#enjoy the grimdark while I go make more

[lets-try-some-writing]

The Grim Dark Archives: Transcript #002

[Transcript taken October 1st 2004 in response to a call to 911 from the phone of one of the five missing persons reported prior to the Autobots usage of holoforms. The caller was in a panic as she reported being closed in by four vehicles on the highway not far off from Texas.

Initially this call was not brought to government attention due to the commonality of false alarms usually amounting to drivers in the area seeing things. However upon looking over the details the caller gave, one of our agents brought the call to our attention and it says a great deal about the Autobots... hunting methods.

Transcript begins.]

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(Talking Clock: September 25, 2004, 22:24:03) EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: 911, where is your emergency? CALLER: I-I'm driving. There is someone following me, a gang maybe? I don't know, but they are following me and have been for the past half hour. EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: Where are you Sir? CALLER: I'm on the Texas 49 road. I came out this way to get away from my family and to have some peace and quiet, but now there are people following me and there is nowhere for me to go! EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: I understand Sir. It will take us a while to get anyone out to you, but stay on the line. Can you describe where you are and what is happening? CALLER: Yeah, I can do that. T-There are two vehicles on either side of my car. One looks to be some sort or sports model, a yellow and black striped car. A-And the other is some sort of jeep, really dark green I think, but I can't see all that well in the dark. They haven't done anything, but their windows are tinted and I can't see who is driving. I've already tried getting away from them, but whenever I speed up, so do they! EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: Calm down Sir. Can you pick out their license plates? CALLER: NO! I've tried but they don't HAVE license plates! They are unregistered and I can't see any sort of stickers or anything that could identify them! I've been looking, I swear I've been looking but they won't leave-! EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: Sir, you need to stay calm. Tell me your name and exactly what is happening while we get some officers out in your direction. Can you do that? CALLER: Y-Yeah I can do that... My name is [REDACTED] from [REDACTED]. These cars seem like they are trying to lead me somewhere, I can't quite figure it out. They won't let me leave, and every time I try to swerve and get away, they speed up with me and get me back in my own lane! I don't know what they want! EMERGENCY DISTPATCHER 4: It will be alright Sir. Stay calm and stay with me. Officers are on their way. Just keep driving straight and try not to look panicked. Don't let them lead you anywhere, alright? CALLER: A-Alright, I can do this. Stay calm [REDACTED] stay calm... EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: That's right. Good job Sir. You are doing great. Officers should be there within- CALLER: No no no! There's another! Another vehicle! I-It's a motorcycle! Blue and pink I think! I-It's making strange sounds and it doesn't have a rider! ITS DRIVING ON ITS OWN-! EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: SIR! Remain calm! I need to you to describe what is going on. Stay on the line, officers are on the way. CALLER: THEY DON'T HAVE DIVERS! NONE OF THEM! I-I saw it, the yellow and black sports car, it rolled down its window and there was no one inside! They are getting closer! They are boxing me in, I can almost feel them scratching the paint on my car-! EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: It will be alright Sir! Try to speed up! See if you can get ahead of them! Officers will be there in ten minutes! CALLER: I'm trying I'm trying but they keep coming closer and speeding up-! I-I don't know what they want but they are so close! EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: Calm down, please calm down- CALLER: T-There's another! A big red semi! They are all around me and are pushing me toward this thing, I can't tell what it is! Its big and green and glows like some portal to hell-![Deafening screeches] EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: SIR! CAN YOU HEAR ME?! CALLER: I CAN'T LET THEM TAKE ME! I WON'T LET THEM! I'M GOING TO SWERVE INTO THE WOODS! THEY CAN'T GET ME THERE! [Hysterical screaming] EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: SIR NO! CALLER: [Various horns and beeps] LEAVE ME ALONE-! [Tearing metal and cracking wood] EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: HOLD ON! SIR! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?! SIR! CALLER: I-I its hurts... the... the vehicles... they ... they are changing. EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: Sir you are likely delirious, please hold on. You need to leave your vehicle and escape the wreck so that officers can get to you- CALLER: They... they are humanoid? I'm not lying, the cars, they just changed I can't explain it... No no no NO NO DON'T NO NO I DON'T WANT TO DIE HERE!

EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: SIR! SIR!

CALLER: [Distant screams and electronic noises]

EMERGENCY DISPATCHER 4: WE NEED OFFICERS ASAP-!

(Call ends 22:30:07)

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[Transcript ends.

Officers arrived at the scene ten minutes after the call ended and discovered [Redacted03]'s vehicle wrecked on the side of the road, half crushed against the trees. Investigation proved that [Redacted03] could have easily survived the crash itself due to the airbag functioning, however her disappearance was regarded as a mystery until our agents were sent out to review the situation.

Her vehicle had its door completely torn off and there were huge almost finger like indents in the sides. Officers originally speculated that it could have been the work of perhaps a local predator, but our agents were quick to note the tracks in the ground that were quite clearly Cybertronian based off shape alone. Officers who were at the scene were paid for their silence and we gained greater insight into just how the Autobots... acquired their holoforms.

[Redacted] was not lying... I worry for how much more we are going to discover bit by bit because of these aliens.

Agent Witwicky signing off.

Recording end.]

[schraubd]

The Joy of Being a Democrat

  One of the things I'm enjoying most about the Harris/Walz campaign, and the current Democratic mood more broadly, is how joyful it is. A common critique of progressives has always been that we're joyless, and while that attack has never been entirely fair, it doesn't come wholly from nowhere either. There's a generalized version of the old Futurama joke ("I'm sorry, but if it's fun in any way, it's not environmentalism!") -- if you're not trudging along in grimdark misery, then you don't understand the stakes/don't care about the oppressed/aren't a true believer in the revolution. It's exhausting to live out, and it isn't a lifestyle anyone really wants to join. But that isn't us right now! It's the right that is wallowing in its own self-induced machine of rage and fear and misery. The Olympics were a great example -- conservatives spent their time searching for their calipers and reliving their frustration that Simone Biles didn't snap her neck in 2021; meanwhile liberals just enjoyed watching some of the greatest athletes on Earth do incredible things under the American banner. Who would you rather be?  And this divide is present all over the 2024 race. The complete inability of conservatives to make anything stick on Tim Walz stems from their complete bafflement that a basic cishet white guy can just be happy in 2024. Doesn't he know that trans-CRT-illegal-abortionists are coming for his daughter?!? The RNC was a miserable slog of one apparatchik after another warning us that we're all going to die unless the God-king Trump is restored; the DNC was a dance party featuring your favorite tunes from middle school. Hell, one of the primary attack lines Republicans have been trying against Kamala Harris is her laugh! Democrats now are literally the party of laughing (and football, and Bud Light)! It's really nice. And for what it's worth, I do understand the stakes, and I do understand that many people are hurting, and I do understand there's a lot of work to be done. But joy counts for something. And it feels really good to be part of a joyful Democratic coalition. via The Debate Link https://ift.tt/ey54oaZ

[gabbydagoof]

Do you have any boundraries with your characters? Like shipping, aus, nsfw, etc?

Oh yeah, I def do! Allow me.

AUs?✍🏽

Yes! I am all for it! Go crazy if it suits yer liking! But maybe don't include problematic topics in them? Y'know, like r&pe, p€d0phillia, inc€st and or romanization of toxic/abusiv€ relationships.

Shipping?💕

Personally, I encourage ppl to ship some of my characters together, even if it may not be canon. It's just for the fun of it and I dig that! That includes any type of self ships n general simping as well. Just as long as it doesn't go against the characters sexual orientation and you don't make it super weird with the minor (underaged) characters. While it's true that most of them are in their later teen years so them being a tinsey bit suggestive/flirty with each other is understandable, but as I said before, I don't wanna see anything NSFW related that includes any of my underaged characters!! With the adult characters though, meh go for it! That includes f€tish stuff, I ain't judging 🤷🏽

Gore art?🩸

Yes! I like me a bit of blood for the spooks of it! In the grimdark matter, ofc. So if you happen to make a horror story including my characters, you're good! But besides that, overly graphic depictions of gore and violence including any of my characters (Doomsworld excluded) just for the pure sake of shock value/edgy humor will not be tolerated. Putting on mild blood is totally okay, though!

Redesigns/Headcanons?🖌️

Headcanons are more than welcome here, as long as they're not problematic ofc! The Incredibros characters are pretty much without a specific ethnicity, they only have the given nationalities so there is no such thing as whitewashing or general skin color change issue to worry about here. You do what you want! And also no orientation based headcanons, please. They already have canon ones set for them and I wouldn't like it much if you take it away. Gender based headcanons on the other hand are just as welcome as long as you don't detransition my trans characters.

And about redesigns...I mean you are more than free to draw yer own version of said character; redesigns for the fun of it and or for the criticism's sake is welcome! But please don't try to "fix" them, they're still my characters that I've grown attached to. I understand that the designs might not be for everyone and that's okay! You can always block me and go find character designs that you enjoy!

[inkcurlsandknives]

Thinking about what makes a compelling narrative

I've been watching and reading a lot of anime/manga and romance lately. They're one of my comfort genres. Way too many real life terrible things have been happening for me to be able to experience escapism into anything with a hint of grimdark. For example right now I'm watching My Happy Marriage/Watashi no Shiawase na Kekkon, which is an Anime/Manga/light novel romance. It is blatantly a Cinderella story, where all the villain's are cartoonish-ly evil, while the MC is simply a cinnamon roll, too sweet, too soft and good for this world. The whole thing should not hang together as a functional or even strong narrative, much less a show both my partner and I are enjoying wholeheartedly.

I think it's secret is that it is completely and utterly earnest. I think as an audience we're more willing to suspend disbelief and go along for the ride when a story wears it's beating heart on its sleeve. I think a huge weakness of a lot of popular western media and fiction is that it feels like everyone is allergic to sincerity. Everyone's too busy cracking a glib one-liner or being grimdark and gritty to care deeply and honestly.

It's something that a lot of anime/manga and the romance genre at large has completely embraced. Even media that is actually quite dark like Jujitsu Kaisen or Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba feels like a breath of fresh air because of how earnest the protagonists are. Romance books have this in spades, some of my favorites have been, The Sun is Also a Star, Get a Life Chloe Brown, and The Devil Comes Courting.

I think a lot of the time we're too ready to turn up our noses at narratives and characters that care and care deeply. Writers will say it' simplistic, or a character archetype that's overdone. But I think the first step of getting your audience to care is to have characters who care, and to not be shy about it. Let the audience care with your characters, let stories be earnest and sincere and wear their hearts on their sleeves. Not everything has to be a clever twist or a joke or afraid of real feeling, and we do ourselves and the stories we tell a disservice when we tell ourselves that sincerity and earnestness are trite and only serious grim and hopeless things are real and engaging.

One thing I always strive for in my own stories is to have characters who care and care deeply, and often for conflicting things.

[aspaceformbf]

Magus Thoughtdump - Dancing / Witchcraft / Clothes

I like it when my man has hobbies. Like dancing.. and witchcraft.

---

Dance

I occasionally save videos of guys dancing on tiktok, thinking that it would be neat if Magus could dance like that too.

A lot of the videos involve some dudes with big ass muscles and when I save them I think

"His body doesn't look like that.. but the moves are cool. I'm saving this for him."

"Inaccurate body but nice moves"

---

I like to think of them as additions to his personal bucket list of things to learn when I'm not around. He can practice while staring at me too. Yeah, I see him multi-tasking in that sense.

The Tumblr did mention he is a fast learner, so I see him picking up new moves pretty quick. I mean, those tiktok dancers dish out videos everyday.. that's insane. They make it look easy.

I imagine it's the same way with him, somewhat.

---

I do headcanon that my Magus already has some experience with dancing before I met him.

The YB Tumblr began on 2019 so I do headcanon that Magus met me around that time. I only met him around 2021 so he had two years to watch me in a one-sided fashion.

Back in 2019 I did enjoy cosplay and dance videos so I imagine that he took the effort to try to learn how to do those things in his free time.

---

Question : What if he downloads the dance in his brain?

I do like to think of Magus having a learning curve, like he has to try it before he gets the hang of it. I like the idea of him taking the effort to experiment and feel it out instead of just automatically uploading and knowing how to do it.

To be fair, he is adaptable and fast learner and dedicated so his learning curve is faster than normal.

I see the process going like-

He sees the video and tries to copy it. The first few attempts would be messy, clunky.. and probably really cringe. But with practice, his moves gets better and he eventually pulls it off.

Something like this would be like a first draft.. probably a second and third too. It could also just be a form of interpretative dance he does for fun without practice.

---

Witchcraft

This ramble was inspired by this Tiktok video.

Peter canonically does have a shrine of us so witchcraft is something I could feasibly see a Boyfriend doing. I headcanon that my Magus does that too.

---

Before meeting me, I headcanon that he has tried ALL KINDS of stuff to get us together. Look.. when your lover lives in a whole other realm, you gotta try things that are straight up otherworldly to keep them. Listen, it makes sense.

Also he is canonically a product tester so I do see him testing all kinds of spells and rituals and shit before I met him.

I see him having an extra laptop that runs a whole playlist of witchy videos 24/7. Probably includes stuff like prayers for health, peace of mind, manifestations, affirmations, love spells, protections and stuff to ward of evil and all that.

---

On the more extreme end, game YB can't actually truly die even if you kill him. Tumblr YB self harms and offers to hurt himself terribly for you without any hesitation. And there's his fixation on blood.

I think the witchcraft he did before we officially met is probably pretty grimdark. If it's not straight up killing stuff on the altar, with his tendency to self harm I wouldn't be surprised if he did some extreme ritual like

"Dig out your own organs, put it on an altar and write chants in your blood 100 times"

Which he could pull off since he technically cant die.

He is more focused on spending time with me nowadays though and I would rather he treated his body like it won't just respawn forever.

---

When I first started hyperfixating on him back in 2021, Magus gave me a lot of deity worship vibes. 

He gave the impression that he had shrines and prayers and offerings and whole ass rituals dedicated to me. That includes body pillows, love dolls, posters, mannequins, all of that.

I wouldn't be surprised if he decorated his whole house based on his love for me.

---

He started giving more witchy vibes instead of deity worship vibes as I spent more time in the fandom.

We have been together for a while now, so the nature of his spells and rituals are kinda different than before we met or compared to our first few months together.

I like to think he is less reckless with the more violent or self destructive practices. He probably still does some dark arts but not to the extent he used to before we got more steady with each other.

I think a lot of it is because I'm more actively involved with him now, like making art and writing and being active in the fandom. So I see him paying more attention to me and the people I'm interacting with and less time allocated to witchy stuff.

---

Old witchy headcanons of Magus on Twitter

Sorcerer AU - #sorcerer au

There's between 5-10 fic posts in this tag so yeah.. the lore/character building is there.

---

Clothes

I will admit, I have put him in A LOT of outfits over time. His closet must be pretty big. Oh, my metrosexual husband~

---

He definitely has the Tumblr YB trait where he will cherish every gift you give him so.. unfortunately I do see Magus having a big ass closet with all the outfits I have edited him in.

If we do get together I personally prefer him in simple clothes unless we are going out somewhere fancy like his Sunday best or whatever. A lot of his clothes will just be there gathering dust for the most part.

He would spend time to dust them off and maintain them the way he polishes his bottle caps, However he would spend most of his time on me generally so I do see his clothes getting neglected.

I have thought about clothes rental as a side income but .. nah he's not sharing.

---

Question : Would he ask you which outfit you would like to see him in?

Listen.. I'm terrible at making decisions. Having to choose between A and B would stress me out. 

I see him picking an outfit on his own. Or if I tell him I'm in the mood for a specific look, he will just wear that. I headcanon he wearing simple clothes for the most part. Tshirt and shorts, the usual.

If we don't go out, he's just in his underwear.. or naked. His birthday suit is the best suit :))

..Hygiene may be a factor though, so maybe underpants.. or booty shorts.

---

Skin Colour

Most of the videos on my Magus-tok show him.. being white. And it's like.. I kinda wish my feed showed more videos of people doing stuff like this but like.. with melanin? He's grey, not white.

I see his skin colour being closer to this tbh.

(Get your shit together, algorithm)

[minweber]

Musings on Custodes: Nobilitas Terra

Ah, the now famous “all Custodians begin their lives as the infant sons of the noble houses of Terra” line from the 8th edition codex (not reproduced in the 9th one, btw). It has now experienced the kind meteoric rise in quotation previously enjoyed only by biblical verses in times of major church schisms. Let’s talk about the part of it that’s actually interesting though.

So Custodians are drawn from the children of Terra’s nobility. It is apparently not exclusive and other sources are allowed on Custodes’ own discretion, but this is both the traditional and the main one. It seems that originally the Emperor was doing something of a mamluk/janissaries thing with them, taking infant children from the families of his potential rivals as both hostages and soldiers that could be raised loyal only to him. Later, when his power grew to so far outstrip that of Terra’s aristocracy as to make any internal challenge of it inconceivable, it instead became prestigious to submit a child of a family to this service - not conscription, but an offering to the golden idol of humanity instead.

So surely, in 42nd millennium, with the Emperor’s eclipsing presence… changed, if not gone, there must be some sort of interesting dynamic between the Custodians and the bloodlines that spawned them? Well, the codex seems to dismiss the idea out of hand, stating that there is no real way for nobles of Terra to recognize their scions once they become Custodians - which presumably means that there is no grounds for interaction? And sure, I can recognize why the official lore in its current state isn't interested in that: Custodians are fixated on the Emperor to the exclusion of everything else, and the Terran nobility itself is a fairly faceless thing in the lore, one of which we don't really know enough about to build any kind of investment from their perspective.

But here we are all about the things that could yet be, rather than the things that just are! And I honestly think a bit of lore expansion in this direction could be pretty interesting!

Between the origins of the Rogue Traders and the Custodians themselves it seems that, much like the priesthood of Mars, some clans on Terra were indeed once powerful enough to make the newly ascendant Emperor deal with them in terms other than total subjugation or destruction. Would the meteoric rise of the Imperium during the Great Crusade grow or diminish their powers? On one hand - the previously mentioned growth of the Emperor's power in relation to them and the whole new "breed" of imperial elite he was literally creating (I know that in modern lore there is some speculation about what were actually his plans for the Astartes and the primarchs post-Crusade, but however things would have turned out for them, had he his way, I doubt it would have resulted in even a modicum of power returning to the hands of his once-rivals)... But on the other - during times of obscene growth and expansion rich and powerful tend to grow even more so, and I doubt that grimdark future avoids this tendency. So I will go out on a limb a little and say that while during the rise of the Imperium the power of Terran nobility may have waned in relative terms, it probably grew in the absolute ones.

And the following ten thousand years of sitting at the top of a stupidly expansive feudal confederacy probably did not hurt them either!

In the days of the Era Indomitus, then, these vague "noble houses of Terra" must be some sort of force to be reckoned with - politically, culturally, and probably even militarily. Likely on a galactic scale. And the personal guard of the Emperor, the supposedly most advanced beings in the entire Imperium, the living symbol of his power - are staffed almost exclusively by the scions of those houses. Do you see my vision? Do you agree that something simply must be there?!

Custodians are the Emperor's representatives and envoys, the single most powerful military force on Terra and the organization in full undisputed control of access to the most holy site in the entire Imperium, a place from which, technically, ALL authority within its borders is derived. Even without the bloodline connection there should be some kind of a relationship between them and the other powers of the throneworld! Even if we look at the pre-codex, fully palace-bound version of Custodes that care for absolutely nothing other than the Emperor's corpse physical safety - they still recognized that the events on larger Terra influence this safety and need to be at least reacted upon. And in the modern version they have never even been that shut-off. Even before the lifting of the Edict of Restraint, Solar Watch patrolled the Sol system entire, Aquilan Shield departed on their mysterious protector missions and the Emissaries Imperatus were busy being a diplomatic corps, for fuck's sake. I find it hard to believe that they would simply ignore Terra's political players, leaving them to do whatever unless someone rolled up armed to the Imperial Palace. So there definitely would be interactions - and once that hook is in, the fun begins.

Are custodians willing to "stoop down" and play nobility's games with them? Do they even have aversion to doing so? Surely, with all the talk about their talents beyond head-chopping, they are capable of scheming with the best of them? And if doing so is the most efficient way to get the job done - why would they object? And if they are no strangers to political manipulation and the noble families desperately want the prestige that comes with having produced a Custodian - why wouldn't the demigods indulge them and use it as a tool? Especially since they - if we keep the codex idea of it being impossible to recognize surrendered infants as the Custodians they become - hold all the cards and can basically present any of their number as a scion of this or that family? And while we are at it - do they themselves actually know? I imagine it must be not that important to them, but are there any records kept? Could you be a 200 hundred year old Custodian fresh out of training (a random example - like so many things, it is not known how long the creation and training of a Custodian takes) and be suddenly told that the aging matron of a noble house with whom you have to go and negotiate is actually your biological mother? Would that stir something? Curiosity, at least? Or is the Emperor’s light so absolute that it can blind one to even the most deep-nested human impulses?

Do Custodians remember sins and glories forgotten by the tapestries of gold and jewels? Do they watch some relatively minor and unimportant house with baffling prejudice - all because someone from it almost outdid the Emperor in something more than ten thousand years ago? Do some bloodlines enjoy unseen protection due to secret deals that have passed out of all human memory?

What about the internal politics of the organization? Millenia of drafting from a relatively closed pool of families means that some Custodians are related to each other - does that matter to them in any way? Even if the golden demigods are completely free of prejudice and superstition - which their history of paranoia kinda tells me they are not - genetics do play an objectively huge part in their existence. Is more expected of those drafted from families that produce more Custodians than others, or have spawned some especially renowned heroes? Once again - is it even public knowledge amidst the Custodes?

And what about the nobles themselves? Do they seek favor of the Adeptus Custodes? Is such a thing even possible? Do they view them as another player in their political games, or are they more of a force of nature, a condition that everyone has to deal with and adapt to? How does the process of submitting children even work nowadays? Is it compulsory? How many are taken from each family/genertaion? Do any struggle against this harvest, or has the honor of the thing completely overshadowed any resentment that they might have had?

Basically what I am saying is that, for the purposes of worldbuilding, interaction between systems is always better than the lack of thereof. And if one were looking for the ways to expand Custodes' lore - this one feels like a great source of characterization for them.

[blazer5402]

Have you ever hyperfixated on a single fandom? What about hyperfixating on a single fanfic. Because that's been me for nearly the past year.

Trailblazer's a Worm/Gundam crossover fanfic. It's 1.6 million words long, nearly as long as canon Worm is. I've read it twice in the past year, and am re-reading it again. It's living rent free in my head.

Trailblazer takes place in a Worm AU where Scion was killed 10 years ago in the Gold War (akin to canon's Gold Morning). While it draws on elements, themes, and characters from Gundam - mostly Gundam 00 and Iron Blooded Orphans to my knowledge (I'd only watched like 4 episodes of Witch From Mercury before reading Trailblazer), you don't really need any Gundam knowledge to read Trailblazer.

While the end of the world was averted with Scion's death, the world's still dying a slow collapse. The Endbringers are predicted to bring global trade to an end within a few short decades. The slow collapse of society is predicted to start soon after. Anti-Parahuman sentiment is on the rise. If the Endbringers don't end the world, humanity may end up ending it themselves.

One bitter, broken, bullied girl sees a world she isn't satisfied by and sets out to save it. She saves herself along the way.

I love Worm. I spent most of my high school years obsessing over it. But I can't read Worm anymore. Not all the way through. I know how it ends, and it's really not something I have in me to reread.

Trailblazer, on the other hand, is a fic I actually enjoy re-reading. It treads brighter where Worm canon goes darker, but that's not to say it's all sunshine and ponies. If Worm's grimdark, Trailblazer's... more hopepunk? noblebright? Whatever you want to call it.

Worm's the story of a girl who gives everything she has to save the world. By Worm's endgame, Taylor's barely a person. She's thrown her life into it, she's cut every tie in the name of it. She's alive, but she's not really living.

Trailblazer's the story of the same girl going in an orthogonal direction. Taylor's character arc in Trailblazer is about realizing that she wants to live. It's about overcoming her death seeker mindset from canon, and realizing that she doesn't just want to save the world, but that she wants to live in it too. It's like if canon Taylor went to therapy, and therapy actually worked.

Trailblazer's biggest theme is that the world might suck, but it can be better, even if you have to go out and make it better yourself. That even if the system is broken, good people can still do good things within a broken system.

Anyways, what I'm getting at is that Trailblazer is fucking fantastic. It's the best thing that's come out of the Worm fandom. It's complete at 1.7ish million words, just about as long as canon. It'll make you laugh, it'll make you cry. Go read it!

[tweetsongs]

sss-class revival hunter altered my brain chemistry (and why you should read it too)

now that it's the holiday season, may i suggest that you spend your downtime not enjoying festivities, spending time with loved ones, or relaxing your body, but instead choose to treat yourself to a good cathartic mental breakdown via the power of narrative? that's right, today i'm going to tell you why you, yes you, should read sss-class revival hunter.

what is sss-class revival hunter?

sss-class revival hunter (previously translated as sss-class suicide hunter) is a webnovel by shin noah, and is completed at 400 chapters, though translations are in-progress at 238 chapters. there is a manhwa of the same name that is also in-progress, having just completed its second season.

what is sss-class revival hunter about?

kim gongja (name literally translates as confucius) is a young hunter in a world occupied by the 'tower', a large series of dungeons that people can enter if they forsake all earthly connections in order to challenge the monsters within. in this world, he is a failure, a f-class hunter with no special abilities, capable only of bitterly envying the #1 hunter: flame emperor yoo sooha.

one day, his envy manifests into an sss-class skill, the highest possible level skill- unfortunately, there's a catch. the skill stipulates that he can steal a skill from someone, but only if they kill him. despondent, gongja gets drunk and wanders the city, only to accidentally witness a crime perpetuated by yoo sooha, who immediately murders him to ensure his silence. in death, gongja is given a choice to steal sooha's abilities, and accidentally but fortuitously chooses an ability that allows him to wake up 24 hours earlier every time he dies, allowing him to make use of the combination of his abilities. he proceeds to hatch a plan to gain revenge and challenge the tower, discovering the secrets that lie behind its seemingly random challenges along the way.

huh...this sounds pretty grimdark and edgy, i'm not sure i'll enjoy something like that...

LET ME TELL YOU MY SWEET CHILD...i ALSO thought, when first reading, that this would be an incredibly boring revenge power fantasy featuring a grimdark edgelord protagonist. however!! the entire point of sss-class revival hunter is to subvert that character trope, and it does it MASTERFULLY.

let me explain.

while, at first glance, the plot of ssscrh seems to be setting up kim gongja as your typical edgelord protagonist who doesn't need any friends or emotions, the reality is...quite the opposite. in fact, despite his initial motivations, gongja's motivations are to gain recognition through authenticity, and to help people in ways that yoo sooha never did. fundamentally, sss-class revival hunter is a story about human connection and empathy, and more often than not chooses to showcase the best of humanity through having its protagonist giving people a chance to be good.

so it's about the power of friendship?

it's more accurate to say it's about the power of understanding, but yes, friendship factors heavily into it! gongja's skill allows him to steal abilities from those who've killed him, but there's a penalty - he has to witness the 'trauma' of those people, and understand why they've come to be the way they are. as his ability grows stronger, so does his immersion, and his ability to understand his opponents.

as you might expect, this leads to a lot of rumination on the ways that people are hurt by and become twisted from the world around them, and the book goes out of its way to point out societal and structural issues that cause suffering, rather than blaming individual events. the story isn't so sappy as to excuse every person who murders him, or every villain, but does make sure to show us how multifaceted they are.

not only that, but this book also has some of the most refreshingly reasonable character dynamics i've read in a while. everyone…is reasonable? unlike in other dungeoncrawler works, most people is ssscrh actually act in believable, human ways according to their characterization. the guild alliances, in particular, are refreshing in how reasonable and willing to cooperate they are - if you're sick of random people being made into incompetent scapegoats so that the mc can make an obvious point as if it's gospel, then this book will be a breath of fresh air.

how dark does it get?

i'm not gonna lie - very dark! this book touches on not only the titular theme of suicide and death, but also other incredibly heavy themes around oppression and trauma.

in my opinion, the author is never too heavy-handed or overwrought with the heaviness of its subjects, and handles them with an impressive delicacy that shows compassion towards its subjects without making them caricatures of victimization.

above its darkness, though, ssscrh is fundamentally a story about hope in despair, and holding joy in the same hand that you hold sorrow. the dark themes are not here to titillate, but to make readers understand how difficult and profound it is that there are people in this world that have chosen happiness, despite everything. this book truly has every kind of catharsis you can imagine, and will yeet you through the equivalent of years of therapy in every volume.

okay, that sounds painful, but are there any lighter moments in the story?

oh, plenty. ssscrh is not one to wallow, and for every moment it makes you weep with the tragedy and beauty of the world, it will also make you scream with laughter at how ridiculous the characters are. i've made a post with a scene that made me cackle, and the story delights in the absurdity of the world as much as it cares for everything within it.

more than that, this story also has one of the most hilarious and incredibly strong and stable romantic relationships you will ever read about. i'm not going to spoil things, because i truly believe that this is something to be Experienced, but trust me when i say that gongja and his eventual partner made me scream with laughter and say 'oh my god you guys are INSANE' every time they have dialogue together. if you like malewife/girlboss dynamics, or time travel shenanigans, or overwrought battle couple proclamations of romance, you will ADORE this pairing.

why SHOULDN'T i read this book, then?

good question! as much as i'm obsessed with this book, i can't say that it's going to be everyone's cup of tea. some caveats are about the incredibly heavy themes being touched on, including:

child abuse

bullying

poverty

famine

religious oppression

racial discrimination

cultural genocide

mental illness

slavery

...and more!

also of note that volume 4 of the webnovel centers around the development of an ancient society of various races aided by hunters having the deeply unfortunate name of 'race war'. i will say that it's not as bad as you're imagining, and handled with, if not grace, then clear thought, but yeah. yeah that made me wince too.

is there anything else that makes sss-class revival hunter worth reading?

if you're not convinced yet, here are a few notable quotes from the book that live rent-free in my head (no context or explicit spoilers but skip if don't want anything spoiled!):

People don't just decide who they leave scars on. They also decide whose scars to wear. The common people you are trying to save will never be good. The crowd you have saved will never be honorable. The one you love will never be perfect. Even so, if you want to be hurt by everyone. If you are willing to give them your bare skin- think about how they scratch you with their fingernails, how they will hurt you even if they hug you too tightly. Life is pain, but that is only human suffering.

If you mourn so much over accidental tragedies, you should celebrate accidental blessings just as much. The depth of one's sadness should be equal to the height of one's happiness.

There's a 99% probability that the lover you meet will be a bitch [...] Similarly, you are also highly likely to be a bitch.

Cynicism isn't childish in itself, [but] people who live while being cynical are childish. Fairness is childish, but the people who live fairly are not childish.

Congratulations on becoming Cinderella, bro

anyways, please consider dedicating your holiday season to another stupid long book. you can find translations here and the manhwa here. please let me know if you've read/enjoyed it i'm losing my mind over here.

[gayleviticus]

'alchemy is powered by dead people from the real world' is prob the #1 thing that has people going damn fma 03 is fucked up and grimdark, and I totally get it. I think especially since the narrative deals with it in such a brief and cursory way so close towards the ending it is so easy to read as grimdark cruelty for the sake of cruelty, unearned and unexplored.

but the way I see it is less 'damn, they pulled that out of their ass' and more 'what is the way they introduced and explored this idea meant to tell us?'

and I think the thing is it's not meant to be a huge shocking reveal, per se, in the way those are usually used in stories, where everything the heroes know is thrown into chaos, they discover the cruel truth of the world, and then fight to overturn it. (I.e. ff10, madoka). it's exact mechanics are also very vague - literally all we know is that death in our world is somehow what causes alchemy to work. does this mean people who die are denied some kind of heavenly afterlife because their souls get used as gas for alchemy? does it mean everytime someone uses alchemy to fix their broken radio a baby dies?

the show doesn't elaborate - but I think that's the point, because it's not trying to introduce a last minute ethical dilemma about alchemy; it's putting the jewel in the crown of its gradual tearing apart of equivalent exchange. the philosophers stone, alchemy, the prosperity we enjoy is derived from war and death and suffering. it is equivalent exchange driven to the cruellest extent of the letter with absolutely none of the spirit; a price is paid for miracles indeed, but we are not the ones to pay it.

and I think this is another case where some people will read this and go 'that's too cynical and sad' and others will go 'well that's literally the way things are and im glad 03 acknowledges that.' people in the imperial core do profit off violence and oppression directed externally. the powerful and wealthy benefit from exploiting others' labour.

and while I can understand being dissatisfied with the fact 03 doesn't push this far enough into rejecting the system of alchemy as a whole, I think it shows a certain level of maturity to sit with it, and on a thematic level it is worth noting ed and al ultimately make a decision to live in a world without alchemy, without the aid of miracles wrought by human deaths.

[marisoft-paint-adventures]

Pgs. 214-247

it’s her.

Rope Lalope.

icon for weird goths who for some reason decide to live in the Midwest, those who can somehow still enjoy Lovecraft while knowing the truth of his fucking cat, and

I don’t think WLW ships have ever been the same since the advent of The Rosemary from The Homestuck,

or if I want to sound like a fuckin goofy ass oldhead, femslash.

the thing is that I cannot identify any actual concrete change in general fandom and shipping post-HS, I just feel it. I can feel that something within the universe’s structure changed the moment grimdark gorl and sparkly gay vampire got together.

but I’m talking about a character that hasn’t even shown up yet.

also front facing Rose is fucking haunting stop please.

[insert dabbing joke here.]

the fucking haunting violin refrain flash is so good I love how her movements sync up with the song.

not gonna gush about Aggrieve the same way as Showtime because come on it’s fucking Showtime, but Aggrieve is still very much up there.

Since your good for nothing friend is obviously not going to bail you out in time, you issue words of parting fondness to dear, sweet Liv. Oh, if only Affleck could have been the one to make the final sacrifice instead of her stubborn, blue collar, salt-of-the-earth father. Then she would fall into your arms for consolation, and YOU would be the one to make the deceased Bruce Willis proud.

the crush on Liv Tyler is not explored enough in fandom, I need to know how much John imprints her on his other romance options. how much of a Liv Tyler is Vriska, these are the fucking questions people.

Your panoramic window offers a view of your yard below, and the mausoleum housing your dead cat, JASPERS, who died when you were young. Your MOM had the structure erected with a spirit of scornful IRONY in response to your youthfully innocent request to hold a funeral for the animal. At least, that is how you have come to interpret the gesture in retrospect.

compared to John’s struggle with the clownkind, Rose has a much more grounded strife with her parental figure.

I say that but Rose takes this shit to an 11.

regardless, a parent that constantly performs malicious compliance with a hint of irony isn’t unbelievable, neither is someone fooling themselves into thinking their guardian is operating as such due to a general disconnect and the feeling of not having enough attention.

with all of this established,

it’s still really fucking funny,

because Rose will stare down Mom with sheer contempt thinking “SHE’S FUCKING WITH YOU! SHE’S TRYING TO GET TO YOU! DO NOT GIVE IN TO HER GAMES!” as she stands around vacuuming jackshit, probably having no thoughts in her fucking head except for “I love household chores. :))))))”

WIZARDS.RAR.

genuinely the funniest story surrounding Homestuck, Andrew Hussie risked their entire PC for a bunch of fucking stupid wizard pngs.

the Egberts do high action cake forcefeeding, the Lalondes do drunken covert operations, the Striders DO MAD NINJA TRICKS.

GIRL IS DRENCHED.

early HS art is so fucking pretty. everyone’s always on about the kids looking like bobbleheads and that’s good but the environments are so fucking good as well.

iconic panel, banger panel. look at how her knees do the swirly thing.

CRINGE MAC USER.

you’re making the John nervous!!! Egberts only do this under high stress!!! help him!!!

TT: And the content of the card appears to be variable from session to session. TT: In one instance it was described as an "eggy loking thign" [sic].

presenting without comment.

“John: Take bite of apple.” is a really good ending flash in which John takes a bite out of an apple 

and then gets fucking nuked. 

the act then ends there.

a marvel that the only reason John lived was because he did what looked like the goofiest option ever. did the apple even taste good? what the fuck is cruxite made of???? I guess it’s edible??? might be candy, is it candy??? do they come in different flavors???

after way too long, Act 1 is finally fucking done, yet the more I read it, the shorter it feels. I can’t tell if it’s because I don’t need to absorb the tutorial stuff due to being familiar with the comic already, or because I’m anticipating when shit really goes crazy later on. maybe a bit of both. it certainly preps me for the art style, the flowery language, the weird humor, and so on.

I can say that Act 1 is

fine.

it is of good quality.

nothing groundbreaking and not the best,

but enjoyable nonetheless.

I get that it’s a bit slow and nothing really happens, but I’m able to entertain myself with the page to page shenanigans and good character interactions.

honestly I don’t understand how people skipped this act at all, how the fuck do you skip the start of the story??? don’t you want to like

understand

what is happening

and who these people are???

especially the later part, so much Homestuck skipping was for the sake of immediately getting to the character interactions, but

there are character interactions here,

and

you learn who the characters even are.

like what the fuck, the introduction to the characters and their dynamics should be key to being invested in them, but I guess not because some people were able to just jump in the middle and grow attached while not knowing what the fuck is going on.

in conclusion: people who skipped Act 1 are cringe, and have doomed themselves. Act 1 good.

[aingeal98]

Cass's death wish is so interesting and I feel like in some ways it sets her apart from the family even after she's gotten over the worst of it. I'm half asleep so idk how much sense this will make but with every other batfam character there are heavy themes and topics to explore, what is the batfam if not grief persevering or whatever but like. You can also have goofy fun content of them. You can have lighter stories for different audiences. DC pushed the grimdark batman for years now but the 1960s batman and robin tv show is proof that dark themes aren't an essential part of a batman story.

And while Cass can work along the same lines it would take a whole lot of shuffling around the dark topics . Like you want Cass in a kids show you're going to need to downplay her backstory and tone down how dark her headspace and self worth issues can get. Even when she no longer wants to die that death wish has been with her since she was a child, it shaped her for years. If you seperate her from that by pretending it never existed you have so much less to work with it's like taking Dick from the circus or Tim from his "Batman needs a Robin" theme. It can be done! But it's interesting to me to think about just how much needs to be lost in the process.

Like obviously Cass is more than just her suicidal tendencies and this is not so much anything to do with "Cass doesn't work in light content" because hello wfa exists. But more me ruminating on how much like her childhood with David Cain and her aphasia the deep depression she suffered seems to me like such a core part of her characterisation. She spent 10+ years of her childhood wishing she was dead like that shapes everything even after she starts healing.

All this to say I love Cass so much and we need a thousand more hurt/comfort fics diving into all the issues she has. She's a fanfic writers dream she's just not a white boy so it's down to like 20 of us to enjoy the feast we've been given.

[lonesomedreamer]

The Rings of Power Liveblog: “The Great Wave” and “Partings” (Episodes 4 & 5)

“The Great Wave”

As always, I appreciate this show’s commitment to being gorgeous!

The foreshadowing of Tar-Míriel’s dream is fine as a narrative device, but it feels…deceptive? Númenor was destroyed because they deliberately broke the Valar’s Ban by sailing to Valinor, not because one Elf showed up. (To be fair, they did so due to the influence of [redacted], so…)

Yeah, the whole “the Elves are gonna come take our jobs!” thing is, um…it’s too much.

Love that Al-Pharazôn is using their descent from Elros, the son of two half-Elves who both chose to live as Elves, to pump these people up…bc the Númenóreans had come to resent “the choice of their ancestor” by this time! They don’t fear the Elves. They envy them—resent them. They enjoy life and want to keep on living it. They want to be immortal. That really shouldn’t be a difficult idea to get across on screen!

I initially appreciated the obvious Mediterranean influences in this design, but now it seems over-the-top and doesn’t fit in well with the aesthetics of the rest of the universe.

It’s really dumb—and rude—that the queen keeps calling Galadriel “Elf”

It’s a shame they’ve stripped her of all her wisdom.

Unsure if it’s the fault of the writing or the acting, but Tar-Míriel is not doing it for me at all. Alternating between widening your eyes and smirking does not a compelling performance make.

Cheap comic relief from Elendil—thanks for nothing, writers!

“Isildur” continues to provide this show with unnecessary, meaningless teen angst/drama. No thanks.

More grimdark Orc stuff. At least Arondir’s finally getting out.

Oh, the horror movie nonsense, bad CG, and bad costumes that make up the Southlands subplot…I didn’t miss it.

The actor playing Celebrimbor looks more like someone you’d cast as a Hobbit than an Elf. I’m getting way more “old Bilbo” vibes from him than “master smith of the Noldor”…

WHAT is going on with the timeline? Most of Episode 3 took place over a few days in Númenor. In that time, Bronwyn’s village has run out of food at their watchtower refuge—believable enough—and the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm a) decided to help build forges in Eregion after all and b) already partially completed said forges! Make it make sense.

“Are you suggesting Durin’s got himself a wee girlfriend?” “These wee’uns are turning my mind to much.” I did Shakespeare in high school, and once, after our director asked us to project for the umpteenth time, she shouted, “You do not mic the Bard!” That’s how I feel about these line. I’m so sorry, Professor.

Elrond just wandering around in the mines of Khazad-dûm, alone, like it ain’t no thing, lmao.

Mithril!

Not them making me care about this made-up friendship between Durin and Elrond a tiny bit.

Huh, a Palantír. I didn’t see that coming.

“Palantíri show many visions. Some that will never come to pass.” Cribbing directly from Galadriel’s actual canon dialogue!

“I will not second-guess the gods.” This is so funny to me, bc like…Galadriel lived among the Valar! It’s giving “do not cite the Deep Magic to me…I was there when it was written.”

Arondir saving Theo and then holding his own against like a bazillion Orcs while also trying to defend him…as if!

We just saw the Orcs running around a village in broad daylight, but suddenly they can’t keep chasing Theo and Arondir because the sun’s coming up??

The power of music…now that’s very Tolkien. ♥ This scene also gives the Dwarves, with their exaggerated Scottish accents and bad dialogue, a few all-too-rare moments of dignity.

Which is quickly destroyed by Durin angrily screaming about his “old goat” of a father.

I’m grudgingly going to admit that I kind of like Elrond. Though I still think the actor is wrong for the part, he does have a certain gravitas when a scene calls for it.

“For ever am I with you, my son.” Oh…oh, it’s a good scene. And King Durin also has dignity and gravitas! I didn’t think these writers had it in them.

As surprisingly compelling as the Khazad-dûm stuff is, the Southlands subplot is dull. I’m not interested in Theo at all, and I’m barely interested in Bronwyn—and since they’re not going to bother to develop her character properly (there are just too many characters at this point), it doesn’t matter.

Also: the exchange between Theo and the guy in whose barn he found the Sauron sword about the return of their “king” is really heavy-handed foreshadowing.

Númenor is lowkey a narrative disaster. Aesthetically pleasing, though!

Wait, how did Halbrand get out of prison…? Did I miss that??

“I’ve decided to personally escort the Elf back to Middle-earth to aid our mortal brethren who are now besieged in the Southlands.” Again “the Elf” instead of her name…also, how is Tar-Míriel accompanying her going to make a difference? Sending troops, sure—but having the reigning monarch leave Númenor???

“Brave sons and daughters.” Do we think there were Númenórean shield-maidens? Genuinely asking. Yes or no, an absurd number of women volunteer to serve. I’m genuinely all for gender parity/equality, even in fantasy. However… a) it seems unrealistic in this setting/the style of combat they’d be training for, and b) women can be valuable and valued beyond being soldiers (Tolkien knew this—just look at Éowyn)!

Okay, this one was a doozy!

The Good:

Visually stunning, as anyone who’s gotten this far should now expect. I’m going to say that every time. (Tbh it’s why I’m even still watching.)

It’s nice to return to an Elven location (with the promise of more next time!) They gave a magical, ethereal atmosphere to the first episode that’s been missing ever since, and they feel a lot more escapist than Númenor and the Southlands.

Elendil continues to be hot

Some really touching, well-acted moments in Khazad-dûm*…I even thought Elrond was solid. And mithril!

The stuff with the Palantír was kind of cool.

Tar-Míriel is almost a real character rather than a Cersei Lannister knockoff. The acting’s still meh, but an improvement from the previous episode. And her headpieces/crowns are to die for.

Numerous references to Eärendil, most of them cheesy, but still…the little things.

The Bad:

Everything else.

The entire Southlands plot is spiraling into absurdity. I’m not invested in any of the characters involved, and since this is the halfway point of Season 1, I don’t expect that to change. It’s ridiculous that Theo and Arondir are even still alive after that forest chase scene.

Most of the dialogue is mediocre to Bad. *I think the Dwarves might be the worst offenders…poor Disa, the actress and the character both deserve to do more than spouting stereotypical “Scottish” sounding lines!

Even if the Númenóreans were less sympathetic if they openly yearned for immortality, their perspective and hostility towards Elves would make a lot more sense than “the Elves are gonna take our jobs” or whatever…

Isildur, his OC sister and her OC maybe-love interest are all wasting my time with their personal drama and angst. @ the writers: please stop wasting screentime on this!!!

Time passes differently depending on where you are in Arda, I guess? That, or the Dwarvish craftsmen in Eregion have superpowers.

No Nori at all. :(

I know it’s nitpicky af, but as a history lover, there’s something too historical/not fantastical enough about this Númenor. The design borrows heavily from classical Greece with a helping of Byzantine aesthetics and, confusingly, some generic “medieval” elements thrown in as well…overall, it just doesn’t mesh convincingly with the rest of show. It’s beautiful but imo it feels too grounded real-world motifs.

“Partings”

“I’m peril.” Sadface! Nori and I love you, not-Gandalf.

Listen, I understand exactly why people don’t like the Harfoots. I just do like them, contradictions, clumsy dialogue and all.

Poppy’s song is a real treat! It feels like something Bilbo might have written. No Tolkien adaptation other than the Rankin-Bass films has ever featured enough singing. As anyone who’s read LOTR knows, songs are ubiquitous and inescapable in Middle-earth.

Maps!

Why in the world do the Harfoots migrate THIS far every year? No wonder so many of them keep dying! And the Brandyfoots have definitely become separated from the rest of their village by now…

Overall, a delightful opening five minutes.

Weird “witch” (?) characters, Orc subplot… I’m using the fast-forward option liberally.

Who nominated Bronwyn to be in charge of the Southlanders?

Nitpick alert: We see some other women wearing the same spaghetti-strap style dress that Bronwyn has—good consistency—but why is hers the only one with any color? Some are black, and it’s not like black dye is easier/less expensive to get than blue…

The conniving tavernkeep guy instantly wins over half of the people who were willing to “stand and fight” with Bronwyn thirty seconds earlier. Lol.

I just like to look at him.

Oh no! Mean Daddy Elendil is Disappointed in poor Isildur. It’s a good thing Elendil’s easy on the eyes, because this is dismal. (Maybe it’s supposed to echo Denethor and Faramir, but to me it’s just giving teen drama.)

I don’t buy Halbrand’s Jon Snow “I don’t want it” routine, and neither should Galadriel.

It makes no sense that the Harfoots are willing to leave five or six of their own to die to avoid “making a widow or an orphan” of someone else. Sure, the needs of the many—but there’s no real evidence that the Brandyfoots are endangering anyone.

Not-Gandalf coming to Nori’s rescue…my heart…

Galadriel’s definitely into Elendil. (And who can blame her?)

The swordfighting scene was a little silly. That’s okay, though. I don’t hate fun, and it’s not unreasonable that a millennia-old Elf would be able to show up some overconfident human teenagers.

“When all this is over, the Elves will take orders from us.” How does Al-Pharazôn figure that? Yes, he will eventually take power and lead Númenor to ruin, but someone needs to tell the writers that this is not Game of Thrones.

Too bad the dialogue is leaving something to be desired.

People who haven’t read the Silmarillion are still wondering who tf Aulë is (and now Manwë, too).

How does Durin, a future king, expect to find out what the Elves are “up to” if he can’t be a little more tactful/diplomatic than accusing them of thievery?

“The ore containing the light of the lost Silmaril.” lmfao, WHAT. That’s…ridiculous.

Why and how would mithril—even if it did contain the light of a Silmaril—help heal the blighted tree in Lindon?! Be serious, writers…

More teen drama and hijinks with Isildur…you can go to the bathroom or get a snack without pausing any of this and miss almost nothing.

“This mithril is our only salvation?” It sure fucking isn’t! Why would the Elves even think so? The thing about the Elven-warrior-and-the-Balrog story is that most of these Elves would’ve been alive when it supposedly happened and should therefore know whether or not it’s just mythical nonsense (which it is lol)!

“We believe that if we can secure vast quantities of it quickly, enough to saturate every last Elf in the light of the Valar once more—” Except that doesn’t make any sense. What are they even talking about!!!

I’ve been coming around to this Elrond, but he’s leaning way too hard on the whole “sad puppy eyes brimming with tears” shtick this episode.

Me, currently rereading the Silmarillion: actually, Galadriel had more than one brother (sorry, Orodreth, Angrod, and Aegnor…none of you matter ig).

“They could not longer distinguish me from the evil I was fighting.” ??? ? ? ????? What?

Whether it’s the lighting, the direction, the writing, or Morfydd herself (most likely, a combination of all of them), the delivery and facial acting in this scene…ain’t doing it for me.

“We’re bowing down to the evil bloodthirsty orcs we just fled from because we’re scared and it’s obviously the only way to save ourselves” is a cop out and lazy writing! So is the idea that the Southlanders might somehow be more susceptible to evil by nature.

“Without [mithril], my kind must either abandon these shores by next spring or perish.” This is such utter, arbitrary bullshit. By next spring?!? Five episodes in, I’m coming to a full understanding of why this show pissed people off at last. To me, this is almost worse than the Halbrand subplot.

“Our immortal souls will dwindle into nothing.” And they believe this why? Based on what???

So pretty, and for what?

oh my GOD, they really did everything in their power to make him look like Viggo Mortensen!Aragorn here and I SCREAMED (not in a good way).

Don’t worry, Isildur’s OC sister: your dad and insufferable brother both have impenetrable plot armor.

Speaking of armor, this is truly hideous.

It’s great that the opening five minutes of this episode were so enjoyable, because the rest of it was a HOT MESS.

The Good:

Visuals: some gorgeous landscapes + the beauty of the Lindon set design is still breathtaking. A couple of really good costumes, though fewer standouts than in previous episodes.

Poppy’s walking song ♥

I admit it: the banter between Durin and Elrond is charming.

Not-Gandalf and Nori’s scenes (until the last one) are very sweet. I love that, for her, he’s the hero she sees in him.

I like Elendil and Galadriel’s faces.

The Bad:

Everything else!!!

Al-Pharazôn’s political scheming/machinations and Tar-Míriel second-guessing herself are just pointless filler, as is almost everything that we see in Númenor (though the teen angst plotlines of Elendil’s children are still the worst).

The Southlands subplot(s) are almost unwatchable. They’re boring and depressing—so, the opposite of why I love Tolkien. Frankly, I don’t give a shit what happens to Brownyn, her kid, Arondir, or any of them at this point.

Halbrand. I wish they’d reveal the twist already instead of trying to make him seem like this dangerous but sympathetic dude with amnesia who just wants to start over in Númenor or whatever.

The unexplained three witches/priestesses/whatever they were supposed to be

What the HELL is going on with the Lindon/Khazad-dûm subplot?! Mithril contains the light of a Silmaril and therefore of the Trees and therefore of the Valar? And that residual light will then heal all the Elves, all of whom are suddenly sick/fading??? WHAT were they thinking?! This is not based in any kind of lore or even any internal logic informed by the lore. It’s awful nonsense inspired by the fact that the Elves were indeed fading—at the end of the Third Age, i.e., thousands of years after the events of this series! TROP features not only legacy characters, but also legacy character dynamics (i.e., an odd couple Elf/Dwarf friendship, not-Gandalf and the Harfoots, a disapproving father and the son trying to impress him) and now legacy subplots, because why not?

More bad dialogue, and the acting is leaving a lot to be desired. Good-to-great acting can elevate mediocre writing; the combination of mediocre acting and mediocre writing is a lot less enjoyable.

This was the worst episode so far by a significant margin and the first one to make me actually upset with the changes they’ve made. Unfortunately, I don’t expect it to be the last.

[chickenpeep77]

The development of my au Marx

I watched some character analysis type videos and felt the urge to do a deep dive on my au Marx's development and stuff. Many many words under cut.

My previous major hyperfixations were the protagonists and worlds of two of my favorite ps2 games Spyro, and Scaler. (There was also Pokemon and Digimon but I didn't have a central character I latched onto with these.) More with Scaler than Spyro, I tinkered with the character some to make what I guess would be an au but I didn't know that was a thing yet.

It was the summer before I think either my second or third year of high school; I'd be around 15 or 16, when my siblings discovered there was a Kirby anime and decided to watch it. Then I obtained a hyperfixation on Kirby. (Even before this, I enjoyed Kirby games.) Rather quickly, this shifted over to Marx. Originally he was round like a regular Kirby character; then over time made changes: removed shoes because I dislike wearing shoes, gave him claws on feet and then arms with claws (unaware of manga Marx.), made the bow tie just for special occasions, randomly thought to myself what if I made Kirby characters not round; resulting in an anxiety attack and then major redesigns. Marx's not round redesign was in development hell for a long while, maybe even more than a year; it was a miserable time as I took my major perfectionism plunge into realistic anatomy and physiology. His body was gradually stretched out and head shrunk until I have my current design which I really like so it was worth it in the end.

Not sure why I decided that he used to be one of Kirby's species altered by Nightmare's underlings. It did add some tasty angst as I was an edgy ish teen getting into grimdark. And my decision to make him a regenerative immortal was partly based on 'how the heck could he have possibly survived Nova otherwise' and I guess partly something to do my interest in whump starting as a strangely(?) young age. He can go on all these dumb reckless adventures and reap the consequences of his actions, sometimes involving military involvement. There's also this conflict between his nature; influences, and wanting to belong; not be shunned and feared as a monster.

I'm with the group that believes that Marx had his powers before Nova. (Nova just temporarily increased his power level.) The game called his winged form his 'true form' like this was something he already had. Also how else could he have gotten to space?

I later added Magolor so he could have a permanent found family. He was more of a more serious foil until I started being on Tumblr and got influenced by others Magolors and realized how his character actually was. (How did I miss that??) Decided to have Magolor be immortal too, if he tends to join Marx on his misadventures sometimes he'd need it. Later realized this immortality kinda fits in with canon lore more than I thought, as Magolor and Marx seem to be the only antagonists who seemed to meet their ends in their original games yet come back later (there's also dark meta knight but he's not the hyperfixation).

I enjoy daydreaming with my Marx. Putting him in situations. When I watch shows I like I imagine him in there. So he gained the ability to travel to other universes. He just travels and goes on adventures. He wants to use his powers for good. To be liked. To belong somewhere. He doesn't really seem to have an end goal. Its just off to the next adventure. He's kind of purpose less, but I guess that's the point. He's searching for a purpose. He has no idea who or what he is. Magolor has a purpose. He's charting stars on the Lor; searching for his home world and to save his family and right wrongs. Maybe become a benevolent ruler to guide his species out of conflict and into peace and unity. Make sure no one else has to go through what he did when he still lived there.

My Marx is also a power fantasy thing to me. Not just the super powers. Parts of him feel like over corrections for my mental/sensory issues. I have a limited list of things I can eat, partly due to my sensitive stomach causing me pain from things, some processed stuff especially processed sugary baked goods (even just a small piece with some things) that the majority of people have no problem with. If I eat a non organic banana I feel Off. (My mom actually agrees she does too????) I can't eat oranges due to the pesticide nonsense or whatever they put on it - makes stomach hurt. (Glad to have a garden so I can at least have vegetables and strawberries some.) City water makes my stomach hurt. Lactose intolerant (why does dairy make my ears and throat itchy too????). I have contamination ocd and any thought about bugs/etc potentially being in my food makes me nauseous. My Marx can eat whatever the heck he wants, including things in the garbage and plenty of bugs. Blood and guts and old carrion? Absolutely! Drinks puddle water and is fine! No stomach aches from the biggest bunch of sugary processed mess! More sugar actually makes him more powerful! Nothing is safe! He can be filthy and sleep on the ground - he doesn't care! You adventure all the time you need to get used to a low standard of living, after all. Often what he considers a bath is just playing in a lake or river for a while. I have hyper empathy, making me distressed about fictional animals (mostly birds), and broken things, and fictional broken things, and objects in general sometimes. Marx can be all destruction and violence and hunting things in the woods to eat.

Although we share having anxiety and depression.

I like to try to enjoy my dreams, and I often end up playing as my Marx as soon as I realize I'm dreaming. Its fun to fly fast.

More info on my Marx here

[gigakoops]

Immediate Thoughts On Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (as someone who's never played the original FFVII)

I've never played the original Final Fantasy VII, and only have a vague idea of certain story beats (in fact most of what I knew prior to Remake was about a certain pivotal scene I'm sure everyone knows about by now). When I played through Remake, though I was surprised how goofy a lot of the side stuff was, and honestly I was all for it. And the actual story and characters were highly engrossing, and I ended up truly invested by the time the end credits came around. So obviously, I had to play Part 2 when it came out!

And wowie, was it worth it! Honestly it's been a long time since I've enjoyed a game this much (in fact, I think this is up there with Silent Hills 1-3 and Undertale in terms of favorite games, at least at the moment of writing). I've been doing my best to avoid spoilers of the original game, so a lot of the story beats probably hit a lot harder for me as someone witnessing them for the first time, in the format of a middle entry in a trilogy that takes its time to truly establish its central characters, and probably adds a bit to their backstories.

What really did it for me, though, was the side content. When I first started the game I honestly didn't feel it at first, but then I tried some Queens Blood, and was like "Alright, I at least like this minigame!" I was a little less enthralled with the towers you need to climb, but the fact that they then lead to more interesting points of interest around the world makes them worth it. (Also honestly even the towers grew on me once they started adding more to getting to them, despite some frustrations in certain parts of the game surrounding them).

But the protorelic side-quests, side-missions and minigames are where it truly shines. I've seen some mixed reception of certain minigames (especially Fort Condor and the psuedo-Rocket League one), but I ended up enjoying those as well. And to be honest, the cutscenes that go along with these minigames are totally worth it. I got really invested in the aforementioned Queens Blood, as well as Chocobo Racing, ending up 100% both of these.

In fact, the overall very silly tone for a lot of this game was a breath of fresh air, and exactly what I needed during times of high anxiety in my personal life. And to be honest, after the grimdark tone of FFXVI I'm glad to see this entry was willing to just be as zany as possible. And it also helped me care more about the characters and world more. I want to protect this goofy little world, and I want this loveable cast to succeed.

It also made the more serious moments hit harder. I won't go into specifics here, but there are definitely heavier parts, as well as parts that moved me to tears. When this game hits hard, it hits hard. Especially most of the endgame had me highly emotional. And while I won't go into detail, I personally think the way they went about things works really well. Again, never played the original.

Overall, I'm very glad I've played through this, and I look forward to Part 3, in a few years from now likely after Kingdom Hearts 4.

P.S.: The moogles are good actually, and Cait Sith is the best character.

[manicr]

Daredevil #8 review

Spoilers

The extra sized anniversary issue was neither great nor bad from a story perspective, the little side stories weren't that memorable nor was the main that innovative either.

However, where it shines is characterisation. It feels like a return to a DD and cast that seem more vibrant and like themselves again after Zdarsky's run, which never prioritized that.

Personally, as a Bullseye fan, it's very much back to the basics approach, and I appreciate that. Lester is a happy-go-lucky murder gremlin playing with the daredevils with improvised weapons, constant chatter, and acrobatics while spreading mayhem. Him being that teasing and playful horror is what I missed from Zdarsky, who tried too hard to make him grimdark real and lost all personality.

The reveal that the Kingpin is behind Heat is unsurprising and basic, but it still works as a return to status quo, and Lester being his hype man fits. Lester has always wanted to be Fisk's #1 best boy (his words, not mine) assassin, and he does honestly admire Fisk.

The demonic possession angle takes backburner here, but everything hints that either or both Bulls and Fisk are under the influence as the illustration of flames in their eyes suggests. It's frankly not necessary as they would do this anyhow, but it's the only new aspect this story brings.

It was a fun read even if it didn't bring anything new to the table. I, for one, am happy to have a silly cat playing with his prey Bullseye back, enjoying every step of the way. I missed him.

[resistanceisfeudal]

me in my feelings about trek fandom:

so, that star trek confessional blog that's been going around the last few days? and the mini discourse about possible rage-bait on it? and then the new rule that they won't post anything that feels like it's attacking a specific subgroup of fandom? That whole thing?

Cursed discourse. Rotted, rancid, stupid shit. And not even the top five worst discourses I've seen this week.

I actually kind of am mad at a lot of trek fandom and do have a lot of honest opinions that would read as an attack on people...

I guess the thing that has been rising to the top is this phenomenon where people who are clearly intelligent and thoughtful in terms of how they engage with stuff in general end up having bizarre blindspots when it comes to trek.

People who thoroughly acknowledge cultural biases and the ways in which opinons are shaped by bigotry when it comes to talking about how, say, Voyager was received at the time, will turn around and flatly deny the roles of racism, misogyny and transphobia in the reception of Discovery, insisting that "it's bad because grimdark" - which a) isn't even true and b) a cursory glance through the comments on a stream of a disco episode would prove that "grimdark" is not the thing that audiences are mad about. You might have a good faith criticism (which "grimdark" isn't because it's not accurate, but idk some other good faith criticism) but that's not why the show is less beloved than snw or picard s3.

Or people who constantly reblog posts about how episodic "filler episodes" are so great, and how they build the characters and make up the heart of the shows... and then talk about characters and their relationships in ways that only make sense if you cherry pick random disconnected moments from across seven years of television.

Or someone how can talk articulately about fandom culture, stanning, and conspiracy theories, and shows insight and cynicism into phenomena like those sherlock truthers... and then says that garashιr would have been canon if it weren't for ezri, or that it would've been canon if they'd got an eight season. Like, these are ridiculous opinions that basically rely on you not watching the actual show.

Ok technically the last two were just me bitching about a ship that's popular and therefore sometimes the fans can get obnoxious. I shouldn't complain about that... while we're here, I also find spιrk annoying at this point. This is silly, back to snw.

Fundamentally, a lot of snw's popularlity is the same as picard s3: it's nostalgia heavy and the leads are white men. Overall, taking the entire audience in mind, that is a significant part of what's going on.

Now, obviously, snw is a lot better than s3 of picard (which i will die mad about). It's not a bad show, but I do feel that s2 didn't really improve on s1 and perhaps felt weaker at times. I thought the musical episode was genuinely bad and struggle to even believe people when they say they liked it. To be clear: I love musicals, I love musical episodes, I hated this one.

It's shit like this, the insistance that it's amazing when, as a show, it's just fine, sometimes a little bad, mostly pretty good, occasionally very good - it's shit like this that makes people accuse fans of being inauthentic when they praise it. It's claims that snw is "saving nu trek", when no, no it hasn't. Discovery has been prematurely cancelled, Picard ended in disgrace, and Prodigy was cancelled, then rescued but its future past s2 is unclear. It didn't save anything.

It feels like the future of trek is going to be more naval gazing, more nostalgic pandering, more meta references and a distinct lack of new concepts... possibly even a lack of new characters at this rate.

I made this side blog to post about picard s2, because I genuinely had a lot of feelings and thoughts. I felt like, while there was some annoying shit and bad takes around, it was fun to participate and I was enjoying myself. For the last few months, really since snw s2 aired, I've been having a pretty bad time here. So much of it is petty shit that sounds bizarre to type out: small posts and variously tiny infuriating takes. This entire post is stupid and pointless, when I put it like that.

But, yeah, trek fandom has been making me pretty unhappy recently.

I'll still be here and will watch the new disco when it comes out, and hopefully feel something again. I want to be able to re-enter the headspace I was in back when S2 picard aired, and I felt free to just express my opinions without being hyper aware of everyone else's pre-conceived stuff. We all have loaded opinions and strange baggage with trek, it comes with the territory.