#day of da spookies

[tangentburd]

tfw i identify with george on a molecular level sometimes

[emeraldspiral]

One problem I have with the Day of Da Spookies script is that Dib is usually depicted as way smarter. Like, his character is supposed to be the Only Sane Man who gets unfairly labeled as insane by everyone else because they're so stupid, and the entire premise of Zim's plan is him asking the question "Why isn't he a moron like everyone else?" and then, as usual, making a really dumb leap of logic.

There are offhand mentions to crazy-sounding things that Dib believes in, but the show is weird enough that they could easily be true, and aside from Zim there are a few other things he's mentioned that are confirmed to be true. He's also been shown multiple times to be able to see the zippers and strings and other obvious tells of hoaxes, along with being able to point out the flaws in Zim's plans and the flaws of the dystopia he lives in. Zim for him isn't a case of a broken clock being right twice a day. Dib's pretty consistently shown to actually be genuinely perceptive. He doesn't just believe in any conspiracy theory that sounds cool or confirms his biases. He's actually usually skeptical when he encounters new ideas like the Lice Queen, magic soda powers, or Tak, and doesn't believe in them without evidence.

He's only ever been shown falling for a hoax a handful of times in limited circumstances. Twice he got tricked into looking for something after Gaz made false sightings (claiming to have seen a Chupacabra in the mall in Gameslave 2 and leading him on a wild goose chase looking for sasquatches in one of the comics), but he never actually saw a fake creature and fell for it, he just went looking so he could confirm it with his own eyes. Also, just because the sightings Gaz reported were fake doesn't confirm that the creatures actually don't exist. The only actual fakes to trick Dib were the bus in A Room With a Moose, which Dib very quickly realized something was up with anyway before Zim revealed himself, the robot double from Future Dib, which was actually convincing for once and not Zim's usual shoddy work, and Tak. And the fact that Tak's disguise was able to fool Dib was meant to characterize her as a more competent invader than Zim, and that idea relies on Dib actually being hard to fool.

So it feels very inconsistent with Dib's character that not only would he be tricked into believing that Zim and his cohorts were ghosts, but he wouldn't be able to see through Skoodge's disguise either, or question the legitimacy of his tests. Like, if Dib were remotely in-character in this episode, even if Skoodge had an actual convincing Ghost Expert disguise, Dib would be immediately tipped-off to him being a fraud because Skoodge is just bullshitting about Dib's special interest right in front of him, like a mansplainer telling a woman about her own book that he hasn't even read.

Like, the only way it makes sense for Dib to be so gullible in this episode is if either ghosts really do work That Way in this universe and Skoodge just made some insanely lucky guesses, or Dib's a total poser who only cares about bigfeets and aliens, and doesn't actually know dick about ghosts so he just nods along because he doesn't want to embarrass himself by questioning the "expert".

I feel like it'd make more sense if Dib knew it was Zim all along, but played dumb because he thought he'd be able to expose him as an alien when the Ghost Expert inevitably saw through his disguise. Then when Skoodge arrives, Dib quickly realizes that he's a fraud and starts pointing out the flaws in his methodology, trying to back him into a corner and force him to conduct a real ghost test that he knows Zim won't be able to pass. But then everyone else keeps telling him not to Mansplain ghosts to the Ghost Expert. Then at the end, even though Dib never actually said he believed they were ghosts, just that he had some entities claiming to be ghosts that he wanted the Ghost Expert to come and look at, and was openly skeptical the entire time, he still gets called a fraud.

[emeraldspiral]

Wait, so I believe at last year's Florpus Anniversary screening someone said Jhonen said Skoodge is living in Zim's basement and just isn't seen in the movie.

But in the original comic timeline, which we know is meant to cover about a year since Zim experiences his second Halloween and Christmas during that run, Skoodge never reveals himself as intended in the unfinished episode Day of Da Spookies. This comic meanwhile, takes place in an alternate timeline which began the same as the original comic run, then veered into another direction resulting in ETF and 3 other post-movie comics, culminating with this one. Since the post-Florpus run was only 4 issues we can assume that less time has passed in this continuity than the original comic timeline.

In the original comic timeline, even though much more time passed without Skoodge making an appearance, it's still possible that Skoodge was laying low in Zim's base all that time and Day of Da Spookies or some alternative story which would see him reveal himself could still possibly happen at some indeterminate point in the future. But this comic appears to show Skoodge out conquering another alien planet in the name of the Irken Empire at a much earlier point in time. So either he snuck out of Zim's base without Zim ever knowing he was there in the first place, or he was in fact not ever there in the first place.

So is Day of Da Spookies now officially decanonized? Because we have two lines of continuity now, one where Skoodge never emerges from the basement after more than a year, and one where he's clearly shown to not be in the basement at an earlier point in time with no indication he was ever there. Technically it's possible Day of Da Spookies still happened offscreen, but in the absence of any evidence for it, I wouldn't consider that a reasonable argument. It's the same kind of insane, lazy logical fallacy that people like MatPat use to justify literally any theory. "I made up a bunch of stuff there's no evidence for, but you can't prove that it didn't happen offscreen despite absolutely nothing that infers it", which you could say about literally anything one could make up.

It's interesting to consider because I think for a long time the fandom always treated the unfinished episodes as if they were canon since they would've been if the show weren't cancelled. But when the comics started up I remember Jhonen made a statement about not wanting the comics to be a receptacle for old stories. The only comics that ended up being adapted from old episode ideas were ones from scripts that were never released. Like the Pants Aliens comic intended for season 1, which never got the green light from Nick because it was too similar to Jimmy Neutron's pilot episode, or "GIR's Big Day" which was heavily reworked from the description Eric Trueheart gave of the original episode concept.

I can definitely see why Jhonen wouldn't want to use the comics or a series revival to enshrine any of those old episodes into official canon. I think it'd be kinda disappointing for fans to wait so long only to pick up a new comic or tune into a new episode and it's just a story we already got 15-20 years ago with all the jokes and twists and turns already spoiled for us.

This is why I get the impression that stuff like the Virooz arc and Zim's nightmare in ETF exist to be stealth replacements for 10 Minutes to Doom and The Trial. A way to convey that the lore about PAKs and Irken existence evaluations is still part of the canon even though the episodes that were originally meant to reveal that information are not canon anymore.

Bringing it back Skoodge, it may indeed no longer be canon that Skoodge is, was, or ever will be living in Zim's basement. But only because it wouldn't be surprising to the audience anymore if that were the case. If they ever bring him back, it's not going to be in a finished version of Day of Da Spookies, it's going to be in a brand new story.

invader zim really gave us the most fan favorite and long awaited characters after 20 years of waiting, in the last 3 pages of the final issue of the comics ;___;

[speakofthedebbie]

me: i wanna get a black ring my mom: why? me: oh you know. for halloween and stuff my mom: me: my mom: me: my mom: ...i mean they might have it at dollarama- me: (checkmate bitch)

[bloodycyrano]

Ok, so what are your big 3s halloween costumes?

Mine are as follows.

Hero of fereldon: The Archdemon; Dresses Barkspawn as a Griffon.- "See, Rook?! I've got a griffon, too. You're not special."

Hawke: A shade demon. The family dog was dressed as an abomination- Perhaps in poor taste, all things considered. But Hawke thought it was hilarious, even being a mage and a mage rights activist.

Inquisitor: A ghoul- "I'm missing a fucking arm, and the bags under my damn eyes make me look dead enough," Said very begrudgingly. It goes with the bog unicorn, though.

[4townglazer]

happy october guyssssss 🗣

[emeraldspiral]

#he met skoodge once for 5 minutes#in disguise#but still managed to figure out that skoodge is gay#<<< prev tags#he's a perceptive kid#nothing gets past the dib

Lmao, you say that when the script we're referencing is the one where Dib gets completely duped because the writers forgot that perceptiveness is like, his main character trait.

what is this dude even talking about

[autisticcole]

Heheheheheho I have gotten some of the Dragon Age books (🏴‍☠️) and this is gonna really let me dig into some stuff, especially my favorite guy Cole, cause now I can read his OG appearance, I want to see how much stuff Cole says, especially during his quest actually makes sense, and how much is in-universe "both sides are right"ing about not listening to what Cole wants to do.

I am mainly talking about Spirit!Cole thanking Inky for not making him change... Despite the fact that thoughout Cole's quest Solas ignores what Cole wants (Like being binded) & wants to do (Kill the guy who beat beyond beating a 12 (at most) year old (most likely, it isn't outright stated (to my memory) the Templar who fucked up the paperwork was also one of the ones who physically abused him, but I feel it's a pretty safe assumption) & got that child killed due to neglect & faced no consequences) but ultimately the choice that causes Cole to thank the player for not changing him is the one where you listen to Solas over Cole (Or well Varric, who also doesn't let Cole do what he wants but is closer to what Cole would have done if he had went alone for the confrontation) & in this route I would say Cole's character changes a lot more, especially as he forgets the original Cole, which... Rubs me wrong, but I'll save my more detailed thoughts for 1. After I fully read Asunder & 2. Either a full Cole analysis or a detailed post about my thoughts on his quest & routes (& maybe how I'd rewrite them, as a Autistic person & a ally to the aroace community)

Anyways my point is that I want to see how true it is characters rejected or wanted to change Cole, I want to see what leads him to feel that having two men argue & tell him who he is supposed to be & do only to have a third person decide out of those two's options for what he should do is remotely a situation where he's been accepted.

[rodrigoincolors]

#31DaysOfHalloween Day 12: Super Xuxa Contra o Baixo Astral

Every child born in Brazil in the decades from the 1980s to the 2000s was highly impacted by Xuxa. She hosted many TV shows along those decades and her records are to this days, the highest selling albums in the history of Brazil. Mind you that in my country, the children entrertainment industry was very strong in that time period and many celebrities became famous working for children. However, Xuxa is the only one who is still very much vocal for children's rights — as well as for the LGBTQ+ community, racial issues and veganism.

In 1988, she debuted as a moviestar with "Super Xuxa Contra o Baixo Astral" (or "Super Xuxa vs. Satan" in american VHS bootlegs). It was directed by Anna Penido and they had the highest budget for any Brazilian movie in the 1980s. Trust me, the box office was very worthy.

She's almost Dante in this movie, if you ask me. It starts with Xuxa painting the town with the colors of the rainbow and spreading positive news. Baixo Astral gets very angry with that and to try to stop her, he kidnaps her puppy. In trying to get her dog back, she goes on a long journey to finally get to the Baixo Astral's cave. She does get her dog back and it's able to defeat evil and set all children free from it. It is basically about remembering to always keep up with positivity. Afterall, that's the only way we can defeat negativity.

While I was getting the illustrations done for this year's Halloween special, I decided they would be posted chronologically. This means this is the 12th illustration. It is a very fortunate coincidence that today, October 12th, we celebrate Children's Day in Brazil. I did not calculate this, but I'm so glad it happened.

[tired-angry-recluse]

“ … “

“ ..just..girls at my school, it’s not that surprising, “

"What do you mean 'not that surprising'?"

"How often does this happen...?"

[autism-disco]

i’m actually so good at people. i’m the best at people. people are so people and i am people and i can people i know how to talk to people and they talk back to me and they talk to me about their problems and i do helping and we do mutual interests but avoid saying certain things because oh no that’s the wrong person for that peopleing but if you get it right people people people

[tangentburd]

A shitposty, no-context illustration I initially made for @teatoastghostszine. Obviously it didn't fit anywhere so I just reused the character art for some of the zine promo graphics.

(Keep slayin', Kipps.)

👻 'Tea, Toast & Ghosts: A Lockwood & Co. Fanzine' is now available as a full PDF and text-only version! Read and download it for free: [ Google Drive ] [ Archive.org ] [ AO3 ]

[short-and-ugly]

"yes yes, it will be magical!" handwaves him off. this is fucking zim. of course. if not for the blatant lie during storytime about beating dib, then for this action alone. theyre so good at writing him i love that i can pick this out just from his tone and words alone. amazing. phenomenal. i hope to be able to do this.

[variouscolors]

seasonal tags

I know some of those are a big NO to some people, like being trigger content or giving them awful memories they want to forget, so feel free to filter those tags.

In order:

digihalloween - tag for Halloween posts

digichristmas - tag for Christmas posts

digivalentines - tag for Valentine's Day posts

digifools - tag for April Fools' Day posts

digibirthday - tag for Birthday posts (canon or headcanon)

odaiba memorial - tag for Digimon Day (aka "Odaiba Day")

[duckprintspress]

Queer Horror Stories to Celebrate Mary Shelley’s Birthday!

Today, August 30th, is Frankenstein Day and Mary Shelley’s Birthday! To celebrate the first horror novel, we decided to ask our contributors about their favorite queer horror novels and ended up with 28 titles for a very spooky end of summer. Contributors to this list are: Shadaras, D.V. Morse, Nova Mason, Terra P. Waters, Rhosyn Goodfellow, Nina Waters, Meera S., Shea Sullivan, Owl Outerbridge, Sanne, Tris Lawrence, boneturtle and an anonymous contributor.

The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling

Someone You Can Build a Nest In by John Wiswell

The Devourers by Indra Das

Into the Drowning Deep & Rolling in the Deep (Rolling in the Deep series) by Mira Grant

What Moves the Dead (Sworn Soldier series) by T. Kingfisher

Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle

Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle

I Feed Her to the Beast and the Beast Is Me by Jamison Shea

Sixteen Souls by Rosie Talbot

The Honeys by Ryan La Sala

The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass

Kaleidoscope of Death by Xi Zi Xu

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould

Alice Isn’t Dead by Joseph Fink

Squad by Maggie Tokuda-Hall

The Hills of Estrella Roja by Ashley Robin Franklin

The Vampire Lestat (The Vampire Chronicles series) by Anne Rice

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

The Summer Hikaru Died by Mokumokuren

Pet Shop of Horrors by Matsuri Akino

Your Shadow Half Remains by Sunny Moraine

The Deep Sky by Yume Kitasei

Make the Exorcist Fall in Love by Aruma Arima & Masuku Fukayama

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White

Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

Fate/Stay Night by Type-Moon

Umineko When They Cry by Ryukishi07

Case 00: The Cannibal Boy from Sounding Stone

Welcome to Night Vale

The Silt Verses

What are your favorite queer horror novels? Tell us in the comments!

Want to chat your favorite reads with us? Join our Book Lover’s Discord server!

Update your Goodreads TBR with any of these books by visiting our queer horror shelf on Goodreads!! Or, jump onto Bookshop.org and browse these books on our queer horror list!