#but i am mildly interested in the show itself so who knows

[falling-hand-in-unlovable-hand]

i've got a half day tmrw should i watch good omens

[215-luv]

“OH GOD, IT’S NOT FAIR OF HIM TO MAKE ME FEEL THIS MUCH!” (HQ BOYS)

ATSUMU: says things out of nowhere that it makes you feel butterflies. it’s so sudden that it hits you like a tidal wave that knocks the air out of you. the two of you could be laughing at some random thing and suddenly, he opens his mouth to mention something, “your smile.” he says, almost out of nowhere, eyes looking at you with so much fondness that you refuse to believe that someone could ever look at you that way. “my smile? what’s wrong with it, tsum?” you question, and he chuckles, “oh, there’s nothing wrong with it.” a goofy smile plants itself over his face, “it’s just.. it’s so pretty. i want to see it more.” he says, resting his forehead over yours. “wanna be the person who makes you do all that—smile and laugh. you’re so beautiful.”

AKAASHI: “you were saying?” he questions as he’s scribbling over his notebook, studying for a test he’ll take the next day. the question almost surprises you. “i was saying..?” you ask, eyes on him as he looks busy enough writing over his notebook rather than listening to your nonstop blabbering. “yeah? you were talking about the book you just finished reading.” he says, and you sat there surprised, silenced and unable to fully process what you just heard. “well?” he ushers you to speak, the tone of his voice coming out as if he wants to hear more from you. and you couldn’t help but stare at him in disbelief. “you.. you were listening?” you respond with a timid voice. your boyfriend lets out a chuckle, dropping down his pen to look at you with interest in his eyes. “of course i do. i’m always listening to you, honey.”

KUROO: you weren’t sure what just happened, but all you could process was the fact that you’re suddenly lifted by the strong arms of your boyfriend as you walked through the hallway of the campus. it was supposed to be a normal day. you sighed, trying to ignore the stares of the students around you (and yaku, literally staring at the both of you in disgust). “tetsu, what are you doing? what’s all this? what’s happening?” you throw your boyfriend a wave of questions, unable to get a glimpse of the motive behind his actions. the deep chuckles from him reaches your ears, and you almost had to be grateful for being carried bridal style so as to not feel your knees weakening from the sound he just made. “am i not allowed to care for the love of my life?” he says, almost as if it’s an obvious fact. you roll your eyes, not convinced. you open your mouth to say something, but he beats you to it—“you mentioned you walked home yesterday, right? you know, it’s pretty convenient to take the bus sometime. your house is pretty far from here. your feet must have been aching. let me take care of you, alright?”

OIKAWA: “delivery for the most beautiful person in the world!” he knocks on your classroom door, catching the attention of your classmates. you mildly panic, a rush of embarrassment flowing over you as you’re greeted with teasing smiles and chuckles. you see, tooru always had the tendency to do these things. and it honestly surprises you ‘till this day. he makes you feel so openly loved that it scares you it might disappear someday. your heart beats at a fast pace as your boyfriend nears you, eyes never leaving your figure as the corners of his lips are raised upwards. he places a bouquet of flowers on your desk, along with your favorite food on a plastic bag, and you almost choke a cry. “what’s all this?” you question, looking at him with suspicious eyes. he chuckles, “is there anything wrong with a boy simply wanting to show his love to his favorite person in the world?” his hand reaches to cup itself against your cheek, his warmth cascading over you. “let me show you what you deserve. i’m right here.”

USHIJIMA: you let out a sharp breath as you’re suddenly being pulled to collide against a strong chest which happens to be your boyfriend. you’re about to ask what just happened when he speaks first, “be careful. you were about to hit a lamp post.” your eyes widens, looking to the side to notice that you were, indeed, about to bump against one. guilt quickly begins to rush over you. “o-oh.. i’m sorry, i get really clumsy and bad at these things—“ you try to explain yourself apologetically, but your boyfriend cuts you off before you could finish your statement, “please don’t apologize. these are simply trivial matters.” he tells you. it’s only ‘till then you notice his arm wrapped around your waist in a protective manner while he keeps you steady. “matters like these are the reason why i’m here. let me be the one to keep you out of danger.”

KITA: “this one’s wrong. you messed up the formula halfway, that’s why the rest of the equation is wrong.” your boyfriend explains to you as he compares his math homework with yours. you couldn’t help but chuckle in embarrassment, inwardly beating yourself up for being dumb infront of him. you scratch the back of your head, “s-sorry, i could really get confused over these things.” you apologize, and your boyfriend could only nod in understanding. “in this number too, you got the formula wrong. you’re supposed to use this.” he then adds, pointing to a certain number on your paper. you couldn’t help but feel small under his gaze. “r-right.. i’m sorry, i promise i’ll do better.” you reply apologetically. but your discomfort doesn’t go unnoticed by shinsuke. his eyes worriedly looks at your figure as he quickly slides an arm around your waist, “hey, it’s okay. don’t worry about it.” you could feel his thumb rubbing against the fabric of your shirt as a way to assure you. “you’re doing amazing, believe me. just let me know if you’re confused anywhere. i can always help you. you’re okay.”

[sarejima]

i am a starving child and am requesting kyman fanfics to soothe my hunger (PLS recommend ME SOME)

OMG YAY SOMEBODY ASKED ME SMTH IM SO HAPPY AMSBSDB

Unfortunately I'm a green and inexperienced mother but I'll do my best!! (thisll be long as i cant keep from waxing poetic about fics i like)-

The love of my life and one of the best things I've had the pleasure of reading period is “Know your Enemy” by Elsen. It's beyond perfect to me enough so that even though it may never be finished I'm sort of satisfied. Eric's characterisation is beautiful and literally just as hilarious as in the show itself with the way he schemes and jumps over nonsensical hoops in his head in order to satisfy his self image in processing his feelings for Kyle and unwitting desires to submit to him. The plot and setting in and of themselves also somehow complement his absurdity. Also has just the right amount of perversion. (Okay I'm done sorry)

Another genius Cartman channelfic that I was audibly giggling at due to the insanity of his mental gymnastics is "I crush everything" by Rainbow_Convection which is quite short and mainly deals with him "processing" his feelings

(The above person is really good at writing compellingly about manic impulses and emotions so check out their other fics too)

On a similar note and also exploring implications of Cartmans outright deluded conscious, this time through Kyle's perspective, is 'Imaginationland 4: a tale of two Kyles' by Sinshipsahoy where it's revealed to Kyle (in increasingly horrifying ways) that Cartman's mind is (literally) swarming with him.

(This guy also has a worryingly well written corpse desecration fic so if that's your cup of tea)

In the 'I'm with Stupid' series by numbknee Eric gets together with Kyle and is annoying and fiercely loveable and everything's great until Kyle realises that sadly Cartman's views on relationships/love in general- but especially with Kyle, his 'enemy'- had been significantly skewed from the start due to an aversion to vulnerability, stunting their progress. I especially like the fourth and last fic/chapter.

Kinda depressing but in 'Sharing Last Names' by serpenrzbreath an adult Cartman's Kyle obsession is partly due to lamenting, while in the depths of denial, his own collosal wasted potential as over the years wasted rotting and room-bound due to severe mental instability but also just lack of trying, one of the only things grounding his shame is Kyle's comparative success, and when a time of reckoning comes an unwilling(?) Kyle is all he feels like turning to. However he soon learns that pity and concern is much more confusing and enraging than ire.

Some more Kyle focused fics are

'Love and the other thing' by Gumdroppy where we get an equal amount of Kyle and Eric perspective- Kyle who revealed his love for Eric as a kid first and loves Eric WAY too much for his own good(to the point where his friends feel the need to take measures to ensure his best interests) and Eric who perhaps fell harder- worships the ground Kyle walks on- but can't seem to help the kneejerk hurt and abuse that flows from his hands. Bonus points for jealous Stan and Kenny being an angel.

Ans also by Elsen 'How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let My Mortal Enemy Eat My Ass' which is really hot with a compelling theme of overcoming Kyle's past trama what can I say

'It's basically a weird cat, right?' By Verimakea is a adorable fic about adult Kyle who by chance meets Eric in raccoon form(and then not-so-raccoon form) in which Cartman has separation issues and Kyle is forced to battle loneliness and incteasing mildly worrying feelings for this addition to his life.

Some other concepts:

'Baby, Just Say Yes' by shortstackedcheesecake96- a beautiful wonderful fic where the palpable chemistry between a (surprisingly earnest about the subject and a talented actor) Cartman and (quite good novice) Kyle get cast as Juliet and Romeo respectively. There's so much compelling teenage awkwardness where they both appear to be unwillingly drawn to each other despite everything in ways they feel they really shouldn't- Kyle especially is almost embarrassingly captivated by an Eric in his element- and it's such a pleasure to read; just thinking about some scenes has me wanting to reread it lmao.

(This writer also has a lot of enticing and well-written smut too)

'Fake it 'till you make it' by mewtwos is another fic I hold so so close to my heart in which Kyle and Eric have to fake date for a bit, until they realise that these fake displays of affection draw them in a little bit too hard; make them a bit too lightheaded, and by that point the reel has already been cast. It's insanely well written.

'Expertise' by Mewtwos where Eric is a little too eager to practice kissing with kyle and they have a little awakening

'To Be Wanted' by Verimakea- a Cowboy au where Kyle takes it upon himself to capture Wanted Sheriff Cartman, but things quickly gp array and they and up stuck together in one place for an indeterminate amount of time, with Kyle put in a position where he often has bo choice but to rely on the other. This writer is seriously skilled at painting subtly erotic/suggestive imagery, and writing complex emotions into characters through their actions so its quite the fun leg-kicking read lol.

'Copacabana' by Senkenwoo is a bittersweet fic about jaded middle aged retired performer Kyle recalling how he lost his charming and endearingly annoying bartender lover

Some unconventional smut cus y not:

'Laid To Rest' by gosh_zillah in which Kyle has a deep seated desire to be a cocksleeve and subsequently gets watched in his sleep by an enthralled little audience for a bit(among other things as he proves to be quite perceptive lol)

"You're in his DMs? i'm in his walls, we are not the same" by ratherblue - Eric watches Kyle have smexy times thru a hidden camera; implied mutual pining. Also Kyle's trans

'Cause I'm a free bitch, baby' by knumbknee where Kyle sees an Eric in proper drag for the first time and is transfixed

'sleep tight' by bloodylamb is a quirky little sleepover somnophillia fic where Kyle's mildly vocal about his Eric-disposition in his sleep if you're good with dubcon.

I'm sure you weren't expecting to be waterboarded by text and for this I apologise

[kiragecko]

what do you think about batcest?

Okay, I believe in Ship and Let Ship, and that fiction can be about whatever it wants to be about. So I'm not getting into a purity culture discussion here. Instead, I'll talk about my actual opinions, rather than a moral stance.

Mostly, I think that it is an uninterestingly large category, grouped together mostly for logistics reasons.

-

First, there's incest-kink. Which comes in two main flavours that I've seen: restitution, and violation.

Restitution incest-kink is when a person either didn't get strong family relational attachments growing up, or idolizes those types of attachments, and finds a way to create them with other loved ones later on, through either sex or roleplay.

Since familial connections were my ONLY stable relationships as a kid, this just ... feels weird to me. Why get that from people who, in my experience, are WORSE at it? I find it mildly off-putting in fic.

Violation incest-kink is when someone is attracted to the broken trust, vulnerability, and shame attached to being harmed by someone supposed to protect you.

I like dark fic, and benefit from reliving helplessness in a safe environment (like fic). I will read a fic like this, but usually for unrelated reasons. Incest isn't the draw, it just often shows up in the same stories as tropes that work better for me.

-

Then, there's the Batcest which isn't interested in incest at all. It's just labeled that way to warn people that characters, which the audience might consider family, are dating/having sex.

I think it's a good idea to label that! Some people might want to avoid it!

(I don't personally think that this counts as writing incest. This type of fic is usually impossible to differentiate from fic about characters who are unrelated. The previous type of fic that I described IS distinct. If something has no effect on the story, I don't think it's an important variable.)

I think people write Technical Batcest for multiple reasons. Some that I've seen are:

They're the characters the authour has seen interact. Which makes them the only available options to ship. I can enjoy this type of fic, though I REALLY like supporting characters, and comics minutiae, so I often find it a bit limiting.

The authour only knows how to interpret canon closeness through sex/romance. Similar to the first type of incest-kink, but without the awareness. I'm way too aroace for this boringness.

The authour has a specific dynamic or theme to explore, and it can most easily be explored through sex/romance. This ... is often extremely compelling. Fiction has tools that really life doesn't. Metaphors, symbols, and mirrored experiences can be amazing ways to explore complex topics. I APPROVE of shipping Bats together if it gets me some deep insights into them, myself, or the world!

-

For me, whether something is Batcest or not isn't really a helpful factor. I'm looking at other tags, the summary, and maybe the first few paragraphs, instead.

The only things I actively search out are a few JayTim tropes that I feel are most successfully explored through their particular history and context, and also work best with sex as ... almost a distancing effect? Like, the thing they're resonating with in me has NOTHING to do with sex, but is far too vulnerable to be addressed directly. Pretend sex happening to other people is enough distance that I can actually look into that part of myself.

(I would like if enough people knew about the 'Incest Kink' tag that I could assume that 'Pseudo-Incest' by itself probably WASN'T the first category. It would make both tags more useful. But I still think it's valuable to tag things even if they don't help me!)

-

Finally, here are my opinions about the actual ship dynamics.

I am not interested in Damian being shipped with anyone, related or not. Find it a turn off. He's little, I don't HAVE to tolerate ships yet!

There is a certain kind of romantic exploration I find compelling in rare Cass fics, but I have no interest in reading about her having sex, ever. (The only other Wayne I've seen this dynamic with is Tim, and those were written before the adoption.)

Tim is shut down enough that sex becomes a valid way to get into his head. Really uninterested in anything but his platonic sibling relationship with Dick. Dark fic with him and Bruce is possible, but can go wrong in a lot of ways. I like him and Jason with a variety of dynamics and interpretations - both canon compliant and completely fanon.

Dick and anyone other than Jason usually bothers me, and I avoid it. I relate to Dick as co-eldest-siblings. That is not what I am interested in with siblings. Even Dark fic with him and Bruce isn't fun. Prefer Dick & Jason over JayDick, but the ship can occasionally work.

I'm more interested in the family dynamics with ALL the characters. That's true with Jason, as well. But with him I have the least strongly-negative reactions to ships. The only Wayne ship I get a lot out of is JayTim, but I'd be willing to read most of them, if the story seemed interesting.

Bruce and his children is ... I'm not a FAN. But, again, when I want things dark, that tends to be one of the places writers gravitate to, so I'll follow them.

Alfred. I do NOT want Alfred/Bruce. No. Not for me. Theoretically, Alfred would be even more affective than Bruce for dark ships with the kids, but I haven't actually found anything that worked for me.

And I haven't seen enough fic with any other relationships that would fit this label to have opinions.

[citrinekay]

Hey! I’ve been meaning to reach out and say hi for a while! Finally, I got a re-blog from you, tysm!! I’ve seen quite a few of your JCW posts (and also your stuff on various fandoms on AO3) and I know you’re quite the JCW fan – me too! Actually, I wanted to message to let you know that I think what you’re doing with the Andy/Revolver fanfic you’re writing is amazing. I read the first chapter a few days ago and am interested to see what you do with the story. The way you are dealing with some very sensitive topics is so well written, and I love the thought you have put into Andy’s character to give him this dark backstory. I’m looking forward to reading the rest when it’s completed, I never do well with chapter by chapter!! Also, well done for being the first to post for the Revolver fandom, I remember a short time back having to do that for the Pachinko fandom and I was nervous as hell. You are a very talented writer for sure, so I know the Revolver one will be a good read. Hopefully you’ll be inspired with Gangnam B-Side too once we see more. Anyway, sorry for waffling on, but if you ever wanna enthuse about JCW feel free to message ❤️ ~ take care 

Hi!! I've also seen your name popping up on AO3 too whenever I go to publish something JCW-related, like oh there's that one other person who loves him as much as I do😊lol I watched Worst of Evil last October and just fell completely in love him/ haven't been able to get back out of the obsession spiral since then thanks to pretty much every work he's done being worth watching. I don't expect the fixation to end any time soon haha

I'm genuinely so happy to receive feedback on my Revolver fic! Before I started posting, I made peace with the fact that it wasn't going to get much engagement since I had to create the fandom tag myself, but of course I do want some people to read and enjoy it. I was also fairly nervous about approaching those sensitive topics, so it's a relief to know that the way I'm presenting it doesn't feel offensive or tactless. It's always my intention to show the dark sides of human nature and relationships in a compelling but empathetic way. I couldn't stop thinking about the crumbs they gave us about Andy and Grace's relationship after I finished watching the movie, especially that final scene on the mountain when he begs her not to leave him and Madam Jung's comment to Suyeong that there's "rumors that he's her lover." She doesn't even allow people to know he's really her mom, which in and of itself could be pretty damaging to someone's development, but it seemed to me that the toxicity between them goes further than just this secret. They were clearly manipulating each other in that moment when she starts to walk away and then he cries and begs her not to leave. I thought that it seemed as if they had been through this type of push-and-pull before, a vicious cycle from which there is no escaping, and I really wanted to examine what had led up to that point.

It also really struck me that even though Andy is a privileged, wealthy person, he is drinking alone when Suyeong first meets him. Nobody rushes to his rescue when she's beating him and nobody really cares that he got hurt afterward (not even Grace, she's just mildly annoyed!) While it's true that his behavior invites getting his ass kicked, I think that anyone acting with such conscious disregard of their own life and everyone else's might have serious trauma that has never been addressed. Anyway, I totally understand waiting to read the fic until it's complete and I hope you enjoy the rest once it's done. I'll be updating weekly, so it shouldn't be too much longer.

Also, absolutely yes about Gangnam B-Side. I watched the first 2 episodes on Wednesday evening and my brain is already tickling with many thoughts about Gilho. As always, JCW is delivering a performance full of depth and nuance 🖤 I'll wait until the show has finished airing and I have all the character details to start writing but atm I can almost guarantee there will be some fics coming from me!

[chocochipjewel]

Okay yall Bad Batch finale aires in just under 12 hours and I have some finale theories to talk about! Hopefully I'll be able to post at least some rough art after the finale where I talk about the show some more but for now final theories!

I think CX-2 is Cody, it's too late for it to be Tech and it would be delightfully tragic if Rex or someone (who I think is definitely showing up for the finale) kills CX-2 and unmasks him after the fact or something

I think Hemlock did retrieve Tech's body and I think he's one of the experimental CX units who have not been released yet. But I don't think it worked. I want his sacrifice to mean something, so I want him to stay dead (even if my heart wants otherwise 😭) maybe his body is found, maybe he's never seen again, but I don't think he's coming back

I'm pretty sure Rex and his group of renegade clones will make an appearance, and I hope Phee gets a final moment to be badass as well. Apart from that, I'm hoping for no more extra characters cluttering the episode cause we already have so many loose ends up tie up here

I wouldn't put it past Disney to end the clone rebellion storyline on a cliffhanger tbh but I so badlyyy wish it won't be that way. Let their story end here. It will be sad but you know what that's better than the finale just being a tease for a future show. Let all the Tantiss prisoners break out and branch out to live new lives and die naturally as they deserve.

Now... for the actual Bad Batch itself

I'm certain someone is going to die. No one they're all making it out, not after all the teases and death flags. This isn't going to be like Mando S3 where the characters retire on some field for the rest of their lives (that's just for my fix it headcanons ❤️)

As for who, I've gone back and forth on this but I'm not sure. Every remaining member of the 4 troopers we have here have enough death flags on them and I've read compelling theories for all possibilities, including ones where they get Rogue One'd and everyone dies 😭

So I guess I don't really have a theory for this. I'm certain someone is going to die and I'm honestly scared for who it will be but I don't have a specific person yet. I'm leaning towards Hunter or Crosshair cause their conflict and relationships with Omega make the heart of the show itself, but I wouldn't be surprised if Wrecker or Echo died instead, or any other combination of the team members

Only thing I'm mildly certain about is Omega surviving. Disney Star Wars doesn't like to kill kids much. She's not 100% clear but least likely from my perspective. Plus it would end the show on too sad a note if the character driving the entire plot so far dies 😭 I can see a possibility in which she dies to delay Project Necromancer indefinitely, and it would honestly be sad as hell, but that's just it, it would be way too sad. I don't think the show likes being that dark, especially for its finale. And frankly, Omega's arc deserves to end with her finally getting to stop running and just live her life on her own terms.

Hemlock is definitely getting eaten by the Zillo beast while it destroys Tantiss and Rampart is almost surely making it out and turning a new leaf in my eyes. He's not any less of an asshole but he might just go live somewhere away from the Empire and away from the Bad Batch too.

Emerie is an interesting case cause I can't tell if she'll get the redemption = death thing or she'll make it out too. I honestly have 0 predictions for her. I can see her dying to save the force sensitive kids, but I can also see her making it out.

The force sensitive kids, clone cadets, Batcher, and Phee are probably gonna make it out and you know what good for them. They'll probably be the emotional support for the remaining members of the Batch (if there are any) to move on after this.

I am hoping and praying for no Boba Fett or Ventress or Vader or Palpatine cameo cause this is the last episode of the Bad Batch show and it should ideally focus on. The Bad Batch. The show already has too many loose threads. No more cameos please.

As for whoever survives in the Batch, my ideal wish would just be for them to retire to Pabu under a new identity or something and live out their lives. After Tantiss is destroyed, there would be no clones left in captivity. They can finally rest then. It would be bittersweet to see the end of their adventures as they knew it, but it's at least a peaceful end.

Anyways, that's all for my theories I think! Whether I end up being right or not, I hope the finale is actually good 😭 and I hope whoever dies doesn't make me TOO sad, just that sweet spot of devastated but in a good way 😭😭😭

I'll be reblogging this after I watch the finale with updates on whether my predictions were true or not, probably with a thank you post to the show, so I suppose this is it.

See you all on the other side, TBB nation!

[heretherebedork]

I'd say Top is a way bigger red flag, he had the chance to tell Mew honestly about the fact that he cheated but didn't, got upset at Mew, and didn't believe him about the Ray situation, is just a dck to everyone for nearly no reason and also isn't honest with Mew at all even though they are dating or at least pretty much dating and wants a "reward" for stopping to take drugs whilst Boston is honestly only horny and a bad friend (no clue what kind of friend Top is, I don't even know if he has actual friends) to Mew and to some degree Ray (from the flashback he seems to have a good relationship to the lesbian whose name I forgot and he actually seems to be a decent fried towards Ray in there as well). Boston is pretty honest towards Nick in terms of their relationship of him caring for him but only really seeing him as a friend with benefits who he also thinks is cute (gotta say I think that Nick spying on him is the worse thing considering that Boston is at least honest, warned him and basically told Nick that he shouldn't agree with the relationship if he can't deal with all this).

tldr: Boston and Nick are kinda compatible. Top is just a dick towards everyone except for Mew from time to time. Ray needs to understand he actually likes Sand more than Mew.

Boston and Nick are compatible in that sense that they should date absolutely no one but each other, frankly, and I think that's for the best.

Top is a dick and I enjoy that about him, honestly. Might not want to fuck Boston anymore but happily does cocaine alone in a hotel room while claiming it's something he only does with friends. I love it. It's fun and messy.

But Boston is also only half-honest. He does tell Nick to use whatever terms he likes and will say basically anything to keep him in bed with him but, honestly, I think Nick would do the same to him so... I'm okay with it.

I am hitting the point where Mew is probably the least interesting character to me because everything is starting to point to him him genuinely just being this Good Guy Virgin who is manipulative but mildly so and I was hoping for something... more complex and messy than 'good guy done wrong by player' but ehhhh, that's just me. I was seeking evil virgin and I need to get over my own wishes.

Anyway.

Boston is Boston. He's a slut and he's proud of it and he is at the very least a mediocre friends but probably not a great one and Ray is a tiny disaster who needs so much therapy it's not even funny and Mew is... somehow friends with both of them

Ugh, Ray broke my heart at the end into pieces at the end when he realized that Mew wasn't the same kind of friend to him that he was to Mew and that's not even about the love he feels for him but also the way that he thinks of him first in his life and as the first person he'd contact any time he was in trouble. But that's not what Ray is to Mew and that's never what Ray can be to Mew. Mew was clear that nothing in their friendship was going to change. And that's hard to face.

There's a lot in this show that works with itself and builds on itself and it's very, very good to see and to watch. I just keep hoping for more from a few characters (okay, I mean Mew. I don't just want Mew to get revenge, I want Mew to have been manipulating all along.)

Anyway!

Yeah.

There's a lot. I think everyone is a lot less honest then they let on but also possibly less deliberately manipulative. Except Boston. And maybe Mew. And probably Top. (Who sleeps with someone after telling them to stop taking drugs without even giving them a chance to actually stop?) But I might be wrong about any of them.

[kindheart525]

What do you love the most about MLP: FIM?

To be honest a lot of it comes from nostalgia and the fandom! I was 10-11 when I first got into MLP and 15 when I joined the fandom as a next gen artist, so I’ve really grown up with the show. Without getting into too many personal details, watching MLP comforted me during some very medically difficult periods in my life, and being part of the fandom helped me feel like I had a community during some lonely and frustrating high school years (I wasn’t bullied, I just didn’t have very many irl friends).

I know many MLP fans have a similar story of “growing up with the show” and/or the fandom helping them through tough times so my answer may seem a little cliche, but it’s true. There was a period in my teenage years where I lost interest in the show itself and only engaged with the fandom, but in the past year I have started watching the show again. It’s not the MOST well-written television show to ever exist but that fact is to be expected from a kids’ cartoon. Still, it was great to see how much of it still holds up, partly because of childhood nostalgia but also because the characters are genuinely great. Twilight Sparkle was even more relatable to me having watched her journey just before graduating college. Applejack and Rarity also have so many traits that are relatable to real adults even though they are living in a TV-Y rated world. At the very least, they create the kind of show that parents can watch with their children and mildly enjoy. I know MLP is not for everyone, but I can definitely see the lasting appeal.

It’s my time in the fandom that has been the best part of my MLP experience, for many reasons. I know a lot of people have mixed feelings on the fandom because of the drama and toxicity that it sometimes creates, but I think every fandom has its bad side. The MLP fandom isn’t uniquely horrible. I’ve been incredibly lucky to be part of the fandom at a time when it’s more comprised of young adults (and when I first joined the fandom, fellow teenagers) who also grew up with the show like I have, which has led me to make a lot of connections with like-minded people. One of which is my best friend of 7+ years @glitterfleshgum who I am eternally thankful I crossed paths with. Our friendship is one of those rare gems that goes far beyond our mutual love of MLP and even fandoms in general, the kind that we know will last long after our mutual fandom has died. Even now we support each other in so many ways that have nothing to do with MLP. One of the great things about fandom is being able to make connections like this because we definitely aren’t the only ones with a story like this. She and other friends have also helped me expand my interests in music and TV, which has truly enriched my life in being able to see new experiences and gain new sources of inspiration in my own creative repertoire. Thank you so much ❤️

And of course there’s all the stories I’ve gotten to write! MLP has given me so much inspiration for fanfiction and original characters that have really improved my writing skills and broadened my creative outlook over the years. I’ve always loved drawing and making up stories as a child, and my time in fandom has allowed me to do those things in a way unlike ever before. I know MLP isn’t unique for having so much creative potential and that fanfiction and next gens exist for almost every piece of media ever, but I’m really glad I had MLP has been my outlet for such creations.

In short, my answer has much less to do with the MLP: FiM show in itself, but all the ways that being a fan of it has and continues to enrich my life!

[shig4dabi]

WAIT DID ANYONE EVER ASK U ABOUT UR YURI ON ICE AU COS IF NOT PLS SPILL I LOVE SSKK AND YOI AND I SHOWED UR DRAWING TO MY BESTIE COS I WAS SO EXCITED I NEED TO KNOW MORE!!!!

AHHGHF SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG, THE YOI AU IS A BIG INCOHERENT MESS SO I STRUGGLED TO PUT IT INTO WORDS <//3

THIS IS ALSO SUCH A LONG REPLY BC I JUST. RAMBLE. I AM SO SORRY IF THIS MAKES NO SENSE, IT IS ABSOLUTELY ALL OVER THE PLACE-

Okay! So I really really love the AU, but sadly there's no cohesive plot to follow if we're gonna be honest- I have a few points, like the banquet I changed up, and Akutagawa's appearance as Atsushi's coach is also changed, but other than that I really just have this to draw connections and put sskk in silly little YoI scenarios </3

I tried real hard to match BSD characters to YoI but it was just not working for me [I've been messing with this AU for like, a year after all] Even deciding between Akutagawa and Atsushi as who would be Viktor and Yuuri was a bit complicated, bc I personally think it has potential either way. The obvious, and generally more fitting choice is the one I went with ofc, but I think a version where Atsushi is Akutagawa's coach would be just as interesting!

Anyway, despite being mostly just for kicks, I still tried to put thought into it!

With how Yuuri was constantly surprising and surpassing Viktor's expectations, I figured Akutagawa's ability to surprise Atsushi with his actions would work well. [Also because I think the scene in the parking lot where Viktor tells Yuuri he'll resign as his coach if he doesn't make it to the podium is very reminiscent of the scene in s3 with the imagery of Akutagawa shattering from Atsushi's reckless words-] But again, Akutagawa as Viktor works just as well since Yuuri says in the very first episode that Viktor never ceased to surprise him, if we're going that route. As well as the fact that both sskk and Viktuuri learn from each other throughout their respective journeys together.

Like Atsushi's 2 costumes being based around his ADA design/The Tiger, and Beast, or Akutagawa having a lighter coat/his overall main design being a lot brighter to symbolize the change from yk, the Mafia in canon. I also threw in the Ch88 themed look for Akutagawa's younger version because I wanted to draw Akutagawa with longer hair, but the design itself is supposed to symbolize a sort of 'end' to his skating. Since Viktor begins to lose inspiration further down the line until meeting Yuuri, that's what I'm trying to implement with the design. If that makes any sense-

Since Akutagawa in canon had been searching for worthy opponents as a way to gain Dazai's approval, when he finally met his match against Atsushi he was practically thrilled [for lack of better words/to put it simply--] So I'm taking that idea and throwing it into this AU as Akutagawa gaining back his passion for skating when he sees the potential in Atsushi even despite his loss at the GPF. Speaking of, the banquet also goes a bit differently-

I figured stripping and pole dancing wasn't really Atsushi's style, I don't know how to explain it so I might doodle it sometime, but I have this old ass screenshot of me talking about this AU to mildly sum it up

And going back to Atsushi's 1st costume being ADA themed, I wanted that to tie into Yuuri's first program being about his career and life, and the love he has for the people who stuck by him through everything. The ADA is kind of a perfect example for that, I mean, Atsushi's entire uniform was given to him by each member so I figured it was a perfect parallel. Although there really isn't a tie between the Beast costume and Yuuri's Eros program though- That was just for fun, in a way.

I also definitely want the ADA itself to act as the hot springs that Yuuri's family runs, but I can't figure out which characters would be which person- I'm ALL ears for any suggestions for that btw, I literally only have sskk decided, everyone else is a toss up-

Ahg, there's so much more I'm forgetting, I'm sure, but I wanted to answer this somehow bc I've been dying to get out my thoughts for this AU

Anyway, thank you for the ask! And I'm sorry my response was super late and a full length essay- If there's any specific questions or curiosity, I'll do my best to answer </3

[starlit-mansion]

you know. there's a character in a piece of media i'm watching that i just don't really like. However. I don't hate them either like. they fit in the thing and are integral to the themes and plot. I'm just not really excited by them as a person and i'm genuinely at a loss as to what other people see in them, why they want to draw fanart of them, etc. and i feel like saying that implies that i feel negatively but i genuinely don't. it's like trying to drum up a passionate feeling about the sprigs of arugula in a sandwich. it's be missing something if it wasn't there but it could also be bean sprouts or spinach instead and i'd feel about the same.

related, i watched a stage production of les mis for the first time a year or so ago, and to be honest. i felt very little for cosette though the whole show. she didn't bore me or excite me, i didn't relate to her or have warm pink feelings about baby's first romance. and yet, the fact that she and marius were alive and married by the end was such a great sweep of narrative meaning that it transcended any feeling that i had about her as a person. it was maybe the most meaningful denouement wedding i've ever experienced in a story.

and idk. i feel like that was the most representative moment of a serious shift in the way that i started to think about things. it doesn't apply to every piece of media. there's lots of stuff that lives and dies on if the characters are likable. and it's fun to like characters. but it does help to stop judging every single thing on whether i like every single character. i've also just never really personally projected onto characters. it's more interesting to me to pilot them around a bit when i do stuff with them, like my identity stays separate and contained but my style comes through in the movements.

and because of the way i engage on here. i see, say and reblog stuff that's kind of negative about the "fandomy" way of engaging and. to be honest, i'm trying to be a little bit picky about it now. trying to only engage if i think it could genuinely contribute to a discussion rather than being like 'you people love your little tropes, don't you' because like. who wants to hear that? i am just a little bit of a hater at heart but i don't really aspire to be mean. i just think that it's more interesting to form an opinion that doesn't fold under the slightest prodding than to clasp my hands together and say 'live and let live <3' about every possible thing another person could enjoy.

i am also. actually genuinely put off by a thing that i've started to see everywhere, which is engaging with fiction like it's a set of natural laws that can create other discreet effects when you run experiments in it. it's a cool thing when a series makes you feel like that could be true, but it's not the norm. i don't care if the mona lisa burning to reveal canvas instead of wood in glass onion 'proves' that the painting was not destroyed and miles only had a copy. that's not what the moment was about within the narrative. vampires wouldn't react to seemingly random stimuli with the same agony as garlic or silver or crosses because vampires are not "allergic" to those substances and their weaknesses are symbolic of what they represent (death, disease, infection, predation). sometimes there's a plot hole because it's tiresome to wallow in the fact that a sequel has to rewrite the past a little to make room for itself. sometimes that character originally meant the thing they said but now at this point in the story, they're a mentor rather than a minor impediment so their past actions have to be waved away as a confusing lie

i'm not saying there's never any value to exploring that space, but i do start to chafe when an unavoidable technical problem starts to be treated as malicious authorial intent, or worse, treated as something that i'm foolish for having a problem with because the collective fanon already wiped it away (like that mildly homophobic joke being interpreted as a sincere expression of queer interest, or an expression of internalized biphobia that the character is working through)

idk what i'm trying to say as a whole. but i sure am saying a lot of it.

[adultswim2021]

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am (November 5, 2007)

November 5, 2007 saw the release of Aqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am: a real-life video game based on television’s Aqua Teen Hunger Force. A golfing game with a few non-golfing interludes, such as fighting off familiar monsters on each course and some golf-cart racing. You interact with all kinds of characters from the show; a MONSTERS ROW if you will.

Reviews for the game itself are pretty poor, and I can’t really speak to that because I didn’t actually play this game. I watched a compilation of cut scenes and some game play footage. The cut scene compilation excludes some other material, namely the color commentary bits that play as each course loads. There’s a straight-laced “Commentator Guy” and the Cybernetic Ghost of Christmas Past from the Future. Cybernetic Ghost’s lines are really funny. There’s also some mechanic where you collect footage that you can view from the menu screen but I didn’t successfully find it in any of the youtube videos I watched. I didn’t really look that hard, to be fair. And there was no way I was going to watch a 4-hour play through of this game.

The cut scenes roughly make up almost two episodes worth of content, and they are rendered in a mildly-off-putting computer-animated style, similar to the Drinky Crow show. It’s not ideal, but it suits the game fine, honestly.

And… that’s basically it. I’ll be honest, I was looking for some kind of wonderful reward for watching these cut scenes; like a truly notable nugget or surprise. Like, a Space Ghost cameo would’ve been neat, or something like that. There were mildly interesting things, like the fact that Patton Oswalt seems to have returned to reprise his Frat Alien characters (their initial appearance sounds like they just repurposed old show audio, but unique dialogue began springing up). I could be missing a few things from not sitting through game-play footage, as there are characters who show up during game-play that don’t show up during the cut scenes. But man, am I glad that I didn’t buy this game back in 2007. Mostly because I wouldn't have anything to play it on.

Garth Marenghi's Darkplace #1: “Once upon a Beginning” (November 9, 2007 - 11:00PM)

In an earlier review of Saul of the Mole Men, I touched on the concept of the “fake show”. This would definitely qualify. Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace is an artificial rerun; a seemingly repackaged old series with new interview segments featuring the cast as well as it’s star and main creative driving force Garth Marenghi. Marenghi is a popular and prolific Stephen King styled author who briefly dabbled in television Despite the self-agrandizing claims that the show was too shocking or ahead of it’s time for 1980s television, what we see is actually quite shoddy and poor, laughably so. Sorta like a comic parody of a schlocky B-movie, presented by straight-faced actors who are, in turn, portrayed by very funny British people. Matthew Holness plays Garth Marenghi who plays Dr. Rick Dagless. His pal and series co-creator Richard Ayoade plays Dean Learner, who plays Thornton Reed. Dean Learner is Garth’s publisher in fake-real life, and is a particularly terrible actor on the series. Dean Learner actually got his own spin-off fake talk show, which I’ve never seen. Is it good?

There’s also Matt Berry, one of my favorite guys. This was my introduction to him. I mean, this was my introduction to all of these people. Even that broad. What's her deal anyway? Sorry for being sexist for knowing about the guys on the show and not the lady.

In 2009, Adult Swim would bring more British shows to the channel and attempt to launch a British comedy block. It didn’t last too long, but we got some great shows on American television at least. This one was pretty hard to come by at the time; I knew of people importing the region 2 DVD, and this was a godsend.

[sharky857]

The Palia Experience™ (so far)

Believe it or not, I'm trying it out because a friend of mine ended up despising this (beta) game so much they went and asked the game company to straight up delete their account for good.

Know that I won't dig into some controversial/sus stuff ongoing with some cosmetic bundles, because right now I am not even interested in purchasing a single thing in game.

All this is going to be purely from a(n oblivious) player's pov, who is also still a newb who's just "learned" how to plant & water crops.

For starter, I appreciated same ol' warnings for flashing lights & stuff. I'm not photo-sensitive myself, but I can see how this can be a nice thing for those who have this issue to varied degrees.

What I would also appreciate would be the possibility to have subtitles in the cutscenes (unless this option is already available but dumdum me couldn't spot it).

Customisation has lots of options to choose from right away, and I'm saying so as someone who comes from Warframe, where the only "Operator" free stuff is 4-5 hairstyles and a Zariman suit, with everything else locked behind either plats or a grindfest.

Besides, you can also have a small selection of colours to tweak. This is what I ended up mashing together.

The graphic looks cartoony/simplistic, and it kinda reminds me of another game: "Paladins" (another friend of mine described it as "generic unity style 'cutesy fantasy' aesthetics").

Makes me wonder if this has anything to do with both games running on "Unreal Engine". 🤔

Also, despite my PC would meet the requirements to run the game at "high" settings, I decided to keep them at the default ones the game itself chose: "medium". This resulted in my GPU (GTX 1650) not breaking a sweat, ever and unironically.

(Yes, this means that my screenshots are all taken with the graphics set on "medium".)

Even so, it hasn't been uncommon for me to see the game freeze and/or stutter. What left me puzzled this whole time is that the CPU (of the i7 kind) would at time show spikes of 60% usage. A sign that, maybe, the graphic isn't as "simplistic" as it looks.

Still, I have yet to experience any game implosion, so I guess I am still all good here.

And btw: yes, the game devs themselves know about the latter issues I mentioned. 👇

There is only one thing that keeps on leaving me quite fascinated.

Queue. Queue everywhere.

Apparently, the servers are still so damn tiny that, no matter where you're trying to load into, even though you are already logged in game, you will have a high chance of seeing a message like this in the corner of the loading screen. 👇

Logging into the game? "X Palians ahead of you."

Loading into a cutscene before/after a quest? "X Palians ahead of you."

Going to the village? "X Palians ahead of you."

Coming back to your tent/home? "X Palians ahead of you."

Imagine playing something like Warframe (the only other co-op game with quests I could think of). Imagine if you loaded in your own Orbiter and tried to start absolutely anything, even while in "solo" mode:

Loading a mission: "X Tenno ahead of you."

Starting/Progressing with a quest whatever: "X Tenno ahead of you."

Waiting for the cutscene(s) to said quest to load: "X Tenno ahead of you."

Going to a relay or a free roam (imagine instances didn't exist either): "X Tenno ahead of you."

Moving back to your Orbiter to call it a day: "X Tenno ahead of you."

You got the picture. Not really a fun and also sliiiightly irritating in the long run. 😅

But hey, it's a beta game that has just come out of "closed beta" only 1-2 days ago. So hopefully they will be able to expand their servers soon enough.

As for the gameplay itself, it's nothing really special to me, probably because I am already familiar with some of the mechanics. I've seen this being called "a mix between Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley", and so far I'm mildly getting the latter's vibes (never played any "Animal Crossing" game).

All in all, if I were to rate this game on a scale of 0 to 10, I would give it a generous 7. "Generous" because of the aforementioned controversy with the bundle discounts so-called "scam" (which is still unclear whether or not it's been accidental, haven't kept up with the news in this regards), plus the current, microscopic size of the servers.

[thorn-amidst-roses]

Trying to throw together some TotK thoughts/theories now...

It’s pretty apparent that they saw people making rolling minecarts in BotW and went “hm, maybe we should make an actual system for that”. What I’m wondering is how it’ll tie into the larger game - I could see crafting mechanics and new skills being tied to Purah and Robbie, but I’m not convinced of that based on thoughts I’ll go into in a bit...

The lights around the Sheikah towers suggests to me that a large portion of the game will probably be dark. What I’m debating with myself is whether this means that there’ll be a stretch of time where we’ve effectively lost inner Hyrule to Ganondorf, whether it be in the past or present.

The wrench in that thought is that the geoglyphs are present both when it’s bright and when it’s dark, so my theory that the geoglyphs would feature in the “past” sections of the game is pretty much shot.

I still very much believe that we’ll be seeing sections of the Ancient Hero/First Calamity. The game will delve into the origins of the kingdom’s war against Ganondorf, and I suspect a pact/alliance between the Hylians and Zonai (some are insisting Twili, but I’m standing firm on Team Zonai - that’s not to say, however, that the Zonai aren’t maybe a Twili predecessor. See Also: Typhlo Ruins).

Some of the skylands (for a bit of side info, I’ve been pronouncing this not as “sky-lands” with an emphasized “and”, but like “islands” with an “-ind” 🤣) mimic the shape of the Mysterious Hand’s stone bands/jewelry. I find that Mildly Interesting but have no other assumption to make based on that.

I believe a lot of the tech is Zonai rather than Sheikah. Sheikah tech themes are metal, blue, orange - this is a lot of stone and green. (Which admittedly does again tell me ‘Twili ancestor’...)

The cutscene with the people grasping hands is 100% Zelda (I’d bet actual cash that it’s Ancient Zelda) and Mystery Hand, the same that was binding Ganondorf in the first trailer. I believe this is the same scene depicted in the Ancient Mural from Teaser #2:

Which makes Mystery Hand the figure we’re never shown. I am not convinced that Mystery Hand is the Rabbit-Eared Deity:

Since they’re very careful to never show who Zelda is grasping hands with, but they show the Deity in full.

Here’s a thought...what if Mystery Hand is actually the Ancient Hero, and that’s why it’s being kept a Big Damn Secret by Nintendo? It’d be a twist for the Ancient Hero to be the final seal on Ganondorf’s body when sealing is typically the job of the Sages/Zelda, but it would give some explanation for why it was able to work with Link so easily, kind of like the Hero’s Shade in TP.

I’ve had a few theories cooking around this based on Zonai ruins - we see statues of the owl, the dragon, and the boar. This suggests to me that the Zonai in some way had a Triforce legend (owl - wisdom (and the Deity does somewhat resemble a horned owl), dragon - courage (and there are dragon gods in BotW), boar - power. The boar statues are few in number, and those that exist are destroyed. I’ve said before that this tells me that the boar somehow lost favor with the Zonai religion - a betrayal, maybe.

Also worth debating is whether the murals are depicting past events, or a prophecy. Both are valid in the Zeldaverse. Personally I’m leaning towards a “history repeats itself” interpretation, since that’s a major theme in Zelda lore.

As for where the islands have been all this time...I don’t know. Originally I’d thought that maybe they were in the past segments, but I doubt that now. I don’t think we have enough information to go off of.

Although Link seems to be getting airdrops from them lmao.

So that suggests that someone is up there.

[ambreiiigns]

Ok then now tell me about these sk8 big and little boyfriends? I'm interested by the distinction of big and little, you know? :P

ok after Thee category 5 doubleblack moment and watching tristamp w my brother i'll answer this sk8 ask. then i'll go look at deathnote images saved to my phone to complete the collection of anime i care about

so you will never believe me but sk8. is about. a bunch. of skater boys. we have langa who moves to japan from canada after his dad dies bc his mom's japanese. him and his dad used to do snowboarding together but langa got lowkey depressed after his death and doesn't feel much passion for snowboarding anymore. plus he lives in beachy town now so it'd be impossible anyway

he meets reki there tho. and Oh reki is just like. the sun. they're in class together but didn't really talk (langa doesn't talk much) but they bump into each other while reki's out skating and he gets langa to try it and it just. goes downhill from there

reki takes him to S !!! which is this like super secret skaterz place that opens at night on some mountain where they have races and place bets and stuff. long story short langa finds that Spark he's missed ever since his dad died in reki and skateboarding - as in, yeah sure skating's fun but it's reki that makes his heart beat fast and not the adrenaline or whatever. it's not Skating itself that makes him happy but it's skating With Reki. they're so fucking SWEET. they have a bit of a fight halfway thru the series bc reki has some inferiority complex and langa almost loses the Spark again. it's really sweet. at some point he vaguely talks to his mom abt this fight and she assumes it's about a girl he likes so she asks him. "you LIKE this person don't you" and langa BLUSHES HE'S SO CUTE and says yeah :// so she hypes him up to go talk things out and says. good lird. "show her she's a lucky girl!!" and langa. i am quoting word for word. answers. "what girl." gay people real

and those ^ are the little boyfriends. now the BIG boyfriends ugh !! unsufferable. you got kojiro aka joe and kaoru aka cherry and we meet them at s. in fact they FOUNDED s when they were teens along w adam who's the bad guy in this show and i want him dead. joe is. built like a brickhouse and mildly italian ?? he runs a restaurant during the day and the Gang meets up there a lot he's the sweetest in the world and worries and helps the kids anytime he can i adore him. cherry's gnc af (you're insane) he's pretty as fuck and had a Punk Phase as a kid where he had a couple of piercings and emo bangs and NO ONE has ever looked better EVER but he's Mean but still Cares. when they met adam back in the day him & cherry had a lil somethin somethin going on but he ended up dumping them Both for being boring bc he's insane. i don't wanna talk abt him. so that leaves cherry & joe alone again - which is cool. they've been together since preschool they're the type to bicker and talk shit 24/7 while still always being glued to each other. they're so Horny but they won't fuck. everyone at s wonts them carnally. the kids (by this i mean reki & langa but mostly miya who's like a little shit pro skater they picked up along the way) (shoutout to the icp clown rockstar legend shadow who's the 6th and final member of The Gang) call them mom and dad Frequently and they call the gang "The Kids" an incriminating amount of times (they accidentally adopted two 16yos one 14yo and one 24yo. at age 26)

realizing i don't Know how to explain joe & cherry you kinda just have to witness them. there's this bit where cherry's explaining to The Kids how adam does one of his moves so he skates right up to joe and says "Hello..." in a. weird fucking tone and joe hisses back "You're Too Close!!!" threatheningly like he's gonna fuckin Jump him. there's this other bit during THEE beach episode where joe's flirting w some ladies (he's a manwhore) and miya grabs him pretends that he's his dad and tells him that Mommy's mad !! pointing at cherry who's like napping sexily. and joe actually looks at him and like fuckin whimpers and blushes like a virgin and all he can say for himself is THAT IS NOT YOUR MOM !!!! hello. what was that. also there's the bit where adam fuckin slams his board across cherry's face (?!?!?!?) and joe picks him up like a princess (which he calls him sometimes. princess and pinky and the likes) and gets him to the hospital and THEN cherry sneaks out of the hospital to go to joe's restaurant and falls asleep there and joe looks at him sooo tenderly and says something like "at least we aren't alone right kaoru?" and it's Sweet bc cherry has troubles sleeping but he feels safe enough to sleep around joe..... don't u wanna scream

here look at them. the kids the parents the squad

[nelwynp]

I have a lot of Feelings about the new Willow series and no one to speculate about things with, so I guess that means I get to brain dump into the void!

Spoilers for episodes 1&2 ahead

One of the things I loved about the movie is that one of the key anchors was characters who are already established in their life choices being asked to question it - Madmartigan as a selfish rogue deciding to follow someone honestly for the first time, Sorsha as a military princess deciding to turn against everything she was raised to believe, and Willow; simple, family man who has always dreamed of being more but never dared to reach for it until now. This new series is clearly geared more towards the traditional "coming of age" storyline, with characters who are much younger and who are just starting to figure out what is important to them. Nothing wrong with that, and it's a decision I can respect from a production standpoint because those stories are pretty common in media because they are successful, and of course we want this franchise to be successful. At the moment though only Boorman seems to be “established” versus "growing up". I am sure that is a big reason he is my favorite so far, and I understand that my particular tastes in the type of character arcs I am drawn to are in the minority.

There is so much I love about Boorman. From his first interaction with Sorsha in the dungeon to little hints we get about his past - what is the ring he keeps playing with, how did the Bone Reaver know his name? When he tells Silas,”Boorman’s a good name for a dog” just ow, my heart.

Surprised at how much I like Airk for how little screentime he has - he is definitely the embodiment of his father's charm. He comes across flighty but sincere, and I can only assume he is taken for Bavmorda's blood. Though why him and not Kit is an interesting question in of itself. From what we've seen so far, Kit seems more likely to feed her frustrations to darkness, which on the outside would seem like she would be a better choice for the Withered Crone to choose as a lackey. Was this a production choice due to actor availability, or just that the writers wanted to focus more on Kit's journey over Airk's? That could be circumvented by showing what happens in the Crone's domain - Will we get insights into what is happening with Airk in future episodes? (I hope so)

Kit is my least favorite character, though that does afford her the most opportunities for growth. I’ve been a few other comments people have made about how important it is that she is allowed to be so flawed especially as she is also queer representation and I think that its a very good point. I look forward to growing to love her.

I am particularly intrigued by Grayson and his ability to read arcana, coming from Galladoorn as one of the kingdoms under the Barrier where magic has supposedly been outlawed? Or is Galladoorn outside the Barrier?

I was not surprised by the Elora reveal, though mildly disappointed because I loved her baby red hair and was really hoping that Jade would end up being Elora. I'm also not terribly surprised by the projected character arc that is set up for Elora, though I do hope that we will get some unique twists to the traditional "chosen one" storyline.

There are a few things that I don't think were good choices. I am bothered by the way Willow handled being High Aldwin though. The more I think about it the more upset I become. In the movie it was established that this was a position of great importance, and Willow himself clearly had a lot of respect for the High Aldwin since he desired to be an apprentice. Even when the Aldwin reveals through his hushed conversation over the babe that 'The Bones' are not a mystical item that reveals the secrets of the universe to him, it is made clear that the Aldwin makes decisions for his community based on an intimate knowledge of the people he governs, and what they need to grow into themselves. He is wise, he is clever, and maybe his magic is more showmanship than anything else, but he still does have a special magic. He is Granny Weatherwax.

What we see of Willow as High Aldwin is none of that. He's got the "showman" part down, but where is the careful calculations of his decisions? Where is the love of his community? He makes all these asides to Elora like the whole ordeal is just tongue in cheek and isn't that important when it IS and it SHOULD BE. He tries to manipulate the finger test, and why? If he is really concerned about how much magic Elora may have lost, he should desire to see how much confidence she has in herself to know where his instruction will need to begin. If he is so devotedly confident that she has all the power she needs, then even if she fails the test he should still be able to spin the result in a way that eases the fears of his people. Instead they jeer at him as they had in the past, which shows that he's doing a pretty bad job at being Aldwin.

Also! As a servant of his community the High Aldwin should not be leaving to go on another quest! He does say as much to Mims, but she implies he's using the title as a way to hide from duty when…it's not? I understand that narratively this had to happen, but he has an apprentice I would have liked to see him pass the hat.

I'm also bothered by the flashback of Sorsha telling Willow he will never be a great sorcerer, when the whole culmination of the movie is that he DOES have the potential and is clearly on his way down that path. Raziel herself has confidence in him, so what happened that made Sorsha stop believing in him? Perhaps something happened when Raziel and Cherlindrea 'went away' (as we don't know the circumstances of their absence, be it death, imprisonment or something else) but the whole exchange felt so out of character.

Choices I don't necessarily love but understand the necessity of:

Flashbacks & Exposition

I have spent so much time in my life analyzing the script of the movie for how they managed to get so much world building into such a short amount of time. I ADORE it. How real it all feels without having to walk the audience through every aspect of what this world is. Madmartigan and Airk having war talk at the Crossroads. Rool having a nightmare about rats and wearing a rat-skull helmet. Razel and Bavmorda and THAT whole history. I was really, really worried that the first few episodes would just be browbeating the audience with exposition and I am happy with the balance they struck. For new viewers unfamiliar with the movie it is necessary to introduce some key details, like "what exactly is the Barrier?"

But they didn't reveal everything right away! We still get to relish the anticipation of learning more! When Sorsha went down to the dungeons and started a casual conversation with a shadowed prisoner - amazing. Graydon's giant ass scar across his chest, and his dead brother who "fell out of a tree"? SO much to unpack and anticipate. The Kymerian Cuirass? A bit too much said about it imo but still plenty to let the audience theorize about.

The use of the 'peck' slur to denote that Ballentine has turned evil. Didn't like it. Understand the role it plays in the dialogue but wish it had been addressed differently.

The instrumental music has been decent so far, with some callbacks to the original score. Not loving the choice to have indie pop playing as the credits though, it pulls me out of the immersion. Also still salty that all the advertising used Madmartigan's theme because it was more 'adventurous' sounding despite Madmartigan not actually being in the show. And yes, I know that on the soundtrack it's listed as "Willow's theme" but as the motif is only ever used in the movie when Mads did something pinnacle and "Willow's journey" was used for Willow's big moments I maintain that the teaser soundtrack is truly Mads theme. They do use it when Kit does cool shit! And since they revealed Elora already I am surprised by the lack of her motif showing up in the music yet, perhaps to come when her magic develops further?

Wish we'd gotten some great Nelwyn festival music in ep 2, that was always my favorite and was my ringtone for almost a decade.

Other thoughts on my second watchthrough:

Hastur was adamant that nothing gets through the barrier, so how did the Gales? Was really scared that Sorsha was going to die glad she didn't. She's got a cane in ep 2 so she still may not recover but I have hope.

Point of confusion - if the Nelwyn village is beyond the barrier, that would mean that things beyond the barrier are outside of Tir Asleen laws yes? So potentially other sorcerers besides Willow?

How did Raziel and Cherlindrea decide where to put the barrier? And why wasn't his village included? What strange leverage does Hastur have over his son? Little details like Boorman chewing black root - a hint at his time with Madmartigan? What did Grayson unleash by reading out the bloody arcana, and what happened to the guard at Mother's Gate?

The pained silent looks Willow gets when Mims mentions her brother - what did happen to Ranon and Kiaya?

Elora Danon's titles - Okay nine realms and we only know of 3 so far (or are Realms different than Kingdoms, more along the lines of what was in the book trilogy), Last Blood of Kymeria so that makes sense that Mads would be looking for the Curiass?

It has to be intentional, "death cannot keep mads from you, only delay him a bit" call-out to the Princess Bride

Nockmaar Badlands - guess we know why Sorsha didn't inherit there

Love Willow reminiscing about baby Elora, so full of love

Watching episode 3 this weekend, can’t wait!

[toolazytodecide]

Hey! I like the fandoms you post about. Do you have any book recommendations? I need something to listen to while I file things at work but I’m bad at predicting what I’ll like because it feels like nothing I’m into has any Google-able overlap. It’s like, if I enjoy the author’s outlook I’ll love anything they make but I don’t care what the book is actually about.

I think about this quote all the time, esp when Netflix is all “you liked Buffy, you might like Vampire Diaries.”😒

“No one knew what Ganseylike was, even Gansey. Teachers and family friends were always collecting articles and stories that they thought might capture his attention, things they thought were Ganseylike. The well-meaning items always addressed the most obvious parts of him. Welsh kings or old Camaros or other young people who had travelled the world for bizarre reasons no one else understood. No one dug down past that, and he supposed he didn't much encourage it. There was a lot of night in those days behind him, and he preferred to turn his face into the sun. Ganseylike. What was Ganseylike?” — The Raven King

First of all you are absolutely correct. I had completely forgotten that Gansey quote but it really does summarise where recommendations fail so well.

My first thought was oh what do I like with similar themes or in the same category? But fuck that I'm just gonna tell you my favourites and a little about them and you can pick what interests you.

1. My FAVOURITE book is The Goldfinch. I only read it this year but it absolutely destroyed my brain and I havent recovered.

Basic summary: 13 year old Theo Decker survives a terrorist attack at an art gallery but loses his mother and in his shock accidentally takes home famous painting: The Goldfinch. First half of the story is him as a teen, second half is as an adult. Theres a lot of themes like drug abuse, internalized homophobia, PTSD and suicide. It's a great book if you love analyzing the fuck out of books. He also develops a mildly codependent (and very gay) friendship with another boy who later becomes a gangster.

It is very different to NHIE and TRC in that it's a lot more....negative? Like the plot resolves itself but you will not be satisfied by the ending. The characters are all very flawed, which I suppose is similar to characters like Adam and Devi but in different ways.

2. Six of Crows- have you read this? If you havent it's like a mandatory read. Its technically a sequel to Shadow and Bone but I read it first and it was fine.

Summary- 6 rag tag teens team up in a dangerous fantasy world to take on the heist of the century.

It's so good man. When I tell you Kaz Brekker is my favourite character of all time I am not joking. Also bonus points for a disabled main character as written by a disabled author. It's very found family with a lot of plot twists and lovable characters.

3. All for the game- this one is here because I love it but objectively I know it's an acquired taste with questionable writing.

All 3 of these so far show my love of a sneaky protagonist with an allergy to telling people about themselves. These books are absolutely bizarre and shouldnt work but they do!

Basic summary: Neil Josten has spent his life on the life from his mobster father after he and his mother escaped him. His mom just died and rather than keep hiding he allows himself to take the opportunity of a lifetime to go to college and play Exy (made up sport) for a team that specializes in taking those who have had rough lives and usually would be picked (e.g drug addicts, foster kids etc)

It's a surprisingly wonderful series about mental health, occasional murder and one of the best love stories I've read. This one is also really popular with ao3 so if you're after something that will give you a lot of wonderful ff this is the best one so far.

(There are a number of trigger warnings for this book I would recommend you look up beforehand.)

Bonus rec: Vicious by V.E Scwab. I need to go into work now but basically told from the supervillains perspective, but honestly I'm on his side anyway. Victor just got out of prison and has the ability to control pain. So he can either inflict pain or say hire henchmen that he pays by curing their chronic pain. (As someone with chronic pain I cant blame them tbh)

he also adopts this kid who can resurrect the dead and it's a great little supervillain found family. I havent read it in ages but there is a sequel I need to read and from what I remember it was very good.