#anyways i hope the transcript is helpful i always like them and i had to fight my dog over this one bc she wanted to type <33< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[z0mbiefrank]

L.S. Dunes, Prague [05/02/23]

Frank: [Talking away from mic] Anthony: What did you just say?! Frank: I didn't say anything! I didn't say anything! Anthony: No wait! I didn't hear you, what was that? What did you say Francis?! Frank: [Giggling] I said Prague-ably... Anthony: In case you didn't hear, he said "Prague-ably". Francis did that. Frank: Alright fuck you! I got a fever, it's alright. Anthony: ... Blame it on the fever. Frank: That YOU gave me- Anthony: [Starts aggressively singing the opening of 2022]

[fallstaticexit]

Prev / Next / Beginning

TW: Conversion "Therapy" Mention / Homophobia

AN: Sorry this one took a while! - longer than I'd like away!. Coming back from a mini vaca and getting back into work and routine is a nightmare, also my delicate sleep schedule is ruineddd. Anywho, we should be back in business now! :) now, DJ play Good Luck, Babe by Chappell Roan!

Transcript under the cut

Geoffrey: Great job, bud! Tree is looking great!

Malcolm: It’s because I’m a decorator like mommy.

Jonathan: Mom, are you leaving? We’re supposed to decorate the tree too.

Nancy: Save a few ornaments for me to put on there, darling. Mommy has to step out for a couple hours.

Geoffrey: Johnny’s right, you know. Decorating it is apart of the deal.

Nancy: Can’t you spare me an hour or two?

Geoffrey: Remember what I said about being there?

Nancy: That’s not fair. I’ve been doing better, haven’t I? I left work early, which I’m hardly ever able to do and we found the tree together. I haven’t seen Vanessa in 16 years, Geoffrey. This is important to me.

Geoffrey: Yeah, well, this is pretty important to them.

Nancy: Please don’t make me feel guilty about this.

Geoffrey: It’s just you and Vanessa, right?

Nancy: [frowns] Yes, of course. I’ll be back, ok?

-

Vanessa: I’m glad you came.

Nancy: I wouldn’t have miss this for the world.

Vanessa: You look so beautiful tonight.

Nancy: [blushes] So do you. You’ve always have.

Vanessa: [smiles] I wasn’t sure on your choice of champagne, so I hope you don’t mind we have mine. I guess it’s one of the many things we’ll have to learn about each other.

Nancy: This is perfect. I’m sure I’ll love anything you like.

Nancy Narrates: [I found myself unable to eat. Instead, I got my fill of her. I studied her, consumed the sight of her with greedy, curious eyes]

Nancy Narrates: [It thrilled and frightened me the way she took me in too, as if she was trying to recall all those precious details that may have gotten lost in time. Seeing all the ways I could have changed and stayed the same]

Nancy Narrates: [One thing was for certain: my heart still raced the moment our fingers found one another, just like when we were girls. It was a delicate and familiar touch that I could feel from inside, and it was almost as if no time had passed at all]

Vanessa: [softly] Nancy, Nancy, Nancy, the woman you’ve become. I’ve thought of you, over time, what kind of woman you grew up to be.

Nancy: Is it what you expected?

Vanessa: Successful? Powerful? Stunning? Yes, I like to think so.

Nancy: I’ve thought of you too.

Vanessa: Yeah?

Nancy: I thought about what you did, after high school. Who you became. If you fell in love. If you thought about me too. Feels good, knowing you did.

Vanessa: I think holding on to the version of you I remembered kept me sane, after all this time. Do you mind if I smoke? Helps my nerves.

Nancy: As long as I can bum one.

Vanessa: Hey, do you remember our first cigarette together?

Nancy: How could I forget?

Vanessa: Share a light with me. For old times’ sake?

Vanessa: So, care to share all those burning questions you said you had for me?

Nancy: Now I feel like I’m being put on the spot.

Vanessa: Oh, come on. Don’t go shy on me now. How’s this? I’ll ask a question, then you, and so on.

Nancy: Alright. Shoot.

Vanessa: Do you still talk in your sleep?

Nancy: I- what!? I did not talk in my sleep!

Vanessa: Oh, yes you did. Full sentences too. You monologued even.

Nancy: Fuck off, I did NOT talk in my sleep! How would you know anyway? You were practically narcoleptic. I’d be up for hours after you fell asleep.

Vanessa: [murmurs] Still talks in her sleep- in denial about it. Ok. Got it. Your turn.

Nancy: I’ll ask a REAL question this time.

Vanessa: [smirks] That was a real question. I came all this way just to know but ok, ask away.

Nancy: Well, speaking of ‘all this way’. Where do you live?

Vanessa: Here and there. I don’t like to sit in one spot for too long; I get restless. Bored. I’ve spent the last 6 months in Tomorang. Beautiful people. Lovely culture. That’s actually where I heard your name mentioned for the first time. You’ve got quite the reputation over there. You’ve been up to no good, I hear.

Nancy: Christ...long story. Please don’t ask. Are you thinking of moving here?

Vanessa: Ah, ah. It’s my turn. Let’s see...ah! Who’s idea was it to make Geoffrey ‘Mr. Landgraab’. That’s probably the funniest shit I’ve ever heard.

Nancy: My parents, of course. They didn’t want to erase the family name and since they no longer have a son to continue their legacy- well. You get it. Speaking of marriage, are you married?

Vanessa: No, I’m not married.

Nancy: Well. Are you...seeing anyone?

Vanessa: [smirks] No.

Nancy: Children?

Vanessa: No children either. Those counts as a question, by the way.

Nancy: Oops. Ok, ok, you can ask two then. It’s only fair.

Vanessa: I guess I’ll ask a ‘real question’ then. Are you happy like this?

Nancy: [pauses] Like...what?

Vanessa: Married. Married to him. Does it make you happy?

Nancy: [shifts] I care for him very much. He’s the father of my children. He’s a good man and he’s good to me. Why are you asking me this-

Vanessa: Do you still like women?

Nancy: Do you?!

Vanessa: You have to answer my question first-

Nancy: Did you get my voicemail? November 2nd, 1993. I called you and I left you a voicemail. Did you hear it?

Vanessa: Nancy-

Nancy: Why didn’t you call me back? What—what happened to you, Vanessa? Where did you go? Where have you been!? Why, after all this time, am I just now seeing you?

Vanessa: It’s not really the easiest thing to talk about, but I know I owe you closure. [exhales] After I was pulled out of school, my father had me admitted. I received treatments to ‘fix’ me. Every time I fucked up and pissed off my father, he’d pack me up and ship me off until I came back normal and obedient.

Vanessa: There were days I thought I couldn’t keep going on like that, but then I heard your voicemail, and it... scared me. It made me angry. It broke my heart, but most importantly, it woke me up. I finally found the strength to escape my father and live my own truth. It cost me everything—my family disowned me. I relinquished my fortune, but in return, I’m free. I’m free, and I can live the life I deserve. I just... I wish I could have called, but life didn’t work out that way.

Nancy: It should have because I did call you, Vanessa.

Vanessa: I know.

Nancy: [weakly] I said that I loved you..

Vanessa: I know, I know...things were different for me back then.

Nancy: Things are different now! I’m married. I’m a mother!

Vanessa: I know, Nancy. I didn’t come here to break up a happy home.

Nancy: Why did you come here?

Vanessa: Can’t a girl miss her best friend?

Vanessa: Listen. I’ve thought a lot about how I would fit into your life if I ever got to see you again, if this was something you would want at all. That time we shared in our youth was the happiest I’ve ever been. I missed that feeling. I’ve missed you. I’m in a place to explore a friendship with you again, if you want it. If not, then I’ll accept that.

Nancy: I do want this. I want you here. I just...I can’t...

Vanessa: I know. It could be simple. Easy. I miss you, Nancy.

Nancy: [sighs] I miss you too. I’ve missed you so much.

[takumiraine]

Once Upon A Time Chapter 2

<prev> <next>

So Danny? 100% has PTSD. I do have a vague plan for this. And most of the next chap written. The Fentons may or may not be terrible parents. You’ll have to wait and see. I do have plans to break everyone’s hearts at least once. Anyways. This is considered my like…. Audience test before Ao3. Things may change. As a reminder all I know about dc is from fandom and wiki and everything I remember about dp is prob poorly remembered.

—

Once upon a time, there had been a young boy who was happy. Once upon a time, there was a young boy who had dreams and a future. Once upon a time, there was a boy who had been alive in every sense of the word. Once upon a time, everything shattered. Once upon a time, there was a man who was filled with anger. Once upon a time, there was a man just as alive as he was dead. Once upon a time, there was a man who was haunted and hunted.

As the stabbed kid shuffled off, leaving Jason baffled, he grabbed the guy who he had slammed into the wall. His head was bleeding but his breathing was steady and Jason huffed. He knew he definitely cracked the guy’s skull, but he had survived worse.

“O, what do we know on this guy?” He asked the woman in his ear. Oracle’s answer would determine whether he took the guy in to the ER or let him roll the dice of fate.

“Rap sheet about a mile long. Pretty basic stuff. Armed robbery, possession with intent, B&Es, assault and battery, the usual.”

Jason shrugged then and dropped the guy against the wall. Rolling the dice it was. He turned away, looking towards where the kid disappeared around the corner “and what about the guy he was mugging?”

“That’s where it gets weird.” Oracle’s typing was coming through loud and clear. “It’s hard to get a clear picture of him. He has some sort of distortion on the feed. Everything else comes out clear but…. He’s a mess of pixels. Voice too. Scrambled. It’ll take time.”

“Think he’s a meta?”

“Wouldn’t surprise me, considering he got knifed and just…. Walked off with it. Wonder what his issue with B is though.”

“Couldn’t tell you. Think it might be time to update my armor if I’m being lumped in with people B and the bird brains have pissed off.” Jason took an evidence kit out of his pocket and swiped at the blood on his chest. Old habits and all. “Got a sample of the kid’s blood though.”

“Good thinking. Wonder if he’s in any databases. I’ve got a cleaned up picture now. Enough that it’s pinging in GU’s database. Dan Nightingale, Mechanical engineering major. It says he’s 19, it’s his freshman year and he’s in like every remedial class he can take, high school transcripts are mediocre at best. No other information about him really. Rogue in the making that one.” Oracle reported. Jason groaned, grapneling up to the rooftops to follow where the kid went off to.

“Someone should keep an eye on him. Ugh. This’ll be a conversation for B and the birds won’t it? Kid won’t like having a bunch of birds following him.” Jason flicked through the different visual modes on his visor, finding…. Cold moving through one of the apartment buildings. It was human shaped, but where he expected to find heat…. “Weird…. You seeing this?”

“Very weird,” Barbara agreed, tapping into his visor’s feed. “And hey, you could just…. Not tell him. You wanted a Lit degree right? Go to class, befriend him. Do some recon.” Jason knew Babs always walked the fine line between what Bruce needed to know about the rest of them and what she had to keep secret to keep helping them. He didn’t envy her position. Jason still wanted Bruce to hurt sometimes. Not as much as he used to, something about the sins of the father and all that. He just wanted Bruce to be aware that everything he had ever hoped for his boy to be was… out of both of their reaches forever.

“That sounds annoying.” He was 23. He didn’t have any interest in taking on a degree on top of his full time crime fighting and criminal empire running jobs.

“Yeah, but what other choice do you have? It’s go back to school, tell B, or wait for him to become a rogue.”

“I hate you sometimes.” He muttered, unsure of what made him suddenly so interested in that angry guy.

“Feeling’s mutual Hood,” She replied with what was definitely a fond tone. He grimaced.

—-

In the apartment, Danny was less than thrilled. That was his favorite shirt! Now not only was it covered in blood, it had a huge hole in it. His core still thrummed with the urge to fight, but he tamped it down. Slowly, as he pulled the knife out, he sealed the wound with a layer of ice, pulling his shirt off and throwing it into the bathroom sink. The knife was dropped into the kitchen sink. His keys and phone in his bedroom on the battered nightstand next to the bed.

He returned to the bathroom and turned the water on cold. He let it spray full blast before working on scrubbing the blood from his shirt. He looked up to eye himself critically in the mirror before noticing the waistband of his jeans were saturated with blood too. Damn it. He kicked off his shoes and pulled his pants off, throwing them into the now overfilled sink. The bathtub would probably be a better choice. Turning off the sink and turning on the tub Danny picked up the sopping clothes and dropped them with a wet thump into the basin of the tub. Carefully he lowered himself onto the floor, wincing at the way pain clawed through him.

He would need to actually eat food to heal from this at any reasonable speed. He thought of the two dollars he had, then the emergency stash of….he racked his brain to remember how much of the emergency cash he was left with once he got to Gotham…right. Twenty bucks…. That was all he had in the wall.

He missed the days when Sam would just throw money at him whenever his parents forgot to do things like pay rent or put food in the fridge.

As if agreeing his stomach rumbled loudly, demanding actual food to sate the expense of energy healing his injury would take. He thought about calling Sam. Seeing if she could arrange a prepaid card for him. He knew she would in a heartbeat.

Even cut off from family money she seemed to be doing better than he was. Wracking his brain, Danny thought she was working in Bludhaven as some sort of personal assistant. He wasn’t sure if it was the exhaustion that came from sustaining a human body on nothing but ecto or if he had been too distracted in the moment to pay proper attention, but he couldn’t remember if that was right. Getting the blood out of his clothes he wiped at the remaining blood on his body, getting most of it off. He grabbed the clothes and turned off the water.

Slowly, Danny pushed himself to his feet. He had survived worse, multiple times. But pain never seemed to stop being painful. It lanced through his side and he almost fell back to his knees with the way it stole his breath and doubled him over. He wished he could go back to the Zone and just… wait it out. But in order to do that without drawing attention he’d need a portal. The only ones he knew of were either destroyed or…. Compromised.

Maybe he should call Vlad. Danny shook that thought away almost immediately as he realized how silly it was. Vlad spent most of his teen years antagonizing him. Besides the GIW had probably gotten to Vlad too. If he wasn’t captured he would likely be compromised. Memories of Amity Park flooded in before Danny could stop them. Of asking for help. Over and over. Of the GIW storming in and locking everything down. Of Danny frantically telling his parents, only for their eyes to dart to the kitchen before they could stop it. Of the sound of energy. The smell of his flesh burning. Of pain.

Danny forced himself to take a breath. He focused on the wet clothes in his hands. On the tiles beneath his feet. Of the too harsh fluorescents in the bathroom that buzzed. The sounds of the people above him arguing over bills and needing better jobs.

Slowly he banished the memories back where they belonged. He’d… figure it out. He had to. Somehow. For now, sleep. Danny hung up the wet clothes over the shower bar, made sure there was a towel on the floor and shuffled into the bedroom. Double checking that his alarm was set, even though his class wasn’t until early afternoon, he didn’t want to miss it, he slid into his bed and pulled the pile of blankets up over him.

Almost instantly, he was out.

—-

“B,” Jason said in lieu of a proper greeting as he stepped into the Batcave, hood tucked under his arm.

“Jason,” Bruce looked up and turned the surprised expression into something more fond. “To what do I owe the visit?”

Jason leaned against the rock. Foot braced against the wall. “I know semester’s already started, but something came up. How hard would it be to start at GU?”

Bruce stared at him for a long moment and Jason knew it was his way of trying to figure out what buttons to press. Then he tilted his head and turned back to the computer screen. “Not too hard. It is early yet. Anything I should know?”

“Babs was lonely.” It was an out and out lie, but it seemed to soften things in Bruce further, reminding him of the two children that failed him within months of each other.

“Hm.” Bruce was silent at his computer for a long moment. Convinced that was the end of the conversation, Jason tightened his grip on the helmet he had tucked under his arm. “Either way. It is a good choice. Literature?”

The comment and question rankled Jason, the thing from the pit scratching at his carefully contained emotions. Pushing for any crack. Bruce was trying he reminded himself. Too little too late, but trying.

“Yeah. Going in in the morning.”

“Should I call ahead?”

“No. I can handle it. If not I have no business being there.”

“You will do fine.” The ‘you are a Wayne’ was left unspoken.

Jason snorted. “Right. Good talk.”

“Are you staying the night?” An olive branch. Jason wanted to burn it. He tempered the impulse to a spark.

“I have my own place.”

“Your room is still yours when you want it.”

“Yeah. The room of the worst Robin in history. Pass.” Jason turned and walked stiffly back up the steps. Hearing the soft growl of Batman behind him. The start of an argument.

He considered it a victory that he didn’t run into any of his siblings or Alfred on the way out.

[luchitohamilton]

lewis being interview by margot laffite for canal+ at the qatar gp '23

I act like a kid all the time. I’m not embarrassed about it; I love having fun. So that’s why, you know, I’m always skydiving, surfing or I’m skiing or I’m riding my bike or whatever might be, that’s me being a kid. And that’s something I refuse to ever let go.

transcript below :-)

So Lewis. I don't want today to talk about the World champion, the Formula 1 driver, I would like to talk about Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton, if you don’t mind. Can you describe the kind of kid you were at home and at school? What kind of kid were you?

[Smiling] Did you ever had a show called Dennis the Menace?

Oh yes of course.

You did?

Of that kind, yeah. Denis la Malice.

I was like Dennis the Menace 2.0. [laughs] I was climbing trees, I was just always riding my bike down the fastest hill. Naturally super competitive in everything that I did and, uhm, my dad helped me concentrate that energy into racing and that’s where stability came.

We know you were a huge fan of Ayrton Senna, but did you watch like every single F1 race, documentaries about F1?

No, when I was a kid I only watched documentaries on Ayrton Senna, read his books. Anything to do with Ayrton I would have it, whether it was a coffee mug or, not that I drink coffee as a kid, but I was watching Gran Prix from like since I was like 4 with my dad on the weekends. Yeah, Sunday sitting with my dad watching races was one of the best times, I remember.

If you could go back in time, where and when would it be?

It would probably be when I was living with my mum, before I was 8, so, yeah.

You are running the world so, how difficult is it to build friendships?

Yeah, it’s definitely not the easiest I would say. My two closest friends are from school, yeah, they are my brothers. Places where I’ve found good friendships are obviously on my job, and then when I’m doing music, when I’m working with musicians, it’s just like a different realm and there I’ve built some incredible relationships also.

What does being a grown up mean to you? Is it like tiresome to be more conscious of the impact you have on things and people, rather than the pleasant innocence of being a child?

I act like a kid all the time. I’m not embarrassed about it; I love having fun. So that’s why, you know, I’m always skydiving, surfing or I’m skiing or I’m riding my bike or whatever might be, that’s me being a kid. And that’s something I refuse to ever let go.

When you play a game with some children, maybe your family, nieces and nephews, do you let them win?

No, I try to win! I just [laughs] and they are good, they are getting good, so I have to get my wins while I can. But, my dad never let me win anything when I was a kid. I think is good to learn how to lose anyways, so [laughs]

Are you always on time or sometimes you’re late?

No, I’m always late. The only time I’m ever on time is when I’m getting in the car to race. But like if I’m going for a flight, I’m always late. I don’t know, I like the limit, yeah. [jokingly] I like getting there around the limit, I like the rush.

What are your thoughts and feelings about Max Verstappen? The man he is, the kind of champion.

He’s done an exceptional job. I think the team has done an amazing job. Collectively they truly deserve the success. Max has been faultless this year, he’s not made any mistakes. I only hope that there’s a time when I’ll be able to put up a fight for him.

When you quit F1 would you still want race like Dakar or the 24 Hours of Le Mans?

I currently don't really have any, like, zero, like, feelings to do those things. I love motorbikes, I’ve always loved Moto GP, still love it today. I have 2 super bikes. I think I probably always just gonna take my bikes out. I won’t compete professionally in anything ever again. It takes 10,000 hours to be, you know, a master of something else. I wanna spend that 10,000 hours on being the best dad or something like that, you know, or running my businesses in the best way I can. Where all my energy and focus will go to. For now, I’ll continue to skydive, I’ll continue to surf, those are probably the, riding the bikes, surfing and skydiving, those are the 3 fun things that I’ll make sure I always do.

Merci Beaucoup, Lewis.

Merci.

It was a pleasure as always. Thank you.

[applesaucesims]

Since they had become friends, Louis liked to invite Dayton around to play after school every now and then. The two of them had become pretty close by now, and they loved playing games that made use of the space the big house and yard provided, as well as causing a bit of mischief.

One of those games they liked to play was hide-and-seek. This time, it was Dayton's turn to hide, while Louis stood in a corner of his room and counted to ten.

Dayton had been taking his sweet time looking for a hiding spot, so he was barely out of the room, when Louis had finished counting. Knowing that he would be found as soon as Louis opened the door, he had to think quick, so he could have a chance at winning. So, he took a turn around the corner and opened the door he was met with, to hide away in there.

Meanwhile, Ruby enjoying some quiet alone time in her room, while Dorothy was busy playing outside. Entranced in the book she was reading, she let out a surprised gasp, when the door suddenly opened and Dayton jumped in, closing it again quickly.

Since starting school, the twins had come up with their own little rules for their room. One of them was that Louis and his boy friends were not allowed to enter. Louis always made sure to follow this rule, but Dayton was not thinking much about it, when he had entered the first door he had touched. However, now that he was there, he figured his best shot was to get his friend's little sister to help him hide.

Ruby, who had first been annoyed at having her reading time disturbed, was now warming up to the boy sitting next to her. It was silly, but she could not help but smile at him, even though he was just her brother's stupid older friend.

Unfortunately for her, Dayton was quickly bored with just sitting around in his perfect hiding spot and decided it was time to leave. Ruby wished he would have stayed for just a bit longer, but she did not want to embarrass herself in front of him now, so she let him go.

[TRANSCRIPT]

Louis: "...six...seven...eight, nine, ten! Ready or not, here I come!"

Dayton: "Oh, bollocks!"

...

Ruby: *gasp* "What are you doing? Can't you see I'm reading?"

Dayton: "Sorry, mind if I hide away in your room for a bit?"

Ruby: "You're not supposed to be in here, actually. I don't think my dad would be very happy about-"

Dayton: "Shhh!"

Ruby: "!"

Louis: "Dayton? Where are you?"

Dayton: *whispers* "Louis mustn't know I'm in here."

Louis: "I hope you're not in the girls' room! You know they don't want us in there!"

Dayton: *laughs quietly*

Ruby: *laughs along nervously*

Dayton: "Welllll, I should probably come out of hiding. He isn't gonna look in here, and I don't wanna be a spoilsport."

Ruby: "Already?"

Dayton: "Yeah, I'm not supposed to be here, anyway."

Dayton: "Hey, if you want, you and Dot can join us some time. I wouldn't mind, and Louis wouldn't either."

Ruby: "Right..."

[press-f1-to-grieve]

Liam telling stories about him and Yuki on the Red Flags Podcast

Source: Red Flags Podcast - WE INTERVIEWED F1'S LIAM LAWSON!!! (edited down and transcribed by @press-f1-to-grieve)

to @2bluetwo85: i read your tags from that yuki and liam post. thank you for letting me know this exists (and for reading my long tags). i hope i got the right podcast you were talking about.

---

full transcription underneath beware, it's long. and i'm not familiar with the podcast (my newbie is showing) so i'm not sure which voice belongs to who. please excuse me if i got them mixed up. i listened to the episode on a podcast app and only found out they have a youtube channel later, after i had already finished everything bar hit the "post" button. the visual would have helped greatly with knowing who's speaking but alas...

---

Matt: Ye so, I wanna talk about another teammate of yours, Yuki Tsunoda. So we've read that you and Yuki go back. He lived with your parents in New Zealand?

Brian: (laughs) No! He didn't live- He didn't live with- Liam: He came to- So this is a series called the "Toyota Racing Series" in New Zealand, used to be like, really really big, especially before Covid. And basically we were both competing in it as teammates, and so he came to New Zealand. And we've been teammates a year before that in F3 and Euro Formula, so I've spent a lot of time with him already. So when he came to New Zealand, he basically just hung out with us. A lot. Like, I basically just drive around with him. Matt: So like step-brothers a little bit? Liam: Honestly, ye. (laughs)

Matt: What was your favorite thing to do with him, growing up?

Liam: It was always away from the track. Cause away from the track, he's a really funny, genuine dude. So, obviously, it's harder. When you are competing, with Yuki, (...) competing for the same seat. So, it's like, at the track, it's real intense. And then, away from that, it's real cool.

Matt: How're you able to maintain a friendship when it's just like, you know, blood sport out there for these few seats?

Liam: At points, over the year, (stammers) you know, it's not a friendship. And then he- Like, obviously, his journey was pushed a lot earlier than mine. He went to F1 quite early so, then I was- I wasn't really in competition with him anymore so- Matt: Right. Does that help your friendship? Liam: Then we are like, pretty chill again. And then we are put in competition again.

---

Brian: I think in one of the earlier seasons of Drive to Survive, you were in his room, and his room was like, all messy, and he was annoyed that they put it in.

Matt: Did you catch him on a bad day or is that just is? Brian: Is his room just a mess always? Liam: That's literally- I don't know now. Oh actually, I went to his house recently and it was a lot better. Both Hosts: (relieved) Okay! Liam: He has improved. (stammers) I remember, well, it wasn't really- (vocally winces) It was fierce because you shouldn't live like that anyway. BUT!- Both Hosts: (crying laughing emojis in audio form) Liam: But I remember, he had just moved into this apartment at the start of, I think it was the start of that year, and I- Oh no, it was the year before! But same thing, Covid, here, basically. I went to New Zealand because I was about to be locked out of the country. There was no racing. And Yuki stayed, in Milton Keynes for months. Just on (his own), he didn't go back to Japan. Like he just stayed in this apartment. Brian: Like Cast Away Liam: But I had to move into this brand new apartment and it was sick! And I went to New Zealand and I came back 3 months later. Matt: He has got a beard. Liam: And I walked into this place and it was just like DUUDE. It was bad, like it was real bad. Brian: (hums of understanding) Like takeouts and- (all three make noises of agreement) Liam: It was just food everywhere. Like, the laundry basket was just like, overflowing. Matt: Yuki was basically all of us during Covid. Brian: (enthusiastic YE's)

---

Matt: So, what are you most competitive with Yuki off the track? Like what do you guys like to-

Liam: Awe, dude, everything. Both Hosts: Ye? Liam: No, like, everything. We're like- At the moment, we've been playing table tennis. Just little disc. Matt: Oh you'll just make- Liam: M-make one! Ye, just make it. (...) not a proper one. Matt: Who is up? Liam: He plays a lot more, to be fair, but- Matt: So he crushes you. Liam: (cute babbles) No no- Both Hosts: (laugh) Liam: So, we played in Japan. I think I had him in Japan. And then we played last week and he beat me. Matt: You don't keep a serious tally? Are you better on certain surfaces? Like if it's a dinner table, you got him. Liam: On a smaller table, I have him. But on a slightly bigger table- Like depends on what table we get during race weekend.

---

Liam: But one thing with Yuki that was real funny that we did back when we were in New Zealand.

Liam: I don't know how this is a thing but you can rent a boat, at like 15 or 16 years old. And just take it out, to Lake Taupo. And so me and Yuki were like- I was probably 17 or 18 and he was like 19 or 20, and we just rented this boat, and got like, you know, biscuit, or tube? What do you call them? (...) And we just took it out and basically- It started off like real fun. Like we were just towing each other around. But then it just got like, who could throw the other person off like, the biggest. We just like, tried to kill each other on this little tube, in the middle of this lake. Matt: Just the two of you? Liam: Just the two of us. Just out there in the middle of a lake. Brian: Just the two of you tried to kill each other. Matt: It's like a fucking thriller. Liam: Honestly! I've got videos of like, him and me, like, in the air. Like, meters in the air. Matt: Who won or lost that game? Brian: "We both lost that game." Liam: Actually, I lost pretty hard on that one, to be fair. Matt: He threw you- Liam: I went off like, big time, ye. Brian: It seems like, that's the common experience of tubing, is that. It's like, it's fun and then you're like, am I gonna die? (...)

Matt: So Yuki was a master at flinging you?

Liam: Well, he would like- Sometimes I feel like it's on accident. He would like, get a lot of slack and it will just build up real fast- Both Hosts: Sure, he said it was on accident.

---

Liam: We're drivers. Everything turns into a competition.

Liam: We had a rental car, again in New Zealand with Yuki, that we like, basically would like, make a little track and just set time trials off the side of the road. Matt: Like with a Camry or something? Liam: No, Yuki had this little Mitsubishi ASX. I don't know if you know what it is, it's like a boxed car. And we, with like a couple of drivers, basically made like, a little track, and, basically goes until somebody- until Yuki crashed it. (...) The funniest thing, it wasn't even in the- He had finished his lap. It was afterward, he tried to be cool and do like a flick spin, and just totally sent it into a bank. We had to go to a store to get one of those plungers to try and plunge out the dent in the front of the- Because we had to get the car back. Brian: Right, of course. Matt: Renters insurance, man. If I see you or Yuki walk into an enterprise or something, I'll just like, go somewhere else.

[roo-bastmoon]

IMPORTANT INFO: issues around Jimin’s album

I have an ARMY friend (who shall remain safely anonymous) who works in film production for the music and entertainment industry here in the US. They offered me some valuable insights today into production limitations and possible issues related to Jimin’s solo album.

Below the cut is a transcript of their messages to me. I share this in the hopes it better informs our discussions around fair treatment of BTS members’ releases. It is by no means a definitive account of Jimin’s situation—simply an insider’s ideas on what likely happened around a few things.

I understand there are very big feelings about this topic, especially with the apparent differences around JK’s single, and I appreciate everyone’s viewpoints. However, if you choose to interact with this post, you will be respectful to others (including members) or you will be blocked. You are always welcome to DM me privately if you need to vent—we are all human and we all need a bit of grace, so you’ll always have that with me.

Sending you guys so much love, Roo

Anonymous Insider

Some “light reading” while you’re resting up and recovering, lol. This is all just based on what I’ve been watching and seen. Of course, I don’t have access to their production budget sheet and Korea works very differently than the US when it comes to production, but this what I’ve been seeing when it comes to their videos and particularly the promotions for FACE.

(I’m sending in sections, lol)

Alrighty - I’m still like deep in edit-land (still am two days later 😭) but I started typing this on the train between meetings, ha ha. (And am still on the train doing this, lol.) Also this rambles a bit I’m sorry! So the first thing I did was go back to the interview where Jimin talked about the music videos — it was a Japanese TV show and he’s talking with a host in Korean.

He’s talking about “wanting to do it all,” laughs and says, “I wanted all the music videos” and that “they” (the company assuming) said “무리다” which has its roots in the word 무리 which means a herd, a party, a group — basically “it’s too much,” “it’s unreasonable,” and “it’s impossible” are decent translations as it refers to something or an idea being “too much” — then the host and Jimin burst out laughing and the host goes “서리와 무리다” which I read as “sorry (in konglish) but we can’t” and they continue to laugh. So based on that —it sounds very understandable.

We can imagine Jimin sitting down with his team and planning out SMFP2 and LC videos, with the 30 dancers and all the party scene extras, and then Jimin saying he wants to do the music shows with 6 different sets in rented locations so they could have total control. And if Jimin in that process went “what if we made official music videos for all of them?” the team would understandably go “that’s just not reasonable!” 1) because it would give Jimin a budget no other member had gotten and 2) there aren’t that many production houses in Korea. It’s a very small scene — it may just logistically not been possible. There aren’t enough DPs and crew and editors. Sometimes, as a producer, you have to tell your creative talent “I’m sorry, but no.” — I say it every week!

So what about the music videos? Well, here’s what I know from meticulously watching all the behind the scenes for BTS videos over the years. They work with a small team. They likely own a good deal of the gear — they shoot mainly on RED cameras and heavy expensive Cooke lenses (which you can’t get this stuff easily in Korea. I lost a lens cap for a Canon CINÉ Lens in Seoul and it was like this whole big deal because getting gear there is an import challenge but anyways) they use MOVI and Ronin gimbal stabilizers and Jimmy Rigs a lot.

Recently they’ve been using technocranes but I wonder how many technocranes there are in Seoul. As I said, they likely own a lot of this gear which can help with costs. But we’ve also been told — and I’ve heard through my industry friends — that Hybe PAYS. And in Korea there’s no unions in the entertainment world, and often the rates are shit (hence Netflix investing so much there - blerg) their standard work week is also already 12 hours longer than the US. It’s a whole thing. and they spend so much money on sets. It’s incredible.

They rent these huge spaces outside Seoul and BUILD — I mean the build out for SMFP2 was astounding. They easily dropped 1million on that video. The rigging, the build-out, the custom set and the custom camera rigs to achieve the 360 shots - the drone shots. They’re astounding videos. No US label is spending that money on videos these day. Absolutely none of them are — my friend recently produced a video for John Legend. They were trying to pull the whole thing off for $100K which is ridiculous. It’s really almost impossible.  

But on the Big videos they spend a lot of money, but they also produce a lot of other stuff too (and these are often looked at as Performance Videos vs all-caps MUSIC VIDEOS) -— like RM’s video shoot at DIA Beacon… that was a much smaller, fairly single camera shoot — all shot on drones or a MOVI handheld rig. No set, they also didn’t like pay for the set because DIA: Beacon is an art museum — and similar a little bit to Letter for Jimin, which was much smaller set and easy in-house gear.

(And it was also released on Bangtan TV channel vs Hybe Labels Channel, which is a good indicator of how they categorize these shoots.) But the big videos, they go for broke. I mean they spend so much money and again they may own a lot of the equipment but there’s still so much people-power and labor involved. Take the dancers’ rehearsals. You have to pay people for all that — you have to pay them for the weeks of rehearsal, you have to pay them to be in a video. It is so expensive — like, I would not be able to budget that video for under 1 million, that’s how much it costs.  

So then Jimin wanted to do music shows —- and so because he’s Jimin and it’s BTS, Hybe rented larger venues and locations for all of the shoots. None of them use the actual Broadcast spaces or were provided by the broadcast studios. The smaller companies do though — remember when BTS first started out they went to SBS to film on the day? — but they don’t do that anymore. They rent huge facilities so that they could be a mini concerts for ARMYs to visit with Jimin and see him.

They also have to do this kind of outside of the city and they built huge sets because they’re going to want to show off if they’re gonna be on TV but that is so expensive. (I don’t think you were an ARMY then, but when ON was released, at the time it was the “biggest broadcast performance ever” and they keep upping that ante for sure!) It’s possible the broadcast companies spend some money but what BTS is doing is so outside the usual budget and given the tension with the broadcasters and HYBE — they (Hybe) wants control of their products, and so I think they pay for that control.

I can’t imagine they got out of any of those days for under $500K; I mean, there were two different sets, all the crew; they’re paying for all of it. We add it up and they probably spent close to $3-5 million between Jimin’s music videos and his music show performances, and I would be understandably like: “That’s it!” Like, that’s the budget for an EP, you know.

I don’t think Jimin could have it all because that wasn’t the case for the other members. RM got to lead videos and J Hope had pyrotechnics, which definitely costs money and safety and insurance. You know he had visual effects his first video (a lotta visual effects) and again a lot of challenging technocrane work, but I haven’t really seen them build something on the scale of what they built for SMFP2 in a very long time (or ever?).

We heard from the Art Dept that Jimin did not want to shoot on blue screen, so they built the set for him. This cannot be the same label that is shafting him — that allows him to spend that amount of money just because the artist said “I want to shoot in a real space!” because I’m gonna be completely honest— he could’ve done that on a blue screen — I’m glad they built a real world because BTS almost always shoots on Blue/Green Screen. They build him a huge set like that. It’s absolutely incredible.

I was also reminded this morning that people are talking about radio for Like Crazy and not supporting the song — and I just keep thinking that they did exact rollout for Butter, Dynamite, and Permission to Dance. They released Like Crazy. It had both a Korean version and English version. (Obviously that wasn’t the case for the English BTS songs.) They released two additional remixes. Then they kept releasing, like, alternate cover versions — alternate covers of the main remix, alternate cover the other remix. They were trying to maximize the direct-to-consumer store and exact same way they had tried to maximize it with Dynamite and Butter and Permission to Dance.

The way you were buying Like Crazy was the same process I took on Dynamite. They did the exact same playbook. So the fact that they were unable to get the kind of radio play they wanted or maybe they weren’t prioritizing radio because they knew that they were gonna have a better chance at direct to consumer sales... Maybe they didn’t want to fight radio. Maybe Geffen was like “We don’t have the right ‘Ins’ yet!” — I’m not sure, but the fact that they got completely screwed over by Billboard doesn’t mean that they weren’t actually rolling it out in that way, because as soon as they started doing the whole alternate cover thing, I was like: “Well, they clearly want us to try to go for number one!” You know, “They clearly think that they are going to be able to get number one on the hot 100 and we’re gonna use these sales to do that!” And clearly that’s all changed now.

They keep changing the rules on us, so — with JK, they’re obviously trying to, you know, use whatever tools they have available to them at this point.

Finally, when it comes to restocking the digital single CD. There are still albums available in the store. So why would they manufacture and ship more (likely thrown away) plastic that’s just for one song, when those CD singles only serve to raise sales for the charts? All of the other member’s CD singles are out of stock except The Astronaut, which they treated more like a proper album a bit (kinda like the Butter CD releases). Because they still have both versions of his full albums in stock, so if I were Hybe, I’d be like “No,you need to buy the album, we still have albums, we’re not going to sell you a single song when you can buy the album!” That makes more sense to me. The albums cost more.

TL:DR, haha — so I feel like this narrative around Jimin’s release has been ramped up because, from my professional opinion, he’s had the most expensive release so far (by far) and if we want to compare him to, say, Beyoncé — well she owns her own production company (Parkwood Entertainment), so she can funnel her own money into a Visual Album, I don’t know if Jimin has considered that at this point in his career, but in the future, he might!

((Not including costs for Suga’s tour because that’s a whole other thing, and the tour probably made money I would expect to balance out the cost of the tour itself))

Anonymous Insider

This isn’t to say that the other things, the part where he didn’t get the cake celebration, or the posts, the issues with the linking and this general feeling that Jimin was short-changed in these things isn’t valid and understandable. I think Hybe relied too much on D2C sales and I don’t think they leveraged their might as much as could have for JM. They could have risked more for him.

{This is an end of Anonymous Insider’s messages to me. They noted that they are an intermediate non-native Korean speaker so please excuse any translation errors. They translated things themselves using Naver tools that aligned with the video subtitles.}

So, listen, I still don’t think Like Crazy was sent/promoted to radio (which was a mistake and still is a mistake) and I am furious at the shady articles and lack of celebration for Jimin…

But after reading the way the members approach their work in the Beyond the Story book and now hearing from someone who produces these works for a living, I have to wonder if the company was doing everything they knew how to do for Jimin, but the second it didn’t work out because of the western music industry culling streams and sales, they pulled back all their resources and pivoted for Yoongi and JK. (I also wonder if leadership shut up about it all due to liability issues, or not to cause bad blood with the music industry for future releases.)

Again, I’ll never forgive the lack of celebration and the split streams (not without a great explanation), but at least now I think there’s a good chance no one was actively trying to sabotage Jimin on purpose. They seemed to have wanted that #1 and then it all went to shit because Billboard and radio want to get paid. Maybe leadership decided not to put any more resources into Face but instead pivot for all the future music coming out (including PJM2.)

Perhaps I'm a cockeyed optimist. I’m just hoping like hell they never engage in payola. I want all our boys to win, but I want us to win fairly. And even if everyone cannot have the same investment every time on every project, I hope when they come back together in 2025 that everyone feels good about their solo works and each other. This is my prayer. Love, Roo

[magdaclaire]

starshine, a poem about my girlfriend @legalespeon

to cait: you're my favorite. to everyone else: hope you enjoy.

transcript under the cut or in the alt text image descriptions.

signed,

m a morton

i told her once that meeting her was like turning the lights on

and i don't know if there's any better way to describe it 

how else can i say that it feels like she reached into me and pulled every good thing about me back into the light

reminded me that there's more to this house than the shadows and the gloom

the creaking staircases and drafty windows

that she spilled color back into the world

or maybe she just reminded me to look for it

she opened the front door and the handle didn't even stick

didn't even catch on the swollen door frame

storm damaged in more ways than one

nobody's ever done it like her

people have shouldered through the door and they've climbed through windows

they've left the first time they were denied entry, 

mistaken the hesitance for occupancy,

it didn't even hesitate for her 

like the door was made for her to walk through.

meeting her was flicking on a gas stove

tick, tick, tick, catch,

the potential was always there,

stored energy waiting to be sparked into a flame,

i've cooked more in the months since i met her than i had in the previous two years.

every day, we do the connections together

that new york times game, something i would have never gotten into without her

i only like doing wordle with her

i get bored otherwise,

too caught up in my head to even stay focused on a game you only get six tries to get right

so why do i feel so perfectionist about it anyway

but that's not the point.

the point is that things are more fun when i can hear the sound of her laugh

i've always hated looking at menus but it's fun when she's telling me all the things she wants to try

when she's looking at restaurants in my hometown and curious about the brussel sprout salad

(which, of course, i order)

we looked through the attraction pages of three zoos together

we've contemplated dates in my hometown

the place she used to live

the place she's moved to now

the city where i stay when i'm with my brother

every place i am, i want her to be

i wanna see my comfortable places through her bright eyes

see how my girl sheds starlight, pixie dust from her fingertips

her delighted laughter, her open excitement,

i want to take her to every nook and cranny of childhood i have left in this world

let her know the creature consigned to this body

how it has come to heel beneath her gaze

how deeply and embarrassingly and ardently she's been needed for longer than i've known her.

she worries she doesn't help me as much as i help her

as if that worry in itself isn't more care than any partner has ever treated me with

like there isn't care in every look she regards me with

as if i haven't slept better since meeting her than i have in years.

and it can be said,

hey man you met her in the same time as getting on some new meds, maybe correlation isn't causation?

the new antidepressant is called auvelity and it started working before i ever knew her name

gave me energy again and the ability to cry and i started cooking again

day by day wasn't a slog for the first time in years and i hadn't felt that good since high school

(as fucking terrible as high school was).

the whole world still dim like milky twilight, damp with humidity

the frogs and the crickets so loud (or maybe the walls so thin) that you can hear them standing in the center of the house.

the lights didn't turn on without her.

she wraps joy around me like a borrowed coat, sits me down in the living room and tells me about the future,

and for the first time, i can picture one with me in it

for the longest time that idea was so vague to me

the abstraction from self it took to imagine survival past day by day by unforgiving day

with her, i can imagine turning 25

26, 31, 45 

if she's there, i want to be there too

and that's a lot to put on someone's shoulders

and i cannot be one more burden in her Atlas sky hands.

she'd tell me that i am not burdening her but stepping shoulder to shoulder with her, bearing the weight together

or she would tell me that i'm one of the reasons that all this tension is worth carrying

or she'd tell me that she's tired,

that she'd like to let go of the world and lay down with me,

and i would grab her hand and smile,

say fuck the world, come home with me

and in this imagining within an imagining

i picture how carefully she would set down the sky,

like placing a child back onto their feet

and how this is how she does everything,

with so much care it makes your chest ache

makes your eyes hurt

starlight girl supernova bright in my mind's eye,

my heartbeat catching on the lines of her smile.

sometimes, she and i sit looking at each other through cameras and phones and hundreds of miles

and i feel closer to her than any lover to ever touch my skin

there was an ocean between us and still that was true

four hours time difference we still found a way

i don't know what to do with a partner that actually thinks i'm worth the effort.

pushed out to sea by every moment i'm not with her,

pulled back in by the tide of her breathing,

my starlight girl moon in the sky,

and i the wrong kind of cosmonaut but enamored anyway,

there's not a way i can imagine this where i don't want to follow where she goes.

she's got one of those gaming computers with lights where lights truly do not have to be

it's colorful and whimsical and i'm sure that there's functional purpose

i want to build her the world with my own two hands but i imagine a computer like that might be easier

circuits and wires and logic and programming and ducks, from what i hear

i've never been for going about things the easy way anyway.

that's the scariest thing sometimes,

how easy things are with her

i'm used to loving folks like pulling teeth from my own mouth

service comes easy to me, gifts i can make,

but expressing love aloud has never been easier than when i'm pushing it past her lips

pouring love into her with lip and teeth and tongue

whisper her my love affair fire with smoke passed between our mouths

she breathes me in and i am taken in,

perfect and peaceful.

i'll never stop wondering why

she chose me but i'll choose her back every day if she'll let me

my sunshine, my north star

everything i need.

once, i told her that talking to her helps,

but I think I'll miss her til I have her in my hands, and every time she's not after that too

she says to me you say the most romantic shit sometimes,

asks me if she's supposed to  be normal about it,

as if making her feel that way isn't the goal of my every sentence;

letting her know how special she is through words alone is impossible

but sometimes I get close.

sometimes i think she can feel just how badly I need her,

split seconds of oh, you love me flash of recognition on her face

as if loving her wasn't what I was made for,

as if the sound of her laugh isn't music to me,

as if I don't hang off her every story time run-on sentence,

her unique ability to circumnavigate her point so much that it's like she's telling ten stories at once,

I love that about her.

I love the way she needs me to know every single detail and every single reason and how she knows him and how they know them,

how she invites me into the house of her soul just as easily as the door opened to her,

I love how much she trusts me.

I love trusting her just as much.

my good morning texts to her always start the same way

good morning, starshine! the sun says hello!

a bastardization misremembrance of something my mother quoted to me as a child that tastes like home on my tongue,

the home I provide to her will always live more on love than anything else,

and as well as I can, I won't let her be lonely in the home we share.

I was a lonely kid, in a way

in the textbook for the psychology class I took the semester before I met her

there was a small definition of what autism is, which began with

autism is a disorder characterized by extreme aloneness,

the goal here to be able to communicate exactly how much people like me live in our heads more than our homes,

open door and song birds singing,

and i don't think i've ever looked into a two way mirror and saw myself so profoundly as in that simple sentence,

that deep well of loneliness bubbling within me so suddenly.

i've never liked learning new things in public

it takes me time to adjust to information, to incorporate things

i can play a good game when it comes to the gambit of conversation

adapt as quickly as i can and keep quiet while things slide into place in my mind

i've never met someone more understanding of the oddities in me than she is

never been able to ask for the space she gives me naturally

slow but not far

an arms length intimacy that we close the distance of when we're both ready,

i wonder if she loves figuring me out as much as i love the vice versa,

standing in that push and pull of learning every single thing about her,

letting the ocean tide bite at my ankles just for the pleasure of standing in the sea spray,

i've always loved the water but never like this.

my love for her ocean vast and trench deep,

i have no idea how to end a poem about her

i'll spend the rest of my life with her

and i still don't think i'll ever be able to properly form the words,

tell her exactly how much she means,

how much i need her.

so instead, i'll prop the door open

write her poem after poem after poem of hello i love you,

good morning, i love you

how did you sleep, i love you

did you get something to eat, i love you

drink some more water, i love you

let me take care of you, i love you,

and i will take her hand and i will give her the keys, say

this house is yours now

i know you'll treat it well.

[justanotherspeck]

s1 my beloved

transcript below the cut:

CASPAR: Anyway, this is Midnight Burger. I’m Caspar.

AVA (Outside): FUCK. YES.

CASPAR: That’s Ava, she’s always here.

AVA: (Outside) NICOTINE, GET IN ME.

CASPAR: And this is a... diner.

GLORIA: Are you sure?

--

CASPAR: The huge murder beast is having a coffee break

--

ZEBULON: For our marriage is made strong by a singular truth.

EFFIE: That divorce is an abomination.

ZEBULON: … And that we love each other very much.

EFFIE: Yes, also that.

--

THE EX: You can’t let that stand in the way of true love.

LEIF: Honey, you lay eggs.

THE EX: Why do you keep bringing that up?!

LEIF: It’s an important detail!

--

GLORIA: Do you ever feel like Leif is almost too relaxed? He goes with the flow no matter what, it’s weird.

AVA: Oh yeah? Watch this. Hey, Leif?

LEIF (In the kitchen): Yeah?

AVA: I’ve been thinking about it and, I don’t know, I still feel like a hot dog is a sandwich.

[POTS CRASHING.]

LEIF (In the kitchen): For fuck’s sake!

--

MARY: Can you help me?

CASPAR: What’s happening?

MARY: The officer outside, he’s been looking for me for days. I’ve managed to avoid him so far but now that’s him outside. Can you hide me somewhere? This desperate plea is brought to you by Arby’s. Arby’s, we have the meats.

---

LEIF: This Molotov Cocktail is brought to you by communism!

[BOTTLE SMASHING]

--

EFFIE: Yes, yes, of course. Our Lord is a God of peace.

ZEBULON: Indeed.

EFFIE: Unless you’re a merchant outside the temple, then look out for the chokehold of Jesus.

ZEBULON: Honey!

--

CASPAR: Ava, what are you doing?

AVA: I’m getting this jug of moonshine and going out in the parking lot to watch a fist fight. Suck on that, Stephen Hawking.

--

CASPAR: Oh, no. What are we going to do without all the essential work you do around here? Who will do the incredibly hard work of being an asshole to people?

AVA: That’s not work, that’s how I relax.

CASPAR: Well you must be really relaxed.

---

STEVE: We had come upon a binary star system. I looked upon these two stars rotating around their barycenter and my thoughts turned to my wife. We were like these two stars, locked into an eternal dance only due to chance and gravity, unable to recall a moment where we chose each other and unable to escape this rotation. Knowing that to move closer would obliterate us both.

CASPAR: This went from fun idea to Russian novel real fast.

--

STEVE: Hello, my friends. I am about to go on a date.

CASPAR: Yeah, we heard... uhhh nice work, buddy.

LEIF: Go get ‘em, tiger.

STEVE: I have no idea how to go on a date.

CASPAR: Oh.

LEIF: Shit, okay, uh...

CASPAR: Um... Ask her about her job.

LEIF: Yeah, her life in general.

CASPAR: Listen a lot.

LEIF: Don’t try and be funny.

CASPAR: Try sharing a secret with her.

LEIF: If she asks you to do something illegal, it may be a test.

CASPAR: What?

LEIF: Really gauge the situation at that point, is she kidding or does she actually want to do crimes?

CASPAR: What are you talking about?

LEIF: This is good advice.

CASPAR: Where, the Pirate Isle of Tortuga?

--

EFFIE: Caspar, thanks for being with us today.

CASPAR (Whispering): So great to be here, go fuck yourself.

--

CASPAR: Gloria, we’re going to have to go.

GLORIA: Oh, man. Okay. Guys, gather round.

[HEARTBREAKING MUSIC]

CASPAR: What the hell is that music?

[WOLVES WIMPERING]

GLORIA: V, Jungkook, Jimin, Suga, Jin, RM, J-Hope. I want you to know that I love you all very much. But I have my own pack, and I have to go run with them now.

EFFIE: (Fighting back tears) It’s... so hard to hear her say goodbye to the wolves.

ZEBULON (Also crying): I didn’t realize she named them after the members of BTS.

--

CASPAR: We should get one of those signs that says “This many days since an accident”.

LEIF: Yeah, except ours would say “This many days since your sentient radio quoted the Egyptian Book of the Dead, switched personalities, or steered you into a supermassive black hole.”

CASPAR: ...That’s way too long for a sign, Leif.

GLORIA: Yeah, Leif, that’s—

--

CASPAR: As a straight white male you know one thing about me: I’ve watched a lot of History Channel.

--

GLORIA: Okay, I’m thinking a chair, some rope, and I’ll pour hot coffee on her, let’s do some Guantanamo shit.

JANE (Overlapping): It’s no use, guys.

--

GLORIA: Did the doors to the diner just lock?

CASPAR: They did. Effie, what in the Amityville Horror is happening right now?

--

JANE: Does having you kidnapped maybe count as a romantic gesture at all?

--

CASPAR, narrating: In Ava’s defense, she was unilaterally putting everyone in danger... That doesn’t make it better, does it?

--

AVA: I am going to rip your balls off!

CASPAR: Oh, don’t threaten me with a good time.

[heiayen]

hellooo any ideas on where to start studying albedo’s lore 🤲🏻✨ he’s like a gold mine that I’d like a guide to properly dig into/write

hello !!! <3 albedo is a very funny guy because... lot of him is hidden behind time limited events and if you miss them then... you have a lot of to catch up on 😭😭 which is an issue on hoyo's part because they love making lore heavy events. sigh anyway

first thing you'd want to check is obviously his character story/quest/voicelines for basics about him! his story quest is followed by the chalk prince and the dragon event that was the first albedo-centric event in the game

moving foward you'd want to catch up on shadows amidst snowstorms which is second albedo-centric event and it's quite the lore drop! we learn more about his origins, about rhinedottir, even about durin and i think this event is probably the most important when it comes learning his lore, it's a must! if you don't feel like watching gameplays on youtube the wiki has quest transcripts <3

if we have that done, you can check out other events where albedo appeared! he plays bigger roles in midsummer island adventure (which is a very adorable klee-centric event), hues of the violent garden (inazuma festival themed event with albedo appearing) and windblume's breath (mondstadt event!) those events don't really give you major lore drops regarding albedo, but i think watching how he interacts with others will help understand him more!

if i had the words i would happily give you some pointers regarding writing him but unfortunately im very bad at things like so and i often just go by vibes </3 but i think one thing worth remembering is that he's not a cold serious scientist character that doesn't care about others-- no, no, he's soooo far from that! he's a lovely man and a sweetheart !! it always irked me a lot to see people act like he's some ohh uncaring man cold scientist he's bad at relationships blah blah because. i really don't think he is that kind of a character. he's a silly sweet man give him some credit. he literally eats spiders. so silly 😔��

you can also read his birthday mails!! they are nice. cute. i like them

i hope this helped HAHA 😭 i am. absolutely terrible at giving advices when it comes to studying a character but i did try ueue have a great day <3

[your-kneecaps-are-mine-now]

!!The Magnus Archives S3 SPOILERS!!

To start, the spoiler warning, ^ obvy. But if you don't want any spoilers please don’t read. This is a mid to late s5 listeners thoughts, no grantee that this is just s3 spoilers. IM BEING SEREOUS! 

You have been warned.

Okay, I’ve had time to think about my recorder theory,(See This post) so you’re gonna get a little deeper dive on that now that I’ve established the base for the idea. Fyi, skip to the 2nd to last paragraph for a shorter version of the long bit.

As I mentioned previously, I believe the recorders are Eye aliened but not affiliated. By this I mean in the way Breekon and Hope are Stranger aliened. If you don’t recall or missed it in MAG 128: Heavy Goods(Transcript) Breekon tells his story. BREEKON: “We started in a plague.” “But with the circus, we were among our own kind at last.” The two have been pretty heavily implied to have never been human. They “stared", probably, during one of the black plague out breaks in Europe. If we assume that they didn’t “come to be” specifically in London and assume they wandered over to London(they might have I cant remember, its been a while since I’ve listened to that episode) then the earliest they could have “started” is somewhere around 1347(the start of the first BIG bubonic plague outbreak in Europe) or later, as the last outbreak ended in 1665. “The last bubonic plague outbreak was the Great Plague of 1665, which resulted in the deaths of 100,000 Londoners in just seven months.” (Source1)(Source2) If we go of of this info even if they “started” at the later date that still makes them OLD, OLD. This isn't a deep dive on those two though so we’re moving on. The point of that, though, was to display how old/long lived these things can be. If we refer back to MAG 111: Family Business(Transcript) GERRY: “I always think it helps to imagine them like colours. The edges bleed together, and you can talk about little differences: “oh, that’s indigo, that’s more lilac”, but they’re both purple.”(tbh I love this explanation of the powers the best) With these things on the table we can get to our point.

I believe the tapes are Eye aligned like Breekon and Hope are Stranger aliened, they feel most comfortable around their respective, chosen, powers but still do things for, and interact with the other powers frequently. Due to the bleeding colors theory we know that no power can truly be separate. I think that the recorders are the ears of all the powers but most fond of, and accessible/accessed, by The Eye. I believe that most of the other powers don’t want to/or care to reach out to the recorders because they see the collection/listening of knowledge an Eye exclusive.

Anyway, that’s what I think. If I do any more “deep dives” like this it will probably be on something else (TMA ofc). Feel free to interact w/ this post however you like. But do share your thoughts and feelings on this idea. Also, if you have any theories I’d love to hear them (they don’t have to be about the recorders). I do know that most of my theory's are wild shots in the dark and based off of throw away lines or evidence but I like to make them any who. <3

[nonbigalmari]

[This is a transcript from January 18th at 4:25 PM of me (Mari Diaz) having a chat at the park written in third person.]

[Mari stands up from the park bench, placing their phone behind them back on the bench. Staring at someone who had walked up, The person is slightly taller, wearing a yellow hoodie with a black winter jacket over it and has a red beanie and long dark brown hair. Mari looks at the person, tilting their head.]

Ma: Um… Ok so I should ask before any other questions… Who are you and why did you walk up to me, sitting on a park bench eating an apple alone?

?: Oh, I’m Marigold Ash! Nice to meet you!

[Marigold sticks out her left arm, but instead of a hand there’s two black hooks coming from her sleeve. Mari stands there for a moment, before slowly grabbing one of the hooks and carefully shakes it.]

Ma: I hope I did that right? Um… This is going to sound dumb but I haven't met many people with a prosthetic arm…

[Mari laughs, but almost immediately stops.]

Mg: Most people haven’t, but I don’t mind questions as long as you aren’t a dick about it.

Ma: I uh right now my only question is… I wasn’t like… An asshole shaking the arm like that? Um… I would feel kinda bad.

Mg: The asshole move is just staring at it. Or staring at my other hand instead. You’re good dude.

Ma: Cool… Um… So why did you walk up to me randomly?

[Marigold stares blanky for a second before a look of understanding crosses her face and she reaches into her pocket with her right hand and pulls out a phone.]

Mg: Right! So uh, could be wrong, the lighting is shit and the footage is all blurry but uh, is this you?

[Mari looks at the footage and slowly nods, before looking back at Marigold.]

Ma: Yep, that's me. Why, are you a cop?

Mg: Ew no. I was just wondering if you knew the other person, I want to ask them how they designed that prosthetic of their’s. And why the hell they were wearing it to a random club when it’s not even close to Halloween.

Ma: I only know like… 3 people from that night? And uh that person you're talking about technically isn't one… I mean they have spoken to my coworkers over tumblr? They sign off with the letter H if that helps?

Mg: Damn, my search continues then. Oh well, nothing’s fun when it’s easy anyways as my mom always says.

Ma: Hm… Yeah I guess that's kinda true… Depends on the thing I guess.

[Mari looks at the ground, seemingly upset about something.]

Mg: Ah yeah, fair enough. But hey, you said some of your coworkers have talked to this person?

Ma: Yeahhhh?

[Marigold puts her phone away, and reaches into another pocket and pulls out a small card and holds it out to Mari.]

Mg: Here, if you ever learn any more about them, you can find me here!

Ma: I um… Ok.

[Mari grabs the card, slowly putting it in their hoodie pocket.]

Ma: Oh I uh forgot… Are you fine being recorded and this being turned into a transcript for uh… Tummmmmmmmmblrrrrrrrr purposesssss?

[Marigold paused for a few seconds before nodding.]

Mg: You know what? In any other circumstance I would probably have said no, but since you did actually ask, why the hell not.

Ma: Ok cool um… Also, um if you see the green haired person I was fighting, just… Don’t mention me to her? It’s a… Long fucking story.

[Marigold mimes zipping her lips with her prosthetic hand.]

Ma: Cool… Wait… The card is for a repair shop?

Mg: Yeah! It’s the family business. Well, it’s my mom’s and I also work there and that’s it most of the time.

Ma: Oh… I'll try to pop in sometime if I remember.

Mg: Yup! If you ever need pretty much anything repaired, there’s like a 99% chance we’ll be able to fix it!

Ma: Nice! I uh… might need some stuff repaired around my house… [Muttering.] Like the bluray player that just stopped working.

Mg: Just stop by any time we’re open and we can probably help! Although speaking of the shop… I’m technically almost running late for my shift…

Ma: Oh um… Need a ride..? I have my car.

Mg: No thanks, but it’s not too far from here so I’m good.

Ma: Oh, alright! Be careful.

[Marigold starts to turn to walk off.]

Mg: [Calling over her shoulder] My mom would kill me if I wasn’t!

[Mari laughs, before looking back at the phone. Grabbing it.]

Ma: Ok… Um… Interesting…

[End transcript.]

[heroes-fading]

I was wondering if you had any advice for how to stay true to the essence of the characters when writing an au. thank you in advance!

well first off thank you for thinking of me to ask <3 means a lot, and what a good question!

i'm not sure i always hit the mark on this 100% of the time, but part of what i try to do when i'm stuck is

literally just picture the character saying or doing the thing. pay attention to how you feel about it. does it feel like something they'd do? something they'd say? when you do a gut check, does it make you cringe or go "ok...plausible..."

figure out the guts of that character -- their biggest fears, the things that make them happiest, their quirks, the thing that makes them That character and differentiates them from other people

something that i do a far bit when writing dialogue is referencing transcripts. there's a few sites that do tlou transcripts, i use this one a fair bit but it's moderately annoying because it doesn't tell you WHICH character says what but maybe that's part of building that recognition, too

being immersed in fandom content can also do this! rewatches, rewatching certain scenes, even gifs -- what motions does a character tend to do? what kind of energy does the actor bring that might reveal a bit about their interpretation of a character?

with an au specifically -- there's a Lot that impacts characters and the reasons they are the way they are. past traumas, past experiences, whatever is just so baked into a character that it reflects their worldview and how they see everything. obviously in an au you're changing some things up. they might not have the same background. you may not be writing a zombie apocolypse. what is going to reflect and kind of refract those experiences to form that character in a similar shape that's a different experience that could have a similar emotional resonance

OR why is that character different because of a different experience. maybe they went to therapy or endured something less traumatic and are a little softer around the edges. are they still them underneath it? does it still sound like them, feel like them? otherwise, that story might be a better fit for original fiction and building your own playground, might not even need those lil characters as building blocks. are they plugging into the narrative, or is the narrative built around who they are?

anyway! i hope this is helpful! more than anything, it's a weird gut feeling. i don't always get it right but the best thing is just being able to be like...yeah...sounds like them huh <3

oh and have fun!

[rosetheex-editor]

[Begin video transcript.]

[Transcript begins from the floor, the camera propped up with an object facing someone's pant legs. Random boxes in the background, the room has almost no lighting, with the exception of a small light shining barely out of frame.]

?: I think I’m done with watching, Rose.

[Voice unidentified: Please try again later.]

?: I don’t believe there is a future for the foundation. Not with Showfall running everything.

?: Dude… What the fuck are you talking about?

[Voice identified: Rose.]

?: You don’t know what I’ve seen… What Showfall keeps in those damn tunnels. Something beyond my scope. Beyond what I could even conceive. I’ve seen the face of the Devil.

R: Dude I…-

?: I went into the tunnels… God, how long has it been? Fuck… months?

R: WHY? Why though?

?: Well I went there to try and find Edgar. Mostly since it’s kind of my job… was… but I also-.

R: Also what?

[The legs in frame unsteadily shift weight]

?: How long do you think he had planned it? I mean, I know there was a plan. I just didn’t think he would actually… I mean, surely he was just putting on a show, right? That’s what you showfall bunch are all about? Playing characters?

R: No… And if you say something like that again I'll kick your ass.

?: Right.

...

?: Rose, do you think Edgar killed himself because of me?

[Rose sighs.]

R: No, I think he did it because he felt there was no other way, it was die or be showfall's forever plaything to him I feel.

?: …Maybe it was for the best then. Maybe Edgar made the right choice. I would’ve done the same, knowing what I know now. Seeing what I’ve seen.

R: Dude… I… Can I show you something, maybe it will help… Maybe it won't.

?: You’re not going to kill me?

R: No you dumb motherfucker, you haven't given me a reason to.

?: Hm. I never understood you, Rose. I can stand on my own, for a bit at least.

R: Dude… I- Ok storytime I guess. Wanna know why I'm not scared of the security?

?: I suppose not. Where are you going with this?

R: They made me into one. I uh… Don't fucking like talking about it, but if it helps so be it huh?

[The figure shifts their weight again]

R: So. I uh… Hm, it uh was when I died? Or well… I didn't die cuz the gunshot didn't instantly kill me. Oh uh… Yeah my gun backfired on me once, anyway. Yeah a uh woman named Mai dragged my body, turned me into one of those… Things and threw me in the forest.

?: Things? You mean what I saw… That horrible amalgamation of man and machine…?

R: Yeah they uh… God, I'm really going to bring this up to the person who stalked me for months.

[Rose sighs and begins walking to sit in frame.]

R: They… Made my sister into one, it uh… I don't actually fully know if she's even… There anymore

[Rose's legs seemingly move, as she tries to pull something out of her pocket.]

?: You had a sister? They never mentioned that in your files. They must have deleted her off of their databases entirely. I’m sorry for your loss.

R: I don't… Fully think she's dead, I have some hope?

?: That’s good. Hope is the fuel that keeps us burning. It’s how I survived for so long down there. I only ever planned to be gone for a week at most, but I had no idea how big those tunnels were. I had no idea those… things existed. We have no record of any of Showfall’s experiments. And yet they’re essentially our only clients.

?: But I don’t think it matters anymore, now that I know. I’ll try and see if I can un-fuck the watcher program, show them my findings, but… I think it’s over. Showfall has so much more power than I ever realized. Even if we wanted to completely raid the premises, we would stand no chance against those things.

?: It’s only a matter of time before Showfall takes over the Watcher Program. We have held our technology over their head for too long

R: Great… MORE shit to worry about.

?: It won’t be the first time they’ve done this, you know. Showfall has some dark history. Their money is dirty, worse than ours even. We always knew Showfall was ahead of us technologically, but I had no idea they were doing this.

[Rose sighs again.]

R: Wanna know something?

?: Sure, hit me.

R: When I escaped. I had a whole plant on my back. These fuckers did not catch me.

?: Like, a regular potted plant?

R: No. A potted plant in a backpack. They might have been busy with other rebels but like… Dude.

?: That is a rather impressive oversight.

[Rose looks over to her phone, finally noticing the camera.]

?: Has that been recording me?

R: Showfall tech. I hate you SO MUCH.

[End transcript.]

[untitled-smp]

Broadcast #05 - Moth - WZRD Verdigris Radio

In the heart of the Corroded faction, an enigmatic man, better known as the Wizard, releases his first radio broadcast to the world. We hope you’ll become a listener.

This week’s song is “Rose” by The Oh Hellos

< =o= >

WZRD Verdigris Radio is written, produced, and edited by @theecryptiid.

The Wizard is voiced by Cass theecryptiid.

< =o= >

[Previous | Next]

[Transcript below the cut]

Good afternoon listeners! Spring is upon us, and that means planting season. Hopefully the tunes and such have been a good way to keep spirits high as we begin our long days in the fields. For those of you who take the train line from your sleepy little towns to the various locations, I have a message from train line architect Joco about the state of them this week. 

"Over the course of the next month, the main rail line and extending branches will be experiencing sectional closures for renovation. These closures only affect actual use of the rails, horses and walking will still be safe throughout the lines. Please take caution when using carts on the line, and keep in mind how to quickly and safely exit the cart in case of emergency. If you see me napping on the support structures, I am simply testing them and not sleeping on the job. Thank you, and always remember to shake out your boots before going inside."

So yes, please heed that warning, it would be no good to have some poor soul accidentally fling themselves off the line in a wayward minecart. 

I had the chance to converse with one of the new folks in Corroded the other day, a fellow by the name of Achilles. Being so new, and as I quickly learned, newer in fact, than some of the others, it was a bit confused about where it was and what was happening. The two of us had a good conversation over this imported coffee I bought while in Wisteria the other week. Seems strange things are happening again, but according to what Achilles told me, this time it might not have anything to do with the Unknown we all know so well. 

He told me about a place much different than our own, somewhere where death is not forgiven quite like it is here. It’s called Caduceus, I think, if I’m remembering it correctly, like the staff. Death is eh…more permanent there than it is here, things are different. The world works differently. To make a long story very short, it’s not supposed to be here, so it was wanting some help to get home. Though I can’t claim to be much more than a friendly ear, I did spend the majority of my adolescence studying things like this, so I gave advice the best I could. We came to a conclusion in the end that will hopefully allow him to get back home, he just needs to collect some items to build something of importance. 

In talking with Achilles I came to realize something, we as the Corroded faction are a bit splintered as of late. I know we are people without laws, and even mention of any type of governing body scares off most folk out here, but I am personally missing the feeling of community. So I was thinking, there’s a lot of gunpowder and dye lying around here in Verdigris, and it’s been a while since we’ve had really any sort of fun celebration, so why not hold a festival at some point in the future? Lights, colors, sounds, celebration, and more importantly lots of good food. It’d be nice, get everyone together, and try and build up some of the community we lost after the previous world. 

I’ll make some sort of community board in Verdigris and leave a post or something up about it if people have any thoughts. Well, anyway, here’s our next song for today. Take it away!

[lunarsilkscreen]

Micropricing

I got pinged for implying phone services were overcharging for "caller ID and Visual Voicemail" on truth social. So I'm going into one of the ways businesses take advantage of users: Micropricing.

First, Caller ID is already built into the system. It has been for at least three decades. Back then it might've cost more to send you a name attached to the number it wouldn't show you either. But that's why we had phone books and answer machines.

Now, spam-robots can call you daily for much less than it costs you to keep your phone connected to the service you're paying for. And because of the Micropricing strategy, the phone companies "can't afford to use their decades old technology in new and innovative ways that protect customers."

Visual Voicemail, on the other hand, is an app that lets you look at who left a message and other details of the sound file attached to it, without having to call you voicemail and do it by touch tone like we're in mad men. And yes, it provides a transcription of the message left. Which is simply an accessibility feature for hard of hearing that they're allowed charge extra for, because they can.

And you wonder why we would rather you just send a text message.

Anyway, Micropricing is a strategy to charge more for services that don't actually cost the company more to provide. And sometimes, for things the user will never use. And sometimes, phone insurance which ultimately costs the user more to use than a phone repair service. (And they don't even help track down lost or stolen devices, EVEN THOUGH THEY CAN. AND YOU PAY A SERVICE FOR PROTECTION.)

A lot of these services are collapsing because the Internet allows more rich data to be sent more efficiently. But here's the thing: old services are tacked onto your bill automatically. we can't*not use them* but phone companies won't update either. So we pay to get the updated old tech that isn't as good as should be standard ten years ago.

A lot of the digital features today aren't like owning a car phone in the 70s. Cell Phones have been the defacto standard for 20 years now. The only thing different is data usage. Which may or may not be restricted thanks to cell tower bandwidth. But in a college town where the bandwidth is always maxed out and everybody needs to use wifi, you're just having people pay to not use the features that worked better ten years ago.

Infrastructure should include phone and internet service. Then *private* companies can just be the fastlane they claim to want to build. But instead they're focused on charging extra for standard features.

Look. Trains caused the word to have to keep pace with a 24 hour clock schedule.

The Internet means the world needs to get off its addiction of 5-year and 10-year plans hoping for people to die before anything can be done to change anything.

Even six months is too long for deliberation. Yeah, it used to be worse, but that's the whole f*ing reason we built technology in the first place, so it wouldn't have to be.