#but its subtle and realistic
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the Cod: MW / TF141 zombie apocalypse au fic I've had churning in my head for 2 years is itching to be written..... I've had it in the "outline" stage since February 2023, and that outline is 16k words.
lots of angst and comfort and character growth and action and them having sex when they shouldn't be
not much different from their original storyline tbh
#opens new doc and titles it Chapter One#im so serious dude its been the center if MANY maladaptive daydreaming episodes#i have it all laid out start to finish i just need to make me stupid fingers type it#tf141 polyfic#but its subtle and realistic#ghost cod#soap cod#cod headcanons#soapghost#cod fics#cod john price#gaz cod#ghoap#cod mw2#zombie au
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i keep seeing people who didn't like the substance and its always because they clearly went into it expecting a nuanced subtle feminist horror masterpiece. you cant do that. you need to go in expecting a french woman making an updated 80s body horror practical effects nightmare. that's the way you won't be disappointed.
#you don't go in for perfect critiques of the industry you are here for blunt and mean and nasty and maybe silly at times.#like. yes the men are cartoonishly evil nothing is realistic or subtle that's the point. its a movie taking things to the extreme#that's what body horror does. & its exacerbated bc thats also what french horror does ime.#(not that im the most experienced but ive seen enough to know a LOT of them are like this)#avpost#im saying this to protect you do not go in expecting realism. go in excited to see a woman turn herself into the thing from the thing.#its literally called The Substance she is taking A Substance. the title warns you this is going to be blunt and unnuanced.#im not above criticism of this movie either i really didnt enjoy huge chunks of the middle im just#noticing this trend on lbxd and twt among people who don't like this movie#and i know ive hyped it up to my followers so im just getting ahead of that and warning you guys.#movie diary
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kiryu sitting haruka down for a really important talk and looking nervous but deeply serious about it and when he finally speaks he gives an honest and vulnerable admission that upon much self reflection, as unlikely as it may seem, as shocking as it may come, he is, in fact, gay, and he hopes this doesn’t make her feel any distress or discomfort in-part due to the implication that he likely didn’t have romantic feelings for her mom, he did care very very much for her regardless of labels, and so on and so on. and she lets him give this lengthy emotional confession that goes on for like twenty minutes before he finally goes dead silent anxiously anticipating her response. and she’s just like. uncle kaz I really appreciate you opening up to me like this and I’m really proud of you for accepting yourself for who you are. but me and every other kid at morning glory figured this out like 10 years ago
#he’s shaking he’s on the verge of tears and she’s just sitting there like. should I act shocked? this clearly means so much to him but#i feel like saying ‘uncle kaz. its not that subtle. you were a bachelor taking care of a bunch of adoptive kids with no interest#in women whatsoever for years. i already know. most people close to you already suspected.’ is a bit anticlimactic#I think about this a lot#cause realistically she would probably be the first person to open up to about it#unless he miraculously put together through Obvious Context Clues that daigo and mine were a Thing (probably YEARS after the fact though)#and then went and asked daigo about it. which would be hilariously awkward and id pay money to see it#he’s so bad at reading the room and like. getting social cues. I feel like he’d finally get a moment where he’s alone with daigo in his#office and would strike right as daigo’s about to make casual conversation like#‘so how have you b–‘ ‘daigo-san do you like men’#with his typical stoic intense look on his face. poor daigo that’d be mildly terrifying. also the funniest thing he could possibly do#kiryu#haruka#rambling#kazuma kiryu#haruka sawamura#yakuza#amusing follow-up to the initial idea with haruka. he eventually calms down and is relieved and whatnot and says to her kinda casually#‘I’m not sure if I’m ready to tell anyone else. except maybe majima. I’ve been able to trust him for decades with just about anything and I#know he’d never be judgmental–‘ and haruka’s sitting there like. oh god do I have to tell him. someone’s gotta tell him.
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i love watching old warrior cats animations because they loved to have a she-cat stand up and wordlessly walk away from a tom mid conversation
#99% of the time its squirrelflight walking away to go cuddle bramble like 4 feet away while ashfur stares at them#ITS JUST FUNNY. i feel like theres more subtle and realistic ways to show a rejection
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Why did you make this AU?
Short answer: I love unethical men.
#i have a Thing for emotional manipulation in fiction. originally i wasnt supposed to talk about nick on main#usually when i see emotional manipulation in comics or fics or else its too... obvious? like. not subtle enough to be... realistic?#i dont know if im making sense. but theres multiple things i think about when making nick lore#1) no one wakes up one day thinking 'im gonna be a bad person today ! :D'#2) no one wakes up one day thinking 'im gonna let myself get manipulated today ! :D'#theres gotta be plausable deniability *or* youre in too deep to even try to deny-- that wasnt your original question was it#anyway. to stop the rambling: i have a thing for exploring the worst parts of the human psyche *and* im a homosexual.#i want to see bad people who are genuinely bad people and there's not a lot of those so im making 'em myself#...nick isn't as bad as it could get really. he's pretty tame actually#maybe i'll make worse things one day#ask#powercoreact#and of course there's the fact that nick was originally a vent thing but that's a story you unlock at lvl. 5+ friendship#arsenic#omori au#omori
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Sorry, still following the serise. Just can't post much right now coz of real life commitments. So have a tier list -
#heartstopper#heartstopper season 1#netflix#netflix heartstopper#alice oseman#tier list#yes i do think its funny that my fravriote characters hate eachother#well ok hate is a bit strong#tao just didn’t trust nick until the end of the season#& poor nick just wanted his boyfriends mates to like him lol#tori & imogen are listed that way#because Imogen will apprantly get character development later on#& tori has a whole book about her#so i hope she's not just regulated to quirky sister that pops up for 1 second an episode forever#darcy is hard because i do like her#she's just a little....loud for me#but i think it's good she's proud of her sexuality#+ as a teen it makes sense that she's not the most subtle person#& i think her “flaws” help her & tara work#like I can definitely see tara becoming more confident in her sexuality as she gets older thanks to Darcy's support#& i can also see Darcy becoming more mellow/tactful as she gets older thanks to Tara's influence#some people might not like tao very much#& i agree the hair has to go#but he was so cute/funny with elle#he ate harry up every time (not that he makes it hard the guy's insults are shit)#& while i don't like him hurting charlie#i think his insecurities & the way he deals with them#was pretty understandable & very realistic for a 14/15 year old#like I love nick but from Tao's POV i completely get how he could come across as not a good guy#think the rest of my listing is pretty self-explanatory so won't bother going over them
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you ever have a dream so unbelievably cool that when you wake up you just about screech in rage that it ended too early...
#my posts#that's me right now i'm going to explode#the first half of the dream leading up to the cool part SUCKED but the second half made up for it#imagine a theater performance except holograms actually work and are hyper-realistic.#it was this HUGE theater room with sections of seating and a large open floor and several screens#and like when it started it was like the screens were set up for the different groups right?#WRONG they showed different things as the show went on#it was like. a story about a cursed Disney cartoon but the wild part was like its story was kinda like the Ring#where if you watched the film things could come out of it. and you see where this is going!!#like it was subtle at first with just a character or two wandering past#but then there would be these meta bits where the entity would look at the audience through the screen#then vanish. and something seems like it's wrong with the equipment#and then it COMES OUT OF THE FLOOR#like you had this HUGE stretched out rubberhose entity that TOWERED over the audience#the room would go dark in those moments too so it'd be this BRIGHT black and white Thing#like i'm legitimately going insane over how cool it looked jesus christ#and there was some kind of a mystery going on; the entity Wanted something but we never found out what#...... oh my god i just figured out why it turned into Deltarune at the end i'm so mad#(the entity would always be accompanied by a cartoon 'ding dong' and my brain went#hehe wing dings i'm so mad. not even a cool twist but WHATEVER)#anyway it ended with visuals of a Deltarune AU with such cool designs I NEED TO DRAW IT.#i won't do it justice at all but by god it needs to exist somewhere other than my head holy heck#anyway. it was insane ok trust me
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oh yeah i also figured out what my butt problem was. i dont know if anyone recalls. i was having issues with distorted asses in CAS. it WAS RTBP, of course, but it was an easy fix. i just had to go in my settings and enable it at pause speeds. no more weird butt smearing. 👍
#i have to tweak my settings again soon anyway bc its like.#toooo subtle#i like it realistic but this is ridiculously subtle like unnoticeable amounts of subtle#simoleon
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This scene demonstrates why I love how Vault-Tec is written as an evil corporation. It's not the usual mustache-twirling, over-the-top villainy you see in other media. It's quiet, subtle, and very realistic, which only serves to make Vault-Tec that much more terrifying.
When Cooper finishes describing how Vault-Tec was responsible for the deaths of countless people, the executive here does two things: a) he makes their deaths about himself (ALL WHILE NOT EVEN ACKNOWLEDGING THEM!), and b) he makes it about "Product Management."
It really emphasizes the theme that corporations like Vault-Tec and the suits who run them at Vault-Tec only care about the company and its products and NOT the people who use them (or are being used by them).
#fallout#fallout spoilers#cooper howard#fallout tv series#fallout series#fallout show#fallout tv show#fallout prime#vault tec#fallout ghoul#fallout amazon#fallout tv spoilers#fallout 2024#fallout tv#the ghoul#fallout season 1
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Can you do a spencer reid with a bau reader who is younger and very atractive and when the bau are coming to see him at his apartment for whatever reason and use the key (derek probably has one ngl) they just find a mess of clothes everywhere and them just asleep together
When they wake up they are like:👀😶
Bau: 😏😏
They're not snooping, per se, but the BAU are profilers by nature, and it's not hard to spot the neon pink bra that's abandoned by the side of Spencer's recliner.
"Uh, I think pretty boy's mom has kinda aged outta stuff like this," Derek holds up the bra by one single strap, indicating the lacy cutouts that leave very little to the imagination, "Unless she's got a boyfriend we don't know about, and Spence let her have his place for the night?"
"Oh, come on, is it so hard to believe Spence has a woman here?" JJ pleads, but when she gets several 'subtle' glances from the rest of her team, she relents with a sigh, "Oh, fine. Maybe it accidentally fell into his basket at the laundromat."
"Spencer doesn't go to the laundromat," Emily recites, "Because he has 'no way to realistically verify that their machines are sanitized within proper health regulations'."
"Oh, dude, that man is a wet blanket," Derek scoffs, "But don't tell him I said that- he'll probably start on a tangent about mildew."
"We should leave," Hotch proposes, standing by the door where he'd been trying to keep up an air of polite disinterest despite his intent glances around the apartment, "His keys are hung up by the door, so I'm sure we're just not getting a response from him because he's sleeping. And if he woke up he'd kill you all for wearing shoes on his carpet, so it's in everyone's best interest to leave."
"Hold on!" Penelope gushes, "I just want to check!"
She creeps towards Spencer's bedroom, but at JJ's insistent, 'Shoes!', she chucks her heels back towards the door. One hits its intended blonde target, but the other whacks Derek in the arm, and Hotch is surprised that the dramatics that ensue don't wake Spencer from where he's presumably sleeping. He's sure Penelope will offer to kiss it better.
Penelope tiptoes towards the bedroom door, peering inside the small gap that he'd left before laying down, and finding a Spencer-sized lump under the covers. She nearly turns when she notices that it's larger than just Spencer-sized, and-
"Ooooh, guys," She rushes back to the living room, voice barely hushed enough not to wake you, "He's got a girl in there!"
Derek's victory fist-pump is accompanied by a whispered, 'My man!', but Emily reaches for a pen that's resting in the breast pocket of her blazer. She takes the bra from where Derek had set it on the arm of the couch, rooting around for a post-it in Spencer's drawer and finding a stack of them neatly tucked into the front-right corner. Typical. Just the way he does it at work.
While Penelope describes how close the two of you were sleeping beside each other- 'not an inch apart, guys, they were totally spooning!' - Emily scrawls a neat message on the post-it, dotting the I with a heart.
'Congratulations, Spencer and Mystery Girl!' She writes, leaving the sticky note over the lingerie that she sets on his countertop, 'Tell him to bring you around the office sometime soon - your bra is gorgeous, I need to know where you got it ~ Prentiss <3'
#spencer reid x reader#spencer reid imagine#spencer reid scenario#spencer reid oneshot#spencer reid one-shot#spencer reid one shot#spencer reid headcanons#spencer reid headcanon#spencer reid hc#spencer reid hcs#spencer reid fanfiction#spencer reid fanfic#spencer reid fic#spencer reid blurb#spencer reid drabble#spencer reid dialogue#spencer reid fluff#spencer reid x reader fanfiction#spencer reid smut
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LOL i just got the biggest ego boost, creative?! im honored, thank you. (youre the most creative writer i follow on here!!!!)
right, i think there isnt too much of a cognitive dissonance when u justify the cheating with “well we arent really doing anything physically plus im doing this to improve my relationship with my partner (even if said partner hasnt consented nor agreed) so its not coming from a dishonest/bad place!!!” + combine that with the fact that i kind of wrote with the idea that mc has never fully seen beomgyu in a romantic way (maybe until now?🤔) its pretty easy to shrug it off and not think of it as anything more when it is haha
𝙗𝙪𝙙𝙙𝙮 𝙨𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢 | c.bg
synopsis: wanting to try a new sexual route with your boyfriend but not knowing how to approach the situation drives you to beomgyu—your best friend since the dawn of time, under the rule of what you call a buddy system.
warnings: sub!gyu, dumbification, edging, basically infidelity but they don’t really fuck, butt plug
tags 🏷️ @b3omitus @beomiracles @bambammtori @jakeslvt @subby-men-forever @iijustread @strwbrryjaem @rikiwaify-blog @yyeonzi @skz-smut-reader @kyuuuie @fairfootedflekk @badwicht @handsomejin25 @itaehynz @soobabby
No matter what angle you look at it, it’s weird. You wouldn’t even think of asking for a favor so indecent if it wasn’t—well if it wasn’t him. And maybe that’s the blaring problem.
“What’ya thinking ‘bout?” Beomgyu muffles, mouth stuffed. You quirk your lip, kicking him under the table. "Don't talk with food in your mouth idiot."
He immediately shuts his mouth, but doesn't miss the chance to retaliate and return the kick, only he aims poorly and hits the table leg instead.
You snort, suddenly hit with a wave of nostalgia. It takes you right back to when your biggest problem was hiding a bad report card from your then-overbearing parents and trying to find knock-off drug store products to cover your gross pimples.
A simpler time when all you saw was your best friend across from you, wedged into the booth at Shake N Shack, stuffing his mouth with fries, sauce on the edge of his lips as he rants about some latest absurd conspiracy theory he had stumbled upon online.
“So?” he pulls you out of your reverie, looking up at you once he’s finished chewing. His eyes dart nervously between you and his plate as he swallows the last bite when you keep silent. “Why’re you really here? You haven’t been around much lately.”
You scoff, crossing your arms defensively. "I can't just visit you for old times' sake?"
He exaggeratedly winces. "Damn, already demoted to a nostalgia trip?”
You sigh, feeling a pang of guilt despite the lightheartedness in his tone.
You know Beomgyu— like the back of your hand, like the way your favorite song plays in your mind, you know how he hurts and how he likes to cover it up. Ever since you started dating Youngjae, you’ve completely abandoned him, and so his words hit harder than they should.
“You know what I mean,” you mumble weakly.
“Do I?” he replies, tilting his head. “Last I checked, people don’t usually show up at someone’s door at ten-thirty PM during a thunderstorm just to reminisce for “old times sake”. Are you here to drop some kind of plot twist on me? Did you kill someone? Is this an alibi visit?”
You let out a frustrated groan—leave it to Beomgyu to be as annoying as humanely possible as you try to get him to forgive you for your sins. "No, I didn't kill anyone. I just…I’ve been caught up with y'know like...everything and-”
You pause, glancing at your feet as you try to find the right words, the ones that make this moment make sense. You’d gone over this moment in your head a thousand times, but now, in front of him, it all seems so much harder to say.
“And?” he prompts.
“And in the middle of all the stupid exams and projects, I had this epiphany. Like, holy crap, when was the last time I actually saw my best friend? The one person who gets all my dumb jokes, who knows all my weird habits, and somehow still puts up with me.”
His face visibily softens and he nods slowly, picking at the crumbs on his plate. "Epiphany took a long ass time.”
You smile, feeling a warmth spread through your chest. Without thinking, you stand up from your seat and walk over to him. He looks up just in time for you to wrap your arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a tight hug. It only takes him a moment before he completely melts into the embrace, his arms circling your waist. “I missed you, you dork,” you whisper into his hair.
He leans into you, seemingly satisfied. “That’s all I get?” he mumbles, his voice muffled against your shoulder, but there’s no mistaking the smile in his words. “A quick hug after you’ve been ignoring your best friend for, like, forever?”
“You’ll get a little present later, besides you love me too much to stay mad.”
He nestles his head against you, his grip around your waist tightening just a bit. “Yeah, I really do.” he murmurs.
The Buddy System.
You don’t know if that rollercoaster is any good? The Buddy System. Beomgyu can go on it and tell you if he thinks it’s possible for you to ride without throwing up right after. Beomgyu’s feeling squeamish over that plate of food? The Buddy System— you’ll try it out for him and accurately determine whether it’s gyu-gestable or …not. Years of practice has had you know exactly what his picky habits can allow him to consume.
Those are the more normal instances you’ve used it, there were other peculiar times like when Beomgyu asked you to test out the temperature of his bathwater—with your elbow, like you were checking a baby’s bath. He stood there, fully clothed, watching you as you leaned over the tub, dipping your elbow into the water with the seriousness of a professional thermometer. “Too hot,” you’d say, adjusting the faucet until he gave a nod of approval.
Actually, now that you’re really going over every instance you’ve used it, you think all of the weird ones were Beomgyu’s doing.
Like the time when it was the summer of senior year, the last summer before you went off to college, Beomgyu had recurring nightmares and was convinced that if you fell asleep holding his hand, you’d somehow end up in his dream and could “fix it” from the inside. You tried to explain that dreams didn’t work that way, but he wouldn’t budge. So, there you were, two grown teenagers, lying in a dark room, hands clasped like some kind of paranormal experiment. It didn’t work, of course, but Beomgyu insisted he slept better knowing you were “on the job.”
So therefore…asking this of him would just…even it out, right? Right?
Beomgyu sits up abruptly, causing the carefully arranged pillows to collapse around him, and a few stuffed animals to topple over onto his lap. His eyes are wide, and his voice cracks as he practically yelps, "What?"
Holy shit, who are you kidding.
“This was the little present?”
You shift uncomfortably in the small, now even more cramped space, suddenly wishing you could burrow into the pile of blankets and disappear. “It’s weird, I know, like really weird and it’s okay if you don’t want to. I just thought—”
You take a deep breath. “I just—I want to try it with him and—I don’t know, maybe it won’t feel good and-"
“You thought I’d be the one to—” he waves the box around, his voice higher than usual, “—to test this out for you?”
“I mean, buddy system, right?” you offer weakly, your confidence crumbling completely. “We’ve done other things for each other… not like this, but…” your voice trails off as you fidget with the edge of the blanket beneath you.
Beomgyu just blinks at you. And in the long, awkward silence that follows you realize how absurd your request sounds. Hey, can you try out this butt plug for me because my faith in this relationship with my boyfriend is so fragile I’m afraid I might ruin it completely by doing the normal thing of suggesting and exploring different ways of pleasuring each other? Don’t forget that it’s a butt plug! I’m asking you to insert something up in your ass. Up your ass.
The fairy lights cast soft shadows on his face—he’s staring at you, but you’re too caught up in your embarrassment to notice the way his gaze lingers just a little too long, or how eventually, his expression softens.
Before he can stop himself, he blurts out, “Does he know you’re here?”
You freeze, caught off guard. “Who?”
“Your boyfriend,” he says, his voice quieter now, almost hesitant. “Does he know you’re here? With me?”
“Uh, no… he doesn’t,” you admit, shifting uncomfortably again. “I mean, it’s late, and I just wanted to see you. It’s not a big deal, right?”
Beomgyu swallows hard, his gaze dropping to the stuffed bear in his lap, which seems to be staring back at him with wide, unblinking eyes. “Yeah… right. No big deal.”
The silence stretches on, thick and awkward, until finally, he lets out a long, exaggerated sigh. “Okay,” he resigns. “This is, hands down, the weirdest thing you’ve ever asked me to do, but… yeah, okay. I’ll do it.”
You blink again, not expecting him to actually agree. “Wait, seriously?” A huge smile breaks across your face as you lean forward, your excitement palpable. “I can’t believe you’re actually saying yes! Oh my god, Gyu, thank you! I thought for sure you were going to think I was crazy and—”
But then, almost as quickly as your excitement flared up, it dims slightly, and you glance at him with a more serious expression. The guilt’s creeping up. “You know you don’t have to do this, right? It’s been a while since we’ve hung out and I mean, I don’t want you to feel like I’m forcing you or anything—”
"Are you holding a gun to my head?”
“No, but-"
“Then I’m fine,” he says, though his voice softens as he adds, “Seriously, it’s okay. I’ll do it. Who cares.”
You pout looking at your best friend because for the millionth time in your life, you feel that familiar warmth in your chest at the reassurance that no matter what, Beomgyu’s always there to back you up.
“You’re the best, Gyu. You don’t even know it yet, but you’ll probably be responsible for our wedding,” you say, sighing dreamily, “I’ll make sure to shout you out.”
Suddenly, his expression changes. He frowns deeply, and before you can process it, he grabs the nearest plushie—a soft, squishy bear—and hurls it at you with a grumble. “Yeah, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”
Your mouth falls open at the bear hitting you square in the chest. The audacity! But before you can even think about launching a counterattack, Beomgyu is already on the move.
In one swift motion, he snatches up the pink box, waving it above his head like a white flag of retreat, quickly scrambling out of the fort, the pillows and blankets collapsing behind him in his rush to escape.
You take back everything nice you’ve thought of him thirty seconds ago.
Beomgyu’s cheeks are a bit pink when he comes back twenty minutes later, and you notice it when you look up from your phone, where you’ve been meticulously studying the app’s settings. He looks uncharacteristically bashful, avoiding your gaze as he settles back in with you— the fort looking almost as good as it did before Beomgyu nuked it and ran away.
“Did you put it in?” you ask, trying to gauge his reaction.
He glances at you briefly before quickly looking away, the blush on his cheeks deepening. "Yup. Lubed it up pretty well."
You raise an eyebrow, skeptical. "Did you really, or are you fucking with me?"
Beomgyu's response is immediate, and a little too defensive. "Do you want me to show you my asshole or something? I have it in!"
"God, okay!" you say in exasperation, throwing your hands up in mock surrender.
Your mood takes a complete flip as you grin wickedly, wiggling your phone, the app open and ready. "So... ready for the fun part?"
His eyes widen slightly, and you catch the way his breath hitches as he realizes what you mean. His cheeks flush even more as he swallows hard. "Wait, you're not actually gonna…”
There isn’t any incentive for him to lie but you still don’t fully believe him. You’ve heard that first times have guys struggling a little, he’d be a lot more fidgety than he is now. You narrow your eyes as you glance from your phone to his face, experimentally turning up the setting to its highest volume, just to see if he's really telling the truth.
The reaction is immediate. Beomgyu's eyes widen in shock, and blood rushes to his cheeks, turning him a deep shade of red. His whole body tenses as he grips the blanket beneath him, his breath hitching.
"Hey! Turn it down! It—it-fuck!" he stammers, his voice strained and breathy as he squirms in place.
You quickly dial back the intensity, watching as he takes a few deep breaths, trying to recover. You didn't mean to push him that far, but now there's no doubt in your mind that he wasn't lying. He really did go through with it.
"I didn't think it'd be that intense," you say, genuinely concerned. "Are you okay?"
He hangs his head low, nodding.
You can't help but giggle at his reaction, though you feel a little guilty for pushing him so hard. "Sorry, I just had to make sure."
He gives you a look that's somewhere between a pout and a glare, still clearly embarrassed. "Well, now you know. It's definitely in, and it's definitely working."
You ruffle his head. "Alright, I won't push it any further. Just let me know when it's too much, okay?"
Beomgyu groans, his voice dropping a little, betraying a note of something more than just embarrassment. "Why do I let you talk me into these things?" he mumbles, mostly to himself.
You ignore him, grinning as you observe him, slowly turning up the vibrations to a slow, steady hum. “Notes? How does it feel?”
Beomgyu stiffens, his eyes widening as the first wave of vibrations hits him. "Oh... my god," he squeaks, his voice shaky and a bit breathless. "This is... this is so weird."
You narrow your eyes. “Bad weird or good weird?”
He looks at you, his bottom lip jutted out into a pout, as if he’s not quite sure how to articulate what he’s feeling. “It’s just… weird, okay? Full. Like, not bad but… not normal either. It’s… it’s like—ugh, why are you making me explain this?”
You fold your arms, deciding to push him a little more to get the information that you actually want. “Is it, like, ‘I can get used to this’ weird, or ‘please stop this right now’ weird?”
Beomgyu huffs, clearly flustered. “I don’t know! It’s… kind of both? Like… it’s weird, but maybe kind of good? I don’t know!” He’s squirming now, obviously uncomfortable but not entirely hating it either.
“So…you’re saying you’re into it?” you tease, leaning in closer with a mischievous grin, wiggling your brows playfully.
The words slip out before you can fully think them through, the playful energy between you both making it easy to forget the boundaries that normally exist. Especially considering that you have a boyfriend of seven months waiting at home.
You’re too far gone to care.
His eyes widen even more, his blush deepening as he quickly shakes his head, shuffling away from you a bit. “N-no! I mean… not like that, I just—” His voice trails off, and he swallows hard, clearly struggling to find the right words.
You bite your lip, gradually increasing the intensity, curious. His expression tightens, and a soft, involuntary moan escapes his lips before he can stop it.
"Okay, okay, that's... that's enough!" he says, his voice a mix of panic and something more, his breathing coming out in quick, uneven gasps as he clearly tries to hold himself together.
Interesting.
A slow smirk spreads across your face, “Just a little more,” you coax. “You’re doing great.”
“Fuck, stop teasing me!” he whines, but his voice is breathier now, and there's a definite edge of something more in the way he looks at you, his pupils slightly dilated.
You watch him, the way he tries to keep his mouth in a thin line, a façade that crumbles the moment you notice the way his left leg shakes— you’re intrigued. You've never seen him like this—so vulnerable, so out of control—and it's both unsettling and fascinating. If there’s a possibility this is exactly how your boyfriend would act with something up his ass, you’d spend hundreds on a collection.
You clear your throat, realizing its been silent for too long. “So?”
He’s fast to catch on. “I—I don’t hate it. I think it’s hitting my prost—holy shit, d-did you just turn it up again?”
You hesitate, your gaze shifting away from his. “No…” you mumble, the lie unconvincing even to your own ears. The accusatory stare he gives you is impossible to ignore, burning through your feigned innocence.
Eventually, you give in, sighing in defeat. “Alright, only to a different rhythm. Is it worse? Should I—”
You pause abruptly when you see his reaction. Beomgyu’s eyes tightly screw shut, his jaw clenching and for a moment, you worry that you’ve pushed too far, that this time you’ve actually overstepped. But then he lets out a breath, his shoulders relaxing slightly.
“If it was worse, you would be pure evil but uh—no, no, it’s okay. It’s… better.”
You can’t let the genuine relief washing over you run its full course because you feel a spark of something more exciting running down your spine. You gulp— the hot, stuffiness of the fort becomes increasingly unbearable by the minute. “Better?”
He nods, though his movements are slow, deliberate, like he's testing the waters before fully committing to his answer. "Yeah... better," he repeats, his voice more certain this time. His eyes flutter open, and a cute, determined face replaces the more bashful Beomgyu you were getting pretty comfortable playing with.
For the second time tonight, an awkward silence overtakes you both and he leans back against the pillows, fiddling nervously with the drawstrings of his hoodie, his fingers picking at the fabric as if trying to find some distraction.
The silence stretches on until suddenly, Beomgyu moves. Without warning, he starts to pull at the hem of his hoodie, yanking it up and over his head in one swift motion.
“Whoa, whoa, what’re you doing?” you blurt out as you watch him toss his hoodie to the side, leaving him in just a thin undershirt. You’re completely caught off guard, and for a moment, all you can do is stare at him, the sight of his flushed skin and tousled hair making your heart, for the first time, race.
For …Beomgyu.
He looks back at you, sheepish. “It’s hot,” he says simply.
You blink, still processing. “Yeah, but…” you trail off, realizing you don’t really have an argument. The air’s pretty darn thick and stifling.
“Okay, fair enough,” you say finally, trying to play it off with a casual shrug. “I mean, it is pretty warm in here.”
“…Right.”
You’re acting weird. Even Beomgyu’s noticing. You’re losing the upper hand.
“Uh, th-there’s another setting,” you stammer, quickly looking down at your phone in your hand, avoiding his gaze. “Wanna try it out? To see which one feels better.”
He hums in approval, his response casual, almost nonchalant, like he's confident nothing can catch him off guard.
But that confidence doesn’t last long.
The second you make the switch, his body jolts, a gasp slipping out before he can stop it. “How…how is it?” you ask anyway.
Beomgyu’s response is more of a whimper than anything else, his lips parting as he struggles to form coherent words. “It’s…oh god…it’s—" His voice catches in his throat, and it happens again. Loud and unrestrained. This time, it’s unmistakable.
Beomgyu's eyes widen in horror as the sound leaves his lips, his hand flying up to clap over his mouth in a desperate attempt to stifle any more noises. His cheeks flush a deep, burning red, and you can see the sheer embarrassment etched into his expression as he tries to hide his face, mortified by his own reaction.
You didn’t plan this. Not at all. But you cannot for the life of you even get yourself to feel an ounce of guilt for the way your underwear uncomfortably sticks to your heat.
Your gaze drops lower, and there it is-the clear strain in his pants, “Uh…Gyu…?” you murmur, your voice barely above a whisper as your eyes flicker back up to his face.
Your mind is spinning, caught between disbelief and the sudden rush of arousal that floods right to your lower abdomen.
Beomgyu doesn't respond immediately. He's too busy fighting his own body, his breaths coming in shallow, rapid gasps as he tries to regain some semblance of control. His hand remains firmly over his mouth, his eyes squeezed shut as if he's trying to will himself to disappear, to erase the moment that just happened.
It's overly dramatic, of course-classic Beomgyu, always a tinge extra when he's overwhelmed. But instead of finding it annoying like you might have at any other time, it strikes you as incredibly…endearing.
The way his reactions are so genuine, so unguarded, makes him seem almost innocent in a way that tugs at your heart. He looks like a confused, flustered puppy than anything else.
The way he's covering his mouth, is almost comical in its futility-especially when another small, muffled whimper slips past his fingers. “Beomgyu,” you call out, your voice soft but insistent. “I need you to look at me.”
"I-I can't—" he stammers, his voice barely above a whisper as he tries to form coherent thoughts. "This is... it's t-too much..."
You tilt your head, “Do you want me to turn it off?”
“No! Just... I don't know..." he breathes out, his voice strained, as if he's not entirely sure what he's asking for. “Please.”
Something stirs within you, and before you know it, you’re moving closer to him, reaching out your hand to rest on his arm—you think it’d help comfort him. But he only takes that opportunity to bury his head in your neck a few seconds later.
Your heart pounds in your chest but you try to not give it any more attention. You’re supposed to be here for your friend.
“You’re doing so well, Beom,” you whisper, your voice steady and reassuring as you gently rub his arm. “You don’t have to be embarrassed. It’s just us here—you can let go. It’s just me.”
A soft, almost cute whimper escapes him as he nods against you, his breath warm against your skin.
Beomgyu's eyes flutter shut, and you can tell your words are having an effect on him, his resolve crumbling with each passing second, the twitch in his pants making it clear he’s barely holding on. “It’s okay,” you reassure.
Maybe it’s not. But you technically weren’t doing anything physical—it’s not wrong on your behalf, right? But as you rub your thighs subtly, trying to relieve something, that guilt is just as incessant.
You watch the way Beomgyu’s hand moves—hesitantly at first, as if he's not sure what he's doing or if he should even be doing it. But then he turns his head up to look at you, and you’re once again, caught off guard. His eyes look like they’re searching for something, focus shifting from one place to another. And you’re left feeling like you’re under a microscope, until it seems like he found what he’s looking for because his fingers finally brush against the waistband of his pants.
“Are you—are you sure this is okay?” he asks softly. And you nod. Almost too fast.
Maybe you should close your eyes. If not for the respect of the relationship that you’ve completely forgotten of once you had Beomgyu in your arms, at least for your best friend’s pride.
Actually, you don’t think he minds. If the strangled groan that comes out his pretty lips were anything to go by. He fumbles for his hard, aching cock, flinging it out and stroking it furiously almost the second he gets his hands on it and your eyes only manage to widen at the sight.
For lack of better words, you gawk.
“It’s not disappointing or anything, huh?” he tries to joke, but his breaths too strung out, too gone for even that.
Your mouth dries. Far from it.
This is the one time your boyfriend comes to mind in a while, and its not favorable. Beomgyu’s not bigger—he’s not small either, but that’s not your focus—rather the pearly bead that bubbles atop of the tiny slit, the head a deep pink, the way its veins pulses as his pace falters at your silence. That small bead of fluid oozing down his shaft, tracing the lines of the delicate veins. The curves, every little detail. He’s perfect. More perfect than you’ve ever seen.
It seems you took way too long for Beomgyu’s liking and self confidence so he looks elsewhere, “Is…it?”
You blink, almost forgetting your predicament, lost in your admiration of him. "No, no, of course not. It's—it's pretty," you reply, your words tumbling out in a rush as you try to reassure him.
But instead of calming him, your words have the opposite effect. His shoulders shake, and suddenly, he's burying himself back into your shoulder, his hand completely abandoning his cock. "H-hahh-" he pants, his breath hitching as he begins to hiccup, overwhelmed by his emotions.
“Are you—are you crying?”
“You just called my dick pretty,” he seems to sob a bit more at that, soaking your shirt, feeling the dampness spreading across your chest. “You hate it. It looks bad.”
You're at a loss for words, completely thrown by his reaction. You struggle to pry him off you, your hands gently but firmly gripping his shoulders as you try to pull back just enough to look him in the face. "What?! No!" you exclaim, your voice rising with urgency. "Pretty means pretty. Fuck, don't cry, it's perfect, Beomgyu. It looks perfect, I swear."
His hiccups slow as your words sink in, and you can see the tension in his shoulders begin to ease. He sniffles softly, wiping at his tears with the back of his hand, his breathing gradually becoming steadier. As the emotional intensity lessens gradually, you with no control of your own, redirect your attention to his poor cock. It’s rock hard. He looks like he needs some soothing so you think to do the sensible thing. The…right thing?
Beomgyu lets out a small, shaky laugh, trying to lighten the mood despite everything that's just happened. "Man... I think this plug’s really messed with my vulnerability or something," he jokes weakly, his voice still wavering as he tries to regain his composure. “Had me crying pretty fas—"
His rant pauses at a hilt. He meets your gaze as you fully wrap your hand around his shaft after he just witnessed you quickly spit on your palm.
He doesn’t question it. At all. In fact, the moment your hand’s on him, there’s no hesitation in the way he spreads his legs wider, his pants responsively moving down to pool around his ankles.
A soft, whiny sound escapes him, and he leans into your touch, his eyes drooping, face contorting cutely. “O-oh…I…I..”
“Shhh, I got you pretty,” you whisper. His cock’s soft to the touch, and wet. When you glide your hand up and down, even slowly, it makes an unpleasantly wet, dirty sound.
He’s very reactive to the endearing nickname that feels almost too natural slipping out of your lips of all people. “P-pretty..” he repeats, sighing, almost dazedly. A complete goner.
You squeeze him and he lets out another needy, low moan and wraps his arms around your waist. Your heart pounds at how clingy he is, it feels like it’s about to burst. "Ahhh...f-fuck…” He moans against your neck, a highly pitched sound only a woman could make, feeling a trail of saliva traveling down from the corner of his mouth.
You almost cum untouched at the sight of him, at the pretty, almost perfectly described as heavenly sinful sounds he’s making. A sheen of sweat has formed on his forehead, his hair damp at the edges, and it somehow makes him look better.
His body tenses beneath your touch, you can feel the warmth of his skin, the sweat slicking his brow, and the way his breath catches in his throat. Then, suddenly, he lets out a choked cry, his voice breaking as he bucks his hips just slightly. The movement is involuntary, desperate, as if his body is moving on its own, seeking out the final bit of friction it needs.
And then it happens.
Beomgyu gasps sharply, his body going rigid as he reaches his peak. He shudders violently, his chest heaving as he shoots strings of his load, the warm, sticky fluid spilling out. You react quickly, instinctively guiding the release towards him, watching as it lands all over his tummy and a bit on his chest.
You're struck by how quickly it happened—how you'd only had him in your hand for a few seconds before he came. His chest heaves, his breathing ragged and uneven as he slowly comes down from the high.
For a moment, there's nothing but the sound of his breathing, the soft rise and fall of his chest as he tries to steady himself.
Finally, he looks down at the mess on his stomach and chest, a soft, almost sheepish smile tugging at the corners of his lips.
And for whatever reason, that has an effect on you. He looks so endearing in this moment—his lips slightly parted, his lashes brushing against his flushed skin, his hair perfectly tousled and falling over his eyes—
You're completely lost in the sight of him, practically mesmerized by how perfect he looks and your mind starts to drift until suddenly his voice breaks through your thoughts.
"Did you hear me?" he asks. "Doofus, turn it off. It's starting to make my asshole sore."
Your romantic daze shatters like glass.
Blinking rapidly, your face transforms into a shocked scowl, the absurdity of the situation hitting you all at once. "Wait, what?" you stammer.
Beomgyu raises an eyebrow at you, clearly expecting a response. But as the moment stretches on, your brain lags behind as you try to process what he just said.
Then it clicks.
"Oh, right!" you gasp, fumbling with your phone as you quickly find the app and turn off the plug, mortification creeping up your spine. What an absolute bust.
a/n: well well well. in the first draft he was made to eat his own cum but i felt maybe this fic wasnt the one for that😊😊 Unfortunately for some, fortunate for others🤔 anyway tell me how u enjoyed beomgyu getting his ass stimulated in a poorly made fort lol
#i loveeeee subtle writing when it comes to romance#its so much fun so im so happy you like it too😂#reading between the lines trying to figure out if the feelings are there or not is so much more realistic to real life for me lol so its#both enjoyable to read & write#thank you again for the cute review❤️#feedback
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Writing a romance scene between friends-turned-lovers
1. Build Tension and Chemistry:
Start by creating a strong foundation of emotional connection and chemistry between the characters. Show the reader why these friends are perfect for each other.
2. Use Inner Monologue:
Reveal the characters' inner thoughts and feelings. Allow readers to see their internal struggle and realization that their friendship has transformed into something more.
3. Subtle Gestures and Glances:
Describe subtle physical cues such as lingering touches, longing glances, or an accidental brush of hands. These small actions can speak volumes about the characters' growing attraction.
4. Dialogue:
Develop natural and engaging dialogue that reflects the characters' personalities. Use humor, vulnerability, and sincerity in their conversations to convey the depth of their emotions.
5. Setting and Mood:
Choose an appropriate setting that complements the romantic mood. Consider factors like lighting, ambiance, and the time of day to enhance the atmosphere.
6. Build Anticipation:
Slowly escalate the tension and anticipation as the characters become aware of their changing feelings. Tease the readers by delaying the moment of confession or physical intimacy.
7. Show Vulnerability:
Let your characters open up to each other, sharing their fears and insecurities. Vulnerability can be a powerful tool in a romance scene, making the characters relatable and endearing.
8. Physical Descriptions:
Provide sensory details when describing the characters' physical appearances. Highlight what makes each character attractive in the eyes of the other.
9. Create Realistic Obstacles:
Introduce obstacles or doubts that challenge the characters' path from friendship to romance. Overcoming these obstacles can make the relationship feel more genuine.
10. Build to the Climax:
Slowly build the scene to its climax, whether it's a passionate kiss, a confession of love, or another significant moment. Make it emotionally charged and meaningful.
11. Emotional Impact:
Ensure that the scene evokes a strong emotional response from the readers. Let them feel the characters' joy, relief, and excitement as the friendship evolves into romance.
12. Aftermath:
Show the aftermath of the romantic scene. How do the characters feel afterward? What changes in their relationship? What are their hopes and fears for the future?
13. Consistency:
Maintain consistency with the characters' personalities and the development of their relationship. Ensure that their actions and words align with their established traits and the progression of their bond.
#writing#writer on tumblr#writerscommunity#writing tips#character development#writer tumblr#writblr#writing advice#oc character#writing help#romantic gestures#romantic scenarios#best friends to lovers
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ITS HALLOWEEN
the time of the year we are able to buy fangs in retail. and i've tried literally every brand of fangs that spirit halloween carries (and more), so this is my review and recommendations.
Scarecrow Fangs
unpopular opinion, but i did not like these. They're way too expensive, imo and the molding solution sucks and is a nightmare to work with. the fangs themselves are alright.
price: 19.99 us
rating: 5/10
Spirit Halloween
It's surprisingly good! i used these until i broke them - they use thermoplastic for molding, which i think should be the standard for fangs. It's far easier to work with. the plastic is cheaper than Scarecrow, but they feel solid and are a more realistic color (at least for me)
price: 4.99 us
rating: 8/10
Monster High
Oh my ghoul, i love these. These fangs are a bit on the smaller size, which is useful if you're going for subtle. and of course, being monster high, i'm all for them. i mean, that case is adorable
again, these use thermoplastic. Though its imortant to note not to put the fangs themselves in hot water while you're molding them- i warped one by accident. regardless, they are so comfortable and resilient. my second favorites.
price: 9.99 us
rating 9/10
Special FX
we've all seen that video of that girl using these in like 2008 and wanted to be her. at least i did... but im sad to report that these fangs dont work on my anatomy. they mold to your back molars with thermoplastic, and when you press on the bar, the fangs come down. these fit simular to a retainer as they just sit above your teeth.
i, however, am missing one of those molars and cannot line it up right to use them. (never beating the kentuckian stereotype)
price: 9.99
rating: 3/10
Now for the ones not sold at Spirit Halloween
Amazon cosplay fangs
You've most likely seen these before. they're nothing special, but they get the job done. i do like the case they come in! very convenient. But the color is far too unrealistic for me. still, they do use thermoplastic! which is always a win. and theres four sizes, again convenient.
price: 7.99 us (give or take)
rating: 4/10
Dracula Fangs
I had never heard of this brand before someone posted about these on tiktok. i bought them immediately (i am not immune to propaganda, and neither are you), and i gotta say... They're my favorite I've tried.
I got the large ones; and let me tell you, they're massive. definitely not for subtle vamp vibes. They're sharp, too! That's a plus for me, not for everyone, i assume. and they mold with thermoplastic! they come with way more than you need (which you can use to make more fangs if you desire)
they do come in smaller sizes as far as I've seen, but i haven't tried those yet.
price: 20.00 us (i know that's rather pricey)
rating 10/10
honorable(ish) mentions
...
vampire condoms. only get them as a bit. a /j fang if you will.
price: 0.99 (i got mine at dave&busters for 25 tokens)
rating: i am wampire/10
Walmart Fangs
i swore there were some in different packaging, but i can't find those now. these suck (not in the fun way). They're made of rubber, and i dont remember them having any molding agents. just skip these, okay?
price: 2.89 us
rating: 0/10
#vampire#halloween#vampire costume#vampire cosplay#vamp#vampirecore#goth#vampire goth#vampirekin#vampire kin#fangs#monster#monster high#cosplay#otherkin#therian#nonhuman
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They did not "take away" Sokka sexism in the Netflix Avatar The last Airbender adaptation!l. They just made it more realistic to what sexism actually looks like in the real world.
In the original cartoon, Sokka's sexism is very one dimensional, a "women can't fight!!" attitude and he immediately gets humbled and learns he's wrong. It's a pretty simple depiction of misogyny, but it's good because after all, ATLA is a show for kids (that doesn't mean you can't enjoy it as an adult) but having a simple depiction of sexism = bad is perfect for what the show is.
However, it's very clear the Netflix adaptation is a bit more mature in tone and takes its themes a bit more serious. Its still "all ages" but I would not show it to young kids with the whole burning people alive stuff. So because it takes a more serious approach to the story, it also does so with Sokka's sexism arc! Instead of just being like "women can't fight!" he assumes by virtue of being a male who was handed a club, he is the equal of Suki and the Kyoshi warriors. He literally says this, that he thinks they are practically the same. Suki rightfully gets pissed about it! She has trained her entire life as an elite warrior. Him and her are NOT the same. And in this version, Sokka again, gets immediately humbled and learns he was wrong.
This version of sexism is waaaaay more accurate to the sexism we see around in modern society today though. We don't really see a ton of people saying women can't play sports, but that there's a lot of men who think just because they played a sport in highschool, they could match up equally with (or even beat!) a professional woman athlete. All just because they are a guy!!! And this is the sexism that Sokka exhibits, and is refuted! It's a GOOD change because it's showing sexism (and how wrong it is) in the subtle way it is more likely to show up as in the real world!
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aftermath
ERMMM this takes place after long winter au third semester.... it could honestly vary but i think sometime btwn 5-10 yrs. sumire is abroad, akira moved back to tokyo after finishing hs/college, goro is. around
SORRY ITS 5am again so ill make this quick . again
QUICK DISCLAIMER this is kinda like a lot of me projecting LMFAOSDOGKJSDHFK@#)40 so like dont read into this tooooo much bc idk royaltrio cld be insnanely ooc here but. YEA.
started thinking abt akira constantly calling up goro and sumire even after 1) goro dies (so they think) and 2) sumire distances herself post-third sem. i elaborate on this on my shusumi fic........ sorry subtle shilling
^ tldr i think these 3 kinda drift apart after the snowglobe world crumbles, that false reality that ironically brought them so close together..... back in reality, things feel Different (but this is Our reality right? why does it feel so strange now?) and so. well its just not the same, no amtter what
the. the “the love was there. it didnt change anything. it didnt save anyone. there were just too many forces against it. but it still matters that the love was there” tumblr post
even though they loved each other and knew it too, there was also some sort of looming feeling that it won't last - but it does, still. it exists, in some meaningful sense-
akira sees and thinks about sumire and goro in everything he does, his day to day life, worries about them, wants to tell them about all he's doing, wants to hear about what they're up to. so he does so by leaving voicemails (although in this case sumire changed her number LMFAO. he does it anyway)
in the same vein, sumire thinks about all the things she'd like to tell goro, but with no address to send it to, it's useless. but she writes them anyway - more and more as a solace to herself, conversing with the memory of goro in her head, making him live on in that sense. and with akira i think it's a little more subtle. here she's trying to find a coffee shop that measures up to lebalnc, and of course she doesn't. there's only one leblanc and only one akira. but yeah like in sumire's case she kinda goes these "roundabout" ways in her Missing Them. theres also the added thing of her wanting to be more independent (from goro and akira and kasumi and tokyo and etc etc etc. also elaborated on in said fic)
goro! i think there's smth so poignant about visiting your own grave (i wrote sumire doing htis in another fic. thats an aside) hair cut, mask on, no gloves, he's a different sort of goro akechi but not really in any meaningful sense either. he's just different. sumire leaves the scarf (i think w sumire, she learns from goro like. omg im blanking on the word. LIKE reliability..? thinking realistically? smth like that.) so shes subconsciously thinks oh ill get him something useful like a scarf to keep warm (and a lil more subtle on the love aspect). akira gets him a lovely bouquet, straightforward and honest w his love/adoration, never afraid to spell it out. smth abt goro needing to live a new life now but also he keeps looking back - but this time, there's love when he looks back. there's still love
a kind of "youll always have home with me" sentiment btwn these 3. even if we never return there, youll still have a place in my heart
like "i dont think ill ever have that kind of love again. but i had it once. and even if i couldnt keep it, its still important." THIS IS HARD TO EXPLAIN
anyway tldr theres just some sentiment w royaltrio w Wanting to move on but also holding onto your past, and learning how to reconcile with the horrible parts but also the tender and lovely parts. sometimes there's stuff you gotta leave behind and grow past, grow around, even if it's good. even if it's good, you still have to push forward. <- a lesson that i'm trying to teach myself currently so thats why this is very. projecting. LMFAODSJKHJKSDKW sorry im crnge goodnight
these notes are horrible dont read these.
#goro akechi#sumire yoshizawa#akira kurusu#persona 5 royal#royal trio#shuakesumi#cele draws#long winter#cele comics
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We need to start questioning the conflation of "maturity" with "increased stakes."
It's not to say higher stakes is always a bad choice. The first half of the How to Train Your Dragon book series has an endearingly whimsical, child-like feel. Hiccup's issues in the first half of book one are an obnoxious, cat-sized Toothless pooping in his helmet. The movie adaptation might have made the book and its counterpart distant cousins, but it was a thoughtful move to alter concepts to the appropriately theatrical: books and movies aren't the same medium. Hiccup riding alone on Toothless, exchanging fire blasts with a mountain-sized dragon, and losing his leg came off as well-done storytelling.
Hiccup staring at a prosthetic never happened in the book. He didn't lose his leg in his encounter with the Green Death. It was, as the creative powers behind the movie said, a result of the increased stakes. They didn't do this just to be more dramatic; they did it because it seemed that, based on how their narrative was going, this made sense. And this was a soft, quiet, shocking, breath-taking scene that instilled how good the movie handled its stakes. It gave us a reflective reaction to consequences that audiences might not have expected. This movie understood timing, pauses, quietness, narrative arc, poignance, reflection, emotion, love, and heart.
We know about the conflation of live action as "more mature" than animation. But a medium doesn't change maturity levels. We all know that's bogus, and many analyses have been given on that. Disney live actions add extraneous gunk, down to Gaston having a past relationship with war (so I've heard, from the people who actually watched the movie), and Disney giving us the sad scoop on why Belle's mom isn't around. Furthermore, lots of times, when I see the conversion of animation to live action, I notice creators feel a need to "raise the stakes" -- in line with the erroneous view of "giving maturity."
But "higher stakes" often means inserting action in place of mindful interaction. I feel today's Hollywood movies, in their treatment of "action," don't let movies pause and breathe anymore - ergo, they don't let us think. Isn't it more juvenile to actively avoid thought in favor of "hey look I made the building go boom"? There may be less "stakes" in introspection and mindful dialogue, but that's what gives it its maturity. That's how we went from Iron Man 1, with its grounded treatment of war and abuse, to the mindless high spectacle MCU is today.
Snappy one-liners or moments that clap at contemporary issues don't substitute for maturity. What can make a story mature is characters grappling with issues in a natural narrative through-line. A snappy one-liner is its own form of speedy spectacle.
We know about the conflation of "gore and sex" with "mature audiences." I believe they're right that graphic sex and gore is designed for adults. But that doesn't make it mature, and that doesn't make it the only way to target a medium for adults.
"Realisticness" isn't maturity. Per above regarding animation: realistic visuals are nothing. And if you think that putting more Debbie Downer material into your adaptation makes it more adult, you have to ask yourself why the themes that spoke to people's souls got muddled in its midst. We weren't mature enough to interact with the most subtle, nuanced, and impacting voice of the story. But hey! Look! There's more corpses, I guess!
It's not the visuals, it's not the events. It's not the "things." It's not the basic insertion of the external. Get past the superficial, get past the top layer of presentation. It's the mind. It's the ability to think. It's the ability to be still. It's the ability to be interested and attentive when something is slow or quotidian, because we can understand why that is important for narrative growth or arcs or themes or commentary on the human condition. It's the ability to know when and when not to include something. It's the ability to make resonant impact. It's the ability to be deep with your emotions or your themes. It's the ability to take what you have and grow it in a way by which we can derive something deeper.
Maturity is critical thought and well-conducted, appropriate responses to content of any kind.
As DeBlois tells Empire, the move to live-action brings a different emphasis to How To Train Your Dragon; a new heft, both physically and emotionally. “It’s so dialed-up in terms of stakes — having a fully credible, photo-real dragon stomping around trying to kill him,” the director says.
And maybe that DeBlois quote is taken out of context. Maybe there's more going on than that one sentence conveys. Maybe Empire is making their own erroneous assumptions. But "so dialed-up in terms of stakes," isn't, on its own, a good appeal. The animated movie already dialed things up - and knew when to include or not include something. A live-action that imitates the visuals of the animated movie exactly, as if no independent thought has been done to its unique adaptation, to the pros and cons of the medium, to what a independently-presented story needs and doesn't need... It has to make you wonder: how many conflations of "maturity" are going on?
How long are we going to keep making our own conflations?
#long post#analysis#my analysis#httyd#How to Train Your Dragon#Dean DeBlois#why not tag him idk haha#MCU#Marvel#Marvel Cinematic Universe#tagging the shit I talk about for categorization purposes yeet#httyd books#Cressida Cowell
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