuity because it only aired in a different country
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Hi bb, ty for the prompt to write my thoughts!
So I can't get on tumblr at work anymore unless I go outside to get good signal on my phone so I have only been privy to what's going on here today from friends on discord. So maybe I'm missing some nuance or the what my mutuals think and I apologize in advance for that but I'm going to speak plainly.
This is the only way Watcher is going to survive.
The view counts have been steady through Mystery Files season 2 but they aren't, like, astronomical. A video with a million views nets a channel between $10,000 - $30,000. Guys. That's nothing for Watcher. They have to pay each of their 25+ employees a salary with insurance and benefits and for everything else their channel requires. Steven said in the video today that a season of Ghost Files costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. I don't think everyone is hearing that part and understanding how much money that is, especially compared to many other YouTubers they watch. I'm not an expert on other YouTubers but I look at the Sims people I watch. They are successful with views in the hundred k range because they are a company of one. Themselves and maybe paying a freelancer to help edit their videos. For one person, the stakes are lower and the potential for profit is higher! Especially for gamers that are filming in their homes. YouTubers like this, making niche content on the cheap, are who is going to make it in YouTube now.
Watcher is none of those things. They have, from day one, wanted to make high quality unscripted content. All of their shows are shows. They aren't just "Ryan and Shane do [thing]" or "Steven eats [whatever]". They are shows, like ones you see on cable TV or any streamer. And shows are not cheap. Unscripted is cheaper, sure, than scripted. But that doesn't mean cheap. Especially not with the sheer production value we've seen on all their shows, in particular Ghost Files (hundreds of thousands of dollars). That is how much something like Ghost Adventures costs, which is on Travel Channel, an actual TV network that puts up all those costs.
So. That's why Watcher has to pivot to survive.
I think it's a great idea, personally. And yes, I am in a position where I can financially afford it no problem, which I know is a privilege! I am very lucky in that regard. And I understand that many people are upset they won't see the boys as easily on YouTube anymore. That is valid! But they have openly said they are totally fine with password sharing and I think that's a great way to cut down on costs for some folks. Also right now there's a great deal on the yearly sub for early subscribers. $40 for a year is cheaper than any streaming service and it doesn't go to anyone other than Watcher.
I understand that people feel hurt and blindsided, but I think Watcher is also feeling this too. They have been so excited about this and being able to make whatever they want without having to worry about sponsors and now they're mostly seeing anger directed their way. Especially at Steven. Steven is not rich. You know who's rich? David Zaslav, a man who is single-handedly ruining Warner Brothers and making himself a billionaire while he's at it. THAT is the kind of person we should be directing our anger at streaming prices and quality of the media landscape at. Not one small business that is just trying to survive so they can continue paying their employees.
And one more thing. I've seen folks saying they'd rather watch more ads than pay and while I get that, that's not going to help Watcher make what they want. YouTube famously demonetizes videos with swears which is why I can't watch a video with DRAG QUEENS without every other line being bleeped and Watcher has been so good about not bleeping their content because they know we would hate it. And YouTube does this because of advertisers. Advertisers only want to appeal to the most broad of audiences so that means not supporting anything slightly left of center. Having to deal with ads sucks from the creator perspective and does not help them in the long run.
Anyway, this is all a bit rambling, but these are my thoughts on WatcherTV. I'm extremely excited to subscribe and make them make more Weird Wonderful World. I hope to see you all there.
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The most embarrassing series of posts about Lawlu you will ever read: edition Dressrosa (part 5)
Are we ready for the feels? Because my "Love is a Hurricane tale" of Lawlu analysis continues on into Dressrosa, the land of love and passion! In this episode we will focus on Luffy and Law seperately. This post will be much more serious as well. Lots and lots of scrutinizing analysis ahead!
Let's point out two things here: apparently it was Sanji who was the rebel and left as the first one, attracted to amazing smells. Luffy on the other hand, actually tried to get closer to Law and listen properly.
And, one group of people is now enteirely missing. For once, it wasn't Luffy's fault, he wasn't even the first one to venture out and that tells us a lot already. Law, despite rather displeased with that outcome, decides not to do anything about it. Perhaps one of the remaining Strawhats told him not to worry about it... but would they say it? We're left with Nami, Usopp, Brook, Chopper, Robin and Momo. They're kinda a bunch of people easily scared and paranoid. Robin is the only exception, but she would rather just chuckle at all the chaos that's happening rather than reassure anyone.
I think the more likely option is Law trying to play it cool so that the rest won't worry too much. Whether he's personally worried or not wouldn't have mattered, he already feels like taking care of these people is his responsibility and he needs to be strong for them. He probably did worry himself a bit here. Let's switch to Luffy from now on:
As fast as Luffy realized (thanks to Sanji) that things aren't going as predicted, he tries to find a fast fix for it himself. I mean, he had a pretty good idea about it, sadly he was stopped with his attempt. This will start a streak of Luffy's attempts to actually stick to the plan, as disbelieving as that sounds right now. After all, he didn't listen to the end about the plan, obviously Luffy doesn't care??
If he doesn't care, why is his initial reaction towards Zoro slightly angry here? Oh, maybe because Law assigned them into one group and Luffy realizes *they have to stick together*. That's exactly why he left after Sanji (who shouldn't actually be in their group, but nevermind), it wasn't just for adventure (ofc that was important as well), it was to stay with their group. Ofc right after Luffy quickly snaps into his usual happy go lucky attitude, thinking it would be fun to chase Zoro, but let's keep in mind that's his second reaction, not the first one, and that's already giving us a hint what will be Luffy's priority from now on.
Luffy is unusually interested in finding the smiles factory. Concerned even. Perhaps he was keeping in mind Law's warning that finding the factory won't be easy and is reminded now of that.
Putting aside Luffy's clear PTSD reaction here (proving us he's still not over Ace's death, because why would he be), despite the fact he declares he wants flame-flame fruit, he doesn't immediately jump to the decision of doing everything he can to get it. It's actually only after Franky's encouragement that he makes his final decision! Very unusual for Luffy to hold back on something that important for him and needing encouragement. It's Luffy who encourages people usually, he just goes and reaches his hands to grab what he wants without fretting over it. I wonder why is he hesitating so much?
Ofc Luffy's enthusiasm to stay undercover is lovely, but he still almost fails with it right afterwards, because, well, he's Luffy. And why does he need to stay undercover? Oh right, so someone's plan in Dressrosa wouldn't be affected!
Meanwhile we have Law who tries to play it calm and cool for the group, but he's actually growing anxious. There are already two signs that the plan is going to have more problems than expected, since people in Dressrosa act normal despite their king abdicating, and then CP0 arrives. He won't voice his doubts explicitly though, he knows he needs to keep morale of the group up. But when they make it to the bridge, he already decided not to use his devil fruit to save up strength, he knows there will be problems up ahead thanks to all those signs.
It's kinda heartwarming but also a bit sad to see Luffy holding back so much. At all times he tries his best not to blow his cover. But Luffy is really terrible at lying, so he's fretting around a lot, clearly stressed from all the unfavourable developments. He even tries to stop himself from cheering on for Bellamy, something he would usually do without a second thought. Officially he claims he's doing it for Franky, but we all know why Franky told Luffy to be undercover: it was all for Law's plan to succeed, and attracting attention would be bad for it. It's not very direct, but all of Luffy's efforts are actually for Law and his plan.
Law remembered his own nature: giving out orders expecting others to live up to them. He's indeed just like Luffy here haha. Though we can excuse him a little, the situation was bad after all. Luffy meanwhile does it all the time.
Top images: Again, poor distressed Luffy is afraid his identity will be revealed and he will be the one responsible for blowing up Law's plan. He really doesn't want to disappoint him. Compare this to when he inflitrates the castle with Viola later on (bottom images), he doesn't even hesitate to take off his disguise even though his cover wasn't even blown yet. Only after Luffy removes his koi fish costume, the guy realized it was Strawhat Luffy. But Luffy doesn't care anymore for being undercover.
The contrast is shocking with the previous image. It just proves how much he was struggling and bracing himself to stay in that disguise in the collosseum, it must have been hard for him. But Luffy would try his best and beyond for Law. He just would do the same for Ace, that's why he couldn't ignore flame-flame fruit bait.
Luffy got fed by Rebecca, so he feels like he owes her. He listens to her story, about the country, about the toy soldier, he clearly wants to help her, but he stays silent. Again, unusual reaction for Luffy, normally he would be already enthusiasthically shouting that he will get rid of Doflamingo for Rebecca. But, beating up Doffy wasn't part of Law's plan, so Luffy just sits quietly, torn internally.
Let's compare it to, let's say, Drum Island Arc. Luffy doesn't hesitate at all. That's the Luffy we know.
Luffy is still listening to Rebecca. Gets reminded of Goa Kingdom. He still doesn't declare he will kick Doffy's ass. His resolve to not disappoint Law is really strong, if he's able to stop himself like that.
Law puts up a tough front, but I think he's kinda bluffing here, just throwing Doflamingo's words back at him. Internally, he must be worrying and hoping he won't mess things up himself, that he's able to withhold Doflamingo long enough.
It's not even a matter of whether he believes in what he says himself, but the dedication: he will do anything in his might. Is it for the plan, that backfired on him already? Or did his reason shift, yet again, to what it was in Punk Hazard and that means keeping Luffy relatively safe? He didn't put Luffy in his own group, the one that was at most risk, he didn't leave him up on Sunny (he probably would have wanted to, but not even Law can control Luffy's deep craving for adventure). Law is now just buying time so Luffy's group can destroy the factory; that's his chosen way of keeping them out of trouble and instead taking it all up on himself.
Another bluff from Law. We know he doesn't know what that D. even stands for, so there's no way he could have that much faith in it. After all Law is having trouble believing in things after Flevance. He says this line just because he knows it will rile up Doflamingo, and also because of his trust in Corazon. Cora-san lied a lot though so there's no way Law would take that line at face value and not doubt it at all.
Riling up Doflamingo is a sign that Law allowed him to play on his emotions. Provoking him here will end up in a disastrous result for Law. But let's rewind a moment earlier, Doffy is on a call with his subordinate, telling them to make the factory's security stronger. Ofc Law would lose his calm over that. Because who's in the group destroying the factory? Luffy. Law took it as his personal duty to keep him safe.
Back to Luffy's side now. Wait a moment. Luffy tells his crew to stop the rebellion in the oppressed country?? Despite having been fed by Rebecca and owing her a favour? Did someone just exchange Luffy with an alien here?? That's not the Luffy we know!
Though to be fair, even if it's a bit of a backwards logic, he does think it will help Rebecca as well, because she doesn't want the toy soldier to be in danger. But look at Zoro's reaction here. He's clearly taken aback. Our Zoro, the very first crewmate of Luffy, who was with him practically from the very start. And that Zoro is surprised by Luffy's reaction. He expected him to fully support the rebellion. If that's not the final argument to how strange Luffy is behaving, then I doubt anything can convince you.
His crewmates are getting involved with the rebellion, but Luffy is still quiet and refusing to go against Law's plan. Franky finally loses it and says he will do it, even if it means he will have to do it alone.
And that's finally the moment Luffy breaks his resolve. He's not gonna leave a crewmate alone. He's gonna help with that plan as well, just to fullfill Rebecca's wish, already planning to leave the collosseum before the final fights. It took Luffy only like 30 chapters to finally decide to do what he truly wants to do. For Luffy liberating countries and making people free is very important. He knows already that the peace is Dressrosa is only a facade and he hates when peace is just a facade, it's not a true peace to him. He would go fly some punches the moment he realizes that. The only reason he didn't was Law.
But let's keep in mind, it doesn't paint Law as a bad guy here. His original plan did involve dethroning Doflamingo, just indirectly, not through punching him in the face. Luffy believes Law to be the good guy who also wants to help this country, so he believes in Law's plan. But Luffy will never leave his crewmate in need and that's the only reason Luffy decided to go against Law's plan in the end. We don't know how it would end, would Luffy still try to stop the rebellion after he joined with them? We will sadly never know.
Before they even know what's going on, Luffy's face is already very worried. He clearly has a bad feeling. Perhaps it's an early sign of his future sight talent that will evolve only much, much later. In this case it activated not because Luffy himself was in danger, but because he had a bad feeling someone dear to him is.
What an interesting reaction from Luffy after he realized Doflamingo got Torao. "Torao, why are you fighting with Mingo?!" why would Luffy care about it in a moment like this? Oh, perhaps because he was still believing in Law's plan and facing Doffy was never part of it. That's your final proof that Luffy took this whole operation seriously, he constantly was thinking about Law and his plan, and trying not to disappoint him, so of course he's shocked beyond all logic that Traffy himself went against it. He didn't have much choice, at least that's what Law believes. He would never take an alternative: backing out, because then full attention of Doflamingo would focus on Luffy's group.
And here we go, Luffy's reaction to Law passing out from the lead bullets. Flashback to Ace and Marineford definitely played itself inside Luffy's head at this moment.
How dare you, Mingo, indeed.
Screaming after him, trying to leave and forgetting seastone bars make it impossible for him, very distressed but calmed himself down because he can feel Law's soul didn't yet leave his body. That's probably the first reference to Luffy's skill of being able to tell when someone is just passed out and when they're dead or close to dying (it's the last option in this case btw).
Despite all the chaos and worry, Luffy is still focused enough to realize that the plan did go astray and is so very taken aback. He might even wonder if it's somehow his own fault here, after all he did go to the collosseum, if he didn't then maybe the situation wouldn't evolve the way it did. He probably thinks he could have destroyed that factory super fast if he just wasn't so obssessed with flame-flame fruit.
Nami seems to get it. First it was Zoro who understood how surprisingly important this thing is for Luffy, now Nami understood it as well. And Nami helps Luffy come up with the best option: how to not destroy Law's plan any further by making sure they have the winning hand, because at the end of the day, that's the most important thing, right? Law wanted to keep Momo, Caesar and Smiles away from Doflamingo, so even if anything else about the plan fails, they will make sure this part succeeds no matter what.
Nami does it for Luffy, not for Law, because she realized Luffy cares a lot. She's always there supporting his decisions and wishes, no matter how reckless they are, even if they scare her, just like she does when she's navigating: making sure her skills will bring them anywhere Luffy wants and needs to go. She does the same for him here, just on different level: navigating the plan.
For Luffy, respecting Law's wishes and goals is important. He doesn't want another Ace scenario in which Law sacrifices everything, his dreams, people important to him, his ambitions, just to keep Luffy safe. Those two truly understand each other on a very intimate level, it seems.
And so Luffy makes his decision. Keeping Law safe is more important than sticking to the original plan, but he will leave it up to his crewmates to gather the scattered pieces together so that Law's wishes are fullfilled. He entrusts that with them, meanwhile focusing on what he wants to do the most. And what's that again? Helping Rebecca? Destroying factory? Exposing the darkness of Dressrosa and beating Mingo? Oh no, wait. He says it here: to get Torao back.
Are you disgusted already? I am a bit lol <3
Luffy worrying for his crewmates. On the surface level, nothing unusual right? Because he cares for them, it's to be expected. Except Luffy never worries for them, instead he trusts them. In Punk Hazard when his crew barely made it to escape the gas he didn't worry openly like that, he trusted in his crewmates instead. Usopp even points it out that he wishes Luffy sometimes didn't have that much faith in them, because it can get overwhelming how he needs to meet up his expectations.
But here instead Luffy just worries about his crew. Must be because now, after seeing Law defeated by Mingo, he takes his words about how strong Mingo is even more seriously than before. He believes Law to be so strong after all. He doesn't even have to face Doffy himself to know what Law's defeat means. He's willing to take a bet based on someone else's experience, which is also rather unusual in Luffy's case - he normally always needs to test things out himself, doesn't believe other people's opinions or rumours. Again Law proves to be a rare exception.
I dunno how you all feel about this panel, but seems for Luffy, shit just got very personal. In the frame before (I won't put it here because it takes full page) we see three figures: Toy Soldier (symbolizing Franky's wish to help tontattas with the rebellion), Rebecca (Luffy's debt over the food) and Law. Those are the three reasons that push Luffy to make his decision. He wants to beat Mingo's ass for all of those reasons: because his crewmates want to, because he wants to help Rebecca and... because he wants to get payback in Law's stead. I mean, why else would Law be one of Luffy's reasons here? Beating up Mingo was still not part of Law's plan, so he's not doing it to respect Law's wishes in any way. No, if someone messes with Luffy's crewmate, then they mess up with Luffy, that's just how shit goes.
Wait, didn't you mean to write "friend"? Law isn't Luffy's crewmate! We will get to it in part 2 ;)
Now, after finding out about Sabo being still alive, Luffy can't stop crying or calm himself at all. Zoro's getting super annoyed with him, scolding him, hitting him and nothing works UNTIL he drops Torao's name. Suddenly Luffy gets his shit back together enough to actually say what? "I'll save Torao!" geezas so gross Even his face grows more determined. Reuninting with Sabo was important, but so is saving Torao. They're probably on same level in Luffy's mind and that alone is honestly insane to think about.
Damn, seeing how this post covered only 30 chapters, you can all expect there will be like 3 more parts just focused on Dressrosa alone.
Do let me know if you got convinced with my analysis or not :) or do you still think Luffy didn't care even for a moment about Law and his plan in Dressrosa?
#one piece#trafalgar law#luffy#lawlu#lulaw#luffy x law#love is a hurricane#this one is a bit too dramatic lol#thankfully we soon will reach the Luffy carrying Law mini-arc haha#now it's not just Law obssessed with keeping Luffy safe#shit will go insane in that department for Luffy from now on#they match each other's crazy and overdedication honestly#one piece meta
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Thank you so much for your thorough response. I'm not always good at following production companies. Please ignore this if I'm overstepping, I've already asked for a lot of your time and research, but other than 9naa are there other companies you boycott because of how they treat actors? I know there were some issues with 2moons and I know there were some issues for Saint, though those were long before my time in the fandom.
That's completely understandable. There's so many companies now that do BL - some of them aren't even primarily into entertainment (a skincare company did The Promise, and I think there's at least one car dealership delving into BL things now too, while other companies are purely for investment and why would you even follow those if they're only about money?).
I'm trying to stay up-to-date because I'm interested in the industry side of things but I probably missed a lot of stuff as well.
Here's what I know for sure:
Motive Village
Motive Village did 2Moons. Then they did 2Moons2 with the same characters (and story!) but all different actors. THEN they did 2Moons: The Ambassador with (some of) the same characters (and story) and different actors again.
Why did they do that? Probably because they're so bad at managing their actors that they're all collectively running away as soon as possible. But that's not even the worst part. One of the actors from 2Moons2, Din Teerapat (then known as Earth Teerapat), was actively excluded and blocked from all promotion while being completely trapped in his contract. Other actors weren't paid and were badly mismanaged. Then there's very serious allegations that Din might have been (I'm phrasing this as carefully as possible) harrassed by one of MV's higher-ups. Din never spoke about it and has since decided to move on.
Aam Anusorn, who directed 2Moons2 (and isn't related to MV in any way) has spoken up about this, and his series Call It What You Want is supposedly based on some of what happened.
Other actors who "escaped" MV include Bas Suradej, Copter Panuwat, Kimmon Warudom (who went on to sign with Star Hunter for a while and did the very delightful Gen Y which is basically 2Moons fanfiction), Tae Darvid & Tee Thanapon (who did Triage), Boun Noppanut (who was never with MV but wasn't paid for his guest role in 2Moons), Joong Archen, Pavel Naret, Benjamin Brasier & Dome Woranart. The latest escapee seems to be Park Anandatej who will be in Monster next Door.
Benjamin Brasier and Dome Woranart seem to be back to working with Motive Village recently and I'm honestly a bit ?? ??? about it.
Y.Entertainment
Y.Ent did Unforgotten Night and For Him the Series. Recently, the leads of For Him, Tor Atagorn and Dew Nitikorn (along with Yoon Phusanu who starred in Unforgotten Night and had a cut guest role in For Him), have come forward saying that they were never paid for their work in For Him. Additionally, Tor has opened up about being continuously harrassed and stalked by someone on and off set during filming. It affected him so badly that he is now in therapy and on medication for depression and anxiety.
Just yesterday Yoon Phusanu held a press conference because he still hasn't been paid. He's one of the few actors who actually have the means to hire lawyers and go against his company. His lawyer has stated that not many young actors in Thai BL can afford to do the same.
9NAA
9NAA did Check Out, Venus in the Sky and, most recently, Kiseki Chapter 2. You know about 9NAA already but for everyone else reading this and wanting to know what's going on with them, here's a short summary.
Here's some other companies involved in Thai BL who have done some mildly questionable things:
Maximon who have since rebranded as Harikarn (with another company now named Maximon that might also have been emerged from the original Maximon... it's complicated) might have not paid their actors for Chains of Heart until the series had long finished airing. Haii Sarunsathorn and Boom Raweewit, the leads, made some very carefully worded joke tweets about it - which kind of makes you go hmmmm. There was also a freelancer who spoke up about not getting paid for his art, but nothing more ever came of it. Both Maximon and Harikarn have since ramped up production again - with some of the same actors - so I'm not especially concerned for the moment.
Well.Thailand recently annouced a bunch of new BLs and then promptly went bancrupt. One of their former producers immediately picked up the slack and founded EntSync in order to take over all projects and talent. They've already held the blessing ceremony for Black Forest and everything seems to be back to normal for the moment except for Born to be Y the series which should have aired this month but has since been indefinitely postponed.
Fix Entertainment is behind The Whisperer and is holding the series' final episode hostage because apparently a planned fanmeeting didn't sell enough tickets so they seem to have run out of funds. This is very ?? ???
Studio on Fire recently announced that one of the leads of their upcoming series Live in Love will be replaced, citing creative differences and "different work attitudes" (hate that phrase yet?) as the reason. Weirdly enough, said lead (Non Ratchanon) is from another company and was part of an acting pair with their own actor Hearth Chindanai. Hmmmmmm.*
*This kind of reminds me of what happened with Saint Suppapong during and after Love By Chance when he was basically almost bullied out of the industry because he wasn't with the same company as all of the other actors.
As I said, there's probably more but I didn't include actor scandals, unfounded rumours or stuff that has already been resolved.
#ask#bl industry#jane watches stuff#you guys pls feel free to add more examples#i didn't include jinloe because as weird as we think it is to cast a minor opposite an adult in a mature bl#it's neither illegal nor exploitative by default#i also didn't include what happened during love by chance and after why r u because this was purely due to inappropriate management#and what happened with goldeneyesview recently is actually incredibly sad and i urge you to support love syndrome the beginning
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Update post:
During the night, a suspicious aerial object fell inside Israel, a little north of our most southern city, Eilat. At the same time, a senior in the Iran-funded Yemenite terrorist organization referred to as the Houthis, who have targeted Eilat before, posted on his Twitter account on Mar 15, in both Arabic and Hebrew, "month of Jihad." They're not officially taking responsibility for having fired a rocket at our civilians (on top of their on going attacks against global shipping), but they're doing the closest thing to this that they can.
On Saturday, the Jewish day of rest, a Palestinian terrorist had entered a Muslim cemetery in Hebron, and started shooting from it at the Jewish neighborhood of the city. The terrorist was eliminated. He turned out to be an Imam at a local mosque, and a member of Hamas. According to a TV reporter, the terrorist missed by just mere inches a boy who was passing on the street. During and after this terrorist attack, the Jewish residents (much like in other terrorist attacks on Jewish communities, including this recent attempted stabbing attack) were asked to lock themselves in until the IDF is done searching the area, to make sure there aren't additional terrorists still lurking about. The next time that you see anti-Israel propaganda posts about cemeteries, please remember that if Islamists don't respect their own burial sites and the Muslims buried there enough to avoid using these places as grounds for terrorist activity, Israelis certainly are not going to place those cemeteries above defending living Jews.
Following intel that Hamas terrorists have once again taken shelter in the Shifa hospital in Gaza City, and using it as a base for their opereations, IDF troops have entered it, killed several terrorists and arrested 80 others. Again, people who don't want hospitals raided by armed forces, shouldn't use those as a base for terrorist activity. And I have to point out (because I've seen this misconstrued) that hospitals do lose their protection under International Humanitarian Law (IHL) when they are used by militants: "The protection to which fixed medical establishments and mobile medical units are entitled shall not cease unless they are being used to commit acts, outside their humanitarian duties, that are harmful to the enemy." It IS a war crime for terrorists to use a hospital this way. It is NOT a war crime, for a defending army to raid a hospital being used by terrorists, in order to protect its own civilian population from those terrorists.
During the raid on the hospital, an Israeli soldier was killed, 20 years old Matan Vinogradov from Jerusalem. Matan is the 250th IDF soldier to be killed during the fighting in Gaza. May his and their memory be a blessing.
I found Hebrew journalistic sources with pics, reporting on a man who came on March 15 to a pro-Israel protest in Washington with a burner (an actual burner, not a disposable phone), used it to threaten the protesters, and was arrested. I can't find an online English source, because every search I tried to do, gets drowned in how many anti-Israel protesters have been arrested. I don't think I ever feel the gap between what Israelis hear and know, and what the rest of the world does, more than in moments like these, when I can't find a single English source for info that was all over the national news on TV here.
Another one that I can find only in Hebrew news tweets and articles: UNRWA's offices in Jerusalem are seeing a protest from dozens of Israeli demonstrators, who are accusing the UN agency for its complicity in the Hamas massacre. Zaka (whose body bags were used in this demonstration) is the NGO responsible for handling bodies and collecting body parts after Palestinian terrorist attacks against Israelis, including on Oct 7. The protesters said that even though UNRWA has been denounced, it still continues to "operate normally, with its employees continuing their work as they always do, in the building they got for free from the Israeli government."
Did the following vid, about an Iranian American (non-Jewish) artist making a joint mural for Jews, Israelis and Iranians as an inspiration and dedication to all Middle Eastern women, make me cry? Yes, it did. So I'm sharing it.
youtube
This is 20 years old Daniel Peretz.
He was born in South Africa (where most of the Jewish community is descended from Eastern European Jews, who were fleeing pogroms), and his family made aliyah when he was 13 years old. He loved sports and hiking, and people talked he would always happily lend others a helping hand. Yesterday, we got the news that the IDF has collected enough findings to determine that he had been murdered by Hamas on Oct 7, and his body is held hostage in Gaza. An IDF rabbi has determined that among the findings, there is enough to hold a funeral, so IDK for sure, but I can guess this means body parts. The funeral is scheduled for today. For those keeping track, what we currently know is that there are 134 Israelis kept captive in Gaza, and at most, 99 of them are still alive. May Daniel's memory be a blessing.
(for all of my updates and ask replies regarding Israel, click here)
#israel#antisemitism#israeli#israel news#israel under attack#israel under fire#terrorism#anti terrorism#hamas#antisemitic#antisemites#jews#jew#judaism#jumblr#frumblr#jewish#israelunderattack
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i really like how chapter 3 is just literally saying that "hey, dead kids. traumatic events happened here and the effects are still here" by literally showing you the horrors through the auditory and the physicality of what chapter 3 has to offer.
Chapter 1 gave us a "yeah, something happened" but nothing substantial to grasp on other than what remains of posters and vhs tapes. Chapter 2 managed to at least expand on the orphan program by introducing the games station and it's true purpose of progression of tests on the mind through child-friendly means. Even the literal videos mob ent. gave us only a small bit of information about what happened before the Hour of Joy, such as the consent of a terminally ill worker being put into a toy.
Chapter 3 just gives us the bigger scale on everything the game gave us as snacks.
We see empty beds, empty cots, picture frames of children whose fates are left between 2-3 outcomes with one with them actually being adopted before even being pulled from the choice altogether simply because they had the ability to be good at reacting to colours. We see an actual system on how these children get treated and how everything works, from the titual nanny in Home Sweet Home, to the teachers of the school to even the scientists overviewing everything.
We know that actual adoptions do take place also, even if the potential parent/s are just the employees. But we know that Playcare's purpose isn't that straightforward, because the children are monitored as potential candidates for the experiments and are picked with the reason being that they're "sick" to whoever asks, child or otherwise.
And it appears that most of the workers in playcare are left in the dark, much like the factory workers if the woman who was left to care for a certain room of children was absolutely distraught of one child getting a nightmare to the point where the child had to be taken away and has to be interviewed by a person who seems to not be in the same emotional wave about the ordeal in the first place. Any mention of the children directly in both the interview and the report seems to call them directly, affectionately or otherwise, son or daughter, either from overattachment or as a professional act.
The experiments themselves are the unwilling second hand, created as sentient, yet obedient tools for entertainment, care and labour by any unfortunate human chosen, and it is obvious that Playtime Co, shown in teasers, aren't really picky when it comes to it. I even have doubts that they only use one singular person, child or adult, alone to create a bigger body considering how, y'know, big they are.
Playtime Co. literally died from the inside during the Hour of Joy, when the toys finally had enough. Exactly how many people died is unknown but in comparison to death in any medium, watching it in game as the toys the player faced had killed everyone who was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, with no one surviving and being taken into consideration. were they considered missing? Did anyone try to investigate everything? or did it all get swept under the rug by whoever was still alive and representing the company?
Then, the decade after everything, it still continued. Soon there was no food. factions started to form between factory floors, with each territory and domain being barren of mercy and food. Any toy was fair game in consideration. Even if that fair game was who you considered your own kin or your friends.
I think Poppy Playtime is getting closer to breaking the mascot horror mould that Fnaf had set in stone for nearly a decade. Would that be good or better for the market? I'm not sure, but at least, it's going to be part of the pillar that will be looked back on.
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Clairdeleon's Neve/Rook Fic Masterlist
Your go-to source for every fic about Neve Gallus and Victoria Mercar! Will be updated as I continue to post about them.
Maroon - Rated E - Filthy Little Tags: Hickeys, Oral, Desk Sex, Fingering, Marking, Bruises 5 times Neve left her mark on Rook, and the 1 time Rook left her mark on Neve. A small series of hickeys, bites, scratches, bruises, and everything else.
maker, i'm actually invested, haven't even met yet - Rated E - Filthy little tags: Modern AU (nothing spicy has happened yet, will be updated)
The most interesting cases always come from unknown numbers, this is just a fact of solving crime in Dock Town. Unfortunately for Neve Gallus, Tarquin and Ashur fully took advantage of that fact to set her up on a blind text conversation with someone they think may be good for her. The catch? No asking personal questions - no asking for name, gender, hair color, build, anything that could identify Neve's Unknown. The goal? Get the detective a partner in crime (solving).
Between solving her Unknown case and the one Varric Tethras brought her, Neve's booked and busy. But not so distracted that she doesn't notice the former Dragon that Varric brought with him.
you'll be my favorite mistake - Rated E - Filthy little tags: Sex pollen trope, grinding/humping, fingering, oral
The merchants of Dock Town aren't always the most trustworthy sorts. Emmrich learned his lesson, but he's from Nevarra, of course he didn't know. Neve assumed Rook would, being from Minrathous herself, but when Vic accidentally purchases what the merchant told her were sleeping potions and turns out they're actually more of a "sleeping" potion... well, they're just going to have to work through it, aren't they?
the age old curse - Rated M - Filthy Little Tags: ANGST, religion
Neve isn't religious. And yet, when Victoria 'Rook' Mercar is tricked, trapped, gone - she figures it's worth a try. Anything is worth a try if it could bring Vic back. Right?
Post Point of No Return. Neve's dealing with her feelings of faith while Rook is stuck in the Fade.
leather covered and rain soaked - Rated E - Filthy Little Tags: Desk sex, leather kink, glove kink, oral, fingering, voyeurism
It's both a blessing and a curse to have Taash as a good friend. A blessing, because Taash is one of if not the most capable dragon hunter in northern Thedas. A curse, because Taash can smell - and call out - a part of Neve's outfits that Vic has a particular attraction to. Rook's appreciation for Neve's gloves is about the aesthetic only, and certainly not about imagining those gloves on her bare skin. Not at all.
Set sometime after first kiss but before the point of no return, implied Neve and Rook have hooked up before.
bitter and broken and blighted - Rated T - Filthy Little Tags: blighted Neve, angst
“She’s still standing,” Davrin promises. “She’s still alive.” “She’s blighted,” Vic whispers. “I didn’t—” Davrin’s hand wraps around her wrist, the touch of his sword-calloused fingers warm and grounding. “She’s here,” the Warden says, firmer.
A missing moment from after rescuing Neve. Because she deserves to be reassured with more than just words.
a little distraction and a little interruption - Rated E - Filthy Little Tags: Desk sex, oral, fingering, mild exhibitionism
"I'll stop soon, I promise."
"No."
"No?"
Vic picks up a random note, puts it on top of the page in Neve’s notebook as a makeshift bookmark. Then, very deliberately and with barely disguised annoyance, slams Neve’s notebook shut. And then puts her hand on it, leaning forward and putting her body weight on it. “No.”
Neve needs to take a break from looking over her most recent case files, and Victoria Mercar's not going to let her return to work. Even if she needs to distract Neve with something else.
i'm not going anywhere - Rated M - Filthy Little Tags: angst, kissing
It's only natural for them all to have nightmares when they're fighting gods, and darkspawn, and Venatori. Neve just wishes they weren't so realistic. And that they didn't involve Vic.
i knew it were trouble - Rated E - Filthy Little Tags: Wet t-shirt theme, bath makeouts
Healing potions help with broken bones and big cuts, sure. But after fighting darkspawn (and not getting out of the way when Taash and Davrin told her to) and ending up black and blue, Vic's in need of something a little more relaxing and a little more home-remedy - a good bath with soothing oils borrowed from Emmrich. Nobody ever comes to look for her, she always looks for them, why would this time be any different?
a discussion of women and bad coffee - Rated M - Filthy Little Tags: just two girls talking about liking girls
It's become habit, to linger in the study with Neve when the both of them should be asleep. Sometimes Rook reads one of Bellara's serials, or one of Emmrich's books. Sometimes she just watches Neve put the pieces together. And sometimes she wants to talk. Tonight, she wants to talk. About a few things, but mainly women.
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thinking a lot about wildbow's early works (worm, pact) and his more recent moralistic works (ward, pale) and the sheer difference in narrative empathy
in worm and pact you have characters who do fucked up things but it feels like a lot of effort is put into understanding the people behind them and where they're coming from. rachel's dogs maul people but there's a whole Arc of taylor learning to vibe with her and befriend her and of rachel getting what she needs (a place alone with her dogs where she can let other people in at her own pace) and growing as a person. all from the angle of 'this is genuinely good for rachel and helpful'. we want her to succeed because we care about her.
in pact we see how sandra duchamp grew up, how she's just as much a victim of her family as she is someone who perpetuates that harm, and while she's an antagonist the story doesn't spoonfeed it to us--we're allowed to see her human and sympathetic moments and we're allowed to feel bad for her while also wanting her stopped.
it felt. i don't know. like the story in general respected these characters, respected the reader's ability to empathize with those characters while also knowing Murder Bad or whatever.
but then the major worm fandom interpretations shifted. you had reddit and other popular sources going on about how taylor was actually horrible and an unreliable narrator, and how the undersiders were actually ~super fucked up and evil criminals~. pact and twig were spared this for the most part by virtue of being less popular with those crowds.
and i'm not sure if the morality discourse got baked into wildbow's brain by osmosis or if he felt like he wouldn't be appeasing his fandom if he didn't address it or what.
but by ward suddenly that narrative empathy, for the most part, is missing. it becomes conditional -- the protagonist and others do not extend empathy towards others until they Properly Recognize What They've Done Wrong. any improvement, any attempt to do better isn't legitimate unless the Bad Deeds are addressed and atoned for by whatever inconsistent standards the narrative adheres to. what matters isn't riley being in a healthier place and making connections--ward thinks that we should be rooting for riley because she recognizes she messed up and is constantly making up for the atrocities she committed.
i think it's kind of reached its peak in post arc 13 pale though. every time empathy is extended it's near-always accompanied by a patronizing little reminder of "mmmm, well you did Bad Things too".
you aren't allowed to just say "well damn i sympathize with charles", for example, because the narrative constantly reminds you that actually he is Still Doing Bad and therefore you aren't allowed to feel for him. it doesn't help that the story continually one-ups itself on thinking of ways to make charles over the top evil either.
but either way it's just. bleak. in a story purportedly about community building it's shockingly uncaring. you can't just sympathize with a morally grey character or take them As They Are without the story casting judgment and constantly reminding you of their verdict. it's just exhausting and makes any positive message the story tries to send feel hollow
OBLIGATORY NOTE: this essay does not mean "actually all fallen and e88 and etc should be empathized with". what it does mean is that in a moralistic work it becomes telling when ex-nazi rune gets her own interlude and a bunch of pagetime to show how she's 'doing better' while that same courtesy isn't extended to many villains who are traumatized and might have, say, legitimate reasons to not want to be arrested or feel like they have no other option, or legitimate reason to not support the heroes, but oh. they do Crimes so actually none of that matters as long as they're still Doing Crimes.
#parahumans#wildbow#uhhh this discusses every web serial except for twig p much so general spoiler warnings ig#also keep in mind this is about characters who werent created from the get go to be pure antagonists#its fine to just have characters who are evil. sometimes people just suck#but theres a difference between that and the story going 'actually your circumstances and any nuance doesn't matter because you suck'
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What do you think about the "Descendants" franchise?
Well, before I go into detail, let's put it this way: one of the reasons I was unsure about "Twisted Wonderland," when I first heard of it years ago, is because the concept vaguely reminded me of Descendants. I have since occasionally described the game as "Descendants Done Right." So, yeah, not a fan. :P First of all, I should point out I really only know the franchise through the movies: I know that there are some books, and I believe a TV show, both of which follow their own continuity. MAYBE those are better, but I can't say I'm in a hurry to find out. As for the films...I feel they're all such vast missed opportunities. Regarding the main characters and the plots, I feel there are some great ideas in there, somewhere, waiting to burst from their chrysalides, but they never really get a chance to. The movies favor "silly Disney sitcom antics" over any real substance. Most of the main players feel like stock characters I've seen a million times before, most of the jokes just aren't funny, to be blunt, and the drama and romance feel so half-baked. Not to mention, it feels like every plot is kind of the same thing, but with a few bells and whistles changed, over and over again. :P I also take umbrage with the depictions of the classic Disney Villains: I know one friend of mine actually really likes the way they're depicted as "has-been villains," but a.) that simple fact is part of my problem, because I have great respect and love for the characters, and b.) more importantly, even that aspect is inconsistent. They can't seem to make up their minds on whether the old vanguard of characters, especially the villains, are meant to be treated seriously or not. You can make a character funny AND also a force to be reckoned with - that's kind of the hallmark of the Disney Villains - but these films don't seem to know HOW to DO that. Not only that, but a lot of them just do NOT feel right with the characters we know: Jafar is absolutely NOTHING like Jafar, and Kristin Chenoweth - God bless her Glinda-playing heart - is just WOEFULLY miscast as Maleficent, to give two examples. Some of the portrayals of the classic villains are okay, but most of them are just so many levels of "missing the point entirely." As for the music...ehhhhh, I'd say it's hit or miss. Mostly miss, to be honest, but there are a few songs, scattered throughout the movies, that I like. And I'll give the films this credit: I have seen and sat through every single one of them, however begrudgingly. I think it's because I have this faint hope that at some point, SOME point, MAYBE they'll finally do something WORTH seeing. I think the third film came pretty close - it's the closest I have come yet to actually liking these sorry pictures - but even that one has too many flaws for me to get fully behind it. Overall...there's some glimmers of goodness in the Descendants movies, but at the end of the day, I think the ACTUAL Maleficent said it best...
youtube
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♧Thomas, Joan and Quil appreciate/critique
I would literally sell a couple of my limbs for Joan to come back and continue to write for sanders sides. Not that them coming back would do much good, the characters and story have been nerfed- which is so silly considering we haven't had an actual sides episode in literal years. Crazy how characters and story can be completely turned upside down and inside out without an official episode coming out. But I digress. If Joan is much happier where they are now, then it should stay this way, but I do miss the series and the direction it was going.
Now that they're gone, it's really easy to see how much they actually contributed to the series, to the point where I would say that Joan is the one who made sanders sides what it was, not Thomas. Not all Thomas at least. As much as I criticize Thomas, I don't think the characters would be who they are without him. The characters are literally based off of his personality- but Joan was the one who made them into story characters instead of skit characters- which Thomas is used to. Thomas is a great actor and I think a fairly decent writer when it comes to skits, but the humor and storyline in general requires more skill than just skit writting.
All this isn't to say that the people on the team now, like Quil, aren't talented or doing a good job. I think Quil, specially, is doing a pretty damn good job considering the drama, helping run the patreon, helping out with writting, helping out with makeup, and probably more plus performing in a band on the sidelines. He's a pretty crucial part to sanders sides now and I don't want what happened to Joan to happen to Quil, let's not overlook all the work they're putting in to make the series decent. Don't get me wrong, I'm critical of Quil as much as I am Thomas or Joan but I do think a lot of us (myself included) need to take a step back and realize these are real people.
That being said, Thomas still pisses me off but I think all the things he's doing to piss me off definitely come from being overworked and stressed. I know it's creepy and parasocial to look too deeply into someone's mental health but hes posted about working out until he's on the brink of, or has, passed out. Going to bed extremely late because he's scrambling to work and shit. Plus he's losing followers, views and money and having to lay off some of his team members. Clearly, he's struggling quite a bit. That doesn't excuse underpaying your employees or using AI to generate images and write captions for your skits, but it checks out. But he doesnt seem tk see that the problems are his fault. You are a youtuber, you are continuing sanders sides, you are the onenot taking a break and stepping back. Its not like he doesng have any other options, he went to school for chemical engineeering ffs. Also The main person who was there to help out with all the shit that he struggled to do (Joan) is gone and Thomas is figuring out how to continue without them, (which is hard considering they prob did everything).
I don't know how to transition when writing text but here's a critique of Joan because I'm kind of a dickrider when it comes to them. They definitely could/should have addressed more when it came to issues brought up to them, like the madlibs situation ig. But (here comes the dickriding) I don't think they were a part of that project. There aren't any links in the description for Hoan under that video and I heard through the grape vine that it was a Thomas and Quil project. So like idk what yall expected from them, to pay the animators with the money? The money they don't have to pay them? Because they weren't working on the project? I personally think they should've gone to Thomas and been like "yo wtf? Why are you underpaying your employees who are also YOUR FANS????" But that totally could've happened and nothing came out of it. Or, the most likely case, They didnt say anything in fear of losing their friendship with Thomas. Which would also lead to them losing their job. Bit of a power imbalance tbh. Not saying Joan is perfect and didn't no wrong but the examples of controversy I can think of involving them are either non-issues or them bring thrown under the bus.
Erm anyways 🤓 to summarize this; Joan, Quil and Thomas are people, people aren't perfect. BUT being flawed doesn't excuse mistreating your employees. And we should reconize that although Thomas is an ass for what he did to Brei and other animators, he and the rest of the team are people and blah blah blah. Whatever. You know already. Just don't be assholes like there's no reason to comment on Thomas' body because you don't like him. That's weird asf.
#tss crit#thomas sanders#sanders sides#ts critical#ts criticism#sasi#thejoanglebook#sasi critical#sasi criticism
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Okay so I named this sideblog "plutos-THOUGHTS-and-sketches" so it's time to take up my promise on that
This is gonna be my ancestors, elders, and a little bit of skid, spirits (I'll elaborate on them in another post) and some miscellaneous hcs that should line up together and i hope that it doesn't interfere with any lore. Buckle up this is gonna be a long one
So! Let's start off with ancestors. What are they?
I like to think that they used to be skids but then willingly gave away their light. They're just tired of existing for eternity, you know? So they dropped their eternality (they could still be killed but then would be reborn- like through eden! But there weren't any widespread methods of doing that before and they still got reborn :( ) and became a mortal species we now know as ancestors. They. Well. Reproduced. And forgot their roots. They forgot why they always feel like they're missing a major part of them (their light), and they didn't understand why light healed them and made them feel euphoric. (Note that only some light can properly heal them. Like. They're basically humans. Fire WILL burn. But, say, a manta's light will feel caressing.)
So what's up with Elders, then?
Basically! They're normal ancestors. Except, with a twist: they didn't give away ALL of their light. Only some of it, really. But it's a permanent move anyways. They continue to have limited lifespans, but they're much, much longer than normal ancestors. And some of their skid physiology (is that the right term?) kicks in, letting them grow and grow for as long as they aren't dead. (They can't be reborn, though.) (And does that mean that skids before used to be giant? Yes. Does that also mean that skids who don't eden run get to be taller? Also yes.) so they just get to be the cool guys, who remain to be above the rest, containing the knowledge and power and potential.
And now I'll elaborate a bit on some of the specifics about all of this. Healing is basically relighting another skid, and there is a whole, high paying, high status job that's basically having the right type of light that can heal others instead of burning them. (Without it, all krill attacks would have been lethal. Even then, it's expensive as hell.)
Ancestors have the lifespan of a normal human and elders are basically five times that. Magic (spells) exist and they can only be cast by the most talented, the most full of light ancestors. This means that basically all elders can do spells if they put their mind to it.
Anyways about the thing where i said they always feel like they're missing a part of themselves. So they die, wake up (I'll elaborate on that more in another post that will include my spirit hcs) and go like "wow i feel great" because eden basically inserted some light into them
They all have normal names, but the Elders that we know don't share theirs anymore with normal ancestors because of an.... Event. (This is bordering on my au stuff so we'll skip over that. Let your imagination go wild) Which means that if a skid (i hc that all skids know elder names (search sky cotl elder names if you don't know them, they have names)) suddenly calls one by their name ancestors would be confused and Elders would be flashbanged and wary
Masks are a traditional thing! Some people replace them with face markings instead and some don't wear anything at all (but those are few), which means that some cultures that are disconnected from the norm don't wear masks (like the nine colored deer spirits. Take a look. Feudal lord is the only one with an actual mask and even then you can't convince me that it isn't just giant eyebrows)
Eden exploded (shattering) from darkness corruption overload. How that happened is up to you but I hc that Resh is a skid and was tired of seeing everyone dying so he researched and came up with that solution to make everyone immortal
Anyways thank you for coming to my ted talk there Will be a part two
#sky cotl#sky lore#thatskygame#sky children of the light#sky: children of the light#sky cotl lore#sky headcannons#sky cotl headcannons#sky hc#sky hcs#sky cotl hc#sky cotl hcs#sky headcannon#sky cotl headcannon#my sky lore#sky elder lore#sky cotl elder lore#Pluto talks
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The Story behind Bobby's Aves
For anyone reading The Cormant, in the last AN I mentioned I'd share the story of Jack, the real life double crested cormorant that inspired the one I'm writing as Bobby's Aves in the fic.
Now that I have officially moved back to the East Coast, I feel like I can share that for the past handful of years, I was living in St Louis. I'm actually going to include some real places from the STL area in the fic; it's kind of my love letter to the city because I love it and know I'm gonna miss living there.
One of the best parts of St Louis is that they have an amazing zoo that is free to the public (it's accredited and they do a lot of great conservation work; it's free due to city taxes, not sketchy reasons lol). Seriously, if you're ever in STL you have to go.
Anyway, the zoo has a flight cage that was initially built for the 1904 World's fair. That flight cage has been remodeled as the Cypress Swamp and now serves as a home to rescued native wild birds that cannot safely be released back into the wild. You can see photos and read more about it here.
Jack is one of those birds. He's a feisty double crested cormorant that is missing most of one of his wings.
I have two personal stories of encountering Jack that made me love him.
The Cypress Swamp has a boardwalk that you walk through with no barriers between the people and the habitat. For the most part the birds keep to the water and trees or areas that aren't directly in the path, but they can technically be on the path if they want to be. That is what happened the first time I met Jack.
My wife and I were on the boardwalk, probably admiring some of the ducks, and when I turned back to continue walking down the path, the cormorant was right in the middle of it.
I'd seen cormorants plenty of times in the wild, but I'd never been that close to one before. They're quite intimidating birds, but in a beautiful/breathtaking way! I was rather taken with him, and also quite amused that he refused to budge (it wasn't like he expected food or anything from us, he just wanted to Be There and wasn't gonna let anyone stop him). He stepped closer a couple times, and I'm always on the cautious side of being respectful of wildlife, so I was a bit frozen with what to do. I think we ended up just kind of waiting, and then another family walked by first, and we realized we could pass with bothering him or him bothering us. But I was just so taken with how defiant he was in his place.
The second time was when I learned his name. There was a keeper at one of the entrances/exits, and there was a hold up to leave the flight cage because of Jack. He was trying to sneak into the crowd to escape the flight cage, and the zookeeper was essentially having to corral him away from the door. She was using the opportunity to tell the stalled families about Jack and double crested cormorants.
My wife asked her "is your job in the flight cage to make sure Jack doesn't escape?" and she responded "technically no but it feels like about 80% of it." She also told us that they'd recently gotten a female cormorant resident and Jack was being a bad influence and teaching her how to try to escape as well lol.
So yeah, that's the story of Jack. The initial story of The Cormant was inspired by the song I linked in the first chapter of the fic, but as I started creating the actual character of Bobby's Aves, after meeting Jack twice, I knew I had to write him in it. He's just so bold and feisty and beautiful, it felt right for him to be a part of Bobby's soul.
#sparrow's writing in the field#probably could make a whole tag for just The Cormorant#a very self indulgent post but I love talking about birds so here we are#sparrow's aves au
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My thoughts on the Commander Ban List Discourse
Gonna get this out of the way and say I largely support the bans as a casual player who dislikes pubstomping. Banning these high impact mana accelerants is a generally positive thing for the format at a casual level, which I shall remind you, is the concern of the Rules Committee when making bans. Mana Crypt never should have been legal in the format and banning it now is finally fixing a long-standing issue in the format. Sol Ring should have been banned too, but the time to do that was before the first Commander precons were being designed. Dockside is just far over the line on what's reasonable in a multiplayer format, and c'mon, Black Lotus but it can only cast the card your deck is built around is still Black Lotus. It's a mistake and yall know it. But none of this is even why I wanted to make this post. No, I what I want to discuss is the absolutely horrendous takes I've been seeing from people about the Rules Committe, cEDH and Rule 0 and the Ban List.
First of all, I want to make it clear in no uncertain terms that I am no fan of the Rules Committee and the Commander Advisary Group. I disagree with them from a structral stance. The Rules Committee is simply not large enough and not diverse enough to be running Magic's largest format. It is a very small group of people with no accountability and no democracy. You do not get to be on the Rules Committee or the CAG if you are not in the Cool Kids Club. It's structually rife with nepotism and favouritisim that is very easily corrupted and abused. I am in not at all saying that this means that the RC and CAG are actively taking part in corrupt behaviour, simply that the way they are currently run gives them the ability to behave in incredibly ethically bankrupt ways. And until more people have a say on who actually sits on the Rules Committee and CAG, then it's going to continue to be this way. But that does not mean that I think WOTC should be running Commander either. They can barely run competitive formats as it is, and Commander is an entirely different beast. Current tournament rules simply do not work for Commander. And the reality is that if WOTC did take over the running of Commander as a format, the people they hire to maintain it are going to be... The Rules Committee. Because of course they would hire them. So the "fix" people have been demanding does nothing. Bans in Commander aren't really data drive, because data doesn't really exist for Commander. Sure, we have EDHRec data to tell us how many decks are running X card, but that doesn't really mean anything when applied to the whole format. And using tournament results doesn't work because Commander is not a tournament format. The only data that really exists for that is cEDH, and that brings me to my next topic.
CEDH is Commander. You cannot split cEDH off from Commander, because at it's roots, cEDH is people playing the most powerful decks they can within the constraints of the Commander ban list. CEDH decks look radically different to even High Power Commander decks, because they're built on completely different axes. But it's still Commander. And as a result, there is always going to be people who want to play Commander with the idea of turning everything to 11. So many people are saying cEDH is ruined because some high power staples are banned are missing the point of cEDH. And as a result, I view these bans as an incredible opportunity for cEDH to adapt and change like any other competitive format. I am not at all a cEDH player, but I absolutely love watching formats like Standard, Pioneer, Modern and Legacy change and adapt as a response to bans. It keeps formats fresh. I would honestly like to see bans like this happen in Commander more often. I'm a pretty big fan of banning Tainted Pact and Demonic Consultation currently as I think they're highly impactful for cEDH while removing a 2 two card combos at the casual level that many players do not enjoy. Some masy ask why not just ban Thassa's Oracle? Aside from the fact that it's my personal favourite card, I alss just don't think it's a problematic card at the casual level. When you aren't using highly mana efficient two card combos to win with it, it poses a fun challenge to win with. I'm also a fairly big proponant for banning Etali, Primal Conqueror as I believe it has largely the same impact on the format as Primeval Titan did, in that it warps games around it. It's always the number one choice to be reanimated, clones or stolen when it's in play. Just like Primeval Titan was. It provides overwhelming advantage when it's played and catapults it's controller ahead, just like Titan did. I feel it very much represents the RC's current inconsistency with it's ban philosophy.
I think the format has been far too static due to chronic mismanagment. The reality is that Commander's ban list should be probably a couple hundred cards longer than it is right now. Pre Game Discusions, Rule 0, Casual Ettiquet, the Social Contract, call it what you will, dictates that certain cards should not be played at the casual level (looking at your Armageddon). But these fail. You cannot account for the Human Factor, in that some times people just suck. There are always going to be people who simply do not participate in the Social Contract and just do whatever they want, even if it's social unacceptable. It's why Commander has a ban list. I don't think the ban list is doing it's job well enough, but I think that's something that can and should be fixed. If people want to play a No Ban List variant of commander, which is what I suspect most of the "cEDH" players complaining about these bans would enjoy more, then I think that should very much be something people should try. I'd be into it. And it might actually be a way for cEDH to splinter off into it's own format. But the ban list is a highly important tool for cultivating the casual experience. And for that I do commend the Rules Committee for it's work in shaping it, even if I think they're not doing a very good job at it.
I've made a lot of complaints about the RC in this post (I largely haven't spoken on the CAG because they're pretty solidly just a group of the RC's favourite content creators who have little to no impact on their decisions, as seen by this weeks bannings) But I've offered no solutions. Personally, I think that the Rules Committee needs a serious restructure and expansion. It is simply too small a group of people, with too regional a focus, to be running the largest format in Magic: the Gathering. Said expansion needs to be publicly visible and there needs to be some amount of public participation in the selection of it's members. Something akin to regional subgroups that function like the how the CAG are supposed to (Be eyes and ears on the larger community and be their voice in great RC discussions) may be the best way to work it. I also think the ban list needs a consistent philosphy that is publically visbale and held to. This one is much harder to do in a casual orientated format, but I believe the Ban List is already doing a decent enough job at it's goals that just cracking down a little bit more would do the trick. Though if the RC were expanded in the way I'd like to see, a complete restructure of the Ban List should happen after the new group has sorted it it's philosphy on bans and it's vision for the format. Which should largely look the same but with more cards, but it's better to start fresh in this scenario. With all of this said, I full well acknowledge that none of this is likely to ever happen, simply what I'd like to see happen.
Well I wasn't expecting to write and essay when I started this post, but I guess I did. You notice I didn't talk about the financial aspect of these bans. And that's largely because I don't view bans through the financial aspect at all. Most of the people playing with these currently either weren't gonna sell them or were playing with proxies and didn't care anyway. Yeah, it sucks to have something you spent a lot of money on lose that value, but that's a lot of things. You spend money on your hobbies because you want to have fun. Think of it like going to the movies. You spend the money for a few hours of entertainment and then it's done. You don't try and turn around and sell your ticket stub afterwards.
TL;DR I think the Rules Committee is well meaning but structurally unfit for purpose, cEDH players who are complaining about these bans are missing the point of cEDH and Rule 0 fundamenatlly doesn't work, and that's why we need a ban list that is orientated to the casual experience.
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Day 3 of Writing a Minecraft Diaries AU
I made an attempt to use lore forge to help me keep track of things but my brain recoiled so hard at information overload that I decided I'm going to stick to my tried and true method of just writing shit down in a notebook and hoping for the best. It'll help visualize family trees better if I can actually draw diagrams.
Finally finished the outline for the plot of season one, now it's just a matter of figuring out relevant information and outlining chapters, then starting to write them. Also most of the characters have been decided and their stand ins accounted for. So I'll include the cast list down below tho do be aware this could change later once I actually get around to the chapters. Again, if you don't recognize the names listed it's probably either a really obscure member of the DSMP lore, an OC, or a name I came up with for an obscure member of the lore.
If I'm going to do this I'll probably break up the seasons into their own books unless I manage to reduce season 1 down into fewer chapters. But I don't think that's going to happen since I'm already working on the outline for the seventh chapter and we haven't even gotten to the part where the werewolves are supposed to be involved. And I cut the werewolves out for fucks sake.
I'm still debating on if I even want to continue into season 2 or not. Diaries lore is massive and has a lot of moving parts, things set up in season 1 specifically for season 2 and things that I might need to remove or add. I have the plot summary but depending on what I decide to do regarding season 2 and the potential of another book...I guess that really depends on how the chapters are received and if my brain decides to stay DSMP hyperfocused for another year or so. Because if I'm trying to convert the ENTIRETY of Diaries into an AU that's probably going to be three multichapter books just on it's own and I'd probably rewrite the entirety of Season 3 since it was never finished and only had 37 episodes. This kind of project could take me an entire year, probably longer.
I do know that I want to try and do this first book tho. That's the only reason why I rewrote major plot points, have an overview, am creating chapter outlines, and have the series pulled up on my phone, two tabs of the wiki, and my doc open as I take notes with my notebook close by for if I need a new name for an OC.
There's a lot going into this planning right now. Converting Diaries into an AU is proving difficult. Especially with how certain characters change the plot and characters I'm having to cut out (if you see a certain handful of characters not mentioned I probably cut them out due to story changes). I've already had to rewrite a lot of things regarding the finale due to how I've changed the plot and the characters that are involved. Because keep in mind, just because these characters take on the role of another does not make them the same character. Wilbur is going to act as a completely different protagonist from Aphmau. Quackity is not the same type of person that Garroth is. Also if you don't see your favorite DSMP character mentioned, don't worry. There are places for them to show up if I continue into the next season with another book. And if they aren't here it's probably due to them not fitting into the roles that I needed. My choices aren't meant to offend anyone, they were made for the sake of the story and who I feel fits better where.
Take the cast list with a pinch of salt because this could always change later as I work on the chapters. And the lists themselves are taken directly from the Season 1 Character List from the Minecraft Diaries Wiki. If someone important isn't mentioned here than they'll probably still show up in the fic it's just for some reason they're missing from the Wiki. Unless I cut them. Because I did cut some characters. There's also the chance that the character mentioned in the list was NOT mentioned in the overview on the Wiki so they're a minor enough character for me to not have included them here due to not having a stand in yet. Some characters might also just be listed as unnamed because I feel like I might not mention their name.
Again: List is subject to change in the future.
ALSO: Relationships between characters may be changed due to the characters now standing in their place, for example: Kenmur and Emmalyn are a ship in Diaries, but I am not shipping Phil and Techno together in any form other than PLATONIC.
WARNING: Some characters in the cast list placement below may contain spoilers for both MC Diaries and, as such, the fic I am going to write, specifically in regards to the Shadow Knights section. Proceed at your own risk!
Cast List: MC Diaries Character Name - DSMP/OC Name
Phoenix Drop Aphmau - Wilbur Garroth - Quackity Laurence - Sapnap Nicole - Karl Emmalyn - Techno Lucinda - Hannah Brendan - Foolish Zoey - Nox Cadenza - Ena Kawaii~chan - Tina Donna - Tiffany Brian - Darius Kyle - Tristan Logan - Elderic Dale - Frankie Emma - Rosella Molly - Lydia Levin - Miriam Alexis - Alanna Zenix - Purpled Dante - Puffy
Scaleswind The Lord of Scaleswind - Unnamed Matilda - Lethia
O'khasis Zane - Dream Katelyn - Niki Jeffory - Ciaran Garte - Unamed
Bright Port Lord Burt - Lord Dawn Azura - Aliara Visher - Caradoc Paul - Johnson
Meteli Hayden - BadBoyHalo Kenmur - Phil
Wyverns Ungrth - Sgaeyl Raven - Crow
Shadow Knights Zenix - Purpled Gene - Schlatt Sasha - Samantha Vylad - Tommy Laurence - Sapnap
Other The Stranger/Aaron - Sally
If I missed someone there might be a reason for it, or I just missed them. Either way, this is the general cast you can expect to see in the book at some point or the other. Some of these are minor characters, some of them are major characters, and some are just side characters.
I think I might start work on the first chapter soon but I'll try to get more chapters outlined before I start working on the first. I want to try and get a picture in my mind of how many chapters this beast will have and how many things I can cut.
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2024 Reading - July
Finally, things are turning around! I managed to pick some good books to read this month; even the printed books weren't the trial they have been for me lately.
Total books: 10 | New reads: 8 | 2024 TBR completed: 6 (1 DNF) / 26/36 total | 2024 Reading Goal: 44/100
June | August
potential reading list from July 1st
#1 - All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy - 5/5 stars ('24 TBR, audio)
mild content warning for language and some sexual content
McCarthy's writing is some of the most gorgeous and atmospheric writing I've ever read. It's also incredibly depressing. I want to continue with the rest of the trilogy but I'm in such a mental funk after finishing All the Pretty Horses that I'm scared to keep going.
More like this: McCarthy's writing reminds me of Wendell Berry in some ways. They both have a soothing, melancholic style that is deeply immersed in the period and setting of their chosen stories. But where Berry tends more towards righteous anger, McCarthy tends toward bleak inevitability.
#2 - The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson - 5/5 stars ('24 TBR, audio)
Not at all what I was expecting from this long-time resident of my TBR. Thoroughly enjoyed. Absolutely would not recommend to most people, but I DID recommend it to Kenzie:
#3 - Shadows in Flight by Orson Scott Card - 2/5 stars (audio)
Possibly the worst missed opportunity in this series yet. We could have had so much fun with this one. It could have destroyed me emotionally. ANYTHING could have happened. Instead we had the most dull, drawn-out little episode where Bean is basically a vegetable (heh) and his bratty children argue for 200-odd pages. The discoveries aren't incredible, the revelations fall flat, the emotions don't exist, the characters are artless caricatures, and near the end I was yelling in frustration because Card had to go and get snotty and superior in the name of writing a "realistically hyper-intelligent person". All of the little things I dislike about Card's writing? All here.
Side note: I got the actual, physical audiobook CDs for this one and when I went to pick up my holds, the librarian looked at me, looked at the CD case, and said, "You know these are CDs, right? Some people don't realize that." Hoopla didn't have this one on audio and I was already physically reading two books with two more fresh from the library, so I was kind of desperate. The downside is that I can't speed up an audiobook when it's physical CDs.
Second note: The part that had me yelling in frustration had to do with Card's prediction of why artificial wombs might be outlawed in most places in a futuristic world, and why his characters thing most places are unreasonable. His take: "Because they're unnatural. Or they deprive surrogate mothers of a livelihood. Lots of reasons, but it comes down to the real reason: artificial wombs suggest that women aren't necessary, and that really bothers a lot of women." Your Mormonism is showing, Orson.
#4 - Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens - 4/5 stars ('24 TBR)
the usual content warnings apply
This book, something I probably never would have picked up on my own, came to me as a recommendation. There was some content I didn't care for (easy to skim), but the writing grabbed me from the first page and the pacing, characters, and setting were incredible. I haven't finished a printed book this quickly in ages.
#5 - The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street by Karin Yan Glaser - 4/5 stars ('24 TBR, audio)
Simply adorable.
More like this: I've only seen the movie, but it immediately reminded me of "Ramona and Beezus". The description also says it's in the tradition of "The Penderwicks", which I haven't yet read.
#6 - A Morbid Taste for Bones by Ellis Peters - 4/5 stars (audio)
Tumblr rec time! Some of y'all have been chatting about this one, so I snatched it up.
It was a fun, cozy sort of read. I definitely enjoyed it for the most part, though I felt like the ending kind of dragged. Not particularly interested in pursuing this series.
More like this: I'm not a huge fan of Father Brown (personal taste), but this had the same tone that I recall from the Father Brown collection I've read.
#7 - Network Effect by Martha Wells - 5/5 stars (reread, audio)
As good as ever.
#8 - The Food Explorer: The True Adventures of the Globe-Trotting Botanist Who Transformed What America Eats by Daniel Stone - 5/5 stars
What a treat!!! I was recommending this to people before I even finished it. Quick, fun, engaging, and informative; one of the best nonfics I've read all year. Now I want a buddy adventure film about Fairchild and Lathrop.
More like this: "Salt: A World History" by Mark Kurlansky.
#9 - Agent Garbo: The Brilliant, Eccentric Secret Agent Who Tricked Hitler and Saved D-Day by Stephan Talty - 5/5 stars ('24 TBR, Top 5 Anticipated Read)
"There are three kinds of people," [Pujol] wrote later, "those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened."
Ahhhhhhhhh this one was fantastic. Like many, I was first introduced to Agent Garbo via tumblr, and I was really hoping this book would do his story justice; it absolutely does. It is expertly compiled and written. An adventure from start to finish.
Side note: I read excerpts of this to my dad on our drive to church and already have him interested in it.
More like this: "Agent Zigzag" by Ben MacIntyre. <- also shared this one with my dad (he read it in two days) and he loved it and others from MacIntyre.
#10 - System Collapse by Martha Wells - 4/5 stars (reread, audio)
Still not quite sure exactly how I feel about this one, but I enjoyed it overall.
DNF
On Death and Dying by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross ('24 TBR) - Either I'm dense or this (at least in the first chapter) is another case of someone with a highly specialized field of study interpreting the larger world through that lens, combined with some historical nuances that I'm completely missing. Possibly it's a worldview conflict and I ought to have pressed on for my own edification, but every page was a fresh slog.
The subject matter itself is fascinating, as is the viewpoint of someone in the medical field in the 60's. (Hello, common practice of fully sedating women during childbirth. I hate you.) The delivery is dry and academic. (Side note: I didn't realize until browsing reviews that THIS BOOK is where THE five stages of grief comes from.)
The Last Shadow by Orson Scott Card - Gave up within the first chapter after rolling my eyes every other paragraph. Hot garbage, which the good folks in the Ender subreddit confirm. I don't care how the series officially ends. Children of the Mind was a good enough conclusion for me.
The Geography of Bliss: One Grump’s Search for the Happiest Places in the World by Eric Weiner - Not my style at all. The man took his self-ascribed title of "grump" way too far.
Updraft by Fran Wilde - Somehow I didn't really pay attention to the fact that this was YA fantasy until I started reading. That's on me. But between an incoherent opening action scene and over a dozen Special Words introduced in the first chapter alone, it quickly became obvious that this wasn't for me.
Currently Reading:
Disorderly Knights by Dorothy Dunnett - As expected, I'm still working through this one.
Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell - I just started this one.
#mine#2024 reading list#July's reading makes up nearly a quarter of my reading so far this year#and this month has been so long that I forgot about half of these#All the Pretty Horses#Cormac McCarthy#The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared#Jonas Jonasson#Shadows in Flight#Orson Scott Card#Where the Crawdads Sing#Delia Owens#The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street#Karina Yan Glaser#A Morbid Taste for Bones#Ellis Peters#Network Effect#System Collapse#Martha Wells#The Food Explorer#Daniel Stone#Agent Garbo#Stephan Talty
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chapter 128 thoughts!
a little late because i have been fighting for my life against sleepy bitch disease all week but HERE WE GO
Right off the bat, the little power level rankings for everyone are such a cute visual while also being a great way to quickly and immediately get across some super important and interesting info about everyone's capabilities going into the chapter. I won't comment on everything but there is some stuff I want to make a note of before going into things!
Ruby's acting skills being ranked as D and accordingly as her biggest weakness is pretty interesting. I was worried that might be left hanging but I'm glad to see the story continuing to acknowledge how much is riding on the movie's success and how Ruby's acting might not be able to bear that weight. That combined with One Other Thing really does have me start to seriously wonder if we won't have a lead actress switcharoo on our hands at some point in the future.
Melt's acting skill being ranked as B (the same level as Aqua, even!) made me go <3. He really has come such a long way from where he first started and the blood, sweat and tears he wrung out of himself during Tokyo Blade seems to have really paid off. Melt, my beloved!!!
Moving onto the chapter itself, I was really surprised to see Aqua playing Kamiki! I guess I shouldn't be with how hard that family resemblance has been played up but for some reason, I was really certain he was specifically playing Ryosuke, not Kamiki... I guess because it was originally stated he was 'the culprit'? Anyway, Aqua playing Kamiki is part of why I'm starting to wonder if either he or Ruby will end up backing out of their roles – having a pair of twin siblings play a real life couple who Definitely Fucked seems like the sort of things that uh, might put a dampener on the movie's intended reception, just from an in-universe perspective!
This chapter also finally gives us a name for the Crow Girl - Tsukuyomi! I felt SUCH a thrill when I saw her use that name because I had wondered last chapter if her pointed reference to the moon might be some indication that's who she was but at the time it felt like a stretch, so I didn't voice it. Gah, I should've put it in my chapter thoughts so I could be extra smug about calling it!
In general, I'm really surprised by how many of my long-term issues with OnK were specifically touched on in this chapter to a really eerily specific degree lol? But holy shit! Somebody actually acknowledging the huge bombshell of Aqua and Ruby's connection to Ai! Akane, specifically, finally fucking acknowledging that Ruby was also traumatized by her mother's death! Akane acknowledging Ruby exists at all!! Akane interacting with characters that aren't Aqua!!! Thank god!!!
I'm also becoming increasingly curious about the DVDs the kids saw. They're a pretty transparent retcon and I imagine we'll eventually see them for ourselves but I'm still itching to know wtf Aka was even cooking when he added them.
For all that was good about this chapter, though, I do have a pretty major issue with the way a lot of the emotional stuff is being skimmed over purely to not let the reader in on the content of the movie too early. This info isn't necessarily new to all the characters but there are some major bombshells about the culprit and Ai's relationship with him that we get no commentary on from the characters.
The biggest and most baffling missed opportunity here is Taiki, honestly??? Based on what Aqua says to him and the fact that Frill is going to be playing Airi Himekawa we can probably guess that her abuse of Kamiki will be laid bare in the movie. If that's the case then Taiki has just found out, possibly just from this fucking script, that his mother is a child rapist and he himself is a product of rape. The fact that we do not see any emotional response from him about this information beyond "that's on my mom you caught her slippin" genuinely fucking blows my mind! Completely insane!!! Was there really absolutely no space in the story for Taiki to have literally any time or room to process an incredibly traumatic dump of information like that???
that said, for my complaints... I won't pretend it didn't kick me in the gut to see Ruby all dressed up as Ai on that final page. Definitely her mom's daughter.
Break next week..........................................
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