#didn't think a silly kids cartoon would come for me so hard

[hairupintheair]

EXCUSE YOU 😭😭😭😭

[yuymayd]

I know, probably, nobody will read this, but I NEED to say this somewhere. I just despise how people treat both Yang and Ruby and their development throughout the show. It almost looks like people are not watching the same cartoon as I am. Also, the fact Ruby and I have a very alike household and story of life makes everything hit stronger to me. So, I will make a small analysis of some aspects of Ruby and Yang throughout the series based on my pov and on the information we were given by the series.

After Summer left and ended up dying during her mission, everyone was crushed in pieces. As we saw in Red Like Roses part II, Ruby always had the feeling her mom would not come back home someday. To a little kid, waking up and getting to know that your worst fear turned up to be real is devastating, especially when it comes to losing someone that it's the glue of the house and is your mom. After that, Tai was so broken that he couldn't even be a functional father and Yang, who was also a kid, had to pick the responsibility of taking care of Ruby. In my vision, both Yang and Ruby blamed themselves from all of this bad situation, one thinking that because of her Summer left them and the other trying to compensate all the time for being a "burden" to others. In their household, it looks like everyone didn't use to talk about their feelings or about everything that has happened (as we saw Yang and Tai arguing in the volume 4). With all of this, it's crystal clear why Ruby and Yang have so many difficulties in talking about their struggles and their difficulties.

Ruby always felt like she was a burden to other people (and I think it's because she feels guilty that Yang had to kinda put her need before her own and she blames herself for Summer's d3ath), so she tried so hard to be the best leader and to make the best choices, but EVERYTHING was crumbling and, with more and more choices to make and with all of the weight of the world on you shoulders because everyone is counting on you, she started to lose herself and feel like she's incompetent. She truly felt like she had no value and that she was completely alone. Since the beginning, she wasn't the kind of person that would ask for help when she was struggling (she tried to figure it out by herself) and, with the situation getting more complex, she had the feeling she needed to do everything on her own. When they were in Ever After, all of her trauma hit her like a truck: the absence of her mom; Penny having one moment of living like a human and, just after that, her life ended because she needed to pass the powers; the weight of her choices, including the people who died in the middle and all of the destruction it caused; and all of her mistakes. Everything was too much for her to handle and she felt like she failed to everyone. Thinking about all of this, it makes sense why she was so broken and why she didn't have hope for things to get better. To everyone saying she was being selfish, she was not. She was really having her first real mental breakdown in her life. In this kind of moment, everything is extremely intense and it's sooo hard to see that there are people who you can rely on by your side. She's just a girl who has to fight in a very unfair battle she didn't ask for.

Now, about Yang. I've seen people from the fandom saying she is not really intelligent or even calling her stupid, but she's everything but those things (of course she can act silly and be goofy, but she's not dumb). Yang grew so freaking much when it comes to fighting and she thinks a lot before making some decision, even on battle or in her private life. This girl tends to bottle up her feelings and she puts all of her teammates and other people before her. She would sacrifice herself without even thinking twice because she cares more about other people's well being than her own (and this is something I would love to see being discussed in the next volumes). I think she does this because, to her, it's better to lose herself than losing people she loves (almost thinking she's replaceable). And, I mean, she had to sacrifice a lot of stuff for other people's sakes, especially for Ruby. Being a young kid and having to parent your younger sibling can change the way you see everything and even you own self worth. To everyone who said she doesn't care about her sister, please, watch the last three volumes again. She asks Ruby a couple of times if she was okay and, when Ruby made the theory about what happened to their mom, Yang pulled herself together after sobbing a little and pulled Ruby into a hug, trying to comfort her little sister instead of letting all of her emotions out. If Ruby doesn't talk to Yang what's wrong, she cannot do anything about it, she doesn't have a crystal ball to tell her what's happening with other people. Yang always showed to be someone reliable and tried her best to tough for everyone else's sake. Don't say she's a bad sister when she isn't.

Well, this was just my small rant about these two sister I love so much! I have more things to say about this but I think the rest is more projection :') and I'm too tired to write more hehe

[silly-scribbles]

I sometimes look back at the first poster of TGAMM and thought the ghost character would be a traditional comedically grumpy ghost character and we would have another fun albeit unspectacular silly cartoon for kids.

Little did we know that the ghost character would spark some fascinating look into how childhood trauma can lead to aggressive cries for help. Don’t you just love it when your expectations are shatteringly subverted?!

AGREED.

(There will be spoilers for the most recent Season 2 episodes going forward as I talk about this, be warned).

I knew something was off about Scratch the moment he was introduced to us, specifically the fact he was so alone. I just thought it would never get addressed because of how the series was so focused on the story told in Season 1, with the Flow and the Chairman and all that crap. I thought his past was, well, in the past, and the show was only focused on the present. It was there for fans to fantasize and wonder about, but it would never actually come to light what he went through.

When we got the synopsis for A Soda To Remember, I was nervous. I wanted to know what would happen, but at the same time, I wanted the show to stay in the present. But the way the writers have been discussing all of the things that happened when Scratch was alive is making me so invested into it all. There was a time when I was first watching the series that I lowkey didn't really want to see what Scratch looked like as a human, and now, I'm literally FEASTING off of the one glimpse we saw of him in All In The Mind. The writers said we'd find out how he died, and I could never be more hyped (and scared for what we're going to find out, of course).

One think I appreciate in kids shows like these is how the writers are never afraid to address real-world issues and topics. Take the Home episode from Season 1 (yes I'm too lazy to write out it's full name but it's episode 18) as an example. Now here we have Scratch, who 100% has anxiety or other mental disorders that have all been from childhood trauma. (Now, before you go out and say "oh but a friend moving away isn't trauma" ummmmm ever consider why he has no biological family???? lol). He's repressed his feelings so deep inside of him because he's scared to confront this PTSD he has. You can still tell he has some sort of mental attachment to things that've happened in the past, hence why he was staying inside of the attic of Adia's old house before the McGees moved in, but he's trying his best to ignore it. And the catch is: it's not working. That's why things are "bubbling up to the surface", as they've been calling it. From the get-go, Scratch has always had a problem with hiding things from people. In Season 1, you could tell he didn't want to tell Molly about how dangerous their friendship was. He told her about things in Scratch the Surface/Friend Off, but you could tell he was doing it in a way where Molly wouldn't see the issue as much of a problem, when in reality it was a massive problem that Scratch was trying to deal with all on his own. And in episodes like the Turnip Twist, that problem of hiding what was happening was really hard for him to do. All of it is starting to make sense now - he's hiding everything. All because of what's happened in his past and the fact that he's too scared to confront his emotions.

I cannot wait to see what the rest of the season. I want my ghost boy to find closure. He deserves it 🙏

[sketching-shark]

It is wild to me that Monkie Kid is like… “Sun Wukong, you goofed around during a serious ceremony and fucked up the Samadhi Fire ritual. 🖕🖕🖕 for a thousand years. Find the nearest lake and drown yourself. We are going to beat you verbally and in at least one instance physically over the head with it.”

And then turns around and says “Macaque, you intentionally released the Samadhi Fire in a bid to spare your own life, by holding a young lady hostage and threatening to murder her violently. It’s time to give you an olive branch, upon which no one will care about your violent, cruel, and spiteful misdeeds ever again.”

“Anyways, time to scream at Sun Wukong again.”

tbh anon I'm not sure if a guy who's general thoughts about JTTW retellings are usually along the lines of "there should be more body horror in this" would the best to comment on a silly goofy lego show, but here's me whining about a cartoon under the cut so as usual avert thine eyes if you don't want to read all of that lol

ha. yeaugh. full disclosure anon especially because maybe things have changed, and I'm in full realization that I'm probably blowing things out of proportion, but I did not see the most recent season because at this point Monkie Kid just makes me feel sad. Basically I went from being excited for the adventures to hoping Sun Wukong would get to be at least quasi-competent to just feeling depressed that all MK really seems to have gotten from being SWK's tudi at the end of the day is one horrific trauma after another all while the monkey king himself stumbles around with good intentions but in practice usually making everything 1000x worse than it had to be.

Like yea of course we can talk about the actions of the obvious villains, but there is this pretty awful connection between all of them from the Demon Bull King to the Lady Bone Demon to the Azure Lion that they only were as successful in committing their horrors as they were specifically because of things that the Monkey King did or failed to do. (In particular its kind of wild that the Azure Lion got stuck by Sun Wukong in a torture scroll for like 1000 years before his body and soul were obliterated like god damn it would have been kinder to just kill him the first time around. This lego show sure is good at making literal former warlord og classic Monkey King look good in comparison asfgrefaw).

And sure, you could say that that's all part of this overall lesson that it's bad and self-defeating to think you can tackle all of the world's problems on your own, but it's been clear for awhile now that when it comes time to yell at someone on team good guy it's primarily SWK who gets any flak for his actions. All while he never gets to say anything to defend himself, because there is no defending anything he did. And a lot of these writing choices seems to be to frame Macaque as a monkey who, by direct contrast, never did anything problematic, or at least nothing so terrible it's worth dwelling on. Sure, he repeatedly beat the living hell out of MK and threatened Mei's life, but it's obvious that as far as the plot is concerned none of that matters at all. And when Macaque blamed SWK for everything that went wrong between them, called him a terrible teacher, said he was a lazy jerk who only ever makes things go from bad to worse, well gosh darn if the show didn't go out of its way to confirm all of these accusations. So while the end result is the obvious fandom and canon meow-meow Macaque being fully exonerated and a firm member of team good guy, it also means that it's difficult to understand why any one of them would even want to be around SWK at all at this point, given the extent to which he badly hurt them all and helped to put the entire universe in danger repeatedly.

tbh, at this point it's kind of hard NOT to feel like every member of team monkie, especially MK himself, would be a lot better off if SWK had just left them alone.

:(

[letstalkaboutit100]

Ideas pt 4 blue = concpet. pink= ep idea

EVEN MORE ideas if EAH got a reboot:

Ok, WHAT IS UP WITH TIANA AND NAVEEN'S SON?! THAT'S NOT THEIR KID! While the turning into a frog is cool, the poetry thing has got to go. Now while it is strange that NAVEEN's kid is all shy and stuff, to me honestly kind of makes sense. I mean, come on? If Tiana and Naveen were to ever have a kid, they would totally be a MAMA's BOY! But they would have MUCH better hair. But let's change his name to either Louis or Raymond. He also has a crush on charlotte's daughter! I think I'll name her Lenny. I also think he would have a wild crazy little sister. She's 7 and her name is Tina! She rides crocodies EVERYWHERE and wears big necklaces , hoop earings and bracelets with long curly pigtails! She and charlotte's daughter are best friends. And she's a daddy's girl! Their both wild and like adventures, and got his personality and winning smile! She's the next mama oldie! (Brair would love her lol) She doesn't like Apple though lol. She's very hyper and shakes people's hands hard like a cartoon XD.

Briar isn't as close to her parents as everyone thinks. She and Aurora fight a lot. She was a wild child. The West Wing wild child is what they called her when she was little. She always hated sleeping. Constantly saying "Well if I'm asleep, I'll miss everything! I won't know what's going on!". I think she would know how to shoot a bow and arrow.

Since Brair parties a lot, I like to think she causes a bit of mischief too. She pulls pranks around the school (mostly on the headmaster) and I can tell you she's been caught a few times.

For season 4:

Espsiode idea (4 parter): Brair gets caught pranking the headmaster (faybelle told on her) and she suspended. no parties, dentation for 2 weeks and on jantior duty. But instead of taking the punshiment, she pranks him again! And she's send home!

Pt2: Brair is sent home and everyone is upset that she was send away! Expelled! So everyone, Apple, Raven, Ella, maddie (and later faybelle) sneak out of school to go to brair's kingdom and convice her parents to let her come back! (Everyone else covers for them, with the help of baba yaga!) But when they get there her parents say no! But they do let them talk to her. Then brair tells them that she heard her parnets are going to punish her by making her follow her destiny early! PUT HER UNDER! AND SLEEP FOR A CENTURY! AND SHE'S ALREADY FALLING IN AND OUT OF CONSCIOUSNESS! With out knowing what to do, the girls go back to school empty handed.

Pt3: The girls snuck back to school later that night only to show up with no Briar. Everyone is wondering what happened and where is she. They didn't cover them for 2 DAYS FOR NOTHING! After they told everyone what happened their all silent. Everyone is at a loss for words. Brair is gone. They'll never see her again. Even Faybelle feels bad. She was just being a tattle-tail. She didn't mean to "kill" her! "You! This is all your fault!" Apple screams and points at Faybelle. "My best friend is going to be asleep for 100 years and it's all your fault!" Apple runs away crying followed by everyone else. Ella, Maddie, and Raven go up to Faybelle and ask her why she did it. "It was just a silly prank! She does them all the time! I'm just being the villain that I am! But I never wanted to actually put her to sleep!"

[knickynoo]

BTTF: The Animated Series, s01ep02, "A Family Vacation" Review and Commentary

Previous episodes will get linked HERE. (top of page)

I didn't mention in my last post, but I have seen the first season before--about 2 years ago. I have basically no memory of it (I guess my brain was like, "yeah, no, we don't need this" and just dumped it), so this is a lot like watching again for the first time. Never seen the second season, so that'll be all new to me.

In this episode: We travel to England, Doc duels with one of Biff's ancestors, and we meet Marty's goofy relative Harold McFly.

Ok, let's jump in.

Interesting. I thought all these episodes began with Real Doc in his lab, but this one seems to skip that part and goes straight to animation. Christopher Lloyd is narrating, though, which is nice, I suppose. Still not as good as getting to actually see him. Automatic points deducted from this episode for not immediately showing me Doc's face. More Real Doc, less cartoon, please. Thanks.

I am thrilled to announce that we have found Clara! (she did not appear at all in episode 1) She's voiced by none other than Clara herself, Mary Steenburgen.

As you may be able to tell, she's shed her 1885 attire in favor of modern clothes. And right away, we learn that she's become super tech-savvy as well. The Brown house has many futuristic features to it (either from Doc's travels or his own inventions) and Clara is using two of them here. The device on her leg allows her to work out without actually having to move, and the thing on her finger has some sort of laser feature that allows her to grade school papers on a screen across the room. And I can only wonder how it is that Clara has managed to get a job teaching in a modern school—not so much because of any gaps in knowledge she may have (Clara's super smart, I'm sure she could catch up) but because I'm wondering about the interview process. Surely she must have had to show identification and fill out forms. I can only assume that Doc has gotten forged documentation somehow for his entire family with made up birth years, medical records, etc.

I would have liked an episode about that. Kids would've enjoyed an episode all about Doc creating fake birth records for his wife and kids, right? Right??

Elsewhere in the house, Jules and Verne are busy playing with remote control cars and an elaborate model train set. Hmm...seems like this episode is setting up lots of scenes with technology in preparation to give us the ol' "too much tech is bad for you" lesson.

Our good buddy Doc is even in on the tech craze. He's busy building robot arms that will turn newspaper pages for him so he doesn't have to do it himself, lol. Unfortunately, this causes a power surge, and all the lights in the house go off. The family is not happy. Doc comes to the realization that they've all become spoiled by technology. He declares that they all need to take a vacation to a time without electricity and ushers them to the DeLorean.

As the car flies off into the sky, Marty and Jennifer are walking down the street.

Um. That's—that's Jennifer. Yeah. I don't know what happened there. Her design upsets me. Marty is still in his silly letterman jacket. I'm thisclose to photoshopping a denim jacket onto him. Why is he wearing high-waisted jeans?

As they watch the car, Marty tells Jennifer, "I don't guess we'll be borrowing the car tonight." So, apparently, he's allowed to take the DeLorean through time all willy-nilly whenever he wants? That sounds like an absolutely horrible idea.

Doc takes the fam to England in 1367 because I guess he figures a good dose of dysentery will help put things in perspective for them? Anyway, he uses this high-tech camera thing to "change" all their clothes into Medieval ones. He says it's only an illusion that lasts a few hours, though. Idk, don't think about it too hard. To ensure the family all stays put and "enjoys" the trip, he programs the DeLorean to fly away, back to present day, and return later on to pick them up. There is no way that can possibly go wrong.

Clara is not happy with her husband.

"Of all the pig-headed, insensitive, macho things you've ever done, this takes the cake," she says. And. Can we just talk about how un-Doc-like those descriptors are? Insensitive? Macho?? OUR DOC? Cartoon Clara and Doc have a weird dynamic in this so far. I don't like the exasperated wife with a bumbling, inconsiderate husband trope.

We soon meet Lord Biffingham, Earl of Tannenshire. If you read my episode 1 review, you know that Thomas F. Wilson voices all Tannens in the show. He's really a bright spot in this series because the guy can do so many fun voices. We'll meet many more Tannen relatives in the show—Biff evidently has family roots all over the globe. Lord Biffingham orders Clara to be kidnapped by his cronies. Uh oh. Doc is also kidnapped. Double uh oh! It's up to Jules and Verne to save the day now.

They soon meet one of Marty's relatives! Harold McFly of the Sussex McFlys. Here they are all hanging upside down in a tree because they got caught in rope traps.

Those are traps Harold set, btw. He caught himself in his own trap. I love him already. Harold tells the boys that he's vowed revenge against Biffingham for stealing away "his lady" Jennivere (assumed to be one of Jennifer's relatives due to the name and fact she is literally just the Jennifer character from the earlier scene but in Medieval clothing). They team up to try to sneak into Biffingham's castle to rescue Doc, Clara, and Jennivere.

Meanwhile, Lord Biffingham asks Clara to marry him. First, though, he has to kill Doc. Yep. So far, we've had a Civil War episode featuring guns being pointed at Jules and Verne, and now a murder plot. Very fun.

Doc, however, isn't too concerned with his predicament. He's locked in a dungeon, having a grand ol' time identifying various bugs and rodents by their scientific names. And while I can't see Real Doc being quite so calm in such a time of crisis, I can see him taking breaks from his panic to be like, "Oooh, rattus norvegicus." (That's literally just a Brown Rat, btw. Doc is fascinated at seeing it.)

We go back to Marty Harold, Jules, and Verne, who are enacting their plot to infiltrate the castle. Harold sings and says some things to the guards, but I can only understand like a third of the words coming out his mouth because of his exaggerated accent. Harold what are you saying.

Lord Biffingham prepares for a jousting tournament against Doc, during which he plans to "eliminate" Doc. Biffingham has this massive horse, tons of fancy armor, and a huge sword thing. Doc has this:

I mean. I dunno, I believe in you, Doc.

Jules and Verne show up just in time to rig Doc's pathetic little "horse" with their motorized car that they snuck on the trip, which makes it go super fast. He's able to avoid Biffingham's attacks for a while, but eventually gets captured. Biffingham orders Doc, Jules, Verne, Harold, and even poor Einstein to be executed.

Doc makes a joke about himself and the boys being the first people to ever die before they were born and I just. I feel like this isn't the time for jokes, Doc? Your children are about to die and also—ALSO!—one of Marty's relatives, thus causing him to never be born in the future. Your vacation is destroying entire family lineages, Doc. This show belongs in the horror genre.

It's Clara who ends up saving the guys just in time! She and Jennivere use a ton of fabric to somehow make a hot air balloon, and they throw ropes down and fly the gang away.

With everyone free, Harold and Jennivere are reunited! He says it isn't safe for them to stay in England but he doesn't know where they can go. Doc suggests *drum roll* Ireland! And there are several things that come to my mind here.

One of Marty's relatives and one of Jennifer's relatives got married in the 1300s, moved to Ireland, and had kids—establishing the McFly family line in Ireland.

According to this, Doc is the one who caused the McFlys to even go there in the first place. So. How did they end up there originally? I guess Harold and Jennivere eventually decided on Ireland as well on their own.

It's Clara who helps to free Jennivere from the castle. Who got her out in the original timeline? Maybe Harold?

Shhh, Nikki, it's a cartoon

Anyway, Harold and Jennivere fly off to Ireland right that very moment in the hot air balloon.

Byeee! Goodbye Harold and Jennivere! Enjoy life in Ireland, you crazy kids.

I miss Seamus. I wish he was in this cartoon. That would make it better, I think.

Wait, wait. I just got sidetracked looking at the Animated Series wiki, and it turns out the opening live-action segment of Doc from this episode was cut from the DVDs, which is where I'm watching this on. It was apparently of him flying above Hill Valley in a hot air balloon. Why was this stolen from me?

Let's wrap this up. We finally get to see Real Doc! We also get one of my absolute favorite gags in all of media. And that is: when a character falls from a big height or is getting dragged or spun around and it's very obviously a fake, stuffed dummy. I cannot describe how much this gag amuses me. It is the peak of comedy, and more shows and movies should use it. Look.

It is hysterical. I watched this gif loop upwards of 15 times.

Based on the context I now have regarding the removed opening segment, it appears that Doc fell from his hot air balloon. He recovered from the lethal plummet like a champ. Must be due to the medical overhaul in 2015.

Bill Nye then shows us how to make our own hot air balloon using a plastic bag and hair dryer. That's basically the end of the episode.

Overall, I'd rank this episode as being better than the previous one. I did miss Marty, though; he was only in those 10 seconds at the beginning. But Harold was a fun guy. I like that they're keeping with the "all of Marty's relatives look just like him" thing. (Except for Arthur and George, of course)

Join me next time to see dinosaurs wearing clothes.

[havendance]

20 Questions for Fic Writers Tag Game

Thanks to @androxys for the tag!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

81! A fair number of those are drabbles, but still. Writing fic for (checks notes) 8 years really adds up.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

335,515

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Currently, I am very invested in writing for DC comics and not doing much else, but in the past I've flitted from fandom to fandom, writing for various cartoons/tv shows and video games mainly.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

v) #Justice4Gotham -- My NML epistulary/blog fic. I think this one has the advantage of being a social media AU of sorts, but I really am quite happy that one of my No Man's Land fics made it into the top five. I still think this one is very fun.

vi) You Can't Spell Kuzon without Zuko -- My Zuko and Aang are childhood friends fic. I do like this fic and I'm glad that I was finally able to finish it after sitting blocked on it for nearly two years, but I honestly don't consider it one of my top fics in terms of response. It clearly has picked up a good number of kudos, but it felt like commenters were more interested what potentially happened next rather than the Aang and Zuko of what I'd put on the page that was what compelled me to write it in the first place.

iii) One Scar to Find Them -- This was my AtlA platonic soulmate AU where the entire gaang shares scars. I really liked soulmate AUs when I was younger, mainly because I liked all the various mechanics and I think this was the last hurrah of that. And also I thought it would be wild if everyone had Zuko's scar. I remember writing this all out in my notebook in bright pink pen and then letting it sit there for ages before I finally cleaned it up.

ii) Let's Steal a Fire Prince -- My Leverage x AtLA crossover. This was the first multi-chapter fic I actually finished so I am proud of it for that, even if looking back I can see some of my growing pains. I was really glad that other people loved this crossover idea as much as I did and I would've loved to come back to this universe more if I a) could actually write heists and b) didn't get sucked into other fandoms 😅

i) Former Hopes and Future Scars -- Another AtLA fic. I'm not surprised that this is my top fic since it's a) focused on Zuko, b) features Time Travel, and c) is a contained one-shot under 2k .

All but one of these are for Avatar: the Last Airbender which I think is a reflection of me writing during the pandemic-era AtLA renaissance and it also just being more broadly approachable compared to my comics stuff.

5. Do you respond to comments?

Yep! I wasn't always super consistent with it, but I try and respond to every comment now.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Oh, this one's a hard one, there are so many good contenders! Probably You Will Live Forever (the dragonslayer!Willow fic I co-wrote with my bro Baz for the Owl House), but I would also like to give an honorable mention to I just keep falling now that you're gone the angsty next generation Miraculous Ladybug fic I wrote early in my fanfic writing career in which Adrien becomes the next Hawkmoth and his and Marinette's kids have to go up against him.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Probably some supremely fluffy fic I wrote for a ship event back when I was doing those. Other than that, maybe Robins Don't Make Great Roommates or Top 10 Secret Identity Fails? I don't think I really write super fluffy/happy endings.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I've never really gotten hate per se on the fics themselves. I did get a review on a fic I posted to fanfiction.net once that was complaining that I had rated it K but used like, a single swear word I think. I also got a couple of anons on tumblr that were really didn't like the premise of one of my fics, but I just thought it was kind of silly that they were that upset about it.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Not my thing.

10. Do you write crossovers?

Yes. I have written so many crossovers. I'm honestly a little surprised the crossover bug hasn't bitten me for my comics fic more. I've done a couple Batman/Sandman crossover fics, but it feels different with them both being comics and also both published by DC.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of fortunately!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I have written several Owl House fics with my beloved bro and co-conspirator @horatiocomehome. I'd love to cowrite something with him again some time but we are sadly currently obsessed with different fandoms. I'm also not opposed to trying co-writing with someone new!

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

I'm not super into shipping so this one's kind of tricky. If I had to choose maybe Ireneides from the Queen's Thief series or Celes/Locke from FFVI. I was also deeply committed to Sakura/Kaze from Fire Emblem: Fates, when I was younger, but the secret super AU version with a ton of lore from the elaborate AUs I daydreamed up.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

For wips I have published, I'm either confident in my ability to finish them, or else have just excepted that I won't. In terms of wips that haven't made it to the light of day: Black Queen. I started writing this and got stuck but oh, it would be so fun.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think coming up with AUs. I like playing with all the pieces and figuring out how things ripple and change.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I don't think I've done much with this, but if I did I'd probably use dialogue tags so like "'My name is john," John said in Chinese' if the narrator knew the language and "John said something in Chinese' if they didn't.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Fire Emblem: Fates, baby

20. Favourite fic you've written?

Picking favorites is so hard ;; It would be a lie to say I love all my fics equally, but I do think I can say that I do love them all, even the very first ones I wrote. I guess for purposes of this game, I'll go with World Gone MAD because I am still very satisfied with how it turned out, but because I can't just pick one, I'd also like to give a shout out to Neither Heir nor Spare (The Sole Survivor) for being the fic that I think is pretty up there in terms of ones I reread the most and Turnabout Traitor! for being a very fun She Ra x Ace Attorney crossover.

Tagging, uhhh, @horatiocomehome, @acediscowlng, @dustorange and if anyone else is interested, consider yourselves tagged in spirit!

[i-keepmyideals]

Akira Toriyama

My first anime were Pokemon, Sailor Moon, Yu-Gi-Oh, Inuyasha and Dragon Ball Z. They were all on air at the same time when I was really little. The first time I saw DBZ was when I was like, five years old. I had just come home from my morning kindergarten class and my older sister was in like 4th grad at that point, so I was home alone with my dad for most of the school day, I would sit at the living room table and turn to Cartoon Network. Toonami used to come on in the afternoons and I think this might have been a marathon. The first episode of Dragon Ball Z I saw as the second episode when Raditz had touch down on earth. I was so into this man with crazy big hair fighting this guy in a orange jump suit and a green alien. It was fast paced and fun. After that, I was hooked. My sister didn't really care for anime other than Sailor Moon, so she wouldn't play fight with me, but I didn't care much. I'd just watch TV and pretend to be fighting with Goku

I'm from a small village of about 3,000 people. I'm black and there were other black families, white families, Hispanic families, I think my sister had a Japanese friend at some point. It was a very mixed community and everyone was welcome and everyone had their quirks. I was the only person that really watched anime, but I didn't feel ostracized. That is, until we moved to the south side of Chicago where it was, like, a 99% black community and people weren't so open minded. And the kids were mean in a way I wasn't used to. It was hard growing up as a black girl that liked anime. It's still kinda hard now in some places, but I held on to my favorite anime and they helped me make the right handful of friends.

I remember watching Resurrection F and getting so excited for Dragon Ball again. I remember being really little and my dad buying VHS tapes because they were Dragon Ball Z and I'd really want them. At that time we didn't know that the VHS tapes were waaaaaayyyy ahead of the US airing of the show so I was confused when one tape was somewhere in the Cell Saga and the androids were there lmao I remember not being super into Super, ironically. I remember laughing at 2AM with my friend like a year or two ago when I found out there were characters named Granola and the Heeters and losing our shit about it. I'm looking forward to Daima and I really want to play Sparking Zero when it comes out. I saw an article a week ago where Toriyama was talking about how excited he was to be working on some projects.

And then last night about ten minutes after I came in from work, another friend on discord told us Akira Toriyama passed away. And I was in disbelief, cuz ain't no way he died. He has so much going on and was looking forward to. And I think that's what made me cry after a while last night. He was so excited, so happy and so in love with what he did. Thinking about how he won't be able to work on these things anymore and see them come to fruition made me so sad. I was sad for his family for losing a loved one so suddenly and keeping that to themselves and grieving for a week before sharing it with the public. And then finally, I cried for that huge chunk of my life that was shaped by Akira Toriyama.

He didn't just make an anime or a cartoon, he made childhoods. He was an inspiration. So many mangaka we have today were influenced by him. Oda, my favorite manga and anime creator Kubo, Kishimoto. the creators of the big three, all point to Toriyama as their biggest inspiration. Without Toriyama, the world of anime would look very different. A lot of out lives would be very different. He is the reason why a lot of us began to draw, or learn Japanese, or get into making music. Yeah, we might not have known him personally, but he still touched our lives in some way, whether you are a Dragon Ball fan or a Chrono Trigger fan, or something else in between.

So, don't feel embarrassed or silly for mourning the death of a technical stranger. He did a lot for the medium and a lot for us fans. It's only natural to feel saddened when someone like that passes away. Same for when Kazuki Takahashi passed or Stan Lee. Yeah, I might have clowned Dragon Ball Super, but it didn't really matter. Toriyama was doing another victory lap at that point. He truly did it all. He did so much work that I think I can really say rest easy and in peace.

Thank you Akira Toriyama for creating a safe space for me when times were tough I faced really harsh bullies. When things were really looking down, I could think of Goku's goofy smile and turn on an episdoe of Dragon Ball Z and feel a little better. Thank you for being such an inspiration to myself and other creators I look up to. Thank you for working so hard, you did amazing work.

[pixies-and-poets]

Donkey kong tropical freeze is such a bad game, it's not even really about playing or having fun, it's just strictly super technical and all about inhumanly perfect timing. It seems like a game designed for a cpu that has all the perfect inputs already programmed into it. Playing it as a human player is like... oh, sorry, but you didn't wait until literally the very last frame to jump off the last platform, so now your jump won't be able to cover the distance to the next platform. Sorry, try the last 2 minutes of gameplay you just did all over again! Like what kind of weird ass game devs think that's what makes a game good? Instead of filling a game with nothing but ridiculously challenging platforming that demands inhuman precision, just find ways to make it creative and interesting. I swear so many professional game devs come off like those stupid kids in mario maker who just make stupidly impossible levels where theres some secret shortcut only they know about like "hehe nobody will beat MY level" and its embarrassing. Whatever happened to the old donkey kong style of game where I remember swimming around as a cool swordfish and not worrying about my every input at rapid speed like I'm playing dance dance revolution on expert, but just exploring and enjoying the music and collecting bananas and having fun? The elitist direction of this series is so depressing.

This ask made my eyes bulge when I first saw the preview, but... while I don't necessarily agree with you, I'm gonna meet you where you are.

Tropical Freeze is a game that I think I respect more than I actually enjoy. Its music is incredible, its enemy team is about as fun as can be without actually being Kremlings, its levels are beautiful and you can play as Dixie again, AND Cranky (and now Funky). I don't know if you thought I'd find this ask insulting but I've only ever played the game twice to my memory, and I don't have a huge amount of personal attachment to it. Once, as co-op when the game was brand new, and again when it came out on Switch I did Funky Mode. Whereas I play the original SNES trilogy at least once a year. (edit: actually I'm pretty sure I've done Funky Mode twice)

Because it's been so long since I did the "normal" game, and because I played co-op, I don't have a strong remembrance of how difficult it actually is. But I do remember it being quite hard for us both. If I'm good at any games in the world, I'm fucking good at the old DKCs. I used to speedrun them, I grew up with and was molded by them. And while Retro Studio's work is built off of them, there's a slightly different feel and weight to its demands that are just different enough that I can no longer innately be an expert. (Side note, if you want a game that actually feels more similar to the old games, check out Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair!! It's great!)

So I get where you're coming from, I really do. I think TF is a masterpiece. I say that, anyway, so... Why do I never feel the urge to replay it? But honestly I think that's down to how the game feels overall, its length and level design, its overlong bosses, and not due to its difficulty, which is neither here nor there for me. ...and the fucking rocket barrel levels, I kind of hate them.

See, I do appreciate a good challenge and have played games since that I would consider far more demanding than TF. Of course many of them are indie games, or classic games. Tropical Freeze is pretty hard for a mainstream Nintendo game of the modern era, but lots of people out there love a good challenge and I think it's a good thing that Nintendo/Retro respect their players enough to issue one. Unfortunately, people who want to chill with the silly cartoon animals might end up being frustrated, BUT! That's what Funky Mode is for. It really was a genius idea. Funky Mode is like, so much more fun IMO, it really does replicate the feel I get with the original DKCs, allowing you to go faster and be more confident even if you're not that familiar with TF's level layouts. Even then, it's not totally easy- you still have to be somewhat careful and pay attention, but you can get through the game a lot faster.

And I do want to say, while TF may be the most difficult DKC game, the originals were no walk in the park either. I don't know your experience with how much you've played them, but like I said, for ME they seem easy- after all these years- but I've been around streaming communities, and communities that specifically like to do challenges and casual races, for a long time now. I've seen so many people struggle getting through DKC, DKC2 or DKC3 for the first time. I've seen people give up on doing it without save states. I've seen extremely skilled gamers get frustrated when attempting speed or challenge runs, which granted is a special case, but they have hours and hours of practice and the game meets them there and still kicks them. The DKC series has always been on the harder side, compared to something like Mario which would be the average. I know someone who, like me, has DKC2 as his favorite game ever... but still struggles while playing it. So your description of the older games seems a little rose-tinted. Maybe the early levels were all fun times collecting bananas, but tell me how much peace and vibes you really had in Snow Barrel Blast or Poison Pond or Lightning Lookout or Koindozer Klamber or Parrot Chute Panic or Toxic Tower or- (and that's not even to mention lost world levels)

TF has become a fan darling, but it's ok to not like it. That said, I think its Switch release crafted it into an ideal: a legit challenge for those who want one, and a different mode for those who just want to storm through and yet without it being a totally babymode no-brainer experience. I would like to see any future games offer a balance similar to this, if we ever get them.

....they really do gotta bring Enguarde back though, that's the important thing. I'm not kidding.

[slimeyoldman]

1. Rick for sure, I like everyone in the family tho ! My favorite specific Rick's are Toxic(because he's awful and very very short sighted, idk i just think he's interesting in a sopping wet pathetic way.) and Flesh Curtains era(because let's be real how am I going to look at a 30 something grungey drunk and not be obsessed. thats like, some of my favorite people irl.)

2. I don't think it matters! Probably space beth, but eh 🤷‍♀️

3. No not canonically. I think it'd be really fun tho and I like all the theories. Ricks do mess around tho, hes a horndog and the citadel exists, a huge conglomeration of Him, i think it happens more often then it seems to.

4. Tilda. I will not elaborate.

5. Errh idk! A lot i guess. Theyve said before they want the like, classic adult cartoon run time(think futurama, family guy, simpsons), so as many seasons as humanly possible if the writers get their way. I think they step on their own toes a little since they seem to toggle between wanting to be an episodic sitcom, but ALSO a serial scifi thriller. I dont think theyve done badly in that regard so far, but theres absolutely aspects of both that are suffering because of the other's presence.(plot inconsistencies n that kinda thing.)

6. Smash, it would be a bad decision for both of us, but itd be fun !

7. Does the galactic federation count? Probably not since its an organization, but for sure that one. Super interesting stuff u can do with space bureaucracy(bc im boring) and state-sponsored violence. But as for an individual, I really really like Beths mytholog, that whole concept is really cool, and her design is hella badass lol. Also i guess Toxic Rick is a villain too !

8. oof I've tried to figure this out and i dont think i can narrow it down, but i really like Rattlestar Ricklactica, Vat of Acid, and a Rickle in Time.

9. uhh idk the one with the giant incest baby? I didn't enjoy Story Train either tbh. I don't think any of the episodes are like, unwatchably bad, but theres absolutely a few I skip when i rewatch the show.

10. I don't care about story lord like, at all. hes just. deeply uninteresting. Not a huge fan of Mr. Poopybutthole, but i think i just thought we were reminded of him too often.(i liked the intervention episode well enough tho)

11. Oh man this is hard to answer cuz hes just done So Much. Like, guys a shithead. The reckless disregard for innocent bystanders is pretty bad. I think it sucks when he orchestrates situations in which morty has to lethally defend himself, and then totally disregards his feelings(which is literally all the time lmfao). like, the kids 14. His casual manipulation of Beth is super fucked, cuz he knows how much he means to her and he exploits that. yeah idk, guys just a pos all around lol

12. Dated question, luckily no! I think the new voice actors are great :3

13. All the rnm blogs i follow are badass as hell. idk how to pick ill prob edit this l8r

14. Can I say rick without sounding like a total loser. mentally ill, substance abuse issues, ruled entirely by emotions, hedonistic while paradoxically engaging in self-harm/hatred. nihilistic(silly flavor). freaked out by commitment/attachment. the party friend(as opposed to someone you invite for brunch or to meet ur parents). also science is cool.

15. the entire "...couldn't let a dead snake be dead even after it bit his ankle, next time stay in the fucking car!" monologue. and the "a vat of fake acid are you Dying of Dementia?!" fight.

16. i havent finished my brackets yet ill get back to you.

17. same as above.

18. man idk probably. i dont actually watch it in a way that supports them(financially) anyway, but that would suck balls cuz its a fixation of mine.

19. done to death probably but mortys "come watch tv?" quote is my fave. it reads to me as incredibly reassuring. optimistic nihilism. like, "nothing means anything, nothings a big deal, lets chill and enjoy it while we can." ya know? like dying is the same as before you were born, and Everyones gonna do it, but we're here together right now, so lets eat pasta and get a little drunk.

20. i know hes doing his own thing but can i be snowball. hes cool and empathetic and capable of growth, also i wanna see how the dog utopia is going.

20 SHORT-ANSWER* RICK AND MORTY QUESTIONS FOR YOU:

*You can write long answers, if you'd like! Feel free to skip questions, too!

Who is your favourite Rick and Morty Character?

Which Beth is the clone: Domestic Beth or Space Beth?

Do you think that Rick-C137 and Rick Prime were previously romantically involved?

What do you think would be a good name for Birdperson and Tammy's daughter?

How many seasons do you think Rick and Morty will eventually have?

Rick C-137: smash or pass?

Who is your favourite Rick and Morty villain?

Your favourite Rick and Morty episode?

Your least favourite Rick and Morty episode?

Who is your least favourite Rick and Morty character?

What is, in your opinion, the worst thing that Rick C-137 has ever done?

Do you think that Rick and Morty will be affected substantially by having to change the voice actor for Rick and Morty and a bunch of other characters?

What's a good Rick and Morty blog?

Who is the Rick and Morty character that you relate to the most?

The funniest Rick and Morty bit/scene, in your opinion?

Best Rick and Morty season?

Worst Rick and Morty season?

Would you stop watching the show if Justin Roiland returned?

Your favourite Rick and Morty quote?

If you had to be one member of the smith family in the next season, who would you want to be?

[northwest-cryptid]

See I don't think people understand my really dumb but really funny vision of how I'd run the perfect Vtuber team if I had the ability (which is a combination of the time, money and resources mostly of which I would need enough friends who agree to be a part of my grand stupid vision.)

Essentially we'd just run a "saturday morning cartoon" in that we'd have a collab every weekend where the gang gets together (likely in VRChat or a related program) and we'd basically rip off every show on Dropout because they're all too good and I need more shit like that in my life.

No seriously can you imagine a group of streamers who, for most of the week is just normal everyday streamers but the "extended universe" bit comes from a weekly get together that ranges from really silly game shows, to D&D campaigns, to just a group of people giving really dumb powerpoint presentations on whatever they feel like? Like are you kidding me this fucks so hard.

And the best part would be if the team was JUST big enough to where we didn't ALL have to be there; then it's not a weekly commitment for everyone. If someone has work, school obligations; is sick or whatever. That's fine! No big deal, the idea would be that we would have more than enough people that we could get enough people for the saturday stream (it wouldn't have to necessarily be saturdays but you know what I mean.)

"You don't NEED a Vtuber team for that you know"

True! I don't, but you know what having a team would bring to the table? Consistency!

Think about it, why do shows like One Piece work? It's because of the consistent characters, because you come to enjoy the characters. Likewise shows like Game Changer and such bring back the same contestants and you go "oh hey it's [person] I know and enjoy the comedy style of!"

If you are more partial to a specific person on the team, seeing them in the collab would make you more likely to check it out; and by proxy you might discover other people within that collab you'd also want to check out and then you'd see that new person returning next week and check out the next collab only to discover even more people. However it wouldn't be daunting because you could always watch all your favorite people on the same stream get together collab.

Look man it checks all the boxes, streamers are still free to do whatever they want, but they're being invited to do a big group collab every week that consists of various different styles of fun activities that allow them to go on stage and be funny in front of an audience.

Believe me when I say I'm desperately trying to organize this without the need for a team but we will see how it goes.

[jacscorner]

Bucky O'hare Needs a Revival!

"Let's croak us some Toads!"

So, for those of you not in the know, Bucky O'hare follows the adventures of the crew of the Righteous Indignation. Bucky himself is the captain of the space crew, Jenny the Cat is his first mate & navigator (and secretly a Psychic), Dead-Eye the Duck is the ship's gunner and professional "former" pirate, and Blinky is the ship's Android First Class (Or A.F.C.).

The show's dueteragonist (Or main protagonist, depending on who you ask) is Willy DuWitt, a boy from San Francisco who ends up being the crew's engineer after his science experiment, a photon accelerator, intersects with the Righteous Indignation's own photon accelerator, thus making this a weird mix of an isekai and a funny animal cartoon.

I know that some people, like myself, get a little uncomfortable with the idea of a reboot these days, but I really don't think a lot would really need to change. Especially since the show came and went like a phantom in a night, so this isn't a TMNT situation where every new series gets its own radical take.

However, if there's one thing I think a new series would need: more humor relating to Willy's situation.

I normally don't like kid characters, cause I don't think writers can get 'em right, but I think Willy's a pretty good-or, at least, a fairly okay-example. And I think some of the best humor in the show came from when things Willy seem as normal or as toys in his world were mistaken to be more than what they were-or even turned out to be useful. Like Dead-Eye taking Willy's play money & water gun and thinking they were real.

So, like, as an example: The crew fly over to a bar for some reason. Bucky orders everyone drinks.

Dead-Eye: Careful, Willy-me-boy! This here is one of the strongest drinks this side of the Aniverse! It seperates the star dogs from the landlubbers.

Willy: *cautiously takes a sip* Dead-Eye, this is just Cherry Soda.

Dead-Eye: Exactly! Nothing's as hardcore as Cherry Soda.

Willy: *casually chugs the glass* Dead-Eye, I drink this every day.

Dead-Eye: What?! Whoa! I knew you were tough, Willy, but I didn't think you were this tough!

Willy: I mean, it's just carbonated water and fruit syrup.

Dead-Eye: And he says that like it's nothing...

Jenny: Willy, is everything okay? You can talk to us if you need to.

Willy: *awkward laugh* Huh?

Bucky: Willy, soda addiction is no laughing matter. I too know how hard it is to fight the siren call of carbonated beverages. It's not too late to get help.

Okay, so maybe this is a bit too far and the censors might come down on a joke like this. But, like, stuff like this would be fun to throw in a little more often.

You know, in between forced terraforming planets and animal slavery & cruelty. That's kind of the magical tone of Bucky O'hare: it's a serious space opera in a silly cartoon world. And it's played totally straight on both accounts.

[dana-chan-the-control-brain]

The way you draw is so bingus honestly I’m not sure how to describe it

It’s like you made the characters out of silly putty and then like squished them ever so slightly

It’s kind of like Ed Edd and Eddie, and Courage the Cowardly Dog? Those shows where each frame was detailed and kind of, like, fuckin’ stretchy. No bones, only EMOTION.

And like, it’s twisted somehow. Idk if that’s what you’re going for - it could just be that I personally find that sort of style mildly unsettling. But the emotional intensity of the stories you tell combined with the vibe-oriented pseudo-anatomy makes it feel dimly like a bad dream. One of the ones where the emotion is sadness and not fear, the ones where you can’t go home.

It’s very distinctive. I like it a lot.

SILLY PUTTY!!!!

I honestly love that description.

"it's not that I don't know how bodies work. All my characters are canonly made of playdough"

PERFECT! GHFHFHHFF

As a kid I didn't like Edd, Ed and Eddy cus the art style hurt my sensitive eyes, with all the wiggly lines and I found it super hard to relate to any of the cast of the culdesac. I'm sure there are kids like that, but in my friend group, I couldn't relate to anyone on a base level and didn't find many of the jokes that funny that I couldnt get from other shows at the time.

As a kid I was a little picky thing and I tended to hate cartoons that strictly focused on "real kids" or "real people" boring if it didn't have a fantastical element to it. Like... I hated Hey Arnold, As told by Ginger, Proud Family and Doug as a kid.... But loved Danny Phantom, American Dragon, Jackie Chan Adventures, Avatar the Last Airbender, Pokemon Indigo League and Life as a Teenage Robot if that makes sense? Lol

(I know the Eds is WAY more cartoony and zany then the other shows I listed. But my child brain lumped them together as "real people doing boring things" shows for some reason)

Somehow the Eds was always on TV and I ended up watching it when nothing else was on, but I really didn't like the show as a kid. lol

I appreciate the style and show a lot more now. I do remember really loving the movie finale as a kid however. Probably because it was the most plot driven episode in the series with actual stakes and conflict. And I think it was the first time in the series history where characters cried and it wasn't played for comedy. (To my memory)

As I said, I appreciate these shows a lot more now, but the style of the Eds still hurts my eyes.

Courage the Cowardly Dog however was completely my jam. As a child, I would watch anything with dogs in it. Even if it was bad. Scooby-Doo, Krypton, Martha Speaks, Blues Clues, Clifford... If there was a dog, I was down. (I guarantee I would have watched paw patrol if it was in the 90s/early 2000s)

And I remember having fun times watching Courage with my Mom on week day afternoons.

I was always fascinated with things that were scary or a little bit creepy. I remember also loving the heck out of Hunchback of Notre Dame when I was eight and would burn out my VHS so bad.

So Courage comes up with it's creepy themes and halarious running jokes (honestly, rewatching that show as an adult, you can tell they phone in jokes a lot of the time. The running jokes are super abundant to the point I wonder if the actors recorded one take and they kept reusing it just cus it made them laugh. Cries in lack of bonus features on the collectors dvd.)

Courage was the perfect amount of slapstick and horror. Kinda like a modern day Scooby-Doo of it's time (which I also loved) just without the bland predictable mystery element. (I can't believe it took us till 2022 to get that Scooby-Doo and Courage crossover, even if it was a little lame lol)

The show also taught me a lot about the value of courage as an anxiety-ridden kid.

Courage not being the absence of fear, but the boldness to press on despite your fears.

And Courage's over the top screaming and most of the 'Monsters' of the week having their own motivation for doing what they did, made me a little less scared I like to think. Most of the monsters in Courage were never strictly "evil". Every one of them tended to have misguided morals or ethics and Courage had to stop them because their actions would result in them kidnapping Mariel or hurting his family. (Some of them were just pure evil...but that was super rare. Like even the "return the slab" guy just wants his land/tablet back that was taken from him. )

Idk. Even now I think that's pretty cool. And even if Courage is a super formulic show, I still adore it to this day.

Anyways.... I rambled too long about cartoons I had growing up. Hfhfgdgd

But yes. All my characters are made of puddy. Thank you.

[forkaround]

What's getting to me is what could have been left out that could change the narrative in any meaningful way? It can provide context for sure but can it really give so much context that it would change anything? I very much doubt that.

And people know going in what kind of a show was going to be made. The writers, directors, actors all know what the end product would look like. This isn't American media where things are more dynamic. I even saw someone say Boston was written as evil in the novel itself and for the most part the show has stayed true to the novel.

Frankly I've only recently heard about the novel even existing. I didn't know it was adapted. In which case, this is even worse because they know the story already. Just look at how much you can change something in Kinnporsche and Big Dragon. They were both full of random sex scenes, Big Dragon more that KP, without strong narrative tissue. Hell the writer of BD says it's a bad book. But the screenwriters changed all that. They (OF) had the bases for the characters. They didn't have to reinvent the wheel and yet it's an underdeveloped story. Like what excuse can there be?

I feel like if they had set out to genuinely make something nuanced they wouldn't have done it this way. Not just the story itself but the platform, the budget, the BGM, the actor choices, the character writing and so much more. Is there a way to write this story with consideration and good faith? Yes. 100%. Did this show do that? No. Did this show set out to do that? Perhaps certain members did but it wasn't a collective effort and it shows. And I don't think GMMTV is the responsible party when it comes to the themes here. Yeah they wanted brand pairs together but that can be done, in this exact story, and done well. They would have to do the hard work of expanding on Top and Sand and even Nick's characters and considering the consequences of Boston in general but it's possible. I've see other GMMTV shows, like can get there. But if the creator's hearts aren't in it, I can't see it happening. (yk, I think of GMMTV as like kids cartoons. Are they silly and cheesy and just nice? Yes. But you can also make something like Avatar and it's not one or the other.)

I don't know where it went wrong. Who wanted what. But it's clear that everyone's goals didn't align.

I wish this was made a few years down the line. We are already seeing brand pairs breaking in one way or other and it's only a matter of time this show could live up to the potential it promised. Likely something else will be made and this show will go down as one of the most anticipated shows that turned out to be mid at best.

(Op I know you disagree. I started somewhere and ended somewhere else. Sorry.)

This show could've been so good.

And objectively speaking, it is good. The acting is phenomenal, the production values are great, the cinematography is insane, the photography it's amazing, the characters were complicated and the story it tried to tell was also complex and interesting.

But it failed enormously at being this earnest piece of messy queer media because it so obviously changed in order to cater to a certain audience, that everything it tried to set up at the beginning feel flat at the end.

The changes are even noticeable in the aired episodes themselves. There's scenes missing from the trailer and the previews that didn't make it because they decided at the last moment to cut them off.

And look, even if you went into the show with 0 expectations, with absolutely no context of who was the production team nor what was happening in the behind the scenes with the fandom responses and etc., the bad writing it's still there.

Some characters at the end weren't the same as they were at the beginning not because they went through character development, but because of a lack of characterization at all.

Some became cocoons of what they could've been, but were never truly explored.

Some were punished by the narrative while others were praised, when the original statement of the show was that they were humans who shouldn't be made tokens of moral failures or achievements, but that's exactly what they became.

The friendship of the main characters, supposedly core theme of the show, lacked the depth it needed to have any emotional impact in the finale, where they tried to make amends with one another, but only to those deemed worthy by the show.

Look. Again. The show it's not bad. I would even call it a great show.

But it's not a piece of media that owns itself.

The supposed Messy and Nuanced show decided to strip away from its original premise in order to cater to an standard Branded-Shipping and Morally Sanitized narrative for damn ratings and fans approval, and I will not forgive it for that.

[pbandjesse]

I am very excited to close my eyes. I am really sleepy. But today was a very good day. Mostly. For the most part. I felt very awkward a few times. But mostly it was good.

I sleep okay. I woke up feeling alright. Tired. Bit thrilled to leave the house. But I got dressed and felt very cute. This is the dress I got engaged in so it makes me feel nice. Which was good because inside I was struggling a little.

I brought pasta for lunch and had a cupcake for breakfast. I left here and went to work. And it was a nice drive. I had left a few minutes early, and between that and not stopping at McDonald's, I got to work very early.

But that was alright. I ran into Joel and it was nice to see him. James greeted us at the door. And I went to go get ready for my programs.

I was not looking forward to leading the cannery. My last ones were just alright and I was still getting turned around. But it ended up being great.

Before the kids got there we were all hanging out in the break room catching up. O'Malley had a bright orange mask on that I loved and I felt like they looked like a very cool cartoon bird. And I said that, I was like I mean this in the most positive way you look like a cool cartoon bird. And I think I upset them!! Like I am not sure but I really hope I didn't. I meant it like. Wow. You look awesome. But then I felt very awkward. And because when I feel awkward it just gets worse and worse I then would say something to Mike about the surprise event last night. And how people come back into the exhibit with drinks because we are okay with it during events. And Mike's like. I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that. And I'm like what?? Angie and Kelly said that was what we do?? And so then I felt very awkward about that too. Ugh.

Thankfully the kids were wonderful. This was one of the best leading of the program I have done in the cannery. Gaby and O'Malley said I made a joke at one point and they both went "Jesse's A is really good!" And I was like ahh!! Cause I felt like this one was very good. And the kids were great so that made it a lot easier to do good.

And it was a smooth cannery. No issues I heard about. And they all did a good job.

I took them to do a scavenger hunt next. They loved my stupid prizes of 5 stickers, two beads, a button, and a plastic crystal. And they worked very hard to get as many questions as they could.

After that was lunch. And then I handed over the program to Becca to lead assembly line. That was kind of a mess because there was a miscommunication with the bus and we had to cut all the programs by 15 minutes. And while I was supposed to sit to the side and just observe, the timing was so off I had to jump in. And it was fine, we got all the cars done and finished on time. I was sad we didn't get to go on the car but it happens.

We had a lot of talk after because there was some concerns. But it will be fine in the end I think. I would sit down in the office with Becca doing car parts. I felt a little weird because like 7 of my coworkers were upstairs doing oysters and there was a lot of laughing and I had to try very hard not to feel left out. Like we were working and things were fine. But I have a habit of working myself up and feeling very left out. It's silly but it's how I felt.

Gaby and O'Malley would come join us at the desk to finish car parts. And I felt folded back into the group and would feel a little better.

And we would all walk out together when we were done for the day. And I was determined to stay productive. I have things to do!!

I had an excellent drive home. And got back here to find a few packages. I got a new dress. It's a little tight in the chest but it's so pretty so I don't mind. And another piece for the Ren faire. And a little drum I got for the summer.

I would catch up on 4 days of knitting. Which took forever. But I got that done. I did a little cleaning. And got changed into comfy clothes. And soon James was home.

I played Stardew for a bit. But then I would go and see two of the bears James had cut out for me. But I would hurt my finger and get frustrated so I had to take a break.

James was trying to change their handle bars and there was some issues and they weren't being very nice. And so I was a little upset that they were taking out their frustrations by being angry. And we would talk about it but I still felt bad that their bike wasn't doing what they wanted and I couldn't help.

We had pizza for dinner. And James had DND. I played Stardew and enjoyed listening to them play music as a part of their character.

I got a shower and now we are getting ready for bed. I am so beat. And looking forward to tomorrow. I get to do the print part of the cannery which is my favorite. And I hope to make cookies when I get home. I think it will be a very good day.

Sleep well everyone. Take care of yourselves. Good night!

[billiejean485]

Karmiro Kiss

https://www.deviantart.com/billiejean485/art/Karmiro-Kiss-800793669

(Text from DA:)

First of all, I'd like to state something: I don't usually upload art such as this often or at all, and I rarely even show it to anyone. Reason? Been bullied a hell of a lot for it in younger years, so I learned to keep things like these to myself. However, I am pretty sure the Karmiro fans would appreciate it, and I am having a really hard time finding artwork devoted to this ship myself (kudos to Iamaddictedtocoffee and KenKic4Ever - you guys are IMO the best I could find), and I honestly wanted to contribute.

Second thing I wanted to mention is that - although the show itself made me a huge Karmiro fan, this particular piece/sketch came as an inspiration from reading Arctimon's fics. My God - for the past 6 years I've been having a really hard time finding quality fanfics (I got older, and my standards became very high), and their in particular are among those rare that make me cling to it like an idiot, rereading it until I know it by heart (still in the process of achieving that btw XD). I haven't left a review yet, but, I can say here that that level of quality English, original ideas and great imagination is not something that you just stumble upon in the fan fiction world easily. I'm blown away. Still am. Still haven't read everything, so I won't drop that mentioned review yet. But, Arctimon, if you're reading this - you have my huge support, and I'm a really big fan.

Now on to the rant on the art aspect of this sketch.

I don't have much experience in drawing a kiss, and still learning to do that. What killed me even more here is just the position (that I probably didn't even figure out well) of the two - if you have that steamy kiss where both sides try to pull each other into it, and a couple with height differences between a girl and a boy such as Hiro and Karmi, everything gets complicated. The arm position is probably off (because yours truly was lazy enough not to reference anything). I hope at least I got their faces right - I haven't drawn either of the two enough for practice. Oh, and Karmi's hair was ridiculously difficult for me; it should be simple, but nope.

Ah, yes, and the Baymax sketch in the bg - the body probably should have been a bit bigger, but 'anatomy' wise I think it's okay. I just placed him in the wrong spot. And I have a feeling that it made perspective make no sense (he's speechless, btw XD).

Okay, and two last things.

I love the fact that Hiro is the shorter one in this relationship and is probably standing on his toes somewhat here, while Karmi has to bend down and/or pull him up. It's so relatable and heart-warming. :D I remember how all that went in those years of life (14~16). Wish we'll manage to see him grow, but who knows. Also, depends what Disney plans for the sequel of the movie, if they're even planning it (it got them an Oscar, so chances are high).

But one thing that saddens me in that is that - for most characters that appear in TV shows that are based on the movie there is like a rule that they don't appear in the movie's sequel. Which brings me to the second thing.

Even though I ship them with all my heart, I see little possibilities for these two to become something more than friends (there is more chance for that happening with Hiro and Megan, although the whole Karmutie stuff has led us on to believe otherwise up until she showed up). It seems as though Hiro and Karmi's relationship was made only to reach some "good friends" climax and that that's the whole point of it. Even Karmi's crush on hero-Hiro looks more like something that came as a product of her loneliness rather than actual need for a romantic interest in her life (I think she'd be a lot more invested in her relationship with 'Captain Cutie' if this wasn't the case). And when you take into account that this is a show aimed at kids... it all makes sense. Kids don't like romantic stuff, nor do they need it. But what do they need? Learning more about friendship, especially with that girl or boy they tend to fight a lot and don't get along well. It's a perfect reason to make you think that that there will never be anything more in this relationship. But it gets on our older fans' nerves because - naturally, the characters are not kids, they're teens. Things function differently here. I mean, okay - Karmi and Hiro may not be each other's type (debatable) in the end, but you can't tell me they don't care for each other at it's base, and that they will learn to get their rivalry out of the way to make a clear path for that. And when that happens, everything's possible.

But coming back to the first thing I brought up - the characters from the TV show rarely, if ever, make it to the sequel of the movie. Which means, whatever happens with these two, they will probably split up. It's saddening, and I wish things would change there. Hey, seeing Karmi in the sequel would make who knows how many of us happy. And not just her - bunch of other characters too. Or at least give them an honorable mention.

It's because TV shows get made for kids that nothing from it gets transferred to the sequel of the movie, which gets made for audiences of all ages. If there's something I wish would change, it's that - having TV shows dumbed down for kids. And with that I mean - seeing characters a lot older act like they're children. What the heck is that teaching the little kids? That reality will never be like they saw it on TV?

Kudos, and a really big KUDOS to the shows that are tackling this particular thing. It's good and it's healthy. If you wanna make something for kids, make it really appropriate for kids. Don't tug on the nerves of us older people, because - whatever the world says, there will always be those older ones that watch cartoons, ages ranging from older teens to who knows how old. We don't like watching those dumbed down things, no matter how profitable it is for you, content-makers, to target it only for kids, who will get you the most money. Yeah, it's harder to make such stuff, we know, but it's not impossible. At least show a little effort.

But, concerning that, I can't complain on BH6's TV show anymore. The second season was fantastic so far, and those 'dumbed-down' elements were reduced to the bare minimum. I just hope it stays that way.

... Well, this was a whole lot that came out of me just because of posting one silly fangirl drawing. XD Hope some of you actually managed to read this.... Too bad all of this is going to get dumped in the Scraps' section (please make a Sketch section, DA!), like most of my uploads do.

I live and breathe sketches. lol

Oh well - thanks for coming to my Ted Talk. XD I'm really done this time.