#because of the analogy they made to me being a Pokémon

[thewriting-dragon]

Ummm…one of my friends while discussing the lovely events of the weekend just informed me I am becoming the cougar I wanted to see in the world from my early 20’s and I swear I could just combust. I am like a level one cougar. Like some kinda lesbian Pokémon, honestly it’s great.

[spw-art]

If you have OCs... could you perhaps make a masterpost-link thing with them that I could save up to check them out/save to go back to if I forget anything on them? (Bonus points if u have potp/dragon ocs smiles)

ALSO your art slaps hell yeah 💪

Looks at you with big wet eyes. My tag #my oc should have all of em.

POTP is a universe in which I feel like it’s both difficult and impractical to make an oc for unless they exist before or after the story.

I fucking love dragons I haven’t drawn any dragons in so long. Besides Pokémon dragons.

And now I’ll see if I can remember all the tags of all my ocs. Or at least the main ones.

All of the links will just lead to their tag.

Harte Sekioka - Pokemon breeder and ex-magma admin from an amino roleplay that took place in 2017. Currently he’s used in a roleplay with friends because I didn’t want to make a new character for it. Just went ahead and decided he’s 20 years older now. Self-proclaimed sexmaster. Annoying. Single father of two. Should not be a father.

Claudia - A Ditto masquerading as a human from Harte’s universe. She’s helped him out with speeding up the process of selective Pokémon breeding. She’s also extremely important to Harte’s universe’s Team Magma.

Sif Saph - My BG3 character, I haven’t been able to play BG3 in forever. Not much info on him besides he’s the cousin of my first ever D&D character, Sif Krymsul. And he has blue dragon ancestry on his father’s side. Really really really hoping to draw him more I miss him so much.

Divo Success - Pokémon oc. He’s the platonic idea of a cowboy the same way The Stanley Parable’s Narrator is the platonic ideal of divorce. He hasn’t even seen a cow in his life. But he does have a gigantic horse that everyone is afraid of for her Stamina Iron Defense Body Press swagger. He has weird fucking abilities that allow him to be a western movie character. Every time he rides away on his horse it’s into the sunset. No matter what time of day it is. He can always appear in a cloud of dust or smoke. He operates entirely on rule of cool.

Daylight Under Outsmouth - A Call Of Cthulhu campaign that unfortunately never came to fruition. It’s about a universe being consumed by an oppressive darkness with the center of its terror being Earth. Things keep getting darker. Stars disappear from the sky. Aliens and extradimensional creatures find their way to earth as refugees. I reaaally want to make a comic or something with the story.

Aoife and Padraig - Characters made for my friend’s series called Analog Files. They’re the same person from different worlds. They’re married. They’re fucking weird. Aoife is dying of Cool Guy Cancer that’s turning her into a bug and then into a pile of flesh. She wants to be studied while she dies. Padraig loves studying her. They’re great.

Legally Distinct - A glam metal band made up of monsters from Universal Monster movies. I had made them for Art Fight, they’re quite silly, they have so much sex and do so much drugs. And rock n roll of course.

Nigellians - A type of creature made of music, glamor, passion, and magic. They’re born of human creation. Think of Eddie the Head if he was less powerful and less aggressive and more of a little fairy spirit.

Herb - An utau made by my friend NyxQuentiam who is voiced by me. I need to record a new voice bank so badly. He’s an artificial angel who harvests energy from other angels by killing and blending them. He then goes to the angel black market to turn mortals into angels: a high he should not be doing. But whatever, he’s having a good time.

Ward - Cringefail rich boy accidental racist fire genasi who sucks. Used him in a D&D campaign until it fizzled out due to the DM being weird. I don’t think I have much stuff with him here (I think it’s just one post) but he’s my beloved little shitstain. His sword is incredibly blunt. It does bludgeoning damage. He’s whining the entire time he’s adventuring.

Those are the main guys. Hope that helps! :)

Always feel free to ask more questions! Yippee yahoo yippeeeee

[sudoscience]

I feel like I've done this before, but I feel like ranking all of the Pokémon games I've played.

Legends Arceus

Scarlet (tentatively)

Soul Silver

Sword

Brilliant Diamond

Silver

Red

Let's Go Eevee

Slightly more detailed responses below the cut, in the order in which I actually played them. With the exception of Scarlet, this is also basically in order of how long I spent playing each one, which I guess is pretty analogous to how much I enjoyed them.

Red. I played this when I was, like, 6, and the copy I had couldn't hold a save because the internal battery was dead. I never got very far in it because I literally could not turn off the GBA without losing all my progress. It still makes me nostalgic, though. Love the soundtrack, especially.

Silver. Also played this when I was 6 and also didn't get very far. I liked it, but I remember more about where I was when I played it than I remember about the game itself.

Soul Silver. I loved this game, and I'm still lowkey mad that I can't find my copy. This was the first game where I made it into the hall of fame.

Brilliant Diamond. Somehow, I skipped four generations, including the original Diamond & Pearl, so BD was my first introduction to the Sinnoh region. I feel like if I had played the originals, I probably would've hated BDSP even more, but as it stands, I'm pretty neutral towards them. I beat Cynthia, and then I kinda just didn't care anymore.

Legends Arceus. Amazing. S-tier Pokémon game. Probably the only Pokémon game where I've put in over 100 hours. Definitely the only one where I actually "caught 'em all".

Sword. Meh. Beat Leon, caught Zacian, stopped caring. It was fun starting out, especially since, as I mentioned, I skipped several generations, so a lot of the Pokémon were new to me, even though many of them had actually been introduced in earlier games.

Let's Go Eevee. Eevee's adorableness was not enough to save this game. Maybe I just don't like the Kanto region, but man, I did not care for this game much at all. My biggest complaint is still that it's a first party Nintendo game, and it doesn't support the Pro Controller.

Scarlet. I haven't played it any more since the last post I wrote about it, so you can just go read that to get my thoughts.

I have tried playing a few of the other games (specifically Blue, Leaf Green, Emerald, and Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team) but only on an emulator, and idk what it is, but I've never really been able to get into games when they're being emulated. I'd much rather play them on the original console, but with how expensive used copies of some of these games are, that isn't usually an option. So, like Scarlet, I haven't played them enough to really give them a proper review.

[scottymcgeesterwrites]

90′s kids are actually 00′s kids

Let’s be honest: there are only four things I really remember about the 90′s - Princess Diana, Monica Lewinsky, Seinfeld, and Pokémon. Everything else is a random mix of personal memories, like friends I made in school and the times I got seriously injured or sick. But the outside world was still a bit of a blur, waiting to be discovered. A few years ago, my fiancée and I went to NYC Comic Con. They had these mystery boxes that you could buy. Each mystery box had a different theme, so Star Trek, Star Wars, DragonBall Z, etc. You would pay like $50 or something like that for items inside the box related to that theme. We saw a 90′s theme mystery box and bought it. 

We opened it up, expecting to be excited about reliving the 90′s.  We didn’t recognize a single fucking thing in the box. 

No idea what any of that stuff was. 

My formative years were really the early ‘00′s. That’s when I was becoming a “person” and when I developed my emotions, for better or for worse. 

For me, the real “nostalgia” is the GameCube, skinny jeans, drum and bass, Fatboy Slim, bad action movies with washed out colors trying to imitate The Matrix, Homestar Runner, Internet forums, and the final days of the true arcade. The early ‘00s were truly a weird, transitional and liminal space between two worlds. It was a world of twilight, where two ends met. It saw the decline in physical copies of movies and music and the rise of the digital age. It was the final goodbye to the analog world. It saw the rise of hacktivism, and the early days of social media was the Wild Wild West before the corporations brought the hammer down with rules and threats of copyright infringement. The new millennium was unsure of what it would become, but storm clouds loomed in the distance. The 90′s didn’t end on December 31st, 1999 at 11:59 PM; they ended on September 11th, 2001 at around 8:45 AM EST. That was when “the fun” stopped, and when we all had to rethink our lives.

I remember Craig Ferguson (my favorite late night host), and a bunch of underrated celebrities who we used to make fun of (or loathed) who have now been vindicated. Keanu Reeves. Britney Spears. Guy Fieri. Robert Downey Jr. Cara Cunningham. Everyone you loved back then turned out to be a monster, but everyone you took for granted was really a good person all along. I remember being mad at seeing open fields being taken over by cheaply-made, mass produced McMansions near my house. I vandalized one of the construction sites. When I confided in someone about it, they called my cause petty and stupid. Two years later, the Great Recession started because of the housing bubble. I tried, in a brief violent moment, to fight back something I didn’t understand. It was inevitable.   I saw the world transition and the storm clouds roll in. I felt the paradigm shift. I saw the party end as millions of people looked up and said, “I have a bad feeling about this.” I overheard thousands of conversations from the stairwell late at night as my parents talked worriedly with their friends about the Iraq War and the Patriot Act. I remember the start of the Bourne movies. In a way, they were a response to the Bond movies. James Bond was the 20th Century hero, the upholder of “Western civilization” and the status quo. Jason Bourne was the first of the 21st Century heroes - the hero who regretted and fought to change the status quo. I remember movies trying to make bold, serious takes on superheroes. Some succeeded, like Batman Begins and X-Men. Others failed, like Daredevil and Ghost Rider. Everyone wanted to be serious then. That, and so much more, is what I remember about my childhood - my real childhood. In my heart, I am a 00′s kid.

[leejungchans]

— the great debate.

set on december 14, 2020 during ateez’s christmas vlive

juliet’s masterlist

a/n: (very mediocre and very low quality 💀) gif by me!!

warning: a lot of butt discourse 🤡🤡🤡 also this is all just in good fun so don’t take it too seriously, i’ll still love you even if you think we have two butts 🤩

oh no 🤡🤡🤡🤡

we all know what happened in this vlive

okay but before we get into That™️ 💀

let’s just start with the wholesome shit!! 🥰

baby sat between jongho and san

she watched san break the ornament and went 😳😒🤨🧐😟😕 but he gave her a pleading look so she didn’t say anything

she’s not gonna expose him 😔 at least when they’re not playing a game and there’s no competition/prize involved

but it’s useless bc hongjoong saw too 🤡

yunho and san commented that the ornaments looked like pokéballs/master balls and she literally went 🤩🤩🤩🤩 POKÉMON?????????

“giratina!” “giratina!” “GIRATINA!!!! :DDD”

literally never mention pokémon in front of her bc she’ll go on forever 💀

“i trained mine up to level 100 to sweep the elite four 😎”

seonghwa was big confusion

san: you don’t know this?????

yunho: you don’t know arceus?????????

2young: [very offended]

seonghwa: [didn’t watch pokémon and didn’t have a nintendo]

juliet: .....i’ll educate you when we get home 😩😩

okay let’s stop with the pokémon talk bwhdjhwjs i miss my nds hwjshws those were the good times

san put wreaths on jongho and juliet’s heads 🥺🥺🥺

wooyoung: [does a double take] oh you two look pretty 🥰

juliet: really? 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

yes bby u look like an angel 😔

hongjoong: [complaining about how wooyoung wrote his initials as ‘hg’ instead of ‘hj’ on the ornament]

wooyoung: [too busy taking photos of jongliet to care]

wooyoung give us the pics 😠😠😠

meanwhile poor hwa was struggling to put the star on top of the tree :(((

juliet: [finally notices] oppa, u good? 😟😟

seonghwa: [gives up]

juliet: it’s okay we can just put u up there since ur a star ����🥰🥰

... okay anywAYS!!

everyone minus sangjongliet: [busy decorating the tree]

yeosang: [filming jongliet singing to santa tell me] why aren’t you two helping though 🤨

juliet: we’re working hard to give you a quality performance wtf do u mean we’re not helping >:(

save yeosang

smh not ateez complaining when they were being serenaded by the 4th gen vocal legends 🙄🤚

when seonghwa made the ornament his earring though 🥺🥺

juliet: ur so pretty!!!! 🥺🥺🥺🥺

wooyoung: [exposing hongjoong for ordering him to get his meal ready]

wooyoung: that was the first time someone treated me like this. it was attractive

juliet: 👁👄👁 should you be saying that on live

that’s rich coming from her when she’s literally the same person who tweeted “no feet pics” 🙄🙄

okay let’s get into the ✨great butt debate✨

for the record, juliet is team ‘one butt’

seonghwa: of course it’s two

juliet: YOU WANNA SAY THAT AGAIN 😀

jongliet were judging him so hard 😭😭😭😭

san: WE ARE ALL BUTTS

juliet: is that your way of saying we’re full of shit

yunho: [starts gesturing butt cheeks with his hands] 😭😭😭😭😭

ateez: 😃⁉️ HANDS DOWN WTF

yeosang: i’ll draw and explain :DDDDD

ateez: ⁉️‼️❗️⁉️‼️⁉️NO DON’T PLS NO WE LITERALLY JUST SAID— ⁉️‼️❗️⁉️‼️

meanwhile she was really going at seonghwa

“IT’S NOT THE LEFT BUTT AND THE RIGHT BUTT WTF THEY ARE CALLED BUTTCHEEKS”

yeosang: we have two nostrils but one nose right? so we have the left and right cheeks but only one butt

juliet, to woosan: why are you two disagreeing??????? he’s literally right?????????????

sangliet intellectuals 😔✨

team ‘one butt’: yeo, joong, yunho, jongho, juliet

team ‘two butts’: hwa, woo, san

juliet: [scoots away from san] the three of you can pack your bags bc i refuse to be in a group with people who think we have two butts 😃🔪

she’s kidding 😔😔 she loves the three of them with her whole being but she absolutely disagrees with them in this situation

hongjoong: does a straw have one or two holes

ateez: [panics]

ah shit here we go again—

jongho: of course two??????

yeah that was the day juliet lost all faith in humanity

she was this 🤏 close to leaving ateez 💀

“JONGHO YOU TOO??????? I’M NOT GOING TO SIT BETWEEN YOU AND SAN ANYMORE I’M GOING TO SIT WITH YUNHO HE’S THE ONLY ONE WHO UNDERSTANDS ME”

yeah rip jusan and jongliet <///3

wooyoung: if it’s one hole it wouldn’t be open all the way 😠

yunho: it’s one hole BECAUSE it’s open all the way

“yunho-oppa i love you so much yes king!!!!”

a very offended wooyoung: JULIE YOU THINK THERE’S ONE HOLE????

juliet: people cut holes in mountains to build tunnels going through them right? but people don’t call it cutting two holes through a mountain to build a tunnel, they call it cutting one hole

san: AHHHH WHY WOULD YOU CUT A HOLE THROUGH ME???!! 😿😿😿😿

get it?? bc he’s san aka mountain??? 💀

THE WAY SHE INHALED SHARPLY BC SHE’S SO DONE WITH HIM AHJEHDHWKJDH

papa joong to the rescue

hongjoong: yah yah minyoung it’s just a friendly discussion don’t get mad don’t get mad

wooyoung: ur cute when ur frustrated 🥰

“well then i’m about to get really adorable 😀😀😀😀😀😀😀”

is it that serious 😭😭😭😭

hongjoong: here it says that according to the national institute of korean language we have one butt

team one butt: WOOOOOO PARTAYYYYY 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

san: you know why it’s one butt? bc 9 makes 1 team. we’re a butt

“STOP CALLING US A BUTT WTF”

hwa: in my heart it’s still two butts 😞

juliet: gtfo 😀😀😀

rip hwaliet </3

san: my father calls me his heart, you know?

so the term he used can refer to either ‘heart’ or ‘chest’ 🤡 so this happened...

yunwoo: DO WE HAVE ONE OR TWO CHESTS ?!^*??¥>^*^

juliet: T W O

hongjoong: OKAY LET’S END THINGS HERE WE’LL DO THIS LATER

so what did we learn today? juliet is team one butt and team one hole 💅🏻 it’s okay if you disagree so don’t worry she’ll still love you :3

different story with her members though 💀

even after the vlive ended she was still debating with the others 💀💀💀💀💀

“MANAGER-UNNIE YOU THINK A STRAW HAS TWO HOLES????????? I AM GOING TO CRY I DON’T LIKE LIVING IN THIS UNFAIR WORLD”

she probably texted felix, somi, ryujin and the two chans that night asking them “one butt or two butts? one hole or two holes? give the wrong answer to break the friendship ❤️”

them: 😟😟😟😟

don’t worry, she was only half-serious 😔

a/n: fully on the same train as juliet ahjwhsjw tbh i thought a long time about the straw dilemma but then i thought of the tunnel-mountain analogy and now i’m fully on board with the ‘a straw has one hole’ train 🚂 as always please leave feedback and chat with me!!! 🥺❤️ i’d love to hear about your take on the butt and straw debate hajshajsjak 💀

[metatexualart]

Digimon Adventure 02 as Queer Allegory

((I usually reserve this blog for occult analysis but I’ll probably be writing about Digimon on here later anyways))

Digimon is really gay, like i don’t know a single straight fan tbh. But I was rewatching season 2 and wow it’s been a while but this season is exceptionally queer. Here were a few notes that stood out to me.

The kids regularly travel between the real and digital world just as (closeted) queer kids feel the tear between their external world and their inner truth. You can also read it as them logging into a safe space, such as an lgbtq chat room or forum, which were peaking in popularity at the time this show aired. But they need to be careful because there might be predators in that chat. (Arukenimon, mummymon, oikawa, and ken)

The 3 new kids manifest really weird fashion when they enter the Digimon world but the original cast doesn’t because they’re already self actualized. This change of clothes almost literally homages the idea of “coming out of the closet”

Normal digivolution doesn’t work, so the kids must discover new ways to digivolve. Digivolution isn’t a major analoge for sex, but it does represent the spiritual and emotional growth of the children, and this new way of being paraelles the lgbtq+ civil rights movement. They do things differently

Not to mention, this new way of digivolution is called Armor digivolution, and most of the cast gets at least 2 armor digivolutions. Because if the nature of armor digivolution, it appears that the Digimon are literally wearing a costume rather than simply transforming their being. There are many queer paraelles to this, including searching for your true identity, code switching, and even drag.

Armor digivolution comes from the armored digi eggs, at least that’s what they’re called in the dub. Eggs being a symbol of the divine feminine, they’re getting in touch with their feminine qualities. (Not to mention the first egg seen has a big bladed phallus protruding from it)

Yolie is a lesbian. That’s not even a stretch, the way she interacts with Mimi the first time they meet is very very gay. The dub has her saying stuff like “I wish Mimi was my big sister” while showing images that imply much more than sibling hood. She’s also the first digidestined to have an opposite gender Digimon partner. For a middle schooler, she’s very butch coded. Especially relative to Sora who was the original tomboy who struggled with traditional gender roles. silphymon is also the only mixed gendered dna digivolution, which sounds heterosexual at first, but it makes silphymon explicitly an androgenous Digimon (Digimon are canonically biologically not sexual but they are inarguably gender coded)

The Digimon emperor (ken) erects a bunch of black towers that prevents digivolution and invokes mind control on the Digimon who have been collared by his black rings. He built a bunch of phallic structures that cock blocks everyone’s good time and to repeat: LITERALLY COLLARS EVERYONE. Most of these paraelles are pretty allegorical and can be interpreted many different ways but this part is almost explicit in its meaning. It screams of BDSM and, even though digivolution isn’t a direct paraelle to sex, chastity play. He’s also the one most overtly living a double life style.

The kids later discover that there are other digidestined kids poping up all over the world. They’re discovering there are more people like them. If you’re queer then you know exactly what I mean.

Blackwargreymon has an entire arc dedicated to his identity crisis, which is pretty one note considering this season is full of identity crisis themes. You could parallel it to the problems of racial discrimination within the lgbtq community, but I probably wouldn’t lol (need to rewatch that arc before I really analysis it)

In conclusion, I always remembered season 2 as the worst season, but rewatching has made me appreciate it more. I totally understand why it’s a fan favorite, especially among bi and trans fans specifically. I also see why furries are really into season 2 too. Every season has anthromorphs out the ass but season 2’s armor digivolutions as fursuits unfortunately, can’t be unseen (especially since it leaves the main cast with both a humanoid form and a much more animalistic form)

Bonus:

Arukenimon and Mummymon are gay icons the same way Jesse and James from Pokémon are fucking fight me over this

[hellzyeahwebwielingessays]

The Problem with Spidey as ‘Iron Man Junior’

Proponents of the MCU version of Peter Parker have often defended his characterization as logical and necessary in context. But is this really the case?

Tl:dr version: No it is not.

Forgive some laziness on my part because I’m going to be presuming everyone’s familiarity with the comic book iteration of Spider-Man and his MCU adaptation for the most part. To say there is a divide between many fans of former vs. the latter would be an understatement.

Detractors (which I count myself among) typically sum this up as the character being reduced to ‘Iron Man Junior’. In general this refers to MCU Peter Parker’s hero-worshipping of Tony Stark/Iron Man, their father/son relationship and the similar emphasis upon high technology in their hero identities. A connected point of contention is Peter’s aspiration to become an Avenger.

This was outright confirmed by Tom Holland himself in an interview for the then upcoming ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’.

"I think the difference now is that Peter Parker finally has an all-time goal, and his goal is to become an Avenger…Everything he does, even though he's doing it for the right reasons, is done so that one day he can become an Avenger and prove himself to Tony Stark. And I think we've never really seen Spider-Man with that kind of motivation before."

Defenders of this take upon Spidey have argued that this portrayal makes sense in context.

After all, Peter Parker is a teenager who’s grown up in a world where the Avengers are beloved, especially Iron Man. Plus in the comics (under J. Michael Straczynski’s pen) there was a time when Peter and Tony shared a father/son relationship. Tony even equipped Peter with a high tech costume as he did in the MCU. Spider-Man early in his career attempted to join the Fantastic Four in ASM #1 and later the Avengers in ASM Annual #3.

The problem is these defences just don’t hold up to scrutiny.

Let me first be upfront about my philosophy towards adaptations.

I in no way shape or form demand nor expect adaptations to be 1:1 panel to screen translations of the source material. I fully respect that changes are a necessity.

One of many 22-page comic book stories put out every month in the 1960s inevitably needs to be altered when jumping to a 90+ minute live action film in the 2010s.

Even the characterizations need to be altered where necessary if the source material is found wanting. *side eyes Emma Stone’s Gwen Stacy*

However, my attitude is that adaptations should at minimum respect the spirit  of the source material no matter what. To do otherwise defeats the object of adapting the work in the first place. If a film is just borrowing superficial traits (names, costumes, powers, etc.) and but not representing the spirit of the character, then creatively speaking it might as well be an original character.

This is the case with the MCU version of Spider-Man. A fundamental component of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s original vision for Spider-Man was that he was in essence the anti-Robin.

At a time when teenaged characters were sidekicks (Dick Grayson), supporting characters (Rick Jones) or the ‘kids’ in teams (Johnny Storm) Peter Parker was unique as a totally independent  teen hero. Of course that independence only applied to his life as Spider-Man, but that was part of the point. Spider-Man was his escape and release from the pressures and hang ups of his regular life, which included his doting yet coddling aunt.

A critical part of this was that he was a self-made  man. No elder mentor guided him in the use of his powers, helped him create his equipment or provided any sort of advice/accountability for Peter. He did it all himself. He was a loner.

On a meta level this is partially why Stan Lee (and for the longest time consequent writers) showcased Spidey not jiving with super teams. It was done to emphasis Peter’s independence and thereby his uniqueness within the genre. Even if that’s not so unique anymore (even in film), it’s still a baked in component of teen Spidey’s story. An essential aspect of who he is as a character.

As is his working class status.*

In fact these things go hand-in-hand. Just as Peter had to shoulder an ‘adult hero’s’ burden as Spider-Man (noticeably Lee didn’t dub him Spider-Boy or Lad as would’ve been common back then he also had to struggle for every penny. With the death of his uncle and his aunt’s poor health the burden of household provider fell on his shoulders.

When you take all this into account, having him fanboy over the Avengers and have a superhero mentor (let alone a billionaire one) is an aggressive misreading of the character.

The best way I can illustrate this is with an analogy from the opposite end of the spectrum. Imagine if you will a movie depicting Dick Grayson’s transformation into Robin. Except Batman was wholly absent. Not even an off-screen presence.

That  is how poorly MCU has missed the point  of Spider-Man.

And it was never necessary.

Contrary to defenders of the MCU, making Peter an Avengers/Iron Man fanboy was not the only logical direction to go with the character.**

Yes, in Peter’s world most kids would revere the Avengers and Iron Man. But in the real world not every kid or teen likes the Avengers characters or movies. Just as not every major pop culture phenomenon has ever been universally  embraced by contemporary kids/teens. In the 1980s not every kid loved the Transformers or the Ninja Turtles. In the 1990s not ever kid loved the Power Rangers or Pokémon.

Of course, most kids did, just as most  kids like the Avengers characters today. Similarly most  kids in the MCU by extension would look up to the Avengers. However, if anything this could actually help generate a more spiritually faithful rendition of the character. Consider that on literally the first page of Amazing Fantasy #15 Peter Parker was mocked by his classmates for being an outsider. A bookworm who didn’t know the difference between a cha-cha and a waltz.

In the context of the MCU wouldn’t Peter’s lack of familiarity or interest in the Avengers make for an appropriate updating of that characterization?

Let’s also consider that in the context of the regular 616 universe Spidey held little reverence for any of the heroes who had preceded him. This included Captain America and other WWII heroes as well as the Fantastic Four and their leader, the world famous scientist Reed Richards. Peter would’ve surely known who Reed and Cap were but as originally depicted by Stan lee himself, he wasn’t falling over himself during any of their early encounters.

So there was already a precedent in the comics for Spidey to not be dazzled by famous A-list heroes, meaning it’d be totally believable in the context of the MCU. Indeed this was likely part of the point of the character. Just as being Spider-Man didn’t improve his outsider status within the high school hierarchy so too was he an outsider among his super hero peers. The nerd to the Avengers jocks if you will.

But what of those comic book sources that say otherwise? Surely ASM #1, ASM Annual #3 and JMS’ run on Amazing Spider-Man corroborate the MCU’s take upon the character.

Yes and no, let’s tackle them one by one.

In ASM #1 it was made explicit that Peter wanted to join the F4 for purely practical reasons. His family needed money so he hoped the F4 could provide and income. When he learned otherwise he departed as quickly as he’d arrived.

In ASM Annual #3 Peter was far from eager  to join the Avengers and was equally unimpressed with them as a group.

He actively sabotaged his own chances to join at the issue’s conclusion.

As for Straczynski’s run…sigh…strap in.

At face value this run does indeed seem to support the MCU’s rendition of Spidey. However, the support it offers falls apart due to two factors.

The first is that, well…Peter and Tony’s relationship was pretty nonsensical.

I’m no Iron Man expert so I do not know how old the character would be roughly. From my impressions of the character though circa 2006 he wasn’t even in his 40s yet. Peter by contrast was 30 years old when you do the math. Unlike Tony he’d had several very serious romantic relationships and was back then happily married (barring a brief trial separation). He and his wife had lost a child and even believed one another dead at one point or another. Peter at the time was also working as a teacher to teenagers where he was clearly framed as their elder authority figure.

What I’m saying is that Peter was if anything more emotionally mature than Tony at this time. Or at least he was mature to the point where he was not going to view Tony as his father figure given the minor age discrepancy.

The relationship was clearly engineered with the pre-determined endgame in mind. That endgame being the ‘Civil War’ storyline wherein Peter would unmask upon Tony’s request and subsequently become a fugitive in defiance of Tony’s unethical practices. The latter would entail Tony threatening Peter and the pair coming to blows.

This brings me to the second factor. The totality of Peter/Tony’s relationship was designed to be a testament to how it was ultimately a bad thing.

Tony wasn’t the man Peter believed him to be.

Tony didn’t have Peter’s best interests at heart.

Tony was willing to spy, threaten and even attack Peter.

And along the way Peter and his family lost their home and the safety of Peter’s anonymity. The end result was Peter’s life becoming a shell of it’s former self, with his loved ones in serious danger. In fact you could view his fugitive status as a way to recreate the ‘good old days’ when Spider-Man was feared and hated by the public and authorities.

Had Peter retained his independence rather than surrendering any part of it to his ‘father figure’ Tony Stark, much of this could’ve been avoided. If nothing else Peter might’ve been able to unmask privately rather than publicly.

Whilst the MCU addresses the first factor via de-aging Peter, it has no answer for the second. It borrowed from the JMS run superficially and ditched the greater subtext regarding how Peter shouldn’t  have formed a relationship with Tony.

I’d like to conclude by addressing the most obvious counterpoint to everything I’ve said.

If Spider-Man were more comic faithful wouldn’t it undermine the entire point of him being in the MCU? The appeal of the concept was seeing Spider-Man interact with the wider MCU. From the audience’s POV seeing yet another Spidey flick confined to using Spider-Man exclusive elements might as well have been produced solely by Sony.

The problem with this argument though is that it doesn’t consider the myriad of possibilities available. Spidey could interact with the wider MCU and still be in character.

I’m no writer but off the top of my head:

Spidey could have defied the Sokovia Accords and thus been wanted by the authorities (a neat updating of his traditional ‘outlaw’ status), consequently coming into conflict  with Iron Man

Spidey might have still dueled the Vulture and interacted with Tony as he did in ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’. However, instead of gradually realizing he should be a ‘friendly neighborhood’ hero, he could call Tony out for ignoring small scale crime which indirectly ‘created’ the Vulture in the first place

Following ‘Avengers: Endgame’ the dissolution of the Avengers combined with the huge uptick in the population and displacement of citizens might’ve caused far more street crime that Peter would have to deal with. The remnants of H.Y.D.R.A. might’ve exploited this to gain a foothold upon which to rebuild.*** That might’ve warrant an appearance from more grounded heroes like Hawkeye or Ant-Man

An environment like this could’ve been exploited by Quentin Beck to frame Spider-Man, exploiting his already shaky public reputation and make himself look more appealing by contrast

Or Hell just do ‘Nothing Can Stop the Juggernaut’ but with the Hulk as Roger Stern planned to do in the first place

I’m sure many of you could suggest infinitely better ideas.

In conclusion, no matter how you slice it, there were better options than rendering Peter Parker Iron Man Junior instead of Spider-Man.

*Peter, as depicted in ‘Captain America: Civil War’ was clearly not well off financially, yet consequent depictions of Peter in the MCU have de-emphasized this to the point where you could argue they are very probably not working class anymore.

This makes sense internally as a billionaire Tony Stark has no reason to take Peter under his wing but allow him to still dumpster dive for equipment. Giving the boy at least some modest financial stability would be a logical step in building a relationship with him and giving him more time and energy to put into his scientific and heroic pursuits.

Whilst I don’t exactly agree with everything said here, this post dives into the subject more deeply.

**And even if it was, if the context demands Peter be rendered so unrecognizable then maybe it was just creatively reductive to integrate him into the MCU the first place.

***They have after all had connections to organized crime in the comics.

[primatechnosynthpop]

The Alola sun beat down on Moon as she strolled down the street at a leisurely pace, but it couldn't match the warmth brought to her by Lillie's presence beside her. She kept her eyes trained ahead as she walked, only allowing herself to catch fleeting peripheral glimpses of her companion. Every time her eyes fell on the other girl, looking like an angel in white with her hair tied back in a loose ponytail and a smear of sunscreen across her pale complexion, Moon's heart sped up until it beat like the wings of a Cuteifly. She didn't understand these thoughts swimming in her head, the feelings brewing in the pit of her stomach, so she ignored them and kept her gaze on the road ahead.

"You're being really quiet," Lillie observed in a nervous murmur. The sound of her voice made Moon's skin burn; if she were anywhere near as fair-skinned as her companion, she didn't doubt she would be blushing a bright pink. "Is everything okay?"

"Huh? Uh, yeah, everything's fine!" Moon assured her, flashing her a grin. "Um, let's see... what were we talking about?"

"You were telling me about how you caught that Ultra Beast," Lillie prompted her.

She returned Moon's smile, albeit a bit more shyly, and it made Moon feel so faint she wouldn't have been surprised if she passed out right then and there. Rather than doing that, however, she blinked to snap herself back to attention, cleared her throat, and unequipped one of the pokéballs from her belt to show Lillie the recently captured creature inside.

"According to my Dex, this is called a Celesteela," Moon said. She lightly tapped her nail against the semi-transparent top of the pokéball, prompting no visible reaction from the Ultra Beast. "I wanted to give it a nickname, but I'm not sure what would be a good one... 'Celeste' seems a little too obvious, don't you think?"

Lillie hummed thoughtfully, bending down so that she could look at the Celesteela eye-to-eye through the ball. After a moment, she straightened up and looked back at Moon, giving her a half-smile and a slight shrug.

"It's not mine, so I shouldn't be the one to nickname it," she said. "I'm sorry if that's what you were asking."

Her eyes lingered on Moon for a few seconds, seeming to bore into her and scan her. Moon's skin pricked with an uncomfortable warmth under her gaze; she averted her eyes as she clipped Celesteela's pokéball back onto her belt and they resumed walking. What was Lillie searching for within her? Could she tell that Moon was acting strangely? Worse, had she already figured out why?

"...You don't have your Rotomdex with you today?" she asked after a moment. "Why not?"

Oh. That was all. Moon relaxed, letting out a short sigh. If Lillie noticed her obvious relief, though, she didn't say anything. She kept her wide, inquisitive eyes focused on Moon like a shimmering green spotlight illuminating a kid at a spelling bee who was realizing in the moment that they weren't quite as good at spelling as they thought (this analogy was certainly not based off any of Moon's personal experiences, and if her mom tried to tell anyone otherwise... well, just ignore that, okay?)

"Well, uh."

Moon swallowed, suddenly wishing she had thought to bring a water bottle since she'd known in advance it was going to be sunny out. Just to check, she unzipped her bag and rifled through the medicine compartment to see if she had any fresh water, soda pop, or lemonade on hand. Unfortunately, the only edible thing she had in her inventory at the moment was a packet of Energy Powder that had gotten squished to the bottom of her bag. She had no idea if those things were edible for humans to begin with, and either way, she had the sneaking suspicion it had expired about six months ago.

"I just... didn't think we'd need the company," she muttered into the gaping maw of her cluttered bag. "I mean, you know my Rotomdex. I love that funky little Pokédex, but it can't go five minutes without chattering about something or another."

Lillie giggled at that--a sweet sound that had warmed Moon's heart every time since she had first heard it.

"Don't tell me you wanted to be alone with me?" she asked in a light, teasing tone.

"I mean..."

I do, Moon thought. Oh, do I ever want to be alone with you. That was practically all that she wanted, these days. She wanted to explore every inch of Alola together with Lillie, hand in hand every step of the way. She wanted to swim with her in the ocean, camp with her and lay side by side looking up at the stars, stand in front of her with her team of Pokémon at the ready to defend Lillie from anything and everything that dared try to lay a finger on her. She wanted to give Lillie her protection, and hoped to receive it in turn in the form of a gifted item, a shy smile--or something else, something she didn't dare to think because of what it would entail--something she was too scared to admit to herself.

The point was, she wanted them to be together. And, aside from the loyal companionship of her Pokémon team (who, notably, couldn't speak and give away her secrets) she wanted them to be alone with each other.

But she didn't dare to say any of that any more than she dared to reach out and grab Lillie's hand the way her pounding heart suddenly urged her to. She must have taken too long trying to work out what she could say instead, though, because Lillie came to a stop, smile faltering.

"You're not--" She tentatively reached out a hand, only to draw it back with a nervous frown. "You're not feeling well, are you? Moon, whatever is bothering you..."

"I'm fine," Moon said, and she knew she blurted it out too quickly and she knew that her blushing must have been visible at this point regardless of complexion but she didn't know what could be done about that at this point anyway.

Pull yourself together, she commanded herself. You're just worrying her now. Hasn't she already been through enough without you adding to her problems?

"I'm fine," she repeated, more slowly this time, "But. Yes. I do want to spend more time alone with you, and if I had brought my Rotomdex along then I know it'd be teasing me right now for saying that."

"O-oh..." Lillie raised her eyebrows. Despite the sunscreen she had been careful to apply before stepping outside, it looked like she was already beginning to burn; her cheeks were flushed a shade of pink almost as bright as the accents on her top. "Er, I'm sorry, but why do you think it would tease you?"

"Because," Moon mumbled, struggling to hold her companion's steadily piercing gaze even as her skin prickled with apprehension. "It's been under the impression lately, I guess, that I..." She swallowed hard, rubbing her hand against the back of her neck. "That I like you as more than a friend. And, um, I kept telling it--and myself, I guess--that it was totally full of it. But, well--"

She promptly cut off as Lillie clamped her cool, pale hands around Moon's warm dark ones. Lillie beamed at her, eyes sparkling as bright as gemstones.

"Oh, thank Arceus," she breathed. "I was afraid you didn't feel the same way."

"Feel the same... huh?" Moon's eyebrows shot up along with her heartbeat, a giddy excitement bubbling up inside her at the sensation of Lillie's fingers wrapped tight around her own. "You don't mean you actually like me? The same way I like you?"

Lillie blinked, her grin wilting back into a nervous smile.

"Um, that is," she stammered, "Only if the way I feel about you is also the way you feel about me--that is to say, if in the case your Rotomdex were here, whatever it said about us would have been right--that you feel towards me in that way..."

She cut herself off, screwing her face up and shaking her head. Then, keeping one hand in Moon's and moving the other up to touch her shoulder, she stepped forward and cleared her throat as though to continue speaking.

Instead, she kept moving forward, closing the gap between herself and Moon altogether.

Moon gasped when Lillie's lips brushed against hers. They were so soft and cool, tentative at first and delicate as porcelain. Then she pulled back, face flushed, leaving Moon breathless.

"Are you okay with that?" she asked, her voice coming out as barely more than a whisper.

Her throat hot and sticky with the thrill of a lingering touch, Moon could only manage to nod. Lillie grinned, twining their fingers together with one hand while running the other through Moon's dark shoulder-length hair. Moon shuddered at the contact as Lillie's fingertips ghosted against her scalp.

"Could we do that again?" she asked. "If you don't mind."

"O-of course."

The tropical trees along the side of the road cast a shelter of shadow across them as they kissed again, with more confidence this time. At her waist, Moon felt her pokéballs clatter against each other; she wondered bemusedly if her team was laughing at her. It had certainly taken her long enough to get her act together. When they pulled apart, both their faces were flushed; Moon brushed her thumb across Lillie's forehead to wipe away a bead of sweat.

"So, um, there's a Malasada shop just down the road," she told her. "Do you maybe wanna go there and get a soda or something? My treat," she added, nodding toward her well-stocked bag. Despite her occasional overspending, she had managed to save up a decent sum from all the trainers she'd battled.

"I would love that," Lillie replied with an eager grin.

Moon nodded, the pervasive heat in her skin settling into a soft warmth in her chest. "Great. Let's go, then."

Hand in hand, they walked in tandem down the road, past the intangible threshold and at the beginning of a new journey. Moon couldn't take her eyes off of Lillie, knowing now that she was looking back with the same emotions burning behind her eyes. With the sun illuminating her from behind and casting a soft glow over her, she looked ethereal as ever, like something out of a dream--something eternally out of reach. But her hand was still clasped firmly around Moon's, solid and tangible and just as sweat-slicked as her own.

And every time Lillie smiled or laughed at something she said, Moon's heart exploded with love.

[theangrypokemaniac]

@nyarthsis

If Team Rocket 'always had a heart for unpopular Pokémon', that's an admission their Alola catches aren't particular loveable creatures, so I'm not thinking anything too controversial.

You're saying they take pity on the animals no one wants, as in it's normal for me not to find them adorable.

Some Pokémon, such as Lucario, become fan favourites without the advertisement of a regular role the anime. With Wobbuffet, Bewear, Stufful, Mareanie and Mimikyu, do people like them for themselves, or because of their association with Team Rocket?

I think its the latter. I can't imagine there would be such interest in them were they to be owned by a Twerp or appear as a one-off. Really then, it's not what or who they are, it's to whom they belong that matters.

Alola has really devalued catching. Rather than be true to the source material, so battering a Pokémon into submission, as Ash did with Bulbasaur, Primeape, Muk, and many others, now you have to ask their permission!

Bewear didn't even get that. She hung around for no reason, and her 'friend' Stufful was belatedly tacked on. I see why those two were left behind, as Team Rocket had no right to take them elsewhere.

In terms of welfare, Mimikyu and Mareanie are better off staying with them, free and safe, rather than locked in the insalubrious depths of H.Q., but then it never bothered the writers sending previous Pokémon into an uncertain future, so what difference does it make now?

It can only be that, like their predecessors, there is no intention to ever bring them back, but unlike the rest, the fans can't even be allowed the vain hope of a return, not with this rather awkward disposal.

It's feasible that Jessie and James could call their base and request old monsters to join them, but it's difficult to imagine they'd fly across the world to Alola, wander through the woods, pick 'em up and go all the way back again. Why make parting so final and irreversible?

It does imply that Game Freak don't like them, so why should I?

I keep noticing this fickle attitude. A new era starts, we're expected to fall instantaneously in love with every element, beg for more and yet more. Then, once the next region arrives, this adoration asked of us is meant to evaporate and immediately transfer to the next batch.

Well why start to like them, if eventually the makers don't care, to the extent you wouldn't even know previous Pokémon had ever been alive?

Have you heard one mention of Seviper, Yanmega, Dustox, Cacnea, Carnivine, and Mime Junior since they left?

Why were they happy to chuck Wobbuffet after Sinnoh, yet fetched for Kalos?

How could Team Rocket live without it for an entire generation but suddenly it's indispensable again? What do you imagine the rest of their Pokémon felt about that?

Have Jessie and James wondered allowed how Arbok, Weezing, Lickitung and Victreebel are doing?

What of the last two generations?

What is this nonsense where every character is so detached from the past?

Supposing I was to force myself to appreciate them: since they've gone, never to return, I'd be dissatisfied with the show, thus no better off than I am now.

My feelings don't run on a switch. I can't find myself besotted one minute then dump the object of affection without a second thought, just because Nintendo want it from me.

Even if I had a more positive opinion of the current interpretation, there's no benefit to becoming involved when it's all so fleeting.

Mareanie is ugly, with three teeth. I think he's a sea anenome, so ought to be more attractive, but it's covered in nipples instead!

It looks like a bonsai tree growing breasts, reminiscent of the hideous content lurking within an Hieronymous Bosch painting.

The idea that all Mimikyu copy Pikachu, the most famous Pokémon, when in their world it's nothing special, is too stupid for me to accept. How could that be coincidence?

It's referencing reality, acknowledging the real world's view of Pikachu as the star, so if it's breaking the fourth wall, it invites disbelief.

Wobbuffet does sod all. It's a complete dead weight and has no attacks. Yet it's the one to survive generation after generation. Where's the logic in that?

I suspect his popularity rests on being there so long he's considered part of the furniture, the sole catch in which you can invest an emotional connection whilst fairly certain he'll remain around.

By now it ought to have developed some semblance of a personality, but it's as faceless as ever. Other Pokémon that have been and gone had a bit more about them, but Wobba's so bland no one can summon the energy to write him out.

If he went, what would you miss? Breaking out of his ball and hissing 'WAAAAAHBUHFEH'? Is that so integral?

I have several objections:

What is it meant to be?

Why does its tail have eyes?

Why is that never mentioned?

Is it a sort of quadruped, or has it only one foot with four toes, arranged like the bottom of a medical walking stick?

A lot of my reactions to Pokémon are influenced by encountering them in the games. With Wobbuffet, I remember first coming across it in the cave near Blackthorn City, and just as you're winning the fight, it pulls out Destiny Bond and suddenly you're both down.

When you finally get one, it's tricky to train. You have no choice but to guess whether the opposition will launch a physical or special move, and mostly you get it wrong. He never learns anything else and doesn't evolve, so it's that forever.

Persevering with Magikarp is worthwhile, but what's to be gained from taking any time out to fight with Wobbuffet?

The anime eliminates this problem. You're aware of the nature of the approaching onslaught because you can see it coming, and the opponent said it aloud.

In this context Wobbuffet should be the most powerful Pokémon in the universe. Come on, it can deflect every attack!

Is it? No. It has a successful defence about once a generation, and still loses the battle. I can't say if it's worse to be utterly pointless, or to not fulfil one's potential.

I resent it muscling in on the motto, as if it's considers itself of equal rank to Meowth. No it's not!

When I was young, there was a tendency for magazines to refer to Team Rocket as a duo. Meowth was judged to be in the same position as Pikachu: a main character yes, and valuable enough to be accorded the privilege of liberty, but still very much owned by people.

You would see references to Jessie and James as his Trainers, though how they assumed this worked went unexplained. Even if shared, one had to have to caught him, thus be his proper owner.

Later on this developed into them being three equal members, and the term 'TRio' emerged, but now, although perhaps not officially recognised, there's an attitude of treating them as a quartet.

It's just wrong! Wobbuffet's not been around since day one. He didn't join Team Rocket voluntarily because he had nowhere else to go. It was a choice made for him by his original Trainer, so out of his hands, or rather his flippers.

If he was an independent Pokémon who just tagged along one day, that would be different, but it belongs to Jessie. Promoting one of hers means James is lesser, and no longer equal.

In each generation Team Rocket catch at least one local Pokémon, but as Wobbuffet's there, it ends up with Jessie having more on her side than James, and I dislike the imbalance. Plus the one he does get is violent.

It can't be solved by giving him another new one, as then he's captured two in the region, and she has only one, so again it's skewed.

Whilst Wobbuffet does count in numbers, he's not on the level of the rest, who fight regularly. He's both there and not simultaneously.

I'm still irked the way Lickitung was ejected to make room.

It was the best Pokémon they ever had! It took out Pikachu, Vulpix and Bulbasaur with one move! It would've won those Princess Dolls for Jessie if the writers hadn't changed the rules so that Lick only affects those of sound mind!

It was as if they realised their mistake too late, and so Lickitung was featured less and less to avoid it dominating a fight, then hurriedly traded away for something reliably feeble.

The following analogy you may not understand, but I think it fits rather aptly:

There's a game called Final Fantasy VIII. One of the side quests involves you racing through a castle under a time limit. If successful, you are rewarded with Odin as a Guardian Force, which is a deity that will provide a defence.

Unlike others, he is out of your control, but every so often, as you enter battle, he turns up and annihilates your opponents. It's very welcome.

Unfortunately this game was programmed by bunyips, who clearly didn't want the last section of the game to be accidently easier for you. Oh no. If you're progressing, it ain't gonna be through luck, or turning the console on and off until he arises.

Therefore, towards the close, you come up against ex-friend Seifer. Odin is fixed to rush to your aid, but when he does, bloody Seifer slices him in half, horse and all!

He killed Odin, the ancient King of the North! The Lord of Valhallah! The Father of the Vikings!

It's not normal fighting death, it's irreversible. He's gone for good.

After this Gilgamesh introduces himself as a replacement. He too will randomly appear and set about the enemy.

The problem is that whilst Odin destroyed monsters unfailingly, with Gilgamesh it's a rarity.

He uses four swords, and which you get is also a lottery.

One is the same as Odin's, two deal average damage, but not death, and the worst one depletes 1 HP, so it might as well not have bothered.

Not only does it arrive but a fraction of the time, but it's in a fraction of those times that it's of any assistance, which is something of a comedown.

Lickitung is Odin: didn't see it often, but it tore the place apart!

Wobbuffet is Gilgamesh: once in a blue moon it provides rescue, but it's on a lot lower percentage than it's predecessor.

It's difficult not to be disappointed.

[antialiasis]

Dave and Mia Discuss Infinite Jest

I wrote this for @negrek‘s birthday, but figured it might possibly bring some amusement to others as well.

(This is a non-canon Morphic extra. It contains some vague spoilers for the book Infinite Jest.)

Dave looked up as he turned off the TV, just in time for the news to switch over to sports. Mia was still sitting by the kitchen table, working on her new book report.

He stood up and approached the table, watching her write. Her handwriting was a curious blend of messy and meticulous, precise consistent lines but with no aesthetic or care to the letterforms themselves; her teachers had attempted to complain, and her parents had tried to encourage her to write more nicely, but he’d maintained they were full of shit and it was perfectly legible. It definitely wasn’t from upside down, though.

“What’s that report on, anyway?”

Mia didn’t look up. “Infinite Jest.”

Dave sat down opposite her, blinking. “Huh. Isn’t that that… that fucking book with the tennis?”

“Yes.”

“Huh. I read that when I was in college. I…” He paused. “Wait, hold the fuck up. That’s the book with the… That’s not an age-appropriate book. Who assigned you that?”

Mia shrugged. “Mrs. Webb.”

“Why would—”

“She was angry when she heard we read The Quest for the Legends last year. Said we should read a more adult and challenging book.”

“…What the—”

“She told us to skip some parts, though.”

“…Right.” Dave narrowed his eyes at Mia. If he had been given those instructions in tenth grade, he would definitely have read those parts, probably before the rest of the book. “And you skipped them? Just, less reading, great?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.” God, if Jean ever took this fucking class. He scratched at his scalp. “Well, what’d you think?”

“It was very long and nothing made any sense. The people just kept on doing stupid things for no reason. Even more than normal.” Mia wrinkled her nose. “That’s what I’m writing about.”

Sure. Mia’s book reports were always colorful. “Well, I guess that’s true. It’s about a bunch of drug addicts, isn’t it? Hardly a bastion of rationality.”

“And there was a movie that people would just watch over and over until they died.”

“Hah. Yeah.” Dave leaned back in the chair, lips curling into a smirk. “Do you think it’d work on you?”

Mia stared at him. “There is no movie. It’s fiction. Someone made it up.”

“Well, yeah, obviously, but I mean, if there was a movie like that.”

“No,” Mia said. “It made no sense. There’s no point watching a movie again when you know how it goes. And this one sounded very boring anyway.”

“Well, it’s all some kind of big metaphor for drug addiction, isn’t it? By the time you’ve watched the movie once, it’ll have fucked with your brain chemistry so that you don’t think it’s boring anymore, and all you want to do is watch it again.”

Mia narrowed her eyes at him for a moment. Then she shrugged and returned to writing. “Then it works. Unless it doesn’t work right on Scyther brains. They didn’t try it on Pokémon in the book.”

Dave folded his arms, amused. “Fair point. I figured maybe you’d say you’d just never fall for something like that.”

“If it can just change the brain, then it doesn’t matter. It’s not me anymore.”

“Well, I mean, it’s not magic. Or, I guess maybe the movie in the book was magic, but drugs in real life aren’t. So, you know, people still technically have free will, and in theory they might want to stop and they could stop, but they’re addicted, so they just keep buying and using the drug anyway. Like with the other people in the book.”

“That’s stupid.”

Dave turned it over in his head, looking for a way to explain. “I mean, sometimes you see a fly and you just want to slash it, right? You can be pretty impulsive. Imagine that, but the thing you want to do is the drug. It’s something that makes you feel good and you want to do it, but you could choose not to.”

Mia cocked her head. “If it just makes me feel good and I want it, then there’s no reason not to.”

Uh. Fuck. That went somewhere he didn’t expect. “Um, well, imagine the movie in the book again – they love watching it, and they want to, but it’s still killing them. That’s what it does, it makes you want something that might be actually really bad and going to kill you. You see how that’s bad, right?” God, he hoped so. Mia on drugs would be a terrible idea – potentially hilarious, but terrible.

Mia surveyed him with interest. “They’re only dying because they keep watching the movie instead of eating and sleeping. If I really wanted to watch the movie as much as I could, I’d just have to make sure I still get food and sleep. I could watch while I eat too. They’re just being stupid about it.”

“Okay, but…” He stopped himself. “Look. The brain chemistry thing? You probably can’t think or plan that clearly once you’ve started watching the movie, so you’d end up not eating anyway. Drugs fuck with your brain. You don’t want that, right? Even the ones that don’t kill you are liable to make you do something stupid. Don’t do drugs.”

Mia looked at him blankly. “Alcohol is a drug.”

“What? No.” She frowned. “Well, I mean, it’s – it’s not the bad kind. It’s legal. Everyone drinks.”

“It makes you act stupid, though.”

“I mean – sure, but – look, even aside from that, you don’t want to do the illegal kind because you might go to jail. Drug possession is just the excuse some people would need to put you away.”

Mia gave him a suspicious look, but finally turned back towards her paper and continued writing.

Dave sighed, rubbing his temples. Maybe they’d need to have another drug conversation. Weren’t they supposed to handle this bullshit at school?

He watched her hand flit across the paper, her eyes intense and focused. “What did you think of the ending?” he asked after a moment.

“Which part?”

“Well, it suddenly turned out there were ghosts, for one. I remember being pretty unhappy about that one.”

“Why?”

Huh. Honestly, he’d expected her of all people to understand. “Well, you’ve gone most of this novel thinking it’s happening in the real world – or you know what I mean, a world that’s like the real world – but then it’s got ghosts all of a sudden, and those aren’t real. That’s pretty weird and jarring, isn’t it?”

Mia looked at him, deadpan. “It wasn’t like the real world. Nothing made sense anyway. It wasn’t any worse than the rest.”

Dave chuckled. “Okay, sure. What about how it just ended in the middle? Did you want to know what happened?” Though he supposed she probably wouldn’t care.

“What happened?”

“You know, with the main characters who never even met, and how they ended up at the beginning. Some shit about digging up his dad’s head, or something. I could never make heads or tails of it.”

Mia tilted her head at him. “It was obvious what happened.”

Dave blinked. What. Was it? Did she just think it was? He didn’t remember it that well, honestly. The only reason he’d read the thing in college was because him and some guys he knew back then had a bet going about who could make it through this bizarre postmodern thousand-page novel about tennis and footnotes. He’d skimmed the most obnoxious parts. Was the answer to everything in that fucking neverending section with the racist psychopath going on about cheese or something?

“What did…” No. No, he was not going to make Mia explain a book to him. He’d sooner read the fucking thing again. Jesus Christ.

“Well, were there any parts you liked?” he asked instead.

Mia looked up, thinking for a moment before answering. “I liked the bits with Lenz killing the animals.”

Something uncomfortable twisted in Dave’s stomach. “…Oh. Really?”

“Yes. He experimented and figured out the best way to do it. Those bits made sense.”

Dave blinked at her for a moment before exhaling. “Right. So not the part about him murdering people’s pets per se?”

“No. Mostly the part where it made sense how he did it.” She paused. “But most of the time he was just doing drugs or thinking about directions even though they don’t mean anything. Everyone in this book was weird.”

“So it’s not a bloodlust thing, just a… yay-science thing, I guess?” Dave looked searchingly at her. She shrugged.

“There was also a good bit with a fight. And a footnote about math. That was interesting.”

Dave sank back into his chair, rubbing his forehead. “Oh, yeah. I remember something like that.” Man, this fucking book. “I liked the chapter about the Eschaton, myself. The guy who wrote the rules and all that – Pemulis? I liked him.”

Mia tilted her head at him. “It sounded like a boring and pointless game. I didn’t understand why they all spent so much time on it. And they kept using a bunch of acronyms for no reason.”

Dave chuckled to himself. “Yeah, I guess the humour of it would be lost on you.”

“But Pemulis was better than most of them. He tried to explain why the snow falling on the map shouldn’t affect the game.”

“I thought that was the best part of the book, personally.”

Mia nodded slowly. “I liked that part. But those other kids were just being stupid for no reason.”

“You’d be surprised how many people are exactly that flavor of stupid in real life.”

She looked away, contemplative. “Why do people write books like this?” she said after a moment.

“Well, I mean, I imagine the author felt like he had something to say.”

“But why would you want to say a thousand pages about people acting weird at a tennis academy?”

“I’d guess the main point is the stuff about addiction and all that, what with the eponymous movie and all.”

Mia frowned. “But the movie wasn’t like drugs anyway. It’s like you were saying earlier, about how it was just magic changing the brain chemistry.”

“Again, it’s a metaphor.”

“It’s a stupid metaphor.”

Dave smirked. He’d been there for some of Mia’s homework on metaphors; she’d been very angry people would try to make a point about a thing by talking about a different thing that was not exactly analogous. Which was great, but her English teacher had been less happy. “I guess it’s part what if you had a super-addictive drug, part TV’s making everyone stupid these days.”

Mia looked at him with the sort of hard deadpan stare she reserved for emergencies. Dave grinned. “All right, all right, it’s a stupid metaphor.”

“And half of the book isn’t even talking about that anyway,” she said, a note of annoyance in her voice. “It’s just tennis exercises or a guy cleaning floors.”

“Sure. Guy really needed an editor. And there’s also some pretty, uh, fucked-up shit in that book. I’m guessing you skipped a lot of it, but I think he had some serious issues to work out.”

“Why would he write about that?”

Dave waved a hand. “Artists and tragic suffering and tortured self-expression, I guess. Maybe he thought writing about it would help.”

“Did it?”

“I’m pretty sure he killed himself, so I’m guessing no.”

Mia looked back at her report, clearly dissatisfied. “Why are they making us read this in school.”

“That one I fully agree with. What the fuck.”

Mia sighed irritably and returned to writing.

(Dave snatched the book out of her bag later.)

[ask-the-chan-family]

Pokemon Academy: Solar Effect

Episode two part 1 "The Guardian Bond" When we last left our hero, Valcario was heading for class, but stumbled upon the Averon brothers fighting each other. He noticed that Spencer was very close to kill his older brother, which leave Valo no other choice but to save the elder brother life. Valcario try to reason with Spencer, but his words wasn't getting through with him, since Spencer was being possessed by the power of the dark stone. At first Valcario thought he was going to lose this fight, but thanks to a strange renamon that appeared from his mega stone, help protect Valcario from danger, and removed the dark stone that was controlling Spencer. Valo had a lot of question of what just happened, but those questions had to wait, since he’s going to meet the headmaster. A few hours later, after the weird event down the hallway. The young student Valcario once again inside the headmaster Thomas office, but this time he wasn't only. Two of the teacher Professor Prosecutie, and his assistant Wrangler were there to evaluate the situation. Not only that, The Averon brothers mother Mrs. Averon stop by Thomas office, after she was done checking up with her son's. Valcario was petrified to see Mrs. Averon, and since she is part of the school board, things wasn't going to be easy for him. Thomas the writer was looking at the, which his little sister Nova and Modewstic gave him earlier. HE examined the report a couple of time, just to make sure he know what going on. Once he was done reading the report after finish reading the report, Thomas sigh to himself knowing he have to go through with this again, and ask Valcario exactly what happened. Thomas the writer: I really was hoping that you could at least stay out of trouble for five minutes, but you kept on. Breaking records left and right. Valcario: what can I say, headmaster, I'm the number one student that can easily break records. Mrs. Averon: how dare you joking around like that, since you’re in a heat of trouble. Valcario: sorry, Mrs. Averon, it how I deal with situation like this, and for your information, your son's were fighting each other, before I got myself involved with their mess. Mrs. Averon: Haha unlikely story you came up there. My boys Soven and Spencer are well behaved, and know better to get in trouble. Especially when they know to never get involved dealing with a troublemaker kid like you. Valcario: what was that! Thomas the writer: that enough from the both of you two! Valcario: .... sorry, sir. Mrs. Averon: well you didn't need to yell like that. Thomas the writer: I didn't need to, but in order for you to listen for a moment, I had no other choice. What Valcario said is true, from my sister and Modewstic report, they were able to talk to Soven and got a better detail of what exactly happened. Mrs. Averon: you don't say, and I'm guessing you got something better than what my son told me. Because if it something different what he said, you know I won't believe you. Thomas the writer: I figure you was going to say that, which why I have Prosecutie to stop by and had him analysis the report for me. Mrs. Averon: wait a second, you me the Professor Prosecutie the espeon, as in one of the best analogies Pokémon from one of the neighbor academy. Prosecutie: the very same, I'm still surprised that my old reputation still linger this far in this area. Mrs. Averon: are you kidding, your one of the best teacher in the area. Even your early years before you was a teacher, you was a specialist in certain rescue mission that made you an expert. Prosecutie: sure I was an expert in the past. Wrangler: but right now, Prosecutie is happy being a teacher, and helping out our friend Thomas the writer. Mrs. Averon: wait, so your friends with them, are you Thomas? Thomas the writer: of course, and do you want my friend to analyze the report on exactly what happened. Mrs. Averon: ..... Sigh, no need. If Prosecutie never was wrong from his past rescue, I already know what my son said to me was a total lie. But still that didn't excuse Valcario from harming my son in the first place. Valcario: hey, I try my best to warn to stop, but Spencer wasn't listening to anything I said to him. Thomas the writer: what do you mean by that, Valcario? Valcario: I mean Spencer was there, but he wasn't acting himself. Like someone pulling the string, and force him to do bad things. Prosecutie: you don't say, and tell us, what exactly that make you think that someone was pulling the strings? Valcario: at first I thought it was another Pokémon using their physics abilities on Spencer. But this was different. Thomas the writer: different how, Valcario? Valcario: I'm not sure. All I know that I felt a dark present from him. Like an evil spirit, which lurks in this academy. Everyone stood quite for a moment after hearing what Valcario said about an evil spirit. Prosecutie, Wrangler, and Thomas look at each other knowing what Valcario said, was something that Modewstic and Nova saw the other night. Mrs. Averon on the other hand, started to laugh thinking that Valcario was trying to come up another joke to tell them. Valcario figure that none of them wasn't going to believe his word, and figure that he going to be in detention, or worst expelled. While Mrs. Averon kept on laughing, Thomas the writer spoke to Valcario, so to clear everything they learned. Thomas the writer: well then, it look like I heard everything I need to hear. Valcario: ..... Really? Mrs. Averon: for once, I agree with the troublemaker. Thomas the writer: yes, Mrs. Averon, Valcario explained everything I needed to hear, and I think I got a decent idea of what happened. Mrs. Averon: You do! Then can explained to us what you know? Thomas the writer: sorry, can't really give out the fool detail of my explanation, after I have a word with the vice head master. Mrs. Averon: hemp, figure you was going to say that. So what you’re going to do with the troublemaker, he should be punished for what he done with my sons. Prosecutie: Valcario wasn't really the one that started the fight. Your son's were facing each other, and Valcario try to stop them from getting hurt. Thomas the writer: that right, and from my sister and Modewstic report, Soven explain everything of what happened, and also mention that Valcario the one that saved him from any harm. If Valcario wasn't there a minute sooner, who know what will happen next. Mrs. Averon was lost in words, and had no clue what to say next. Part of her wanted to see Valcario punish for her son being hurt, bit after hearing what they said, she can't do anything else. Mrs. Averon puff a bit, and start walking towards the front door of Headmaster Thomas office. Before she make another step, she look back Valcario, knowing that she will get him next time. When she was done glaring at him, she open the door, and finally walk out from the office. Valcario was relief that she was gone, and can finally relax. But then he just remember that he got to deal with the headmaster and the two other teacher. Thomas sigh once more, knowing that Mrs. Averon was left his office. Thomas the writer: what a relief that Mrs. Averon finally left. A minute sooner, she would try to come up something that I can't do anything at all. Wrangler: does she often use her title as a member of the school board all the time, Thomas? Thomas the writer: only if she doesn't get things her way. The Averon brothers always get out of trouble when she mention who she is. It just make my job a lot harder. Prosecutie: look on the bright side, Thomas. With me, and Wrango, we always here to help. Valcario: um, headmaster Thomas, I know that Mrs. Averon is goone and all, but exactly how much trouble am I in? Thomas the writer: well beside from the school cafeteria fight you was in earlier before, this one however not really much. Valcario: really, how so? Thomas the writer: from the written report I got from my sister and Modewstic, they mentioned that the elder brother explained everything that just happened between him, and his little brother. He also mention that you was able to protect him, and done your best to stop Spencer from harming anyone else. Valcario: .... so in other words. Prosecutie: in other words, you’re off the hook. Valcario: awesome! Thomas the writer: hold your paws there Valcario, you still in trouble, but not as far then the brothers. Valcario: oh come on, I thought I'm off the hook. Thomas the writer: you still have the cafeteria fight you’re in trouble with. Plus with Mrs. Averon going to be on my tail feather with this, you might have to leave the school ground. Valcario: for how long? Prosecutie: just for a day. Think of this as an early break for the weekend. Valcario: .... sigh, I guess I have no problem doing that. Thomas the writer: just another thing Valo. I'm going to stop by at your place tomorrow, so we can have a little chat. There is something I need to talk to you. Valcario: really, but why not tell me while I'm still here. Thomas the writer: this is something that need to be discussed privately. Just trust me on that. Valcario wasn't sure why the headmaster would tell him of what he going to him, but Valo trust him for a long time now, and willing to wait the next day. After he was done talking with the headmaster and the two professors, Valcario left the office and start walking down the hallway. He wish he could have told him the real truth of what really happened between him and Spencer, but how would he explained to them that Spencer was possess by some of strange dark energy, and a renamon who called herself Tealos, appeared out of nowhere to Spencer from doing any more harm. Valcario had so many questions of what happened to him, but not sure who he could ask. He sigh once more that his question won't be answered, and figure to let it go for now. Somewhere at the other side of the school hallway, Rebecca was looking around the hallway, searching for the pieces of the dark stone. Not only that Rebecca was upset that Spencer failed to defeat Valcario, but she was mad that a strange female renamon appeared out of nowhere and destroyed the dark stone without any issues. She known that her master dark stone was strong enough to possess anyone that it touches, and corrupt them. But she don't understand how anyone is capable to destroy the dark stone, and not get harm. Rebecca want to know who this strange women is, and where she came from. For now Rebecca need to gather the pieces of the dark stone, and hoping it still work. During her search, Rebecca was able to find one of the pieces of the dark stone, not only that, she found three more from the other side she was searching before as well. Rebecca was lucky to find at least four pieces, but when she look at them, she notice something was missing. Rebecca examines them carefully and see that she was missing one more piece. Devastated that she was down from one piece, Rebecca look all over the floor to see if she can find the last remaining piece of the dark stone. Before she gone any further, she accidently bump into someone that was standing in her way. Rebecca was about to bark at the person, but when she look, it was her older sister Dashie, and her gooey large friend Clara. Rebecca figure that her sister was going to find her very easily, since she left the classroom early without coming back. She got up from the floor to dust herself, then hid the dark stone in her pocket without them seeing what they were. Rebecca Writer: well if isn’t my goody dear older sister, Dashie, and her trusted sidekick Clara. What brought you two to see me? Dashie Writer: you well know why we’re here to see you, Rebecca. You haven’t come back to class for almost thirty minutes. The teacher is very close to give you detention, if Clara, and I didn’t told them that we were going to look for you. Rebecca Writer: *she laugh* is that all, and to think the teacher was going to give me a much better punishment then that. Dashie Writer: seriously, Rebecca, can you be a little serious on what you’re saying. I mean, what would happen if father found out that his own daughter was laundering around the hallway, and not in class. Rebecca Writer: father isn’t going to find out, sister. And besides, the teacher should know better that they shouldn’t give me detention in the first place. Since we are the daughter of the headmaster of this school Dashie Writer: you know father doesn’t want us to abuse our powers like that. Rebecca Writer: and what the point to have power, if you can’t have a little fun. Now if you two don’t have anything else to say to me, I’ll take my leave. Dashie wanted to say something else to her sister, but Rebecca was already halfway the other side of the hallway. Dashie wish she could communicate better with her little sister, but Rebecca is making it a lot harder with her attitude she been building up for a long time. Clara walk right next by Dashie side, and apology for not saying much. Clara: I’m sorry I didn’t say much, Dashie. Your sister was acting sort of strange, and I didn’t want her to say something rude to us. Dashie Writer: Sigh, it quite alright Clara, I’m grateful that you was there for support. I just wish I could understand Rebecca a little better. Clara: maybe she still hiding her emotion from what happen to your mother. Dashie Writer: that what I been saying for a little while, but lately Rebecca been acting stranger than normal. Clara: …. Define normal? Dashie Writer: *she wasn’t sure what she meant, until she remember that she had her wings backpack on her back* ok, sort of normal than me trying to fly like my father Clara: well I’m not sure how odd Rebecca is been acting, but maybe we should give her some space, but the same time keeping an extra eye Dashie Writer: sound like a good plan. I know may not like it, but we are doing this for her own good. Clara agreed to what Dashie said, and both of them walk down the hallway to head back to class. A few feet from where they were standing, the missing piece of the Dark stone that Rebecca was looking for was resting on the floor. The Dark stone started to glow a little bit, then a shadow appear out of nowhere, standing on top of the Dark Stone. Soon you know it, the shadow figure brought out it hand, and grab the Dark Stone, leaving no trail in site. Few miles away from the Pokemon Academy, somewhere in the neighborhood area of Cheswick town. Valcario, and his two friends were walking together heading for Valcario place. During their walk, Valcario did his best to explain exactly what happen to him when dealing with the Averon, he also mention them about a strange female Renamon that was able to protect him from danger, and everything. After he was done explaining, both Icarus, and Nina finally analyze his story, then gave him the answer, which he already know what they going to say. Icarus & Nina: the story you’re telling us is total fake. Valcario: …….. Sigh, I figure you two going to say that. Icarus: can’t you blame us, your one of the only few people I know that tend to tell some stories that sound a little crazy, even some of the ones I told are nowhere close to that. Nina: but I do like that one story about the atomic wedge you did to Valcario, it was cute, and funny the same time. Icarus: well he sort of ask for it, especially when he stole one of my lucky pencil Valcario: can you two focus for a second! I know my story sound a little hard to believe, but what I’m telling you is the full truth. Nina: we know you’re telling the truth Valcario, but most of the things you told us is still impossible. Icarus: yeah! And the part where you saw a female Renamon appear out of nowhere, and free Spencer from being possess from … what she call it again. Valcario: tell you the truth, I forgot what it was call that possess Spencer. There was so much going on, that I can’t remember the full name of the thing. Nina: well either way, the good news is that you’re ok, and didn’t get into much trouble. Icarus: except the part where you had to meet the headmaster again, and leave school early as punishment. Valcario: ….. How did you know about that part? Icarus: Nina, and I overheard a few students were talking about you, and Averon Brothers Nina: we also heard that their mother was here, and she wasn’t happy to see how hurt Spencer was. Valcario: oh trust me, I know she wasn’t happy. Mrs. Averon was this close ready to bite my head off. If it wasn’t for the two Professors, and the headmaster, Mrs. Averon would have easily make my life more miserable than ever. Icarus: hey, you should be very lucky that Head Master Thomas always there to save your butt all the time. Valcario: …. Sigh, I guess you’re right. Headmaster Thomas always there to protect me from danger. But I sure wish he didn’t give me detention all the time. Nina: well he can’t always give you a slap on the back all the time. Just be happy that the only punishment he gave you, is leaving school early Valcario: I guess you’re right, and the best part of leaving early, I can enjoy the weekend. Icarus: you got any plans for this weekend? Valcario: Sure do! I’m going to head over to mall tomorrow, and eat at Mr. and Mrs. Graymon noodle shop. I heard they are creating a special noodle dish, which carry some special spices they pick up from one of their trips. You guys want to come, and try it out? Nina: Oh that does sound tasty, but I can’t. My father wanted me to join with him at the Mega stone power plant. There some business people are stopping by, and I need to be there to greet them. Valcario: oh, ok. What about you Icarus? Icarus: you know I’m down for some noodles, but I have to help my mom at the item shop. She got a truck load of new stuff, and if I don’t head aback home to help her, my mom would go crazy on my back. Valcario: ah! Speaking of going crazy, I have to head home quick. Nina: what happened, Valo? Valcario: I wish I could explain, but I have to go. I see you guys later. Nina and Icarus were both confuse of what just happened, but knowing their friend Valcario, it could be something important he had to go. A few block away from where his friends was, Valcario was racing across the neighborhood, hoping to reach his house in time. Valcario couldn’t believe that he forgotten something important to do, and he just hope he make it in time. After passing a few houses, he was able to reach his average size house, which have only one floor. Valcario was relief that his home wasn’t a total, and it seem like it was going to be on. When he gone inside his home, he notice the living room area was a total mess. He see that most of his stuff was all over the place, and even some of the things the he clean up the other day was on the floor again. Valcario sigh to himself knowing who was able to make this mess again. He look around to see where his pet was, but once he found his pet, he saw his tall like blue dog shark was resting her head on her bed by the corner. Valcario would be upset with her for making a big mess of the house again, but since she was by herself with no one to play with, all he can do is let it slide. Valcario look at his pet dog dish, and notice it had some leftover food inside. He remember to fill her dish this morning, but by the look of it, someone added some food for her a little while ago. Valcario trying to figure out who done it, but before he can think a little further, he heard a large snore, which echo the whole living room. Valcario was a little stun to hear that loud snore, but the same time he wasn’t that much surprise. Valcario already know who make that kind of noise, and know where it was coming from. He look over at his red couch, and saw some feet were hanging at the side. When he walk towards the couch, he saw a large eight feet tall female rename name Akiza was taking a nap on his comfy couch. Valcario wasn’t surprise that Akiza was sleeping on his couch. She usually sneak out from her aunt house next door, so she can find somewhere quite, and sleep all day. Valocario notice that Akiza was only wearing her tight shirt that barely fit her chubby body, and purple panties that was tight around her thighs. She usually fully dress, but since she gotten use staying at his place all the time, it sort of like her second him. Valcario try his best to play it cool, and not have that embarrassing moment from last time. He walk by Akiza side, and tap her head a little. She wasn’t able to budge that much, until Valcario said something that catch her attention. Valcario: hey Akiza! Ida told me that Auntie Glenda made some cookies, and she going to eat them all. Akiza: *she jump off from the couch* not unless I get there first. Valcario: she not going to eat them. I made up the whole thing, just to wake you up. Akiza: *she blush* oh …… You know you shouldn’t play a women emotion like that, especially when it comes to food. Valcario: oh sure *he poke at her chubby stomach* but once awhile, your stomach does all the emotion for you. Akiza: easy there, I’m a growing female renamon, who like to eat a lot of food. Valcario: I notice, and by the look at the coffee table, you enjoy some of the leftover I made the other night. Akiza: sorry about that, after filling up your pet dog dish, I figure I grab a quick snack, or two. Then I went a little crazy, and grab the whole meal instead. Don’t worry though, there still some food left for you to eat. Valcario: don’t worry, Akiza, I’m not worrying about that, I just happy you was able to feed Shade for me. I nearly forgot to fill it up this morning, before I left for school. Akiza: speaking of school, why you came back home early all of sudden. You usually won’t be back another half hour. Valcario: oh nothing special really. Got into another fight with the Averon brothers, and was send home early so the headmaster think of a better punishment for me later. Akiza: the Averon brothers again huh *she look at the coffee table and found a bag of chips* you sure been arch rivals with those two for quite a while. Ever think about calling it truce, and get along. Valocario: Trust me, Akiza, I been trying to make truce with those two for a long time, but since their mom is part of the school board, the brothers think they rule the school. No matter how much the teacher, or the headmaster tell them to stop, they kept on doing the same thing. Akiza: and I’m guessing you went up and fought one of them from stopping that nonsense then. Valcario: how you know I would do something like that? Akiza: I know you long enough that you’re someone that doesn’t sit on the sideline, and watch peoople get hurt. You’re good Pokémon just like your cousin Timber. Valcario: thanks Akiza, you’re very wise whenever I needed advice or two. Akiza: it come with experience my dear Valcario. Now then, since your home, I guess I take my leave, and head back home. I want to check the fridge, and get something to eat. Valcario: but you already eat something Akiza: *she found her pair of pants on the floor, and put them on, but did bother with the button* I know, but like I said before, I’m a growing female renamon. Valcario shake a head a little, knowing how much Akiza can be a handful to deal with. After he was done with his conversation with Akiza, and then clean up most of the mess which both her, and his pet made. Valcario was able to head for his room, and prepare himself to get some sleep. Valcario had a long day dealing with the Averon brothers, and the weird event he saw as well. Part of him wish it was nothing more but a silly dream, but each time he look at his mega stone, he still think about the female renamon he met. He was thinking about what Tealos told him. Saying about being the one to save the world, or something like that. All he know is that this was a bit too much for him to deal with at night. Valcario yawn out loud, and got himself to bed. Hoping in the morning things will clear up. On the next morning, Valcario woken up from his nice sleep, but most of his body is still half tired. Part of him wish he could stay in bed all day, but he know he got to feed Shade, or she will try to get her breakfast herself, and make a much bigger mess than before. Valcario finally force himself out from bed, and start his day. When Valcario reach for the living room area, he look by Shade little corner, to see if she was sleeping in her bed. But once he look, he notice that she wasn’t there. Valcario was sure that he saw her there last night, before he went off to bed. He look around a little more, and was able to find her standing in front of the bathroom door, but in her feral form. Now normally Shade usually be in her normal form when she is with Valcario, but since he see her still in her feral, and she was scratching at the bathroom door, that mean someone was inside his home. Valcario know that Akiza left last night, and his cousin Timber was still away from her rescue mission. Valcario could try to think of anyone who it could be, but by the time he does that, the person in the bathroom could have escape already. Valcario walk over where his pet Shade is, and check up on her. Shade saw her mast and jump on him to let him know what going on. Shade: master, master. There is someone inside the bathroom. Valcario: I sort of notice when you was scratching at the door. Did you see who it was that got inside the bathroom? Shade: sorry master, I thought it was you, but when I did sense your normal morning smell, I knew it was someone else. Valcario: I see, I guess I better go inside, and see who this mysterious person then. Shade: should master want me to help you? Valcario: I think I got this, Shade. Beside, maybe it could be Akiza and Ida sneak inside, so they can prank me at the bathroom. Shade: but master, I’m not sure it those two that came inside. Valcario: Oh! And what make you think it not Just before he could finish his sentence, he notice that the bathroom door open by itself, which mean someone was coming out. Valcario try to see who it was, but the steam from the shower was so thick, it was hard for him to see. Valcario wave his arm a little bit too clear the steam, but just when he was moving them, he felt something soft that made him stop moving. Valcario wasn’t sure what this soft feeling was, he move his hand to learn more of this soft then, and he felt two very large bumps that felt like super heavy marshmallow. At first he wasn’t sure what they were, but then the back of his mind finally telling that he felt something like this before. When the steam finally clear, Valcario was able to see a tall female Renamon with long hair standing in front of him. Valcario wasn’t sure if he seen this renamon before, but when he look at her calm green eyes, he finally relies it was Tealos, the one who saved him from Spencer attack. Tealos look at Valcario and smile back at him, happy to finally see him again, Valcario on the other hand was both blushing and shock to see the very person that saved his butt. Valcario was trying to say something to her, but Tealos interrupt him, and spoke first. Tealos: greeting young Valo, it finally good to see you. Valcario: um, it good to see you too, Tealos was it? Tealos: *she giggle* I see you are able to remember my name, but I guess it shouldn’t be hard to remember me, since we met last night. Valcario: I guess you’re right. Tealos: oh, I hope I’m not being a bother, but there is something I need to ask you something. Valcario: sure, what you want to ask me? Tealos: *she point at his hand* mind of removing your hand, please. Valcario: *he wasn’t sure what Tealos was saying, until he look and notice that his hands were squizing her tits a little. Valcario was blushing and a distance, knowing that he done something was perverted* I’m so sorry, I didn’t meant to do that. Tealos: *she laugh* it quite alright, young Valo, it not like you were meant to do that. Although it must be nice feeling them, was it? Valcario: *he blush* no, of course not. It was wrong of me for doing that in the first place. Tealos: relax, Valo. I’m only joking, I know you’re not like one of those kind of people. You only accidently felt them, do of the shower mist being steamy. Valcario: speaking of which, what were you doing using my shower in the first place? Tealos: can’t blame a lady for wanting a nice bath. After being trap inside that megastone for thousands of years, it was nice to feel hot water on this body again. Valcario: wait, so your saying that you been trap inside my megastone for thousands of years, but how exactly Tealos: there is a lot to explain, but first, I’m going to need to barrow some clothes. My old robes sort of smell a little, and I wash them in order to be stink free. Valcario: well I have my cousin stuff, but she would kill me if I ever go to her room. I guess I lent you my clothes for a while, until we go to an actual clothing store. Tealos: sound great, but before we do that, can we grab something to eat. Valcario: huh! Why you want to eat first? Teaslos: *her stomach started to growl loudly* other than not bathing, I haven’t eaten anything for a very long time. Do you happen to have any breakfast? Valcario was shock, and then fell to the floor, when he heard Tealos huge growl from her stomach. After Valcario was done making a hefty breakfast for Tealos, they went to his bedroom, so he can help Tealos to find an outfit to wear. Tealos try all of his outfit, but most of them were too tight for her figure. The only thing she could use was Valcario spear pj’s, which they were able to stretch long enough, to fit well with her figure. Tealos look at the mirror by the closet, and examine herself with the pj’s she wearing. Tealos: hmm, may not be the best outfit, but it had to do. What do you think, Valo, does this outfit suit me? Valcario: well other than watching you eat fifteen bowls of rice with egg on top, I’m surprise my pj’s didn’t torn up. But at least your wearing something, and not in the nude. Tealos: come now, Valcario, you couldn’t be that embarrassed to see me nude. I been living inside that mega stone, and saw you taken a Valcario: ok, I stopping right there, It just super weird that your this female renamon that live inside my mega stone that my mom gave me. Tealos: yes, I’m the very thing that live inside that mega stone, but I’m not really your average renamon you usually seen. Valcario: what do you mean? Tealos: My name is Tealos, I’m an ancient guardian of this world you live in, and it my mission to find an evil demon name Dexerus, so I can stop him from spreading evil. Valcario: ok that sound pretty cool Tealos: indeed, and you Valo, are the very person is going to help me save the world. Valcario: ………. And you lost me where I have to save the world. To be continue special guest character Valcario: ask-valo-the-pony-drawer Prosecutie & Wrangler: ask-prosecutie

[knightofbalance-13]

Actually...

http://dudeblade.tumblr.com/post/165589953048/lets-be-real-and-agree-on-something

No we are not agreeing to this.

RVVBY is an amalgam of multiple tropes, cliches, and concepts from other media that did it much better.

As we will soon see: The examples are either way too general, RWBY does too differently for a comparison or RWBY actually does it BETTER.

Faunus as a stand-in for minorities. X-Men did it first, did it better, and has better justification for it. Some mutants are dangerous, and have abilities that could level a building with little effort. The Brotherhood of Evil Mutants are just a separate branch of mutants that humans use to justify their discrimination, and sentinels are extermination bots. There’s literally “Mutant Camps” In the Days of Future Past movie that are analogous to concentration camps. Whilst being a mutant has since evolved into an analogy for being part of the LGBT+ community, it started as an allegory for racism. And it was much MUCH better at it. Last I checked, Inhumans are now the new racism allegory, and even then, they’re still a better analogy than faunus. The reason why both of these are all more effective is because they don’t replace all racial minorities by being their stand-in. There are African Mutant (Storm), Native American Mutants (Moonstar), and even biracial Mutants (Darwin). So, Mutants are a multi-cultural fictional race that acts as a stand-in for a minority group in the Marvel Universe. See, this is what happens when you have good writers who are open to criticism.

Except the racism is UNDERSTANDABLE in X-Men since mutants ARE more dangerous than humans and some of the (like Rogue) can’t control their powers and thus are a danger no matter how you slice it whereas the Fanaus aren’t any dangerous than humans because they don’t significant enough advantages to overcome the human dominance so it’s just like racism here in our world: Stupid and irrational. So you’re basically saying it’s more rational to hate an innocent group of animal people that people who can control the weather, kill on touch or mindfuck everyone. COngrats, you have shown you have a bias against RWBY so your opinions mean jack shit.

Final Fantasy did the idea of dust better. It was called Materia, and it had a better explanation as to how it’s applied. Much like dust, it’s mined. Unlike dust, it’s explicitly stated to be magical in nature rather than the vague explanation we got for dust. dust is also weird in the sense that it’s kinda elemental. Materia also has a simpler categorization by just giving it five subcategories. Dust has to be classified under fire, ice, gravity, electric, stone, whatever Yang’s standard buckshots are, and so much more. It’s starting to get to the point that I wouldn’t be surprised if they started to be more direct in their rip-off and make Summon Dust. And it’s hard to even argue this because Monty Oum (God Rest His Soul) is a Final Fantasy fanboy (See: Dead Fantasy), so there’s no doubt that there would be some FF references every now and then. But the idea of Dust is too similar to be a coincidence. Even the claim of how similar the show is to Advent Children is rather hard to see any other way. Advent Children had very little plot to it, but had spectacular action scenes - sound familiar?

Yeah, of course it’s a rip off here! ...And in Storm Hawks...and Kingdom Hearts...And Pokémon-

Almost like this is a COMMON TROPE. Can’t really call it a rip off when everyone is doing it. Almost like you don’t know how tropes work.  Also, you don’t mention how Final Fantasy does it better: you just say they do. Probably because FInal Fanatsy=Not RWBy ergo better.

Legend of Korra did the whole “Girl Power” thing better. Considering that they also managed to portray PTSD in a much more realistic way, and didn’t romanticize it like RVVBY did. Korra had hallucinations, was clearly sleep-deprived, and struggled to keep up with even a few non-benders because of the trauma. Sure, LoK had its own issues (Like trying to keep up with its predecessor), but it still managed to hold its own. What does RVVBY do? - only ONE on-screen nightmare, and only ONE on-screen panic attack. The worst part is that we didn’t even NEED it to be on-screen. Just show Yang not wanting to sleep, or her waking up from nightmares. Even offhandedly mentioning that she’s having nightmares would have been better than nothing. But we get that nothing. Because making Yang get back to doing badass fighting moves is more important than giving her a good recovery arc.

OH Ho ho ho ho!

This is a fucking GOLD MINE!

A. RWBY was never touted as a Girl Power show: It just had female protagonists. Men were just as capable as women and it was clear from the first episode so this comparison doesn’t even count.

B. Oh korra. The one with a protagonist who was one trait away from being a full blown Mary Sue who disobeyed orders, stole food, caused property damaged, nearly committed murder, committed police assault and resisting arrest who gets off t6eh hook and is treated as in the right for doing all that. And that’s just the first episode, shall I go on to explain how Korra essentially harassed a guy and acting like an obsessive stalker despite him saying that he has a girlfriend and then kisses him despite this, hurting his innocent brother and gets rewarded for it, or how Korra barely practices Air bending (the ONE element she doesn’t aut know) but can magically airbend without using airbending techniques and having her bending TAKEN AWAY. Or how about Korra flipping outa t Mako, May Lin trying to arrest Tenzien’s wife and wrecking Airbending Island for getting dumped and that one Psycho girlfriend Waterbender is all treated as humerous and okay? Or that Asami was just basically eye candy in the first and second seasons? Or how the one main female villain seen as redeemable is the one who refused orders, forcibly recruited people, took advantage of the spirits, tried to kill her fiancé, sent people who didn’t agree with her to “reprogramming” camps, threatens the lives of her subordinates and tried to kill an entire city. It wasn't Amon who was implied to have severe hatred against benders due to his dad’s abuse. It couldn’t even be the fucking Red Lotus, the most human villians in the Avatar franchise since ZUKO: It was the female earthbender whose actions numerous times mirrored fucking Hitler.

Bottom Line: Even without TRYING to be a Girl Power show, RWBY is a BETTER Girl Power show than Korra.

C. The PTSD arc is the ONE thing Korra has above RWBY and it SHOULD be better because Korra has more time, more experience, more money, more people and in a medium that is more forgiving than RWBY’s. And even then, it’s BARELY better in terms of actual writing because it tries portraying Korra’s PTSD as an outside force, uses her Avatar State self as the representation when it makes no sense, she gets over it by herself despite her lesson being not to lock other people out, it came back with no indication, uses Zaheer out of nowhere and brings up smaller events that never eluded to extend the arc. It could have been fixed so easily by just having an imaginary Zaheer attacking her with kora being hesitant of airbending. I fucking fixed and I’m an inexperienced fanfic writer. All RWBY needs to do to be better is acknowledge it again: Something VERY likely due to RT’s history.

So far: We have one example that is out right wrong, one example that is too broad to do anything and doesn’t show jack shit and one example that is so wrong it helps ME absolutely.

SO what’s next?

And since it probably wouldn’t be me if I didn’t include this, here’s the one that some people are probably waiting for:

So you’re outright acknowledging bias against RWBY and for Storm Hawks because Nostalgia huh? Fine, I’ll cut you down HERE too.

Storm Hawks did the small amount of habitable land that needs to be protected by various teams of heroes first and better. Energy attacks have better justification for their appearance, and the fact that both Crystals and Dust are both gemstones with elemental properties that need to be mined and are integral to powering weapons and vehicles. Both shows have amazing transforming weapons, teams made up of various people with different skills, and incredible action scenes. They even had a spectacular superpower that manifested in one of their main characters after they were put in a tough situation. See my chart below for more detail.

Sky Knights : Huntsmen/Huntresses

Crystals : Dust

Squadrons : Huntsman Teams.

Atmos : Remnant

Talons/Raptors/Murk Raiders/Beasts : Grimm/WF

The Binding : Silver Eyes

... (points to the Final Fantasy point above)

So it’s perfectly okay for Storm Hawks to “rip off” Final Fanatsy but RWBY is bad for doing it?

Because these are all elements from Final Fantasy.

Not to mention since you DON’T explain why Storm Hawks does it better, all I have to do is point to the fact that Storm Hawks is canceled early and RWBY is a worldwide phenomon. Storm Hawks is at 7.2  whereas RWBY is at 8.3 , Storm Hawks had more time, more experience, more money, more people and the backing of Cartoon Network where RWBY doesn’t.

Dudeblade, this is why you go unnoticed by the writers, why all of you in RWDE tag go unnoticed: you do ANYTHING to tear down the show, whether or not it’s true. That and you suck so bad, I can do a better job than you.

Here, let me:

Harry Potter does the “school for special people” better because the school stays in focus for most of the show where we grow more and more attached to the setting and characters there and since the enemy is gradually shown more and more: he gain slightly more and more fear in a very smooth and natural way. And since the books take time with the enemies, we can keep track of the numerous characters easily. All unlike RWBy

Kill La Kill does the Girl Power aspect of the show better as the main cast is female, the show is driven by females and each character has their own unique set of strengths and weakness along with flaws they must overcome and deal with. It also tackles the idea of women being objectified and encourages women to take pride in who and what they are, ignoring how society sees them and think ofr themselves. Again, unlike RWBY would be.

Dragon Ball does the “Writing by the seat of your pants” style better than RWBY because Akira Toriyama was used to writing tis way and thus had more experience and even had a talent for writing this way which also made the series more suspenseful. Once more, unlike the CRWBY.

When I can do your job better and in less time: Might want to rethink what you are doing.

[pikadotnet]

Passion Is The Power

At First When You Don't Succeed...

17年09月02日 - 5:19 PM EST | So...when we last left off there was a promise of trying to be more "timely" and "proactive" on posting and round-about just getting stuffs done.  Well...*hides under a rock*...in my um...*looks around shyly*...ummm, in my defense...(if I even have one?)...I have been proactive but just in ways that you all can't actually see.  ﾟ. :｡(*´ｪ`*)ﾟ. :｡  So, let me explain a bit if I may?  Shortly after we left off last, I had a TERRIBLE ear ache that knocked me down and out.  Being down and out stinks for anyone, but it really, REALLY offset my whole balance.  So...I started to think really hard about HOW exactly I would accomplish the tasks I set out to accomplish; like making sure I was able to post on a more consistent basis, right...remember that?  Wellllll...that's when I started making a list at work of things that were keeping me from being able to accomplish this task.  Here's what I came up with:

Catching up and completing assignments at work

Finding time (while still awake) to sit down at my computer

Focusing on the task of writing a post

My wonderful furry and spiky family members (2 Dogs / 1 Cat / 1 Hedgehog)

Finding media to complement my post ideas

Realization that Instagram / Facebook / Twitter would all suffer if I spent my time just writing

Spending time and catching up with loved ones like friends and family

Monthly bills and stretching money to last (currently achieving PRO level BOOYAH!!! lol) 

Desire to just be a little lazy-log-loaf

A little game called Pokémon GO

So, of course I realized that some of these things just can't be helped.  Things like work, taking care of my furry and spiky family members, friends, family, and stretching money to pay bills and do life-stuff (something I like to commonly refer to as adulting) just cannot be ignored.  Can I just say...and for the record...ADULTING TOTALLY SUCKS!!!  (๐•̆ ·̭ •̆๐)

But out of all this list making and chronic complaining (sometimes I whine ok...sometimes I can be a TOTAL PAIN LOL just ask any of my friends) something really, REALLY good came out of it!  ✧◝( ◠‿◠ )◜✧˖°  I found that I was living in total chaos while mundane tasks in life were truly dragging me down and wearing on me in ways I hadn't really fully comprehended or maybe didn't want to accept?  Well...that all ended as soon as my ear ache cleared up!  By the way, THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH for all your wishes to feel better soon!  That really made me smile and helped me to feel better, so...THANK YOU!!! *GIANT HUGS WHILE SQUEEZING TIGHTLY*  Sooooooo, after getting all better and catching up somewhat at work I decided that I could either give up, or fight!  I gave my mommy-chu a call (something I commonly do because my mommy and I are super close *waves happily* I LOVE YOU MOM!!!!) and she told me, "Pika...I've known you a long time sweetie...and I know that not only do you have this...you'll find a way to fight and achieve even MORE than you originally hoped."  I asked her, "You really think so?"  Even though she lives thousands of miles away, I could feel that smile and it warmed my heart.  NOTHING is better than when you FEEL the love from your family, and my mother means THE WORLD to me!  Then, my brother, who means more to me than he'll prolly ever know (YES YOU!!! *sticks tongue out and makes a face*) commented that, "if you just find a balance, I know you'll be fine.  Don't worry so much!  Your problem Pika is that you overthink everything and make it more complicated than it needs to be."  I thought about that and realized, as much as I didn't want to, he was right.  Can I stop for a second and just say how much it BOTHERS me that he is like, ALWAYS right!!!  -_-#  UGH!!  I love him to pieces and there isn't anything I wouldn't do for him, but it wears on me when I hear him say something, and as much as I may deny it...he's...always...(annoyingly) right...  Well...I decided something needed to be done.  I didn't want to walk away from everything I had started, and push away everything that I fought so hard for.  I want so desperately to find a balance between life / work / social / blog / and storefront (soon to be revisited and opened).  My brother was right, somehow I just needed to heed the infamous Nike slogan and "Just Do It" but in a way that wouldn't topple me over and make those things I want so badly feel like a chore instead of a pleasure.  Why am I sharing all this with you, you ask?  Well, I do care about you internet-readers out there that actually take the time and read my posts.  I LOVE YOU ALL MORE THAN YOU KNOW!!!!  I figured that if anyone out there ever has struggled or may currently be struggling with the same things I am right now that possibly sharing my approach with you all could help someone out there?  Well, after reflecting on what my mother and brother told me, thats when I think I found a solution (maybe?) !

Passion Drives Everything

The heading says it all doesn't it?  LOL  My secret weapon?  Passion.  Some may say structure is key, others have told me scheduling, or planning.  All of those things are nice, but without a drive, a reason, a cause, or simply put...passion...they're kinda...worthless?  ^_^;;  So, my best advice to anyone in this situation is to evaluate, or re-evaluate in my case, your passion.  Sometimes your original goal changes and morphs into something else!  Sometimes its bigger!  Sometimes, sadly passion just fades, and thats okay too, ya know?  Well...in my particular case, my passion hasn't faded but its kinda taken a backseat to life at the moment.  The "backseat-ing" of my passion has become kinda apparent sadly, but I think this was the best thing to happen to me.  The stopgap of time has allowed me to reflect a lot and truly realize how important this endeavor of love (this website and social media outlets) is to me and how starved it has become by letting it sit like it has for far too long.

One of the analogies I like to draw upon when considering whether or not I am giving enough attention to a passion of mine is this:  Is my passion my acquaintance, my friend or my child?  If my passion is my  "acquaintance" than I suppose like an actual acquaintance I would give my time briefly and be polite, but the truth really is that an acquaintance doesn't get terribly too much attention, right?  (・'v`・)？？  What about a friend?  Some might argue that people give more attention to friends than their own children but in this case, lets say that that's NOT the case, ok?  XD  In the same fashion as a comparable to an acquaintance, a friend would get more attention and dedication, and one might even say some tender love and care.  Children are different though.  Children would require nurturing and compassion, and when those very rare moments occur (or at least we aim for rare) when children fail or are lost without direction, they turn to their parents, right?  So, in this analogy, if you were the parent of your passion; the one...true...dedicated...controller of this little one's fate...don't you owe it to your passion to plant seeds towards its success?  Maybe thats the answer then?  If you truly own your passion and make it yours, can anything really stop you?  Would anything stop you as a parent if something were to happen to your child?  In this new light, it gave great perspective to my situation.  A perspective I can honestly say allowed me to see the flaws of my "parenting" and a call to ensure my "child" receives the attention it truly deserves.  I can start by committing real definable goals to my "child" and seeing where that takes me.  In order to do this, I'm gonna have to consider how to fit everything in and find ways to make things easier while still keeping my promises to my "child". 

A Solution At Long Last (Maybe?)

So the challenge seems SO much clearer now:  How do I commit to my passion while making it feel less like a chore but still giving it the dedication it deserves and needs?  The answer is less clear but at least now with the challenge defined it allows what others have suggested to start falling into place.  Once you make the choice and can commit fully to your passion, the rest seems to be semantics and details.  To try and aide me on this journey I decided to take a leap of faith and gave in and bought a shiny new iPad Pro(hibitor) to hopefully help make the issue of pulling out my computer a tad easier?  The thought was that if I could write posts with the Apple iOS device, maybe it would help at least provide a way for posts to get written at a faster and more steady rate than relying on when I pull out my computer.  Honestly, I think the only reason that pulling out my computer currently causes "Lazy-Loaf Syndrome" (LOL) is because my work, personal email and website data is also stored across this system?  Also, I think that having an interface where I don't have to work with media and can just write might actually be a HUGE benefit and help with one of those other issues...focus.  UGH!  Me and my ADHD can get pretty bad, but as the first post written entirely on the iPad Pro (before being edited on my Apple MacBook Pro) I have to say that the only thing I personally feel that I have to work on now is my ability to write quicker!  LOL  XD  Honestly though, I think this might actually be a big part of the solution that I needed.  LETS HOPE SO!!!  *Fingers crossed*

Signed with love, compassion, and sincere desire for change,

ピカさん

[goblinhorde]

Tagged by @strangelock :D

Rules: Answer the questions in a new post and then tag ten blogs you would like to get to know better. Or don’t. It’s up to you.

Nickname: does Goblin count? It's less a nickname and more a second name...

Sign: Aquarias

Favorite Music Artist: I tend to center more around albums (e.g., Avengers Assemble, Hamilton, The Browncoats Mixtap) or songs (e.g., Young Volcanos by Fall Out Boy, Shatter Me by Lindsey Stirling, Radioactive by Pentatonix) at any given time rather than specific artists. But I've loved David Bowie since I was a kid and I've been listening to Lizzo a lot lately while I work.

Last TV Show You Watched: I binged Supernatural and Emerald City on Friday because I was sick and staying home from work, but haven't watched anything outside of YouTube since.

Last Movie You Saw in the Theater: Technically, the last thing I saw in theaters was the Sherlock finale, but if we're only counting movies, Moana.

What Are You Wearing Right Now: sneakers with prescription orthotic inserts, knee-high toe socks, jeans, a t-shirt that says "Epic Rap Battles of History” from the ERB YouTube channel, a Burning Man sweatshirt my camp made as "camp swag" two(?) years ago switched to a plain grey sweatshirt since I started this last night but now I’m at work and that’s the sweatshirt I keep handy at work, right wrist: an oversized, men's Fossil watch, left wrist: FitBit, Supernatural replica skull bracelet, red/white meditation bracelet with a turtle on it (to represent Raphael from TMNT), a bee bracelet with honey-colored beads (to represent Sherlock Holmes).

What Do You Post: Anything that moves me (fandom related or otherwise), random stuff about my day/thoughts, and auto-posts from my Instagram that are often usually of my dog, Raphael, Tiny Dog, or the other members of the Puppy Pack (Gus, York, Buddha, Pax, and Gato).

Do You Have Any Other Blogs: Technically I have a Wordpress blog on my website, but it's rare that I post anything there (although I'm hoping to change that this year!).

Why Did You Choose Your URL: I've used some form of "goblin" as my online handle since around 1995. When I had to pick a username for Xbox Online circa 2005, all my usual goblin variants were taken so I tried "goblinhorde" as a last resort and it worked. I've used it pretty consistently online (especially on social media) ever since :)

Do You Get Asks Regularly: No, I think I've probably had less than 5 since I joined Tumblr :( I suspect I’m not terribly interesting to others *shrug*.

Hogwarts House: I'm half Native American so forget Hogwarts, native magics all the way, yo!

Patronus: Phoenix, maybe? I seem to rebuild/renew my life in significant ways every 5 years or so... *shrug*

Pokémon Team: Originally I thought I'd be Team Mystic, mostly because I like blue better than red, but I play with my mom and she picked Team Valor so I went with Team Valor as well :)

Favorite Color: Blue or green in deep, earthy tones.

Favorite Character: Dean Winchester & Castiel & Crowley (Supernatural), Raphael (TMNT), Sherlock Holmes & John/Joan Watson (all the things), Patty Tolan & Jillian Holtzmann & Kevin Beckman & Egon Spengler & Ray Stanz (Ghostbusters), Peter Venkman (RGB fanfic/fanon mostly), Spock (ST:TOS), Worf (ST:TNG/DS9), Alexia Tarabotti (The Parasol Protectorate Series), Paksenarrion (The Deed of Paksenarrion), Abbie Mills (Sleepy Hollow), Eliot Spencer (Leverage).

Hobbies/crafts? Gardening, cooking, reading, swimming, and writing/editing. Again, haven't had a lot of energy for personal writing the last few years but I’m hoping to change that this year.

Collect anything? Does knowledge count? I really love learning about things (especially food, culture, language, and storytelling). Re: physical collections, I recently gave in to my love of pens & analog writing equipment and have a very small pen and ink collection started :) and I also really like art (e.g., paintings, drawings, prints, original comic pages, handmade stuff, sculptures, carvings). As a general rule I'm not super into physical "things" that don't serve a purpose, but if something I love has a book or t-shirt or sticker, I'm probably going to buy it eventually, especially if I can support an independent artist or small company in doing so... and I guess, technically, I collect Pokemon on my smartphone ;D

Current challenges you face? I'm two months into a new job and I still feel like I'm floundering/ramping up/not pulling my weight. Lots of health challenges lately (bad feet/ankles, Crohn's being annoying, and a smattering of colds/bugs). The general state of dumpster landfill fire that is my country at the moment :(

Things you’re looking forward to? Lots of things: A "Sugar Cookie Tea" with one nephew (we're gonna make German Sugar Cookies and watch Tinkerbell movies) and a "Pokemon Go walk" with another (gonna walk around the neighborhood and catch Pokemon). Seeing two of my closest friends get married (I am excite! ^_^). The Atlanta Pen show (my first!). Seeing Hamilton in the spring (omg!). The STC Summit (tech writing ftw!). Burning Man. And I'm really hoping Sherlock Seattle happens again this year (and that I'll be able to go).

Anything you want to promote? Logic, compassion, empathy, the Scientific Method, the fact that "free speech" != "speech without consequence or a guaranteed platform", responsible pet ownership, penmanship, The Oxford Comma.

Anything else you’d like to share? My dog, Raphael, is a Chihuahua/Xoloitzcuintli mix (he has the frame of a Xolo and the coat/coloring of a Chihuahua). I had never heard of the Xoloitzcuintli before I got him but Xolos are basically my favorite breed now. The nearly-hairless ones with the little mohawk tufts on their heads are the best <3

Tagging: @sallyskellington18, @completelyrandomtumbling, @purpleshoeofsex, @anonsally, @green-circles, @the-sign-of-tea, @waltzforthree, @frantasticmissfox, @boyfrienddean, @pursuitofnerdiness

[mirrorshaded]

Top 8 Robot Masters

Mega Man is one of those series’ that I nearly know inside and out, yet don’t speak of all that often. It was an obsession throughout most of my childhood, with Mega Man III (NES) having been my first. In a lot of ways its appeal is not so dissimilar from Pokémon (hear me out), in that it has a large assortment of simple, themed characters fans can choose favorites from or project onto. I’ve heard the Pokémon analogy used on similar things, such as the Touhou Project. (Don’t quote me on this, I still don’t know what Touhou is despite having it explained more than once.) I guess I’m fond of the Pokémon analogy and things that fit the bill, and although the Mega Man franchise typically only introduces eight robot masters to fight per game, there are... a lot of games. So anyway, after much consideration, I’ve finally complied my top 8 (listed in no particular order): DWN-016: Wood Man (Mega Man II) I'm about to lose everybody on this, but II might be my least favorite main entry in the classic series (fight me). This could be because I missed the hype train and had III to compare with, or simply because I'm tired of hearing about it. For the record, I like it, but for some reason whenever I want to play something older I just pick up the first one. Regardless of this, it has Wood Man. I'm kind of a plant person, and a robot made of wood is fairly ironic. Come on, he shoots leaves at you; tremble with terror as they slowly descend from above! In his defense, Air Man was from the same game and a glorified air conditioner. I feel you, buddy. I've always been fond of how these games never took themselves too seriously. (Well, that was until "retro" became marketable and they gave us things like Sheep Man a few years ago.) I remember seeing Wood Man in the Ruby-Spears cartoon and thinking his version of the leaf shield made a lot more sense because it was, in fact, a shield (though, I definitely favored his design on Captain N most). His cameo in 8 was a welcome surprise. DWN-019: Gemini Man (Mega Man III) III, IV, and VII are my favorite entries of the classic series. With III being what it is for me (sliding!), it was difficult not to fill this roster with more from it. The trippy, pseudo-aquatic ambience of Gemini Man's stage really caught my attention as a child (easily my favorite stage overall), and that largely has to do with him being here. Gemini Man himself is a pretty suave guy and entertaining to fight, though. DWN-022: Snake Man (Mega Man III) Snake Man was a given. Usually, when people ask me what my favorite robot master of all time is, he's the safe answer. (In fact, I own an unopened action figure of him from the Ruby-Spears cartoon line.) Apparently, he was originally designed to investigate narrow areas and survey topography on uninhabited planets marked for development. His bio is more of a curiosity than others: "Snake Man is intelligent and shrewd, but he can also be tenacious. He enjoys actively hunting and cornering his prey like a snake, which puts him at odds with the fair-minded Hard Man. He enjoys the company of Toad Man, for whom the feelings are unfortunately not mutual, and has a hatred of slugs." Also, his stage is pretty ridiculous: what he shoots, the enemies, the floor—all snakes. DWN-028: Pharaoh Man (Mega Man IV) Pharaoh Man is awesome. DWN-032: Skull Man (Mega Man IV) IV is an interesting game in that I consider it the bridge between old and new when it comes to the classic series. Not just for the New Mega Buster, but the fact that it lacks many of the cheap shots seen in the previous three installments, while retaining difficulty. V and VI definitely had that safety net feel to them you'd find later in a portion of the SNES library. Maybe I notice a difference because I'm drawn to punishment, I'm not sure. What I'm getting at is that IV appears to be the most balanced of the NES lot. You could say that my three favorite "things" in life are botany, traditional martial arts and classic horror, so Skull Man is a no-brainer. (Get it?) IV was kind enough to give me two horror-themed robot masters if you count Pharaoh Man. I hate barrier weapons, I swear, yet three of those bastards snuck in here somehow. Skull Man's stage is creative; really like Skeleton Joe. DWN-045: Plant Man (Mega Man VI) I like Plant Man's design more than Wood Man's. It's a shame his fighting strategy managed to be worse. (Maybe I shouldn't have taken a stab at the floating leaves thing earlier.) I felt they did a much better job with him in The Power Battle and The Power Fighters. His bio states he's prone to depression for some reason—could be that his stage is known as the "forgotten area?" DWN-054: Slash Man (Mega Man VII) I've come to find that VII was either hit-or-miss for people. My only complaint was that I'd've preferred they hadn't cut the robot masters into two separate groupings. Slash Man is one of the hardest bosses in the series to me (somewhere under Quick Man). Like many stages in VII, the Robosaur Park is paced well and doesn't get boring. (Robot dinosaurs!) Obviously draws inspiration from X-Men's Wolverine. (Curious, in the hallway leading to him there's an X dead center on the wall.) You know, when this game came out it took me forever to find Beat because Proto Man's hint was partialy misleading. He tells you to "try the flame weapon in the woods," and I considered Slash Man's stage a jungle. For a while I assumed he was just telling you to light the candles in the lower half of Shade Man's stage, which technically takes place in a forest—that would've been a stupid hint. DWN-055: Shade Man (Mega Man VII) Lastly, Shade Man. I'm not sure they could have done his stage more justice. I'm not so much a fan of Ghosts 'n Goblins, but the homage is welcomed. I'm fond of the mid-boss and werewolf enemies. Always liked split-path stages, and being able to fight Proto Man there was a nice touch. Shade Man himself needs little explaining, doesn't he? He's basically the lord of darkness. Well, that's that. Maybe some day I'll get around to a Mega Man X maverick list, but it seems unlikely.

[anghealachghorm]

When I was 15 I discovered anthropology at Maynooth University. I fell in love and I didn’t want to learn anything else. It called out to me in a way few subjects have since. Philosophy and nature are its parents. It is like a river, you never step in the same one twice.[i] Which is why it’s so uniquely suited to everything.

I managed to graduate from my undergrad, how, I’m still not certain. 2010 marked a tumultuous time in my life, and I only understand now how depression and anxiety played their parts. I spend 3 long years in the job market (miserably). Then a light came in 2013 when I was accepted for a Masters in anthropology and development, in my beloved Maynooth. So over 2 years, I studied my favourite subject again, this time solely.

Even with the seriousness of the subject matter, I still found my whimsical side, which I would like to share with you today. In 2014 I wrote an essay for a class by Dr Steve Coleman of Maynooth University. Rereading it has at times made me laugh out loud. Why he gave me a 2.1 on it I’ll never truly know. Shout out to Steve!

I’ve included some extracts below and it has been sufficiently altered for syntax and clarity. Also, Jenni of today has added some stuff for context and you can see that in italics. So if you’ve made it this far enjoy my stalwart friend!

Animation as Performance

The online world is an endless void of connected humanity. Projections of the self are possible online which are not available to us in the tactile world. Although there are situations where it is acceptable to enact your fandom in ‘real time,’ through ‘Cosplay,’ (the practice of dressing up as a character from a film, book, or video game, especially one from the Japanese genres of manga or anime) such as during Halloween, at conventions, or in theme parks; online personalities offer an outlet for people who want to explore an alternative version of themselves. This often takes place through participation in online communities such as MMO’s (an online video game which can be played by a very large number of people simultaneously). Manning & Gershon explain how the avatars make it possible for people to distance themselves from their bodies:

“…in the virtual worlds of Massively Multiple Online Games (MMOGs). Avatars are virtual embodiments that permit, at the outset, a complete divorce between the body of the offline player and the body of the online character and permit large numbers of offline players to interact socially within a single virtual world mediated by these online embodiments.”[3]

Jesse & James (Pokémon)

Jesse & James (Cosplay)

Animation has rapidly become one of the most prevalent expressions of new media this century. Silvio provides a perspective on the popularity of animation:

“The proliferation of animation and animated characters is not simply an effect or symptom of the intersection of computer technology and structural transformations in global capitalism. Animation is also popular because it provides a productive trope for thinking through this intersection.”[4]

The topics I will discuss are YouTube and its relevant fandoms. People reinvent themselves online, they perform through the genre of another, and live action has even been transformed into animation. Silvio reinforces, “animation as an alternative model of and for human action in the world,”[5] which is something anthropology seeks to link new animism.

Animism: Descola and Kohn

Descola provides a lens with which to look upon humanity, and the dual system of nature-culture, in his work ‘The Ecology of Others,’

“Making modern dualism the template for all the states of the world has thus lead anthropology to a particular form of academic Eurocentrism, which consists in believing not that the realities that humans objectivise are everywhere identical, but that our own manner of objectivising is universally shared.”[6]

This thought process, although not new, challenges both the dualism of the Eurocentric (focusing on European culture or history to the exclusion of a wider view of the world; implicitly regarding European culture as pre-eminent) anthropology and the belief of anthropologist that all cosmologies (an account or theory of the origin of the universe) objectify the same way. Performance in animation can be adopted here in order to understand cosmologies that may appear to be outside the scope of animism, such as European cultures. Though the stories enacted often have a ‘first world perspective,’ the potential of the digital age to create analogies requires further exploration. Never before could we channel our likes, wants, and needs into something such as the video platform YouTube. YouTube is a nascent form of media which allows anyone to upload content, as long as it follows the community guidelines. The platform is relatively democratic, your views are the votes for what content is pushed to the fore.

The more we watch, the more YouTube calculates our interests through their algorithms, which in turn can generate advertisement revenue, incentivising the creators. YouTube also creates a market for animations. The consumers get what they want, which is more of their favourite animated characters. This is then exemplified by fans seeing themselves in the animated characters. It cannot be ignored and Silvio provides us with this concept:

“My project in this essay, to set up animation as a platform for the comparative study of how human beings negotiate the relationship between self and world, both includes such projects of intellectual history and, of course, should itself be subjected to cultural and historical contextualization.”[7]

Here we can replace the terms ‘nature’ and ‘culture’ with ‘self’ and ‘world’. Which is what Descola was trying to produce in the ‘Ecology of Others.’ Western discourse believes it is complete and therefore other cosmologies should reflect it. It is pertinent however that we do not assume this. Each individual has their own system of meaning which they attach to the nature of their being. It seems both appropriate and fashionable in Western cultures to separate cultural being from natural being, as only one of those has the tools to survive within the systems capitalism and the neoliberal market have constructed. What must be understood is that all cognizant beings have a ‘self.’ This ‘self’ is only separated into sections by the environment they find themselves in such as their workplace or their community. What animation may give us is the picture of the human as a whole rather than the pieces we normally find ourselves in.

Fandoms, Youtubers, and Performance

We continue our journey through the internet with animation as our guiding trope. We encounter a phenomenon which lends itself to the anthropology as far back as Mauss, and gift exchange. With online community accounts offered for free, people can spend leisure time creating or enjoying fan art, which is more often than not, a reflection of some fandom or other.

The offering from YouTube comes from those who describe themselves as ‘Lets Plays.’ These YouTubers record themselves playing video games and their reactions to them. The most common reaction type is comedic, however, they vary. One such YouTuber calls himself Markiplier; his popularity exceeds 6 million subscribers. (Now with over 20 million as of June 2018). With this enormous fanbase dutifully watching his videos, he is able to make a living out of YouTube. Markiplier is known to play horror games in which he appears authentically frightened, which seems to be a large part of his allure. He is brave, according to himself. He uses his voice to give life to characters in the game. A memorable life-giving moment took place in his ‘lets play’ for an Amnesia custom story. He encounters a ‘tiny box’, pictured below, which he proceeds to call, ‘Tiny Box Tim.’ He announces he will bring Tiny Box Tim on adventures with him. Markiplier gives voice and life to an animation from a game. The first question that must be addressed is why? It would appear that humans give life to the inanimate; it seems to be innate for us to personify the world around us.

This event spawned an animation in which a cartoon Markiplier and Tiny Box Tim were inserted into the game, pictured in below, using an audio snippet from Markiplier’s original video. This 2.00-minute animation, which on Markiplier’s channel now has over 7 million views(now at 20 million), Was a made by a fellow YouTuber, and Markiplier fan called Lixian. This animation fascinating, not only as it awards the opportunity for the gamer Markiplier to appear inside the game, but it also gives life by means of animation to Tiny Box Tim. This character has gone on to appear in other Amnesia stories and animations with Markiplier. Markiplier set this in motion by imprinting himself onto Tiny Box Tim, which has spawned much fan art from Markiplier fans.

This is a wonderful example of Marcel Maus idea of gift exchange. Markiplier is free to use the channel to upload videos, he is compensated by YouTube for ad revenues in relation to time watched on his videos, allowing his viewers to watch for free. This is the result of a gift exchange between the YouTuber and the ‘fan’. This is described by Helleskon:

“…The gifts have value within the fannish economy in that they are designed to create and cement a social structure, but they themselves are not meaningful outside their context…”

So what we see unfolding is Markiplier’s video which provides comedy, in response fans that cannot compensate him in a conventional sense, create fan art such as the animation above. This performance is projected onto animations such as those during gameplay. Markiplier’s voice and personality is projected onto something inanimate, such as a tiny box.

This also is something which may affect Silvio’s belief that animated characters are the only ones that have lives of their own, as this is something live ‘characters’ such as Marilyn Monroe or Mick Jagger cannot have. In the case I have described above the animator Lixian became the live character of Markiplier by creating a representation of Markiplier through his own unique animation style, and use of Markiplier’s original audio. If we follow Silvio on this:

“When we follow an animated character we do much more than anthropormorpasize theme, we in fact, inject ourselves into them. Not only becoming like them, but becoming them, feeling what they are feeling and experiencing what they are feeling. Giving life and logic to something like an animated toy in Toy Story.”

Lixian created his interpretation of what happened, and now the animation gives us the possibility to feel not only what Markiplier felt but what Tiny Box Tim felt. Which pictured in below were; determination, joy, pride, and sadness.

The labour of humanity has allowed this to exist. Not only has a tiny box been animated, but it has been given the range of human emotions, making it real to us.

“Thanks to labour, humans extract their means of subsistence from their environment which they partially transform, metamorphosing themselves in the process in that they establish a social mediation with their fellow humans and with objects.”

Humans have this ability to personify the inanimate as we have a deep-rooted need to define the world. This is increasingly becoming the reality of play for children and adults alike. Play is now extended beyond childhood into a safe online environment, where we can build and define our relationships. We can see how we may like ourselves to be. The act of YouTubing as a ‘lets player’ has some interesting connotations when we consider this quote.

“Silvio points out that this is also true for moments of performance—all sorts of people enable actors to do their jobs. But when people interpret actors’ performance, they still focus on the embodied nature of the performance and the relationship of the actor to the role. Not so with animation. Animation brings this misrecognition in which a character is created by many to the foreground. So the labor underlying animation also contributes to the ways multiplicities can be conflated with an individual character…”

YouTubers are a phenomenon yet to be examined in great detail. YouTuber’s will often find animations of themselves, whether solicited or unsolicited, appearing from clips of their popular videos. This enables the fans to both insert themselves in the narrative of the YouTuber and also insert the YouTuber into the world of the game. The initial reaction of a YouTuber is as if they are in the game environment, which is the nature of gaming, whether you video yourself or not. By animating the moments, life has been brought to both the character of the YouTuber and the environment of the game.

Concluding Notions

Incredibly Manning & Gershon take Silvio animation tropes one step further adding an interesting dimension:

“What if this trope of animation sheds light on dilemmas otherwise obscured when one interprets interactions based on a self-divided by the tension between character and actor, between performance and true self?”

This offers something anthropology is always searching for in its discourse, especially when we consider the idea of the human having more than one self-described by Bourdieu’s ‘habitus’ and ‘field’ model. Although we are a complete person at all times when we are in certain situations we are enacting different versions of ourselves. Therefore interaction with animation is an interesting lens with which to view a person. For example, cosplayers, take an animated character, and embodied them, being both the character and themselves at the same time. Not only is this identifying mimicking an animation, but holding more than one reality in your mind at once.

We must remember we live in a world which is dominated by an online presence. Those of us online, have so many different identities, even in our use of emoticons to animate our emotions and reactions on what is a 2-dimensional space. It is undeniable that there are many versions of ourselves, and many use art to project themselves. A writer cannot separate themselves from their words, we now we have animations to enact ourselves through. They are templates waiting for someone to come along and ‘play’ them.

Bibliography

Philippe Descola. 2013. The Ecology of Others. Prickly Paradigm Press, LLC 5629 South University Avenue.

Kohn, Eduardo. 2013. How Forests Think: Towards An Anthropology Beyond The Human. University of California Press. Berkeley, Los Angeles, London.

Silvio, Teri. 2010. Animation: The New Performance? Institute of Ethnology, Academia Sinica. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology. American Anthropological Association.

Manning, Paul & Gershon, Ilana. 2013. Animating Interaction. HAU: Journal of Ethnographic Theory 3 (3): 107–37. Indiana University & Trent University.

Hellekson, Karen. 2009 A Fannish Field of Value: Online Fan Gift Culture. Cinema Journal, Vol. 48, No. 4 , pp. 113-118. Published by: University of Texas Press Society for Cinema & Media Studies.

Salzman, Philip Carl. 2002. On Reflexivity. American Anthropologist, Vol. 104, No. 3, pp. 805-813 Published by: Wiley on behalf of the American Anthropological Association.

Gibson, Priscilla. Dickens’s Uses of Animism. Nineteenth-Century Fiction, Vol. 7, No. 4, pp. 283-291 Published by: University of California Press.

Pictures

http://nilesysahah.comoj.com/pokemon-team-rocket-jessie-james-edition-gba.php

http://kotaku.com/5633241/pokemon-team-rocket-cosplay-awarded-rare-4040

Amnesia Customer Story reference begins at 4.16minutes in: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fngFfn_MXMo

Tiny Box Tim: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4hZT6XCCp8

Tiny Box Tim: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4hZT6XCCp8

Lixian Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/LixianTV

Markiplier Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/markiplierGAME

[i] Pocahontas. Disney.

Anthropology & Youtube When I was 15 I discovered anthropology at Maynooth University. I fell in love and I didn’t want to learn anything else.