#and so i revamped that... and then i did roy's... and then i was in too deep

[monty-glasses-roxy]

Wiki pet project is nearly done btw. I've ended up doing more than I ever intended to do here whoops

[guynamedultimax]

Giving Sonic characters an anime fighter-style makeover + dream roster for said anime fighter

So not too long ago, probably a year-ish, I wanted for a Sonic fighting game with Arc System Works graphics and gameplay (basically Guilty Gear Strive but for Sonic characters) and I was like "oh, imagine if it took place in an AU which is basically just my own take on post-SGW Archie but with characters from EVERY continuity and they all wear outfits that make them more urban or smth" I didn't have a lot of ideas for this AU but basically one of them was to make Sonic wear something like a bomber jacket that's more reminiscent of plane pilots (considering the fact that he was the original owner of the Tornado). I should have the drawing somewhere in my room, I'd just have to find it. I then kinda took a step back when I saw this:

(if someone is able to find who made the image above please send me the link to credit them, I know it's a Twitter image but I forgot the account)

This is a scrapped alt for Project M (for those of you living under a rock, the ORIGINAL Smash Bros. Brawl mod that made Brawl more like Melee and added Mewtwo and Roy back in the game) with Sonic wearing an outfit which is VERY CLOSE to that of his "humanized" version drawn by Uekawa. And after seeing this I'm like "y'know, he could wear this in Kingdom Hearts AND Guilty Gear and not bat an eye" (despite the fact that Guilty Gear designs have a shitload of belts).

I'd say a design like this could fit the vibe/aesthetic I'd be going for in a project that's essentially a Sonic fighting game in an AU which is made up of elements from all continuities. I know I also kept searching for a Shadow "equivalent" to this and I am so, SO torn between making essentially something similiar to the outfit above (so essentially either one of Shadow's outfits from Rivals) OR ramp up the edginess and make him wear something on the lines of this:

Horrible 90's Attire but it's Sonic Adventure 2 by Yanimae on DeviantArt (https://www.deviantart.com/yanimae/art/Horrible-90-s-Attire-But-it-s-Sonic-Adventure-2-705847763)

The cast would generally all have a clothes revamp and I'm gonna go over some of the most obvious ones:

-Tails should absolutely wear something that screams "I'm the smart prodigy" and I'm thinking he should get the bomber jacket I was gonna give to Sonic before seeing the PM scrapped alt -Treasure Hunter Knuckles like this is so obvious it's not even funny he fits perfectly with the tone, that's one of the top tier things Sonic Forces: Speed Battle did so far -same for Secret Agent Rouge (or alternatively her stealth outfit from Rivals 2 and Sonic X) and DJ Vector these are actually banger alts

-Amy wearing something on the lines of her Fleetway Comics outfit but with the colors of her more known outfit would rock ngl

-Eggman wearing an outfit similar to the one he wears in the first movie (so something like this https://twitter.com/RendersSSBU/status/1252674435342938113 ) -Metal Sonic having a new coat of paint that makes him more loyal to the Eggman Empire (essentially Chrome Metal from Speed Simulator) -Espio in his Ninja attire from Rivals 2 -Silver wearing some kind of Tron-esque time cop coat showcasing more that he's from the future or smth

-Blaze essentially wearing a more "regal" version of her regular outfit -Cream & Cheese dressed up like girl scout cookie sellers (its cute and it fits their personality) -ANGLER BIG ANGLER BIG ANGLER BIG ANGLER BI- -Omega possibly also receiving a coat of paint that shows he works for G.U.N with the rest of Team Dark

-Scrapnik Mecha Sonic and Scrapnik Mecha Knuckles enough said

-Surge cosplaying as Scourge. Hear me out on this one it makes SENSE-

This was more or less the roster I came up with for the fighting game itself

Mighty, Sage, Mecha Sonic by ShadowLifeman on DeviantArt Ray by Prime-01 on DeviantArt Nack, Bark, Mephiles, Infinite, Honey, Mecha Knuckles, Fleetway SS by ??? Classic Sonic by Kidd Kai on DeviantArt Bean by E-122 Psi on DeviantArt Zavok by Solbliminal on Twitter

Everyone else is from official SEGA art or from artists who worked with SEGA, template used from the DBFZ roster

Here's also a few details on each character and on some of the thought process behind this roster and/or gameplay:

-I considered a three button system a-la BlazBlue with an equivalent for a Drive that I haven't really developed in my brain, plus a Ring mechanic like Sonic Smackdown, where if you get hit with a strong attack you lose Rings and if you get said Rings you can heal back some of your health -The starting roster would mostly be Teams Sonic, Rose, Dark, Chaotix, Silver, Blaze, Gemerl, Eggman, Sage and Metal Sonic, with the final boss possibly being Mecha Sonic, the rest would be split among a few seasons of DLC -The only real characters I forced myself to include were Mimic and Rough & Tumble because I was running out of space to make a symmetric heroes-and-villains roster (and I originally considered for Surge & Kit to be a 2-in-1 deal like some of the Chaotix that would "mimic" a playstyle meant to evoke playing as both Sonic and Tails in Sonic 2) -Sonic himself would have a mix of moves between Frontiers and Smash Bros., but 90% of his Smash moveset would basically be used for Classic Sonic in general since he's 90% ball anyways there

-Everyone would have a movelist as big as that of the average Strive character (which makes sense when you look at how many unique techniques each character actually has from the wiki pages lol)

-Charmy and Ray are "built-in" assists like Android 17 for base DBFZ but I couldn't come up with full movesets for them sadly

-Super transformations are extremely hard installs to pull off (full meter stuff + super specific button inputs too) that make you utterly broken for a short amount of time at the cost of all your current red health (these include Super Sonic (both classic and modern), Super Shadow, Super Silver, Burning Blaze, Neo Metal Sonic and Super Mecha Sonic, possibly even Excalibur Sonic with the regular BK Sonic being instead used for the base form)

-I originally planned for Jet to call for Wave and Storm in battle but then I realized you could more or less flesh them out to be a bit more unique compared to him.

-Zavok is Ginyu from DBFZ, if you know you know

-Mephiles and Infinite LOOK LIKE they have the same "kit" but Mephiles' playstyle and game could and should definitely fit a shadow manipulator like him while Infinite is more of a guy who attacks aggressively at any distance

-Honey and the Hooligans would be essentially "translated" versions of their movesets from Fighting Vipers and Sonic the Fighters into an anime fighter environiment

-Emerl and Eggman Nega are alternate costumes for Gemerl and Eggman respectively (I did not use actual Emerl as the base because Gemerl has a cooler design and he does show up in comics these days) -I considered Lanolin to form a full Diamond Cutters team with Tangle and Whisper but I realized she hasn't done much so far action-wise to include her, so both her and Belle (for the same reason) could be assists for Whisper and Tangle respectively

-I ALSO considered Marine to be playable but she hasn't shown any actual powers beyond that one thing in the end of Sonic Rush Adventure which nobody ever really understood what it was- I recall Ian Flynn saying in the Encyclospeedia that it's water powers? eh, nobody really trusts that book anyways

-I'd find cute if other characters showed up in taunts and animations for the playables (like Chip for the Werehog, Vanilla for Cream, Froggy for Big, Tikal for Chaos, etc.) -Fleetway Super Sonic would essentially be the game's Omega Rugal (the extremely hard DLC boss you have to beat to unlock for playable use). Also he's voiced by Jacaris because I cannot picture any other voice for him at this point now sorry

-Instead of making Mecha Sonic and Mecha Knuckles full blown villains I'd make them anti-villains/anti-heroes where in the game's plot they don't immediately side with the heroes because they just wanna live in peace on Scrapnik Island

-Didn't add Archie characters because of space but if I DID do it, I would've done Sally (and made her another Ginyu with the rest of the Freedom Fighters) and/or Eclipse the Darkling

-Other scrapped characters from even earlier takes on the idea are Tekno from the Fleetway comics, Shade from Chronicles (deleted because of a horrible human being) and Longclaw from the movies

-Plot would happen in an original universe, again, but heavily focused on games and IDW, and essentially be dealt with like how Guilty Gear Xrd handled it (with multiple iterations of the same game progressing the plot): in the first "Phase", the one with only the base roster, Eggman is attempting to mess around with Ancient technology and data from the Starfall Islands to replicate the Phantom Ruby's powers, somehow "resurrecting" and/or "summoning" in the second "Phase" past villains, which causes the heroes (and, begrudgingly, Eggman, Sage and Metal) to call in for reinforcements/allies, and to search for the Chaos Emeralds so that they could stop the villainous rampage, with everyone mostly deciding to gang up on Mephiles, Infinite and the Deadly Six as they pose the bigger threats when combined together. A third and final "phase" would focus on the aftermath of the event (but more so specifically on Starline and his Imposters because I want them to get better in the public eye, I know a lot of people don't like IDW but I love the idea of Sonic having a more detailed Rogues Gallery in official SEGA-endorsed media)

Oh and that edgy Fist Bump remix from the Sonic Sessions is absolutely the intro theme to this game i'm not sorry.

That is all, thank you for coming to my rambling and stay hydrated. Just don't drink Dasani, it'd be like drinking poison (if you know you know)

[divinecomedyproductions]

Fandom Woes Part 1: Big Entertainment Fandoms and their War on Creative Minds

I feel like I need to revamp my points it’s about what I perceive to be a problem with modern fandom, and the first issue is its hostility to creative dissent, especially in form of original works or fanfiction.

It seems that fandoms, Anti-RWDE in this case, have decided how story they liked handled a concept or idea is law and appointed themselves as the police force to enforce said laws, all proclaiming to defend those they deem worthy of the title “creator” while harassing those the perceived as “bullshit artists” I guess and feel have offended them and those they defend. And these people seem to be waging an ideological conquest of creative thinking in fears of becoming irrelevant.

For example, I explained how I was upset with RWBY the tragic ending of Pyrrha Nikos and her romantic relation with Jaune, and other characters and parings, Sun and Blake, Ren and Nora, Weiss and Neptune, and Ruby and Oscar, all who I dreaded would end up on the chopping block next.

I said how I felt they should have been couples who endured consequences and raised steaks, but they should have been allowed to survive through them, rather than losing each other driving the other forward kinda like Ed and Winry and Roy and Riza from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood.

Or at least they could as a different set of characters in a different epic fantasy story.

That, and recently in retrospect, I’ve been looking at RWBY, it’s characters, and world, the ships I wanted, and what they could have been, some involves radical changes, minor changes, heavily different world building, using my Catholic faith as well as my own fictional universe as a basis.

Right now it’s a heavily reimagined RWBY AU part of a fan fiction multiverse which is mostly experimental, idk I can put up with the likes of Syto-kun’s RWBY Remnants, or Celtic Pyro's Fixing RWBY, but I might make it into an original story, Hell, I might even do both, the former first so I can see what other changes I might need to make,

Now as of recently I’ve discovered a Discord Server which I can discuss these things with other RWBY fans, most of who are also disillusioned with Canon RWBY, in a civil manner. Some agree with me, some don’t, but we all act in respect and good faith and we give each other the benefit of the doubt for our disagreements because we all deeply care about epic story-telling.

But In the past with the Anti-RWDE of the RWBY fandom, or whatever you want to call this a toxic minority, I got from was not honest disagreement, but rather disgust, abhorrence, and sneering.

I was sat down and lectured by toxic individuals how raised steaks and consequences forbid such things now, reading posts about Pyrrha and the likes of her and Jaune were only fit for tragic endings because “that's the kind of character she is.” as well these loyalists aggrandizing themselves for liking it mocking others like me with things like

"LMAO Holy Shit, you guys wouldn't like Madoka Magica" as if that was a problem

or "Lol go watch RWBY Chibi"

They resorted to passive aggressive judgment, gaslighting, and superior sarcasm at best, ranting and vicious chastisement at worst. Telling me I should trash my desires and ideas and just go watch Disney, Marvel, Romcoms, and Sitcoms instead.

They told me I was acting smug and superior and arrogant for doing a rewrite/reimagining AU or an original story in response how RWBY was handled, that what I did was inherently malicious and hostile towards Monty, and this attitude seems to come from a lot of loyalist fans who like things the way they are, and in my opinion think a little too highly of themselves for liking things that others don’t, but that’s an argument for another day.

Let me give an hypothetical example for their logic

Let's say among the Gurren Laggan and One Piece fanbase, there's a vocal minority of fanatics think that characters like Kamina and Portgas D. Ace and characters like them could only end in death to drive the characters and story forward and nobody was allowed to actively disagree with that, until Trigger recycled Kamina and Yoko as Galos and Aina respectively in Promare(though I think they recycled Kamina for Kill La Kill as Aikuro Mikisugi) 

Then it was okay for small-time creative people, fanfic writers or indie writers, to do it.

Before then, doing that was seen as “hostile” towards “creators” which they mean those who they deem worthy of the title, and they uphold as the law of epic fiction. Or at the very least, until then, it was seen as stupid and uninteresting.

That's what it seemed like to me, and I could be wrong

But it just came off as off obtuse and narrow-minded at best akin to Professor Membrane from Invader Zim, narcissistic and disingenuous at worst akin to Claude Frollo from Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame combined with blind consumerist loyalty to big business whether it be western entertainment or anime studios. 

Now I’ve spoken to other people and my friends and others, all who mean well, one person who’s been more patient with me than she should have, who told me I might just have to disengage from the source material since I admitted it won’t change canon RWBY and how I am unhappy with it, and friends who said I should let RWBY go because it’s causing me too much grief while another assumed I wanted no adversity and struggle and wanted it to be all fluffy because I didn’t want mentioned ships ending tragically, and I think I came off as hostile

And I feel like this is more due to my failure to articulate my points, I’m not exactly the best at doing that.

And I don’t want the rest of the RWBY Fandom, RWDE or sane neutral fans to misunderstand me, mostly due to my last reblog I got too heated and not made my point clear

I’m not saying the direction RWBY went with V3 or Pyrrha and the rest of the cast being tragic in some way or another is objectively bad, it was just not my taste

And I am not saying every normal RWBY fan/RWDE person who liked it is an elitist about it nor are all of them trying to insult me and attack me personally or say my ideas are bad but rather help you guys understand my experience with the toxic strain of the fanbase.

and I am not trying to change canon or its “trajectory” , nor am I doing this to spite Monty, especially when I never knew the guy. This is a difference in handling ideas and concepts.

I’m doing my RWBY AU, which will most likely be revamped into an original story since it takes a whole different directions with the characters and world, but it's mostly because with post V3 and now in retrospect I saw what this world, characters, ships and other ideas could have been all in a story I believe is worth telling. And I was very disappointed and frustrated that it wasn’t along with my own personal exhaustion how epic storytelling has been going in several franchises.

I mean yeah it's also due to personal tastes and preferences and subjective feelings, at least I’ve been told, but I also try to integrate that in a meaningful way. 

Everyone, big business or small time creators, should be allowed to take an idea and take it in a different direction, even if it comes from a place of disagreement and/or distaste. 

That's one of the many ways inspiration works. Some of Tolkien’s own ideas came from his distaste how Shakespere handled the elves and his unhappiness that there were no talking and walking trees in Shakespere’s Macbeth, and the Valar Aule and his creation of the dwarves are akin to an anti-Prometheus.

I mean, what do Anti-Rwde and other toxic fans like them of other franchises expect us to do?

“Oh Ding-Dong-Diddly-Darn and Golly Gee Wally-Wilikers guess I gotta go watch another show and hope the storytelling gods give me what I exactly want next time, sure I saw a different story worth telling, but f*ck me I guess!”

I can only imagine how many small-time aspiring writers have been intimidated into giving up due to these petty rules these fanatics enforce, invoking the works and names of their appointed idols, even when said individuals and companies didn’t even ask them to in the first place.

It basically felt like to me was this, and I could been wrong here,

"Whatever you thought this story could have been, the world, characters, what ships you wanted, how it all could have played out, its awful, worthless ,and uninteresting and there's something wrong with you for thinking and subjectively feeling that, so you gotta throw it all in the trash unless those we deem worthy of being 'creators' do it first or you bend over backwards for us, and we might let create what you want. Otherwise, you're only allowed to use inspiration from source material you 100% agree with or else your being malicious and not a true storyteller.”

And then they used what they liked, whether it be Arkos ending tragically and the dark direction post V3 or Bumbleby over Black Sun in V9, as an opportunity to aggrandize themselves, flaunt their tastes and what they also like and mock and sneer at everyone else who’s unhappy and force their preferences onto said dissidents. All for what seemed like to me for pride, moral superiority, and social currency.

and they would turn around and lecture you for being entitled, smug, superior and smelling your own farts.

And once again, this isn’t directed at sane fans and RWDE who liked these things for honest reasons and objective analysis, you guys are fine and this is not towards you, its to help you guys understand where I'm coming from.

And from what I've heard, there's someone amongst the anti-rwde/rwby rewrite by the name of LilithFairen who used this to attack Fixing RWBY RWBY and Madoka Magica and fans of the latter.

While I don't like Gen Urobuchi's work myself and Fixing RWBY sounds too dark for me, I do not condone her behavior. Bullying behavior is not justified wether be based on objectively good storytelling or personal/subjective feelings or personal taste/distaste.

My grief is with a toxic contingent with fandom, who seem conceited, self-righteous, and self-absorbed that they think what they like, from broad things like lighthearted to grimmdark to nitty-gritty details like concepts and what direction they go, are the objective end-all-be-all law of epic fiction.

The only exception they'll make is those they admire who they see as the lawgivers who can write and repeal these "laws" and then once again appoint themselves as the police force to enforce these laws onto the peasants who they believe are obligated to be obedient to their will. 

People who have less wealth power than those they claim to defend.

This certainly has happened on the opposite side of the spectrum in the past.

With the Gmod community I used to be a part of in, the toxic among the My Little Pony fandom of Gmod flaunted the success of MLP and championed themselves as the avatars of friendship and accused anyone who didn’t like the show or aspects about it, especially due to personal taste and subjective feelings as those who hated friendship. And I've heard horror stories in regards to the Steven Universe Fandom.

And for a while, individuals like these on both sides of the light and dark spectrum had managed to get away with this.

Until, there’s been a growing audience who’s been tired with Big Entertainment, and choosing between what seemed to me either pure grimmdark or pure lighthearted

People who these individuals had at best, dismissed as the minority, and perhaps we were for a while.

But from my perspective, that changes over the years, it's a natural swing of the pendulum.

Now that's not to say an objectively well written story can withstand that, that's what critics are for, and neither does it mean subjective and personal feelings and tastes/distastes should be disregarded either, but all of this is for another topic for another day.

Until recently, many creative writers and audiences were limited to companies and corporations who’s mandates in creating works was very limited, and many stories, while didn’t follow these standards, were not well planned out and executed. Sword Art Online being my personal example.

Not to mention, in the past fan fiction was also seen as a joke due to teenager fan fiction stereotypes and the likes of 50 Shades of Grey.

Thus, making any contesting ideas against the status quo seem inherently bad and keeping any dissident voices in zones of restrictive dissent.

But the world isn’t like that anymore.

With people becoming increasingly disillusioned with the likes of Hollywood, Fanfiction has been getting significant amount of attention as well there being a bold new movement of storytellers going indie, and with new effective online indie platforms from webcomics, to novels, kickstarter and indiegogo, and the likes of YouTube all of which are also getting attention, and challenging or at least contrasting certain ideas and concepts from other works in epic fiction or how they are handled, all without the Anti-RWDE’s authorization.

In other words, creative individuals no longer need to bend over backwards to publish their visual stories on effective platforms.

Which, at least what it seems to me, makes these toxic individuals realize that epic fiction and its handling of certain kinds of concepts, characters, tropes, characters, worlds, and ships, right down to their ultimate fates, do not revolve solely around their terms or at least the terms of those they worship. Which in turn makes them insecure and upset.

So I have a message to Anti-RWDE and other zealot fans of these franchises who do this

Like it or not, and whether you agree with them or not, these dissident fans and creators are your only equal in this equation. 

The fact you would resort to your little manipulative games and would even go so far as to suck up those who you deem worthy of the title “creator” and have more power and wealth than we do to enforce these stupid rules puts you all a significant step away from your peers.

Which might sound inconsequential to you now, but in the long run will hurt you all, gravely.

because one day some of these dissidents will use that they liked and what they wanted to create fantastical epics in various indie formats(novels, webcomics, YouTube web-series, etc) or AU FanFiction, or most likely both

Whether the inspiration comes from a place of agreement or dissent

And when you come along to sneer at it and accuse it being “hostile” and “leeching off” other creators because its inspiration came from a place of disagreement, especially without any analytical evidence, you’ll end up enraging the audiences of those works, who might have been dissident and disappointed fans of the works you enjoy, and are now finally getting works that resonate to their tastes both broad things like lighthearted, grimmdark, or something in the middle and nitty gritty like concepts and what directions they go.

And they’ll remember how you mocked, lectured, gaslit and policed them and told them what they wanted was “uninteresting” and inherently “malicious” towards those you deem worthy of the title “creators”, and how you went so far as to suck up to “The Man” to do so.

I’m a Catholic, I’m taught revenge is sinful, but the other reality is that some people aren't as graceful as others, and those people may decide to give you a taste of your own medicine.

Those “creators" aren’t gonna be there to help you when that happens, I guarantee it. 

Because most of them don’t care about this whole ordeal, and might even be completely unaware of it, nor do they know who you are.

So maybe instead of jumping to broad accusations, bad faith, and intentionally misinterpreting what people are saying and their thoughts and subjective feelings, and assume this creative disagreement is inherently hostile, smug, and malicious, all without any evidence, you ask constructive questions or just disagree honestly instead.

Because of your only intention is to suppress alternative ideas, preferences, thoughts, and feelings along with lecturing everyone and silence a discussion of such things because they come from a place of disagreement and displeasure, especially when you say “It’s not gonna change canon”, then you should be the first person to walk away from the debate.

Because let’s say what we had in mind is just pandering, and nobody in would find it interesting, along with considering the fact whatever we do “wont change canon” of the stories you enjoy

With all things considered, then I dare ask, what are you doing in our conversations?

Why are you getting mad and jumping into our discussions?

Why are you trying to control what we create and enjoy, especially because we disagreed how something was handled?

Either we make a reimagined AU fanfic, or recycle what we liked and wanted for our original works.

Either way, as you said it yourself, it won’t change canon, people don’t find it interesting, and it’s only pandering to people who you seem to not like, so why are you inserting yourself into our discussions in the first place?

If we are making it your problem, how are we? Because we created something in disagreement how certain ideas and concepts were handled and we put it out there and it’s getting attention? Is someone making you consume our stuff?

Because from where I'm standing, you guys are the ones going out of your way to make it your problem, which in turn you use to justify in your mind what you do to other people.

Because you want to control and suppress what us poor people create and enjoy as well as control and suppress what we think and subjectively feel. Which is at best, very weird.

We're trying to do our own thing, and you're trying to control other people.

If you truly believe what you like is the end-all-be-all and transcends all of this and you yourself are superior for liking these things, then do yourself a favor, save yourself the time and energy, and get out of our tags, servers, and conversations.

Just move along and continue to enjoy whatever those you deem worthy to be “creators”

These types of fans of RWBY, and MCU, Star Wars, and any other franchise for that matter need to take that advice

“It’s not gonna change canon, it’s not for you, disengage from the material, and move on”

Because that advice only works, when you are fine when things are going

See the irony there?

If you’re fine the way it's going, and someone is actively disagreeing with it, especially through creative works…

“It’s not gonna change canon, it’s not for you, disengage from the material, and move on”

Just do not insert yourself into this.

Just mind your own business, and just gossip about it in your own groups, tags, and forums.

Be that indifferent, loyal, and culturally and morally superior overman/overwoman that you just love to position yourself as in these discussions and leave us alone.

[imperiuswrecked]

hi imp I hope you're doing well :) I'm the new namor fan anon from last month! I've been reading a lot of silver age roy thomas namor and recently finished the byrne/jae lee run, I'm really enjoying the character so far! He's become one of my favorites. I hope this isn't too much of a bother but I'm a little lost of what goes after his 90s run and modern era (2010s-2020s). what should I read? I know of namor the (very little) minis he's had in the 2000s early 2010s, but I don't know what goes directly after the 90s run and I'm pretty out the loop with current marvel comics (I'm a pretty new reader overall) . Again I hope this isn't too much of a bother. thank you very much :)

Hello! I am doing as well as can be, thanks for asking, and fan questions are never a bother, I try to answer them as in depth and as quick as I can. I'm really glad to have you on board with Namor Nation! It's great to hear that you're enjoying the character.

As for what comes after the 90s run, I will admit that I never talk about this era much because frankly I don't enjoy all of it. So I will break down where to read next for chronological stuff and what I personally think is best to read.

So right after the 90's series concludes we have the Atlantis Rising Event which is a 10 issue arc but Namor appears in the Fantastic Four just before this arc kicks off.

Fantastic Four (1961) #400 Atlantis Rising: Fantastic Four: Atlantis Rising (1995) #1 Fantastic Force (1994) #8 Fantastic Four (1961) #401 Fantastic Force (1994) #9 Fantastic Four (1961) #402 Fantastic Four: Atlantis RIsing (1995) #2 Fantastic Four Unlimited (1993) #11 Warlock & the Infinity Watch (1992) #41-42

Namor isn't in every one of those comics and imo you can just read Atlantis Rising #1-2 and the Fantastic Four issues and you will be fine. Then you follow Namor's story as he joins, not officially, the Fantastic Four team, he just hangs around the team and spends his time trying to get with Susan. During this era the writer had killed off Reed with no intention of bringing him back unless Marvel ordered it. So the team spent real time years without Reed in the book, instead the writer takes Namor and sticks him in the comics where all he does is run around screaming about how he wants to be with Susan.

I cannot stress enough that you do not need to read these comics because when it comes to Namor they have his whole character revolve around trying to seduce Susan. This is the era where a lot of fans who haven't read Namor's comics get their characterization, the macho sleazy sexist Susan seducing sea man.

Fantastic Four (1961) #400 - 412. (Note: #412 is where fans often like to go "Namor is a rapist" and take panels out of context to "prove" that, it's just really sexist terrible writing and I really don't think people should base all of Namor's character on these issues but unfortunately this era did a lot of harm to people's perception of Namor as a character.)

After that it's really hard to keep track of Namor's character without this list because he just appears in so many things as a one time cameo or guest star, and it's not until The Defenders (2001) that we get him in a consistent book again.

The Defenders (2001) - The Defenders are forced to work together The Order (2002) - The Defenders go evil

Then we have the young Namor series, because Marvel wanted a revamped starting point for new Namor fans due to the possibility of Namor getting a live action solo movie in 2004, however the movie was canceled after the script was done, and it's a good thing because the script was terrible!

Namor (2003) - Namor in his younger years, this comic series is considered part of Namor's continuity but really no one ever references it and it takes some departures from his first human interactions however I do enjoy this comic series even if it doesn't perfectly fit into his usual 30s-present origin.

Then after that we get Namor in Invaders, Avengers, Thunderbolts, seriously without the wiki list it's really hard to follow where he shows up next because Marvel just used him wherever they wanted.

Then we have a really fun series with The Defenders (2005) then that goes into Civil War, Namor loses Nita, and there are a few solo comics like Marvel Comics Presents (2007) #7 we finally have anther mini series solo for Namor in Namor (2007) which takes place right after Civil War and that transitions into Namor's Dark Reign/X-Men in the late 2000s - early 2010's era. When in doubt of where to look next the wiki is seriously a good tool to search through but I can always help out if you have any other questions. Also you SHOULD read Sub-Mariner: The Depths if you haven't yet, because it's a great undersea horror series, it's set around the 1950s and can be read at any time. I love that series.

[5sosfanfictioncatalogue]

Winter (2) Masterlist

part one

Books, Coffee and Snowflakes in his hair (ao3) - ethereal_larry (ttmngx) luke/ashton G, 3k

Summary: Luke was the cutest and the smartes person Ashton ever met. And even though Ashton was never afrain of anything, he was terryfied to talk to the boy who always read the same book. But maybe if he did, everything would change.

‘Cause I don’t know where it’s goin’ (there’s a part of me that loves not knowin’) (ao3) - Calumthoodshands (tndart) luke/calum G, 3k

Summary: All Luke wants is for his plane to take off and him with it to go home for Christmas — but the snow has other plans for him, and a day destined to be terrible gets lightened up from a rather unexpected place.

crimson and cream (ao3) - galacticsugar luke/calum T, 3k

Summary: “The things you decide to be a perfectionist about are so interesting.” Calum’s mouth says interesting, but his tone says I’m obsessed with you.

Luke’s it for Calum. He’s always kind of known it, he’s just been patient. Waiting for some intangible thing that will make the time right. He’s not waiting for Luke to realize Calum’s it for him too. Luke also already knows. He just hasn’t quite realized he deserves to have what he wants.

Falling (on the ice) For You (ao3) - allsassnoclass (brightblackholes) michael/ashton T, 2k

Summary: Michael doesn't know how it happens. One moment he's minding his own business, walking his dogs like a good owner even though it's well below freezing, and the next his feet are no longer under him. He blinks up at the clear blue sky, Southy barking in one ear and Moose whining in the other, and registers just how many different parts of his body hurt.

Let It Snow (ao3) - friendstothis michael/luke N/R, 319

Summary: Luke just loves the snow, and Michael finds it adorable.

never one for winter (ao3) - galacticsugar luke/calum M, 20k

Summary: “Hey Cal, it’s Luke. Uh, so I’m actually coming home for Christmas. Kind of a last minute thing. I’m literally on a plane, about to take off but, um — are you gonna be around tonight? I thought maybe I could stop by. Let me know, and I’ll figure it out when I land.”

As soon as the plane lands, Luke flips off airplane mode and waits, shaking from the suspense, the stress, the everything that has been his life over the past few hours.

There’s a text from Calum. 

Calum: i’m around. And i’ve got tequila.

pas de deux (ao3) - allsassnoclass (brightblackholes) michael/ashton, background roy/calum T, 50k

Summary: Michael Clifford is an up and coming choreographer who has been brought to the Minneapolis Ballet to revamp their production of The Nutcracker. Ashton Irwin was a ballet prodigy who stepped out of the spotlight after a devastating injury five years ago and is now ready to return to dance. After they begin fake dating to protect a secret, they end up spending a lot more time together than either of them anticipated, both inside the rehearsal room and outside of it.

sidekick (ao3) - galacticsugar luke/calum M, 5k

Summary: Calum doesn’t question the smooth footprints, because he knows the bottom of Luke’s shoes like he knows the back of his own hand. He questions something else, though, when they get to Luke’s car, parked two spaces closer to the theater than Calum’s, and Luke looks over his shoulder. Calum starts to raise his hand to wave goodbye, planning to keep walking and get his cold feet into his car as soon as possible, but then the breeze ruffles Luke’s hair across his eyes and everything stops.

taking the long way home - @sup3rbloom (haveufoundwhaturlookingfor) michael/calum, luke/ashton T, 1k

Summary: The weather is calling for a winter storm, and Calum's worried about flying. Michael does his best to assure his soulmate that everything is going to be fine because Calum's the best pilot he knows.

Winter Wonderland (ao3) - HeartbreakAshton94 michael/ashton T, 331

Summary: Michael gets high and decorate the house in unusual Christmas decorations

[roobylavender]

i know you’ve said before fma has a foundation built on imperialism apologia, but if you could make some changes to it to make it. not so. what do you think they would be?

i feel like not enough of the present-day events of the series really took place in ishval without scar being the only focal point of those events. like he was the one going to the ishvalan slums and coordinating the transmutation circle but people like ed and al also needed to go and be confronted with the reality they never actually bothered to face bc their lack of physical proximity to the most devastating effects of the war (despite what they learned about the philosopher's stones it was ultimately a revelation that only served to curb their interests away from use of the stone, it wasn't actually about giving any deference to ishvalan lives or what they deserved in the wake of the war) gave them nothing but the ability to condescend to scar about what he was doing. winry is included in that as well tbh like i love her but when she called scar wanton in briggs i think she deserved to be slapped and i really hate that the entire series more or less refused to have any of the trio acknowledge that scar likely killed winry's parents due to a severe bout of ptsd and inability to cope with the fact that his entire family had died in an explosion and he was the only one left alive. like sure they don't know the details of all of that but they could have guessed why anyone in ishval would have been driven to murder at the time

on the military end of things i think riza should have killed roy lmao.. like i'm sorry but as much as i used to love that scene in the tunnels as a kid it's so corny in retrospect bc who really knows how many times roy will be pushed to the brink and riza forced to hold him down again. he is utterly unchecked with power and delusional enough to believe he is the one with the idealistic vision to save the country like bro it's such garbage and this doesn't even begin to get into the fact that it's cruel to expect riza to serve that position of keeping him in check forever. like the king and lionheart dynamic may have had everyone by their necks years ago but when you really think about not only the political implications but also about how severely it undercuts riza's character arc it's just.. ass, ass, and more ass. i have more coherent thoughts on this as a whole here and here but like yeah ideally i think he should have died and the members of the military who participated in the ishvalan war should have been at the least completely stripped of their titles, if not outright killed for their war crimes. like riza even told ed they expected to be executed so what happened to that lmao.. in the end it never came to fruition and then arakawa added even more insult to injury by having the amestrian military lead the ishvalan restoration efforts as if the ishvalans would even want them there in the first place. like granted they did need resources and to re-establish trade, what war-torn region wouldn't, but that should not have been a military speared effort. the military should have not have returned to power to begin with and the whole country should have undergone a govt revamp

and tangential to that, while i obv do think ed and al deserve a lot of peace after everything they've been through, i really do think it's so naive to act like they get to just go home and ignore everything about the country politically now like no.. no.. i'm not saying they should be involved in govt but like i mentioned in the first paragraph they needed to have more interaction with ishvalans and considering they all knew winry's parents went there and chose to stay there anyway despite the threat of violence i think it would be a good full circle moment to have the trio involved in ishvalan restoration efforts on a local scale like there is so much they could genuinely help with re: alchemy and medical knowledge. not to mention ishval and resembool are literally in the same province like they're NEIGHBORS and to think that the trio never goes there ever is simply hysterical. this is something the anime doesn't touch on bc it's considered minutiae ig but in the manga resembool is actually a quickly growing city prior to the war due to its wool industry and that growth is ultimately stunted bc their major transportation lines are cut off once the war begins. so like. there is a very clear proximity between resembool and ishval and i really cannot believe arakawa never capitalized on it ever like it's like in naruto when kishi decided sasuke and hinata would never interact despite everything about their lore pointing to it making sense for them to interact in a way that would actually significantly reflect on the narrative

[unladyboss]

AT LEAST ACCORDING TO EATER

So I was really curious about Eleven Madison Park

You know, the one where Carmy was the most excellent CDC and it was the best restaurant in the world according to EATER.

Well Eater did say it was the best restaurant in the world.

They reported that in 2017.

---------++++++++++----------+++++++++++++

That would be around the time that Carmy would have been getting there (five years backward from 2023 when FISHES episode aired).

So let's say 2018 proper.

Ummmm. Yeh. I have some questions.

The show is behaving as if this is real.

That Carmy was really the CDC at EMP.

I think this is all in someone's head, someone who is a foodie and follows what goes on in the culinary world, or has been ' locked in' for five years or so like Marcus' mom and watches a lot of food related television.

The kitchen doesn't really look the same either. I purposely selected pics around the time Carmy was supposed to be there, because they had remodeling done fairly recently and revamped the menu to be plant based.

Because I checked out the executive chef at the time Carmy was supposed to have been there. .

That's him; D. Humm

I also looked up the CURRENT CDC Dominique Roy

He has pictures going all the way back to when Carmy should have been there (I know it's a tv show but they're trying to make out this is real by putting some accurate occurrences)

In all the pictures he put up, no Carmy.

--------++±++++++++++++++++-----------------

Also nobody who even remotely looks or behaves like his mean chef

Also I looked up what past employees had to say. They talk about long hours and not being able to accept tips as well as food wastage.

Nobody talked about bad treatment

Also the current CDC HAD BEEN AT THE RESTAURANT FOR YEARS working his way up to being the CDC

One note here about Pennsylvania Tasty Duck trip. The 412 that Carmy mentioned on his trip with Claire to mail the liquor license was a Pennsylvania area code. I know it was a box number but if it's someone's foggy memories then this all tracks. It may just be a coincidence but I'm not sure

Just saying that it just a part of the story showing that someone has read or seen the information. It's in their head but filled with inaccuracies, because the experience is not real.

[cattarattat]

More corrupt antics by Florida's Republican Party politician Ron DeSantis seeking to oppress anyone or anything that is PRO Civil Rights, PRO Freedom of Speech, and PRO Freedom of Information.

This is just DeSantis PROVING he has NO PROBLEM WITH ABUSING HIS POLITICAL POWER.

Therefore, NOT a guy American citizens would want in the White House!

Roy & Walt Disney did everything legitimately when districting for the Walt Disney World park.

Furthermore, the Walt Disney World park has shown more ethical 'environmental practices' than the State of Florida itself. (So Disney hardly needs a PRO pollution Republican politician like embittered DeSantis telling Disney what it can and cannot do.)

Seems DeSantis could learn a thing or two about ethical practices from Disney rather than undermining the park's districting out of spite.

"But the law does change who controls the government overseeing Disney's kingdom in the state, which could be a harbinger of looming battles as tension mounts between the company, which has increasingly embraced progressive social issues, and the conservative state that has taken up leading a crusade against what it describes as 'woke ideology.'

The new roster of board members, whom DeSantis named Monday, includes Bridget Ziegler, a conservative education activist and co-founder of the right-wing group Moms for Liberty; Ron Peri, chairman of the Gathering USA, a Christian ministry; and three attorneys, including the president of the Federalist Society’s Orlando chapter.

'He appointed cultural warriors, Christian national-types. That’s not an overstatement,' said Richard Foglesong, a political scientist and the author of 'Married to the Mouse: Walt Disney World and Orlando.'

In recent years, Disney has overhauled its products and amusement parks, drawing the ire of conservatives.

Visitors to the Magic Kingdom’s fireworks show are now met with a gender-neutral greeting, a departure from previous welcomes addressing 'ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls.' The company has also revamped older attractions criticized as insensitive, including the Jungle Cruise and Pirates of the Caribbean, and is transforming Splash Mountain into a new 'Princess and the Frog'-themed ride after years of complaints about the racism prevalent in 'Song of the South,' the 1946 film that inspired the ride.

The appointees — whom Foglesong likened to appointees to airport authorities or a public works department — don't have say over Disney's products. But they could leverage their positions in Florida’s ongoing culture war clash with Disney in any future requests the company makes for roads, new projects or other ventures.

'That’s a combustible mix, it seems to me, to have people who are censors who are working as supervisors for an arm of the Walt Disney company,' Foglesong said.

The law also changed the special district’s name from the Reedy Creek Improvement District to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. In addition, the bill removed some other periphery privileges, such as prohibiting Disney from building a nuclear power plant or an airport at the resort, which the company was unlikely to ever use.

'I think [Disney is] more threatened now than I imagined they would be,' Foglesong said, pointing to the slate of appointees. The New College of Florida in Sarasota, where DeSantis is embarking on a mission to overhaul the small, progressive school into a model of conservatism, is a cautionary tale, he added.

But in other ways, it’s mostly business as usual, at least for now, experts say. Many essential privileges that made Reedy Creek unique remain intact, including the ability to issue bonds. 'Those are the special things about what Reedy Creek did,' Schumer said.

Reedy Creek was born in part from the lessons that brothers Walt and Roy Disney learned from operating Disneyland in Anaheim, which opened in 1955. Their ambitions were curtailed by government red tape, having to work with the city for public services and on zoning issues.

As the brothers looked to expand Disney’s footprint — only 10% of the people who came to Disneyland in California came from east of the Mississippi River — they wanted to have their own self-regulating system. The company eventually settled on Florida and worked with lawmakers to establish the Reedy Creek Improvement District in 1967. The theme park opened a few years later in 1971.

The district, spanning about 40 square miles in Orange and Osceola counties, provides everything from fire protection and emergency medical services to water systems, flood control and electric power generation. Its boundaries include four theme parks, two water parks, a sports complex, 175 miles of roadway, the cities of Bay Lake and Lake Buena Vista, utility centers, more than 40,000 hotel rooms and hundreds of restaurants and retail stores, according to its website.

What's ahead for Disney remains to be seen. DeSantis has called upon the board to propose additional changes in authorities and exemptions in a year and again in five years, Foglesong noted.

'Maybe down the road, [DeSantis] will be able to take another bite of the apple and take away powers and exemptions that the Disney company still has,' Foglesong said."

[prozac-shaped-urn]

shitty first draft is shitty

About an hour later, contact sheet in hand and half a donut hanging out of his mouth, Roman stood admiring INSERT PAINTING HERE as the crowd thinned out to a straggling handful. INSERT MEANING BEHIND PAINTING HERE. Indistinct conversation in the background created a little bubble for Roman to let his mind wander. HE MAKES A CONNECTION TO THE PAINTING AND HOME LIFE AND MAYBE GERRI

“Do you like it?”

Roman whipped his head around to see Gerri standing a few feet behind him. She looked over his head at the painting, admiration written all over her face. DON'T JUDGE IT YOU'RE IN A FLOW

“Yeah, it's good,” Roman said with a mouthful. He held the donut between two fingers and took a small bite. “My dad has one, too. Locked in a safe somewhere. No one's seen it in a few decades.”

“Except the insurance company, of course.”

“Oh, yeah. Yeah, he's definitely insured.”

“That'll probably come in handy one day.” “What? You think Logan Roy is gonna go bankrupt? He just revamped the fucking stock market. Fuckin' asshole actually made money after 9/11.”

“Invest in war and you'll never be broke, Roman.”

Roman shook his finger. “Be careful, Gerri. Using logic like that will make you irresistible and you already have a few pairs of lascivious eyes over there in the kitchen.”

Gerri chuckled and bit her lip, swinging her weight onto her toes. “Oh, I'm not worried about them.”

“So you've already told them off and now you're hitting on me?”

“No, of course not,” Gerri stated with a slighted tone.

They shared a look—it was clear to both of them that's exactly what Gerri was doing. AWKWARD FIX IT

“Got it. Anyway, yeah, I like the painting. You got any more?”

“Just the one. My ex-husband gave it to me. I couldn't get rid of it. Might come in handy one day.”

“Gerri Kellman, mistress of practicality.”

Gerri tossed her head side-to-side and gave a shrug with an upturned palm. “You never know.” She giggled at Roman's pleased smirk. “Did Annie say goodbye before she left?”

“Nope. But she told me I can keep my head, so... whatever.”

“Which one?”

Roman stared wide-eyed, his brain taking a few seconds longer to kick in than his dick did to fully comprehend the question. He finally sputtered, “Both, I think. I guess. I dunno. Didn't ask.”

[fairestwriting]

Hiya lis 💗 Good to see you back, king!!!

Can I request for Vice dorm leaders' sister dating Ignihyde's Idia? How would they react?

da sibling themed + idia request for today since were in that chapter 6 hype climate

i think i mightve done jades reaction to his younger sister dating idia before, actually (along with floyd, maybe including the whole octatrio?) but it was definitely so long ago if i really wrote it that its worth a good revamp!

Trey Clover

You break the news to him over tea. You'd been helping him out with today's batch of baked goods, wondering how to tell him about your new relationship as you mixed the batter. When you're eating together at the rose garden, you just blurt it out, and Trey is... speechless for a moment.

He doesn't mind it, really. Even if he did, he's not one to really interfere in what his loved ones are doing unless it seems to be harming them, and even then, he wouldn't be forceful about it. Trey smiles and tells you he's happy for you, all calm and supportive.

He's honestly more surprised that Idia managed to get a girlfriend than anything else and he does trust you to handle yourself when it comes to dating. If you love him, then he can't be so bad, can he? He does tell you that if anything goes south, however, you shouldn't be afraid to rely on him for any sort of help.

Jade Leech

Oh, you definitely were hesitant about letting this one know about who you ended up together with... maybe even more than you were about breaking the news to Floyd. But Jade is your brother too, you do trust him despite everything, so it's not fair to hide it from him.

His immediate response is just about what you expect. Polite smile, oh, congratulations, I'm happy for the two of you, as he continues to do what he was doing while still pay attention to what you say. He asks you the usual questions about how you two met, how you got closer, if you were happy. It's a pleasant enough conversation, right?

Wrong! He's got his eyes on Idia, both of them, like he's the prey he'd been chasing for the last decade! And you know that. And he knows you know that. Now that you think about it, didn't you feel like you were being watched for a good few weeks before this, on the rare occasions you were with Idia on public? Sometimes, being in the Leech family is... quite the experience.

Jamil Viper

You weren't sure how to approach the subject with Jamil. He's always been reserved with his emotions, so relationships aren't really something you two talk about often, even though it's not entirely off the table. It's just a bit of a rarity.

Because of that, when you tell him, you're a bit nervous... and that turns to exasperation the second he makes this face upon hearing you announce you and Idia had been together and going strong for a while now. He asks you if you're really telling him the truth. His face is the one of a person severely questioning his beloved sibling's taste.

He hesitates to respond. Come on, he's not that bad, you insist as you flick him on the arm, and Jamil shrugs as he recomposes himself and tells you that, well, taste is subjective. You bicker about your supposed bad taste for a few minutes. He just tells you to be careful and let him know if he does anything bad to you, small as that thing may be, and for just that moment, his tone is genuinely very serious. You nod and promise him you will.

Rook Hunt

Hesitating to tell Rook about your relationships and crushes is just... an inherent part of being his sister. It's a delicate dance, really, and it's not because he'll be overprotective or disapproving, but because you know he's going to be dramatic about it.

Ah, ma chérie sœur is in love, what beautiful news! With Roi de Ta Chambre too! He picks you up and twirls you around despite your protests of him being embarrassing. He does that every single time you tell him good news, really, so it's kind of like a routine. Asks you questions about how you two met, gushing about you two complementing each other like light and darkness.

You would think his hunter streak would come out, now... but it doesn't, at least not blatantly. He's genuinely happy you two are together too, wishing you nothing but good things... and he also only feels so calmly about this because he knows, he knows no one would mess with Rook Hunt's sister, and he's had Idia under observation for longer than you've known him, anyway.

Lilia Vanrouge

You do your best to mentally go over what words you're going to use to announce your relationship to Lilia. Even though you're siblings, he's still quite mysterious to you, and you never know what to expect, really, so you make a point to be careful... the right conditions come up, you break the news. And he smiles as he tells you he already knew.

You're stammering, jolting in shock, wait, what? How did you know? Lilia laughs, that ominous soft chuckling that grates on your nerves all too often. He proceeds to list so many little details even you hadn't noticed on yourself... from the tone shifts in your voice when you're talking about him, to how you touch his arm when you're talking to him in public, to the time you spend at Ignihyde.

Ugh, that's not fair, why do you just know everything, you want to childishly whine at him, but you're too embarrassed when he tells you he thinks your relationship is cute and he's happy for you. Similarly to Rook, he's not overtly overprotective, either, because no one in their right mind would dare to hurt Lilia Vanrouge's sister. Both because you're from a noble family, and because he's, well. Himself.

if you wanna support my work, you can buy me a ko-fi or commission me!

[treason-and-plot]

The coffee and cinnamon roll and the time spent in Violet’s company have greatly restored Sonia’s equilibrium- things are improved even more when she returns to the house to find that it is still empty, and she enjoys an hour of reading before her concentration is ambushed by her sense of duty, and she concedes she had better ring Roy and find out what time he intends bringing Henrietta back. (He can drop her at the front gate and Apollo can go out and collect her- there is no way Sonia is running the risk of another face-to-face encounter with him today, or his gold digging floozy!)  

When Roy answers the phone she can hear in the background splashing and excited shrieking; “Roy?” she says, her heart seizing in dismay. “Did you take Henrietta to a public pool?” 

“We’re at the Pirate Adventure Water Park,” he says. “Relax, hon. There’s enough chlorine in the water to kill a kraken.”

“But she didn’t even have her bathing costume with her!” says Sonia.

“We all went shopping for new costumes,“ says Roy. “I bought her a couple of new dresses, too. Anya helped pick them out. She’s studying fashion, so she knows what she’s talking about. And you don’t have to worry, everything was totally age- appropriate. Hey, maybe one day you could ask Anya for help with your clothing choices? Not saying there’s anything wrong with the way you dress, but maybe it’s time your wardrobe had a bit of a revamp, don’t you think? Honey?” 

[your-turn-to-play]

I did a revamp of Seu Pedido É Concedido! In the soundtrack I'll give the songs names in portuguese, english and japanese, I'm not fluent in japanese yet but I am in portuguese and english! Just so you know you can translate it, in case you want to know the meanings

So yeah it's basically a completely different song and it sounds way better now, with different phases. And it fits what I was going for better imo too!

As always, this song is made from loo´s from Looperman.com, the loops are free for commercial use but here is the list of all the loops I used in this song: (I don't know how to make the links small)

Check them out if you'd like!

[estellaelysian]

Light Under Water (OPH AU)

Prologue - The Athens of America 

She would never know how her life spun so out of control that night. It wasn’t anything she had said or done. It wasn’t even her, if you considered all things. All she remembered was driving down, free and alone at eighty miles per hour as the city hummed around her, throbbing with life. The car flew down the Devonshire street, blowing through red lights as the poles flicked past in a rush. The air was alive on her skin. She didn’t give a damn about the honking horns that were lost in the lonely race she had with herself. She did not even slow once, even though her eyes watered and left streaks of mascara down her cheeks, blurring her vision.

Maybe that was the mistake. But who would’ve known at that time?

The patrol officer had been adamant about knowing where she had spent her time before the accident. By the look on his face, she could tell he knew what she had been doing: getting wasted with filthy people. If that’s what you called partying with a few friends at the Tunnel, why yes, she was getting waste. She had spent an hour avoiding an aging creep who kept following her around as the bass throbbed through her body and neon lights pulsed around her. The dance floor was thronged, and she marveled at how people still managed to jump and sway in the crowd as she stayed behind with her friends (A-list young multitude – real estate agents, models who flew down from New York and L.A., growing musicians – people she had no problem naming for the suspicious cop) as they posed with rainbow colored, glittering cocktails.

This obviously raised the question of whether she’d been drinking. She hadn’t been, and the copper scoffed when she said it so, but the breathalyzer confirmed her version of the story.

She liked to be one of those people who stayed true to their new year’s resolutions.

Then she had been alone again. All the rest hours of the night.

Leaving the club, she got back on the freeway, flying down the long endless road as her hair whipped and lashed. The scents of rosemary shifted along with the sounds of crickets and windmills that were lost in the busy streets. Five blocks later, she stopped in the middle of the road, enjoying the cashmere breeze which came from a deep groove of trees, cool and balmy, rustling the leaves in a soulful melody. The stillness of the city at this hour was breathtaking.

Then she was back on the road, driving away to god knew where. Her route changed almost every night. She would ride out no matter how late it was, because the rush made her feel more alive than she had felt all day. It was her element. It was her thing, because there was nothing which would make more sense to her.

The tires screeched as she avoided hitting the car right in front of her, which she had somehow missed in the prism of her tears. Slowing inevitably, her fingers tightened around the wheel as she laughed before speeding down again, who said what about her.

The city itself whispered, with expectation and anticipation. You are not the first. Go on, set yourself free.

She smiled at the thought and slowed more as streets narrowed and cars appeared.

Wasn’t that absolutely fascinating?

Probably not. Who cared anyway?

Her name was Alishka Roy. She was twenty eight years old. She lived in a loft downtown in an area which featured the grey part of Boston. But it didn’t matter; she had a great sea view. Her family owned the building.

Her speed had only increased when she had to slow again as she flew over the tangle of one way downtown streets. She tried to weave through, but had to slow nonetheless  to make the right turn. She was in no mood to go all the way back and turn right around.

As everything rippled and blurred, she turned onto her street, telling herself it was only the dry night wind and her lashing hair. But it was always the same, no matter the wind, no matter how she did her hair. It was always this way when her lonely race finished. But in those few moments, she could escape the real world in earnest to be with herself. That mattered more than anything.

She, after all, wanted nothing more than to light the fire for herself.

Her loft was only blocks away when she drove into a red Mercedes car. The air bag exploded as her car spun sideways to a stop. White haze hung in the air, shards of glass sprayed over her shoulders and arms. The other car had been an illusion only, no more real than a shadow of a bird flying overhead, a gleaming stroke of movement no one would’ve seen coming.

She took a few deep breaths before opening the door and stumbling out of the car. The Mercedes was on the sidewalk, and she walked to it and slapped the passenger’s side window. Two men were in the car, in their late fifties. The drivers face was bleeding, and the passenger stared at her, dumfounded, before breaking from his haze.

‘Are you alright? Do you need help?’

The passenger said nothing, looking at her blankly before truly seeing her. His looked down at his wrist immediately.

‘Oh god, I am sorry, I am really sorry. I’ll get an ambulance. Just give me a sec,’ she said, trying to keep her cool.

The passenger opened his door and spilled out the car. He was dressed impeccably and had a natural tan. She saw his eyes clearly in the fractured light from her car. There was a certain chillness about their pale blue color.

‘We’re okay,’ he croaked out. ‘It’s nothing.’

‘Hold on, I’ll get help. I’ll call an ambulance,’ Alishka said, realizing her phone was still in her car. He took a step toward her before stumbling back down.

She helped him up before rushing back to her car. The phone was under the dash.

She had only dialed 911 when she heard the car pull away, its rear fender dragging down the street. The passenger was running behind the car towards the narrow alleyway.

She had to remember the license plate number.

She couldn't not remember it.

The city was no more shining, shimmering or splendid. Everything seemed to close on in her. Those people drove away. She was in the middle of the street and she no more knew what was going on.

A deep voice cut through her confusion. ‘Emergency operator, hello?’

‘I had a wreck, an auto accident–’

‘Was anyone injured?’

‘They drove away, these two men, I don’t know–’

She recited the license plate number, scared she would forget it, so she pulled out her notepad and wrote it down.

‘Ma’am, do you need an ambulance dispatched? Do you need help?’

She felt wobbly and sick, so she sat own, her back pressed against the car’s cold metal.

‘Ma’am, where are you? Ma’am–’

She lay back on the cool street, closing her eyes as everything collapsed around her.

‘Tell me where are you, ma’am? Ma’am?’

She tried to answer, but nothing came out, dark buildings huddling over her.

That was the beginning of it all. The beginning of hr nightmare.

She would be questioned over and over about the accident. She would learn that the accident was nothing ordinary, nothing that didn’t always happen.

In seven days, the first attempt would be made on her life.

In eleven days, she would meet a man named Ethan Ramsey.

Everything was about to change about her life, and it started then.

**********

Thank you for reading if you made it this far

So yeah, this is an AU where Ethan is a detective and not a doctor.

But he will be introduced in the next chapter 🙈

This is unplanned, impulsive, but it wont leave my head so I had to write it.

This is basically inspired/based/ a revamp of my favorite crime fiction novel - The Watchman by Robert Crais, but the plot will be varied (I will definitely make a variation.)

So uh ... @tenaciouslandvoidgiant @choicesaddict5 @schnitzelbutterfingers @starrystarrytrouble @jooous @dakotasteach @lilypills @vishhhi @sophxwithers @genevievemd @mercury84choices @caseyvalentineramsey @ethansramsey @stygianflood - are y'all with me on this ship that may or may not sink? 

Any one else want to get aboard?

[redjaybathood]

And another thing. I am really tired of people talking shit about Jason "robbing" Dick of friends. This sentiment had gotten me in trouble before, so I will try to phrase it more carefully and in tune with how I feel about it now.

So. The problem with Jason getting a team in New52, objectively, was the attitude of the writer or/and editorial. They were not looking for a team for him but a supporting cast. Which is arguably, the same with Teen Titans with all the batboys to certain degree. For sure in TT Rebirth, and for Titans TV that is surprisingly gets a lot from NYT as far as I am reading it and recognize stuff.

But Lobdell made it worse because he is a shitty writer overall though he has good ideas sometimes. Still, some things he did were not without merit, but, unfortunately, it was pretty far from what was established for the characters in prenew52. It's not much worse than New 52 revamp of any of the characters, even someone as popular as Batman himself or Tim Drake. But it would have done better without blatant sexism and objectivisation of Kori and cutting out Roy's more prominent backstory as a member of Navajo tribe, and them being MVPs in their own right.

But, unfortunately, Lobdell loved Jason a little too much, cared about anyone else too little.

Now. While i acknowledge all if this and there are more things to be pissed about for the old fans for sure. Why am I so tired of people ranting about? Because it pretty much always comes to one of those things:

Jason or Jason's fans are somehow to blame for the existence of RHATO New52 as it is, or, even better, for enjoying it;

It's unfair that Jason got Dick's people on the team. They were Dick's!

I won't even touch the first one because jeez. The second one though: regardless of how I don't see them complaining that Nightwing writers didn't use the characters - i think they would have gotten priority, if they only asked... Though I am not really informed about it and open to correction if you have more insight: i tried googling this and didn't really find anything.

My main beef is with how there's a sentiment that tries to sound well-meaning: it would have been better if Lobdell gave him a team of his own people, his own friends.

Okay - who? Red Devil i suppose that was mentioned like in one issue of Kid Devil's as being a penpal? Or... Who, exactly?

Like, Jason didn't have people - in doylian perspective it's because writers didn't want to use the new Robin outside of Batman and Tec and arguably, some of them even there. That's basically why he got killed off.

In watsonian perspective, Jason was too tied up in Gotham to do more than appear like twice in NTT. He was 12-15, Batman didn't let him out much.

Any Teen Titan from that age, like Danny Chase or Rose Wilson or Grant something... Or Lilith, or - well, any of them. They weren't Jason's people and wherefore, why would they be a better fit? Well. Because they weren't Dick's, you see.

And it's stupid.

I mean, would i rather we see Jason team up with other, not very impressive or popular characters from the team he wasn't really on? Maybe, because there would have been a lot less shit fandom gave about it.

But they wouldn't make more sense for being Outlaws with Red Hood than Starfire and Red Arrow, except maybe Rose, but they have used her elsewhere.

[crystal-methionine]

The Post-Eurovision ranking and comments from an American that nobody asked for:

1. Switzerland 🇨🇭 Gjon’s Tears - Tout l’univers: I absolutely was enamored by this song, its artistry, and the artist. He can really sing and one of my early favorites from this year. So happy for him to get in the top 3 bc it was well deserved. 100/10

2. Italy 🇮🇹 Måneskin - Zitti e Buoni: Deserved winners. As queer as you can get and I am here for it. Another early favorite of mine constantly fighting with Switzerland for the top spot. 100/10

3. Iceland 🇮🇸 Dadi og Gagnamagnid - 10 Years: A beautiful song dedicated to his wife and deserved Top 5 for sure. Last year’s song would have won hands down so I’m bummed he couldn’t win the first one for Iceland but brilliant song and I hope the group stays together to produce more music. 99/10

4. Bulgaria 🇧🇬 Victoria - Growing Up Is Getting Old: Eurovision fandom will forever say Imaginary Friend or Ugly Cry was the better song to send, but I don’t think they would have won the contest either. This year was strong, and I personally think Growing Up was a perfect choice from Victoria. It deserved top 10 so I was pissed that it came 11th on the night and received so few televotes. 97/10

5. Ukraine 🇺🇦 Go_A - SHUM: To all y’all who said this wouldn’t qualify when the new version came out, eat those words hun. This was a masterpiece, and the live performances just elevated it further. Honestly, Kateryna could step on me, and I would let her. Who doesn’t love an ethnic modern fusion rave? 95/10

6. Serbia 🇷🇸 Hurricane - Loco Loco: I honestly have to say when it came out, it was never breaking my top 20, but here we are. This group of gals is amazing. The choreo, hairography, and the still great vocals won my gay ass over. They served and deserved top 10 in my eye. 90/10

7. Greece 🇬🇷 Stefania - Last Dance: Much like Serbia, I kinda dismissed this as a top 10 song at first, but after many listens and then the live shows, it was one of the best songs this year. Last year’s song was nowhere near a qualifier for me, and then I thought they had a good chance of being top 5 this year. Amazing improvement and can’t wait to see what comes next from Stefania. 80/10

8. Malta 🇲🇹 Destiny - Je me casse: Not going to lie, the studio definitely did more for me. It was up with Italy and Switzerland for winner contention until the live shows. Don’t get me wrong, Destiny is still amazing live, and the song is a deserved top 5 song. However, the costume and staging just really didn’t add to the song and I think detracted a bit. Her song last year was also much better in my opinion. 75/10

9. San Marino 🇸🇲 Senhit ft Flo Rida - Adrenalina: Oh boy this was a party, and the fact Flo Rida actually was there made it even better. The staging and costuming was absolutely camp, and I was here for it. This was definitely not underrated by fans beforehand, but the jury and televote were beyond robberies in my opinion. Granted I know the backing vocals were carrying the chorus a lot so in terms of vocals, I can see where this song got dinged, but this should have been San Marino’s best ever result at Eurovision, and it wasn’t so I’m mad. 60/10

10. France 🇫🇷 Barbara Pravi - Voila: The new Edith Piaf and probably one of the most representative of the country’s culture for a song. A definite deserved runner up on the night but for me 10th place. I loved the staging, the costume, the emotions. It was all right for Eurovision and me. 50/10

11. Cyprus 🇨🇾 Elena Tsingarou - El Diablo: Come through Cyprus with another female pop banger. I’d say if the formula ain’t broke don’t fix it, but wasn’t really enough to crack top 10 this year. Another early favorite of mine this year but soon got eclipsed. Still going to be listening to El Diablo for a while. 49/10

12. Russia 🇷🇺 Manizha - Russian Woman: I can’t lie that at first, this song was absolutely trash to me but quickly rose the ranks and became one of my faves. Same thing happened last year with Uno. We also always love a good female empowerment moment with the native language thrown in. Manizha is a girlboss without the gaslighting and a true queen. Deserved top 10 the night of. 40/10

13. Lithuania 🇱🇹 The Roop - Discoteque: An earworm for first listen and was top 10 for a while for me but like Cyprus, lost out to some others. No doubt this is a deserved top 10 the night of. 35/10

14. Croatia 🇭🇷 Albina - Tick Tock: The first song to get me pressed on it’s placement. Deserved to be in the final over both Israel and Norway (please come for me I don’t care). They freakin rocked that stage during the semis and the song is absolutely a bop. Albina deserved better. 30/10

15. Sweden 🇸🇪 Tusse - Voices: A beautiful song by an amazing artist. Sure the lyrics were a bit cliche Eurovision but guess what...it’s Eurovision. I can hear the voices. Keep carrying on Tusse. 25/10

16. Albania 🇦🇱 Anxehla Peristeri - Karma: This song grew on me a lot. I liked it but wasn’t a don’t skip for a while on my playlist. The live performance changed it for me. She slayed and the staging was everything for Miss Thing. Also native language brownie points. 24/10

17. Finland 🇫🇮 Blind Channel - Darkside: Before you come for me for having this at 17th, keep reading. I’m not a big fan of the lyrics but the song is absolutely fantastic. This style of music isn’t something I pull out on a playlist often, but I had my middle fingers up for this one (and pointed at Germany but we’ll discuss later). Deserved top 10 as they rocked it on stage. 20/10

18. The Netherlands 🇳🇱 Jeangu Macrooy - Birth of a New Age: I absolutely do not understand the hate for this song. I was also a huge fan of Grow last year so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised for being generally alone again. The fact it got 0 points in the televote and only 11 in the jury is not surprising but extremely disappointing to me. This song is a masterpiece much like the ones ranked above it. Jeangu, you are amazing and deserved so much better than this. 20/10

19. Belgium 🇧🇪 Hooverphonic - The Wrong Place: Fantastic song but fantastic artists. Always here for a dark pop moment. Gonna go get my own Johnny Cash T-shirt. 15/10

20. Spain 🇪🇸 Blas Cantó - Voy a Quedarme: Such a heartfelt ballad. I enjoyed it quite a bit and don’t understand the hate it has. Didn’t deserve 0 points in the televote. 14/10

21. Denmark 🇩🇰 Fyr og Flamme - Øve Os På Hinanden: Look we all know this song is cheesy but it’s the cheesiest Velveeta queso loco so it’s ranked so high in my opinion. This is a nod to the whacky and weird Eurovision I love. It’s always in my head and I always find myself dancing along. Deserved to be in the final over two of the songs in Semi 2. 13/10

22. Azerbaijan 🇦🇿 Efendi - Mata Hari: As far as the song goes, it’s enjoyable, but the stage show was a hot mess in my opinion. The choreo looked a mess and the different sheer legging configurations on the backup dancers was not the correct fashion choice in my opinion as I was distracted by the thought of why are they all different. Did deserve their spot in the final though. 12/10

23. Moldova 🇲🇩 Natalia Gordienko - Sugar: The studio version of this song is a heavily replayed one on my playlist bc of the drop and dance-ability of the song. However the downfall of the song was it’s live performance. The staging was fine and the choreo was great but those attempted sexy whisper vocals were not the choice to go with. I don’t want to sugar-coat this 😝 so they were terrible. Glad she made it but I felt her position in the final was one of just pure luck. 11/10

24. UK 🇬🇧 James Newman - Embers: The nul points was a huge ass oof. This song isn’t bad but I can see where people didn’t vote for it bc it’s not super memorable in terms of who all was participating this year. I like the song and always sing and dance along. 10/10

25. Israel 🇮🇱 Eden Alene - Set Me Free: This is how to do a revamp and be successful. Eden is a fantastic artist who can clearly sing, but the live performance was not all that sans the whistle tones. Yet the whistle tones aside, the song is lacking a lot. When looking back at the songs available, this one should not have been the selected one. I was always on the fence with this one and still am. 9.5/10

26. Czechia 🇨🇿 Benny Cristo - Omaga: The live definitely hurt this song in the first minute and a half. The second half was absolutely what should have happened in terms of vocals. Still like the song and listen to it often. 9.25/10

27. Ireland 🇮🇪 Leslie Roy - Maps: This song was a victim of a super strong bloodbath and shoddy staging ideas. The song is arresting and a bop. Leslie’s gruff voice mixed with the modernized Irish sounds is a match made. The staging of this song that required Leslie to run along with the beat and the distracting and constantly changing bits of the performance we’re definitely it’s downfall. It didn’t deserve last place in Semi 1 though. 9.25/10

28. Portugal 🇵🇹 The Black Mamba - Love Is On My Side: I am the first to admit that while I don’t like the song, it deserved the final. The staging and atmosphere elevated the song. 9/10

29. Austria 🇦🇹 Vincent Bueno - Amen: In the battle of the Amens, this one wins solely based on the classy and amazing staging. Don’t get me wrong, Slovenia’s was also elevating but this one did it better. 8.5/10

30. Australia 🇦🇺 Montaigne - Technicolor: This song is a fantastic one for studio. The live since the Sydney Mardi Gras performance has been rough and didn’t necessarily improve. I feel bad bc I do really love this song but it definitely didn’t deserve to qualify. This being said, I love Montaigne, and Don’t Break Me was my runner up last year, and I still listen to it as my anthem when I’m feeling down. I wish I could rank this higher but I can’t. 8.5/10

31. Romania 🇷🇴 Roxen - Amnesia: This song is great in the studio but it got old real fast for me and I don’t know why. This mixed with the poor vocals and the bizarre costume:stage combo was really what did this in and got this low in my ranking. 8.25/10

32. Slovenia 🇸🇮 Ana Soklic - Amen: The loser of the Amen battle, but just barely. The song and vocals are better in my opinion but the whole package was just barely edged out in the end. 8/10

33. Latvia 🇱🇻 Samanta Tīna - Moon Is Rising: Look, this song is nowhere near as good as last years. The queeeeeen sashayed away with that annoying trap beat. 8/10

34. North Macedonia 🇲🇰 Vasil - Here I Stand: Leave it to the gays for bringing musical theatre to Eurovision. The song honestly isn’t that special or memorable but he’s higher up bc his stage and voice are amazing. 7/10

35. Norway 🇳🇴 Tix - Fallen Angel: A great message on mental health outside of the song and Tix seems like a quality fella but I do not like the song. I preferred it in Norwegian. And this low ranking is not at all influenced over him beating out Keiino (but maybe a slight bit tho). 5/10

36. Estonia 🇪🇪 Uku Suviste - The Lucky One: While this was 1000% better than last years entry, it still was relatively boring. The stage was equally as boring so sorry Estonia, but you didn’t make the mark. 4.5/10

37. Poland 🇵🇱 Rafael - The Ride: This throwback to the 80s was a bad one. The attempt at a one hit wonder vibe really hurt it along with the artist’s terrible vocals. Also half the time, he was behind the pyro and relying on backup vocals. 4/10

38. Georgia 🇬🇪 Tornike Kipiani - You: You really should not have to wait so long for the more upbeat rock ending of this. If it was that last 30 seconds for 3 minutes, it would be much better. A definite step back from last year. 1/10

39. Germany 🇩🇪 Jendrick - I Don’t Feel Hate: Jendrick might not feel hate but I do bc that is all I feel when this song comes on. 0.5/10