#and what parts of the franchise they were made to appear in. but i feel like people who say that stuff dont care about that

[sonknuxadow]

ok as someone who has read archie And idw i genuinely dont understand where all the lanolin and sally comparisons are coming from. i often see people call lanolin a sally ripoff or say that shes an attempt at replacing sally or just otherwise compare the two and like. yeah they both hang around sonics friends and are leaders of their respective teams but they definitely are not similar enough to justify those comments. i think you guys just cant see a girl sonic character do anything cool without crying that she replaced sally

[dalishious]

Zevran Arainai is an Underrated Delight

There is so much depth to Zevran Arainai’s writing that is often overlooked in favour of either sexually objectifying him or ignoring him altogether… which is kind of ironic, considering that’s how so many people in his life have treated him within universe. And then, of course, there’s the biphobia directed at his character back when Dragon Age: Origins first released. He was a joke in many Gamer Bro circles about how they killed him for flirting with their male protagonist. It’s such a shame, really. Because personally speaking, Zevran is one of my favourite characters in the entire Dragon Age franchise.

Zevran’s introduction to the game immediately sets him apart from every other character who is capable of joining the party. He first appears as an enemy; an assassin hired to kill the Warden by Loghain, the Warden’s political opponent. You immediately have the option to either kill him, or add him to the party roster. Zevran does not initially join the Warden’s cause out of the goodness of his heart; he does it because he knows that the Antivan Crows who essentially own him – which we’ll get to – will kill him for failing to assassinate your character. This really paints his original placement within the group’s dynamics in an interesting light. No one really trusts him; Alistair and Morrigan both outright voice this. Zevran himself believes he is only safe with the Warden so long as he makes himself useful, per how he sells his worthiness to the Warden when trying to convince them to let him join. There’s tension there that really makes getting to know him extra interesting, because before anything else, you need to build trust. So, when he’s finally ready to start revealing parts about his personal history, you the player really get to feel like you’ve earned something special from his character.

Zevran’s mother was Dalish, but fell in love with an elf from the city and left her clan behind. Unfortunately, Zevran’s father was assassinated, leaving her with nothing but his debts to pay. She turned to sex work, until she died giving birth to Zevran, and all that debt fell onto him in turn. Zevran was raised by the sex workers in the brothel his mother worked at, until the age of seven, when the Antivan Crow Guildmaster Talav Arainai bought him for seven sovereigns; one of eighteen children made into “compradi” (recruits) that year. In his training, Zevran was tortured in a variety of ways, and in his own words, “taught to know nothing else but murder”. Of those eighteen, Zevran was one of two who survived the training, the other being a human boy named Taliesen. Then, a woman named Rinnala (“Rinna”) was placed into House Arainai from the Azul Contract that dictated the Crows were to take in unwanted bastard children of the Antivan Crown. For a time being, Zevran, Taliesen, and Rinnala worked well together as a professional and romantic trio. But when Zevran and Taliesen were tricked into believing Rinnala betrayed the Crows in an internal Crow scheme, they killed her. When they learned otherwise, Zevran took it particularly rough, combined with the realization of how little he himself mattered, too.

The trauma that Zevran has experienced is something he often makes jokes about, or speaks detached from. I’ve been called out many times on doing the same thing with my own trauma, and I know it’s a pretty commonplace response in others as well. That makes it feel all the more real; his responses are so authentically relatable. It’s also in a way, I find a little therapeutic to get to comfort a character whose survival mechanism has been to downplay his trauma for so long. The Warden is able to tell Zevran that what he’s been through sounds horrible, and even though Zevran tries to excuse things as not being that bad, you gain significant approval from him, just for showing him sympathy. Sympathy is something he’s severely lacked in his life. For all Zevran jokes about his traumatizing experiences, they clearly left a mark on him. Zevran eventually admits to the Warden that he did not actually anticipate being able to kill them, and that what he really wanted in taking on the job was to die. Again, sorry to get personal here for a moment, but I too have attempted suicide, and honestly I still struggle with ideation sometimes. And yet again I must say that I find something really beautiful in a character like Zevran, who is able to find peace and happiness on the other side of surviving such a thing.

As for Zevran’s romance… oh, Zevran’s romance path is such a delight. He is so multidimensional in that he’s very flirtatious and fun, while also showing genuine vulnerability in time. He admits that his role as a Crow meant he was encouraged to use seduction as a tool. His only experience with a true relationship ended very poorly, with Rinna’s death and a wedge forming between him and Taliesen, who he is eventually forced to kill too in the game. One of my favourite moments in the entire game, is when you invite him to your tent and he says no… and if you accept his consensual rights, that is what changes everything for him and the Warden’s relationship. Zevran feels safe and loved, and he gets to be happy. As of Dragon Age: Inquisition, a romanced Zevran is still at the Warden’s side, too, if they’re alive.

I love Zevran Arainai so much. He truly is an amazingly well done character, and deserves so much more respect and interest than he gets.

*Sourced from in-game dialogue and World of Thedas vol. 2

[imyourbratzdoll]

𝒊 𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆…

part 4 of 🌧️welcome to hell🌧️

summary - you finally made your decision.

warning - angst, swearing, mentions of cheating, attempt at gaslighting, betrayal, disappointment.

the gif I use isn't mine, headers by me.

part 1 - part 2 - part 3 - part 5

Warnings and Reminders - Please do not plagiarise, copy, repost/republish, adapt, or translate any of my work on any social media platforms, apps, or third-party sites. The only platforms I post my work on are: Tumblr and Wattpad. I do not own any character of any franchise (Marvel etc.) All my works are fiction and may be dark or triggering content: READ ALL WARNINGS BEFORE PROCEEDING.

You had woken up the next day, and you just laid there. You couldn’t move, your entire being ached, you were exhausted both physically, emotionally, and mentally. You had never felt this exhausted in your whole life, you never felt this broken and stuck. 

You knew you had to choose. The weight on your shoulders was bringing you down and you didn’t know if you could go on any longer without making a choice, a decision that could change your life forever. 

You could either pretend and live on in an obvious one–sided marriage while your husband continues to sleep around with your EX–best friend and any other woman he has on the side OR you could confront him and leave, making him sign the divorce papers that you would have to get a lawyer for the moment you left. But it would mean you would have to start all over again. 

You flip onto your back and stare up at the ceiling, the memories from last night flash through your mind again, your husband and ex–best friend fucking each other in the bathroom, them fucking while you “slept”. You don’t think you could do this again nor could you pretend that everything was okay. You could hear them from the lounge room, their voices the only thing filling the quiet home. They sounded happy as they bantered and teased each other. 

You slowly slide to the edge of the bed and sit up. Your eyes connect in the mirror, and you finally look at yourself. You didn’t recognise the woman staring back at you, she seemed so lifeless, so broken. Where had the old you gone? Was she still there? You could see the sadness and rage swirling beneath your eyes, followed by bags and dried tears underneath. 

You were so sick of crying. When did you become so weak over a man?

Everything seemed to click when those beautiful blue eyes appeared in your mind. You could finally feel yourself think more clearly, you finally knew your decision. You weren’t making your decision because of those eyes, but they seemed to help clarify what you wanted. You could feel your soul tugging as the unknown man appeared in your thoughts. 

With one last look at yourself and a deep breath later, you turned. Ready. 

And finally, you chose yourself. 

“You got this.” You say and you will forever say it even with tears in your eyes. You move swiftly around the room, grabbing a suitcase from your cupboard and laying it down on the bed. You begin to pack, folding your clothes neatly before you place them in. You move onto shoes, accessories, makeup, perfume, and anything else that was yours. Once you zipped up your suitcase, you looked around the room. Your eyes caught in the mirror, and you finally felt freer. 

You grabbed your suitcase and spare outfit and left the bedroom. Resting the suitcase against the front door, you head into the spare bathroom as your other had been tainted with your husband’s infidelity and your ex–best friend’s betrayal. 

You had taken your time in the shower, washing the pain and sadness from your body. You even took your time making yourself look good, wanting him to regret his choices the moment you left him. With a final look in the mirror, you head out of the bathroom and into the lounge room. Your soon–to–be ex–husband and ex–best friend sitting too close for comfort, the sadness and anger that had been bubbling over had slowly disappeared as a blanket of numbness covered you. You could finally focus without your emotions getting in the way. 

“Somehow, I expected that this would happen eventually.” Your voice fills the room and the two on the couch jump apart, eyes wide as their heads whip towards you. You stare blankly, your heart still hurts but it was good. It was reminding you of what they had done. It was true, the old you had expected this would happen, but you were so caught up in thinking he loved you that you were blinded by him and his lies. “Given your history, I should have known better.” 

Johnny chuckles nervously, looking between you and Sarah. He wasn’t expecting this, but maybe he could lie and get out of it. Make you think it’s all in your head. “Babe, what are you talking about? I haven’t done anything!” He had to be careful, you hadn’t said what it was and if he wanted to lie, he couldn’t give anything away by saying the wrong thing. 

“So, you didn’t cheat on me?” You decided to play dumb. You remembered who you were, and the game changed. You wouldn’t let anyone make you forget again. 

Johnny scoffs. “Of course not, Babe! I love you! We’re just friends.” It was at that moment that he knew he fucked up.

“Just friends, huh?” You laugh. “Well, just friends don’t practically sit on top of each other especially when one is married, just friends don’t flirt with one another in a not so platonic way. Just friends don’t fuck each other in the bathroom while one friends wife is showering, just friends don’t slip out of bed when they think their wife is sleeping to fuck their friend in the other room. I’ve never had any friends like that, Johnny.” Your glare sharpens as you spit his name out with venom. 

His mouth opens and closes, and Sarah’s eyes widen. “How did you find out?” 

“You fucked her in OUR house! How do you think I found out?!” Your anger began to push against the numbness, wanting to be unleashed “I also remember everything. Every time you’d leave, look at another woman only for you and her to disappear a few minutes later, how you’d always be on your phone, OUR wedding.” You watched as they paled at the last part. 

“Babe! It was never supposed to get this far! Trust me, I’m so sorry!” He gets up and moves closer to you. Hurt flashes through his eyes when you back away from him, the thought of him touching you again disgusted you. 

“Get away from me! You’re not sorry, you’re just sorry you got caught! So don’t lie to me! I can’t believe I trusted you.” You could feel it, the blanket of numbness was slowly slipping away, and the tears returned, but they didn’t fall like before. 

“Did you ever really love me...?” Your gaze shifted, your ex–best friend didn’t even look guilty, it was like a weight lifted off her shoulders. What did you ever do to her? “Do you love her?” 

“Yes, I love you! I don’t love her, please believe me. It was just sex! She means nothing to me.” You could see the lie in his eyes, you wondered when he fell in love with her. You wondered if any of it was real. You wondered if his soul tugged the same way yours did when you bumped into that man, but if it did. Why didn’t he just leave? Why did they have to hurt you so bad? Why did they have to break you? 

You shake your head. “I don’t believe you.” You swallow down the lump in your throat. “You made a promise. The same day you made that promise you had your dick in someone else. Tell me, was any part of this at least real?” You stared into his eyes, watching him think. You sighed, “Do you have any regrets doing this to me?” A part of you needed to know.

Instead of answering your question, he responded with. “Do we really have to end it all?” Your eyes ached from the weight of unshed tears. He was your home, did he not understand? But, you weren’t his and it was time for you to go.

With a heavy sigh, you ignore his question like he did yours and pull off your wedding and engagement ring. “I loved you in this lifetime… I won’t make that mistake in the next.” With shaky hands you push the rings into his chest, letting go of them as his hand comes up. Hoping to catch yours, but instead he only catches the rings. “Goodbye, Johnny. I guess our story ends here…” You walk out of the room and towards the door, grabbing your things. This was it…

Maybe she was his happy ending. Hopefully you could find yours.

thank you for reading!

feedback and reblogs are greatly appreciated.

[renthony]

Lost in the Remaster: Star Trek, Vintage Special Effects, and the Charm of Old Media

by Ren Basel renbasel.com

Originally created by Gene Roddenberry, Star Trek is a franchise that spans decades. From the original series of 1966 to current shows such as Lower Decks, it stands as a titan of television and pop culture. The real world has undergone incredible change since Star Trek’s first appearance, yet nerds everywhere still find entertainment, inspiration, and hope in its classic episodes. Recently, along with my husband and best friend, I decided I wanted to attempt the gauntlet of watching the entire franchise from beginning to end, revisiting favorites and finally checking out the ones I missed. Media and fandom studies are my passion, after all, and Star Trek is a foundational part of modern American nerd culture.

Starting with the original series proved more difficult than expected. Living in a tiny apartment, we don’t have much space for DVDs, so Star Trek wasn’t in our existing collection. The local public library didn’t have copies, either, and putting in a purchase request doesn’t guarantee it will be made available. My family doesn’t have the funds to pay for every single streaming service on the market, and Star Trek isn’t available on any we do have access to. Piracy was starting to look like the only option, but even that fell flat when we couldn’t find a version with subtitles. Finally we dug it up officially and with subtitles, for free via PlutoTV, but there were still limitations: PlutoTV only streams season one, and season one is only available in the remastered edition that replaced the original special effects with new visuals.

It wasn’t ideal, but, hey, it was Star Trek.

Watching just one episode a week gave us enough time to scrape together savings to get what we really wanted for seasons two and three: the official BluRay release, which includes both remastered and original-release versions of each episode. The remasters are fine, but as a lover of media history and practical effects, I’m always disappointed to lose a chance to appreciate the originals. It doesn’t matter how good it might look, remasters are never as much fun to me as matte paintings, camera tricks, and whatever the prop department could pull off with ten dollars and some glue.

Finally having the BluRays in hand for season two only affirmed my love of vintage practical effects. Seeing the Enterprise in her original glory, before she was ever rendered in digital form, felt like opening a time capsule. I love time capsules. My favorite pieces of media are always those which capture a moment in time, showcasing the aesthetics, concerns, and culture of the time and place they were created. Star Trek: the Original Series is rooted in the late sixties, when mainstream culture in the United States was experiencing immense upheaval and social change. That context is written all over the show. The vintage effects add to it, grounding it in a very specific time and place. Updating the show’s effects takes away some of that 60s aesthetic, and while some may see it as making the show more timeless, I don’t care for it. To me, seeing what they could pull off before modern technology is half the fun of watching old shows. The ingenuity and creativity of propmakers, makeup artists, and set designers working on shoestring budgets is unparalleled.

To be clear, digital effects are also done by skilled professionals who deserve much more respect and many more labor protections. There are some truly stunning works created with digital tools. That said, I hate when digital effects are used to cover up the practical effects that came before. It feels disrespectful to the original artists, as if telling them their work wasn’t good enough; as if their work was just a placeholder until something better could come along and fix it. Practical effects aren’t a placeholder, they’re an art form in their own right, and that art form is one for which I have deep appreciation.

It frustrates me that the original, non-remastered episodes were such a pain for us to access, but I’m very glad to have added them to my personal media collection. No matter what future tweaks Star Trek’s rights holders might make, I can always pop in our personal copies to enjoy the Enterprise and her crew in all their vintage, “outdated” glory. If you’re also too young to remember the show’s original airing, and you have the opportunity to watch the unedited version, I highly suggest you do. Watching the version that aired in 1966 gives the show a charm that no amount of remastering can ever match.

_

Like this essay? Tip me on Ko-Fi, pledge to my Patreon, or commission an essay on the topic of your choice!

[give-some-lemons]

Watching/playing in horror genre with Sylus

~first of all he’s a busy man and despite the fact that he likes horror genre, usually he just don’t have enough time for watching movies giving more preference to books. He’s favorite would definitely be Stephen King for that atmosphere in his artworks.

~he’s a kind of person that will chuckle or at least smile at characters deaths, especially if it’s a stupid one like stepped on “the most obvious trap he’s ever saw” and he’s more than glad if you’re same, discussing how dumb heroes are for coming up with those decisions.

~he secretly waits for scary moments cause he loves when you cling to him all tensed seeking for his protection and comfort when monster’s face appears on the screen with a loud scream. But if you’re a tough one, that cannot be affected so easily don’t worry, after some time you’ll find yourself in his arms pressed against strong chest anyway.

~he would be glad to watch all the screen adaptations of Stephen King’s novels, even if he doesn’t like any of it, telling how much better it was on the book pages, but he has favorites like “Carrie” and “It”.

~movies about serial killers is his top of most enjoyable ones, sympathizing Myers and Ghost Face and considering how society itself made a monsters out of them. And that is the reason why you often need to put it on pause for you two to meet in a debate battles on that topic.

~if we’re talking about games he’s not much of a player but of course he will do that with you cause obviously that’s what you’d like. It takes some time for you to explain him how to play but since he’s a “talented student” he’s very fast at learning.

~for the reason that not so much horror games are a multiplayer ones, you play in turns, even if at first he prefers watching you, taking his turn only in case if some moments are too scary for you but after not so long mostly you will be the one to just sit, often giving him advice.

~I feel like this man would like “Resident evil 7” and first parts of this franchise, cause the atmosphere in some places there would keep him all in tense, plus he seems to really like the idea of Umbrella, an evil company with their terrible experiments on human body and you already were regretting of giving him ideas for his next business.

~even though he loves to control everything he seems to enjoy games with an unpredictable jump-scares like “Layers of Fear” or “Mortuary Assistant” that can throw him off course for a couple of seconds. And it’s funny for you to watch how carefully and slowly he’s trying to turn back not to be taken by surprise after the last jump-scare.

~”Phasmophobia” is next on your list, a game that was terrifying for you first times you played it. But despite your expectations you almost always were the one to die first while your man just sat there holding a laugh, hidden in the closet like he never even entered the haunted house. Newcomers are lucky not to go out on the ghosts, I guess.

~not a secret that he adores the feeling when somebody’s life fully depends of his choice, no matter if that’s a real life or a game, that’s why he enjoys “Until Dawn” along with “Dark Anthology Pictures”. That thrill of power and control that he has over these virtual humans make you feel very sorry for them. And don’t even doubt, if he doesn’t like the character they will not make it until the end, at least alive.

~he likes horror games/movies with a deep meaning, you know the ones after which you usually sat on one place for some time reflecting on what you’ve just seen or played. At that point you and your partner are talking sharing your thoughts and considering all the ways how differently it could be if characters did this instead of that.

~he would love as well physiological thrillers like “The Shining” and “The Babadook”, movies where the story is told through the thoughts of psychologically stressed characters, revealing their distorted mental perception of the world and how what seemed like a nice, not remarkable at any point person goes all the way straight to insanity.

~not a big fan of a body horror, as he thinks that it’s the easiest way to impress people with just an image of blood and organs everywhere on the screen. As was said before, he appreciates people’s emotions and the atmosphere, that puts viewers or players in a primary terror.

[wa1kerbait4592]

planet of the apes 🦧

dude… i have now seen the new kingdom of the planet of the apes in cinema twice and the first time around i wasn’t all that impressed and i left the theatre kinda disappointed but the second time around i left a little more impressed and a little less disappointed.

the movie was still weak compared to the first three films, (the rise, dawn and war) but im glad it was made.

as a whole i believe this franchise is criminally underrated on multiple different levels. The poetic nature of the films is something i don’t think i would ever articulate or write on paper to perfectly capture how beautifully made these films are, they are just chefs kiss

proximus caesar was a funny villain that i think deserved more screen time and back story, it makes me kinda sad to think that we wont really see his character again.

the symbolism that links all four films together is incredibly well done and throughout the entire series there are crumbs of the films that came before them, which is a part of the reason why i love these films so much. i like how they made noa so similar to caesar, not only in his appearance but in his characteristics. i like to believe it was intentional that noa and caesar (particularly in dawn of the planet of the apes with malcolm) cautiously but willingly trusted a human. noa is so incredibly similar to caesar it would be criminal to suggest otherwise.

dude these films are so visually well done you almost forget you are watching cgi. the visual effects alone blow my mind but the accuracy and attention to detail when it comes to the mannerisms of the apes is out of this world and deserves more recognition. in terms of cinematography planet of the apes have always been amazing at beautifully capturing emotions from all the apes and even better at showing the wonders of a post-human run world. the forests and surroundings that the apes find themselves in continue to amaze me, especially in this newest film were we see a variety of different landscapes.

as much as i am growing to love kingdom of the planet of the apes, i feel as though we could have waited for noa and his story. i think cornelius and the others that were left behind after caesars death deserved a closing chapter. i would have loved to know how the community handled the loss of their leader and saviour and how they all moved on. also i feel as though we needed back story on how the apes separated and became different clans spread all across the continent. as an example i would have also loved to see how the misinterpretation of caesar and what he stood for became so strong and wide spread, as well as why noas clan and their elders knew nothing of caesar or chose to leave him out of their history. there were a lot of open ends and unfinished stories that deserved more screen time, but in saying that, that could mean an eternity of story telling that everyone may not want to see.

at the end of kingdom of the planet of the apes they left it open for another film which i am looking forward to seeing where they take story line. are they going to fully circle around to the original films were they capture more humans and start to use them as slaves or will the story begin to get repetitive? i hope repetition won’t sneak its way into these films like is has with so many other franchises, but we can only hope right?

anyways-

long live monkeys… i love monkeys and we need more monkey movies

also- i know i don’t really do this sort of this thing on this account but i was beginning to genuinely tweak if i didn’t word vomit my thoughts on these movies <3

[g0ldgauntlet]

Hilichurls and "Tribal" Portrayals.

While we're talking about Natlan, I also want to mention how awful it is that a section of the fandom tried to make us all out to be crazy years ago for pointing out how racist the portrayal of the Hilichurls are.

Quick content warning for mentions of slavery, colonization, genocide, and anti-Indigenous racism. (Image description is in alt text)

Hoyo used Indigenous people as references for these in-game enemies, which we literally have video proof of, provided by the company itself (Timestamp: 1:30).

The Hilichurls were constantly belittled by Teyvat's people, with an Inazuma npc likening them to demons. I remember Paimon acting like the items they collected were meaningless or pieces of junk during the earlier parts of the game.

They become a lot more sympathetic later due to their actual origins in-game (which I'm sure @phoenix-creates can confirm for me because I know you're farther ahead in Genshin than I am right now), sure, but I always found it strange that Hoyo used Indigenous cultures to portray these "monsters" who have lost their sense of selves (meanwhile their human forms are white), as if to imply that Indigenous cultures are more "wild" or "savage."

Genshin fans of color, since 2020, have pointed out the racist undertones that Teyvat's people were perpetuating against the Hilichurls due to them acting the same way that racists irl act towards non-White cultures, but they were told that they were overreacting and this was swept under the rug as a result. The very next year, it's brought up again with more people finding out about it, and we were still being told that we're overreacting.

So now that we're at Natlan, is it seriously that hard to believe that Hoyo straight up just doesn't respect Indigenous cultures? Black (and many brown) cultures too, because it's very telling that Iansan, the Natlan character with the darkest skin so far, is given a more stereotypically "tribal" look on her design with a bunch of bones used as her accessories despite that not being what her actual inspiration looks like.

(Artist for picture on the right: vieirapx on Instagram)

Sucrose has confirmed in her "Something to Share" voiceline that she collects Hilichurl bones, which is similar to colonizers taking the bones of dead Indigenous people with this added context.

Also, please read or reread the Teyvat Travel Guide Vol. 1. Alice basically confirms that she wants to enslave the Hilichurls for labor and also feed the weaker ones to the stronger ones.

That latter point is cannibalism. I know that many people are fans of Alice, but a lot of what she talks about in the first guide is why I don't like her.

Yes, it can be argued that Indigenous cultures are not the only inspiration for the Hilichurls, as it's been said that they may take inspiration from goblins, Bokoblins from the Zelda franchise, and the Amanojuku from Japanese mythology. Answer me this question, though.

Why is Hoyo capable of referencing a creature and not a human being when it comes to the Japanese inspiration for the Hilichurls, but this does not apply to the Indigenous references? It's dehumanizing, and it feels like another double-standard that needs to be addressed.

Hoyo has casually made black and brown cultures in Genshin appear to be less civilized and more "tribal" compared to our White and East Asian peers, both with the human characters and the non-human ones. Sumeru's quests and enemy npcs had multiple examples of this, with the Traveler and Jeht even destroying almost the entire Tanit tribe with the narrative justification being that, conveniently, most or all of them were selfish, bloodthirsty, and manipulative (Jeht's profile on the wiki page goes into what happened with more depth). They had to die because the tribe was dangerous - even though the main problem seems to be Babel - and Jeht's white, blonde companion needed to help save everyone from these evil, power-hungry savages.

(Sidenote: I think this is the second time overall that Hoyo has come up with an excuse to justify Traveler committing genocide on an entire group of people, with the first being the Iwakura Clan.)

I'm sure that the same thing is going to happen with Natlan's quests and npcs because Hoyo has always been weird about the portrayal of black and brown-inspired characters. The question is not whether any of the creatures or humans from specific groups are bad, suspicious, or designed to fit a specific image. We know the answer to that. The real question is why they are portrayed like this, and why it keeps happening more commonly to the black and brown cast members compared to our lighter peers.

[valentinxd]

MAYBE IN ANOTHER UNIVERSE

Prompt: You happen to be an actress in John Wick 3 and had made small appearances in the first two movies, with minimal roles. Now having a small part in the third installment of the famous franchise you get to spend some time with your co-star who is a little too much in character....

Reader has blonde hair and is nicknamed Barbie

Pairing: Keanu Reeves? x Female Reader

Warnings: I also took a bit of freedom and changed bits of the movie for my own purpose. bit yandere behavior, age gap, slight stalking, reader is 29 and Keanu is 55. author is a filmmaker and knows a little too much about how the film world is so I apologize for it. Not proofread

Note: this is my first time posting on this blog but I had another one years ago writing other fanfics but I finally caved and wanted to join this cute little group of babes in the keanuverse. I love reading your work and I enjoy looking for more <3

You were 20 years old when you landed a role in John Wick. You had heard of the name as the comics were circulated among your friends in college and the actor who was attached to it. Keanu Reeves. A long-time crush and fan of his work you pursued acting with hopes of paying off your school and instead found yourself falling in love with it. Despite your family’s concern you traded in your anatomy books of veterinary medicine to the latest stage plays as you devoured words and changed identities. You were a natural.

You had a few small roles here and there, then after a part in a feature film did one of the department heads recommend you to a casting director looking for extras for a new action flick. You accepted it as you were kind to everyone you met which got you jobs easier.

The part you played was small, in the first movie you would be an extra in the Continental Hotel - a hit woman who sat in the lobby and was seen again in the bar, no lines, easy.

Your first day of shooting you were swept away by the glamor of Hollywood magic and several coffees from the crafty table as you were dressed, pressed, and sparkled. Your first role was to sit in a chair and read a book. it didn’t help that you were nervous as it was going to be a long day with multiple scenes. You were in the lobby with a prop suitcase and dressed in a simple dark but stylish outfit as required for your role and making sure you didn’t stand out from the star of the film.

When the director called action and sound was rolling did your heart hammer in your chest, in walked Keanu Reeves in full character and you did everything in power to do as you were told, yet you didn’t stop yourself from stealing a small glance or two.

You were surprised you were allowed to do so but since it was the scene where the famous hitman returned after five long years it went unnoticed, well almost unnoticed. Despite his lines with his costar you could feel someone staring and when you looked up from your book did you see Keanu Reeves staring directly at you, with what appeared to be a saddened expression. Your face was red as you did your best to ignore whatever was going on and stay professional, but your inner fangirl was screaming.

You went through the second scene a few days later and while in the crowd of the dimly lit bar you were chatting with an extra as you were all told to “chat and mingle” to seem realistic. This time Keanu had passed by you with the camera following as he went though his blocking and he once again looked at you with a very intense stare.

You assumed he was just in character, and for the few moments you had for the first two movies were small did they leave some sort of impact on the fans.

Each scene Keanu had passed you or looked your way fans picked up on that and immediately speculated theories and who your character was to the famous Baba Yaga. This prompted the writers to get you a smaller part in the third movie, which meant your two measly scenes of standing and sitting meant a fully fleshed out character and it meant interacting with Keanu Reeves.

You spent the next week freaking out and jumping up and down excited and giddy. You were so focused on your career that you put the thought of meeting your celebrity crush on the back burner.

John Wick 3 was in full swing and you were now near thirty. Almost a full decade had passed since you were first cast and the franchise held a special place in your heart and almost seemed like a second home. You had garnered a few more small roles in local tv shows and and even a few episodes of Euphoria. You recently got a small part in a horror movie filming later on that year as it dragged in production hell but right now you were starting your first major role, even if it was a small part.

You were an assassin given the nickname Barbie who was notorious for costumes and makeup being able to disguise yourself as anyone and anything - within human limits. Your character, despite knowing the risks helped John Wick escape certain peril and ends up crashing with your character while you tend to his wounds and help him escape, unfortunately, this comes at the cost of Barbie’s life as she is supposed to be gunned down.

Yet two weeks before filming you were given a new script, you could tell the director and producer were having a time, whatever was going on they were exhausted and both upset.

“Here’s your new call sheet and script, ignore scene 3 page 9 line 52 please I havent had time to print it.” The assistant was clearly just as exhausted and it made you worry.

“You doing okay?” You ask taking a drink from your water and he shakes his head.

“Cast and Crew shouldn’t be doing each other’s job babe.” The assistant had been an industry staple for decades.

“Who’s making changes?” You ask and he looks around as if a ghost was near while he fiddled with your script.

“America’s sweetheart Reeves, he’s very adamant on some changes. But you didn’t hear shit from me.” He said, “Gus! Where the hell are those apple boxes?!” He turned and stormed off just as Keanu entered the room with the director and cinematographer. You immediately felt small and insecure as you stood with three very powerful men.

You spent a good hour going over lines, body language and what went where. Finally the crew was in place and your start to a career as an actor was just beginning...

“And action.” The director called and you swallowed.

“Thanks for helping me back there.” Keanu, now in character stated quietly. “But you shouldn’t have done that.”

The fake blood looked real as you were bent over a shirtless Keanu stitching up his wound. The art department did a good job as it all looked real.

“Yeah well, you helped me out a time or two, who knew that mob king was into costume design?” You say in character. Both of you continued to go through the scene, his dark eyes never leaving your form.

He sat up and when you turned you two were face to face, you knew his character was deeply devoted to Helen and you knew that in the second movie it was hinted that he had some sort of arrangement with Gianna but never was it mentioned that John Wick had a soft spot for Barbie.

“You’re young and new.” His dark eyes studied you and you were sure those words had another deeper meaning that only he would know.

“Are you saying I’m not now?” You smack his shoulder earning a wince from him as you hit the fake wound.

“Not what I meant Barbie.” He grunted as you profusely apologized.

“You could die for this.” He said, still as close to you as he dared. You could tell by the small movements his hands made, the way his eyes only focused on you, how he spoke, it was softer and gentle.

You wondered if his character was just being kind to a young girl trapped in a dark world like he was but those fan theories you read late in the night didn’t quell your curiosity as you rewatched both movies picking up on his change. You had limited contact with this guy and were an anomaly to his stoic persona for some reason.

“I’m used to being elusive, old man.” You twirl a lock of blond hair and he tilted his head only slightly with a smile.

“Yeah.”

You both got through the scene before having to go to hair and makeup for the fake blood, this was the part you were going to be taken out and your character despite how small she was you found yourself grieving a bit for her. Barbie had a fully fleshed-out story, life and history that the writers created and you added on. You were surprised at how invested they were for even a minor character.

You got done with wardrobe and headed to set when the lights went out. The stage was quiet and you saw flashlights and a generator kick on the storm lights.

You heard the director yell about a power outage as crew rushed around trying to figure out a solution fast. As you walked in the dark with your phone as a light someone grabbed your arm.

“Are you alright?” You heard the soft voice of Keanu Reeves as he reached out to grab you.

“Jesus you scared me!” Your heart pounding in your chest.

“Sorry about that, just didn’t want you trip over some wires.” You noticed a small bundle of cables on the floor and were surprised they were just out in the open until you realized you were in a crew area and wandered too far in the dark.

“Come on let’s get you somewhere wire free.” He joked as he led you toward a dressing room. It was empty save for a few costumes and scripts. It was eerie being a semi dark room and then seeing your reflection, the makeup team did an outstanding job with the fake blood and it didn’t feel sticky or gross, but you sweating did ruin a bit of the carefully applied spatter.

“Mr. Reeves why did you bring me here?” This was roughly the first time you two were talking, outside of the normal greeting and asking if you were okay did you find yourself alone with him.

“Just wanted you safe is all.”

“I think I’ll be okay from a few cables and the lights should be on soon.” You reply with a smile and he tilted his head, a little too much like John Wick.

“It might be awhile.” He stated, you swore you saw a change in his facial expression and you chalked it up to his years of experience.

“Is this a normal occurrence?” You asked fidgeting with the costume ring you were wearing.

“Not like this, this gives me enough time.” He stated so casually and you looked up a bit surprised.

“Please tell me you’re joking?” You had hoped with how he was acting but you had realized you never met the Keanu Reeves the internet gushed over, the sweet bass playing single man who loved dogs and motorcycles.

This Keanu was a little different. A little too much like his smart and skilled character.

“You take method acting a little too far.” You said, attempting as a joke but more in a bit of fear.

“Oh?” He put his hands in his pockets and there was a realization that maybe you weren’t talking to a sane person.

“Yeah, you seem a little too invested in this character.” You state, “Have you thought of maybe not being John Wick for a few minutes?"

The man before you studied you with an intensity you had only seen on a screen, the same intensity John Wick only had. He stood and grabbed you by the arm and yanked you close to him. You gasped and cried out in protest but his hardened gaze silenced you.

“I didn’t get this far to watch you die again.” He said.

“Die again?” You were still trying to process his actions and if he had anything to do with the power outage.

“I’m not letting this universe dictate my life and I’m sure as hell not letting you go.” He used his jacket sleeve to wipe away the fake blood and crush be dammed your costar was nuts.

“I don’t think so.” You try to pull away, “Listen I have no idea what the hell you’re going on about with your other universe bullshit but people will notice we’re missing and -“ Before you could finish your sentence a rag was shoved in your face and you soon collapsed against your costar.

Once the power was back on the crew spent the remainder of the day looking for you as a very confused Keanu Reeves was found in a locked room. He couldn’t say exactly who locked him in there only that he was sure the person looked a bit too much like his own reflection...

[positivelybeastly]

I wanted to get your thoughts on a topic surrounding Beast that has personally annoyed me. I've never liked how Hank is usually seen as the oldest man in any room he's in by fans. Despite being part of the same original class as Scott, Warren, Jean, and Bobby, Hank is always treated by fans like he's around 60-70 while characters like Scott and Jean are still treated and written like they're in their 20s. I partially blame the Fox movies messing with the generations and ages and having Hank as an older mentor to people he's around the same age as in the comics. I partially blame how Hank became progressively less of a man of action as the comics continued while his peers were continuing to run around doing athletic feats.

But it is disheartening when I see fancasts for movies and Hank is always at least 20-30 years older than the casts for characters like Scott and Jean. One positive about our current clone Hank is that he's unquestionably young again. The Infinity Comics even poked fun at this with Scott saying Hank didn't want to play basketball because he was "Afraid of losing to his elders." But what do you think? Does this bother you as well or do you not think it's a big deal?

So, I completely understand where you're coming with this, and it does bother me a bit, too. I think there's a whole ass confluence of factors that have led to this impression, but you've correctly identified at least a few of them.

The Fox movies. Replete with inaccuracies as they are, it feels almost churlish to rag on them for making Hank notably older than everyone else in his generation because there is just so much wrong with those films, but, as the entry point into the franchise for a whole generation of fans, and having created a whole sub-genre of X-Men fandom that occasionally touches the comics but otherwise stays hermetically sealed, it's created this persistent impression that Hank is Old.

Kelsey Grammer was born in 1955. That made him 34 years older than Shawn Ashmore, 27 years older than Anna Paquin, 18 years older than James Marsden, 13 years older than Hugh Jackman, 11 years older than Halle Berry, 9 years older than Famke Janssen - he's only 15 years younger than Patrick Stewart, and only 16 years younger than Ian McKellen.

That is a huge age gap, and it's not just the actual age gap, either, it's the kind of performance that Grammer gave, which is very much in tune with TAS Beast - he is not a very youthful and exuberant Hank McCoy. He feels older, distinguished, he wears a lot of suits, he's only in one real action scene, and even his costume is less revealing than almost any of his comic costumes.

No, I'm serious, it has an effect!

The version of Hank from the Marvels is played by Grammer 20 years after X3, and yet I think it's undeniable that he looked and felt younger in the movie made way later. Partly it's thanks to the CGI, but I also think the fact that he dresses in a pair of shorts and a lab coat plays into it, too. Young people wear less, old people wear more, generally speaking.

And that's not necessarily a problem, because Grammer's performance is excellent, and there are touches that make it feel right for this version of the character in X3, like the fact that he's notably fit but appears to have gone a little to seed, and the fact that he's straight up in government now. But. A popular performance is a performance that gets remembered, and codified.

Hoult being the only member of the actual O5 in First Class and being carried through those movies as an original X-Man, with characters like Scott and Jean being introduced in Apocalypse as very, very young teens, only exacerbated the problem, on top of being a version of the character that doesn't have much resemblance to Hank McCoy anyway.

There's a whole subsection of the X-Men fandom that only really interacts with the series through those movies and writes about those movies - check AO3 sometime, and see how much is still being produced for the XMCU fandom, even though the main series is over and has been for years at this point. For them, Hank is only ever one way - Old. And even when he wasn't old, he was stodgy.

Which leads us to the next problem - the fact that Hank, often, will act much older than he is. It's glaringly obvious especially when you look at 60s Hank, who's already contending with the fact that young people in the 60s looked like they were 40 despite being 16; on top of that handicap, he's canonically the oldest of the O5 (by a whopping whole year, wow, much age gap), but also the one who dresses most formally, and speaks the most formally, and looks the most adult, because of his mutation.

He is physically the largest because of his massive limbs, ergo, you mentally code him as Older. The things that he does to hide and blend in, the suits, the primping, the big words, the stuffiness, all code as Older. You can also really see it with how he changes from classic Hank to feline Hank.

Like, there is a passage of time here, but despite the gap of around 15 years publication time, in-universe, it's only meant to be a few years. Hank is maybe 29 in the first page, 33-ish in the page, but the process of mutating and needing to affect a more distinctly human and more controlled appearance, the trauma that piled on multiplicatively, the darker tone of the comic as they went on, Hank just became older, relatively speaking, and artificially so, in a way.

This ended up compounding with storylines like X-Force, where he was explicitly written as being out of shape, sedentary, more cynical, less funny, all of these character tics that you just instinctively associate with age. A similar sort of thing happened with Professor Xavier - he was written to be much, much closer to the O5 in age in the original 60s run, judging by certain contextual clues and character backstory, but as time went on, his baldness, his disability, his relationships with notably older, adult women, his authority, all contributed to him being aged up and up and up. It's subtle, and it happens over time, but it does happen.

And, as you've touched on, Hank just became much less a character of action as time went on.

Hank actually became much stronger over time, going from being able to lift just one ton to a full ten tons by his modern mutation, but even with that power upgrade, his character archetype has been firmly nudged over, from the original X-Men's Big Guy bruiser, into a full on genius/mad scientist.

That is now his defining trait, because comic book writers like to have an easy source of sci-fi problems and solutions to tie up their plots, and use of brawn is just not considered to be an appropriately Beast solution to problems anymore. See also the move towards showcasing characters with flashy powers like energy projection and psionics over raw super strength, which I think is why characters like Colossus have really suffered with staying relevant in the comics these last few decades.

Hell, it's gotten so bad that Hank's trademark visual action style has, by and large, fallen by the wayside. It used to be that Hank did this kind of sequence all the time:

He does still do it, very, very occasionally, but the last time I can really think of him doing it is during S.W.O.R.D volume 1, back in 2009. Which, again, has a very bright, upbeat, energetic Beast. This sequence communicates energy, vitality, youth, and even though Hank hasn't aged that much, the lack of use of his old visual signifiers means that he feels older - or, maybe it's more accurate that he feels less notably young. Either way, the effect is the same.

On the one hand, this overall ageing up doesn't bother me as much as a lot of other Beast related foibles - the fandom's refusal to shut the fuck up with their one war crimes joke, for one - and it is a thing that Hank often tries to consciously foster, so that he feels more trustworthy and less dangerous, but it removes him from his friends in a way that I hate, and it makes him less human and less fun and, honestly? It makes him less popular, more remote.

You only have to see how people conceptualise Beast in headcanon or X-Men '97 fandom posts to see how Beast being older knocks on to his relationships with people - he's not regarded as Jean and Scott's mutual best friend, he's regarded as essentially Charles' friend, as the mature one.

People don't conceptualise him as funny, as overtly romantic, as sexual, as goofy, as lovable, he's distinguished and controlled and sometimes even cold, and that's just. Not Hank. Not in his entirety, anyway, not fully. Hank is such a good character precisely because he swings so wildly all over the emotional spectrum, is all of these things and more, and yet it all still makes cohesive sense when you key in to his character. Removing his warmth, his immaturity, his humour, his youth, hurts that complexity.

In short? #LetBeastBeYoungAndGoofyAgain. We're well overdue.

[lilacmingi]

PLAYTIME

My works are 14+ ONLY. If you are under 14 DO NOT interact with me or any of my works

Pairing: Moondrop!San & Sundrop!Wooyoung x fem reader

Word count: 4,092

Note: This was published on Wattpad October 2022 and since the FNAF movie is coming out in a couple days I’m sharing this one on Tumblr! It’s one of my favorites and I feel like it’s so unique. There will not be a part 2. Also if the cover looks bad pls ignore it :P

You huffed as you pushed up the metal garage-like door just enough for you to get through. You didn't really care where it led to, you just wanted to get out of the main area of the mall and away from those incessant staff bots.

You just started working at Freddy Fazbear's Mega Pizzaplex. In fact, it was your first day on the job and you somehow managed to get yourself locked inside. You were so busy with all your work that you lost track of time. When you finished, you found that you had been locked inside.

The area you just entered was the daycare.

The first thing you spotted was a huge golden statue depicting a sun and moon character, both dressed in attire that resembled that of a jester. Glancing around the room, you saw round tables scattered about, each one with a number on it. You were quick to figure out you were in some sort of reception area of the daycare.

You peered out into the netted area beyond the reception hall, inside were two large, multicolored play structures with cartoon faces of the glamrock mascots from the Fazbear franchise stuck on them and a massive ball pit designed to look like a mote. Your gaze was drawn to a platform a few feet above the play area, made to look like the outlook on a tower, a bright spotlight shining directly on it. Red curtains draped over an arched doorway that led to what you could only assume was a room.

The daycare area appeared to be a safe and vacant place for you to lay low for a while.

Your eyes searched the area for a moment before you spotted a colorful rainbow sign that read: SLIDE INTO FUN! leading directly into the daycare area. It appeared to be your only way inside, seeing as the security bots were patrolling the staircase that led to the second entrance for adults.

Without any other option, you got in and descended down the slide, falling right into a ball pit. You waded through the colorful spheres and stepped out of the pit. Now that you were inside the netted area, you were able to get a better look at everything.

The place seemed to be empty and free of any bloodthirsty animatronics.

Surely, you'd be safe.

Suddenly, your attention was turned to the castle up on the wall. A man suddenly emerged from the arched, curtain-draped opening and stepped out onto the platform. His blonde hair was pushed back away from his face, tousled in a way that made it look a bit spiky. He was dressed in jester attire, the collar ruffled as well as the top of his yellow and red striped pants. Tied on his wrists were red ribbons with bells that jingled when he moved.

The man lifted his arms into the air, chuckling gleefully before diving into the ball pit you were just in moments ago. You watched with wary eyes as the man never came up. Hesitantly, you stepped closer, peering into the ball pit. He emerged abruptly, causing some of the colorful spheres to fly through the air. He made his way out of the ball pit, a bright smile on his face.

"Hello, new friend! You're a bit big to be in the daycare." He tilted his head. "That's alright! We can still have fun!"

He didn't give you a chance to speak as he continued talking.

"We can finger paint, tell stories, drink Fizzy Faz until our heads explode and stay up all night!" He exclaimed, giddily as he pranced around.

"I was actually just hoping to—"

"What's your name, new friend?"

"Uh... Y/n." You answered.

You were wearing a name tag. Did he not notice it?

"Ah! Y/n. What a wonderful name! I'm Wooyoung, but my friends call me Woo. Hey, do you like glitter glue?"

"I-“

"If you like glitter glue, I have glitter glue, and lots of it!"

"I'd like to just stay in here for a while if that's okay."

His eyes sparkled as an excited gasp left him.

"Of course! There's so much we can do! We could play hide and seek, have a puppet show, make macaroni art." He listed enthusiastically.

This guy didn't seem so bad and the daycare appeared to be the safest place for you. Perhaps you could stay.

"Oh, this'll be so much fun! There's one rule, however. Lights stay on. On." He punctuated the last word, his voice sounding ominous when he did.

"Uh. Yeah. I can do that."

"Wonderful!" He clasped his hands together. "Come here! I have some fun activities planned."

He grabbed your hands, yanking you forward. Because of that, you stumbled and accidentally knocked over a stack of cylinders that had crescent moons and music notes on them, the objects making the sound of a party favor as they tumbled to the floor.

Wooyoung came to a stop, turning to see the shapes that had toppled over.

"No, no, no, no! What a mess! Oh, which was the bottom? Where is the top? Clean up! Clean up!" He stressed, hurrying to stack the musical cylinders back up.

Once the stack was back the way it was, he let out a sigh.

"There. Good as new."

"Sorry." You apologized even though it wasn't really your fault, but it felt appropriate.

"It's alright, friend." He beamed. "I get ahead of myself sometimes and I can be a bit clumsy."

He continued to pull you towards a tiny table where he ushered you into a small chair that you barely fit in.

"Look at all this neat stuff!" Wooyoung beamed. "Here."

He placed a piece of copy paper in front of you and began talking about all the different arts and crafts materials he had.

You opted for the colored pencils, grabbing one of them while Wooyoung started grabbing paints.

"What are you gonna draw?" Wooyoung asked, giddily. "I'm gonna paint a sun."

"I'm not sure what I'm gonna draw yet."

"That's okay. Just wait for inspiration to strike!"

As you thought about what to draw, you noticed a black cord stretching across the play area.

"What are those cords?" You asked Wooyoung.

"Oh. Those lead to generators in the play structures. There are five of them and each connect to a light on the outside of the structures." He pointed.

You noticed a few lights here and there attached to the plastic grate walls of the structures. You wondered why there were generators in a play area for children, but chose not to ask questions.

"So, you mentioned Fizzy Faz earlier."

"Uh-huh." He nodded.

"What does it taste like?"

The paintbrush in Wooyoung's hand fell, as did his jaw.

"You've never had it?"

You shook your head.

"We have to change that right away! What flavor do you prefer? There's orange, pink lemonade, cherry, lime, and grape."

"I'll have (your choice)."

Wooyoung immediately got up from his chair and started to hurry off only to stop and turn to you.

"You won't run off, will you?"

"I don't have anywhere else to go." You shrugged.

Minutes later, Wooyoung returned with a can of the fizzy drink and a small paper cup.

"Here you go, friend." He beamed, placing the small cup down on the table.

You thanked him, trying some of the soda, the tiny cup already nearly empty.

"Are you hungry? I have all sorts of yummy snacks. Goldfish crackers, cookies, potato chips, gummies." He listed.

"Now that you mention it, I am kinda hungry."

"Great! I'll be right back."

He hurried off somewhere while you stayed in your seat, working on your drawing.

Moments later, a paper tower was placed on the table as Wooyoung started putting small piles of assorted snacks onto it.

"I wasn't sure what you wanted, so brought everything." He paused for a second. "You don't have peanut allergies, do you?"

Before you could answer, he spoke up. "It's fine. None of these snacks are made with peanut products anyway. Gotta stay safe for the kiddos." He gave a bright smile, his head cocking to the side. "Here you go, friend."

You chuckled at the setup before you. A small, paper cup with soda and a paper towel with little piles of snacks on it.

"What's so funny?" Wooyoung asked.

"This just reminds me of when I was a kid." You smiled softly at the nostalgia. "This was the usual setup for special snack at school."

"Ah, that's right. You're not a kid." He chuckled. "Sorry, friend. I'm used to being around children." He slid the can of Fizzy Faz to you before sitting back down in his seat to continue his painting.

"That's alright." You waved it off, taking a drink of the bubbly soda. "You're trained to handle kids. You're used to that, so I don't blame you for being on autopilot."

"Thank you, Y/n." Wooyoung gave you a gentle smile before turning his attention back to his artwork.

"So, you work here?" He asked.

"You just noticed?" You chuckled.

"Yeah. I was so excited to have a visitor that I got carried away."

"Well, I only just started working here today. I don't know too much about this place and I had so much work I got distracted and when I finished, the doors were locked."

"So you're stuck in here until morning?"

You nodded.

"You can stay in here with me until 6am! You'll be safe here."

"Thank you."

Things were quiet for a few moments. The only sounds were the music playing in the daycare accompanied by the soft noise of your colored pencils against the paper.

"New friend, Y/n. Can I tell you something?" Wooyoung asked, cutting through the silence.

"Sure." You hummed, painting away.

When he didn't say anything, you looked up at him. His cheeks were tinted pink and he was holding back giggles.

"What is it?" You urged.

"You're very pretty."

"Oh. Thank you."

"Only children come into the daycare, and parents, of course, but I'm not used to seeing someone as pretty as you." Wooyoung was blushing like crazy as he spoke. "The teenagers and young adults usually spend their time elsewhere like Roxy Raceway."

"Right. I'm sure this is weird for you."

"No, actually. It's a nice change. The limited non-robot staff we have here don't really come into the daycare, so I'm not around older people that often. But, again, it's a nice change."

An hour or so passed and you were having a wonderful time with Wooyoung. Making crafts and painting really took you back to your childhood and helped to distract you from worrying about animatronics. Wooyoung had even made a cute little drawing of you with crayons, which you found endearing. He was very enthusiastic and bubbly, asking lots of questions about you and your interests. Whenever you'd give him your answer he'd watch you with wide eyes, taking in every word.

The two of you were having a blast when all of a sudden the lights shut off, surrounding you in near total darkness. You let out a gasp, the bright and sunny man's stern words immediately replaying in your head.

"Lights stay on. On."

He was so serious when he said that.

What happens when the lights go off?

"Oh no." Wooyoung muttered. "Oh no. Oh no!"

He stood up from his chair abruptly, causing it to fall over as the panic in his voice rose.

"What's wrong?" You asked, worriedly.

"Not good! Not good!" He put his hands on his face, staggering backwards as he screamed in agony.

Lost in his hysterics, he tripped and fell behind a stack of large, foam blocks sitting about the daycare, the atmosphere becoming eerily silent.

"Wooyoung?" You called out, shakily.

To your shock and mild horror, a completely different person emerged from behind the shapes. This one had dark hair with a white streak in his bangs. His attire was similar to Wooyoung's, but instead of stripes, this man's pants were a dark blue color with yellow stars all over them. He donned a night cap on his head with the same pattern.

"I'm not Wooyoung." The man responded with a sinister grin. "I'm San."

"What happened to Wooyoung?" You asked, taking a step back.

"He's not here right now." His red colored irises that seemed to glow raked down your body. "You're up a bit late, don't you think?"

"No." You answered, taking another step back.

"You should be sleeping. Naughty, naughty." He shook his head while wagging a finger at you.

"I'm not a child." You responded.

He let out a tsk as he leaned in close to you, tilting his head. "Daycare rules."

You took a step back, stumbling when your foot hit something. You had accidentally knocked over the same stack of cylinder shapes that you'd bumped into earlier.

San growled angrily, bending down.

"Clean up! clean up!" He repeated in a seemingly annoyed voice as he began stacking the objects back up.

You then realized Wooyoung reacted the same way and perhaps you could use that to your advantage. You took that as your chance to try and escape, bolting directly for the play structures, crawling up the slide, opting to hide there for a moment.

"Oh~ you wanna play hide and seek?" San chuckled, the sound coming out in a rasp. "I think I can manage."

It sounded like San was on the opposite side of the daycare, which put your nerves at ease, but only for a moment.

Afraid to stay in one place for too long, you

shimmied up the slide and started crawling around in the structure.

What do I do? What do I do?

Would you have to spend the rest of the night hiding from this San guy?

You advanced further into the play structure, moving up a bit higher, taking a moment to peer out into the daycare. It was dark except for the giant screen at the front of the room depicting a sun character that resembled Wooyoung.

Using the light from the screen, you looked around the area from above. You didn't see San anywhere, which terrified you. Instead of staying in one place for too long, you continued on your way, slipping through a colorful tube and into another section of the structure.

As you crawled ahead, you felt your foot catch on something, instinctively flinching before turning around to find a generator. The relief you felt when you saw that it wasn't San was immeasurable.

That's right. There are generators inside the play structures.

You shuffled back to the generator, a red light shining. Feeling around, you managed to find a switch of some sort, your fingers curling around the handle. You pulled up on it, a light on the outside of the structure coming on shortly after.

A quiet sigh of relief leaves you.

One down, four to go.

"You can't hide forever, dear." You heard San's voice from somewhere below.

Taking one last look out into the daycare, you spotted San creeping across the bridge above the ball pit.

You needed to find the other generators, and fast.

You crawled through the top area of the play structure, not finding any. As much as you hated to, you knew you'd have to go back down to the lower level.

Taking in a deep breath and gathering all the courage you could muster, you headed down until you got to the bottom level. You glanced around, checking for San before sneaking your way into another section of the play structure. It didn't take long for you to come across a second generator. You flipped it on and were on the move once again.

The floodlights didn't illuminate the area very well, but it was better than nothing. You hoped turning on all five would somehow bring Wooyoung back.

You continued searching the play structure, opting to follow the cords throughout the area, hoping they would lead you to a generator. Sometimes they would lead to one you had already turned on, while other times they led to a light attached to the outside of the structure.

You hadn't spotted San for quite some time, which gave you a sense of relief. Maybe you got lucky and he forgot about you.

Just then, you spotted him clinging to the outside of the play structure. A scream tore through you as the man leaned close to the grates.

"It's past your bedtime, my dear." He said with a sinister smirk.

You scurried away as quickly as you could, wanting to get as far away from him as possible, your knees becoming sore from crawling around so much.

You had already turned four generators on. There was only one left, but you couldn't seem to find it.

I've searched this entire structure. You thought to yourself. Where could it be?

Just then, you spotted a second play structure on the other side of the daycare, your heart dropping in your chest. The last generator is over there. You're certain of it.

You would have to find a way over to it without getting caught.

Moving silently throughout the play structure, you made your way to the bottom where you slowly began to lose your nerve. Your mind began to fill with petrifying thoughts, wondering what ghastly things San would do if he caught you.

You have to get to that last generator, Y/n. You told yourself, trying your best to psych yourself up and gather your nerves. Getting the lights back on was the only way to ensure yourself safety.

Taking one last look out into the daycare, you got ready to make a break for it, checking for San. When you didn't see him, you took off across the colorful foam flooring, skittering towards the second play structure.

Dark chuckles echoed through the vast room.

"Run run as fast as you can."

Hearing San's taunting frightened you and had you shaking like a leaf, but it also gave you that extra rush of adrenaline you needed, helping to get you safely to the second structure where you momentarily felt safe.

"I can see you." He sang creepily, prompting you to scurry further into the structure in an attempt to get away from him.

You hated this. Why did the lights have to go out all of a sudden? That was the one thing Wooyoung said not to do and now look where you are. It's your first day on the job and you're going to die by the hands of some psychopath in star pajamas. The mere thought of being caught made the panic within you rise tenfold.

You creeped through the structure, hoping San doesn't find his way inside. Little did you know, your fears would soon become a reality.

As you're crawling, you feel someone's breath fanning against your neck.

"Knock knock." He whispered.

You let out a terrified yelp, continuing to move forward at a quicker pace, but you didn't make it very far.

A gasp left you as San grabbed hold of your ankle, jerking you backwards until you were underneath him.

"Caught you."

His hands held you firmly against the flooring of the play structure, preventing you from escaping. You were just a foot from the last generator—so close, yet so far away. San moved in closer, his sharp eyes gazing down at you as a wicked smirk played at his lips.

What do I do?

You were panicking, your heart beating so fast you could hear the pounding in your ears. Fearful of what he would do with you, you shoved him away with your knee, pulling yourself closer to the generator, stretching your arm out, your fingers reaching for the switch, just barely brushing it.

"Wait!"

You paused after hearing San call out to you.

"Don't. Please."

The desperation in his voice caught you off guard, making you hesitate in your actions.

Your brows pulled together in confusion. Did he just ask you not to flip the generator on?

"I thought we were playing hide and seek." He continued, a frown pulling the corners of his mouth downward.

"Hide and seek?" You parroted in disbelief. "I thought you were trying to kill me!"

"Kill you? No. I thought we were just playing a game."

He pout in his voice almost made you feel bad for him. Almost.

"You didn't exactly make that clear."

He sighed, his head dropping in disappointment.

"I'm turning this on." You told him. "I want Wooyoung back."

"You don't like me?"

Your hand froze once again after hearing his words. He sounded hurt. Pitiful, almost. Turning back to him, you saw the expression on his face. His bottom lip was stuck out in a pout, quivering slightly as his red eyes appearing glossy with tears.

Your hand went limp, abandoning the the generator and silently hoping you weren't about to make a mistake.

•

Your heart thudded against your rib cage, your knees hitting the plastic flooring of the play structure as you crawled as fast as you could through the narrow passageways, getting lost in the maze once again.

I can't believe I let this happen again.

You barely made it out the first time and now you're stuck here once more. That all too familiar feeling of terror was beginning to build inside you as you hurried to hide, ominous chuckles from San echoing down the tunnel you were crawling through. Your body shook as you hurried through the endless labyrinth that was the play structures. The raw panic and trepidation that ran through your body was the only thing keeping you going. Your trembling hand grabbed onto the switch on the third generator, flipping it on.

That's when you heard San's dark chuckling behind you, causing you to gasp.

He was inside the play structure.

Crawling as fast as you possibly could, you turned a corner, shuffling through a tube, coming out at the bridge that connected two of the play towers. You hurried across into the second structure in search for the next generator.

"You're getting better at this, darling." San's voice emitted from across the bridge.

He was right on your tail.

You followed the twists and turns of the tunnels and platforms, not realizing you'd somehow gotten turned around.

Panicked, you changed directions and shimmied down a nearby passageway, narrowly escaping. You arrived at a small ramp that led to a lower level of the play structure. From what you remember, there was a generator nearby one of the ramps, though you weren't sure if this one was the right one. There was no time to think it over as you took the chance.

Just when you thought you were about to find the next generator, you ran into San who had a wicked smile on his face, his eyes flickering with mischief.

You yelped in surprise, which only made him grin wider. In one, swift motion he lunged forward, wrapping his arms around you.

"Gotcha."

"You promised you wouldn't chase me this time." You frowned.

"Sorry." He giggled. "It's just so much fun."

"I've had enough hide and seek for the night. I wanna hang out with Wooyoung."

"You got to hang out with Wooyoung earlier." San whined.

"Alright, fine. But I don't want you scaring me anymore."

"No scaring. I promise!"

After that first night at the pizzaplex, you learned San wasn't so bad after all. He just had an odd way of interacting with people sometimes and tended to come off a bit scary. He wasn't nearly as terrifying as he appeared. In fact, he was actually rather adorable.

His counterpart, Wooyoung, had apologized profusely to you once the sun had come up, worried that San had spooked you. Being honest with him, you explained what happened, but assured him that San wasn't a bad person and you actually enjoyed your time with him—when he wasn't chasing you, that is.

From then on, you would drop in and visit Wooyoung during the day while working and stay after hours to spend a little more time with him before bringing San out. Something fishy was definitely going down at the mega pizzaplex, especially with the glamrock animatronics, but with San and Wooyoung around, you felt safe. You found yourself looking forward to seeing them every day, wondering what new shenanigans would ensue once the pizzaplex closed for the night.

Masterlist ᝰ — enjoyed this imagine? reblogs & comments are very much appreciated!

DO NOT steal, plagiarize, copy, repost, alter, or translate my works in any way

[raptorladylover6969]

My take/theories on Raptor Lady/The Handler’s design and how it’s significant to her overall character‼️

JWCT SPOILERS AHEAD

So I’ve mentioned this before in a comment section, but I wanted to go more in depth. For a while now, I’ve been pondering about the certain design choices of The Handler, and whats the significance behind her wide eyes, and blank expressionless face, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it actually plays a huge role in her personality, and overall character.

First off, the uncanniness of her design. She always has a blank emotionless expression on her face, and shows little to no emotion unless its related to her Raptors. So far the only emotions we’ve seen from her are: frustration (the Nublar 5 getting away from her), satisfaction (seeing her raptors kill someone, or when she realized the campers were in the warehouse with her) and empathy (seeing her raptors injured and unable to fight). Besides this, she keeps a blank expression on most of the time. Her wide eyes and no-eyebrows add to the blankness of her face because all the viewer is focusing on when they see her are her eyes.

Her personality. The way she wants people to perceive her is for them to be intimidated by her, and its not just people who find her intimidating, its the dinosaurs too. In the final episode, the scene inside of the warehouse, you see the dinosaurs in the crates going haywire, roaring and growling and stomping until The Handler walks in. The dinosaurs suddenly go quiet, and lower their heads, avoiding any to all eye contact with her. This is kind of a big deal considering even the giant carnivores also went quiet. She has all these dinosaurs cowering before her. That look she gave Cabrera clearly is her go to strategy of intimidation because of the way he was stuttering the second she turned her head to look at him.

We can also compare and make connections to this through basic science. Thousands of years ago, we looked nothing like our ancestors, our appearance is dramatically different to that of the early humans, especially our faces. and human expression. As a species, we communicate socially through our facial expressions to display what emotions we feel. Our ancestors didn’t have that. If you look at the skulls of early humans, you’ll see that humans of that time had eyebrow ridges that protrude more outwards than modern humans. The main significance of this was for the humans to look more aggressive and intimidate other humans and animals. Sound familiar??? Our ancestors only expressions were blank.

The main question here is “How does any of this information involve The Handler???” Well, theres been theories going around that she might be part raptor, because of her demeanour and behaviour. I don’t think thats the case. I think she isn’t trying to seem like a raptor, rather, she’s trying to display the same mannerisms as ancient humans.

Think about it. The whole intimidation factor in ancient humans I mentioned earlier? The lack of eyebrows is strictly for the purpose of making her eyes more bigger and expression more blank so she is able to display more fear into people (and animals apparently) just like ancient humans. The way she chases down our beloved Camp Fam is the same exact way our ancestors hunted their prey. Relentlessly, chasing and chasing until she’s got them cornered/tired. Her domination of the raptors, the same way our ancestors dominated the wolves we have domesticated. (The fact raptors are also compared to wolves in this franchise) She uses intimidation, and her smarts to make her way to the top of the “food chain”, eventually conquering the dinosaurs (I.E them being intimidated the second she walks into a room)

And what adds to this is how exactly uncanny humans were as a species. Our tall lanky slim bodies and endurance + determination made us the ultimate apex predator in the history of earth. By using the art of uncanniness, humans were able to rise above. Just like with The Handler who uses her uncanny factors to conquer.

Don’t get me wrong the theory of her being part raptor is cool, but the idea/concept of her entire personality being that of an ancient human is much much much more scarier if you look at it through the bigger picture. But anyway, what are your thoughts on this?

[project-changeling-zero]

things i wish the sonic franchise brought back or implement.

.

Dark Sonic

seriously, i love imagining a fight between Dark Sonic and Eggman inspired by Korra vs. Zaheer ( when she was poisoned ). where he loses the cool attitude, the smile, everything, and goes in with full power, charging himself left and right at Eggman. it'd be even more fascinating to still have Dark Sonic lose. not because of his lack of power, not because of lack of skill, even when blinded by rage, but because of Eggman's ingenuity.

a lot of people, to this day, misinterpret Dark Sonic as a murderous, rampaging monster, but that completely misses the purpose of why he exists to begin with. i believe this is a case of people not exactly knowing where he comes from, or just a lot of fans drawing a murderous Sonic and it took the internet by storm one day, but just in case you don't know:

Dark Sonic is from Sonic X, a TV show that is sort of an expansion on Sonic Adventure 2, adding more lore, character arcs, and overall meaning to the game's original plot. Dark Sonic was revealed in the episode "Teasing Time" in s3, and the reason he appeared is because he discovered his friends ( Cosmo and Chris ) were injured and that one of them ( Chris ) was unconscious.

the whole reason this form exists is Sonic's love for his friends essentially fueling his rage. it's like Darkspine Sonic from SATSR, or has similar formula. Dark Sonic isn't inspired by any bloodlust or desire to kill, but rather by burning anger at seeing his friends be put in harm's way.

Dark Sonic is made from the strong desire to protect his friends.

2. An Actual Arc For Shadow

you guys might be confused, especially if you consider some of my previous posts, but lemme explain.

for a long time, it's never felt like Shadow has actually recovered from his trauma, atone for his actions ( yes, i understand he saved Earth ), or live life really at all. it doesn't help that, to this day, SEGA continues to make Shadow relive the past.

i don't consider the movies to be a part of the problem, as Shadow being introduced to the plot was basically a given, and you can't introduce him in your own take without his general backstory ( unless you're Boom or Prime, i guess ). i believe the movie will be doing taking some creative liberties to his story, as they did so with Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, and i see no reason that they should stop.

the reason why i have an issue with this is because it's an ongoing issue within the games, specifically. Shadow the Hedgehog ( 2005 ) was a disservice to his setup and the 'first arc' ( considering he's still alive after the fans demanded his return ) to his story.

aside from it just giving 'early 2010s deviantart edge', it's just so...

childishly handled.

for one, you're immediately given a Hero or Dark route, like in SA2, which i feel completely misses the point of SA2's true ending. Shadow has redeemed himself ( or began to ), so to give him complete reign to just become an antagonist all over again defeats the whole purpose of a redemption.

it's like what Prime did with Dread, giving him an already established redemption arc ( sort of ), but then corrupting him again for no real reason other than just because.

another issue i have is Shadow's amnesia and attitude in general within the game. technically speaking, yes, it does make sense for him to suffer memory and // or physical issues from his fall from space, but to completely wipe out every single thing he did just to give him the opportunity to relearn his past, do some fucked up shit, do some less fucked up shit, then throw away everything in the past, Maria and her wish included, is...

amazingly obtuse, for lack of a better word.

again, while it's technically not out of bounds, i feel like giving Shadow complete and total amnesia just disrespects SA2's vision and execution of the story. it's redundant, it's lazy, and overall just really damn frustrating to watch.

Shadow deserves to have a story that allows him to heal from his trauma, discover who he is, and respecting Maria's wish along the way. a lot of people seem to think it's either he forgets about his past ( or buries it ) or full-on dedicates his entire life and doesn't bother picking up a life lesson or two, but it doesn't have to be that way.

Shadow can heal, grow, and change. SEGA just won't let him.

3. The Echidna Tribe & Knuckles' Story

Knuckles is one of my favorite characters in the entire franchise as a whole, but his character and story is sorely dismissed. while Shadow has the issue of repetition, Knuckles suffers from being dropped on the head multiple times and played for a joke ( i think Frontiers is one of the more recent games that didn't do this, but i might be wrong ).

one of the reasons why i love Knuckles is how straightforward, yet reluctant he was about finding out his past. at the end of Sonic Adventure 1, he says something to the extent of:

"maybe i'm better off not knowing the meaning behind all of this. because i feel something terrible will happen if i do."

he is content being ignorant for the sake of his own peace of mind.

but in SA2, he's more or less forced to start facing his fear and learn more about the past. unfortunately, though, we don't actually get to see much after this game, because the tribe is almost entirely forgotten. instead, it's brought up in comics that are more or less canon ( i think ), but not fully aligning with the games. i think it's safe to say the comics are their own canon?

like with Shadow, i would've loved to see an actual conclusion on this arc of Knuckles' story. to see more of the tribe in the past, of their wrongdoings, character moments, more of Tikal or Chaos or the little Chao, and how it all ties together.

but instead, we have lots of media repeatedly insulting Knuckles' intelligence, ignoring his tribe and // or his job entirely ( i guess they forget the Master Emerald is portable? ), and just generally dumbing him down to be a hotheaded moron that apparently doesn't care about being the Guardian!

Knuckles is one of the most relatable characters in this series for me, as there's a lot of things i would rather not know and stay ignorant to, but have to face head on in order to fully move past it and grow to be better.

he was completely isolated on Angel Island for so long, yet people still make fun of him to this day for being manipulated by Eggman in SA1 ( even though he didn't even fully believe Eggman, it was just a precaution, but who cares about the details- ). he's not just a hothead, he's strong, he's kind, he's pretty blunt and, honestly, really fucking adorable, i love this echidna.

look at him, just standing there. i love him.

anyway, Knuckles deserves a proper story surrounding his tribe, his identity as the Guardian of Angel Island, his relationships, and to have a satisfying conclusion. or, at the very least, more games or media in general not dumbing him down to an angry hothead with nothing better to do but to yell and ignore his responsibilities.

3. Sonic

"what're you talking about, ashe? sonic's meant to be a flat character! what could be wrong with him?"

yeah, but after frontiers, i want more mentally ill sonic that needs to be concerned for by his friends, okay, that's all i want-

4. Storybook Era

now, now, i know a lot of people don't like the storybook games because of their shoddy gameplay and all that, but i genuinely love these games, their flaws included.

i do believe satbk has a better story than satsr, but i still have an attachment to the latter game, so suck it.

it'd be really nice to see a storybook game with switch, xbox, ps, or similar controls. as the era has Sonic diving into different worlds, maybe a world like Alice and Wonderland could be an interesting game. several elements to work with, locations turning into creative levels or even hub worlds. this is sort of a long shot dream that will probably never exist, but i wanna see an adventure-style storybook game one day.

i'll probably die before that idea is even considered, but it's a fun thought and that's all that matters at the end of the day.

there's no real big reason as to why these matter or anything, as i don't believe you need a storybook in order to send off the messages these games try to give, but they're just really charming to me and i love to see how this type of game could be implemented into video games today, with all the new engines and whatnot.

5. Teams

oof, okay, um-

there's a few games that have teams in them, and i guess you can count sonic forces as one of those games, so i should be more specific here.

i like SA1's flexibility with the roulette-like system, where you could play as any character you wished, but i also like SA2's team system, where they all had a close-knit role within the story from a similar perspective ( hero vs. dark ).

SA1 served multiple perspectives, all giving you pieces of the same puzzle that you have to figure out as you go. by the final story, all of the characters ( except Big, but idc, i love him ) have their character arcs and it's with their changes that the story is fully complete.

SA2 served the entirety of two perspectives and merged them together for the final story, heroes and villains having to work together to fight off the greater evil at hand.

overall, i want more games having the characters work together, having different details // information or even moral differences ( it depends on which system they go with, though ) on the situation at large, but maybe still having to come together.

whether or not they use official teams, i want the sonic franchise to bring back using other characters as necessary plot points with their own individual arcs.

it may not be needed, per say, as there's still a few games that work and don't have either of these systems, but i really miss the adventure games and wish for more of their elements to be implemented in future games.

6. CHAO!!!

BRING THESE LITTLE CREATURES BACK, GODDAMN, WHY ONLY TWO GAMES?!

.

anyway, that's all i can currently think of. i think these would serve either character or charm to the franchise, but maybe you have some other ideas of what the games could give! maybe proper returns of characters, other forgotten stories, or even new ideas!

lemme know what you think.

[tae-rhymeswithslay]

TMNT Hottake: TOTTMNT was disappointing (in my opinion)

i know i know!! i shouldn’t be putting down the new gen of turtles bc thats what every past gen fandom does to every single new iteration BUT this is my blog and i do what i want. Also, thisnis my OPINION feel free to disagree or debate.

SO MUCH wasted potential

GUYS the amount of openings the MM movie left for the series to branch off of was crazy. The Shredder and Cynthia Utrom and her extremely likely connection to the Kraang the were obviously plot points the writers were saving for the second movie and the turtles also couldn’t have drastic character development because of that, but still. The first movie left off on the turtle’s going to high school and regular kids, which was a concept that hadn’t been explored before in the franchise. And the show just. Didn’t. They didn’t go into their school life beyond passing comments about homework and wrestling. We could have gotten a silly shenanigan filled episode of the turtles trying to find after school jobs or clubs or even how they dealt with their newfound fame. That would have been epic.

2. Lack of story content

Really, we only got two complete stories from the series. part one with bishop and then part two with goldfin and even then neither villain really stuck out to me. Bishop had that inciting moment that tied her into the first movie with her mechazoid getting crushed by the superfly mutant. But then her ‘revenge plan’ still felt shoehorned in like they were trying to make a morally complex villain and failed. Her side backstory with her sister just fell flat. i’m sorry, I love sweet sibling bonds, but we just weren’t given enough information or time about Elena for me to personally care about her. Then at the end when bishop turned herself in and then immediately relapsed into villainous territory, I was like “wow, i can’t wait to see her descent into madness as the second half of the series progresses!” but then she was just pushed to the side COMPLETELY in order to start the goldfin plot line. Where Bishop was a fresh take on a classic character, Goldfin and the East River Three were completely new characters created for TOTTMNT. i can kinda see what they were going for by starting off with whats familiar to fans and then branching out into more creative territory, but the shift between stories was so jarring, it felt loke i had just started a whole new series entirely- though, now that i’m typing this out, that also could have been the feeling the writers were going for since part one was told through Leo’s point of view and part two was told through Raph’s. The writers might’ve purposefully made the transition choppy.

3. Personal gripes, aka my fave characters were not there

CASEY!! CASEY MY PRECIOUS LITTLE BOY WHERE WERE YOU?!! Casey was never named as a character in the show, but i will bet my bottom dollar that they were one of the unnamed purple dragons. I have theories that either the boomerang dragon was casey (really really hoping he was. he was my favorite dragon outside of Hun and Angel) or the knife-stick hockey girl was Casey (girl casey truther fr) and i really hope the bucket hat dragon is Keno bc that man NEEEDS to make a comeback. Theres really not much to say about this reason. MONA ALSO WASNT THERE. ik it would’ve been hard to do a space arc in the very limited number of episodes, but it would’ve made my 2012 and 1987 loving heart to see her just make some kind of appearance.

THINGS THE SHOW DID RIGHT!!

guys, i’m not a complete hater believe it or not

no uncomfy crushes/relationships/love triangles

after the Apritello disaster of 2012, i was waiting with bated breath to see how they would handle the Leopril romance introduced in MM and i was pleasantly surprised. It felt so much more genuine and like a realt teen crush. Hes so much more chill about it than Donnie ever was, but he is still clearly very in love and its all so sweet to watch.

2. The ANIMATION

HOLY SHIT WHERE DO I EVEN BEGIN?? it was nothing short of STELLAR- the subtle style changes as the turtles perspectives shifted?? UGHHH!!! i wanted to consume my phone. THE FIGHT WITH GOLDFIN???!! JAW!! ON THE FLOOR!!!

[3hobbitsinatrenchcoat]

Some initial thoughts:

So after seeing four minor untagged spoilers in the span of an hour yesterday I finally caved and bought Dragon Age Veilguard. I played for almost five hours last night and I have. Opinions (but not the ones you might think).

I'm gonna start this with: I am enjoying myself immensely. This game is objectively fun and the characters are delightful.

So here are my thoughts in no particular order. Given that most of my annoyances so far are personal preference shit... They're minor.

I MISS top-down strategy. That's what made the game fun to me, specifically. The ability wheel is cool and all but it's not what I'm used to. Old man yells at cloud or whatever.

someone in the art department has a thing for Pixar mom dumptruck ass and hips and it SHOWS

I saw someone say you could dive in headfirst and you'd crack your head open if you tried (saying the lore isn't that deep) but quite frankly I'm not finding that to be true. There's quite a bit of lore.

I love all the scattered notes that aren't codex entries.

God the fade is so cool. Lighthouse concept?? Having to unlock rooms??? *chefs kiss*

So far the gameplay seems... A bit remenicent of DA2 with how railroad linear it is. (Derogatory) I'm hoping that changes when I progress further since I'm only a few hours in and Inquisition also took a long time to open up.

I wish they'd gone less smoothened cartoony with the animation. It just kinda looks weird to me. Sorry Bellara your jaw and chin situation is unsettling to me. Also the Pixar dumptruck ass makes another appearance in this point too.

The dumptruck ass isn't a negative btw it's just. So noticible that it's distracting me during cutscenes XD

As much as I miss top down gameplay the ability combo mechanics are LIT. That's so much fun.

I spent almost half an hour in the character creator. Take that for what you will.

I was initially skeptical about only including three choices from DAI as the things that change the story but after seeing what those choices were and the opening parts of the game I can see why. Am I disappointed? A little. But it's a completely different area of the world dealing with their own bullshit a not insignificant number of years later. Whoever is on the throne of ferelden isn't gonna matter when you have fucked up darkspawn crawling into your bed at night.

Speaking of those darkspawn. what the FUCK. THEY'RE SO MUCH MORE TERRIFYING??? WHY ARE THEY GLOWING??

If Varric doesn't talk about hawke at least once I'm gonna chew on bioware's fibre optic cables

That's all I really have on first impressions. I'm gonna sum this up by talking about a different franchise: Assassin's Creed. When they pivoted into open world they lost a lot of what I considered core gameplay. It still had the AC name and was in the same world with the same lore, but I had to learn to love it again.

That feels like what is happening here. The world is the same but the gameplay itself has been changed by time and consumer perception. It's fun but it'll never feel the same way it once did for some people.

And that's ok.

[insemzandtaya]

I’m a huge fan of the games The Friends We Left Behind and Imaginary Friend Asylum. There’s just something appealing to me about the concept of humans having monster companions. In a lot of ways, the bond between child and imaginary friend reminded me of the Digimon franchise—which simultaneously made me adore the Friends We Left Behind world even more while also making me curious about what Digimon the imaginary friends may best translate to.

Here’s my personal thoughts, but if you’re a fan of both franchises, feel free to make your own list/s and tag me in it!

—————

When the protagonist first comes to the asylum, he meets Niccolò Galo and Polo.

Despite Polo’s humble demeanor in the above concept art, he is depicted as flamboyant, pompous, and outspoken. His design is also loosely based off a 1600s entertainer. Jokermon immediately came to mind until I remember the existence of Fakemon. It has all the spirit of Jokermon but shares more physical features with Polo, including the mask, cape, and drama masks.

—————

Next up is Edward Bennett’s friend, Twistee.

While it’s never expressly stated that Twistee is part plant, his coloration and texture immediately brought to mind images of plants. Ajatarmon felt like a perfect fit, not just for the coloration but for its flexible body and the inclusion of a mask in its design. While Twistee is friendlier than most Ajatarmon, the visual similarities couldn’t be overlooked.

—————

Tommy Bennett and his friend, Smudge, are the youngest residents at the asylum.

Smudge is an artist at heart, and he uses his drawings to express himself. I went back and forth between Bacomon and Omekamon for a while before ultimately settling on the latter, not only for color-matching purposes but also for the fact that both love drawing and both wear drawn-on faces.

—————

Pete Gustavo and Marco are the newest residents at the asylum, so very little is known about them.

Marco may have been the most difficult for me to find a Digimon counterpart to. Though I thought of him as a sentient doll, the Wiki describes him as “fishlike,” and his dialogue consists of little more than pirate puns. When disregarding his appearance altogether and focusing on his behavior in both games, I was left with a gruff creature that spent a lot of time in or around water and consistently had a pirate motif. Piranimon fit the best to me, but other Digimon like Hookmon, MarineChimariamon, and Mermaimon were also considered.

—————

The first character the protagonist meets from the girl’s ward is Annabelle Walker and her friend, Pooky.

Despite resembling a jester, Pooky is anything but comedic. He is fiercely protective of his human and is known for going to extreme lengths to keep her safe. He also has a strong affinity with fire. I went back and forth between Phelesmon, NeoDevimon, and SkullSatamon for a while, but I ultimately settled on the Phelesmon for visual and symbolic reasons.

—————

Momo Akane’s friend, Pixie, is characterized best in The Friends We Left Behind.

Pixie craves attention and loves singing. Other than this, the only thing we know about her is the fact that she sports a “lolita punk” aesthetic. To my knowledge, there are no Digimon that marry the popstar concept with Pixie’s highly stylized design choice. LovelyAngemon was the closest match, especially when compared to the some other options.

—————

Charlotte Weaver is a shy girl who likes making dolls with her friend, Dolly.

There is no doubt in my mind that young Charlotte would have a Dressmon partner if she lived in the digital world. Both Dolly and Dressmon are patchwork dolls stuck with sewing pins. While other Digimon may have more visual similarities to Dolly, few (if any) manage to capture the sewing theme as well as Dressmon.

—————

[MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!!!]

Last but not least is the protagonist himself, Anthony Rivers, and his elusive imaginary friend, Hollow.

Hollow is no where to be seen in The Friends We Left Behind, and she only appears in the second half of Imaginary Friend Asylum. However, she plays a crucial role in both games’ overarching plots. Her clockwork-porcelain-angel design is unique, but I feel Quantumon captures some of Hollow’s more notable features and shares her ability to rewrite history.

[galaxygolfergirl]

Alright gang, let's talk about Kristoff. Here, I want to showcase his new look to discuss some ideas that I've had about his role in the franchise. I additionally updated Anna's look because I feel I didn't shade her enough on the last few pictures. Honeymaren and Ryder are up next, and after that the hypothetical villains of this next installment! But let's get right to it. Read below the cut for more info.

Kristoff. What can I even say about the guy? For as long as I've been a part of this fandom, I admit I've been ambivalent about the guy. He's not the most complex character to get into and Frozen 2 basically had him set up to be Anna's glorified boyfriend, which is a shame, really. He's a hardworking, earnest, dependable guy, an entrepreneur who had already made a life for himself before he met Anna, and while he may be awkward and at first abrasive, he has the best intentions at heart. Frozen 2 did not really give him the best material to work with, nor does he have much to do besides focus on proposing to Anna. So what do we do about this for Frozen 3?

For starters, let's address the fact that he's about to be Prince-consort/King-consort engaged to the Queen of Arendelle. What is there for him to do? He had the title of Arendelle's official Ice Master and Deliverer, but we don't really see him do anything with that position. Furthermore, in the deleted scenes of Frozen 2, they toyed with the idea that Kristoff wasn't really happy with his life in Arendelle and fitting into this new role as part of the nobility. Maybe that should be addressed.

So here's what I did: for his look here, I decided to try and evoke the colors of his outfit in the first movie; a royal blue and gold jacket contrasted with comfortable civilian clothes that he likes to wear, his hair parted to the side and combed a bit more to reflect that while he's had situation of being prince-consort thrust upon him, he's still a down-to-earth guy who won't let the expectations of nobility change who he is. He's a little older, more mature now, and his appearance should reflect that in kind.

For his role in this story, he sees that Anna is stressed out trying to be queen and run the country, and if he and Anna expect to be equal partners by the time that they're married, he could assure her that she doesn't have to take on this responsibility by herself. Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's husband, back in his day dedicated his time supporting public causes, working on educational reform, and was in charge of running the Queen's household, office and estates. Perhaps Kristoff could do something similar. He could be a man of the people and rally them in a darkest hour situation, or heck, recruit those ice cutter guys from the first movies should Elsa's powers be hindered since he's Ice Master. He's been a supportive boyfriend thus far; like any Disney couple, he should be on equal footing with her to some degree.

Lastly, if Hans were to show up, as I've hypothesized, in an "enemy of my enemy is my friend" situation, the delicious amount of bickering that would ensue between the two of them would be amazing. The protective boyfriend ™️ would come out full swing for Kristoff's supportive arc, though after some time Hans could give Kristoff some insight on how to be a leader, if that scenario should arise.

Anyways, Kristoff deserved better. They all do, so hopefully y'all like what I've come up with so far. There's more on the way. 👍

@jasmindoodles