#because i'd rather think about things that don't make me feel annoyed and miserable

[leofrith]

I saw that a lot of people hated the latest Mando episode but I'm not sure why? It didn't seem to contribute much to the story, like I'm unsure how it developed the characters or relationships, but I wasn't thinking "man this is terrible"

i mean. i think you pretty well answered your own question since the whole point of a show, a movie, a book, whatever is to tell a story of some kind. even episodes that qualify as "filler" will contribute to the story in some way, even if it's not in service of the Big Main Plot. whether in terms of character development or the development of relationships between said characters, filler episodes do serve a purpose, just not in a show that has 8 episode seasons that range anywhere from only 33 minutes to an hour, in which there has been more time and attention paid to meaningless action set pieces than, i dunno, actually developing the characters in any way?

and i disagree with you in saying that this episode didn't contribute anything to the story because it did! din has now given the darksaber to bo-katan! something that was previously established as being impossible because it must be won in battle! but hey, here's a stupid loophole we just came up with to justify wrapping up the "din as a reluctant leader" plot line in the most boring fucking way possible (also, we basically lifted it from rebels. sorry!! we don't do originality here).

honestly, it's really not just about this last episode. this episode was fucking bad, but for me it's just the final straw after a season (more like two, because s2 as a whole wasn't this bad imo but it still wasn't much to write home about either) of mostly awful, incoherent writing. it was 45 minutes of shiny colours and celebrity cameos that felt made to distract viewers from the fact that they have no fucking idea what they're doing with this show (and they have explicitly confirmed that they don't).

pretty well every remaining plot thread from last season has now been resolved in the most boring, narratively incoherent ways possible. din and grogu are separated? let's reunite them on a totally different show between seasons instead of actually exploring how their time apart affects them in any way that is remotely interesting!! gideon has been arrested by the new republic? no!! he actually escaped off screen almost immediately and who knows when we'll actually address that!! din has the darksaber but doesn't want it and bo-katan does want the darksaber but refuses to take it? we've just made up this insane loophole about how bo-katan saved din which means the darksaber should be hers, rather than exploring any of din's internal conflict as a leader or his external conflict with bo-katan over that title. etc etc.

they're even dragging out things that have already been resolved!! like din's dislike of droids, which was ostensibly resolved at the end of season one when ig-11 saved his life, but for some reason came back even stronger than we've ever really seen it in this episode. and for what? the comedic value of watching him kick droids and drop zingers such as "you had me at battle droids"? this show is incapable of resolving any of its plot lines in a satisfying way and is now retreading things that have already been addressed. and they're doing it with a $15 million per episode budget. there are people who are starving, jon.

i'm not even going to get into how shitty the politics of the show are because other people have already articulated that in ways far better than i am capable of, and i also really don't expect amazing political commentary from star wars to begin with. but they apparently can't even manage the low, low expectation of "show that tells a coherent story" for fuck's sake. because the whole show is just a product placement for toys and merch and other star wars shows. so i don't know what i expected.

[shootingmorningstar]

[slides on in] well hello there fellow lucifer fanatic

could i request some hcs with luci and an indecisive reader? gn and established relationship!! ex: he asks what they want for dinner and they panic trying to pick something because they feel like they need to decide right then and there or they’ll annoy him.

please and thank you! 🫶

anon, you're just like me fr. i also can never make up my mind and love lucifer. i'd be happy to write this for you .ᐟ

thank you for my first request, by the way ~ .ᐟ now to get to the good part.

LUCIFER MORNINGSTAR X GN! INDECISIVE READER

Look at this man. This is the man who has piles upon piles of rubber ducks in his workshop. You cannot tell me Lucifer isn't also indecisive, at least when it comes to less serious things.

Seriously. You expect me to believe he hasn't looked at his own work and went 'nope, looks bad. starting over.' .ᐣ

With that being said, I think he would find it an incredibly endearing trait in you. The concentrated face you make when you're stuck between two options .ᐣ Absolutely adorable.

That is, until the unsure and conflicted look on your face morphs into one telling of your anxiety and worry.

Now, I hope you'll excuse the bird pun, but he is absolutely a mother hen type.

The second he sees even a hint of panic on your face .ᐣ He's immediately shifting all of his focus on you -- if it hadn't been already.

He's rushing over to you without you having to so much as ask -- his beloved partner, distressed .ᐣ No matter the reason, that won't do. He won't rest until he sees you smiling again.

Wrapping his arms around you in a hug, likely even his wings, too. He's suffered so many panic attacks before, he knows just how miserable they are.

He wishes you had come into his life earlier so you could of comforted him through the worst of his.

Even if your panic hasn't dissolved into a full blown attack, he is there. His touch is grounding, it helps you calm down and come back to reality.

When your heart's stopped racing and you look as if you're able to talk about it, he'll ask you just what has you so distressed.

Don't even bother trying to lie to him. He can tell when someone's hiding their feelings.

He won't force you to tell him, though. He just wants to know what went wrong so he can help prevent it from happening again.

If you decide to share your worries with him, he wouldn't belittle you in the slightest. Is it time you need .ᐣ You two have all the time in the world.

Would you rather he choose .ᐣ Because he wouldn't mind.

Or if it's something more serious, he offers to sit down with you and discuss the pros and cons of each -- maybe you two can come up with a decision together .ᐣ

His face sort of falls if you decide to tell him part of the reasoning behind your anxiety is a fear that you'll end up annoying him. Did he do something to make you think he'd judge you .ᐣ

Or maybe he got short with you .ᐣ He's so apologetic. He wants you to feel like you can share anything and everything with him.

He won't let himself start feeling overwhelmed with guilt, though. This moment is about you and the reassurance you need, not his guilt issues.

Explain to him that you know he'd never do such a thing and that it's just an irrational thought coming from worry and he's taking your face into his hands, telling you that he would never, ever think less of you, much less get upset over something as silly as struggling to make a choice.

Like he said earlier, let him help you choose. You two are stronger together and this is no exception.

He's always soft to you, but count on him being even more so than usual for the rest of the night. You two can watch your favorite show or movie -- or whatever you'd like to do to destress. ♡

first request finished ~ .ᐟ how'd I do .ᐣ i'd love to hear your thoughts. feedback fuels my writing muse more than anything else .ᐟ

i'm really hoping this formats correctly, i'm used to using the tumblr app && currently stuck on laptop </3

[thatseventiesbitch]

Hi!! I would love to hear what you think Donna's consistent main flaws are since people accuse the writers of making her too perfect?! I kind of love that Eric the 'softer' one in that relationship - it's a great subversion of gender roles, especially for that era!

Thanks for the question! I enjoyed answering it - it turned into a little essay.

Donna's Flaws

Donna, like all of the main characters, has flaws. I don't think she was painted as perfect at all, but rather as a realistic teenage girl experiencing her first serious relationship, the disintegration of her parents' marriage, and the social conflicts of the '70s.

For example, she was not always the best at communicating - especially with Eric. See: S2xE21 "Kelso's Serenade". She and Eric got into a massive argument because she wasn't honest about her feelings, and that she was bothered by him hanging out with his friends instead of her. Or in S3xE15 "Donna's Panties". She tells Jackie:

Why doesn't Eric understand that when I said I'm fine I meant I will be fine... so long as he kisses my ass for two weeks until I'm actually fine? He's like, brain damaged.

Donna expects Eric to read her mind, and then gets upset with him when he doesn't. Is it annoying? Yes. A flaw? Yes. Also highly relatable, especially for high school relationships? Also yes. Plus, Red and Kitty have shades of this in their relationship, too.

Another flaw? Donna's stubborn. (So is Eric)

In S3xE11 "Who Wants It More", Donna is the one who breaks their impasse and initiates sex at the end of the episode, but when Eric starts to gloat about winning their competition she's willing to walk away rather than admit she gave in first. In S7xE23 "Take It Or Leave It", she's upset by Eric's decision to go to Africa without talking to her, so she makes up a fake date with one of her co-workers to try to make Eric jealous/rethink his choice. In S5xE9 "Black Dog", she fights with Eric throughout the entire episode about whether it's better to give your partner attention/extra love when they're upset, or space. Etc.

And lastly, despite everything she outwardly projects, Donna ends up being a fairly dependent character. Is this a flaw? Not necessarily. It's just an interesting dichotomy - Donna yearns to be fiercely independent and seems to inherently value that, but at the core of who she is, she's not.

Unlike Kelso she doesn't enjoy the California beaches, but instead is miserable all summer until Eric arrives. She accepts Eric's proposal (in high school!). She doesn't get on the bus - she delays college to stay in Point Place with Eric. She buys the trailer. She waited around in Point Place for a year while Eric was in Africa. She says things like,

"My guidance counselor gave [these college brochures] to me, but I already told him that I'm going wherever you go." (S5xE7 "Hot Dog")

and

"I mean, Eric, I loved [Marquette], and when I was driving home, I was so excited to tell you about it, and then the drive took forever, and I realized that's how far away I'd be from you all the time, and I don't want that. So I'll just tell my dad I want to go to U.W. with you." (S5xE6 "Over The Hills And Far Away")

and

"I don't want you to go. You've always been like, twenty steps away from me my entire life. What am I supposed to do without you?" (S7xE23 "Take It Or Leave It")

I think to dismiss or deny this pattern as "out of character" is to ignore an important part of Donna's characterization: she's really dependent. On Eric, yes. But as soon as she and Eric break-up, what is her modus operandi? To start dating a new boyfriend.

I just think it's interesting, and not often (or ever?) discussed. Worth noting that these instances are most pronounced in the second half of the series, and that Donna wasn't this way in the earlier seasons. What happened midway through the series? Her parents split up/mom abandoned her/her family disintegrated. Hmmm.

[joshriku]

ages ago i asked for prompts on twitter and i think ava had requested cherik + bodyswap, and i forgot i wrote that til i found it looking at my files so i figured i'd also post it here ages later lol it's too short for ao3! but perfect length for tumblr.

-

“I don't know how you do it,” says Charles. 

His voice—it's Erik's, no doubt. Words coming from his mouth, his body. His body, that Charles is currently inhabiting. 

“Do what?” asks Erik, with—with his voice, God damn it. This whole situation is so strange. 

It's supposed to wear off in a few hours, said the other teachers. Just a mutant learning to control their powers, nothing else. But now Charles is Erik, and Erik is Charles, and it's been the most insanity-inducing hours of his life. They haven't left Charles' room, as they decided to spend this ordeal as quietly as possible: in bed, reading. 

“This. Alone with your thoughts,” Charles says. “I'm miserable. And overstimulated, even though I am not doing anything. It's…” 

So much. His skin is prickly, impossible to touch. He can sense the clock ticking—not just the one inside the mansion, but everyone's. Phones buzzing or vibrating. The kitchen. Jewelry. The televisions. The satellites. The cities further away. The core of the Earth—

Erik takes his hand. Charles takes a moment to note how different his own hand is, when he's being touched—this is not comforting. So many times he's held someone, held a student, tried to comfort them with a gesture. And now that he's being comforted by his body—God, he should never be close to people.

“Breathe in,” Erik tells him. “Narrow your focus to one thing. Try your wheelchair.”

It's such a big power. To narrow it to something so small like his wheelchair feels like an impossible task, but then he notices a little helping hand: it's sloppy and careless, but the undeniable sensation of a telepathic push. Erik’s not good at it—good God, how is he holding up with all those voices?—but he’s good enough to guide Charles to his objective.

His body slumps against the bed, once the world is reduced to just the wheelchair.

“How do you do it?” Charles repeats. “It’s so quiet. It’s so lonely. And this power—it’s too great, I’m afraid. How does your body not fall apart? How does your mind not fall apart? How do you—”

Erik cuts him off. “I am wondering the same thing about you, as we speak. There is so much noise. People cannot stop thinking, not even for one second. How do you not go insane?”

He supposes the same questions he asked have the same answer Charles would give Erik: you get used to it. You settle into it like a second skin, until one day you no longer get to think about it.

“You get used to it,” he says, although he knows Erik must have heard it, anyway. His grip on Charles’ telepathy isn’t that good—Charles presumes he doesn’t know how to leave his mind. Erik hums anyway. “I suppose it’s more impressive right now, to be in a body where—it’s truly yours. Mine, it feels like it shares a bit with every single person. I cannot stop myself from seeing through their lenses, even for a second. I guess being alone right now—truly and well alone, it just… makes me wonder. How you don’t go insane. How you talk to people, how you are such a good judge of character. I can only be one because of my powers, and even then, I can go so wrong.”

Erik raises an eyebrow in his direction. It’s so odd, looking at his face. Does Charles really look like this? No wonder he got into so many arguments. He’s rather annoyed at that face.

“Funny, again. I have been pondering that myself. If I could listen to every thought, every sentiment, and every motivation behind someone’s actions—well, perhaps I’d become a hermit. It takes incredible strength to do this. I admire you.”

Charles smiles a little. “I suppose we are both so exceptional,” he says. He squeezes Erik’s hand again, trying to focus on Erik’s body, wanting to be held by it instead. “Only a few more hours to go.”

“Maybe we won’t go insane in three hours,” Erik smiles back. “Who knows? We have got plenty of time.”

[angelofthepage]

Love Requires Sacrifice

"Love requires sacrifice" is one of those Sammy Lawrence lines that hits really hard. This man has given up everything to devote his existence to the ink demon, praying he will be freed from his miserable body. But there is something about this line that is hitting me particularly hard tonight as an enjoyer of autistic Sammy interpretations (and as an autistic myself).

What if "love requires sacrifice" wasn't just about the ink demon? What if it was about Sammy? What if he thought it was a sacrifice for people to love him?

Think about it. He's so irritated when he thinks people aren't doing a good job in his department, has little patience and doesn't want anyone wasting his time. He's something of a perfectionist. He finds so many noises distracting, perhaps even overstimulating. He's annoyed by Joey's constant changing of plans and lack of communication. And who do we know of that seems to like him in canon? Susie seems to have a bit of a crush on him until she thinks he's lied to her, and Jack is his partner in crime for music, but outside of that, does he have friends? Do people communicate with him as more than a co-worker? Does he have anyone notice when he's gone? Do people simply deal with him because they have to? Or is he just another obstacle to get passed? How does all of this affect him, does he want friends? Does he feel loved enough? Or is loving him too difficult for people because of his multitude of peculiarities? Is it a sacrifice to dedicate time to trying to understand him?

That breaks my heart a little bit, because it hits kind of close to home. I've felt very unlovable and difficult for years, no matter how accommodating I try to be, no matter how much I try and change to make myself more palatable. Sometimes I feel like people are simply tolerating me and waiting for me to leave rather than genuinely wanting me around. But ironically, it's through Bendy that I've slowly learned this isn't the case. I don't think I'd ever heard someone tell me that they enjoy my company until I came into this fandom and had people talking to me. And it's not just because of the things I give like it was in other spaces. I'm valued for being me, even the messy parts. I have good ideas and cool skills, I'm fun to talk to, I tell good jokes and listen and engage, And even though I get overstimulated or have a tough time sometimes, even though I get incredibly frustrated behind closed doors, more people get it and are willing to work through it with me. They don't treat it like it's a sacrifice to love me.

In some ways, it's made me realize that I changed so much of myself to try to be someone likable, that I lost myself in the process, I became flavorless. I'm still trying to put my pieces back together, and it's something I feel like Sammy had happen too, losing himself to serve someone else. And I wish I could tell him that he is lovable, and it's not a sacrifice to love him. Are there things he could work on? Yes, it pays to be nicer to people, he could stand to be a better person. But there are many things to love about him just the way he is, and someone out there will appreciate them.

Sometimes a fictional character has something to teach you. I think, for me, autistic Sammys have been a source of comfort, knowing that someone like me can still be lovable. Like he's an asshole, he's not someone I would want to know in real life because he's a jerk to people. But gosh does he make me want to be kinder to myself.

[sugirandom]

I got a new part-time job at Panera, I will have an orientation on Wednesday for 3 hours and I don't know my actual first day after that but...I'm going to keep the job at 20 hours for now because I think a job like that would be difficult to do full-time...honestly any job full-time seems to be a struggle for me now.

More stuff under the cut, trigger warnings of low self-esteem, body image issues, insecurities, emotional trauma, etc.

I also want to still be able to pursue my voice acting despite struggling with feelings of inadequacy, imposter-syndrome, worrying about not doing the right things because marketing and networking are difficult for me...but I still really want to make it work.

At least this way I'll have a little bit of money, even if it won't be much and I just really hope I figure out how to make Voice Acting work and so that I can do that full-time one day.

I need to work on my miserably low self-esteem and poor self-image though, I know I need to come across as more confident but it's a real struggle for me. Not sure how to just fake it to you make it or 'just do it'. I wish I knew how to push through all the negative stuff that's stored in my bones from growing up with toxic shit from bullies, my parents, and even people I thought were friends.

It's so far in the past so I should be over it but I think my body isn't over it and I just end up really fatigued...ughh.

So yeah, it's good news about the job I just couldn't help but feel nervous and a bit sad that I can't seem to get the job I want to work out right now... I'm hoping the rebranding will help, I'm hoping i get some good inspiration and can figure out how to at least seem somewhat confident and social despite being an insecure introvert that's used to kinda being invisible.

Sorry to post that stuff on here but I don't have anyone to vent to ATM and I am really annoyed at myself because I feel like I should be happy and hopefully and not feeling sadness. Self-love is hard.

Anyway TL;DR: I got a new part-time job at Panera that I start on Wednesday. I feel happy but also kinda mixed because I'd rather be doing my voice acting but can't seem to get work with that yet.

[storiesbyrhi]

I just re-watched season 4 of Stranger Things and here's the takeaway for me - whoever I was when I watched it last year is essentially the same girl you see before you lmaoooo.

(Season 1 thoughts here. Season 2 here. And 3 here.)

I realised that my season 3 rewatch was not entirely on topic. It was more a general recap rather than noting the differences in my opinions, so getting back on track...

The Wipeout/milkshake scene at the roller rink would have hit harder if I'd re-watched season 1-3 just before going into 4. It was sad the first time around, but now it's tragic. I've just watched El be strong and brave and go through all that bullshit, just to come undone at the hands of high school bullies. It's infuriating and so fucking miserable.

It's cool re-watching and being able to see Jamie's eyes in the Vecna suit.

I wrote last time about season 3 versus 4 Robin so I won't go over it again. However, I think I didn't recognise a lot of the 'smart Robin' moments this season. She does a lot. She's not season 3 Robin, but she's still better than I remember.

The first time I watched this season I don't think I realised how nice it was for Jonathan to have a friend. It's nice.

The Russian plot still boring: confirmed.

Max choosing life and running for it while Kate Bush plays still gives me goosebumps: confirmed.

Haven't mentioned him in any re-watches yet, I don't think, but Ted Wheeler is stale white bread. During the re-watch, I found I notice him more but in a bad way. Dude's a dick.

How did I not question Hopper's lack of a limp??? Like his ankle was FUCKED and the next day he's chilling and walking around as per usual lmao?

I don't remember if I thought so the first time I watched it, but the CGI where 001 is banished to the Upside Down is getting lightning bolted etc., looks so weird. Like that isn't Jamie's face at all?

The Brenner/Owens dynamic does not get less jarring the more times you see it. Brenner is living in an apocalyptic soap opera, while Owens is more grounded and focused on El's autonomy. It's a weird pairing.

When you watch episode 8 it still totally feels like it's setting Steve up to die. It's actually annoying watching it and knowing how it ends, because it feels like you're being lied to/tricked?

"And I never should have knocked" gets more cringe each time I watch it. Caleb kills that scene, but imagine if they gave him good dialogue.

Fuck this ending so bad. Literally every time I watch it, there is more that stands out as being so badly written, or shit that doesn't make sense. Fuck this entire goddamn episode.

This has been a Stranger Things Rhi-Watch.

[gothicprep]

more of my simsposting adventures: fixing that one yellow apartment in san myshuno that i hate with every fiber of my being. i hate that i can't upload this one to the gallery because that feature doesn't really work for singular apartments. i want to do a public service, but that's just not really in the cards sadly...

i'll put this below a cut, since i don't want to annoy people who aren't into this game with an image-heavy post.

so. just look at this abomination. it's like some asshole learned about color theory and extrapolated "ah yes, this obviously means all shades of purple go with all shades of yellow" out of that. i hate this build so much.

(also apologize for the angles, i didn't feel like digging up my usb mouse and plugging it in)

what a welcoming living room and kitchen space! the colors are definitely not ugly and the room itself definitely isn't too darkly lit! it's certainly not the kind of space that'll make you actively hate everything about your life, even if things are going well on paper!

and why would you? you get to eat each meal in this terrible kitchen and bathe and poop in this eyesore aqua bathroom.

but that's not all! every night you can rest here, knowing with certainty that your two children won't be driven to insanity by how exhausting every aspect of your apartment is.

we all struggle in real life, but in the sims 4, we have tools known as "motherlode" and "freerealestate on". so for a little bit of time, you can forget about stuff like that.

that's what this reno is for.

wow! what a nice kitchen! i don't know about you, but it'd be pretty great to cook and eat here each day.

it's definitely a lot less room to watch tv than before, but i'd argue this is all the space you need.

now that's what i call a comfortable master bedroom! while the bathroom is still pretty small, at least it feels like a more intentional space now.

this new floor plan features one less bed for children than the other, but i'll ask you this – would you rather have one happy kid, or two miserable ones? i think the answer is pretty obvious.

anyway, that's my bold new take on the worst apartment ever. let me know your thoughts.

[tuiyla]

if you could rewrite s1 and make santana a prominent main character from the get go, how would you have gone about her reaction to quinn’s pregnancy and their dynamic that season? there’s some potentially interesting stuff that could have gone down between those two that season but we get absolutely none of it because santana’s a background player 😭

Told myself I really need to prioritize older asks so yes, hey, hi Anon. Sorry it's been a while.

First, let's establish that what we do have in canon is largely the result of Santana not starting off as a main character. What I mean by that is her and Brittany both, nay, Brittana and Mertina all being little shits about Quinn's pregnancy on occasions like the Glee girls rehearsal scene in Vitamin D. But we understand that the point of the scene is to elevate Rachel and demonstrate that, despite her feelings towards Finn, she's the most compassionate about Quinn's situation. And you know that's well and good, but so often the only way Glee can make its point is by throwing other chs and relationships under the bus.

It becomes jarring when Brittana become main characters and the Unholy Trinity is, well, at least pretended to be a friendship trio that the two weren't there for Quinn at all during her pregnancy. It's something that annoys me personally very much. Whenever I write fanfic in my head at 2am that will never be written down, and I think of Quinntana, I imagine different variations of a Santana apology. Because it just sucks so much to think that she wasn't there for Quinn at all. The Santana of later seasons is ride or die for Quinn and it's just, ahh, frustrating.

But you didn't wait three weeks just for that answer. I suppose, if I were to rewrite Glee, I'd have it be a messy dynamic in season 1. I wouldn't sugarcoat it because as much as I'm a firm believer in die hard friend Santana, this is 15 year-old Santana deep in the closet and in her most cutthroat era. So her initial reaction upon hearing about Quinn's pregnancy (or rather, when she figures it out) is shock that manifests in cruelty. I don't think the gravitas of the situation hits Santana or Brittany at first. It's just so ridiculous to think that uptight Quinn would put out ONCE and boom, get pregnant. And yet. So it doesn't sink in for Santana.

And then, slowly, it does. When Quinn gets kicked off the Cheerios and gets kicked out from her home and sure, Santana's on top but it comes with a gigantic sinking feeling. God, I hate season 1 so much for not driving it home enough just how dire Quinn's situation was. Glee give a shit about your girls challenge, difficulty: impossible. But it does sink in for Santana, she just doesn't know what to do. It's such a fucked up situation and she feels like Quinn wouldn't want her help. Becomes this miserable self-inflicted hell of neither wanting to reach out while Quinn quietly drowns and Santana represses her guilt. They still, like, hang out in public. By which I mean sitting together in Glee Club. And Brittany starts asking Quinn about the pregnancy and it's almost as if things are normal between them. But nothing will ever be normal again, will it?

That's the thing, I don't think they'd talk about it. Even if Santana was an actual character in season 1, I don't think it'd be this huge show of support or active conversation. Because she's a stupid kid who couldn't possibly fully understand what Quinn is going through. And, as much as they move past that eventually, I think Quinn resents her for it, for a while. Which is why she's willing to throw Santana under the bus in season 2. That's the only way Quinn can move past it, if anything goes. Because Santana was all too happy to take her place and head Cheerio in season 1 so only seems fair.

I'm sorry, this is such a weird reply. I really wanted to do a proper Glee-rewrite, as proper as I ever do, but I think changing too much would have such consequences for the rest of the show. And really I'm just remembering how little Glee cared about Quinn's pregnancy, even outside of Santana, and it pisses me off so much. That things like getting solos were treated as issues of equal weight. And yeah yeah sure Glee had a different tone back then and it was ~satirical~ but fuck, just admit they didn't care about Quinn's story. And so just making Santana a main character wouldn't change that, it would maybe just give us a moment of her climbing to the top on Quinn's back and living to regret it.

I know a sad Quinntana dynamic isn't exactly fun, but I just don't see a version of this where Santana suddenly becomes some Mother Theresa supporting Quinn in everything. That's just not the story Glee was willing to tell. Maybe there's a quiet understanding between them, and maybe Santana does on occasion bark at people for dissing Quinn post-fall from grace. That's what I realistically see happening, Santana caring "in secret" and in her own way. But because she's bad at it, she will make fun of Quinn to her face and come up with pregnancy-related nicknames.

It's a messed up situation and a messed up dynamic. Truly sorry that after three weeks this is what the reply ends up being but I thinking about Quinn's pregnancy is just so depressing to me so I find it hard to think of a version where Santana's role wouldn't also be depressing. I know some fix-it-fics have the UHT be super supportive and sticking together and god I wish we had that instead. Or even something complicated like Quinntana's later relationship. But season 1 comphet peak bitchiness without introspection Santana just wouldn't be the best friend to Quinn.

[nukenai]

This is so petty but I keep thinking about how I was put off from ever liking Akira from Live A Live bc his chapter begins with him asking you if you're happy with your life. And if you say yes he gets annoyed and tells you to like, "think of people less fortunate than you" or some shit.

And like yeah I know he's a dumb shitty teenager but it reminded me so much of attitudes of actual people who seem to resent when others aren't as miserable as them? Like people on this website mostly, I don't see it a lot on Twitter (because I have 2,000+ people blocked and aggressively stick to my own circles). I've been treated like this by people (I can't even say ex-friends bc the original "friendship" was questionable) and it's just like. I don't know. Like if you aren't as performatively miserable in public as them then you're shallow and fake and not paying attention or whatever. It's very high school. As if saying "I'm happy with my life" is equivalent to saying "there's no problems in the world, I don't notice them, I do nothing to help others with my good fortune", etc. My ex would also tell me shit like how they wish I'd talk about my irl friends less bc they were jealous I had irl friends to hang out with...?????? ???

I guess that kind of attitude fits for Akira, a fictional anime teenager. Anyways sorry I will never like him he fucking annoys me. I also tend to not like anime so that definitely didn't help.

But uh, yeah also if you have people in your life who seem to resent when you're happy or are always jealous when good things happen to you (for example, you mentioning a vacation and them saying something like 'wow I WISH I could afford something like that but I NEVER could'), you should maybe spend less time with those people because it's not your job to fix their life or spend all of your emotional energy managing their misery.

There is a fine line, especially with online relationships, between "supporting your friends when they've got it rough", and "this person is using me as an outlet for all their misery by forcing it upon me and making me placate them nonstop".

I struggled for a very long time in my life with bad mental health and people who treated me like garbage, and I've gotten through that and I'm in a very good place now. And sometimes it feels like the world wants to punish me and make me feel bad about that. But I won't. Because I worked to get here. I have friends now who are good to me and I'm in a good environment and I've worked so hard and life is good.

Full disclosure: this was prompted by how excited I am to go back to Disney next February and ride the tron coaster. Because my dad is retiring this year and wants to see Batuu. And I don't know if he can handle my sister and I together on Batuu with him. But I'm going to ride the Tron coaster. And it's still brand new to me that I have friends that are like "dude that's awesome have a blast" rather than immediately saying "I'm mad I'm not going".

[soul-dwelling]

I still haven't gotten to responding to asks.

But something I want to mention ahead of Anime Expo, in case there is any announcement--and not that anyone asked me, but, hey, I've whined about this stuff long enough, so I think I might as well whine again:

I really don't look forward to reactions if some reboot gets announced.

There is nothing confirmed, I only heard one person bring this up as a possibility.

And while I want to be happy for fans, just given how shitty I've been feeling, and how Chapter 113 gave way to Fire Force gave way to the prequel nonsense, yeah, I'd rather be offline for three weeks than sit through endless reactions to a reboot announcement. I don't want to sit in a place where I'm just making myself feel miserable, seeing post and reblogs and reaction videos. Like I said, if I disappeared for three weeks, that'd be why.

Again, I want to be happy for fans if they get a more faithful adaptation of the manga...but that would mean you would be getting a more faithful adaptation of the manga, hence a doubling-down on stuff the manga had but that BONES either didn't adapt (thank goodness) or didn't get to (Chapter 113's madness nonsense, any post-Fire Force continuation, probably some inevitable crossover special that would barely acknowledge B Ichi was a thing), all because Fire Force not imploding sent the wrong message ("Cool, we got to be gross about Tamaki, let's see what else we can get away with!").

So, yeah, if by some miracle a reboot is announced in the next few days, if I say nothing here about it, this is why: I've said what I've had to say repeatedly to the point of annoying myself (including annoying myself right now even typing this). So, I doubt I can say something in the immediate that would be worthwhile. Granted, I wouldn't be surprised if, after giving myself some time, I do end up still writing out some thoughts that I hope would be worthwhile. But I've been dreading this since Fire Force wrecked a lot of good will I had for Soul Eater, and, personally, I've just been overwhelmed by bad news, things falling apart, just feeling shitty, so I'm not in a place where I would greet a reboot with open arms, I would end up greeting it looking miserable and thinking, "Well, here's one more thing that can go wrong."

[ralith]

Ask prompt, 001 for ReTired Trio/Bayverse RatchHide

Retired Trio:

When I started shipping it: Gosh, has it been over a year now? A bit longer? I can't quite remember.

My thoughts: Beautiful older men who finally found comfort and safety in each other's arms and wouldn't trade it for the world.

What makes me happy about them: Really, that they're happy. They've been alone or struggling for a long time. Even if their past relationships fizzled out, they still remain friends with their old flames (except Ratchet). But they give each other a reason to wake up each morning. They know where they belong now and have purpose. Especially Ironhide who was struggling to adjust to civilian life. He was trying to hold it together and felt like he was losing the battle there for a while until he made that fateful decision to visit the museum one afternoon and see a certain man. The phone number scribbled in his copy of a book gave him the push to get better.

What makes me sad about them: Ratchet was miserable for so long in a bad marriage. In hindsight he feels like he wasted so much of his life and often thinks of his mortality and how short a time he has with his husbands now. Even nestled between them, their breathing calm and even and hearts beating beneath his ear the thought of losing them keeps him up on many a night.

Things done in fanfic that annoys me: Uh, considering I'm the one writing them.. maybe that I don't write them enough?

Things I look for in fanfic: Major cock cuddling

Who I'd be comfortable with them ending up with, if not each other: Their old flames. Hide with Chromia. Optimus with Elita, or Megatron, who was the first man he'd ever laid with on a one night stand after falling out with Elita, which led to his bi-awakening. Ratchet, well, I'd rather him be alone than with his old partner.

My happily ever after for them: Grow older together.

Who is the big spoon/little spoon: Ratchet is the little spoon, crushed between two big spoons.

What is their favorite non-sexual activity: Eating home-cooked meals from Optimus. Watching Ironhide flaunt his physique at the beach. Ratchet rubbing aloe on Ironhide's sunburns because he got burned at the beach. Little domestic things.

Bayverse Ironhide/Ratchet:

When I started shipping it: Back in 2011 when I first got into tf thanks to DOTM. Thanks Sentinel for hurting me so quickly.

My thoughts: I love these two so much. They make me stupidly happy. I have never shipped two characters harder than these two.

What makes me happy about them: The little touches in background scenes. How they're always either touching or need to be near each other. The fondness for proximity.

What makes me sad about them: Thinking of them pining for each other for centuries and only building the courage to bond when they arrive to earth after TF07, thinking the war is drawing to a close. But they're only bonded for a mere 5 years before Ironhide is taken from Ratchet. Barely even a blink to a Cybertronian.

Things done in fanfic that annoys me: Ratchet throwing wrenches and being a grump that threatens the other bots. That might work on G1 or idw Ratchet, but bayverse Ratchet is a cinnamon roll pacifist who is a genuinely kind person.

Things I look for in fanfic: All the fluff with these two.

Who I'd be comfortable with them ending up with, if not each other: Optimus. They keep him grounded. Maybe Ratchet with Que...

My happily ever after for them: A peaceful life on Earth. The war is over and they can wake up wrapped in each other.

Who is the big spoon/little spoon: They swap positions a lot. Ironhide the big spoon usually, but it's not permanent. He and Ratchet will naturally settle into what they need that night. They can read each other easily. Sometimes Ratchet just knows when Ironhide is feeling low and gathers the mech in his arms.

What is their favorite non-sexual activity: Going on long drives to nowhere. Cloud watching and star gazing. Going to zoos/aquariums and seeing small animals (holoforms obviously.) Ironhide practically has to drag Ratchet away from the touch tanks. I sometimes think of them taste-testing earth foods while in holoforms, going to restaurants and foodtrucks.

[luveline]

can you write steve and his moody gf? been dying to have those.

steve and an unhappy gf ♡ fem!reader | 0.6k

Working at Family Video sucks. Working at Family Video with your boyfriend sucks less, but not a lot. You're sulking behind the counter and Steve's standing behind you, humming. It's not his fault you're in a less than happy mood, of course, and you try your best not to take it out on him, but you can't help the dejected slump to your shoulders. 

Minimum wage sucks. Work sucks. Life sometimes sucks. You're so bored and kind of hungry and staring at the same parking lot day in and day out could make anybody miserable, not just the naturally predisposed like yourself. 

"How's my frowny girl doing?" Steve asks as he comes up behind you, quiet enough that only you can hear him. 

"I'm okay," you say, though really you're contemplating grabbing one of the pencils from the pen pot to stab yourself in the eye. 

He starts slow. His hands at your wrists, pushing up the length of your arm gently, ruffling the stupid Family Video vest until he's squeezing your upper arms. He ducks his face into the side of your neck and his arms cross, hugging you carefully but with purpose. 

You try not to melt. 

"You wanna take your lunch break now?" he asks into your skin. He seals his words in with a kiss, small and weirdly refreshing, like cool water's been splashed over you. 

"I can't," you mumble. 

You're limp in his hold rather than hugging him back, distracted by how unhappy you are. Your thoughts are a pulse. I don't want to be here. You feel cruel for thinking it at all when Steve is being his usual lovely self. 

He stands at full height but leaves his arms where they are until you reciprocate, a split second where you clutch his arms and then squirm, forcing him to drop his hold. 

"Why not?" he asks. 

"I forgot it." 

"That's okay," he says without missing a beat. "You can have half of mine." 

He's so nice it's annoying. You scrub your eyes with your fingers until they burn and try to think of a way to refuse. It's not fair to take half of his food because you're stupid enough to forget your own. 

He moves to stand between your side and the wrap around desk so you'll look at him. He seems upset upset you're upset and that's another thing to add to the levy, his pretty brown eyes all cruel in their sadness, a sight that makes you moodier. You smile in efforts to alleviate his concern. It's empty of any sincerity but the attempt is enough to give him back that heart-aching grin. 

"How about we have a day off tomorrow?" he whispers. 

"We can't do that to Robin," you say. 

"She did it to us last week." 

"There's two of us and only one of her. It wouldn't be fair." 

"I'll buy her a paperback or something. She won't mind. She doesn't like how unhappy you've been, either." 

"Sorry," you apologise. It comes out stilted and you have to cover your eyes with your hand to stop from exploding, letting out a huge exhale of breath. "Sorry, Steve. I just fucking- I fucking hate this job sometimes." 

"Don't be," he says easily. "Seriously. Me too. Work sucks." He leans back on his elbows, chin popped up and grin almost contagious as he says, "Better when you're here." 

"If I didn't have you I'd be in jail," you tell him. You're not even sure it's an exaggeration. Retail tests your patience. 

"Good thing you have me, then, you little freak." 

You smile. It's the first genuine one of the day and Steve doesn't bother hiding how smug he is. 

"You're the freak," you grumble. 

"Sure, babe." 

[iovelore]

❝ MORTAL TALES ❞ ( O1 )

summary and word count: a certain fae can’t help but find amusement in the youngest elfhame’s prince‘s frustration. wc — 1493

pairings: the cruel prince!cardan greenbriar x fem!reader

contents and warnings: jealousy, hinting of threesome, mentions of knife (nothing extreme), suggestive content, mutual pining-ish, fluffy?

a/n: i used tcp cardan because i couldn’t see any context of y/n being used in a fic in the other books (i also need it for the next part </3). i tried my best to include the tail bit since it didn‘t come out right, ill add it in either part 2/3. cardan is a bit ooc (i made him a bit idk how to put it besides: sub?man whore. because i believe that’s what he is 😁). and y/n resembles jude just a little bit with the blade thing, but only a little because jude is neither very flirty or open up about her sexuality (more so in the first book) and that’s what i made y/n like.

also, since this was more in y/n’s perspective, next part will be more so cardans <3

Y/N's legs crossed as she leaned her head on locke's shoulder, while Poppy, a half-faerie: who Locke has shown great interest in— for all the wrong reasons — sat before them and told them of the mortal tales her father would recite to her every night or the ones she gathered on her own from her adventures back where the humans lived.

Y/N found them odd: how they all were almost nothing compared to the people here; they were fragile, but she found similar enjoyment in them all nonetheless — and perhaps she had the eldest duarte to blame for her obsession with all things mortal, and Poppy's tales weren't helping either — which has unfortunately gained her the harsh scowls from the youngest prince of Elfhame.

Though that was no surprise. The boy had never been kind enough for her to realise that his treatment towards her was almost cruel — not that it had mattered, because to Y/N it was a show; she knew where his feelings lay, and it was nothing but amusing. To everyone with eye sight as clear as day, he'd never liked her, but when in class, when he believes her to be ignorant of his stare or his wagging tail; she has a classmate whisper every move his body makes, and it fuelled her heart all too much.

"It's not quite normal there, unlike here, if anyone decided to walk around with it they'd get humiliated till they're six feet under," Poppy snorted, covering her mouth with the back of her palms.

Locke turned to stare behind him, catching sight of the prince and Nicasia — both pouting miserably (one much too obvious than the other), and at that, he smiled. "Oh you’re right, tails are quite odd aren’t they? More so on a prince,"

Y/N shrugged at that, "It's alright, I do think Cardan makes it quite, charming? He’s always wagging it around like some...was it a cat you called it?"

"Yes a cat," Poppy shook her head positively, "though don't say that out loud, I doubt he's as clueless on mortal knowledge as we think he is."

Locke hummed, a smirk growing on his lips as he kept his eyes trained on his friend, Y/N following suite of his gaze and sultry grinning at the boy from afar, ignoring Nicasia — causing his eyes to widen momentarily, before the scowl found home on his face once more.

"He's never quite liked you has he?" His words were soft against her ear, his lips landing gently beneath her ear-lobes, kissing it tenderly as he kept his eyes trained on his flaring friend — who if one squinted, could perhaps see smoke escape his ears, if they ignored the immense swinging of his tail.

Y/N smiled, a small amount of malice lacing her intentions, "hatred I'd say, though he doesn't think I'm that foolish does he?"

Poppy, who now stared at her feet, hands tugging the grass with a blush coating her tanned features, "he's looked like he wanted to murder Locke."

Y/N snickered, a sickeningly sweet one at that, as she lowly muttered, "it’s all working then, sweetness."

Later on, when Y/N was left with no one to keep her company — as Locke found himself adorning Poppy and Nicasia's presence, alone — she took notice of the emptiness of Locke's home. It was beautiful, nothing as extravagant as Hollow Hall, yet she found herself admiring the interior all the same.

And as her hands traced the designs etched on the walls, as if it were a reminiscence of her first time staring upon them, a deep, and rather annoyed cough fleed her from her thoughts.

she stayed in position, her back facing Cardan and only gripping the knife resting on her waist, "now what would the prince need at a time like this? Should he not be in his humble abode by now?"

"Should you not be with your lover boy? Or is it that you enjoy using people like he does?" His tone was hostile as he spat his words, however the light softness that rippled around it was evident and Y/N couldn't help her lips tugging upwards.

She turned around, staring at him — where he leaned cooly against one of the walls — with squinted eyes, faux contempt present in her stare, and he shifted in his spot at her gaze.

She swiftly walked, her steps careful as to not trip on her dress. And when she reached him, she, boldly, placed her hands on his chest, dragging it downwards firmly — and his thumping heart beneath his rib cage could be faintly heard from the short proximity between them.

Y/N titled her head when he clenched his fists, but found a smile etching on her lips when his eyes were lightly fluttering. "Do I really threaten you that much that your hatred towards me is the only thing that keeps you going? It's pathetic truly, especially for a prince."

Cardan gulped, mind hazy at the contact and his body was supported by his tail, that was wrapped roughly around one of his legs. He could not utter the next words without stroking her ego, and it was then he'd wished — though he'd never admit out loud — that he were mortal, because he needed to lie if not keep his mouth shut.

More so with her trapping him, her knees coming forward and slightly spreading his legs, so that the entirety of his body leaned upon the wall. And despite him towering over her due to one of her legs bending in-front of the other, he could not move, catching sight of the shiny blade securely placed on her hips and her rigid grasp on them.

She had been around a certain mortal for too long, he thought, and at that his sneer was present again.

Y/N gently bit her tongue to stifle the giggle from escaping her, "what, cat's got your tongue?"

His lips were tightly sealed, and though he already knew the effects she displayed were affecting him, greatly, he refused to acknowledge her — especially that any movement could cause his legs to move slightly forward and brush . . .

She shook her head with a light hearted laugh that had his heart beating just a little bit faster, just a little bit. Her hands releasing the grip she had on her blade, before placing it on his cheek and patting him smoothly.

"You're quite humorous you know, would be a shame if you wasted all that energy on 'hating' me when it could be used for something else, you decide, my prince." she said, her tone sensual and low, before gradually stepping away allowing room (only a small amount at that) for the boy before her to breathe, she let one of her fingers crawl delicately on his hollow cheek bones, that though looked sharp, were as soft as anything could be.

Cardan's eyes widened ever so slightly, now registering her words, "are you flirting with me?" He asked. The space between them now slightly obvious, and he hated it — almost as much as he pretends to loathe her.

Y/N raised her brows, crossing her arms in an unlikely childish manner before nodding, "you're quite oblivious you know? Yes."

"Well," the confirmation enabled a smirk to appear on his face, only to be dismissed by her voice, again.

"Well? Is that all? Because I have things to do, and if my offer does not interest you then I'll gladly leave and find another willing volunteer," she purred, ignoring the way his brows harshly and quickly furrowed, creating a crease, "how about Locke? We are reasonably close, and he does not have a tail — which looks a bit foolish, don't you think?"

He was blushing crimson now, red sparklings littering his pale cheeks, but then his lips curled up — however, he does not look as frighting as he's expecting to be, he knew that, especially with her knees still resting between his thighs (which is all he's trying to drift his mind from at the moment).

"I don't see anything off with it, I've been told it makes one interesting. You've spent too much time with mortals and those alike." Cardan's jaw clenched and his chest was rising a lot more than it was a few minutes before.

Y/N pursed her lips, "Well then, show me how interesting one can get." She leaned forward, her breath fanning atop his lips and he found his own hitching.

His eyes were wandering from her eyes, which he secretly adored, to her lips, and he subconsciously nodded, leaning forward.

Only then, her hands rested on his chest, pushing him away slightly and his head came in contact with the wall yet again, and he had to bite his bottom lips in hopes that she had no idea how much he’d needed her, all of her.

Y/N stepped backwards, finally standing straight. Her hands on her side once more and she gave the prince an alluring smile, "I'll see you later, cardan."

He glared at the spot she had been standing in once she’d left, and he knew that it was a silly game she’s playing.

And what is a game if it involves one player?

[deltaengineering]

Spring Anime 2021: Embarrassment of Riches

So this current anime season absolutely stinks, which just makes the last one look even more impressive. Well, maybe not all of it...

Zombieland Saga Revenge

First off, you don't need to tell me that the following is a severe outlier opinion. We good? Ok. ZLSR is, in a word, subpar. I liked S1 back in the day, but it was already in the process of getting lazy towards the end. S2 continues this trend and is basically just another idol show. And as someone who actually does watch other idol shows I have to say that it's not a particularly good one of those either. The zombie gimmick has mostly stopped mattering and we're just doing what every idol show does, only with the odd occasional sight gag. The alleged subversive qualities mostly amount to a flashback for Yuugiri, which is admittedly the best part of the show but feels like it barely has anything to do with anything. Apart from that, it's a bunch of generic idol plots, rehashed character beats, shoddy attempts at twists (while not connecting to any setups from S1), and the obligatory "idols give us hope" ending, which is terribly hackneyed and flat out bad. Tae gets further memed into the ground, because of course she does. And there's stuff that was simply never good to begin with, like Kotarou and his comedy schtick, which gets truly insufferable now that there's no qualities to distract from it. It really makes me think that S1 wasn't even all that good to begin with and seems like an attempt to turn this surprise success into an easy money longrunner with no edge and no ambitions. "The idol show for people who don't watch idol shows" indeed, but not the way you mean it. 4/10

Bakuten

But not to dwell on the failures, with the second show we're already above the cut — barely. This one got my attention with its really impressive performance scenes early on and it totally sticks to that, which is even more impressive. But besides that? Well, this is by far the most predictable show in a season where I watched an unambitious Kiraralike and put ZLS on blast for having no ideas. The characters are a mixed bag, some are cool (Shida, Asawo), some are very annoying (Mashiro), but those are the supports. The main cast is extremely one-dimensional, which is fine until they try to heap a ton of pathos on their lead, which doesn't go well. But I guess execution matters, and Bakuten is slick enough to get by. Writing this down in stark daylight I feel like I overrated this show somewhat (I actually put it over the next one originally, which definitely doesn't hold up when thinking about it), but I was indeed mostly entertained. 6/10

Yakunara Mug Cup mo

Yeah. Of course Mug Cup definitely doesn't invent or subvert anything either, but it's a pretty good Kiraralike that's always entertaining to watch. Explaining the qualities of such a nothing genre is as difficult as ever, but it mostly comes down to me liking the characters and it having nothing to annoy me. It's shorter than normal, which is a plus for slim shows like this. And yeah, you can make an excessive amount of dick jokes with the clay fondling. That helps too. Looks are just fine, pleasant but nothing out of the ordinary. Comfy low-effort anime. 6/10

Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song

This one is decent, but sadly still a major letdown. Because the first few episodes of Vivy were excellent and kicked ass, but then it became increasingly clear that the writing can't cash the checks the ideas wrote while the action starts running into severely diminishing returns. Vivy just keeps slowly getting worse and worse as it goes on, not by a huge amount each episode but by the end there's a pretty sizeable gulf between potential and result. Going into detail would probably be a little much for this venue because there's a lot, but from the top level view the issue is that while Vivy has good fundamental ideas and steals at the right places, it just isn't a smart show — it's schlock, and by the end, poorly thought out schlock that tries to smooth out every problem with liberal application of the big feels hammer and le epic twist at that. Yeah, couldn't tell that the Re:Zero dude was aboard here, for sure. That said, it still works pretty well as entertaining schlock that is not to be taken too seriously, and the characters are generally just very fun to watch even when they're doing stupid things. Still, I can't in good conscience rate this higher than Beatless, a show that looks like butt but properly executes on its ideas. 6/10

Super Cub

So this is 100% a Honda commercial, and I got really mad a Yuru Camp last season for being a blatant shill. Yet I'm feeling this, what gives? I think the main difference is that Super Cub is specifically a commercial for one product (and a very iconic product at that), while Yuru Camp is so all over the place that it ends up mostly a commercial for consumerism in general. And when Super Cub goes too hard on the product (which it does), it's at least pretty entertaining. That's something about Super Cub in general: It goes hard. Your regular Kiraralike this is not, because it's uncommonly slow, focused and moody - yes, it almost measures up to Yuru Camp at its best and demolishes it at its worst. Also, it's just extremely amusing to see sadblob Koguma grow a huge grizzly biker beard and become a badass outlaw dad to her goofy wife and cute daughter, all thanks to the power of afforable personal transportation. Needless to say, that can get unintentionally silly, but Super Cub has so much charm that it doesn't matter — it's great when it's good and still funny when it's not. 7/10

Shadows House

Shadows House turned up with a lot of potential, and I have to say it at least delivered on most of it. It has some problems; notably I'm not a fan of how the entire middle turned out to be a tournament arc of sorts that seems curiously inspired by Resident Evil memes, crest-shaped intentations and boulder punching included. I also think that this is a show that would be perfectly fine without explaining much, but I guess it is a shounen manga after all so we got dumped on eventually anyway. At least that came late - close relative Promised Neverland didn't show that much restraint. Shadows House is generally well written though, with great characters, interesting interactions and a great hook. But what really makes it memorable is that it's exceptionally good at the cute/creepy contrast, something that is often tried but rarely works as well as here, with great character designs and very appropriate production. I hope this gets a sequel, because it seems like it's just getting started. 7/10

SSSS.Dynazenon

Coming in with a fondness for Gridman, Dynazenon didn't have to do much to convince me. The surprise though is that it's not a rehash even if it's basically the same show, a character drama where occasionally huge and goofy fights break out. Dynazenon is Gridman done better, and the interesting part is how it accomplishes this - mainly by being far more conventional. I do appreciate that Gridman went for something weird and almost experimental, but that only really paid off towards the end while most of the show was a distraction/holding pattern. It just didn't feel like there was enough material for a full series there, more like a movie maybe, if even that. Dynazenon fixes this by just being a TV show, with an actual cast of characters that each have their own arc. And by spreading the material this way, Dynazenon ends up having a lot more nuance than its intensely focused predecessor, while having the same themes and not actually being any deeper. In a way, Gridman ends up looking like the spinoff in retrospect, while Dynazenon is the full package. 8/10

Thunderbolt Fantasy S3

So how good was this season? So good that Thunderbolt Fantasy doesn't end up at the top, that's how. And all the elements that made Tbolt such a sure thing are still there, big hammy puppets doing stunts and scheming never gets old. However, I do have to note that at this point, the writing appears to have gotten too comfortable. I don't expect it to ever top the amazing S1 ending, but at this point it's like Tbolt has stopped trying to deliver on endings at all and seems in the process of retooling itself into a longrunner instead. Barely anything gets resolved in S3 (the climax is that the climax of S2 is resolved again, for good this time... maybe), and everything else is just setting up plotpoints for the next season. Tbolt is truly lucky that it doesn't actually need to resolve anything to be a great time, but at this point I have to say that I'd appreciate it if they wrapped it up with S4. 8/10

Nomad: Megalobox 2

Speaking of sequels to shows I liked, Nomad doesn't so much improve upon its predecessor but steamrolls right over it. This is a tall order, since Megalobox was surprisingly good for a sports shounen and had a real nice, heartwarming ending that Nomad instantly negates for purposes of drama and everyone being extremely miserable. That sounds like a pretty terrible idea - and it would be, if Nomad wasn't as excellent as it is. To call it not the same show would be an understatement, because it's a true sequel, not just the same characters doing their thing some more, or new characters doing the same thing as the old ones did. Indeed my biggest problem with Megalobox was that it still closely adhered to its genre template and was very predictable; Nomad fixes this issue thoroughly. Nomad is about questioning what being a hotblooded shounen protagonist eventually leads you to, and how to fix everything you screwed up by being one. You could call it a deconstruction, but that term has been so abused for cynical, edgy "thing you like actually sucks" takes that I feel like it doesn't really fit here. Nomad isn't cynical at all, it's just a character drama about some boxers past their prime, and it being a sequel to a show that is indeed rather formulaic just enhances the experience. My biggest issue with it was that I really like what they did with Joe in this story, so the big focus on Mac's backstory felt like a distraction for a long time. But in the end that turned out to be absolutely necessary to make the ending work. The ending's just great, by the way, and I shall say not more about it. 9/10

Odd Taxi

Yeah boy, here's the show that has apparently become somewhat of a "greatest show you didn't watch" meme, which I can feel smug about because I don't need YouTubers to tell me what's good and followed this from day one. Anyway, Odd Taxi is indeed great, the greatest show in a few years even. What starts out as seemingly a relaxed hangout show in the vein of Midnight Diners quickly turns into a psychological murder mystery while never losing its quirky humor. The character writing is outstanding, with even small bit players being on a level that the average anime wishes it could have for leads. And the rollout of the mystery is exemplary, with answers given and new questions raised every episode with a satisfying and logical payoff in the end. This is also the rare anime that has rock solid production from the first to the last second; it's never really flashy but excellently done and highly consistent nonetheless. And the music just owns. I have a few complaints, mainly that there's a few logical weaknesses in the story (which wouldn't even register in a lesser show, but sticks out here since the rest is so immaculately constructed) and that the ending overextends on the emotions when the rest of the show is so reserved and dry in comparison. But those are only the reasons why I didn't give it perfect marks, and I almost did that anyway. 9/10

[dalasteller]

shadow and bone spoilers! malina/mal fans this is not for you but it’s not pro-darklina either. i’m an alina x alina supremacist

so, somehow, the show made me like book!malina more than show!malina after weeks of thinking the opposite would be true. i don’t even like book!mal/malina, but my neutrality towards them is nothing compared to how much i detested show!malina.

I WANTED THE TV SHOW TO MAKE ME LOVE THEM. the trailers made me think i would!!! i'd heard screeners and reviewers talk about this epic love story that transcends everything—these two people who would do anything for each other—and i don't disagree, they definitely would. i just wish they would shut the fuck up about it.

sorry.

looking back, i'd rather the show gave us mal with flaws, who wasn't perfect to alina, who would die for her, but still said the wrong thing and flirted with other girls and was afraid of her power at first. archie did a great job. he just couldn't make me love mal, and neither could the writers opting to make him main character no. 2 and alina’s prince in shining armour who supports her endlessly and has never done anything wrong in his life ever. writers, please, why did you think that was a good idea? when i said i wanted a more likeable mal, i meant i wanted his flaws accompanied by positive traits, by compelling backstory, by personality outside of being alina's hot best friend who never noticed her. i didn't mean i wanted a guy who could be wrapped in a gift box and sold as a robo-boyfriend designed for romance.

no, i mean, they really did write him that way.

what i definitely didn't mean i wanted was over an hour of the show dedicated to watching mal’s perspective of hunting the stag and making besties with his military bros and writing letters to alina and getting shot at a bunch of times instead of letting the book characters who were already beloved by fans get the screentime they deserved. what i wouldn't do to have gotten more genyalina and well-written zoya instead of mal dissecting deer shit...

you would think with how much talk about malina basically being soulmates, childhood flashbacks, fighting and nearly dying for each other at least four times (and did i mention more narration about being soulmates?) that i would take the bait and just let malina set sail. but this show held me at gunpoint for eight hours straight and told me that these two are going to have the same cultural influence as new romeo and juliet and that if i disagree i am going to be killed on the spot. because of this, i have now died.

don't tell me what to do, narrative, because i'm not going to do it!

i am also annoyed that they took the time to redesign mal in perfect childhood-friends-to-lovers dreamboat fashion but refused to retcon zoya's stupid misogyny-fueled bitchy YA girl arc and instead made it even worse by having her be racist to alina? what was the thought process there? they seriously fucked her over. i tried to pretend it didn't happen moving forward but why do they want to use racism as a tool for developing a "bully" character anyway, especially a woc? am i meant to forget about it? they lost me there. i feel like the female characters, with the exception of inej, generally weren't given the same care the male characters were. there was a lot of sidelining in favour of mal's redemptive rewrite and the darkling's 15 minutes of half-assed backstory and crying in every scene for some reason. “make me your villain” .... okay, simpboy, i’ll try my best.

i've already talked about why i hated mal's role (i clarify his role, not his character, because there was literally nothing wrong with him and that’s why i hated him so much) but i'm going to address it from the perspective of my love for alina and why i think this decision was so disrespectful to her. alina in the books was already in need of more characterization, time for herself and her internal development as opposed to her relationship with the three male love interests she acquires through the series. somehow this show took a main character already underused in her own story (though at least the books are told from her pov) and neglected her even further. alina is tied almost entirely to her male counterparts, mal especially, but i'd say the darkling is used as a narrative rebound. i think they both have chemistry and can serve a purpose in the story but the emphasis on codependency is impossible to ignore.

in the first four episodes, every scene that could have been alina struggling to settle into a new life and dealing with the emotional weight of her pressure as a saint was instead about mal. she writes him letters, and cries over him, and slips him into conversations that have nothing to do with him, and gets sad after slipping him into conversations that have nothing to do with him, and can't use her power because she's thinking of him, and then only decides to fully accept her power because of his absence.

alina's feelings are lended to nothing but her missing mal. he isn't just her best friend and love, he's this colossal piece of her identity that she doesn't get to exist without, even when he's gone. the show's exhaustive attempt to make mal loveable and make malina an epic love story turns our female protagonist into a sulking, miserable shell of a character everytime he's mentioned, which, by the way, is like, every two minutes. and apparently it's necessary to draw parallels to the same three flashbacks in all of them. i knoowwwwwwww, they held hands and now they can't anymore, i knowwww. they ran through a meadow, i knowwwwwwwwwwwwww.

watching her scenes almost drove me to printing out a bechdel test and ticking off as many boxes as possible.

i hated it. it made me sad.

i wanted more alina. i want her power to be her own. i wanted that tension between her and mal in the books because his flaws gave her a chance to stand up for herself and say that she liked being powerful. that summoning is a part of her and she would never give it up. that there was a tinge of corruption, of greed, of wanting to be the sun summoner, and it was intriguing! mal's issue of not accepting alina's power allowed her to express how much it meant to her. i wanted the alina who said "the night was velvety black and strewn with jewels. the hunger struck me suddenly. i want them, i thought." i wanted a hint of the sun summoner who decided when it got dark and relished in it (yes i know this can be expanded upon in s2). alina has a cocky side, her insecurities are explored and she finds strength in her new gift and eventually has to find strength outside of it, but in the show the catalyst to her powers is mal. always. is it romantic? sure. but it's hard to enjoy the romance when all we see of alina is her romantic connection to mal. can't she be more than that?