#didn't want to create a new series for it because the connection is. well. mostly it's inspiration!

[marypsue]

Things I learned today: you can use the AO3 'Inspired By' feature to say that a work was inspired by one of your own works.

[the-cusk]

Ok fine let's do theory time. This will be mostly about Session 7 and Gem's task. Now, I got two big points here, (a) The End/The Void is an entity that is independent of The Watchers and (b) Gem's task and, by extension, she herself came from that entity's will.

Now the obvious connection is obvious, yeah yeah who opened the End portal, but this goes farther. So, uh, remember episode 1? Specifically, when Gem and Lizzie found pumpkins and formed an alliance of sorts? Pumpkins, that's right. They became kind of a big deal. Since then, Gem and Lizzie had been consistently connected to The End. When Lizzie got the hard task to get everyone to sleep, first thing she thought of? The End. But then, why did she die to the very thing she was intertwined with.

Well, Scott of course. Scott has consistently been the most resistant to influence from cosmic entities. He actively spit in the faces of The Watchers multiple times now, after all. He was meant to die in the void. But not just because of his own aspect, but because Lizzie hasn't fully assimilated to her new connection. She didn't wear a pumpkin. The End had to shoot blindly, and with Scott's aura of negation he wasn't gonna be the one hit.

Now let's have an aside about what The End's intentions are in this series. Cause all cosmic entities gotta have one right? Well, The Watchers designed the games to be a feast of discord, war, betrayal, all of the fun stuff. The End, on the other hand, seeks to, well, end the games, as fast as possible. How were the first two reds created? Now, it's probably not exactly a humanitarian motivation from The End here. Whether it's merciful oblivion or just a thirst for finality, it still creates war and brutality, just not in the same way as The Watchers. The Watchers want the feast to stretch for as long as possible, as the payoff will be that much sweeter. The End wants to finish everything as fast as possible. You could argue that the Boogie curse has origins in The End, with Skizz as the catalyst, but I don't feel like going into that atm.

Ok, finally, how does that connect to Session 7's events? Well, as mentioned before Lizzie died when she wasn't meant to, with overwhelming feelings of rage and a desire for revenge against (most of) the server. In addition, two other reds, mumbo and jimmy, died to a forced hard task from grian and etho. So, all the reds except The Watchers' special boy Martyn are gone. Not awesome if you want everything to return to dust quickly. But, mainly, Lizzie's, uhhhh, let's call it curse, people like that word, transferred to Gem in the form of a hijacked task. I mean, it doesn't function according to any of the rules set by the Secret Keeper. And neither did Gem's end portal task, really, if you think about. Oh abd neither did Bdub's free the end. Wait. Bdub's? Free the End? And hey, would you look at that, he's also the first infected. And who's next? Impulse, Pearl? Ain't that our little end fighting army? (Also, Bdubs was the first ever person to get the Boogie curse but again, not getting into that. So, uh yeah, basically The End, an entity in opposition to The Watchers, has hijacked the task system, and possibly brought Gem in, in order to free itself and then end the series as quickly as possible. A desperation move, really, but it makes sense, this season's torture was gonna be especially prolonged.

Essentially my first theory, and I don't have too much knowledge on lore and stuff, but sometimes words are in your head and you have to get them out somehow.

[clairedaring]

/surprise leap out from your screen! Hahahha!

Yo Claire, first! I gotta say, I didn't expect to read BL meta essays when I followed your blog, but now that it's part of my dashboard, I like it! I'm not familiar with BL culture and stuff (the only BL stuff I really like is this Japanese manga named The Summer Hikaru Died, and even then I'm more sucked in by it being of the horror genre with interesting philosophical explorations), so these essays are so interesting to read!

And another thing! This post about the highest-grossing GDH movies mentioned The Medium (which I liked!), and that reminded me: I need Thai horror recommendations!

I don't know if you're into it, but maybe some of your friends do? And they can give me some good stuff? It's been so long since I've watched Thai horror—I grew up with that shit, man. I figured that someone who watches a lot of Thai media probably knows quite some newer Thai horror films I can watch on a weekend or something. Thanks!

(P.S. I realize I still have so many thoughts about สาธุ. I'm rewatching it when I have the time and realized there are still more details I forgot from the first viewing. A lot of them is embodied by the actors so well! I hope to find the time to write some essays/rambles about those things these days! Honestly... this is the only thing I can contribute to the สาธุ/The Believers tag 🫡🥲)

Hiiii Lyn! You are always welcome in my humble inbox.

You cannot imagine my happiness knowing you will soon fill he สาธุ/The Believers tag with insightful metas/essays. No pressure though but I am now indeed impatiently waiting for more สาธุ posts.

Aw, I'm so happy to hear that you've enjoyed the BL metas I've put on your dash even though queer love series are not usually ones you would watch because they're mostly romance based. ಥ_ಥ

Okay now onto the main part of my answer. Even though romance and comedy are indeed my favorite genres of series, as an enthusiast and follower of Thai actors and their works, it is inevitable to come across horror works (films or series) starring my favorite actors. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of horor (i'm a huge scaredycat), the genre has never stopped me from watching works of my favorite actors before -> I've definitely watched more horror media than I wanted to (┬┬﹏┬┬). I'll separate my recommendations into two part: one for series and one for films.

Thai Horror Anthology Series Recommendations

1. Girl From Nowhere Season 1 & 2 (2018 -2021)

Synopsis: A mysterious, clever girl named Nanno transfers to different schools, exposing the lies and misdeeds of the students and faculty at every turn.

Thoughts: although it would qualify more as thriller than a horror, girl from nowhere offers sharp commentaries about violence, sexual assault, bullying and various social issues. The series is more like an anthology with each episodes presenting a different story. The way my jaw dropped when I found out that the storylines in the episodes are inspired by actual real news reports/stories. Watching both seasons, you may feel that S1 is less budgeted than S2 which is true because S1 wasn't funded by Netflix Thailand. After picking S1 for streaming, Netflix decided to invest in a S2 for GFN and the cinematography for S2 is just immaculate.

2. After Dark (2020)

Synopsis: When the night falls, humans are more of a threat. Composed of 4 interlinked horror stories:

"Blind Date": Pink, a dating app addict, meets Q, a mysterious handsome guy. They establish a deep connection that ends up with Pink having a strange pregnancy which haunts her until the end.

“Requiem of the Adolescent”: Lada, a nurse hired with a vast amount of money to take care of Her Serene Highness Srisaang. Her terrors awake when her patient abnormally gets better.

“Death Channel”: Off and Boat, a successful youtuber and an idol team up to create a paranormal activity channel that has been sponsored by an anonymous user, they never know what is waiting.

"Into the Hole”: Chai, a charismatic person is a one-night stand expert in hopes to record a sex tape to earn a dime. Then he meets Dao, a charming woman. His mischievous behavior continues, but this time it would not be as easy as before.

Thoughts: it's gory, gross, raw, rough and scary as hell. some of the most visually traumatic series i've ever watched. incredible acting performances.

3. Angkhan Khlumpong The Series (2021)

Sypnosis: It is made based on ghost stories that people called and shared on the "Angkhan Khlumpong" radio program.

Thoughts: Episode 5 'Imaginary Friend' is scary as hell. All the episodes are quite scary in general. The stories rely a lot on jumpscares but Thailand is really good at making scary ghosts, the makeup team is always going all the way.

Note: Netflix Thailand is producing the sequel series Terror Tuesday: Extreme (2024), which comes out in 10 days (August 20). Netflix Thailand has never really disappointed with their budget so I'm pretty sure it'll be spooky.

Thai Horror Films Recommendations

1. Hoon Payon (2023)

Synopsis: Tham searches for his brother Te in order to deliver the news of their parents' passing. Te is ordained as a monk at a temple on Don Sing Tham Island. On arrival, Tham meets Jes, the grandson of the former abbot. Jes makes hoon payon, enchanted effigies of the dead. Tham learns of a rumour that Te vanished after murdering the abbot. Tham doesn't buy the story nor does he respect the villagers' strange reverence for the sculpture of Pho Pu Sing Tham. Though his appearance is unsettling to Tham, Pho Pu Sing Tham is said to protect them. Soon, a girl goes missing, a wild predator roams the island, a vengeful ghost is rampant and worse yet, the figure of Pho Pu Sing Tham is destroyed. The enraged villagers prepare to curse and hunt down the unknown culprit.

Thoughts: I watched this for Up Poompat who plays Te and I was genuinely shocked by his performance. Not scary enough as old Thai movies but still very thrilling.

2. Shutter (2004)

Synopsis: Tun, a young photographer, and his girlfriend, Jane, were driving home after drinking with friends, when suddenly they crash into a girl that was walking in the street. Panicking, Tun tells his girlfriend to run away. The next day, Tun discovers mysterious shadows in his photographs, and his girlfriend start seeing strange things in his house.

Thoughts: This is a classic Thai horror film and arguably the best horror film Tong Banjong (the director of The Medium) has ever directed. Director Tong's forte is really horror so please don't mind that the next 3 recommended films are all from him. They are truly THE classic horror films of Thailand.

3. Alone (2007)

Synopsis: Conjoined twins Ploy and Pim are very close until Pim meets a boy named Wee, causing her to decide to separate from Ploy. The surgery is performed but Ploy does not survive. Years later, Pim and Wee are living together in South Korea when Pim suddenly has to return home to take care of her mother after she has a seizure. While back home, Pim is haunted by a ghost from her past.

Thoughts: I really don't know what Director Tong is lacing in his horror films but they're always keeping me on the edge of my seat and most of the time my hands glued to my eyes 😭

4. Phobia (2008)

Synopsis: A horror movie anthology containing 4 stories-Loneliness: a woman confined to her apartment starts to receive texts from a stranger, Deadly Charm: a group of high school delinquents get cursed by a student that they bullied, The Man in the Middle: Four friends go on a camping/rafting trip that turns out far differently then they had planned, The Last Flight: A flight attendant has to accompany the body of a princess, the wife of her lover.

Thoughts: Another horror classic from GTH studio. I can't remember the details to all these stories but I can assure you when I was closing my eyes through half of this film because of how scared I was. I wanna say it's because I was young when I watched it but I'm sure I'd still be keeping my eyes close shut if I watch it again.

5. Phobia 2 (2009)

Synopsis: A horror omnibus consisting of five stories - Novice: a teenager takes refuge at a Buddhist sanctuary after committing a crime, Ward: a biker has to stay overnight in a hospital room with a strange man after an accident, Backpackers: a Japanese couple hitchhikes across Thailand until; they accept a ride from the wrong person, Salvage: karma visits woman who has successful business fixing up cars that were involved in fatal accidents, In The End: the movie crew working on a horror sequel experience a night of real fear.

Thoughts: They're all scary but I think the scariest segment is 'In The End'. I would say this is one of those rare occasions where the sequel outdid its predecessor Phobia.

6. Sick Nurses (2007)

Synopsis: A group of sexy nurses who harvest organs are haunted by the vengeful spirit of one of their dead patients.

Thoughts: this is more slasher than horror but i remember watching this when i was younger and i was scared as heck. I don't even dare to search up the trailer to embed here.

Bonus: 'not purely horror, only has creepy elements but deserves a honorable mention on this list because it's super underrated' film

Malila: The Farewell Flower (2017) dir. Nuchy Anucha Boonyawatana

Synopsis: Former lovers Shane and Pich reunite and try to heal the wounds of their past. Shane is haunted by the tragic death of his daughter, while Pich suffers a grave illness. As death approaches, Pich dedicates his remaining time to making Bai Sri, a ceremonial ornament. Meanwhile, Shane decides to become a Buddhist monk until one night at a graveyard, he encounters his lover in another form.

Thoughts: not horror but i think this film is the first that pops into my head while watching The Medium. Similar feels in their portrayal of Thai rural village lifestyle and Buddhism being a big part of both stories.

You may notice that most of these horror films from GTH Studio share similar directors, screenwriters or other creative staffs with The Medium. And that's because GDH 559 is basically the successsor of GTH Studio (which got dissolved in 2015). I've always a big fan of GDH films and I do try to watch as much GDH/GTH works as possible, but horror is really not my forte so I can only offer you these humble recommendations. I hope you'll enjoy at least one among the ones in this list.

[sarah-sandwich-writes]

HOLD ON WAIT UP HOLD THE PHONE

I KNOW I WAS GONE FOR A FEW MONTHS THERE BUT HAS BLUE LIKE DON'T FORGET ABOUT ME ALWAYS BEEN A PART OF A SERIES OR IS THAT A NEW DEVELOPMENT???

I FEEL LIKE ITS CHRISTMAS ALL OVER AGAIN FUCK Y E A H

Okay so

I...

have been cooking

by which I mean illusions of grandeur and

schemes

And I have not been forthcoming lol Everyone kind of disappeared all at the same time so I kind of stopped talking about what I'm doing but I have been biding my time, quietly putting mechanisms into motion and plotting and occasionally cackling over my cauldron.

I finished the first draft of Blue like don't forget about me and didn't like it so I cut out all the sci-fi fantasy stuff (bye bye aliens farewell superpowers) and in November wrote a new first draft that's all contemporary romance babeee and I'm so in love with it I'm turning it into a little 3-part (possibly 4 if I can't control myself) series.

The original childhood years have been split off into a prequel novella called Red like my bleeding heart in your hand. Then Blue like don't forget about me will take place 20 years later. Nash works at Cherished Hope Nursing Home

“And what is it you do? At the nursing home, I mean.” I wipe shit off of old people. And Teddy’s a hockey player. What’s Luke, an underwear model? He shouldn’t have come.

Teddy comes back to town for a funeral and

Teddy looks at him for the first time in twenty years and every ounce of warmth leaves his expression. Message received. He should not have come.

OKAY SO AND THEN the next book will be Jo's POV and is called Violet like these delights. and MAYBE there will be a 4th from Luke's POV bc he gets to live this time by the grace of god (me) but it'll depend on how Violet goes (its current state is mostly vibes and a single overarching theme so, stand by).

Red needs a clean-up round of edits to snip out the few little threads that connected it to OG blue. And rewritten blue is basically done. I've done the major revisions and am about to start line edits and after those are done I'm sending it out to beta readers (lmk if you're interested).

There are concise actual summaries in my pinned post btw lol

WHICH REMINDS ME

The series title is Wildflowers of Deliverance. Which I'm extremely proud of. Did you notice did you notice how each title incorporates a wildflower did you did you? and the town they grew up in where Nash and Teddy first met is called Deliverance!!! It's okay I know I'm a genius.

And this brings us to the meal okay? because like I said I've been Cooking™ quietly but steadily for a few months now. ANd what have I been cooking? PLOTS and PLANS

I've decided on a pen name: Sarah B. Elisa

I've created a(nother) side blog for it that will be exclusively centered on my og writing and geared more toward readers rather than writers like this blog is: @sarahbe-writing

I'm going to create a website (as soon as I convince myself to spend money)

and a newsletter (as soon as I convince myself to spend money and do work)

I'm still waffling between trad publishing and DIY. I really like all my hats and it would be a shame to have to share them but oh my god I don't want to do all the marketing but trad pub seems hit or miss on how well they market you so I might get half of my hats taken away and still have to do the marketing bullshit UGH

anyway

OH YEAH and the OG draft I wrote for Blue? I'm going to spin it back to its OG OG roots [parkner, naturally--Return of The childhood friends to estranged almost lovers to super-powered rivals to reluctant allies to friends to lovers finally wip!!! AKA: We Were Gods (we were kids)] and that will fix all the things that went wrong and I didn't like 😌 so it's basically like double Christmas I think

[thescentofrainonstone]

On Class in Britain and why the same kind of actor ends up getting our panties in a twist (see Hiddleston, Cumberbatch, Goode, etc...)

Isn't it peculiar that all this adoration and fandoms tend to be about white-cis mostly het (thought admittedly that's the more laxed of attributes) able thin, tall, pale but most importantly coming from riches guys?

You look at a Tom Hiddleston and his first headshots and roles and the wonder has got to be there: "how much time and means were available to him to get his degree from Oxbridge and then decide to do another entire BA on top of it at RADA?"

Admittedly he gets off easy going back historically("just" baronets in his line) when in his league we have Benedict Cumberbatch, whose existence is literally dependant on the slavery his direct ancestors built their empire on in Barbados, and were paid compensation when the end of slavery came to England. Finally his Wikipedia has a full description of this even though when I worked on the essay that took the Downton Abbey series and films as examples of the inhumane social divide the UK depends upon, it was all incredibly well swept under virtual rugs with a vague quote from Mother Cumberbatch advising her son to change his surname in case "they come after you for money" where money stands for "reparations" and considering the luxury of an arts career like the last few Cumberbatches have had is something intrinsically entrenched in wealth and privilege makes perfect sense if you ask me. A councillor in New York carries the same surname and she is Black. Slaves carried the surname of those who owned them.

Let that sink in: there is currently a commissiomer (and Professor at Columbia) in New York who carries the Cumberbatch surname because they are a direct descendant of the Slaves the Cumberbatches owned and owe their fortune to. Stacey Cumberbatch.

So yeah, when people think the UK is not the US, they Invented class and the divide that come with it. It is so crucial to come from a family that can afford you connections and the luxury to work for nothing while never risking bills or rent going unpaid.

And I guess what I'm trying to say is: it's ok for all the fandoms to salivate over anyone, I just think it's important we know why the media propels in front of our eyes the same prototype of Englishman over and over, and perpetrates the production of new pieces of media that casually seem naturally meant for white, rich, het passing people.

The system works like a bottleneck for privilege and I think the SAG-AFTRA strikes also show that: everyone that had some privilege and didn't do anything to average out the system will see their own reduced over time until only the tip of the top remains. And "eat the rich" is going to be another post but you get the gist.

That is to say, next time I go to Insole Court (the Victorian house where a Lot of A Discovery of Witches was filmed, including Matthew's "rooms at Oxford") will I touch every single book of the reading room because likely I will have touched something Matthew Goode touched when he was there filming? Sure.

I also do know that house was paid for by coal miners who actually died in a tragedy in the mines owned by the Insole family and that admittedly I find the only decent way to keep real estate built with the blood of people can just be that: give that back to the people.

It's about educated choices, that's what I'm trying to say.

Fun fact: I started watching a discovery of witches because after filming the essay at Insole Court, wanting to bring down the bourgeoisie, I learned the show was also filmed there. So i went and found it and now I have another white, pale, lanky, English twink to lose sleep over just because he's been given a character created by the mind of a woman who dreams enough, possibly because unfulfilled in some part of her life -because when we're happy we go out, we don't vomit pages over pages let's be honest -.

If none of those elegant white British men who embody the characters we love come from a program that allowed them to raise from the working class... or are anything but white or adhering to a white-er standard (Rege- Jean Page is the quintessential example of this, better than nothing but still, my point)...Maybe we should ask ourselves why, and how is that ok.

Just a random though on a day I wanted to go back to Insole Court for the aforesaid reason.

[oathkeeperoxas]

tag game to better know you

Ty @new-anon for tagging me! What else to do on a cold Monday morning public holiday then fill out a questionnaire about myself 🤔

What book are you currently reading?

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough Definitely has nothing to do with the fact that we can see this book on Ice's shelf next to the photo of him and Mav shaking hands after rescuing the USS Layton...

What’s your favourite movie you saw in theatres this year?

I have only seen the new Spiderman (literally 2 days ago) so I guess that! I think it was pretty good, but tbh I liked the first one more.

What do you usually wear?

Pokemon or bird themed t-shirt paired with shorts or my high school gym trackies if it's cold. I have one green overcoat that I wear pretty much any time I need a jacket, it is very versatile in what weather it can be worn in.

How tall are you?

170cm, that's 5 foot 6 inches to those USAmericans in the audience (had to google that...)

What’s your star sign? Do you share a birthday with a celebrity or a historical event?

I don't know any celebrities off the top of my head that I share a birthday with, and the only historical event I connect immediately with my birthday is a bad one lmao. Though it happened in the 1920s, so mostly only relevant when I was studying history in high school...

Do you go by your name or a nickname?

Serie! Fun fact, I made this name up on the spot randomly when playing Facebook games as an 11 year old and the RPG ones wanted me to input a name. I have been stuck with it ever since.

Did you grow up to become what you wanted to be when you were a child?

My current job didn't even exist when I was a child, so, no!

Are you in a relationship? If not, who is your crush if you have one?

No relationship, and I have not had a crush since high school pff

What’s something you’re good at vs. something you’re bad at?

Good at procrastinating, bad at resisting the lure of more wips 🙏 this makes for a wild combination haha

Dogs or cats?

Probably cats, but I am allergic to cats and dogs (and most fluffy creatures) so I don't have any pets :(

If you draw/write, or create in any way, what’s your favourite picture/favourite line/favourite etc. from something you created this year?

Probably my favourite things that I've posted this year was Dawn and well. haha. (nuts) because they were both very self-indulgent in a way that I always enjoy writing with codywan, though for very very different reasons.

What’s something you’d like to create content for?

I want to write more Aloy femslash!! I've written so much for her, but none really with the characters from the new game, and now with a canon femslash kiss under her belt, I think she deserves to be a wlw icon. Next year for femslash February I'm thinking of trying to organise a Horizon event to get some momentum not just for me but for others to create too

What’s something you’re currently obsessed with?

Val Kilmer's jaw.........

What’s something you were excited about that turned out to be disappointing this year?

I can maybe half say the Horizon: Forbidden West DLC - I liked the overarching plot well enough, and they gave Aloy a lesbian kiss so I'm not too mad, but it carried over almost all of the issues from production that the base game had, which I was keen to see fixed in the DLC. That and the lack of backstory for Seyka or the Quen, the lack of side quests and the lack of interesting stuff to do in the wilds of the DLC made it a bit of a mediocre experience for me (though after HFW I wasn't expecting anything too good anyway).

What’s a hidden talent of yours?

Not sure if it's hidden, but I'm particularly good at spotting double spaces in a document. Pisses me off (it's my editor brain going haywire... my team is always making fun of me for this at work lmao)

Are you religious?

Nope!

What’s something you wish to have at this moment?

Someone to make me breakfast </3 alas after I post this I will simply have to do it myself

Tags?

@elwenyere @tragediegh @playablekairi @cillyscribbles if you like! No pressure ofc

[lizzybeth1986]

KLAW DAY 1: THROWBACK

For Throwback Day I thought I'd revisit an old favourite of mine, That Old Grape Juice. I initially wanted to write it as a four parter - two parts that would focus on Liam and Olivia's friendship, and two that would (at the time) focus on a budding romance between Drake and Kiara. For obvious reasons, the Driara chapters never happened...but I do love the two Liam and Olivia fics I managed to write 😁

Cabernet Franc is the first chapter of this short series. It is set in Lythikos in TRR1 Ch 7, shortly after Olivia mocks Savannah in front of Drake. I hc'd at the time that she spent some time showing Liam around after that.

Chardonnay shows the Lythikos Ball in Ch 8, from Liam's point of view rather than the MC's. It also explores Liam's reaction to the kiss Olivia forces on him at that Ball and how he handles that situation.

Under the cut I'll be going through the process and experience of writing this fic!

1. What about this character inspired you to write this piece?

Oh, so many things!

- Often the Liam and Olivia equation was analysed back then mostly from Olivia's perspective, leading many to believe he didn't care much for her just because he wasn't romantically inclined. I believe that is not at all the case. This fic was an exploration of Liam's perspective of their friendship, while waking up to these new feelings he has for my MC Esther.

- This was written before Liam's Gastrodiplomacy scene in TRR3, but goddamn did I already get the impression that this man had an extremely extensive palate 😋 The food and the wine were DEFINATE inspirations!!

- I really, really, for once...wanted the kiss Olivia pushed on him to be viewed as a violating act, not as some comic thing or some political move that canon wanted to portray!

2. What was your process like?

I have NO experience with wine or any alcohol. Nor have I ever had lobster in my life. So a lot of my time was spent reading up on wines, trying to figure out what would be perfect for which chapter...and around that I would build my story!!

There was a lot more space for me to freely pick and choose what I wanted for "Cabernet Franc". My only requirement was that there should be a mention of vanilla, one of Liam's favourite flavours! Based on that I was able to choose the cheese as well. Certain sequences I'd had fixed in my mind before I did the research - I knew there needed to be a joke about the bust of Luther Nevrakis, and that the conversations between Liam and Olivia needed interruptions from the real world - in the shape of Olivia's secretary Anne-Marie. I knew I wanted Anne-Marie to be both a reminder to Liam of the origins of Esther, the girl he is growing to love, as well as someone who has to put up with so much of Olivia's tantrums and moods. It was a matter of trying to weave all these together with Liam and Olivia's contrasting views of their relationship as a connecting factor!

For "Chardonnay" I needed to work under a few restrictions. Because it was set during the Lythikos Ball, I knew that canon had already established lobster bisque as the main meal. It was more a matter of which wine would pair well with that...and even better if it were a white wine to contrast with the red one of the previous chapter!! I also needed to keep in mind that Liam is seated far away from Esther and Hana's table, so he may not see much. The prominent sequences I had in mind were Liam's confrontation of Olivia after he realizes she's treated Esther and Hana badly, the Kiss™, and the ensuing conversation between Olivia and Liam. I needed to take the underlying tensions of the previous chapter and double them in this one!!

3. What part of creating this piece gave you the most joy?

I wouldn't say joy...there's nothing joyful about this particular sequence in Chardonnay. But it did give me some comfort to write Liam's reaction to Olivia's kiss and have him view it as something he didn't consent to and was deeply uncomfortable with. I also have Olivia realize immediately that she crossed a line and rush in to apologize to him. Though that conversation then gets derailed into a brief discussion about propriety and public image, I needed to establish first and foremost how violating Olivia's gesture was here from Liam's point of view.

4. Did you have a playlist to get you in the mood for creating?

Not for this one!! Just a lot of tabs on my browser for wines 😅😅

5. Are there differences in the way you make content for this character, and the way they are depicted in regular canon/fan content? If so, why?

Re: canon, yes, definitely. Canon and some of the fandom don't exactly center Liam a lot in his own story and he is often used to make a point about how irresistible the MC is. I like exploring him as his own character, viewing him not only in romantic but also platonic relationships. Some of my favourite fics to write for him are the friendship fics I've made between him and another lady of the court like Hana, Kiara or Olivia.

Many Liam stans have special and unique ways of looking at him, and I'd like to believe that my Liam has his own uniqueness among them too. I like to explore his cultural background and since a lot of my content also looks at race relations, that plays a part in the way I write Liam too.

[schnaf]

I kinda want to ask you all of them, but these are my favourites: 5, 10, 11 and 25 for the End of the Year Asks ✨

OOOOOOOH i would have been fine with that too ♥

5. TV show of the year?

oh godddd ironically i didn't watch any tv series this year (or at least i didn't finish any or it wasn't worth remembering i guess)....... but oh i've got a web series i guess? i got into UNHhhh this year and it became my comfort show ♥

10. Something that made you cry this year?

wOW before i looked up this question, i was still dwelling on that time on the train when i cried the whole time and then i saw there was a new episode of UNHhhh and it actually made me stop crying for 15 minutes ♥ i cried many, many times this year......... well, every year and it won't change next year i guess (except i donate my tear glands to science). i mostly cry out of frustration or anger, sometimes i'm straight up sad i guess, but i'm going to pick something nice and that's said train trip. it was the day after a concert and the concert was so neat and i was so happy and the next day.............................. i just cried for hours. because i missed it i guess? because i wanted to go back? but not even in a sad sense, in a "it's gone now and who knows when it will happen again". it was a lot.

11. Something you want to do again next year?

once again, i can refer to the previous question 😭 i want to see bands i love live again. luckily, i already bought tickets for january. (HOW AM I GONNA HANDLE IT WHEN ALL OF MY CONCERTS ARE OVER) i also want to go to london again which is connected to the january tickets. and i'd love to write a lot again ♥

25. Did you create any characters (in games, art, or writing) this year? Describe one

OOOOOOF. so i don't have many actual oc's, most of them aren't worth mentioning. (i gave one of my main characters a little sister tho and i'm quite content with her because she's bitchy but also lovely) but hm in the big fic i started this year i have a set of besties and i love them and their dynamics ♥ one of them is rational, the other one emotional but the rational one can be really soft and the emotional one really mean. they're really close and even when they spend more time with their boyfies, they still don't let go of each other ♥

thank you so much! ♥

End of the year Asks

[idealisticrealism]

Awe that is actually so thoughtful of you. But yes it was just like being slapped in the face. This is such a non significant thing but I got really excited because I saw that we share birthday and I never read about a celeb with my birthday, then boom!. Then finding out he has such young kids, man. And yes, like you say I just got a new obsession and I'm going to be honest, Aram was on of the biggest reasons for me enjoying it so much, so I'm not 100% sure if I want to continue, but it may just like you say take some time to digest that he won't be back because I for sure have not accepted that. He played it so freaking well, that line between seeing that he is a mob guy who does bad things but also has a sweet nature to him. Because usually in this series either they do too much on one, and the sweetness doesn't feel genuine. But I think bringing up his background and then Thory/Nadia working together is a good way to continue it without him. I mean I do agree with you that I liked in S2 that it wasn't like "Oh so Thory and Arman are together now" but we got to see them grew a stronger bond. But, that scene where they are alone, they are both not in a relationship anymore and he says he doesn't want to leave her alone. Like man, that deserved a kiss haha. That seems like a very healthy take, like I do like most of the plots but somethings gets a bit too much for me, and also as a health care professional, man some of those bug the hell out of me like they do when there is any medicine involved on screen. Like there is noooo way you could use a ventilator in a chapel, you need to connect it to oxygen flow. But in those cases, I just make up my own stories in my head and pretend that is what happened haha and I'm happy.

Haha oh man the amount of ranting I have done about the medical stuff in this show... Thony's resus of Kamdar in his club in 2x10 is the pinnacle for me, like omg how many things can be portrayed incorrectly in just one single scene. But because I love this show so much I generally just do my best to turn my medical brain off and just roll with whatever happens whenever I watch it, mostly for my own sanity haha

I can definitely relate to what you said about the scene in 2x08 with the two of them alone at her house... I think I even read somewhere that the writers considered having Armony hook up in that scene, but then obviously ultimately decided against it. Tbh given that he then has to go back to Nadia only hours later, I'm actually kinda glad they didn't do anything more than hug! Still, I've got a fic or two drafted about an alternative version of that scene, and hopefully I'll eventually get around to posting them one day lol.

I also agree 100% that the show did an amazing job with creating Arman's character, and keeping that realistic balance of hard exterior and soft heart. I have a genuine love for all the main characters in this show, but Arman really captured me, and he quickly became one of my favourite characters of all time. And of course Adan did an incredible job portraying him, and his chemistry with Elodie was just off the charts. The show will absolutely never be the same without Arman/Adan, and that's something I'm still coming to terms with.

And I don't think it's silly that you were excited about sharing something in common with Adan; I think that having innocent little connections like that to the people behind the media we love is absolutely part of the fun, though the flip side to that is that if something bad happens with them, it can feel more personal. I encountered Adan on a plane once in 2022, and now what was once an awesome and delightful memory just makes me sad. And of course the fact that he was so young and had such little kids has been a really challenging aspect of it for all of us, because no matter our specific family circumstances, a loss like that hits a little too close to home.

Anyway, regardless of whether you do watch s3, if you're ever missing Arman you can always come over to Ao3 and find him there. At least in fic he can live on ❤

[nikkisticki]

MUSIC 5 MONDAY (Week 1)

Totally didn't forget on Friday so I'm going to overcompensate to assure myself I won't forget (because how embarrassing would that be) so gonna start on Mondays and post some grooves using the tag #Music 5 Monday

Pretty good game that wants to talk big words about complicated subjects, and unlike it's sister game YIIK (as this game has a fucking YIIK event in it, which is somehow as badly made as YIIK itself) it mostly succeeds.

Also, it's the best game soundtrack to fuck to, trust me

Speaking of sexy things, what a MUSTACHE...oh also, they filmed this video in actual factual space

IDK the mustache is more important tbh

LISTEN, Black Bullet is awful, absolutely dreadful, partially because of interference from the company making the products which drove the artist mad as they turned his Cyberpunk dystopia into an anime about Loli's doing kung-fu, and partially because the Soundtrack is done by THE MAN Shirō Sagisu, who has done many many amazing soundtracks including most famously Evangelion.

Black Bullet was butchered so brutally that the creator quit his job after the sixth book mid-series and opened a restaurant.

If anyone's curious, feel free to ask me about this as I've suffered through the full LN, Manga and Anime and have a lot of very angry things to say about capitalism and Japan being the fucking worst sometimes

I'm a big fan of the Mash-Up genre, because when done well it can create an entirely new sound that I really appreciate. There's actually a fascinating connection between it and "A.I" (It's not A.I) Art, because this is a process that requires a delicate touch as someone makes specific choices that requires a mixture of taste and skill to really appreciate how to make each element work, and """"A.I""" art just blenders everyone's work together and tries to find the average

Tech Bro's hate the blender comparison

Katana Zero - Hit The Floor

If you've not played Katana Zero, you've been living a pale imitation of life. Amazing game, fantastic music, probably my favorite game of that year and easily in the top 50 Indie games. I know that sounds like a lot, but I've played a lot of fucking indie games

Y'know, cause fuck capitalist art

If you've not heard this bonus track, it really brings together the best of the Shovel Knight campaigns. Mona is best girl

[bi-demon-ium]

Do you have any recs for angsty or hurt comfort-y fics in the mbs fandom? I've read all of yours and loved them and I figure you would have good taste :3c

oh thank you 😳 <333

i can't include every good mbs fic i've ever read, unfortunately, but here's a good list of painful/angsty/good hurt/comfort ones! i did try to include a wide variety of book/show canon and like... i admit i mostly focus on the same few characters so i tried to include some others here as well. but these are some fics i have bookmarked!

A Few Basic Questions by @ragecndybars

The first time someone attempted to abduct Nicholas, he shook them easily. The second time someone attempted to abduct him, he came perilously close to falling victim. The third time someone attempted to abduct him, they succeeded.

glass balloon by @peachygos

“Run,” Milligan says, and throws himself at the figure closest to them. His fist connects with the man’s head with a loud crack. Nicholas runs.

Whispers and Echoes by stainedglasspanel

They had done it. And they had nearly gotten away with it too. Curtain captures Mr. Benedict and the children after they break the Whisperer.

A Single Thread by @opinionatedoctopus

Nathaniel abhors his brother and everything he stands for. It's everything he's never had.

Failure of Will by mozbee

Watching the helicopter fly away rips open the pit in Nicholas’s stomach, a pit he’s long tried to pretend doesn’t exist. For a moment he feels a rage so strong; not at his brother, no, but at the narcolepsy that so cruelly runs his life. If he’d just had more time with Nathaniel; there’s so much more he wanted to say, in the face of a thirty-year absence suddenly screeching to a stop. … Picks up directly where the show left off and deals with some of Mr. Benedict's emotional issues in relation to the abrupt reunion.

46 Fairview St. Apt. 2A, Stonetown by @mvshortcut

In which SQ is tasked with creating his new life from scratch. Good thing he’s an artist.

visits by salenaRD

a series of visits to one Ledroptha Curtain by one S.Q. Pedalian or, it's hard to find out that the man you've looked up to as a father and an idol is actually a bad person

Papa says he'd love to be with you by @striveonward

Set during episode 3: Depends on the Wagon. Constance is reeling from the discovery of the Gemini secret and is overwhelmed by the messages and voices in her head. She sneaks out the next night to have a solo morse-code conversation with Mr. Benedict, in need of comfort.

Run Away Home by @storm-leviosa-fanfics

"I have always had a strict policy against taking on runaways." He'd looked right at Sticky when he'd said it and it had hurt to hear the words, hurt to feel that piercing gaze that knew all the ways Sticky was defective. Because Sticky, a boy who sought truth, knew no truth more than the truth about himself. Because Sticky, a boy who was meant to save the world, was a coward. Mr Benedict had known, had made an exception, and Sticky didn't understand it. Late at night, Sticky has some thoughts about why exactly Mr Benedict had made an exception. Mr Benedict puts those worries to rest.

those hollow bones by @mahpotatoequeen

Reynie is an empath. It doesn't change things. Much.

made for growing by @mahpotatoequeen

Nicholas Benedict is getting older and things are changing all the time, but that will never stop him from loving his daughters and all the amazing things they have and will achieve. Or: Constance needs a little reassurance, Mr. Benedict has a lot of soft emotions, and there's a bedtime story.

Living in the Sun by @sqenthusiast

'S.Q. remembered the conversation he’d had with his father very clearly. S.Q. had always been curious about his family and, by extension, his father’s.' or, SQ decides to looking for his family on his own.

I'll write you a letter (perhaps a thousand) by @sqenthusiast

He thinks about crumpling up the letter and throwing it away. He folds it as gently as he might handle a porcelain cup. He sets it gently on the bedside table and stares at it until his eyelids grow heavy and he falls asleep. S.Q. writes some letters.

New Clothes and Promises Made by @sqenthusiast

S.Q. has not straightened his hair for some time now. Since his father's arrest and moving in with Mr. Benedict, he simply hadn’t had the time. He was adapting to life in Mr. Benedict’s house and processing everything that happened, so his appearance had fallen to the wayside. Now his dark hair curled gently over his forehead, occasionally falling in his eyes, only to be clipped back absentmindedly by Rhonda when she spotted him continuously tucking it behind his ears. He used to straighten it every morning, under his father's instruction. ‘Appearance is everything, S.Q., do you understand me? Everything.’ He’d say. That sentiment had been one of the many that stuck, repeating like a mantra in his brain throughout the day, as he went through each of the twenty-four hours just as he was expected to.

Feel the Fire by @sqenthusiast

He’d done this before. He had been younger then, with zero plan. But he was older now. This was not the plan of a little boy curious about the town across the shore. It was not the actions of an active imagination finally coming to fruition. It was a long, slow-burning need to get out. The culmination of seventeen years on an island. Seventeen years of steady, choking, constricting control under the hands of his father. He loved him. Really, he did. At least he told himself that every day, and he believed it most of the time. But in moments like these, when that constantly suppressed anger in both of them reached its climax and came out in harsh words and a departure to separate rooms, it was hard to remember. And that’s when rationality typically went out the window. or, S.Q. runs away.

Armor (The Soul of This Man) by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

"The soul of this man is his clothes." —William Shakespeare, All’s Well That Ends Well When he looked in the mirror, he imagined his reflection wearing a shirt covered in his favorite flowers. He imagined shiny shoes with buckles and heels. He imagined colored trousers: perhaps a deep plum, a bright, dusty blue.

Steady Hands by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

His nails grew back, of course, and when they did, Milligan thought he must have been a handyman before. He took to repairing the various cracks and creaks around Mr. Benedict’s house with precision and steadiness. He held screws in place, aimed hammers perfectly, oiled hinges, and fixed pipes, all without the slightest of tremors in his hands. Milligan finds solace in painting his nails. Nicholas, for his part, is less adept at the task.

Cyclical Differences by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

Nicholas knew he was a…well, a weird person. He had his quirks. His brain didn’t work like other people’s. And that wasn’t just a convoluted way of saying he was smart— although he was— but that everything about him ticked differently, and more often than not, it left him feeling lonely. Nicholas Benedict is neurodivergent as hell.

Loose Leaves by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

The life of Nicholas Benedict, told through cups of tea.

Such Stuff as Dreams by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

All of the times Nicholas Benedict falls asleep somewhere other than his bed, and the one time he doesn't.

Fresh Sheets, Clean Locks by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

Milligan rings the doorbell. He's all too aware of the state of his hair, hardly recognizable as a person's. Nicholas sees this battered-looking man on his front porch and immediately thinks oh dear.

To Keep a Promise by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

Three seasons of their relationship sees three very different reflections in Nicholas Benedict's mirror. Learning to love his partner might mean learning to love himself. Or, two times Nicholas Benedict hides feeling sick, and one time he tells Milligan honestly.

Life Without Laughter by @mysteriouseggsbenedict

“What was he like? As a child, I mean?” Mr. Benedict smiled ruefully. His heart ached at the memories. “He was my best friend. My twin, after all. Wickedly smart and funny. He used to make me laugh myself to sleep all the time, and I didn’t even mind, because it felt so good to share that joy with him. After all, what is life without laughter?” Mr. Benedict discovers he has a nephew, and SQ discovers he likes hugs. They are both lost in different ways.

[psychotakublabs]

Creepy Luz is a Grimwalker

“Eclipse Lake” gave us a new creature known as a Grimwalker. From what we can tell, Grimwalkers are artificial clones. This has led lots of fans, including myself, to believe Hunter is a Grimwalker created by Belos. There have been theories about his purpose of being artificially created such as being a new vessel, sacrifice, etc. There have even been theories that Belos is a Grimwalker, which could be plausible. However, these two aren’t the only ones who could be Grimwalkers. Creepy Luz from “Keeping Up A-fear-ances” is a Grimwalker in the Human Realm.

It is possible Creepy Luz is a Grimwalker. Adding another creature would cause confusion in the story and there wouldn’t be a motive other than trickery. However, a Grimwalker makes sense because there could be someone who has a motive to create a Grimwalker of Luz which I will go into later in this theory.

Who Created Creepy Luz?

It is unlikely to be a large group or government agency, so it could be a small secretive group or just one person. Having knowledge of creating a Grimwalker means the person who created Creepy Luz has knowledge of the Demon Realm and Belos. They could also be related to Philip (blood or partnership) which would explain knowledge of both realms, technology, and magic. Belos's past is unknown to everyone on the Boiling Isles and he intends to keep it that way, but this "Mystery Creator" (temporary name for the person who created Creepy Luz) and Belos are connected from their connection to Philip since he was the only person to travel and have knowledge of both realms and could be the key to knowing Belos's past and backstory.

1) Original Belos

If Belos in the Demon Realm is a Grimwalker, that means he must have been cloned from an original. Many fans think he is a clone of Philip who possessed multiple clone bodies to expand his lifespan. However, that does not account the success of his portal door creation, which can travel to both dimensions, how Belos has ears more human than witch but maintains a pointed tip, and creating a new portal when he should have knowledge of it. There is a possibility Belos could be a descendant of Philip and is half human and half witch. However, the Belos in the Demon Realm is not the real Belos, but a Grimwalker who is unstable. The real Belos is in the Human Realm who is the true descendant of Philip. The Real Belos may be half witch and half human or human who dabbled in mixing two different DNA in a Grimwalker.

2) Human Companion

Belos may have had a human companion. This means Belos is not a Grimwalker, but is a descendant of Philip, born from a witch mother. This human companion may even be a descendant of Philip as well since Philip suddenly vanished many years ago. Both being descendants of Philip means both have knowledge of the realms and technology/magic to access both realms. They may have found each other through knowledge of their shared blood relation to Philip. Belos has gone to the Human Realm before and this mystery companion has visited the Demon Realm.

3) Another Witch

Belos may have befriended another witch in the Boiling Isles. His past is a mystery but who is to say it was all bad? It may even be a blood relation or a very close friend of Belos. Since Belos is half human and half witch, he may have been hidden to other witches out of protection or fear. However, this one witch seems to have befriended him and Belos may have shared his knowledge of Philip and the Human Realm. Again, Belos has been to the Human Realm before and he may have taken his witch friend/relative to view it.

Whoever this Mystery Creator is, there are two possibilities of what may have happened between the two: there could be a blood relationship or a family-like bond and confrontation. From the Season 1 secret message there are two lines that give us a clue: “Two witches torn apart now alone” and “betrayal of blood”. The secret message is mostly intended for Eda and Lilith but it can also portray Belos and Mystery Creator’s story. We also have another hint of a confrontation: the first time Eda used the portal door. There was a large gash on the portal door when Eda first found it buried. From these hints, there may be a possibility of a clash between Belos and Mystery Creator. Belos did mention wild magic destroying his family, whether intentional or accidental, meaning there is a high chance the Mystery Creator and Belos are related by blood, hence “betrayal of blood”. This confrontation between the two separated them: Belos in the Demon Realm and Mystery Creator in the Human Realm. Belos may have felt betrayed by Mystery Creator and blamed wild magic for the cause (whether side effect of his own creation or curse). Whoever this Mystery Creator is, they have knowledge of creating Grimwalkers since they have knowledge of the Demon Realm and technology/magic (however it is harnessed) to create Creepy Luz.

How Was Creepy Luz Created?

From the book, we see the ingredients for creating a Grimwalker: Galderstones (heart and power), Palistrom wood (keratin), Stonesleeper lungs (lungs), and bone of ORTET. We also see diagrams of combining ingredients, an embro and growth of Grimwalker, and eye color of the Grimwalker.

Most mysterious of the ingredients is the Bone of ORTET. There is no image of the ingredient and there is only one bone with ortet being capitalized. This seems to be an important ingredient that is also hard to find. Ortet means the original plant from which the clone originates from. This could be a hint to Grimwalkers being clones. However, it could also be a hint to what this unknown ingredient is. The Bone of ORTET could be a creature/plant used to replicate the original person the clone looks like or could be a magic term on the Boiling Isles for DNA of the original (thank you Zasmit132 for your input!). The fact it's called Bone of ORTET implies there is a creature (beast or plant) by that name. Replicating an exact copy could require abomination magic (there is a small picture of what looks like goo on the upper left corner). The Bone of ORTET and the Stonesleeper Lungs are the only creatures/ingredients we haven't seen in the series yet but all are important to making a Grimwalker.

If Belos did create Hunter, that means it's possible to create one without magic. Especially since Belos and Hunter use artificial magic from technology. This includes speeding the aging process of Grimwalkers and imbuing them with either their own personality and backstory or imbuing the same traits as the original. So it is possible for Mystery Creator to create Creepy Luz as a Grimwalker without magic.

However, how would Mystery Creator access the ingredients? These ingredients are found on the Boiling Isles and the only way to access the Demon Realm is through the portal, since Eclipse Lake is dried up. There are 2 ways Mystery Creator can access these ingredients without the portal door. 1) Mystery Creator could have found the creatures/ingredients from the leaks. Although Eclipse Lake is dried up, Titan's Blood still exists. Which means leaks still occur between both realms. Mystery Creator has knowledge of the Demon Realm and scoured throughout the globe to find the ingredients. 2) Mystery Creator already had these ingredients beforehand. As stated, Mystery Creator and Belos are connected through Philip and have possibly traveled both realms. If Belos is a Grimwalker of Mystery Creator, it's likely they still have the ingredients in the Human Realm. Although these ingredients are found in the Demon Realm, it's not impossible to find them in the Human Realm.

Why Create Creepy Luz?

Biggest question to ask is why is Creepy Luz created? Belos doesn't have access to the Human Realm, so him creating Creepy Luz would be impossible. Luz accidentally traversed to the Boiling Isles and has had no prior connection beforehand. So why would Mystery Creator have a sudden interest in Luz to create a Grimwalker of her?

Let's recap to the one clip that from the trailer yet to be seen: Camila's appearance. Notice behind her is a conspiracy board with a newspaper clipping of a witch holding a staff and a key. This points to Mystery Creator researching magical phenomenon related to the Demon Realm. They probably know about Belos and either want to stop his plan from happening or to reunite with him.

How is this related to creating a Grimwalker of Luz? Well there is a tattered cabin in the woods that seems to be a waypoint to the Human Realm. Mystery Creator could have returned to the cabin and saw Luz enter the portal door. But if they saw the portal door, why not enter it in the first place? The answer is simple: Eda. Eda can be very dangerous and Mystery Creator probably didn't know after a long while and was probably worried Eda would attack them. So the Mystery Creator seeing Luz could have seen her as a way of getting back into the Demon Realm. Which is why they decided to create Creepy Luz, disguise themselves as a camp counselor to keep an eye on Creepy Luz, perfect her personality (even helping with the letters), and continue to correspond with Creepy Luz after the camp. Hence why Luz’s change would not be suspicious to Camila and other people. If Belos has ruled the Boiling Isles for more than 50 years, then Mystery Creator can wait a few more months for Creepy Luz to investigate.

Why Trick Camila?

Mystery Creator already has Creepy Luz to help with his research on accessing the Demon Realm, so why bring Camila into this? The answer is simple: to not raise suspicion. Although Mystery Creator seems like someone who will do anything to find the Demon Realm, they also have to be careful. Plus it seems they're only lead in accessing the Boiling Isles lies in Luz’s town, specifically the cabin. 

Notice how we do not see Creepy Luz’s face in "Keeping Up A-fear-ances". From the Grimwalker book, it seems Grimwalkers are born with red eyes like Hunter's. It could be Creepy Luz has the same red eyes. However, that would raise suspicion. Luckily, the Human Realm has easy ways of hiding those eyes such as colored contacts or Mystery Creator could have used a different technique to hide the eyes. Hiding Creepy Luz’s face already raises suspicion of her identity and being a Grimwalker would explain how she came to be and her purpose for impersonating Luz's life.

However, this facade may not last. From the trailer clip of Camila's appearance, she seems to be happy until she looks at her phone and suddenly frowns. She may be catching on to Creepy Luz, either from the video entries from Luz’s phone or notices something strange with Creepy Luz. The mid-season episode  title is "Yesterday's Lie" and a few clips from the trailer have yet to be seen. It could be Creepy Luz said something that doesn't align with either what Camila said or texts she received. Whatever happens, Camila is going to find out Creepy Luz’s identity and it's either going to put her in danger or possibly team up with Mystery Creator to find Luz (possibly both).

Creepy Luz and Hunter Stable but not Belos

If Belos is a Grimwalker, how is he unstable and Creepy Luz and Hunter are? There could be two reasons why. 1) Creepy Luz and Hunter have one type of DNA while Belos is a hybrid of two types. Hunter is a Grimwalker clone of Belos, but he is more witch than human. He has the same ears as other witches on the Boiling Isles. The only similarities they share is being powerless witches, probably from the human side of Belos. Creepy Luz is a human Grimwalker. She is basically an exact copy of Luz, so her being stable is because she is a human replica. Belos is different because his ears do have points like a witch but are very small and more human shaped. Meaning he has two types of DNA: witch and human. This could be because the original (Mystery Creator and\or descendant of Philip) is a half human half witch. It wouldn't make sense to combine an artificial hybrid unless the original wanted to experiment with giving humans magic. However, having 2 different types of DNA would clash and cause instability in Belos's form. 2) Aging. Belos is over 70 years old. His age could be causing his form to deteriorate. Most clones in media and in real life either age rapidly or age horribly. It seems Belos is close to his expiration date and is having trouble keeping his form. Creepy Luz and Hunter are young and new as Grimwalkers so their forms are stable until they age. It could possibly be both!

How is this relevant to Creepy Luz being a Grimwalker? Well it relates to Creepy Luz being a human Grimwalker but is still stable in the Human Realm. Because there is no magic in the Human Realm it would be difficult to maintain her form. But if either age or one type of DNA is the reason Creepy Luz is a stable Grimwalker in the Human Realm, that would be a possible explanation.

Creepy Luz being a Grimwalker would explain her sudden appearance in the Human Realm. There are creatures that leak into the Human Realm, but there wouldn't be a reason, plot wise and motive, to take over Luz's life unless it's for mischief or trickery. Although it'd be interesting for the portal or some higher being to replace Luz because of some dimensional gap, the door was created nearly 400 years ago. Myths in the Human Realm caused by the leaks have happened for thousands of years and the same would go for the Demon Realm in replacements which haven't been mentioned yet. Luz being a Grimwalker as a reason for this Mystery Creator to research more on the Demon Realm would make much more sense. In conclusion, Creepy Luz is a human Grimwalker created by Mystery Creator to access the Demon Realm. Hope you guys enjoyed this theory! Please comment, I'd love to hear your input!

Also thank you Zasmit132 for helping me with this theory!

[fatekeepers]

Story of the Fatekeepers Info Post!

Haha. This has been a long time coming. Honestly, while I've been very serious about this story, I've floundered when it comes to advertising it. It seems all I can manage are incorrect quotes. But I want that to change, so here's the first step.

What is this project even supposed to be?

The project, currently known as "Manda Kat's Story of the Fatekeepers" is an original story I've been 'developing' since childhood. I think the earliest records of it date back to comics and drawings I made in 2015, but since I didn't date my stuff, it could have been much earlier or later.

My intention and dream for this project is to create a three-season cartoon series. However, depending on time, budget or opportunities, it may manifest as a comic instead or both, which would be awesome.

It is a passion project for me and features many characters that I have deep personal connections to and while I am a content person, I feel like if I died without making anything of this story, I'd regret it at least a little bit.

So, what is the story about?

Oof. Hard question. A lot of things?

Joking aside, Fatekeepers is about a team of individuals, each from a different world, are hired by the Three Fates (old ladies who decide how the world works) to stop chaos from spreading through the multiple universes.

The characters are bright and unique, with a range of different designs and personalities. You're sure to find a character you like.

While the image below (the cover for a scrapped pitch) is old with out-of-date designs, it still gives an example of the variation between cast members which gives the core aesthetic of the show:

Each of the main characters will go through their own arc as the story progresses. Some arcs are dark and intriguing, while others are more lighthearted, giving viewers the chance to 'breathe' between the wilder episodes.

Since there will be some sad or intense plots (two of the main cast are dead, for goodness sake, it's gotta get pretty angsty) it's only fair to let people know that there will be some dark content such as death, suicide, abuse and loss. If an episode has potentially triggering or upsetting content, the plan is to have it properly marked as such so viewers can still enjoy the rest of the show and simply have episodes that might be harmful to them recapped later.

Despite the level of intensity, the show is going to be completely clean. There will be no nudity, sex, cursing or gratuitous violence. (No fight scenes beyond a Disney movie or something similar) I don't personally feel comfortable watching shows with those elements, so I will not be including in my own.

So, who is the show for?

Fatekeepers is written mostly for people like myself, teens and young adults who want zany, fun cartoons, but find current adult animation distasteful. I would probably say the show is targeted at the 13 and up demographic, considering how it's no more adult than most Disney Channel or Cartoon Network shows. The goal is for kids, teens and adults to be able to enjoy the show if they are cartoon fans.

My demographic is less of an age group than it is a community. And if you're in the community, you know who I'm talking about. You stalk animation studios, looking for new content, you watch reviews of Disney cartoons on YouTube, and you wish you could find that perfect show...

While I won't promise this will be that show, I do humbly offer it to be roasted, picked apart and (dare I say) loved if you'll accept it.

Cool! When can we expect this show?

Ah. Hahahhaha.

Oh, no. She's laughing. That's never a good sign.

Yeah, well, about that. I am currently twenty years old at the time of writing this with no animation or production experience. While I am passionate about this project and WILL turn it into something, you mark my words, I don't think it will be anytime soon.

That being said, I'm starting now. Because I know I'll never be ready. I'm currently writing the scripts for the entire series and working on some concept art. Once this is done, I plan on making a comic version of the first episode for investing purposes.

Of course, I won't be asking for a cent in support this project until I am confident in my abilities to make it a reality. I won't be one of those failed kickstarter nightmares. I plan on learning animation, but if I can't, I will plan on hiring animators. I will create a clear budgeting plan and talk to financial advisors because I know I don't know everything about this stuff.

Maybe it'll be ready in five years. More realistically ten years. I'd be fine if it took twenty years. Either way, I won't stop. Nothing will stop the Fatekeepers!

So this blog is here to show you what I'm doing with the project and to inspire you to chase your own dreams. Who cares if you don't have the experience? How else do you get experience besides just doing it? So do it!

If you have any questions about the project, the story or the gal behind it, please leave an ask! There is nothing I love more than chatting about the stuff I'm doing.

[danceworshipper]

Giulio Moretti - HPMA Character Profile

template by me // images created using the zepeto app

NOTE: I am a cisgender female. As such, I have been hesitant to make a trans oc and will not be going into much detail about Giulio's experiences specifically related to his gender. If anything in here feels iffy to anyone not cisgender, please let me know and I'll correct it

Personal

Full Name: Giulio Antonio Moretti

Gender: Male (trans)

Sexuality: Demisexual, polyamorous

Birthday: June 1st

Age: 11

Birthstone: Alexandrite

Zodiac Sign: Gemini

Blood Status: Full Veela

- I'm mostly using these headcanons written by @carmilla-the-bird, though over time I might end up changing a couple details

- I'm not certain if full Veelas would even use wands/go to magic school but these ones do because I say so

- What I'm specifically adding is that since HPMA takes place later than the full HP series, there has been a new method developed to allow full veelas to better coexist with wizards. This comes in the form of a clear gemstone that can be inserted into any piece of jewelry, usually necklaces. While the stone is worn, the charm [or allure, as I call it] that all veelas have while glamored is dampened by up to 80%. Another effect is that when angered, the veela won't be able to lash out with their fire magic, unless they've trained their magic well enough that's it's less of an instinct and more of a conscious choice. Minors are legally required to wear it at all times, except in their own home with only their family around. Once an adult the veela can choose whether they want to wear it or not. The stone has a similar trace to underaged magic, so when a Veela who's a minor takes it off, the Ministry is alerted and their location will be tracked

3 Positive Traits:

- Empathetic

- Resourceful

- Playful

3 Negative Traits:

- Irritable

- Addictive

- Pessimistic

Usual First Impression: When meeting Giulio, most people see him as a spoiled and stuck up little boy. This isn't true. He's just very wary of strangers, so he doesn't tend to leave a good first impression. Once he's more comfortable around someone, his positive traits outshine the more negative ones

Location

Birthplace: A Veela-specific clinic in southern Italy. His mother travelled there for all of her children's births, and the midwife there is the woman who delivered her

Current Home: His family home in England, a medium sized house under a strict Fidelius charm, which his aunt is the Secret Keeper for. His bedroom is on the second floor, looking out over the fish pond in the backyard

Future Home(s): Fresh out of Hogwarts he'll share an apartment with Lori with heavily warded Floo access. Later homes TBD once his love interests are planned out

Favorite Place: The little house the family rents for a month every summer in southern Italy. The town is full of good culture, and better yet, good food. It feels peaceful, even when there's a loud festival going on

Disliked Place: The woods a mile down the road from his home. The woods are the last place Giulio saw his grandmother before she went missing, and now they feel like they're haunted. He refuses to go on walks there anymore

Appearance

Face Shape: Round, slightly pointy chin

Eye Color: Deep teal

Hair Color: Whitish blond

Hair Style: Self cut (horrifies his mother), slightly uneven, medium length. Not brushed every day, fluffy

Skin Tone: Pale

Freckles/Spots: A few beauty marks on his face, two near his right eye and one on the left side of his chin

Scars: None yet

Piercings/Tattoos: None

Height: 5'7" [fully grown]

Weight: ~ 135 lbs [fully grown]

Physique: Thin. Luckily for him, Giulio's family has always had rather "boyish" bodies - wide shoulders, not very curvy - but he's still got too much woman in him to be fully happy with his form

Clothing Style: Baggy tops, loose pants, nothing fancy. Giulio tries to attract as little attention as possible, because while he's glamored people stare at him a lot anyway, even with the dampener. He does like colored pants, but his tops are usually grey and black. His dampening necklace is the most eye catching thing he wears (as it was a gift from his missing grandmother) and he wishes he could take it off, but he legally can't

Carried Items:

- The last picture of him, his sisters, and his grandmother ever taken

- A lighter. He likes having the fire near him since he can't access his own fire magic

- His hair scissors, for whenever he feels like it needs to be trimmed

- A container of Silly Putty he got from a Muggle convenience store

- His water bottle

Magic

Wand: 10" Veela hair wand in Fir wood. A very pale colored wand that's a bit rough around the edges. The hair is from his younger sister Martina, who yanked the strand right out and handed it to the wandmaker after no wands appeared to choose a very defeated looking Giulio. The wand was made while Giulio watched, and he checked it many times throughout the process to make sure it felt like it would have him, which it did.

Animagus: As a veela, Giulio can transform into pretty much any bird shape. He has no need to go through the animagus process

Boggart Form: Him, fully matured, very womanly, and in a wedding gown just like the ones his older sister Alessia fawns over

Riddikulus Form: Him in a ridiculously exaggerated Bloody Baron costume

Amortentia (to others): Someone smelling Giulio would smell new pillows, the faint burning metal scent that clings to him, and the dry shampoo he uses

Amortentia (to them): He doesn't smell any sort of romantic interest yet. What he smells now are safe, comforting smells, like the cigars his mother and aunt smoke, the perfume all his sisters use, and the smell of his favorite restaurant in southern Italy

Patronus: Bird of Paradise

Happiest Memory: Receiving his wand once it was completed, and finally feeling the connection and power he'd heard so much about but thought he'd never have

Mirror of Erised: Some might consider it sad, but all he sees is him, happy, the way he wishes he was - including not looking at all like a Veela. Someday this will change

Family Spells: It's not really a spell, but the Morettis have a particular bird call that, when paired with the right charm, will alert every living family member to the caller's location, should one desperately need help. It's only to be used in emergencies. Giulio isn't sure he wants to know why his grandmother never used it

Inherent Magic: Veela stuff - storm sense, fire, bird transformations, allure, slight levitation abilities

Family

Grandmother: Francesca is not an ideal parental figure. She grew up in a time when full Veelas were treated with nearly the same suspicion and prejudice as werewolves, so she's very anti-human. However, she was still one of Giulio's best defenders and most treasured family members. She places a huge importance on family and is the one who came up with the idea of the special danger call. Francesca went missing when Giulio was seven, and there have been no clues as to what happened.

Mother: Valentina is a kind, gentle woman who cares for her family before anyone else. She and her sister were taught all their lives to be nothing more than a pretty face, and while Bianca rejected this, Valentina embraced it. Even now, with her own mother nowhere to be found, she has trouble remembering to be herself. She wears her necklace at all times, terrified to be without it

Father: Giulio never knew him. He's not sure he even has one

Aunt: Bianca is, in many ways, the exact opposite of her sister. Bianca embraces all of her less than proper instincts, and even walks around in public completely unglamored, acting as a good deterrent to anyone who might want to come say hi, innocent intentions or not. Gets angry very easily, and has caused public property damage more often than Valentina would appreciate

Sisters: Two older sisters, one younger. All Slytherins while in school

- Alessia, six years older, prefect. A headstrong young woman who takes advantage of her allure to get what she wants, and is skilled enough to fight off anyone who gets too "friendly". She likes to have a collection of boy toys she never lets get too close, but secretly only has eyes for the Hufflepuff prefect, Lina.

- Emilia, four years older, Quidditch captain. Hates her allure with a passion and refuses to even think about romance until she's out of school. Could kick anyone's ass, and will do so if she feels the need to. Very protective of Giulio, has gotten into at least eight shouting matches with those who misgender him

- Martina, one year younger. The baby of the family. A bit of a spoiled brat, and too young to fully understand exactly why her older siblings are all so wary of strangers, or letting her out of their sight. She dreams of being the Minister of Magic, and of being able to take her "stupid, ugly, and stupid" necklace off for good

Pets: The two family screech owls which trade off being at school/home, and an Abraxan Giulio found on Hogwarts grounds that likes him a lot

Family Values: The Morettis hold nothing higher than each other. The family's main priority is sticking together, and always doing whatever they can to help each other achieve whatever they wish. The family is also, as a whole, rather reclusive

Opinion of Family: Giulio loves his family. For all their faults, they hold true to their values and he couldn't imagine one of them ever betraying another. Even if they won't ever truly understand him, they've all tried and they do what they can, and it means more than he can say

Friendships

Introverted or Extroverted: Introverted

Best Friend: Oleander Loris. Her anger issues, her weird pink eyes, and her tendency to drag him along to social outings are all things that Giulio comes to appreciate over time. He originally became curious about her on the train ride to school, when she stumbled looking at his older sisters but didn't notice him at all, and they spoke for the first time in Flying class. Lori is definitely a force to be reckoned with, and the fact that she's not affected by his allure in the slightest makes him feel really happy

Worst Friend: TBD

Friend He Didn't Expect: Cassandra. They aren't the best of friends, and maybe they can't be considered friends at all, but she doesn't hold the contempt she seems to hold for most others for him

Who He Wishes Was His Friend: Kestra Fernera. She's got fire powers, and she doesn't have to be chained down by the Ministry. He thinks she's super cool, and is very jealous of her and how popular she is, but he's far too nervous to try and talk to her

List of Casual Friends:

- Brian Haywood-Reese @catohphm

- others TBD, but likely the main cast of the game. Mc friends welcome, if any are interested!

Romance

Current Crush: None

Current Partner: None

Past Partners: None

Future Partners: TBD

His Type: Pretty much anyone who's able to look past the allure that Giulio hates so much and also isn't afraid of him in his natural form, though most people haven't even seen it

Hogwarts

House: Slytherin

Prefect Status: No

Quidditch: Not on the team, but plays casually

Clubs: TBD

Organizations: None

Favorite Class: Flying. Duh

Least Favorite Class: Potions. It gives him a headache surrounded by all the fumes

Favorite Professor: TBD

Least Favorite Professor: TBD

Timeline

Young Childhood:

- Giulio realizes young that he hates the idea of being a girl, and insists that his mother change his name. His family thought it was a phase, but once they realized it wasn't, they became more serious and started to see what they could do to help him

- He's a sheltered child, learning early the importance of staying close to a trusted adult. He sees the horrors of what can happen to a Veela caught unaware at a young age when he almost loses his mother to someone who wanted to sell her, and never looks at strangers the same way again

- At five years old Giulio is given his dampener necklace. He refuses to wear it until his grandmother forcibly puts it on him. He decides it's not that bad, though it feels like it's choking him and he doesn't like the muted feeling in his hands that comes from the loss of his instinctual magic

- At seven years old, Giulio is on a walk with his grandmother in the woods when he hears a loud screech. She sends him back toward the house, saying she'll be right behind him. Hours pass, and she never follows. There's no evidence as to what that screech was, or what happened to his grandmother

- At eleven years old, Giulio spends a week traveling to different wandmakers around Europe trying to find a wand so he can go to school in the fall. For some reason, his magic is picky and not a single wand even comes close to working for him. When he's given up all hope, his little sister Martina asks if the wandmaker takes custom orders, and rips out her own hair to be used for Giulio's wand. It's the first time Giulio cries happy tears, hovering his hand over the uncompleted wand and feeling it call to him already

School Years: TBD once I'm able to play the game

Post Graduation: Giulio moves into an apartment with Lori soon after graduating. While she immediately starts work, Giulio takes time to find some higher education, and work on training his Veela magic now that he can take his necklace off whenever he wants

Career(s): TBD

Marriage and Children: TBD

Death: Giulio will be murdered by [redacted] in order to save [redacted]'s life, but he'll be very old (around 200) and will have outlived his lovers, so he doesn't see it as too much of a shame. He'll be buried in the family garden and have some lovely flower bushes planted over him

Notable Facts Not Previously Mentioned

- The Veela magic in Giulio recognizes him as a boy as soon as he does. When his allure kicks in, anyone attracted to men finds themself affected, while those strictly into women do not, even though male Veelas are practically unheard of

- His aunt Bianca paid a personal visit to Hogwarts before he was enrolled, ready to throw flames if he was going to be put into the female dorms. Luckily, she didn't need to worry, as once the situation was explained it was settled with a simple change in his paperwork

- Giulio hates being cooped up indoors for too long. Even in the coldest days of winter, he'll spend as much time as possible outside

- Starting in third year, Lori will figure out how to get the necklace off of him without alerting anyone [putting it on herself within a few seconds], and Giulio will occasionally spend a few hours free and in his natural form in the Forbidden Forest. Unbeknownst to him, wearing the necklace saps at Lori's magical core, and it takes her a day or so to regain her strength if she wears it for more than thirty minutes

- Giulio will likely have three partners in the future. He could never even imagine having one, so if his younger self was told he would have three he would probably have a difficult time believing it

- Cutting his hair so frequently doesn't affect his magic like his mother feared it would, though he does feel nauseous when he does it

- The dark teal eyes are something only he and his sisters have, which is how he knows they all have the same "father" or whatever they had. His mother, aunt, and grandmother all have the traditional black eyes. Not even Alessia ever saw any type of man around when her younger siblings were born, so there are no clues as to how the four of them exist

- As much as he hates the dampener, it does him a lot of good when he's younger. He gets angry easily and often feels very defensive, so without it he could have gotten into a lot of trouble

- Though he doesn't like his allure, Giulio will sometimes take advantage of it like Alessia does if he wants to get out of something. He won't fight it, he'll play nice, and let whoever he needs to back off get a little dazed

- He wanted to hide the fact that he was a Veela when he first came to Hogwarts, but with two older sisters and his allure he couldn't

[growingstronglikeahighgardenrose]

Sanditon Season 2: all the news & my thoughts

So, we're getting not one but two new seasons of Sanditon! After a year of tremendous effort on behalf of the Sanditon sisterhood who kept the fandom alive, we'll be looking at a new season. Although I think the biggest thank you probably goes out to Bridgerton, which showed that romance, regency, a diverse cast and butts are a perfect mix to lure audiences.

I want to take this moment to reflect on what I think we'll win, what we'll lose and what we can expect in the future.

1. No Sidlotte HEA

This is probably the most heartbreaking salty news we could get. But I know Theo James, he likes new projects. And after divergent's disaster, I can't blame the boy for not wanting to hang onto another franchise. As a fanfic writer, although mainly an Esther/Babington one, I broke my head for over a year on how to get Sidlotte together. I had to imagine the grandest schemes to get them together. Tom needed 10 000 pounds in less than a month. Even Babington was probably not worth that much. That's over 6 million in today's money if adjusted to inflation. Regency era's England's top 1-2% made that in a full a year, and most of that is probably in assets and investments. And they don't just get to keep that money, most used a good chunk of it to keep their estates running and to pay their staff. Anyone know someone who has a casual 6 million lying around?

There's only two realistic solutions: either have Eliza die: which would be cruel and take years (unless you kill her in childbirth 9 months in), or create a grand scheme that would take months and see Sidney, Crowe and Babington actively work hard on their 'business' while in the meantime Charlotte, Lady Denham and Lady Susan get everyone including the prince regent to come to Sanditon. I kind of accepted they would have a hard time getting out of that plot twist. It was likely that Sidlotte could not be endgame.

Personally, I never felt a strong connection to Sidlotte, and had hoped that Charlotte, like Jane Bennet, would go to London with Lady Susan to recover from her heartbreak, and I kind of hoped James Stringer would eventually go down there for his apprenticeship, where a sort of Captain Wentworth-like situation would come to exist where he is a young man trying to make something of himself. I know Charlotte didn't love him. But I also knew that Charlotte wanted adventure and perhaps needed to grow as a person. But in the new season she'll probably be a bit jaded, closed off, and depressed. And will probably need a softer more available man. Growing up goes with swinging to extremes. She was an open optimist at the beginning, and eventually turned to the opposite, not letting her emotions shine through and being very guarded (@miss-holly-goes-lightly did a wonderful post on this). Adulthood is finding a good balance again.

So while I am saddened, because this brings along a long set of questions like: "Does Sanditon still take place in Sanditon then?" "Where will Sidney live, will he then live in London with his wife?" "Why doesn't he come help his brother the next season or visit his family, as we know Tom will make a mess of things" The show will have to answer these questions in a believable manner.

2. No Beaufort twins

Mollie Holder said on her instagram that the Beauforts wouldn't be returning. This leads to quite a few questions like: where will Georgiana stay then? What will be happening to Mrs. Griffiths? Will Georgiana be her sole ward while the Beaufort's absence is explained as them having married or having become governesses?

3. Who remains aboard

Rose Williams is definitely on board. It's also pretty certain Tom will be there again. Lady Denham is also likely to return. The child actors and their parents were willing, but worried about their increasing age a few months back. Old Stringer said he'd have loved to be part of Sanditon again and to see it continue, but he's well... dead on the show so he won't return. So who will join Charlotte?

Leo Sutter might not return. He plays an important role in the next spin-off of vikings. Vikings has a new season each year. On top of that he's currently busy recording Gateway 6. We don't know how long that might take. And perhaps by the time filming ends he's required for the next season of the Walhalla series. Leo Sutter is a rising star, he might not even have the time to return. Especially for two seasons. At his age and point in his career, he needs to cement his name, or he'll remain b-list while he has a-list potential. So he might have to give up Sanditon for his career. It's sad, I'd love a Stringer/Charlotte future where they both grow to being suitable for each other while becoming people confident in their own abilities. But in the end, I would be alright with it, as Charlotte didn't express immediate interest in him. Writing him out would also be fairly easy, they could just write that despite thinking he had to stay home after his father's death, he went to London in the end under Charlotte's encouragement. Perhaps he could then come back for a guest appearance.

Crystal Clarke will reprise her role as Georgiana. Clarke has, since Sanditon, spoken out about the sometimes tone-deaf director and scriptwriters. She had to step in a few times to make sure Georgiana was done justice. She also said she hoped Georgiana, if the show was continued, would get the space to breathe and be independent, instead of playing a minor role as token black friend of Charlotte while under the control of Sidney. It will be complex to have her return without involving Sidney, as his character will have to be written out. I imagine this can be done with a timejump, but the timejump would have to be 4 years to make Georgiana 'of age' as she is 17 in the show. They'll probably place her under someone's care while saying Sidney is "still her guardian, but away". Georgiana is, in my opinion, an essential part of Sanditon. Bridgerton showed the world wanted to see diverse faces. Austen wrote a black character as a wealthy and desirable woman. They simply have to do more with her in the future. Clarke will reprise her role, this time with black writers to do justice to her character. I'm excited to see what will be done.

The actor who plays Arthur, Turlough Convery, is a good actor and mostly in period pieces. However he's never overly in demand, and usually stays with shows for multiple seasons. I think he's quite willing to come back and it means Georgiana would have a friend. I also hope they delve into his character, especially after his "I don't think i'll ever get married".

Matthew Needham and Mark Stanley, Crowe and Babington, are Sidney's best friends. It will be hard to have them come back without them explaining why Sidney is never with them. But I believe they would work well as a duo: the drunk and the one braincell are a fun dynamic. Both are not much in demand, despite that I quite like them as actors. So we might see them returning. Their return would also be vital for the return of a few other characters:

Their return would also be vital for the return of a few other characters:

Charlotte Spencer's Esther Denham is married to Babington. Without Babington returning, how can Esther? And vice versa. Their storyline was also the main romance for me and a big part of the last few episodes. They kinda need to return. Babington is also Sanditon's access point to high society. To cash in on Bridgerton's success they should search that royal connection. Babington is friends with the Prince Regent. On top of that he has the most money. If he hosts a party and Charlotte is invited, this is where they get those grand-bridgertonesque scenes.

Lily Sacofsky's Clara had a romantic subplot with Crowe. In their final unaired scene they went to London together. She could return. However, the chances are quite slim. Clara is in London, and Sanditon takes place in Sanditon. Unless Lady Susan takes Charlotte to London for a while and she meets Clara and Edward there, cooking up a plan to get back at Esther and Lady Denham.

4. Predictions

There's no words to describe the popularity of Bridgerton, so this WILL influence Sanditon. I predict: more sex, more scandal, and even more ahistorically modern ideas and characters, multiple female characters and multiple male characters that each get screentime and their separate storylines and developments like in bridgerton, instead of just Charlotte's pov we follow. Glamorous scenes. And more POC.

The season will start with a timejump in all likeliness (as it is easier so they don't have to focus too much on her grieving). Charlotte will catch us up with what has happened while perhaps narrating over some letters she's written to georgiana and lady susan. She'll return to Sanditon during a summer. Sanditon will have been partially rebuilt with Eliza's money, and many activities will be planned. Sanditon will be in some kind of trouble. Charlotte will still be a planner. Her being very actively involved in things and having a vision was one of the most alluring parts of her character. In the books there was a rival town Tom hated. That might be a bit tricky to adapt so they could introduce some local competition for attention around Sanditon. A local duke hosting parties could overshadow tom's events. Or the social season in London could lure everyone there instead of to Sanditon. Charlotte will try to help Tom with this while getting reacquainted with everyone still in Sanditon, and hearing about the reasons why Sidney/Esther/Stringer/The Beauforts (to be seen) aren't in the show anymore. She'll also rebuild her relationship with Georgiana.

Then one day for an event Charlotte will invite Lady Susan, who will invite her to the London season to get over her heartache à la Jane Bennet. Charlotte will join Lady Susan to lure a crowd to Sanditon. There, she'll be confronted with some of her demons of the past season. Perhaps a pregnant Eliza Campion makes an appearance to rub it in Charlotte's face. In Sense & Sensibility Margaret discovered Willoughby's relationship in a most shocking manner in an almost public setting. Sanditon likes to nod at all Austen books so this could be a nod at that book when Charlotte discovers unpleasant news in a public manner. Charlotte will congratulate her and wish them happiness, and afterwards either a girlpower moment could happen with Lady Susan or Georgiana supporting her, or a love moment. Mrs Campion has tried to talk Charlotte down in front of people in the past, if she did it again, a new love interest could step in at that time to compliment her and then take her off for a dance. That could be an emotional moment for her, as she realized her feelings for Sidney in London during a dance the last time around as well. And she could have her cinderella moment by excusing herself and running off after the dance, uncertain of her feelings. She'll have some grand balls, might be harrassed by a man and risk a scandal, or try and prevent Georgiana from ruin during a scandal.

At the last moment she'll succeed in her goal and lure a crowd to Sanditon's events that will put Sanditon on the map. Either the local competitive duke, or someone from London will be impressed with her, but she won't be ready to marry yet. I trust that by the end of the second season, she'll finally have a realisation that she's quite happy with how she's living her life and how good her work is, and that she has finally stopped feeling sad. So the second season will stop with her atop a cliff, letting go of the traumatic loss she suffered on that same cliff a season before. By the end of the season, one or two love interests will be set up for the last season.

So the nudity and big romance will have to come from elsewhere. Georgiana will get more agency and action in the next seasons. She could be trying to tempt Charlotte in joining her adventures as a single wealthy independent woman. She might even leave to find her place in the world via boat, returning to where she was last truly happy: Antigua. The second season could maybe end with Charlotte overlooking Georgiana's boat leaving from the previously mentioned clifftop. Another option is Georgiana falling in love with a local man and taken an interest in the town. Financially speaking, Georgiana could be the only one able to save Sanditon. But I don't think she owes the town anything. Another option is the writers focus on Georgiana navigating her relationship with Otis, who might be back home for a holiday after navy duty. We could also see some political debates à la Poldark S5 about freedom, servitude, independence and so on. The first plan for Georgiana doesn't even have to exclude the second, she could decide to sail away with Otis to find their place in the world. In any case: race shall not be brushed under the carpet and Georgiana will kick some shins on her way to her happy ending. In Jane Austen, we have rarely seen a woman who tried to elope, or escape her guardian, get a happy ending. Georgiana Darcy, Eliza Williams, Eliza's mother, ... they're all tragic tales of women falling for bad guys who try to steal their virtue or take their money. And in the end they always become dependent on men again. I hope in Sanditon Georgiana will learn and grow herself, instead of being coddled by men. A lot could be done.

Esther and Babington could be a very cool insert if the actors join. They can really connect the high society to Sanditon. They could host balls, invest in Sanditon or drive the London plot. But they can also be an emotional backbone to the show. Esther married Babington, but she wasn't in love yet. I'm not a fan of the edward/Esther angle. After all he did, I rather she hated him with burning passion and never spoke to him again. But he could try to blackmail her and ruin her reputation in London. Perhaps become some kind of Lord Whistledown. With Charlotte coming to Esther's aid. Esther's plotline could be about learning to trust people and open her heart again. Perhaps she could have a conflict with Babington about him wanting a family and she still being uneasy with marriage, let alone children. Maybe they could have a fight, with one of them going to London. In their separation they might realize they love each other. And then the other comes back home from London with Charlotte and they fix everything. Another route is them having a fight, Esther going to confront Edward or Clara about their blackmailing or maneouvring. Babington thinks it's because she doesn't love him, but actually it's because she loves Babington and wants to be rid of her past. But she gets into an accident and Babington only realizes the truth later on, leading to a happy ending.

Other things I'd love to see: Mary finally growing a backbone and telling Tom to either be open about his affairs and finances or be gone. Arthur and Diana growing a backbone and telling their brother he's a fuck up. Charlotte realizing Tom is stupid. Lady Denham appointing Charlotte or Arthur to head of Sanditon after showing their worth an entire season. Tom being repentant. Diana getting over her fears. Arthur getting a love interest. Crowe being in Sanditon, I just love him. Kisses. Healthy love interests that aren't broody and traumatized and in need of fixing by women. Jane Austen's men need to do their growing ON THEIR OWN. And then they earn their brides.

5. What we'll lose

- A Sidlotte ending: once the new season comes out, Sidlotte is no longer headcanon.

- A happy Esther/Babington ending: they married and looked happy, despite Esther's rushed turn around. If they're in the new season, their marriage won't be perfect. They'll have conflicts, just for plot. Whatever headcanons we had for them will probably be falsified. We might come to dislike them or their relationship. I've seen almost all my ships crumble to dust on the rocks of multiple seasons dragging out relationships and piling on conflict just to keep it interesting.

- A part of what made Sanditon Sanditon: we'll lose many faces we've come to love. And the dynamics and relationships will therefore change a lot.

- Fanfics become dated: I know it is the problem of every fandom, but it's one I regret all the same. Part of why I love Austen fandoms is the fact that the books are written. The characters and relationships won't change. With 2 new seasons coming, all fanfics out there will become dated. The millions of hours authors put into Sidlotte fics will perhaps become barely read when Charlotte gets new love interests. All the headcanons I and many others wrote down for Sidlotte, Esther/Babington, Charlotte/Stringer, will officially become silly fantheories. I've been there a couple of times before that shows changed the entire course and personality of certain characters and then you can't help but feel exhausted and sometimes annoyed because these are your babies and you had dreams for them, and the writers took them in directions that sometimes don't do them justice. But it's canon so you gotta accept it. Sometimes fantasy is nicer than a writer toying around with storylines and characters just to create drama. And I'll have to write my characters in a new way that fits the characters based on the info from the new seasons. I might fall out of love with them. Ah, the burden of being a shipper weighs heavy.

- Perhaps we still lose a HEA: Season one ended with a happy babington/Esther and an unhappy Charlotte who learned a lot, and a Sanditon that was saved. Although Sanditon has been extended for two seasons it's possible that if the ratings for S2 aren't good they may still cancel the third season. If they don't learn from their mistakes and end season 2 on another cliffhanger even Esther's relationship and sanditon may be at stake. If they're getting 2 seasons they will also not marry or engage charlotte in the second, meaning Charlotte will still be single by the end of the series if they cancel season 3. The whole reason we wanted more seasons was for charlotte to have a HEA. So I'm really fearful that she'll be put in another hard spot. They at least need to get her happy by the end of S2.

6. What we'll gain

- More sanditon content

- More regency era content and images and music which is always lovely

- Seeing our favourites again

- Hopefully we get to see new challenges and romance and humor and tense moments and scandal and drama that will be fun to watch

- A Georgiana story arc: a black woman in a realistic historical setting living her life, being wealthy, and England just having to Deal With It. And as cherry on top she'll be written by black writers.

- Happy endings (hopefully)

- New hot men! This is a guarantee

- Perhaps LGBTQ+ representation with Arthur

- Frustration at Tom's antics (guaranteed)

- Maybe some interactions with Charlotte's siblings

- Esther Babington content

- New material to write fanfics and metas about

- Over 8 hours of viewing pleasure

[aros001]

Going in blind: Watching season 1 for the first time. Random thoughts.

This show is kind of nice because I have no memories of the original She-Ra show, or even any of He-Man, honestly. I'm not sure if I ever watched the original, so I have no frame of reference for how the series is "supposed" to be. I can just take it and judge it as is.

Of the bat, all I know is that supposedly She-Ra and Catra get together as a romantic couple later, but I'm also a huge My Hero Academia fan and the fandom around me ships every character with every other character, so for all I know that might just be shipper wishful thinking I've been seeing and hearing. Given fandoms for Gravity Falls, Thor, and Supernatural ship even siblings together, I've learned not to trust anything except for what I see in the series for myself.

By the way, this isn't a review, just random thoughts and comments I'm having as I'm going through season 1 for the first time.

Episodes 1 and 2: Right off, I really like Catra's "No duh" response to Adora about the truth of the horde. She knows they've been lying to them and have been doing terrible things, she just doesn't care. If she and Adora play their cards right they could end up being the ones in charge and then they'd have all that power. Not necessarily to make things better but enough to where they could do whatever and live however they want. That's a good build for an antagonist. Not ignorant to the fact what they're doing is wrong, just simply so selfish that they don't care.

Episode 3: It really feels like there was no good reason why Glimmer didn't just outright introduce Adora to her mother and every reason she should have known it was a bad idea to try and hide her for a surprise. Being a former horde soldier she'd probably get treated with hostility if Glimmer brought her to the front gate but you'd almost guarantee Adora would get arrested or outright killed if she got caught while no one else knew she was there.

On the other side, we have Hordak being pretty intelligent in promoting Catra. He probably knows Shadow Weaver already doesn't like him, so it's not like he's losing anything making her upset with him, and it's clear she favors Adora way more than Catra, so that little bit of advancement towards Catra probably goes a long way in earning her loyalty to him and a person on the inside with Shadow Weaver.

Also, I'm not the only one who saw Madam Razz and immediately thought Adora had found her Yoda, right?

Episode 4: I don't know how it was in the original She-Ra and He-Man series but I kind of like She-Ra being this title from legend. Adora is not the first She-Ra, given what Razz was talking about with a Mara, so instead of being something new, impressing everyone with abilities they've never seen before, and creating the legend, Adora is placed in a position WAY over her head where she's having to live up to what came before her.

Episode 5: Calling it now, as long as her personality is genuine I think Scorpia is going to be one of my favorite characters in this show. She's...endearing, I think is the best word. She's like a mix of Kronk and a nicer Shego.

For a little bit I thought Mermista was voiced by the same actress who played Poison Ivy in the Harley Quinn animated series. She's not but they do have the same kind of Daria-ish inflections, thus by confusion. Given the prom episode, Sea Hawk feels kind of like her Kite Man.

Episode 6: Okay, now it's between Scorpia and Entrapta who are likely to be my favorites by the end of this. She's fun and quirky.

Episode 7: Quite the lore drop. Shadow Weaver was once a Mystacor sorceress known as Light Spinner. I like to imagine we'll get more on that later. Her haunting Adora reminded me of the Teen Titans' episode where Robin was similarly haunted by Slade. This didn't go as far as that but that's probably for the best, since TT had two and a half seasons to build that dynamic up with Robin and Slade while we're only now halfway through the first season.

Episode 8: Well dang. Again, I don't know for sure if Adora and Catra do end up together but boy do I buy why they're shipped together after that dance. Also, good on Bow for standing up for himself. It's clear that he'll always be Glimmer's friend and this won't change that but that doesn't mean he has to just accommodate her. I understand where her issues stem from but I am still glad he gave her a reality check. It helps him feel a little more like his own character.

Also, another nice little bit of lore and worldbuilding. Scorpia's a princess, the horde landed where her people lived, and they seemed to join them willingly.

Episode 9: Surprisingly don't have a lot to say about this other than I don't buy for a second that Entrapta is dead (EDIT: She's not). This was mostly action.

Episode 10: Not going to lie, this one kind of annoyed me a little, at least the first half. The conversation between Glimmer and her mother saved it a bit. It was a bit of a trifecta. You have the alliance breaking apart, saying that the loss of Entrapta only happened because they were all together...even though Entrapta only "died" because of her own machine obsession that caused her to deliberately walk back into the purging chamber. You have Entrapta who might be turning to the horde's side because she feels abandoned by the other princesses...even though they thought she was dead, and again it was her fault they got separated. And you have Glimmer refusing to tell her mother that Shadow Weaver's dark magic has caused her powers to go on the fritz and is causing her great pain. It just feels like none of this would be an issue if most of these people would stop being self-absorbed for three seconds and talk like any normal person would. It feels very CW drama, like something I'd see in a bad season of Arrow or The Flash. The only person whose issues I buy is Adora, who is basically a soldier who was never properly raised to deal with emotion or loss and is already struggling with the burden of being She-Ra, the legendary savior. I get why she's beating down on herself for not being able to do more even if nothing that happened was her fault.

Episode 11: JEEEEEEEEEZZZZ, that was such a good episode! Focused entirely on Adora and Catra and their past together. Like, just showing someone this episode alone could probably get them to want to watch the series. That was everything you needed to know about their dynamic and history together.

Also, that moment when Catra and her past self are looking at each other, while obviously Catra takes the opposite lesson, it reminded me of this fanart I'd once seen of Jason Todd, the Red Hood, looking at his past self as Robin. The past says to the future "You ruined everything". Catra could be happy but, ironically for someone who hates Shadow Weaver, she's probably going to be a lot like her, sacrificing everything for power and ambition.

Given the way she looked, I'm guessing Shadow Weaver is either addicted to the power of the Black Garnet or she suffered some kind of past injury and its power is the only thing keeping her going. Or both.

Episode 12: I'll be honest, Swiftwind being able to talk kind of gobsmacked and I needed a moment to recover. What a great voice they chose for that character.

So She-Ra is kind of like the legendary heroes from Rising of the Shield Hero, coming from a long line of people chosen to wield the sword. I tend to dislike chosen one types of stories because I think prophecy takes a lot of weight out of the character's actions, so this and Avatar are more what I like. The MC is special but not the only one who's ever been special and they can still easily fail. Their destiny was only to be able to use the weapon, not that they would succeed in any specific purpose.

And dang, Catra's turn against Shadow Weaver happened faster than I thought it would but I'm not complaining. That great "This is what you've really been preparing me for" speech and Hordak, again, being an intelligent villain. "Oh, this experiment could net me a MASSIVE gain and all it could potentially cost me is this rock I already gave away to someone who lately hasn't been producing any results and has been consistently disobeying me. Yeah, I'm going to let this play out."

Episode 13: That was kind of a brutal fight between Adora and Catra. Not the worst I've ever seen even in other shows for this age range (Samurai Jack, for example) but those punches are connecting and those claws are leaving marks.

Also, maybe I'm just misunderstanding the exact situation but shouldn't the good guys' side be called the Resistance instead of the Rebellion? Being a rebellion would imply they are rebelling against an established power or rule over them, but the actual conflict we are shown is the established power and rule that is the kingdoms of Eternia resisting an outside force that wishes to establish a new order over them.

Season 1 verdict: I'm into it. I'm definitely more invested in the villains' side of things but that's not a fault of the series, that stuff is just way more geared towards me than the current princess stuff. I actively am at attention whenever the horde main characters are on screen. For the good guys it's mostly Adora and the She-Ra stuff I'm invested it. That isn't to say I have any real dislikes for that side. Bow especially I'm liking much more than I thought I might. He has kind of this gravitational pull around him. You will be his friend regardless of how much you might want to resist. He's definitely the rock for everyone else to hold onto.

Minor side note, kind of like Korra in Legend of Korra, I love how even when her powers aren't active Adora is shown to still be pretty strong physically with how easily she was lifting people up at the prom.

And I was right, Scorpia is my favorite side character.

On to season 2!

Original Reddit post: https://www.reddit.com/r/PrincessesOfPower/comments/nyll2e/going_in_blind_watching_season_1_for_the_first/