#cw: LONG POST

[janearts]

Roisia in her original Divinity: Original Sin build was a witch and witchcraft spells are a combination of D&D's Necromancy + Enchantment schools. I replicated that in-game and had a think about the… complications that might arise when Astarion realises that this unassuming woman has also been a bit of a deft hand at persuading, deceiving, and manipulating her targets too.

[zhouyes]

you briefly get a taste of what you desire. then isn't death, a worthy price to pay?

BYEON WOOSEOK as RYU SHIOH

strong girl nam soon, 힘쎈여자 강남순.

[paperlignes]

nandor the relentless and guillermo de la cruz from what we do in the shadows (2019-) / spotify playlist

special thanks to @badgerswake for helping out with the songs <3

[svtcheers]

JEONGHAN   ✶  NOT ALONE M/V ( 2021 )

[theycallme-thejackal]

❝ It just seemed so obvious that I loved him. That I was in love with him. ❞ ❝ How could I be around Daisy Jones and not be mesmerized by her? Not fall in love with her? ❞

[tinytowns]

SANA ✧ OPENING TRAILER

[king-and-his-consorts]

Need to get a little something off my chest.

I am currently avoiding twitter because lots of people seem to be at each other's throats currently. One of those topics discussed is Sanji's "betrayal" in WCI. WCI is a favorite topic of mine so I figured I'd share some quick thoughts on this.

I always see people say things like "why didn't Sanji trust Luffy?" "Why did he attack him?" "Why didn't Sanji just leave with Luffy?" etc.

We're just going to get the "Why didn't Sanji just leave with Luffy?" out of the way first.

Answer: Sanji was being threatened with the promise of harm coming to Zeff (and others). Sanji knows that Germa has incredible reach. For all Sanji knows, they could have Zeff just in the dungeon right that second. He can't take that kind of chance because he has no definitive answers on the health and security of any of his loved ones. It would destroy him if he let Zeff come to harm. Also, I'm sure he's thinking that Luffy would be disappointed if he threw a loved one under the bus to save his own skin.

Next: "why didn't Sanji trust Luffy?" and "Why did he attack him?"

Answer: The answer to these are deeply intertwined.

Sanji and Luffy canonly have an extremely close relationship. They're very affectionate towards each other. They share a deep, passionate bond. The trust expressed between them time and time again cannot be denied. So, you see, Sanji did trust Luffy. He trusted Luffy to act as Luffy does.

The thing to remember is, Luffy is extremely possessive and territorial as well as headstrong and foolhardy. Sanji is his. Both he and Sanji know that he will stop at nothing to regain what is considered his. Knowing this, Sanji had to try whatever pitiful means he had to make Luffy not want him anymore. Verbal and physical violence were the only tools Sanji had available to try and get Luffy to drop his possessive mindset.

Verbally and physically attack Luffy were Sanji's last ditch effort to get Luffy to turn his nose up and leave. I believe that by saying mutinous things and attacking his captain, he was trying to simulate the conditions that caused Luffy to turn on Usopp in Water 7.

Why would he want this, you ask?

The answer is actually Robin in Enis Lobby.

Sanji knows Luffy. Sanji was there when Luffy literally declared war on the World Government in order to get Robin back. Sanji knows that Luffy still has the foolhardy conviction to declare war again.

The problem is that this time he would be declaring war on both Germa and the Big Mom pirates.

Half the crew is literally on their way to fight a war against Kaido at that very moment. If Sanji lets himself be rescued then his captain will have started a war with two yonko and a deranged warmonger all at the same fucking time. The thought of that has got to be frightening, especially in Sanji's currently extremely traumatized state of being. He can't handle the idea of his crew being murdered by three incredibly strong factions. So, Sanji does what he always does.

Sacrifice himself.

Sacrificing himself to a life of misery and loneliness. Sacrificing himself to an existence of his nakama hating and resenting him. Sacrificing himself to eternal guilt and agony that he attacked and betrayed those he loves most in this world.

Unfortunately, I believe that Sanji has not realized how much Luffy's logic and ability to read his crew has drastically increased. Luffy read him like a fucking book and refused to fall for Sanji's game. All it did was tighten Luffy's grip on Sanji's metaphorical leash. Luffy is incredibly selfish. He wasn't letting go of what was his and that was devastating to Sanji because now he has to live with the memories of beating the shit out of his captain and the fear for his nakama's safety.

___

Anyway, that is my personal view of Sanji's headspace in WCI. It's a very deep and drawn out topic but I don't have the spoons to expand further. sorry.

[trek-tracks]

It's an old, well-worn routine.

Whenever Jim says, “you were right, Bones,” Bones quirks that funny half-smile and tells Jim, “I wish I’d gotten a recording of that as proof. I’d play it non-stop to get to sleep, care to say it again?”

And Jim just grins at him and won’t repeat it for the recorder, tells him it’ll go to his head, that he'll just have to wait for the next time; if it ever happens again, that is.

Bones is a man of many opinions, and Jim hates to admit, they're often correct. As he's matured, he's learned to give credit where credit is due.

Plus, he likes it when Bones smiles.

"You were right, Bones," he says, as they beam up from yet another mission where a near-disaster was averted, this time due to Bones' suspicion of the Emperor's head physician.

"That's a balm to my weary ears, Jim," Bones sighs. "Care to record that? I'll layer it on top of my white noise machine and have the sweet dreams of the vindicated."

Jim points out that asking for a recording of one's captain's voice to have sweet dreams to is probably against regulation. Bones rolls his eyes. No recording is provided.

"You were right, Bones," Jim says, handing Bones a glass of bourbon after a heartbreaker of a mission. Two dead, Spock almost the third, now back in one piece after six hours of surgery. He doesn't break out the Saurian brandy; that's for celebratory drinks. This is mourning.

"I'm always right," Bones says. "That's my curse. I wish I hadn't been. But next time..."

"I'll listen," says Jim. "I'll listen faster. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, Jim. You did what you thought was right, and it worked in the end. We got the treaty. We saved more lives than we lost."

"You know that doesn't matter when I'm writing to the families."

"Yeah, Jim, I know that," sighs Bones. "But let's pretend I'm right this time, okay? And, by the way, when I get that recording, you can add 'I'll listen' to the end of it. It's a nice touch."

"You're an asshole," says Jim, but he smiles for the first time since Ensign Simons' death.

"And I'm right," says Bones, raising his glass. They both down it in one go.

"You were right, Bones," Jim says, after finally turning down his second chance at promotion to the Admiralty.

"Of course I'm right," says Bones. "Captaining a ship is your first, best destiny. It's who you are. It's what you do. But I can barely take credit for that. Any fool can see it. Which is why I'm surprised the brass offered you that promotion in the first place. They're the biggest fools out there."

"Well, I guess I'm going to wait a while to join them, Bones. Are you ready for another five years?"

"Who else is going to sporadically admit to me that I'm right?"

"This is why I can't give you the recording," Jim says. "You won't need me anymore."

"That's not true, Jim," Bones says, suddenly looking more serious than when he's performing a particularly delicate surgery. He looks Jim straight in the eye.

"That'll never be true. Do you hear me? You told me you'd listen. That will never be true. And I'm right."

Jim’s final mission is a solo trip, requested by the heads of two warring factions, looking to make peace to show their commitment to their planet's application for entry into the Federation.

Bones tells him not to go, that he’s got a bad feeling about this one.

Jim rolls his eyes. “You always have a bad feeling about this one."

"It's an especially bad feeling, this time. And don't you remember? I'm always right. You promised me you'd actually listen once in a while; this is why I need it on record--"

But Jim has a chance to bring peace, so Jim can’t stay. And Bones knows it.

And it doesn’t work.

Bleeding out after tensions erupt, knowing transporters are jammed and it’s too late for rescue, Jim spends his last minutes recording messages for his family and senior crew.

Bones’ message is last, and Jim knows just what he's going to say.

He puts on his most winning smile and says, “You were right, Bones. Next time, I'll listen. And now, here’s your recording as proof. Thanks for everything. I hope you play it non-stop."

After the ceremonies, the speeches, and the handoff of the Enterprise to Spock, Bones finally pours himself a glass -- bourbon, not Saurian brandy -- and watches his message.

"You were right, Bones."

It doesn't give him sweet dreams. In fact, he doesn’t sleep for three days.

He never plays it again.

[kyokosasagawa]

conspiracy theory

katekyo hitman reborn is inspired by buddhism in the same way houseki no kuni is and the ending is a cop out, sure, but its a inspired one.

(disclaimer: im not a buddhist)

we already know about mukuros bullshit. we're going to ignore him. throw him to the curb for now. we'll get back to him.

no, specifically i'm talking about the tri-ni-sette.

we know that seven is a significant number in KHR. I think it's not just because of the rainbow having seven colors in it.

i think its because of the lotus sutra.

in buddhism, there's a scripture called the lotus sutra. in the lotus sutra, there's seven treasures mentioned. they're gold, silver, lapis lazuli, seashell, agate, pearl, and carnelian.

its in black and white and looks like generic gemstones, but then you notice the fucking pearl. and we all know who the the seashell is---we don't even have to mention it.

"aight so you think the gemstones correlate to some buddhist gemstones. what else?"

I think all of serious!khr is inspired by the lotus sutra, actually!

specifically starting in the kokuyo arc, we're introduced to the six paths of reincarnation. mukuro introduces the concept of buddhism into the KHR world, to the possibility that its real.

"The Six Paths[1] in Buddhist cosmology[2] are the six worlds where sentient beings are reincarnated based on their karma, "

but more importantly, there's more to this!

in the lotus sutra they talk about something very funny!

"From the depths of the Avīci Hell Up to the summit of existence, The ray of light from between his eyebrows Illuminates the eighteen thousand worlds, Which shimmer like gold, And, throughout all these worlds, The births and deaths of the living beings Of the six transmigratory states of existence, And the good and bad deeds, Through which they have received Good and bad consequences, Are all to be seen from here."

it talks about the ray of light from between his eyebrows, which shimmer like gold

it talks about the six transmigratory states of existence

Notice the concept of "being reborn up or down the scale"

it talks about consequence, which we see constantly in the KHR-verse. especially with the Shimon family, including Enma, who is named after the King of Hell---including the Avīci Hell.

"The buddhas, the Sage Lord (Narendrasiṃhā), Who teach the subtle and supreme sutra Are also seen. Uttering soft sounds With their pure voices, They teach innumerable myriads Of koṭis of bodhisattvas. With their voices, deep and enticing Like the sounds of Brahma They make the people eager to hear them.

O Mañjuśrī, Heir of the Buddhas! We entreat you to rid us of our confusion! The fourfold assembly is joyfully Looking up at you and me. Why did the Bhagavat emit this ray of light? O Heir of the Buddhas, now answer! Resolve our confusion and gladden us! Why is he emitting this ray of light?

"Will the Buddha teach us the True Dharma That he obtained while he sat On the terrace of enlightenment (bodhimaṇḍa)? Will he predict enlightenment to us? It is not for a trifling reason That all the buddha lands, ornamented With various jewels, And all the buddhas have been made visible. O Mañjuśrī! You should know that the fourfold assembly, Nāgas, and devas, Look forward to hearing What you shall reveal.”

with that, peace out and chaossu.

[elliott-the-creature]

Cw: long post, (maybe) not screen reader friendly.

Tw: mentions of abuse, upsetting scenarios, self harm.

Shoutout to the low support needs autistics

Shoutout to the medium support needs autistics

Shoutout to the high support needs autistics

Shoutout to fluctuating support needs autistics

Shoutout to the hyperverbal autistics

Shoutout to the verbal autistics

Shoutout to the semiverbal autistics

Shoutout to the nonverbal autistics

Shoutout to verbal autistics with temporary verbal shutdowns

Shoutout to autistics who use verbal language

Shoutout to autistics who use aac, sign language, communication cards, or any nonverbal language

Shoutout to autistics who use none of these

Shoutout to autistics with tons of special interests

Shoutout to autistics with very little special interests

Shoutout to autistics with no special interests

Shoutout to autistics with high empathy

Shoutout to autistics with low/no empathy

Shoutout to autistics with fluctuating empathy

Shoutout to autistics who struggle with socialization

Shoutout to autistics with social phobias

Shoutout to autistics who are super social and outgoing

Shoutout to sensory seeking/hyposensitive autistics

Shoutout to sensory avoidant/hypersensitive autistics

Shoutout to “walking stereotype” autistics

Shoutout to autistics who don’t match the characteristics of autism

Shoutout to autistics who can mask/mask easily

Shoutout to autistics who cannot/will not mask

Shoutout to autistics in abusive/neglectful situations/homelives

Shoutout to autistics in loving/accepting situations/homelives

Shoutout to autistics who have obvious stims

Shoutout to autistics who have minute stims

Shoutout to autistics with harmful stims

Shoutout to autistics who are/will be able to live alone and independently

Shoutout to autistics who may never be able to live alone and need a caregiver

Shoutout to autistics with support animals

Shoutout to autistics who are formally diagnosed

Shoutout to autistics who are self diagnosed

Shoutout to autistics who may never get a diagnosis

Shoutout to autistics who are misdiagnosed

Shoutout to autistics with tons of comorbidities

Shoutout to autistics with very little comorbidities

Shoutout to physically disabled autistics

Shoutout to athletic and/or hypermobile autistics

Shoutout to autistic savants and/or “intelligent” autistics

Shoutout to autistics with intellectual disabilities

Shoutout to autistic systems

Shoutout to autistic alterhumans

Shoutout to delusional autistics

Shoutout to autistics who are seen as meek and/or submissive

Shoutout to autistics who are seen as aggressive and/or complaining

Shoutout to autistics who don’t struggle with executive dysfunction

Shoutout to autistics who struggle with executive dysfunction

Shoutout to queer autistics; whoever you may be or identify as

Shoutout to cishet and allosexual/romantic autistics

Shoutout to autistics who are of any age; whether you be a kid, teenager, young adult, middle aged, or elderly

Shoutout to autistic PoC

Shoutout to all the autistics; no matter who you may be, you are valid.

[janearts]

Cazador was a disappointing Act III villain for me. He looked a little too much like a poor man's Strahd for my tastes, and I wanted to play around with a design that ran in the opposite direction. Although, that being said, in this reimagining he does take a page out of Strahd's book: I wanted him to be more suave, composed, and self-assured enough to be willing to chat, like a cat that wants to play with its scampering food.

[zhouyes]

the word freedom is too extravagant.

YU SHUXIN as YUN WEISHAN

my journey to you, 云之羽.

[exorcismist]

fuck canon, embrace headcanon

(long post, sorry!!!)

Besides her fear of commitment, Spy ran off when Scout was born because she had recently discovered that she was transgender. She didn't know if Scout's mom (im gonna use my hc name for her from here on out— Julie/Julianna) would be approving and didn't want to hurt Julie because she knew she probably wouldn't love her anymore (newsflash, she still would). Spy knew she deserved better, so she ran, but she never really went far. She simply moved to New York (Albany— or Salem, i like that better), where she could still keep an eye on them.

Of course, she traveled all the time for her assassination jobs, but every now and then she would visit Boston, walking down the street of their home in a different disguise each time. She did get to watch Scout grow up, but from afar. It hurt her every time she saw him alone. There were a couple of times she came by later at night (just to see if Julie had moved on to a new man), and saw her precious Jérémy sitting in the backyard all alone. In those moments, she wanted nothing more than to run up and embrace him, but she couldn't.

^^ (That could have been a reason she said, "You're stronger than you'll ever know, Jeremy," in the comics. She knew some of what he had been through by those check-ins.)

She was already working for Red a little before Scout was, and she begged Pauling to get him in discreetly. By the luck of whatever god was up there, it worked. It was her first time seeing her son face to face since he was just a baby, but she couldn't find it in her to tell him. She never could.

She did (eventually) reach back out to Julie, showing up at her doorstep one night and apologizing profusely. She had drunk a bit before she came, maybe a little more than she should have. Spy just had to dull the pain or she might die just looking into Julie's eyes. Julianna was rightfully upset, but she could see that Spy was genuinely distraught. She asked her to come inside and talk, as the boys weren't home then. Spy explained everything, leaving out the bits about who she really was, though she hinted at it here and there, but was too scared.

Julie saw right through that. She understood her immediately. Spy nearly exploded into tears when Julie told her that she would love her no matter who she was. She cried in Julianna's arms harder than she had ever cried before. Julie could also see that she was clearly a little drunk, and she didn't want to leave her alone in this kind of state, so she let her stay the night.

Even after that, Spy made Julie promise not to tell Jeremy. She had to be the one to tell him face to face, and she knew that. Spy held it off for years; she was terrified of how Scout would react. Would he be angry? God, she hoped not. Then they were fired, and she was so, so upset. It hurt her, God, why had she held off for so long? Now, what if she never got to tell him?

The comics took place (even though comic 7 doesn't exist, shhh), and once everything went back to "normal", she told him. Actually told him.

How Scout took it is up to interpretation. I have so many different ideas I couldn’t possibly explain them all (most of them are sooooo angsty btw. hurt no comfort type angst.)

[cyber-corp]

Suburban music videos: What's the deal?

Some of you may know that a couple of days ago I started a playlist of music videos from the 1990s and 2000s which all seem to be featured in or prominently feature American suburban areas. I forget what the actual post was that pointed this out, but I think I kind of had that idea before I saw it.

One of the first music videos I thought of was 'Rockin' the Suburbs' by Ben Folds from 2001, because not only does it explicitly mention a suburb, but the video is done in such a way that I think it was meant to poke fun at the angry white boy music that plagued the late 90's (Limp Bizkit, Korn, etc).

The other video I thought of was 'Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)' by the Offspring from 1998. Like RTS, it's meant to poke fun at middle-class white dudes who think they're hot shit because they listen to rap, when in reality they come off as cheesy wannabes. So it would make sense for the MV to have that setting.

The main trope these MVs have in common is that they both have the "haha 90s ironic edge" on them. Like it's very obvious that the songs are about how tough some dudes think they are, when really they live in a relatively safe and secure area. "Black Hole Sun" by Soundgarden did something similar in 1994, but I think that it has a completely different vibe to the others. More surrealism, less irony.

But I think the true golden era of the "suburban neighbourhood music video" was during the early to mid-2000's. With a rise in pop-punk and emo, comes a rise in angsty teens going "blehh!!! screw this place!!!! screw the establishment!!!!!! its not a phase mom!!!!!!", which then resulted in music videos featuring an environment they were probably most familiar with (and probably stuck in).

Here's '1985' by Bowling for Soup, released in 2004. The colour palette for this video is a lot more muted, which is (I find) a common link between most MVs in the 00's. Which gives a more "this is the way things actually are" vibe, compared to the much brighter palettes of the 90s.

'The Anthem' by Good Charlotte (2003) is quite possibly the most early-00's MV ever, and I consider it to be the definitive suburban neighbourhood music video. The song is about "not living the way you're meant to live" according to Joel Madden, and the video reflects that sentiment! Just a bunch of punk and emo kids going out and causing a ruckus, having a gay ol' time.

It also has this weird blue/greenish filter on it, which is very indicative of its period. That's a whole other story.

The suburban neighbourhood continued to thrive in music videos throughout the 00's, mainly in pop-punk and emo. I believe this was an attempt to target its demographic; adolescents aged 14-19 who had yet to find their place in the world. Some notable MVs include 'You're Going Down' by Sick Puppies (2009), 'Only One' by Yellowcard (2003), and 'Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground' by the White Stripes (2002).

(side-note: michel gondry, director of the white stripes vid, never misses when it comes to his music videos. this is one of my favourite music videos ever, but it definitely isn't one of my favourite suburban music videos ever.)

SNMVs began to go out of style around the early 2010s, presumably along with pop punk and emo. The closest to it would be 'I Sold My Bed, But Not My Stereo' by Capital Cities, which came out in 2014. It's very much of a more nostalgic style compared to the others, but it's most likely one of the last of the SNMVs.

So: Does this specific sub-genre of MV mean anything?

I think individually the videos definitely represent and reflect certain zeitgeists of their eras, but the SNMV is very much rooted in adolescent angst. That feeling that while you are living comfortably, there's definitely something more. Boredom is present in every teenager, and these videos are like a fantasy for them: getting to live out your days without responsibility with your friends, but are suppressed of having any fun because of the 'system' at large.

"Let me tell y'all what it's like

Being male, middle class and white"

(also i think all star is partially responsible for the rise of interest because of course it is. it's all star by smash mouth. mentioning its very existence feels redundant.)

[whtwclf]

I never thought I would have to say this out loud, but here we fucking are I guess— so whoever needs to hear this:

Wade Wilson has never been and never will be a goddamn Nazi.

If you or someone you know is dropping into inboxes on anon and accusing people writing Wade Wilson of being racist and/or Nazis - well friends, let’s unpack that shall we?

Let’s first address the comic run with which is being referenced here, and that’s the Hydra Cap run. This is a run wherein through some nonsensical Cosmic Cube related shit [[ you can read a bit about that here ]] where Wade is more or less manipulated by who he thinks is Steve Rogers/Captain America into essentially doing shit that does or ends up benefiting Hydra schemes. I’m hazy on it because it was a shit run that nearly the whole of 616 fans REVILED, by a HUGE margin, and that’s my point the first - as a fandom we mostly rejected that whole storyline. As much as we refuse to believe that Wanda and Pietro aren’t Magneto’s children, almost any 616er does not recognize huge portions of that run.

MY POINT THE MFING SECOND—

Is even if they did by into that run;

Wade Wilson acting on what he believes is on the behest of Captain America a Nazi does not make him, no more than Steve is a Nazi for a clone hydra made of him or no more than mcu Bucky Barnes being made a slave to Hydra machinations.

So if you have a shit understanding or knowledge of the works and comics you speak of and are so lazy you can’t be bothered to do an iota of research and instead fucking CHOOSE to slander people on anon and tell them to kill themselves - then you can kindly block me and get fucked. This isn’t a debate on the character of Wade Wilson. He’s a good guy. He’s the best fucking guy. He loves everyone and judges no one unless they seek to do harm to someone who doesn’t deserve it. And if you would rather CHOOSE to ignore the heroism written into that character, CHOOSE to ignore the importance he holds to people of all colors and faiths and races and communities and cultures and genders, in favor of being a juvenile little shit bag? Then have you stopped to consider, just even by a margin, what a disgusting ASSHOLE that makes YOU? Have you?

Have you considered that this performative purity bullshit impresses no one anymore? That you’re KILLING this community with this shit? You must because you’re harassing people on anon, where it use to be the rule you could do that in the open with impunity? Not quite that anymore though, is it? Because everyone is the fuck over it. You’re a joke anymore who helps no one and proves nothing.

So in summation;

Hydra Cap sucks. So does that run. Nazis are the worst shit.

And most importantly?

Wade Wilson is a fucking hero.

I said what I said.

✌️

[tinytowns]

SOOBIN ✧ SUGAR RUSH RIDE