#even though hes grumpy like 90% of the time haha

[scottishoctopus]

LEMME GIVE YE A BIG SMOOCH *grabs yer face and kisses yer cheek forcefully*

"Get yer hands offuh me this instance!" Jones growled and glared, raising up his clawed arm as to make distance. "Do Ah need tah explain tah ye about personal space...AGAIN- UH?!"

[hopefullystillatheatrestudent]

this might be a weird thought but the way jensen performs masculinity (and i KNOW it’s a performance cause like, have you SEEN the mockumentary?) is just.... so inherently queer to me lmao

ok. okokokokokok. you asked for this. i have a LOT of thoughts on this. it’s gonna be under a cut because i’m gonna be annoying and psychoanalyse a celebrity i’ve never met(and hope i never do) but trust and believe when i tell you i know what i’m talking about so

you want my opinion? here goes. there is absolutely no way jensen ackles is straight. i hear you, ‘how do you know that he’s bi? that’s invasive and creepy’ but may i counter that point by saying how do you know he’s straight???? why is the default for everyone heterosexual? that’s a toxic mentality to have; ‘oh you don’t know for sure so just treat him like he’s 100% straight just in case’ like....what? heteronormativity drives me wild i’m sorry

and also, um, just to, um, prove my point that this man is decidedly not straight™(i really don’t want to do this but like it has to be said) we KNOW he’s not straight because his d*ck has spoken for itself around misha, like, four times. I HATE SAYING IT!!!!!!! but, um, straight men don’t get aroused by men. ...do i really need to explain myself further???? that’s what i thought(and don’t give me the ‘it could have been for unrelated reasons’ or ‘that wasn’t a boner!’ crap because um good lord yes it was and misha caused every single one so no it wasn’t a coincidence i’m gonna move on before i collapse into myself like a dying star)

anyway, on to the topic at hand which is jensen and his performative masculinity. and it’s a juicy one.

after the unconscious amount of hours i’ve put into watching and subconsciously judging jackles, i have come to the conclusion that like, 90% of how he presents himself and talks and even moves is an act. it’s a facade. it’s a shield. he is not that person. it actually seems exhausting, because he tries to compose himself in this macho, manly, confident and effortlessly cool way, but he’s not that person he desperately wishes he was and wants to be perceived as. he’s on guard every second, even the slightest tilt of his head is like, pre-meditated in some way? if i’m going FULL body language analyst mode, i’ve noticed he has a certain posture he always shifts himself into, and it’s very ‘pursed lips, stoic faced, gruff voiced, square-shoulder, broad and manly’ but, not to be rude jensen, it kind of reads as a little kid imitating the adults he thinks are cool? oof i am going IN huh(it’s out of love though i promise)

he is trying to be this person at every second:

because that’s who he wishes he was, because that’s how he gets validation from the people around him that he looks up to; straight white guys. but to me, who he presents himself to be at conventions is just as much of a performance as this whole eye of the tiger bit is.

oh i should mention i know his body language isn’t naturally like that because how he naturally carries himself is actually pretty flamboyant? like he seriously must be toning himself down HARD

examples:

there’s no tension in his body here as opposed to the eye of the tiger gif. i’d describe it as...generally loose and free? he’s at ease when he moves like that and you can see it.

oh and dude!!! DUDE!!!! how could i not mention the fucking SPECTACLE that is his voice??? jensen. i watched season one. i know where your voice naturally sits. THAT IS NOT WHAT YOU SOUND LIKE. and there have been so many accounts of fans visiting jensen in his trailer and being surprised that his real voice is two octaves higher. again, his performance of masculinity is all encompassing. he can’t even talk normally because, in his mind, that’s a chink in his armour.

and, like you said, anon, this whole smokes-and-mirrors gong show of ‘i am the cool texan man’ is inherently queer. who are you trying to impress??? guys??? that’s pretty gay dude.(btw: gay[honorary])

i feel like i’ve already read this man for filth but i have to keep going bc i have so much to say

ok next thing i’m gonna talk about is how jensen says one thing but everything else about him tells us the exact opposite. another HUGE element of performative masculinity, ONE THAT DEAN WINCHESTER IS A MASTER OF. have i mentioned how dean and jensen are like mirrors of each other when it comes to their sexuality and queer identity??? because it is fascinating how everything i say about jensen also directly applies to dean.

allow me to introduce the grumpy face™. as in, the face he glues on when he’s enjoying doing something but doesn’t want to let anyone know it. and it’s ALWAYS when he’s doing something that could be seen as unmanly in any way. (and when i say manly i mean the ‘ideal’ version of manhood that doesn’t really exist but that jensen seems to be striving for[and dean too])

prime example is this video he did with daneel. the grumpy face™ doesn’t budge the whole time as he’s like,,,,playing an instrument and acting like he doesn’t want to bc i guess that’s too girly??? but i also find this video fascinating because the joke IN it is kind of that they’re both poking fun at him for being so insecure about playing a freaking flute. because, i mean, he gets into it, but he wants you to think he is not.

also this picture.

what is this. i hate them. jensen is smushing himself into misha’s forehead but noooo his face is telling us ‘i hate this’ because CLEARLY he does. also misha’s so happy ew gross

he does that face in photo ops with misha ALL THE TIME but how many times has he also literally asked the con goers if he can also have those photos on his phone too? because of course he actually loves touching misha and is actually a sentimental fool but he tries so hard to hide it and fails so spectacularly.

oh and this. and of COURSE this. actually let’s talk about the hitch kiss for a hot minute because it’s a perfect example of exactly what i’m talking about

(he is so transparent guys. he tries so hard but he’s so obvious.)

1. misha was never supposed to be onstage with him. so it’s a boldface LIE and OBVIOUS PLOY TO GET MISHA TO KISS HIM when he says ‘they’d like us to make out now’. but of course the way he says it is ‘oh my god can you believe what these crazy panel people are making us do haha but i mean what they say goes amirite’. same energy as ‘oh my god did you just dare us to kiss rn???’ ‘....no i didn’t’ ‘oh my god i can’t believe you’d ask that haha but i can’t say no to a dare lol’ it’s the SAME THING

2. the fact that he was in the worst mood before misha came onstage and FAKE KISSING HIM made him feel...SO?? much better? like not just a little better a lot better like, again, that says a lot, because if they weren’t dating he would not be in a better mood if misha kissed his cheek unprompted. bc that cheek kiss wasn’t a joke it was a genuine sign of affection and AHHHH

3. after the kiss happens. you know, the one that jensen actively leans into and is smiling like an idiot the whole time through and is quite clearly having the time of his life during....he says ‘well, that was uncomfortable’. .......my guy. um. i don’t know how to tell you that i do in fact have eyes and you are NOT pulling the fast one you think you are

like i’m so sorry jensen but i have you pegged. it’s literally no use.

god there’s so many instances of him doing this with misha specifically. the whole ‘ew gross lol’ but then everything about him tells us the exact opposite. like this(i hate this. how dare he say ‘he has though, hasn’t he?’ LIKE THAT?????)

so yeah my point with that is he really wants us to think he is one thing when he is the antithesis of what he’s trying to be. he really likes those things that he talks down about, and everything he’s loudly projecting is all to hide how he really feels. he went to a gay bar with daneel, for crying out loud. he wants to play a role in drag. he’s queer and he likes it. pov: you’re jensen ackles train of thought: ‘ok so i really like this thing that people might make fun of me for or call me gay for liking so if i just say ‘lol as if’ and make a grossed-out face they will be FOOLED. i am a genius. hey misha wanna blow on my ear lol i meAN GROSS EW’

i have two more things i want to talk about when it comes to this topic so PLEASE bear with me anon this is why you took so long to answer clearly lmao

ok so we’re now going to go over my favorite hot take of all time. which is ‘how do we know dean’s performing masculinity? because sam isn’t.’ only replace dean with jensen and sam with jared and oh my god do we ever have a case

jared is as STRAIGHT as they come. he is secure in that knowledge. and that’s why he is perfectly comfortable treating misha like this:

and not try to scream ‘i am not enjoying doing this!!!!!!’ at us. because he doesn’t care what we think of his sexuality like jensen does(because he has nothing to hide whereas jensen DOES)

something i found the other day that no one has brought up but i SCREAMED upon finding it is this one clip THAT I CAN’T FIND OH GOD but i promise i’m not making it up. i can’t believe i can’t find it guys it is gold. i need need NEED to talk about it. and if anyone knows what i’m referencing and can apply links in any way i will love you forever but here’s what happens off the top of my head:

ok so i’m a bit too braindead to explain it perfectly but um basically it’s a j2 panel and someone brings up magic mike and i think jared says ‘yeah i didn’t watch it’ and then jensen says ‘all the way through’. stupid joke. whatever. the joke is that jared is gay for watching magic mike.

and then i literally kid you not. jared gets this like ‘jesus christ ok dude? lol’ look on his face and then goes ‘projecting much, mr. ackles?’ and jensen gets a guilty look on his face and walks away. and jared did not say it as a joke. he was being dead pan and earnest. and jensen knew it too, he knew he was projecting. i wish i could show you guys the clip i promise if i ever find it i’ll link it but IS THAT NOT SO DAMNING FOR JENSEN????? like come ON. also proves my point that when you compare how they feel about watching magic mike. jared doesn’t care bc watching it just doesn’t interest him, but he also thinks that just watching it in itself doesn’t make you gay. jensen however.......has a different mindset, clearly.

‘projecting much, mr. ackles?’ is actually a great title for my next and FINAL section(we’re almost there folks) which is how jensen projects his insecurites about his own sexuality and relationship with misha onto misha.

i hope by now we’ve all seen this video of jensen impersonating cas. it is a blatant microaggression on his part. and like obviously homophobic. it’s like in his mind if he makes fun of them for being gay it makes them both less gay somehow??? it’s self-deprecation in a way??? let’s just tell it like it is: that impression was just jensen’s overt internalized homophobia rearing it’s ugly head. he does it a LOT too when it comes to misha.

i mean:

and that whole mess where he’s making fun of misha for being a bottom in their panel in 2016? ‘so you’re saying, like with football terms, there’s a handler and there’s a receiver heheheehe’ jensen you’re not exempt from being gay just because you know football terms lmao

oh and his OTHER impression of misha where he mocks him for...bicycling...because it’s not a manly enough sport??? jensen NO ONE else has ever thought this hard in their lives about what constitutes as masculine enough to be a sport before. that’s all you bud. we don’t find those jokes nearly as funny as you do. you are reaching, sir

the good news is that misha thinks it’s hilarious and knows it’s projecting on jensen’s part and will tease him endlessly for it. many stories come to mind, like that one photo op story where they’re literally dressed in rainbow banners and pride stickers but when misha goes to hold his hand jensen said something like ‘no way’ and then misha stepped back, put his hands on his hips and went ‘that’s the part that’s too gay for you???’ and jensen LOST it

or when that whole underwear thing happened(messy messY MESSY BTW) and then a fan asked a question about what dean and cas would do in rome and misha just said ‘when in rome��� and jensen makes a face like ‘are you serious’ and then misha says ‘you can’t look at me like that anymore, because of what you did!!!!!!’

OH and that whole story about when misha suggested they put jensen in the closet for that cat video....yeah um

and then when jensen was asked to do bisexual finger guns for a photo op and the con goer said ‘he looks bisexual here’ and misha literally said ‘oh he definitely looks bisexual here. i would say he’s actually closer to the gay side of the spectrum’ so..um...make with that as you will

OH MY GOD i’m finally done. wow. WOW. that was a lot. i hope i’ve blown your minds. ty anon i really wanted to talk about this and i hope you’re happy with the outcome!!!!!!

[fandomlurker]

A Ponderous Rewatch: Pavlov’s Mice and Cameo

So thanks to Tumblr nerfing my ability to make an admittedly absurdly long post combining the previous episode rewatch with this one, I had to do this entry in two parts.

But at least now we’re in for the real treat: The first episode in airing order that’s animated by TMS Entertainment. And hey, even the Animaniacs show itself seems to acknowledge that this is special, because theme song rhyme is…

We're Animanie! Totally insane-y!~

Pinky and the Brainy!~

…which hasn’t been done since their debut. So this is gonna be fun.

Might as well get this out of the way, then, since this episode obviously involves Ivan Pavlov. I think most people who know of Pavlov through cultural osmosis pretty much know him as just “that one scientist who got dogs to respond to the sound of bells as if they were being offered food”. This is what happened, but it’s only part of the story. In reality, Ivan Pavlov was doing research on the physiology of digestion in dogs and he noticed one day that the dogs he was studying started to drool in the mere presence of the lab technician who regularly fed them even if the technician didn’t have food with them. Pavlov developed a way to redirect the dogs’ digestive juices outside of the body so that they could be measured, and then he ran some conditioning experiments to see if he could get them to salivate in response to external stimuli that had nothing to do with food, like ringing a bell.

The year in the title card, 1904, was the year Ivan Pavlov was awarded the Nobel Prize for the previously mentioned experiments, which he published the results of in “The Work of the Digestive Glands” in 1897. Basically, by 1904 he was done with his work with dogs and he moved on to experimenting with mice…at least according to this article in National Geographic by Virgina Hughes.

With that, let’s begin the episode proper.

“At the dawn of the 20th century, Russian scientist, Ivan Pavlov, trained animals through his technique of conditioned reflex” says the narrator as we zoom in on a laboratory with Pavlov and our lovable mouse duo.

“Time to earn your dinner, my little mousey friends!”

It’s interesting how Pinky is the one that flinches uncomfortably at the loud sound of the gong while Brain simply snaps into his conditioned response. And that response? Uhhh…

“I’m a little teapot, short and stout.~”

“This is my handle, this is my spout.~”

(Is he…you know…?)

“When I get all steamed up, hear me shout!~”

“Tip me over and pour me out.~”

Oh no… This is a cute and funny scene and all, but when you know about Brain’s canonical issues with how he hates not being in control of a situation and all the traumas he’s endured (for those of you not in the know, yes, Brain does have a lot of trauma in his backstory that we learn about much later, both in the 90s spin-off and the reboot) regarding both general control and losing family and friends…there’s a bitter tinge to this scene.

He’s so embarrassed and humiliated.

He takes the cheese but he is positively fuming with rage, and I can’t exactly blame him from what I know about him.

This is made all the worse by Pinky’s innocent reaction to Brain’s little song and dance.

“Hahahahaha! Wonderful! Hahaha! EGAD, Brain, I could watch you do that dance all day! Haha, narf!”

For Pinky, this is harmless silliness and he gets to see Brain sing and dance and “have fun”, which is not a usual occurrence. But for Brain? Well...

“You have watched it all day, Pinky. Sixty-one times, to be exact. It’s a conditioned reflex to that infernal gong.”

“I’m powerless to stop it!”

Well, Brain, at the very least it’s not like you were a part of a more inhumane experiment like one regarding, say, learned helplessness or anything. …Oh wait. Whoops. (For those sensitive to animal abuse, I suggest refraining from clicking on the second link, and caution against clicking on the first if even more clinical text descriptions of such would upset you. The third link is spoilers for the reboot.)

All that aside, it seems like it’s Pinky’s turn. He gets the more traditional bell chime for his stimulus.

And the result is him going into an uncontrollable and very enthusiastic Slavic folk dance.

With violent results. I hope you appreciate that last screencap, as the animation goes by so quickly I had a lot of trouble isolating the part where Pinky kicks Brain and he goes flying.

Pinky is all too happy to get a reward of cheese, his favourite food, for doing something that he has no memory of.

“What’cha doin’ over there, Brain?”

“Contemplating your afterlife, Pinky.”

That’s not exactly fair, Brain, you know he has no control over this. To Brain’s credit, though, he doesn’t bop him or anything for kicking him involuntarily.

Pavlov leaves, playfully saying that he hopes the mice dream of cheese tonight, and the mice are immediately down to business.

“At last, he’s gone.”

“Now we can begin our conquest of the world!”

We’re already back to it being “our” conquest of the world, eh?

“Behold my latest creation, Pinky: The Vacuum-o-nator.”

Brain has never been good with naming things, has he? At least, not so far. I wonder if this will continue throughout the franchise?

Pinky is certainly very happy and impressed, though.

“It uses reverse air pressure to vacuum everything toward it.”

You know, I was just about to roast Brain for thinking that making a very odd version of a vacuum cleaner was such a brilliant thing, but then I remembered that this takes place in 1904. The vacuum cleaner as we know it was “invented independently by British engineer Hubert Cecil Booth and American inventor David T. Kenney” in 1901 according to Wikipedia, and portable vacuums were available to the general public starting in 1905.My apologies, Brain, that actually is very impressive.

Although, this all hinges on if the viewer considers episodes that take place in the past and/or at different locations than Acme Labs California to be mere Alternate Universe/What If? stories or Brain and Pinky using some kind of time machine to go to a different place and time for these episodes. (Before you tell me that this is just a cartoon and sicc the Please, Please Get a Life Foundation on me, I do this to have fun and maybe educate myself and the reader along the way. I promise I have a life. Barely.)

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking, Pinky?”

“Uhh… Yeah, Brain! But where are we gonna find rubber pants our size?”

Pinky, that’s… Listen, folks, don’t make the same mistake I did and google “rubber pants”. It’s not what you think it is. You will be disappointed.

BONK!

Seems like you’re enjoying yourself there, Pinky.

“No, Pinky. We’re going to use the Vacuum-o-nator to steal Russia’s crown jewels!”

Man, the animation for even this one small proclamation by Brain is so, so good. Brain standing authoritatively and holding the pen like a scepter or spear, the grand sweep of his arm as he says “no”, the serious and slightly menacing expression on his face, a violent and grabby swing of his arm on the word “steal”,  and a dramatic point and look up towards the sky when he finishes. TMS does great work, folks.

“Narf! Genius, Brain!”

Look at Brain’s satisfied smile at Pinky’s simple compliment. Remember what I said earlier about Brain going through his explanations to show off to and  impress Pinky? At this point I’m absolutely convinced that that’s why Brain turns up the theatrics more than necessary when going through his plans. After all, Pinky is (oddly and rather sadly) the only one in-universe who thinks Brain is a genius and a good person.

…Of course, the effect can sometimes be lessened by subsequent innocent bumbling.

“Turn it off, Pinky.”

He says this so exasperatedly yet so deadpan at the same time, it’s great.

“Oh! Right-o!”

Even Pinky immediately knows that he fucked up.

“Zort! Whew! Wild hairdo, Brain! Heh heh, I like it.”

He even pets Brain’s “hairdo”, aww. And though I personally could take or leave the ‘do, I like the pointed, sharp look this mishap’s given to his ears.

BONK!

“Now I feel cleansed.”

Okay, this one might have been a little too much, Brain.

“But Brain, aren’t the crown jewels always guarded by giant Cossacks?”

Well, Pinky, from what I know Cossacks were usually used extensively in the police force and as border guards during this time, so I guess that’s possible?

Brain picking the lock with the pen is a fun little detail.

“Don’t worry about the guards… For tonight, Pinky, at precisely 1 am, there’s a total lunar eclipse. “

Again, this is probably not a thing the average person could look up quickly and easily in the 90s and the writers most likely didn’t care about accuracy here, but there were no total lunar eclipses in 1904. There were some penumbral lunar eclipses in March and September of that year, though. Just a fun fact for you folks.

“The Earth’s shadow will completely cover the moon, blacking out all of St. Petersburg for a period of 30 seconds.”

Brain…?!? Brain, how did you get the diagram on that piece of paper to animate like that? What kind of Harry Potter-style magic bullshit is this?

I know this is a cartoon and all and I’m not truly upset but this honestly came out of nowhere and made me do a double-take.

“In that brief time, we will sneak past the Czar’s guards under the cover of darkness and steal the crown jewels…for he who controls the jewels controls Mother Russia!”

More dramatics!

“But…I thought your mother’s name was Désirée?”

I love Brain’s pose here. Very grumpy and sassy.

As for Pinky’s comment: We do get to meet Brain’s parents way later in the spin-off, though neither are addressed by any name. I’m taking this joke as canon anyway because it’s funny.

Well, well, well… Looks like we’re shaking things up a bit with an inking instead of a bonk. That’s gonna be a pain to get out of his white fur, though.

“Soon, Pinky, I will rule Russia…so from now on, call me Czar.”

Another sassy hand-on-hip pose.

“Right-o, Brain!”

“—eek! Czar Brain!”

“Come along, Pinky… Conquest awaits!”

Nice to know that despite the inking, Pinky’s still following him anyway. Plus he’s doing it with that fond look on his face again. Hmm…

What follows is a cute and ingenious sequence of Brain launching Pinky and himself through an open window via the spring force of a mousetrap. It goes by very quickly, but I just wanted to highlight a few things I managed to notice while pausing through it. Kudos to the animators again for these little details.

Pinky’s the one that wraps one arm around Brain’s shoulders so that Brain has both hands free to spring the mousetrap properly and so that they’ll be launched together.

Interestingly enough, Pinky’s the cautious one who braces for impact right away while Brain gleefully flies through the air with his arms outstretched.

The “camera” changes perspective and while Brain is still boldly flying forward with confidence, Pinky is still worried but has now opened his eyes as they fly towards the window.

Pinky’s still holding onto Brain and the Vacuum-o-nator as tight as he can. As they get closer to the window, however…

…Pinky seems to realize he’s going to smash into the wall above the window if he doesn’t let go, so he lets go of Brain. Brain doesn’t realize where his trajectory is taking him.

Pinky angles himself downward and through the open window, but it’s too late for Brain.

WHAM! RIP, Brain.

But his pain is not done! It looks like Pinky’s landing was in the soft snow. Meanwhile, Brain slides down onto the window and through the opening, only to bash into the lid of a garbage can, much to Pinky’s concern.

Then Brain falls headfirst into the snow.

And finally, Brain is clonked on the head by the same garbage can lid, which makes a loud gong noise. Someone get this poor mouse some Aspirin.

But since there was a gong noise, you all know what that means!

Cutely, Pinky joins in on the dance in the middle of it.

“Ha! Oh that was fun, Czar Brain! But let’s give it another go, right? Only this time with feeling!”

Man, that side-eye at the beginning from Brain…

Pinky’s body language is great in this episode, too. The gleeful flapping of his arms and feet and the “with feeling” gesture are fantastic examples of his more open and energetic nature coming through.

Oh hey, there’s that one shot of Brain being ticked off used in the spin-off theme song! I can’t exactly blame him for his anger here. He just went through a lot of pain in a short amount of time and was then involuntarily made to humiliate himself. Pinky doesn’t mean to be mean here—he genuinely wants to have some sing and dance fun with Brain—but it’s gotta sting to have the humiliation highlighted.

Pinky still doesn’t deserve a bonking for it, though. But it’s slapstick, so he’s fine.

Heh, “deliveries to rear” indeed.

Oh, are those jingle bells on a sleigh that I see?

Uh oh…

“No, Pinky… Not now!”

It cannot be stopped, Brain. He must dance!

Another quick detail as Brain launches himself at Pinky’s midsection to either topple him over or hold him still to get Pinky to stop.

Alas, Pinky’s dancing is too strong.

OUCH!

The face of regret.

His punishment is swiftly thwarted, though.

“…That was unpleasant.”

They take a different and more uneventful ride on a hay wagon to the palace.

I love the exaggerated perspective going on here.

Peekin’.

“We made it inside, Brain!”

“…’Czar Brain’.”

“Czar Brain.”

He says it so quietly and sweetly, aww.

“Yes, Pinky. There are fleeting moments when I even amaze myself.”

I…don’t know if it’s much of an accomplishment yet, Brain. Settle that ego down a bit.

Oh, that’s some classic Looney Tunes-style sneaking animation there.

Wait, why is the door to the treasure room just open behind them? Czar Nicolas II, what gives?

Speaking of…

Hello, Czar Nicolas II. I hope you’re enjoying your “eclipse party”. You only have another 14 years or so to live it up, after all.

“In just a few minutes, it’ll be totally dark and scary. OooOOoo!~ But don’t anyone touch me, I have cooties!”

I, uhhh. Okay, then.

Same, boys. Same. Best to get down to business.

“Behold the crown jewels of Mother Russia, Pinky. World conquest will soon be ours!”

Again, world conquest is “ours” and not just Brain’s. Also you can just tell Pinky’s thinking “I’m going to wear so much of this jewelry!”

“Now, Brain?”

“Not yet. Wait for the total eclipse.”

Speaking of…

“Complete darkness, Pinky. Start the Vacuum-o-nator…”

“NOW!”

That gonging noise is an interesting choice for a chime. Surely this ornate clock is only an omen of good things for our duo.

Pinky, you’re swooning again. And Brain…

Oh no.

Another clock! Who’d have thought Russian nobility loved clocks so much? This one has a more pleasant bell chime, though.

…Oh NO!

Well, looks like things are going to hell pretty quickly.

Goodbye, boys.

Goodbye, Czar Nicolas II! You might wanna look out for a man named Grigori Rasputin in the future, okay?

Nice hat, Brain.

“Whu--? The eclipse is over? Narf! What happened, Brain?”

BONK!

“Zort! I mean, Czar Brain.”

“We failed again, Pinky… But just wait until tomorrow night!”

“Why? What are we going to do tomorrow night, Brain?”

“What else, Pinky?: Try to take over the world!”

It was a nice try, boys, but honestly I don’t know how you were going to fit all those crown jewels into that tiny improvised vacuum bag, anyway.

One last cute little detail in this episode is our mousey duo jumping up with enthusiastic determination in front of the silhouette of the moon on the last note of the theme reprise. One day, you guys. One day…

Oh! And before I forget, have another short cameo from “Plane Pals”. It’s a tiny one.

Pinky and the Brain steal a sheep off of an airplane. For what purpose? Who knows? But that’s it. I’m kind of wondering if the writers wanted to make a running joke of them making cameos to steal random things for world conquering purposes and just sort of gave up.

Anyway, so ends our recap for this post. It sure was a long one, but what can I say? There were some very cute details that needed to be shared. Have we learned anything new this time? Well, I mean, besides historical trivia.

Brain thinks both he and Pinky are great actors, despite his own near inability to lie and keep up an innocent pretense. Oh, he can be sarcastic, sure, but he can’t seem to manage to stop himself from revealing that he’s out for world  domination whenever he has an audience.

For the first time we see Brain’s annoyance and humiliation resulting from him being a lab mouse. Though it’s on the more subtle side at the moment, Brain seemed extra grumpy and violent during that last     episode because of the conditioning he’s unwillingly gone through. I’m     curious to see if there are any more examples of this before we reach an  episode touching on his origin story. Or…one of his origin stories, at     least. There’s around four of them last I checked and all but one of them  can reasonably fit into the others.

Pinky is truly beginning to show how much he adores Brain, which is nice. Beforehand we knew he was down with his world domination plans for whatever reason and also that he thinks Brain’s plans are great and ingenious. Now, though, we’ve gotten to the point of him literally swooning at Brain and his plans. Something’s definitely brewing there.

Next time: We get some more substantial cameos, join our mouse duo on a Fort Knox heist, and meet a new character that is both pretty important to the “lore” of the show going forward…but also doesn’t appear in person after their introductory episode until the very end of the Animaniacs and Pinky and the Brain spin-off run.

See you then!

[staticscreenwriting]

I don’t love you // Chapter 1

Chapter One - Bluebird 

Synopsis: Jess is over Rory, only he’s not. Olivia is tired of trying to find the one piece missing from her life, only she’s not. A wedding, a bus ride, a lost notebook and an unforseen offer bring these two together and spark the idea that maybe the best people do enter your life in the most unexpected ways. A/N: I’ve uploaded parts of this story before on a blog specifically dedicated to it but I want most of my writing in one place so here’s a reupload. This is NOT a literati fic! 

" There's a bluebird in my heart that wants to get out but I'm too tough for him,I say, stay in there,

I'm not going to let anybody see you. "

- Bluebird (Charles Bukowski)

There was an ice cold beer clutched in his hand, half empty already, and a lady to his right that had been trying to engage in a conversation about the weather for the last 15 minutes. None of that really mattered, none of that he really acknowledged.

There was only her. Her dancing and laughing and singing along to the cheesy pop songs he knew she'd never admit to liking but secretly sang along to at home when she thought no one was watching. Her and the way her hair that had been perfectly pinned back earlier was now slowly coming undone, strands framing her perfect face that had changed so much and yet so little in all this time.

Her and her all consuming, breathtaking, heart shattering beauty. Her and all the memories of all the feelings that had ever been there and would always be there.

God, he was so screwed.

This was the "I love you" all over again, the Yale visit, the open house. He had honestly thought he had left this part of his past behind. That he was over her. He had tried over and over and it never ended with a happily ever after for him, not with her. Maybe they just weren't meant to be.

He had really thought he'd learned his lesson and yet here he was staring at her and wondering if he'd ever completely get over her or if he might be doomed to forever be in love with Rory Gilmore.

" You know if you keep staring at her any longer it's gonna change from kinda cute to downright creepy, right ?! " he heard his younger cousin's voice speak up as she plopped down in the seat to his right, the weather lady had apparently gotten the hint that he was not interested in a conversation with her and had wandered off at some point.

" What do you know ? Aren't you busy being edgy, smoking, finding yourself ? " he replied and gave April little smirk and a friendly shove with his shoulder. She was a peculiar one his cousin, had been since the first time he'd met her but she'd done a lot of growing up over the years and had turned from a strange kid into quite the smart and witty adult, pseudo hippy phase and all.

" Haha, aren't you funny, Jess. Seriously though, what's up with the longing looks ? "

" Ah you know, just figuring out that I'm still in love with the girl I dated when I was in high school. The girl that made me change into the person I am today. The girl that is the sole reason I became a better person. " Is what he thought but there was no way in hell Jess would ever talk about his feelings. Ever. " Don't know what you're talking about. "

" Sure you don't. Just sayin' you could go over there and actually talk to her instead of glaring a hole through her head."

That he could do, but what would he say ?

"Hey Rory, sorry to interrupt but I just realized that part of me is still madly in love with you. " ?

" Oh hi there Rory, been watching you all night wondering if we ever stood a chance, wondering if we still might stand one. Wondering if this could ever be us, getting married and all that. " ?

Those were the things that were ghosting through his head but he'd be damned if he ever told those to anyone, especially Rory. He'd tried that before, multiple times, and look how that turned out. To be fair one of those times he ran off, but that was only that one time.

No, there really wasn't anything he could tell her that would change anything about this situation. She had enough on her plate as it was, she was writing a book for god's sake and if anyone knew how stressful and chaotic that time is, it was Jess. The last thing she'd need was him bringing up old feelings and confusion.

" There's nothing to talk about. "

" Okay, James Dean. I know that whole repressing your emotions deal runs in the family and works well with the grumpy mysterious guy image you're trying to maintain but that needs to stop. You're clearly still into this girl and I'm not gonna sit here and watch you throw away what might be your last shot at your epic love story. "

" Oh Jesus when did you start getting so corny. Does Lorelei make you watch 80s romcoms when you're over at their place ? Does Luke know she's doing this to you ? "

" Jess, I'm serious. Sometimes you gotta fight for the things you want. "

For the first time in a while Jess left his gaze drift from Rory and turned towards his cousin.

" I'm 33 years old, April. I'm done fighting over girls, fighting for girls. Things either work out or they don't and they obviously didn't for me and her. "

" But what if you're her Luke ? "

" What if I'm not ? What if I don't want to be ? I don't want her to settle for me after years and years of trying. I want to be a conscious decision. For once in my life I want someone to chose me. Not because of a feeling of guilt or nostalgia or comfort or because they feel like they owe me or because they feel responsible. I'm done with this. I can't do it all over again. "

A silence settled upon them as neither of them really knew where those words had suddenly come from. If there was one thing you didn't except from Jess Mariano it was as sudden outburst of honest emotions.

" Okay. "

" Okay ? "

" Okay, I get it. I didn't mean to push you to do something you don't want to do. I just wanted to help. I want you to be happy. "

" I am happy. "

" Are you ? "

Was he ? Yeah. Sure. Truncheon was going well, he liked his job, liked his coworkers, his friends. He had his own little apartment & his own car. He was in the process of coming up with ideas for a second book. He wasn't particularly phased by the fact that he'd been single for a while now either. Whenever he felt like it Jess had no problem sweet talking a girl at a bar. Girls, he had found out a while ago, were totally into the broody writer persona.

Was he truly happy though ? He didn't know.

" Yeah. "

" Okay. "

" Look, April. You know I'm not big on the whole family reunion stuff, especially here in Stars Hollow where half the population still holds a grudge against me. I came for Luke but he and Lorelei ran off a while ago so there's really no harm in me leaving too, right ? "

It was the truth, Jess wasn't particularly thrilled about returning to the Connecticut town he'd spend some time in as a teenager, but there was no way in hell he could've said no to Luke. The man had done more for him than anyone in his entire life, his mom included. He'd been one of the few who'd believed in him when even Jess himself had almost lost hope that he'd ever amount to something. He owed Luke so much and showing up to his wedding was the least he could do.

" You've been drinking. "

" Last bus is leaving in 20 minutes. "

" To Philly ? That's a long ass drive, Jess. Are you sure you don't wanna crash at the apartment above Luke's and leave tomorrow ? "

" I got a book with me, it'll be fine. No offense April, but if I don't leave now I'm just getting sucked back into things that I should've left behind a long time ago."

" What about your car ? "

" I was thinking, maybe my favorite cousin would like to come visit me in Philadelphia before she goes back home, and maybe she could bring my car with her? " April stared at him for a moment and Jess could see the gears turning in her head, trying to come up with an idea to get him to stay. His mind was made up though, if he'd stay he'd have to get drunk and if there was one place Jess Mariano didn't want be drunk at, it was the town center of Stars Hollow with his ex girlfriend in close proximity.

" Alright " April said and let out a defeated sigh " Be careful and don't talk to any sleazy looking guys. "

" Yeah okay, mom. " Jess replied and took a last sip on his now empty bottle of beer.

As he got up off the chair, Jess' glance wandered back over to Rory. He could go after her, fight for her, show her the man he was today and how this was all for her. He could. But he didn't. Because he was scared ? Maybe. But also because he was just tired. Tired of running after the same girl over and over again. Always failing.

" Just so you know, I don't think you're doing the right thing. Just running from your emotions. " April spoke up. " Well cousin, I don't think you're doing the right thing getting your nose pierced and acting like a pothead when they could probably sell you oregano without you noticing. Yet here I am, accepting your decisions. "

" You're an ass. " April responded as a small smirk tugged at the corners of her lips.

" That's family. Thought you'd be used to that by now. Seriously though, don't worry about me kid. "

" That's family, Jess. We always worry. Thought you'd be used to that by now " She replied with a smile before walking away, back into the sea of Stars Hollow residents that were singing and dancing to some obscure 90s popsong.

This family, his family, was quite honestly a mess. It was a family though, something he hadn't had for the longest time. And no matter how strange or broken over overly intrusive or annoying they were, they meant the world to him. Because they were his people and to them, to Luke and April he was a conscious decision. It was their decision to care and to worry and Sometimes you gotta admit defeat.

With one last look towards Rory, the girl that changed it all, Jess turned his back towards the gazebo covered in dozens of fairy lights and the quirky town that surrounded it and took on the walk towards the bus stop. Maybe April was right and he was just running from his emotions and his crippling fear of rejection. But so what ? Sometimes you gotta let yourself be scared to save yourself from pain.

Sometimes you gotta run.

[sysba]

Helloooo! Spare some winter headcanons for Adam and Edith ma’am? (Deep relationship prolly cuzzzzz u kno 😂)

-n-t💖

i live to serve you, especially when you’re asking for deep-relationship content 😌 (we’ve discussed like 90% of these already, sorry dfkjd)

as you know miss edith’s concept of winter attire is just. the same as her fall/spring attire but with sleeves? so she's gonna be cold at all times but won't admit it. so there WILL be a lot of 'banter' about that, which basically means adam is constantly scolding her and then begging her to dress accordingly to the weather because a leather jacket is not suitable for a snowstorm, detective!

incidentally, a lot of adam grumpily giving her his jacket. when possible he even brings an extra jacket because he knows what's up.

she’s just grouchy and oppositional about the whole thing but secretly loves it and will totally check if anyone’s around and then give him a quick kiss mumbling a ‘thanks’ (not all the times, but say... 40% at least lol)

edith saw adam wearing a knitted sweater (1) time and absolutely finds the way to make him wear one again. i don't know how, but if she has to burn the rest of his clothes she will do it just to see him in a damn knitted sweater okay? priorities. (also if he realizes she likes him dressed like that you KNOW  he's gonna wear a sweater everyday lmao simp)

making hot beverages for each other. it's about the Gesture, cuz they could both go without it but the implication of casual gestures like that means a lot to them. adam probably makes her some of nate's fancy teas, while edith would make him the thing he tolerates the most ig? maybe mulled wine or something (he strikes me as someone who likes mulled wine idk)

having to avoid all the mistletoe kiara strategically hung around... yes, even in deep relationship because they can't just,,, let kiara win,,,, (if no one sees they are totally going to kiss shhh)

edith doesn't celebrate christmas, and even though adam would i don't think he's so set on it? so no christmas traditions for them, unless they get dragged into it by someone else lol...

they do be sitting there silently judging people who decorate for christmas in november lol

even more cuddles because ooh no it's so cold outside haha we better keep each other warm 🥶😇 (out of sight, OBVIOUSLY)

because of the weather and the holidays, edith is less likely to buy takeout like she usually does, and because she doesn't like cooking i can see adam cooking for her/them cooking together in comfortable silence.

snow days aren't as exciting for them as they are for others *cough cough felix*... snow it's kind of unpractical? it makes it hard to drive and it's wet and cold, doesn't matter how pretty it is because it's annoying af. i don't envy the rest of UB having to deal with them (plus M) being all grumpy about snow...

THAT SAID, we're still on for that snowball fight we discussed ddhfkkd you know they would, it's the Competitiveness™

edith be like *tsk who cares about new year's eve* *absolutely initiates the midnight kiss and it's borderline nsfw for how passionate it is* (cue to M's smirk of approval)

don't even TRY to say the words 'Valentine's Day' lmao we don't do that here (okay to be fair, Adam would. too bad he chose to date edith)

one thing edith could 100% do: rent a place where they can just be together alone (provided they don't have to work of course). sort of a weekend getaway, somewhere peaceful (and remote, knowing edith) where they can just be alone. that's the dream. doesn't even have to be far because i doubt they're even gonna leave the room ops <3

[scrapyardboyfriends]

Do you think emmerdale may have put the brakes on Aaron's new romance because they know it'll only be popular when there's actual physical contact.

I think they probably initially delayed the story due to Covid reasons, in part perhaps not being able to have physical contact but also because the timelines of other stories were all out of whack. 

I suppose it could still be a consideration but every story is being told in such a frustratingly repetitive way, this one just seems like par for the course. It’s just that their repetitive scenes are weeks apart instead of daily. 

For me though, at this point, I think Covid anything is a poor excuse for poor storytelling. They’ve had months to sort this stuff out. I think we all knew back in like June or July that this wasn’t going away any time soon and that restrictions were probably going to be in place for the time being, so I really think they needed to just tell the best story they could within the parameters they were stuck with and I don’t think they have at all. 

Because there’s no reason that they could not have made Ben more of an actual character in the meantime, having him up at the HOP more and involved in that stuff, involved with actual other characters. And there’s no reason they couldn’t have added in some scenes of him and Aaron getting to know each other and becoming friends. I’m sure they could have swapped them in for some of the repetitive scenes in other plots and no one would have even noticed. Haha. 

I was rewatching some of the lead up to Christmas 2017 this morning and when I feel like they did a better job with Alex than they’re doing with Ben, you know there’s a problem. And it’s not just that they were able to touch. Alex was just “a doctor” but at least him being a doctor allowed him to interact with other characters. He took a look at Zak and met those Dingles. He was Robert’s doctor and Lachlan’s doctor. That one scene where Aaron was trying to get them out of lunch with the family and he had Alex pretend to get a call from the hospital and they walked out of the pub giggling together did more for their plotty relationship than anything they’ve done with Aaron and Ben thus far because at least they looked like they were getting along for that one moment. 

And sure, Aaron still looked miserable 90% of the time with Alex but there was like a range of miserable emotions. Haha. There was “standard grumpy” Aaron, there was “pining for my husband grumpy”, there was “shy about new relationships grumpy”, there was “worried about my scars grumpy”, there was “my god I hate my family grumpy”, there was “I’m really trying to give this a shot and make this work moments that were slightly less grumpy”. At least there was some variation. With Ben, it’s just like “I’m just grumpy for no real reason”. If it’s going to work at all, they need to make them look like they actually like spending time together. 

I don’t know, whatever the show’s reasons are, I don’t think they’re really all that valid because there are things they can do within Covid restrictions to make all of this better and more believable and they’re just not even trying. 

Sorry....this turned into another long rant. I just have a lot of feelings about bad storytelling. 

[surveys4ever]

25.

Section 1 – Who were you?

Think back as far as you can. What is the first memory you have? I think meeting my (now) dad for the first time when he and my mom were dating. I was very upset because he was short and that’s not what dads were supposed to look like in my 3 year old eyes since my bio dad was super tall.

What is something you remember enjoying very much as a small child? Playing Barbies, watching Barney, Happy Meals, being with my grandma.

How old were you, when you made your very first friend? Probably preschool.

Are you still friends with this person today? Facebook friends, yeah. Real friends, no.

Was there a story somebody read or told you that has stuck with you? No one ever read to me after I learned to read for myself so one day I was sick and I came home and curled up with my mom on the couch and asked her to read me a Little Mermaid book I had and she did, even though I had to get up to go shit myself halfway through and it meant a lot to me at the time.

What is something you get an immense feeling of nostalgia from? Hannah Montana for some reason. It was my favorite show and we didn’t get the Disney channel so whenever we went to a hotel, nobody could tell me fuckin NOTHING because we were watching Hannah Montana whether they liked it or not.

As a child, were you a sore loser or a sore winner? I was the only child for 8 years and then the oldest after that so I never lost at anything and now when I do, I feel like I'm the biggest piece of shit loser there’s ever been. So that’s fun.

Did you go through the "naked phase"? I learned that you didn’t have to sleep in pajamas and you could just sleep naked so I did it for a while but then realized that I much preferred pajamas.

Which television shows do you watch the most as a child? I loved TV so basically all of the 90′s/early 2000′s shows there were.

Did you play with siblings, neighbourhood kids or by yourself? Either with neighborhood/school kids or by myself. I didn’t ever really have siblings who weren’t my kids, if that makes sense.

Is there something you really miss from your childhood today? I miss back when everything was simple.

Section 2 – Likes and interests  

Would you ever like to try competitive pinball playing? Ummm, no.

Do you knit, crochet or cross stitch? I’m trying to teach myself to crochet.

Have you ever, or would you like to attend a gaming or comic convention? No thx.

What's your opinion on online multiplayer games? I really liked Among Us for a while there but I don’t really enjoy how rude everyone is on online games.

Do you like to go cycling? If so, where? Uh no.

Have you ever tried woodturning? If not, would you like to? Never tried it, don’t really have any desire to, but it can be relaxing to watch!

Do you enjoy drawing? If so, what do you usually draw? I do! I usually draw graphics for YouTube videos or doodle over Instagram photos, draw things to put on shirts with my Cricut, etc. I use my iPad for so many things.

Have you ever attended a painting class? If so, what did you create? I haven’t but I would like to!

How about a creative writing course? If so, did you get any feedback? I took Creative Writing literally every year it was offered in high school and I always got awards for having the top marks in the class.

What is your favourite form of exercise? No thank you.

Section 3 – People  

Who is the most important person in your life (besides yourself)? My husband.

Do people generally approach you easily? I think so!

Do you get along with people well? If not, what's the problem? Yeah! I’m pretty friendly and easy going.

Do you enjoy being in crowds or do you prefer your own company? I would much prefer my own company than crowds.

Which one of your friends have you known the longest? I still talk to the girl I was best friends with in the 6th grade on occasion so like 17-18 years?

Do you find it easy to make friends now? If not, what makes it difficult? As an adult who works from home, making friends is hard as fuck. 

What is something about people that annoys you? Something I've noticed in recent years is just how entitled and greedy everyone is. Everybody wants something from you or for your skills to benefit them without them putting in any work or paying you for your time. It’s just gross.

What is something about people that you really like? We have really, really harsh winters and if you ever find yourself in the ditch for whatever reason, there will be a lineup of cars stopped behind you to help you push it out or let you chill in their car while you wait for a tow truck. On the really bad blizzard days, there are groups of men in big trucks that literally L I V E to go around and help pull people’s cars out of the ditch. It’s the only time I feel like there’s actually a sense of community around here.

If you live alone, what would be your criteria for a roommate? I honestly would never have a roommate because they could either be your friend or a stranger and living with friends is a good way to ruin a friendship if your living styles aren’t similar and living with a stranger just sounds like a nightmare.

How about criteria for a spouse, if you're single? I am married but my criteria was honestly that I just wanted him to be kind and funny and I got that tenfold with my husband.

In general, what's your attitude towards people? I can’t stand to be around grumpy people. If all you do is gripe and complain about literally everything, I’m out. No thank you. Why is your hobby being angry? Take up knitting or something for christ’s sake.

Section 4 – Habits

What is something you do every day without fail? Baby talk the dog and snuggle with Beebs.

What is your typical breakfast? I’m a leftovers for breakfast kinda gal but lately I’ve been having a bagel and watermelon.

Which article of clothing do you like to wear the most? I loooove me a good baggy T-shirt and booty shorts.

Is there a TV show you watch habitually? We’re currently watching Unhhhh while we eat dinner every night, haha!

Where do you usually spend most of your day? I really only sit in 4 places--bed, the couch, my makeup/work desk, or my sewing desk. Depends on the day which one I’m at.

Is there a product that you do not want to run out of? Moisturizer. I’m a dry son of a bitch.

What is your preferred mode of transport? Car!

Do you usually have something playing in the background when you're home? Nah. I’m in silence a lot of the time.

Where do you usually get your groceries? Walmart for the bulk of it, a local grocery store for the specialty items, and Target if we ever run out of something midweek because I cannot handle Walmart more than once a week.

How often do you go to your local park? Like once or twice a month in the summer!

Which of your hobbies do you indulge in most often? Sewing and Sims currently!

Section 5 – Favourites and dislikes

What is your favourite fruit? Watermelon!

How about your favourite berry? Strawberries are the only berry I like.

Which food do you highly dislike? Fish. It’s all disgusting.

What is your favourite song, and why? I hate this question. Who can pick one definitive favorite song out of the bajillions of songs that have been written??

What is a movie you cannot stand? Anything with Seth Rogen in it, any movie that's got a 3+ after it (looking @ you, Fast & Furious), and all the fuckin’ superhero movies that have the same ‘ah yes, this undefeatable bad guy that we have absolutely no chance against and will undoubtedly kill us all--but we’re going to pull through at the last second with the power of friendship!’ plot line.

Which trait in a person do you find most appealing? I don’t know how to describe it--certain people just have that spark and you can always tell right away if they’ve got it or not and those are my favorite kind of people.

Which trait puts you instantly off? If they’re religious it’s an instant no from me, dog.

Who is an actor/actress who you dislike so much you can't watch them? I really, really dislike Tom Holland. I honestly think he’s a terrible actor.

What colour are your favourite shoes? White!

What is a smell that disgusts you to no end? B.O., on me or others. I just can’t deal with it.

Which door handle/door knob do you like the most in your home? They’re all the same.

Section 6 – Culture

What is something very typical to the culture of your home country? Apple pie and baseball are the only things coming to mind atm.

Do you enjoy art? If so, which form of art is the most enjoyable? I do! But I prefer art that you can look at and know the artist is incredibly gifted and/or has put in a ton of time and effort to master their skills. None of that million dollar paint smear on a canvas shit.

What is something about another country's culture you don't understand? I feel like other cultures take their family and their family’s approval way too seriously. That might be rich coming from someone who doesn’t have a very good relationship with their family but I just don’t understand what the point of making yourself miserable to make your family happy is.

Do you ever attend the theater? If so, which play did you see last? Last thing I saw in a theater was Shangela perform a drag show, haha!

How about the opera or the ballet? Nope.

Which dance troupe do you enjoy, if any? ...they still do that?

Do you attend concerts or gigs? If so, which band did you see last? Not as much as I’d like to as no one good really comes here very often. Last band we saw was X Ambassadors and Paramore!

Are you interested in foreign food? I’m not uninterested but I’m not super interested either.

If so, which country's cuisine do you enjoy the most? Chinese...albiet probably a very Americanized version of Chinese.

Do you enjoy stand-up comedy? If so, who is your favourite comic? I doooo! Bo Burnham and Drew Lynch are my favorites.

Do you contribute to culture in some way? If so, how? I try to? I’m an influencer so I definitely have a platform of a couple hundred thousand people. Not sure what exactly I contribute tho.

Section 7 – Charity

Do you volunteer your time to anything charitable? If so, what? Newp.

Do you donate money to any charities? If so, which ones? No. I don’t trust a lot of charities, to be quite honest. A lot of them are very shady and I’d rather donate money directly to someone who needed it rather than it getting tied up in a charity where it might never actually see the people they claim to be helping.

If you have pets, are any of them rescues from shelters? We adopted our dog from one of my husband’s coworkers but she probably would have gone to the shelter if we didn’t take her.

Do you donate your old clothes, linen etc. to charitable organizations? Yes! We almost always have a bag of donations in our trunk that we always forget to take to the thrift store when we go.

If someone you know is in need, is it in your nature to offer help? If I can, yes!

Have you ever donated Christmas presents to children of poor families? We used to do that when I was a kid.

Have you ever had to rely on other people's charity? One Christmas when I was really young I remember my parents signed up for a sponsorship through the Salvation Army where a family adopted us and bought us Christmas presents and Christmas dinner or whatever.

How do you feel about donating to charities endorsed by celebrities? I would never donate to a charity simply because it was sponsored by a celebrity but I guess its the easiest way for a charity to get the word out that they need donations.

Is there a charity you absolutely never ever will not trust? PETA, Salvation Army, Goodwill, and that breast cancer one with the horrible CEO.

Have you ever donated to a cause that had a person going door to door? No. I extra wouldn’t if someone came knocking on my door asking for money.

In general, what is your opinion on charity? I already did my rant about them, haha.

Section 8 – Entertainment

Which was the very first video game you remember playing? Ocarina of Time I believe!

Which was the very first film you remember watching? That I don’t remember. Maybe that Barney movie with the magic egg?

What is your go-to form of entertainment? TikTok usually.

Do you have a large collection of DVDs/Blu-Rays? Nah. We have a drawer but we usually stream everything.

How about music albums? Beebs collects vinyls!

Do you prefer to have your music on vinyls, tapes, CDs or digital? I prefer digital and Beebs likes vinyl.

When and where do you like to entertain yourself usually? Either the bed or the couch.

Do you ever binge watch shows? If so, what are you binging now? Usually! I’m sadly in between shows rn.

What kinds of books do you like to read, if any? I honestly don’t read anymore.

Is there a book series you're currently collecting? ..

Is entertainment something you prefer to enjoy alone or with someone else? I have my shows and then we have shows we watch together. So there’s a time and place for both!

Section 9 – Internet 

Do you always have access to the Internet, wherever you go? If not, why? Yup!

Which website do you frequent the most? Website website? Google. App website? Instagram or TikTok.

Which search engine do you prefer and trust the most? Googs.

What do you use the Internet the most for? Social media or entertainment.

Do you judge people who have their phones out all the time? If so, why? Random people? None of my business. But if we’re spending time together and I’m trying to have a conversation with you and you're not paying attention to me because your nose is glued to your phone, I’m gonna be pissed.

If your connection goes down, what do you do? Go do something that’s not on the internet?

Is there something you wish you could do online that isn't possible yet? I still wish you could smell things through the internet.

Do you remember the first time you used the Internet? When was it? Yes! I believe the 2nd/3rd grade?

What was a website you used to frequent that doesn't exist anymore? I loved the Disney website with all the games.

Do/Did you ever have your own website? That was the thiiiing back in the day.

Isn't it great how much knowledge and info we have at our fingertips? It’s great but also overwhelming.

Section 10 – And finally...

What is something you consider to be highly controversial? Politics, apparently.

What kinds of jokes do you like the best? I love a good pun.

Is there a person who makes you laugh effortlessly? Oh definitely.

Which part of your body do you like the least? My eyes.

What's something random, out of context you remember from your past? I don’t do well with really vague questions.

Do you wear shoes indoors? No, I’m not a heathen.

What's the silliest thing you've worn on your body in public? I don’t think I usually wear silly things.

What's the most important thing in your life right now? Just spending time with my fam. Trying to get over this anxiety.

What is the most distant point on the planet that you've been from home? Florida.

Do you enjoy trivia games? If so, which one's your favourite? We love some Trivial Pursuit in this house!

Are you more logical or emotional? My emotions take over and then my logic brings it back in. Equal parts, baby.

[justdyingslowly]

1. Name justdyingslowly obviously come on

2. Nationality Australian

3. Age 22

4. Birthday nnnah dont feel like it

5. Zodiac sign (or your primal zodiac sign) Libra/Scorpio cusp

6. Gender wamon

7. Sexuality very very hetero

8. Your looks (add a picture or describe yourself) androgenous

9. What do you/did you study? Psychology (focus on sexology) and art.

10. What’s your current job like?/What job would you like to have? I am disabled you think I can work ha sexologist would be awesome. When I was a kid I wanted to be a fireman but Australias always burning

-

11. Your birth order head first

12. How many siblings do you have? 1

13. Do you have good relations with your family? yeah dads finally out of his abusive relationship, nearing age 70 and his emotions and his sexuality are finally opening up for the first time and that makes me SO happy.

14. How many friends do you have? what kind of fucked up question is this.

15. Your relationship status relationshipped. Fiance? got the marriage papers in a drawer somewhere with the car rego but can’t be fucked filling them?

16. What do you look for in a SO? empathetic, mature, calm. Always open to discussion. Prefers to be blunt rather than secretive. Emotional age over 14 (incredibly fucking rare apparently). Puts an importance on context and understanding other views above all else.

17. Do you have a crush? Hellll yeah Crush on my partner and got a crush on a mutual friend of ours who don’t even know hes cute af hehe one day partners gonna accidentally spill the beans and embarrass me coz hes shit with secrets RIP me.

18. When did you have your first kiss? You think I can remember this bullshit? Its not that big a deal

19. Do you prefer serious and meaningful relationships or casual dating/one night stands? One night stand sex almost exclusively sucks. Just. SUCKS. Because neither of you know what the other likes and it ends up being an awkward mix of trying to please yourself while trying to also be considerate.

20. What are your deal breakers? Plugging your ears to anything that feels gross, uncomfortable or disagrees with you. How can you grow as a person without introspection? How can you mold what you think and believe without taking in other arguments and comparing them to your beliefs to see how they stack up? Its pathetic.

-

21. How was your day? cute mutual friend had a fall this morning and were both worried about him. His back is bad and he’s getting a little older, he can’t be getting dizzy and having falls like that. other than that im anxious about seeing my gastro. He’s lovely but... specialists are specialists. Good at knowing what they know but not always great at listening.

22. Favourite food & drink you think im allowed to eat or drink? water and... foods a touchy subject.

23. What position do you sleep in? Usually on my side with a body pillow to grip so I don’t end up choking my partner in his sleep.

24. What was your last dream about? uuhhh...going to italy and being unable to get into this tiny basket boat properly.

25. Your fears does PTSD to medical shit count haha

26. Your dreams ... going to italy and being unable to get into a tiny basket boat thingy?

27. Your goals - get some sort of diagnosis eventually. Its been 3 years of trying and im tired. - get back to studying art part time for my bachelors. - pass JLPT N3. - go back to university for psychology. - do the dishes when I get home.

28. Any pets? two budgies. we also take care of any orphaned or injured birds.

29. What are your hobbies? feeling nauseous drawing writing a little bit im making a little gameboy game in C atm too

30. Any cool places in your area? i live next to a national park with waterfalls and koalas and emus and stuff

31. What was your last awkward situation? mutual friend made a comment on his chest i playfully smacked it (related to the comment) it was surprisingly hard “O-oh wow, thats... I didnt expect that” my partner laughed at me. it was awful.

32. What is your last regret? getting embarrassed at friends pecs stop making me think about it 33. Language/s you can speak english. N4 Japanese.

34. Do you believe in astrological stuff? (Zodiac, tarot, etc.) of course not what the fuck

35. Have any quirks? Quirkless. I do wiggle when im happy though apparently.

36. Your pet peeves open doors.

37. Ideal vacation spend a months chilling in an old japanese house in autumn hokkaido oooooof that sounds nice

38. Any scars? internal? yes

39. What does your last text message say? peepee poopoo ustinky

40. Last 5 things from your search history how do i find this

41. What’s your [device] background? Sam Porter Bridges walkin around Sam Porter Bridges cuddling BB-28 Louise while he sleeps my chicken

42. What do you daydream about? all might

43. Describe your dream home an old japanese house in autumn hokkaido oooooof that sounds nice

44. What’s your religion/Your thought about religion its a comforting thought having a parent-figure who cares about you and looks after all the big things you can’t manage yourself, but institutionalizing it runs a severe risk of becoming harmful cults. And it often does.

45. Your personality type me

46. The most dangerous thing you’ve done i saw the lost bunny that was on all the posters in the neighbourhood looked thin and patchy so i grabbed him to take him home. im allergic. sent me to hospital and I almost died.

47. Are you happy with your current life? feeling sick sucks and partners having a depressive episode but things are pretty good

48. Some things you’ve tried in your life living

-

49. What does your wardrobe consist of? blacks, reds, whites and pinks

50. Favourite colour to wear? at the moment pink. Red is always comforting though.

51. How would you describe your style? mix between lazy alternative punk, teenager with band shirts and harajuku peach kawaii uwu

52. Are you happy with your current looks? kinda wish i was a bit shorter but what can you do

53. If you could change/add something to your appearance - impossible or not - what would it be? bit shorter

54. Any tattoos or piercings? lol no PTSD

55. Do you get complimented often? by who? partner constantly, family haha are you kidding im australian so a friend’s version of showing affection is calling you a cunt and slapping your ass in public

56. Favourite aesthetic? all might

57. A popular trend that you dislike blocking because you disagree or find them distasteful. Ignoring all context to opposing thoughts and arguments. taking a personal feeling of disgust to mean something is evil. Blocking your ears to anything that isn’t a circlejerk of what you already think - and trying to isolate anyone who even just listens to something other then the noise of your sloppy dicks to have a thought of their own.

-

58. Songs you’re currently obsessed with? The Machine by Low Roar

59. Song you normally wouldn’t admit you like. why wouldnt i admit i like a song

60. Favourite genre? probably enka haha

61. Favourite artist/band/genre? probably enka haha oh and tatsuro yamashita

62. Hated popular songs/artists? why the hell would I hate something like a song? I hate aspects of the music industry as a whole I guess?

63. Put your music on shuffle and list first 5 which playlist they aren’t all together in one place

64. Can you sing or play any instruments? piano, saxophone... uh... partners good at making music and playing shakuhachi

65. Do you like karaoke? no.

66. Own any albums? yes? many?

67. Do you listen to radio? What stations? no. but triple J, ABC Jazz and Classical. sometimes they even play final fantasy and JRPG music on classical which is pretty neat. -

68. Favourite movie/series? can i make this about games because then the answer is Metal Gear Solid

69. Favourite genre of movies/books/etc ...shounen?

70. Your fictional crush/es if they’re over 40yrs old, male and happy and bubbily or grumpy and sad then there’s a big ol fat chance I wanna bone. Solid Snake from MGS4, All Might and pretty much anyone drawn by Tarou Madoromi.

71. Which fictional character is you? uh

72. Are you a shipper? List your otps, if so what does this even mean what language is this

73. Favourite greek god? idk hades seems chill

74. A legend from where you live that you like the story of Tjilbruke is funny and good. all Kaurna stories are good.

75. Do you like art? What’s your favourite work or artist? im in a big egon schiele mood atm.

76. Can you share your other social media? no i am incapable

77. Favourite youtubers? many

78. Favourite platform? not too high up. actually i like being a little lower than ground level in corners.

79. How much time do you spend on the internet? too much

80. What video games have you played? Which one’s your favourite? look i just want to say that MGS4 is the best one in the series and Death Stranding is phenomenally engaging.

81. Your favourite books (manga also counts) these are all so goddamn definitive how can I pick? Oh wait the answer is One Piece

82. Do you play board/card games? I play DnD atm and know 15 yr old rules to Yugioh

83. Have you ever been to a night marathon in cinema? that shit dosn’t happen here

84. Favourite holiday golden week coz its a week also easter because thats when all the glucose based sweets come back

85. Are you into dramas? what kind

-

86. Would you use death note, if you had one? no. thats called being a murderer.

87. What changes would you make in the world, no matter how impossible, if you had the power to? chill people out a bit. when people feel unsafe they get really depenfive and territorial and block their ears to everything, making in-and-out groups for themsevles that end up putting them in more harm.

88. Could you survive a zombie apocalypse? im disabled with a disabled partner. we arent funny sure we can survive normal everyday life when society is angled so sharply against us.

89. If you had to be turned into a paranormal being, what would it be? id like to be a mimi spirit

90. What would you want to happen to you after your death? spooky time

91. If you had to change your name, what would be your pick? toshinori yagi

92. Who would you switch your life with for a week? anyone healthy

93. Pick an emoji to be your tattoo that cursed one with the intense eyes and the hand

94. Write 3 things about yourself - only one of them must be true im me im not me im pee

-

95. Cold or hot? cold.

96. Be a hero or be a villain? both are distasteful ideas in reality

97. Sing everything you want to say or rhyme? i can’t do either partner speak sin bad puns and its hell, these both sound about equal

98. Shapeshifting or controlling time? shapeshifting. controlling time is eithe rmanipulative or lonely. shapeshifing is every other superpower at once.

99. Be immortal or be immune to everything aside from natural death? both are deeply upsetting ideas

100. ….. or …..? jiji or ossan? generally Jiji, but ossans can be lovely too.

[amtrax]

Megaton Girl FAQ Masterpost

Here is a bunch of potential questions that you may have about Megaton Girl for both new and long-time followers!

What is Megaton Girl?

Megaton Girl is a scripted podcast (which is to say a radio play) that I would describe as a superhero comedy with lots of action, adorable romance, and an overarching story. The pilot is available here and I highly recommend checking it out if you want an idea of what the style and tone of the show will be.

Okay, well what’s the basic story?

From the official description:

After getting struck by a radioactive meteor, Connie Opland becomes the latest contender in a world of super hero celebrities: Megaton Girl. With the help of her girlfriend and secret publicist Laurel Fitz, and her mentor and manager Kirby, Connie aims to dethrone the corrupt and arrogant Captain Valiant as the greatest hero in the world!

That sounds totally radical, dude.

Thank you, 90′s-slang-spewing question asker.

I have very specific tastes. How will I know if I like this show?

If you enjoy any of the following, you’ll probably really really like this show: Stories with LGBTQ protagonists, Marvel and DC comics, Megas XLR, Teen Titans, The Adventure Zone, Critical Role, The Thrilling Adventure Hour, Mission to Zyxx, Hello from the Magic Tavern, Sonic Boom, Swat Kats, and honestly just check it out. The pilot’s only like 15 minutes long, and I think you’ll really love it if you check it out.

Well, who is the show about?

Connie Opland AKA Megaton Girl: A snarky, bubbly and easily excitable young woman with a love of food and low tolerance for jerks. After a bad run in with a corrupt superhero named Captain Valiant, Connie gets struck by a meteor and gains super powers. She dons the persona of Megaton Girl and begins a career in super-heroics, hoping one day to dethrone Captain Valiant and give the world a hero that actually gives a shit. She’s not very bright or quick to the uptake, but she has a ton of grit and determination. No matter how many times she hits the mat, she’s always back on her feet and ready to fight back. She lives with her best-friend (and now girlfriend), Laurel, in a cheap apartment in Los Dioses, California. Powers: Super strength, flight, energy beam attack (expelled through mouth), enhanced durability. She still feels pain and isn’t completely invincible, but she can withstand a megaton explosion and walk away alive (though VERY hurt).

Laurel Fitz: A shy, composed and brilliant lady with wonderful artistic talent and a passion for documenting the feats of superheroes. She is the newest member of the Olympus Illustrated news team. Her job is to essentially write and illustrate comic pages documenting the latest superhero news. When she gets on the bad side of her boss (whom is secretly Captain Valiant), she gets humiliated and demoted in front of the whole bullpen. When Connie gets superpowers, Laurel begins to secretly rebel against her boss by publishing a website dedicated to documenting the feats of Megaton Girl. She also begins learning the basics of superhero coaching from Connie’s manager, Kirby, who sees a ton of potential in her. She lives with her best friend (and now girlfriend), Connie, in a cheap apartment in Los Dioses, California.

William Kirby: A grumpy, no-nonsense old man with a long, once-celebrated history of superhero managing. He represented and coached the best of the best for decades before being forced into an early retirement by his last client, Captain Valiant. He distanced himself from society and lived out of his gym locker room for 15 years, until Connie and Laurel popped into his life asking for help. He’s long past his prime, so he calls in favors from heroes around the globe and beyond to assist in training Connie to be a hero herself. On the side, he begins to teach Laurel how to be a superhero coach, seeing her as a worthy future successor to his business.

Chuck Bradford AKA Captain Valiant: A vain, pompous, power-hungry man who is a superhero in job title only. He does everything for personal gain, even when it comes to stopping crimes. Once represented by Kirby, he cast his old manager aside when Kirby refused to coddle his ego. He lied, cheated and beat his way to the top of the superhero world, and stood unopposed as the most powerful hero in the world for a little over a decade. To fuel his ambitions, he runs the Olympus Illustrated news outlet, wildly overemphasizing his own deeds and often minimizing the efforts of other heroes. There are few heroes who verbally oppose him (and even fewer who physically oppose him), as he has been known to turn the world against those who seek to bring him down. Powers: Super strength (amplified by years of bodybuilding on top of his natural superhuman power), flight, energy beam attack (expelled through eyes), enhanced durability (comparable to Megaton Girl, though with a much higher pain tolerance due to more years explosions and bullets in his face).

Doctor Menace: A bombastic, bumbling, over-eager supervillain with copious amounts of intellect, but none of the brilliance to put it to much use. None of his plans have ever succeeded, his inventions are in perpetual “early-access,” and no hero or villain ever takes him seriously. In spite of his endless list of failures, he sets high goals for himself and always gets back up after every failure, with just as much vigor and excitement as ever. He just loves being the bad guy, no matter what gets in his way. He dreams of one day being the respected arch-nemesis of a powerful superhero with whom he can be locked in ceaseless bloody combat for all time, and to join a league of supervillains with which he can begin his conquest of the world. Also he’s stuck in a too-small tin can of a mech suit. Haha. Powers: Extraordinarily high IQ, high tech armor and gadgets with seemingly endless resources to create more, and limitless determination.

I watched the pilot and I [totally loved it]. Where’s the rest of the show?

We’re working on that! We want to turn this into a full series and already have several episodes written, but in order to produce a full series we will need funding to make sure that everyone involved is paid for their time. One possible goal is to get the show picked up by a podcast network so that we can run the show like a podcast with commercials. Another possibility is Patreon or some other form of crowdfunding.

Is there anyway I can help with that?

The absolute BEST thing you can do right now is to share the pilot. Reblog it, retweet it, TALK about it. Get the word out, and I do mean the word.Use the #MegatonGirl hashtag on Twitter. Tell people what you think, because word of mouth is the best form of getting people to listen. Tell US what you think! Share your thoughts on the pilot, leave iTunes reviews, leave Youtube comments! We want to know what you think!

This sounds like it’s gonna take a while! I want the show now! And an Oompa-Loompa too, daddy!

PUT THE GUN DOWN! WE CAN TALK ABOUT THIS, OKAY?! Alright, okay okay. How about we make a full first episode for now, and see what happens? We’ll produce a full origin-story episode about how Connie and Laurel become girlfriends, how Connie gets her super powers and begins her rivalry with Chuck, and how Connie stopped her first supervillain? It’ll be about an hour long and be a proper start to the series. That sound cool?

Looks like you keep your kneecaps today, sir.

Thank you for your blessing, gender non-specific question asker.

I have fanart/AUs/other fan related content that I want you to see. What’s the best way to get your eyes on it?

Tag me on Tumblr @amtrax or on Twitter (at)amtraxVA, and/or use the proper “#Megaton Girl” tag on Tumblr and the #MegatonGirl tag on Twitter! I have gotten some LOVELY fanart and I love seeing all of it, so if you have some and you want it seen, that’s the best way to get it seen!

Hey don’t you run away from me! I have other questions!

And I’ll gladly take them, any time! Either leave them in my askbox or Tweet it at me! I’ll always answer it as best as I can without spoiling too much of the show. I also put out a call for questions and art requests every week for Megaton Girl Megatuesday, so keep any eye out for that as well.

For now, I think that’s a good spot to leave this. I will update this later as necessary, but I hope your basic needs are tended to for now! Thank you for your time and hope you enjoy what’s to come next!

[nicomacheannothing]

Work Always Seems to Find Me

I wanted to get a bunch done today, but it was kind of a bust lol. Not entirely, I worked, just not on what I wanted. I decided to work from home (thank goodness; I needed a break from the office, tbh) and intended to spend all day on the documentary. My boss texted me to tell me that a client wanted us to re-shoot a scene from a commercial spot in the afternoon. Great.  See, we hastily shot this commercial for a loyal client, a car dealership, right after the quarantine started. They wanted to encourage people in town to patronize local business during the shut-down. The theme was “family” and the owner of the dealership had his wife and daughters come in to be a part of the shot. We made the foolish decision to tell them to not smile too much because they were addressing a serious situation. We forgot one thing: unless you’re a trained actor, a neutral face always looks pissy on camera. I don’t know why, it just seems to be a universal fact. Serious-neutral expressions read as grumpy to American eyes. I don’t know why we didn’t think of this, but uhhh... We screwed up. A lot of people liked the commercial, but a number of people online criticized it harshly. They complained that the family members looked angry and like they didn’t want to be there. Eep.  Worst of all, my dad was they first person to criticize the spot. You can write off online comments as “just idiots looking to complain”, but my dad’s not that kind of person. He just thought the commercial was bad and made no bones about telling me. My parents have always had VERY high expectations for me. They’re the types who expected straight As in school and they wouldn’t support my bro and I participating in any extracurricular activity that we weren’t willing to devote ourselves to. It’s no wonder I have such high expectations of myself and others.... but my parents’ standards apply to my work as well. They know my boss and his family. They pay a lot of attention to the work we put out. My dad will tell me if he thinks I’m not doing well enough. I’m used to taking criticism and I genuinely want to improve 90% of the time. I was kind of relieved to hear that we were going to re-shoot the grumpy family scene. But it sucks that it cut into my other work.  I feel especially bad for Austin who really, really needed a day off to rest. After the shoot, he had to re-edit the commercial. When we imported the new footage into Premiere, we were horrified to find that the camera had corrupted one of the clips! We managed to work with what we had, but Austin was SOOO pissed. We ended up being at work until 6 even though we planned to not come into work at all. Alas.  Good things happened though! I got to try the new Flamin Hot Doritos Locos Taco at Taco Bell! It was good, of course haha. I’m so addicted to those Doritos tacos, I swear. Now that Taco Bell can make everything vegetarian, I’m hooked. I also got a pair of high-waisted pants that I ordered with a coupon. I have been lukewarm about that trend and I still kind of am, but this particular pair of pants have kind of a storybook prince vibe with the buttons up the front. We’ll see if I like them. I’ll have to wear an eyepatch over my navel piercing to protect it from the pants, though. Ah well.  Enough rambling; back to work haha.  

[thegothicviking]

It's 03:18 in the morning of May 16th, 2020. When I post this. This is the tired but somehow relieved (barefaced) face of someone that survived the notorious

"Club 27".

In other words; it's now my 28th "cake day" /28th anniversary of my "Escape Womb Day". I have officially turned 28 years old (older than Kurt Cobain. Wow!) 🥳

You see; I had plans to take my own life in 2020. I still have mixed feelings about "failing joining the 27 Club".

What some people don't get is that you can be suicidal without any actual attempts. You can still have solid plans. You can be suicidal without to ever self harmed yourself. I have never harmed myself physically. But I have harmed myself and beaten myself down mentally. Alot. Which can also be very harmful in the long run. And yes I do have a plan of how I want to end my life. But of course I am not sharing any details.

Instead. I'm gonna tell you a story. I am going to take you back in time. Before the internet. Before the smartphones, or even small, compact cellphones at all!

Let me take you back; To the early 90's.

At early Saturday morning/late at night of May 16th 1992, a soon to be 26 year-old woman and soon to be mother of her 2nd daughter, woke up. She must have been in a horrible pain. Something was clearly wrong; The bedsheets had been filled with blood!!

Her then soon to be 23 year-old boyfriend, and soon to be a father of their 2nd daughter, called an ambulance. He tried to explain the situation;

His girlfriend was pregnant, she had already given birth, once before, (vaginal birth) but now there was a lot of blood! And his girlfriend was in alot of pain!

The paramedics asked over the phone "How much is she bleeding? Would you say it is enough to fill a thimble?". The bleeding mother must have heard the paramedics' loud question from the phone as she now shouted angrily back in pain; "A thimble!?!? Hell no!! It's at least a half milk carton of blood here!"

(In Norway a regular milk carton contains 1.5 liters).

Exactly how the mother got the hospital (whether her boyfriend brought her by car or the ambulance brought her) is not fully remembered. But we can have a guess, considering the critical situation, that she was taken there by the ambulance.

As soon as she arrived at the hospital, the situation had gotten very serious!

It turns out that the placenta, which would give the little baby girl all her nutritents and provide her with oxygen into the womb had arrupted, before the actual birth. Now it was really a matter of life and death! No time to think or choose for the mother; the only option to get the baby out was to perform vertical C-sektion.

(Normally a C-sektion is cut horizontally, but it will be quicker to get a baby out with a vertical cut, during very crucial moments).

And it got worse; the soon- to be father got some terrible news about his girlfriend, the mother of their already soon to be 2 year old daughter back at home;

"She has lost a lot of blood." A doctor or a nurse said.

"And the baby has lost alot of Oxygen. I am sorry to say this; but we can either save both or neither of them."

It was all a 50/50 chance from now on! He could keep his girlfriend and their new daughter,

OR

He could lose them both; being forced to raise his first and only daughter so far, alone.

But at last; they got the girl out! She was born! And both mother and the couple's 2nd daughter had survived!

(Even though the baby girl also had the umbilical cord around her neck. Djees! It was like she really didn't want to born at all!?!?)

It must have seemed like a miracle back then for the dad! And the mother too!

And now 28 years later. Ta-da! Here I still am! Still alive and kicking so far; but sometimes still with a death wish that comes and goes. Still with a slight wish of never to have been born. Feeling more that I simply HAD to be born. For the sake of saving my mom too. So that my sister could have her mother. And my dad could have his girlfriend. But not actually being born for my own sake.

You can call it selfish. That I still want to die sometimes. But I do try my best to fight these thoughts. I am still here, 28 years later so I have obviously managed to fight them back so far!

Here is another true (and actual sad story) My mother lost her own mother at the age of almost 31. My sister will be 30 this year. It's really scary to think about.

31 years old and losing your mother to breast cancer. My mom is now older than what her mother ever got to be (she died at a very young age of 51). And here is something very sad too;

When my mom was there, sleeping over at his house, my mom's boyfriend (no not my dad, a much later boyfriend) got a heart attack. And he died while my mom tried to give him CPR. She tried to save him. But she couldn't.

The point of this??

Well I know my mom would break down if I ever did kill myself. Perhaps even more consider the loss of her own mother and the loss of her boyfriend. She has already been through so much pain. And this fact (and my few but very good friends) is what keeps me alive! That and to write the Rammstein fic series haha. Yeah, believe it or not but I really wanne finnish that crap! 😂

But back to my point; My mom fought for the both of us 28 years ago. And so did the doctors and the nurses, and my dad. So I owe it to her and to them and to my friends, to keep on fighting! They all clearly want me to be here!!

I may not be a celebrity...but today I still survived the Club 27. And I know I have to fight and survive the other ages too. Even though it is very hard sometimes.

But hey! Let's keep on fighting!

happy birthday to me. 🎉

Who used to be THIS

Grumpy, suicidal little shit- baby! That despite all her effort to die, even before she was born at all (and even trying to kill her own mom too while she was at it), fucking failed and survived, 28 years later. So she still won. In the end.

I guess I won. In the end.

And how fitting that my mom gave me a rose for this birthday;

Happy birthday to me! A fighting Viking!🏆⚔

⭐05.16.1992 ~

♾ Infinity⚔

[jessiewre]

Day 59

Tues 3rd Mar

🏔Moshi to Arusha 🚍

It was time for us to leave Moshi and move onto Arusha, a city 2 hours away renowned as the starting point for all the big safari parks.

I went up early for brekkie on the rooftop and this time, we had bananas but there appeared to be no coffee. I asked the woman and she confirmed it and was just like ‘Sorry, no coffee’.

As I write this, I have the overwhelming feeling that it definitely feels like the right time to step back from the blog. First, I’m telling you about there being no bananas at breakfast. Jesus. Then the next day there is no coffee. I’m thinking WOW. This is boring isn’t it. But then again, some of you may be so bored reading about Coronaviru that this is a welcome break.

Well, it did jazz up a bit and get exciting, cos I looked up and coffee had appeared. JUST LIKE THAT. Thats right! One minute it was there, then the next, Poof! Like magic! God knows how long it had been there, the woman didn’t feel the need to mention it to me despite knowing I wanted coffee. Absolute JOKE.

We spent the morning packing our bags and debating what our plan should be, while Phil huffed and puffed, flipping between angryman and stresshead. He had definitely got out on the wrong side of the bed, but as the great Irish philosopher Ronan Keating once said, Life is a rollercoaster. Well, Phil was certainly riding that rollercoaster. He was hot and cold like a broken tap I tells ya.

Despite Phil’s multiple attempts to get one, not having a SIM card was irritating him a lot, especially considering we needed to ring various people about hotels and safaris. So after a bit more grumbling, he went off like a true moody hero to try Vodacom again. I ‘minded the bags’ and did some hotel research (ie. I had a nice long chat with Evie and then spoke to Luke & Bex about house viewings).

Despite the 10am check out time (its more a suggestion than a rule right?), I sat in our hotel room with the door open to imply I was leaving ‘any minute’ and positioned a towel hung on the bed pole, perfectly hiding my face from the doorway view to ensure I avoided eye contact with any hotel workers passing by 😏.

I thought about Phil, all alone in that annoying phone shop, and felt a pang of guilty. Or was it hunger? Hard to know. But either way, I sent him some WhatsApp messages to give the impression I was doing lots of excellent research (that should Cheer him up, I thought), and crossed my fingers that the hilarious GIFS I was sending would put him in an AMAZING mood. He loves a GIF does our Phil. After the pain of sim card buying, I knew it could go either way but at least he’d only get the messages once he’d eventually got a working sim so I had a chance...

Well, I soon saw the ticks ☑️ turn that beautiful shade of blue and nervously waited for a response.

THANKFULLY I got two of the best emoji’s I could have hoped for.

🕺🏻 🕺🏻

It was then I knew that Sweetbox were right back in the 90s - Everything’s Gona be Alright.

My overstaying-my-welcome plan worked for 2 whole hours and I made it to midday sat in the hotel room before I got a polite knock on the door to ask me to vacate.

‘Ohh I didn’t realise the time, of course I’ll leave straight away’.

Phil returned and strongly declared we should go to Milan’s Indian for a quick lunch before going to get the bus. Well, the awkward thing was, I didn’t want to eat curry for lunch (not a sentence I say often)...but then again, I also really didn’t want to risk messing with Phil’s mood...

I decided to try the softly, softly approach and lightly suggested we go to the Kilimanjaro coffee lounge.

Phil jerked his face round to me angrily and the atmosphere instantly went ice cold.

‘What is WRONG with Milans?? You loved the food there and its really close by!’.

I quietly explained again that although it was a lovely place, I simply didn’t want curry for lunch, and he obviously couldn’t argue with that. Such is life. But it definitely REALLY annoyed him and he stropped out of the hostel with his bags in search of a tuc tuc.

We both stood on the corner of the street in blasting heat waiting for a tuc tuc to appear and for some reason, there were NONE. Everytime we saw one and waved it down, it would go zooming past and we would see there were already people in the back. Phil was ready to burst with annoyance but as the sun began to nearly melt our heads, I finally waved one down.

We went to put our bags in and then got a shock as we realised there was already a woman in the back!

‘No problem no problem’ declared the driver as he saw the look on our faces, and he ushered at me to put my rucksack into the back. Well, that was harder than it looked.

‘Oh for Gods sake’ Phil said under his breath, but not so much that we all didn’t hear him and I started to attempt getting my bag in.

Phil watched on in disbelief and was like ‘This is ridiculous! Where are we meant to sit??’

Phil then tried to get his bag in while I tried to sit in the front with the driver, but the driver was like ‘Nah you go in back’, then the woman was sort of holding Phil’s massive rucksack and there was not really any room for us and Phil just lost his rag completely 😂

‘Right, forget it! Take the bags out Jess! I AM NOT GETTING THIS TUC TUC!’

I had a point like.

Thankfully, a nearby boda driver had a great loud whistle and managed to hail another tuc tuc down straightaway, just before Phil spontaneously combusted, and we went to Kili coffee lounge where there were too many witnesses for Phil to maintain his grumpy face for too long. PHEW.

I enjoyed a simple cheese tomato toastie with fries (opposite of a curry I’d say) and now that he’d calmed down, Phil told me about his morning visit to the phone shop. While he was stood in the phone shop, stressing out and getting super angry and wound up by the slow process, he went to look at his phone and clicked to unlock it. To his utter shock, on the screen was an image he’d NEVER seen before, and it was one of those ‘Inspirational Quote’ memes.

It said:

If you can’t handle stress

You can’t handle success

He stood in total amazement, starring at the screen, wondering how the powers that be had managed to target him in this way, how google was so onto him. How had they known he was MEGA stressed and how had they got this image onto his phone?!?! Maybe it was a message from GOD?!

WELL after further investigation (the back button), he discovered that it was the profile picture of the phone shop guys. He’d added the guys number as part of the sim registration process, then he’d accidentally clicked on this guys whatsapp profile pic without realising, then locked his phone 😂😂😂😂😂.

Anyway, back to the cafe, it had been 30 minutes of good vibes so naturally Phil started to dip again, this time stressing about getting a bus to Arusha. After all the bus journeys we’ve ever done, I have NO IDEA why this simple 2 hour journey was getting to him so much, but hey ho sometimes these things don’t make sense do they. He’s a complicated and simple fellow in equal measures.

We put on our bags and walked to Tahmeed buses to see if by chance they had one of their nice buses passing through anytime soon, so we could avoid the super basic local buses that stop every 5 minutes. Much to Phil’s joy, they said SURE there’s one departing in about 15 minutes and that was the first time that day that Phil reeally smiled, ya know like with all his teeth and his eyes. It was beautiful.

The bus arrived about 30 minutes later (not too bad by African standards!) and we took a seat, only to realise it was actually some guys seat who had just jumped off the bus for a drink - and he just happened to have a huge machete on his belt! He seemed fine with it though and sat somewhere else! The bus guys weirdly would not allow anyone to have their windows open, instead insisting that we have the AC on. I kept opening my window a bit anyway as the AC above my head was blocked and I needed the fresh air, but the bus man was getting really annoyed. The locals wanted their windows open too but the bus man was stomping round the bus shutting them all and shouting at people, while people shouted back at him. As people coughed and sneezed 🤧 as humans tend to do, I wondered how many germs were getting regurgitated back through the system during this time of hyper virus mania... 🦠

The woman next to me fell asleep on me for most of the journey then we arrived to Arusha town. As we’d read would happen, we were completely HOUNDED on arrival by men trying to sell us safaris. One guy pretended to work for the bus company while getting my bag to hand me, I was like Dude I can get my own bag.

They were all talking at once trying to give us business cards, one guy said another guy was a liar, another accused another of being a thief, and it was just chaos and frankly, harassment - so Phil told them all to Frig the Frig off and we walked the 6 minute walk to our hotel Raha Leo Inn.

We walked through the door feeling immediate relief to be away from the hassling streets, when suddenly the door opened behind us and the guy who’d pretended to be working for the bus company walked in and started to try and sell us a safari!I was like Hey I thought you said you worked for the bus company mate, and he was like ‘Yes yes, they are my friends, but I have safari’. What the hell does that even mean haha. He even pointed to a safari vehicle parked outside and said ‘Uh, this is my vehicle’.

Uh, I don’t think it is mate 😂

But in an attempt to make him go away, I took the card from him and said Thanks, I’ll be in touch if we need to, ba bye now, ba bye.

It was too late though, Phil was FAR too annoyed by it all and he went for it.

‘You have just FOLLOWED US here and now you come INSIDE the hotel to hassle us?? I don’t want your card! I will NOT be doing a safari with you, take you card and please leave’.

Incase the guy wasn’t clear, Phil shoved the card into his hand while he said it.

The guy was rather disgruntled at all this but left the hotel looking defeated. Phil puffed his chest out a bit and gave his chest some big fist blows in a gorilla like fashion.

About 5 minutes later, I watched a completely different man drive off in the safari vehicle the guy had been referring to...

The hotel was clean and pleasant enough, although the lack of a TOILET SEAT was a little strange 😂. Also we noticed a man walk into the hotel and straight up to the social area without being stopped by the staff, and he turned out to be another safari seller. Hmm. We made a mental note to keep an eye on our valuables and not leave them out anywhere...

I was back to normal and ready to eat curry by dinner time so we went to find the the LP recommended Hot Plate restaurant. Directly opposite it was a stall of crazy shirts and we couldn’t resist a quick look before we headed inside, immediately finding a sweet shirt that we had to buy for 20k tsh (about £6.50). The young lads running the stall were buzzing, though why there needed to be 4 of them working I’ll never know. Thats like 1 guy for every 2 shirts available. We did the crazy handshake to celebrate the purchase which they really lolled at.

Obviously then I washed my hands - while singing the chorus of 21 seconds by So Solid Crew.

Our dinner was soooo good - maybe the best masala fries so far, a delicious dosa, and loads of other lovely food - and we went to find a tuc tuc to get back, eventually finding one at the petrol station, and took our huge doggy bag of food with us.

On return, we found out one of the hotel staff had her phone taken that very day! We told them they really needed to invest in a lock on the front door so only staff and guests could enter. They agreed with us and so will probably do absolutely nothing about it.

After spending almost 11 hours of his time searching, Phil FINALLY found the official marathon snaps of himself and was (understandably of course) very excited to see them, so we had a good look through those for about an hour (there were 10 photos after all) before finally getting back to The Crown.

3rd

[eyesfixedonthesun22]

She’s So High: Chapter 8

Summary: 90’s karaoke and your snarky wit seem to have revived the charming side of one Bucky Barnes. Everything comes full circle the morning after. Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female Reader Warning(s): Smut 18+. Swearing. Kissing, Fingering (female), Oral Sex (female receiving), Vaginal Sex, Unprotected Sex. Word Count: 1,996 Notes: Idea was inspired by this 90′s playlist. This chapter was beta read by the lovely @viktordrago. You all go thank her cause without her there would have been A TON of really laughable errors. Shout out to @stanclub for giving me some insight re: Steve and hair gel haha. Thank you so much to everyone for their likes and reblogs thus far. First series is done and in the bag! Anyone who left comments has literally melted my heart. I love you all Smut Note: ***DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, INTERACT WITH MY WORK IF YOU’RE NOT 18+*** It goes without saying, unprotected sex….please make sure your partners are clean and you use an agreed upon form of protection (if relevant).

You’re taken aback by the bright wash of sunshine flooding the room as your eyes flutter open. A room that is clearly not your room. Your half-awake brain remembers the events of last night sluggishly. This is Bucky’s bed… which would explain the large arm draped across your middle.

You savor the warmth from the sunlight spilling across the bed coupled with the warmth radiating from his body next to you. The soft sheets caress your naked skin as you stretch your muscles; careful not to wake Bucky.

You study his face. All the tension it normally holds during the waking hours is absent. His hair is strewn across his pillow. His limbs, all but the one anchoring you to him, seem to be splayed in every direction. You crane your neck to see the clock.

“Fuck.” You allow another five minutes to enjoy the proximity with the man besides you before carefully sliding under his arm.

You curse once more for sleeping in this late but allow it remembering fondly why you were so exhausted. Bucky had woken you up throughout the night. The first time he had ground gently against your backside. He nearly came from the wanton whines that permeated your dreams. When you stirred awake, he slid into you from behind; relishing in how soaked you had been for him.

The second time you had protested a bit, citing lack of sleep. Not easily deterred, his mouth worked your breasts with lavish kisses. All complaints died on your tongue when his head disappeared under the covers with his apology of “just once more for me, darlin’?” You could have sworn you heard a series of knocks clearly coming from the room next door. All worry dissipated as Bucky tongue fucked you through not one but two more orgasms.

The third time was entirely your “fault”. You had woken with your throat parched. Returning from the bathroom with a glass of water, you noticed a tempting tent in the sheets. Thinking you’d have the element of surprise, you were certainly shocked (though not complaining), when things ended with you bent over the side of the bed with Bucky’s cock pounding you into the mattress.

You smirk at the memories, attempting to find your clothing from the night before. Quickly giving up, you opt for Bucky’s flannel as a dressing gown. You’d be able to start breakfast in privacy and come back in normal clothes once the team was awake. Which would be soon if you didn’t hurry; you thought stealing a final glance back at Bucky’s sleeping form.

You’d settled on a batch of breakfast quiches for the team. You press play on your favorite playlist letting it provide a pleasant background soundtrack. Once the egg mixture was ready, you could throw it in the oven and probably catch another half hour of lazy morning cuddles with Bucky.

All the vegetables were chopped and ready for the filling. The only problem was you couldn’t remember the ratio of cream to egg. Pulling open the cabinets you see the cookbook you need propped on one of the top shelves. Clearly someone else had used it last. You would never have put it so out of reach. You stand on your tip toes and attempt to swat it down from its elevated prison.

You must have been engrossed in getting the cookbook down because Bucky is able to silently creep into the kitchen. He enjoys watching you struggle; finding your little frustrated cursing adorable.

You see the cookbook teetering, almost within reach, when a pair of hands land on your hips. You freeze but relax once you smell the familiar scent of him behind you. His head drops on your shoulder for a quick kiss behind your ear; hands dipping under the hemline of the flannel.

“You skippin’ out on me, dollface?” He mumbles into your skin.

“I needed to get breakfast in the oven before everyone is up. I was gonna hop back in bed with you while it bakes.” You resume your struggle to get the cookbook down as Bucky chuckles at you. “Would you quit laughing at me?! I need this cookbook. I can’t remember the ratiooooohh-”

Your reply turns to a moan. One of his hands detaches itself from its place on your hip, effortlessly grabs the cookbook, and tosses it on the island behind you; the other is occupied ever so softly stroking small circles into your clit. You collapse back down off your tip toes and let your weight fall back into his chest.

“Doll, you can’t go around stealing my shirts and making them look ten times sexier than I ever could.” His voice seems entirely unaffected but the sudden shift in mood. “I’m incredibly insecure and you’re showing me up.”

You can hear the smile in his words even if you weren’t feeling it in his lips which are now sloppily and lazily kissing up your neck. You sigh deeply enjoying the teasing sensations he’s sending through your body.

“Buck-” you whine gently, remembering where you are. “Someone is gonna hear us.”

He pulls back from you to quickly jab at the volume button; increasing the music so others don’t hear you. “Then you better be quiet, sweetheart.”

Needing to see his eyes, you turn around to face him. His hair is mussed. It looks like he’s thrown on the same black jeans from the night before. They hang obscenely low on his hips unbuttoned. He’s deliciously shirtless.  Warmth from the bedroom still clings to his skin.

“I distinctly remember a grumpy old man yelling at me for too loud of music this early in the morning.”

The pressure on your clit relents only to feel a digit slide into your core slowly, his thumb takes up the circles on your clit.

“Come back to bed darlin’. Sleeping in isn’t as fun without you there.”

“I have to make breakfast-” Your reply is choked off by a particularly strong wave of pleasure as his finger pushes pressure onto your g-spot. You open your eyes only to see a perfectly smug and unbothered face. If you didn’t feel his motions deep inside your now pulsing cunt, you would have guessed he was almost bored.

You try again to defend your actions, “Everyone will go hungry if-”

With his eyes locked on yours he adds a second finger into you. “Fuck.” He cocks his head to the side slightly and gives you his best shit eating grin.

“You were saying?”

“I’m out of excuses.” You mold your lips to his, giving into the pleasurable sensations. You attempt to walk him backwards out of the kitchen towards the bedroom.

“Nuh uh,” he says with his mouth now sucking deep hickeys into your collar bone. “Wanna see you cum right here.”

You want to protest but the clench of your walls around his fingers betrays you before you can get a word out. You pant small breathy moans into his shoulder as he brings his lips to your ears.

“That’s it, darlin’. I can tell that turns you on.” You suppress another low moan and it comes out more of a whimper. “Knowin’ anyone could walk in… see you becoming a panting little mess stuffed with my fingers.”

At this point, you’re relying completely on Bucky for support; your legs have gone to Jell-O. “I can tell you’re close, doll. I feel you fluttering around me.”

The stretch and glide of Bucky’s fingers have you forgetting about the residual soreness. You bite your bottom lip; hoping it will keep you quiet enough. You’re ready to let go with your release-

“What the fuck, Barnes!” You whine angrily. His hand had abandoned your cunt right at the crucial moment. He’s pushed far away from you. Before you realize what’s happening, he’s plopped in one of the bar stools at the island casually flipping through the cookbook that had seconds before been abandoned.

You’re ready to beat the shit out of him but Tony and Steve round the corner. They’re deep in conversation and don’t look at either of you. Your eyes meet Bucky’s and they glint playfully. Your gaze moves to his hand holding the cookbook. Two of the fingers are obviously coated in your slick. Noticing your gaze, he moves the finger up to his mouth and licks it clean. You let out an uncontrolled gasp only to draw attention of Steve and Tony.

“You okay there, Y/N/N?” Tony says. You pry your eyes away from Bucky’s face you manage a nod. You refuse to look back at him, knowing full well he’s got the largest shit eating grin plastered on his face.

“What’s for breakfast? You need any help?” Steve asks. He moves to your side of the island; observing the slew of ingredients which sit deserted.

“Hold the phone… Y/N, where are your pants?” Tony interrupts. “I’m not objecting to the view. Just curious as to-”

There’s an uncomfortably long pause as Tony’s face flickers through a vast array of expressions. You and Bucky are frozen simply hoping he’s attempting to formulate some crude joke.

“Ahhhhh. Got it.”

“Got what?” Steve asks. Tony tuts and smiles like fox in the hen house. “GOT WHAT?! Steve yells more insistently looking at the two of you for some help.

“Tin Man and Y/N. That’s why they didn’t come back. It would appear they sang a little duet of their own last night.” He waggles his eyebrows daring you to refute him.

Steve’s face is a mask of confusion as he attempts to decode Tony’s statement. You and Bucky share glances back and forth debating your next point of action. You’re thinking of running for it but at this point the entire team has filed into the dining room and kitchen.

Steve’s face switches to one of epiphany as Bucky points a warning finger at Tony. Stark simply smirks, paying no mind to the threatening finger.

Rolling your eyes and deciding to intervene before you see how expertly Bucky decides to keep Tony silent; you gently grab his arm and kiss the tip of his finger lowering it back to his side.

“It’s fine, Buck. They’ll figure it out eventually”.

“Or literally as it’s happening.” Natasha yells from the kitchen. “I share a wall with you Barnes… just saying!”

“I’m now taking music requests and breakfast orders. Anyone who feels the need to comment on my activities last night won’t be eating!” You quickly decide to put an end to that conversation. A chorus of “okay okay” greet your ears. “That's what I thought.”

Everyone dissolves into their own morning conversations. You turn back to the food in front of you wondering if now it would be best to switch to omelets.

“Y/N/N.” Bucky wraps his arms around your waist, and you’re pulled into his little bubble. You wonder if his effect would ever wear off. You thoroughly hope it doesn’t.

In the background you hear, Steve describing how long it took to get all the gel out of his hair last night. Nat’s livid about getting her curling wand back covered in gel.

“You best hope it’s gel!” Sam shouts further antagonizing her. You chuckle slightly at your misfit family before giving Bucky your full attention once more.

“Doll, I wasn’t trying to keep us secret for any malicious reason. I hope you know that.” His expression is soft and hesitant. “I just wanted you to have your privacy. We hadn’t really discussed telling the team, yet.”

You kiss him once on the lips and again on his nose. “I know, Buck. Now, go grab the cookbook and help me feed the ungrateful goons.” You can’t help but adore how much Bucky’s beaming.

“You’re on bacon duty.”

“Babe! I’m shirtless. Gonna get little bacon burns everywhere.”

“Well if someone wasn’t so picky about his bacon crispiness…” you say with a wink.

[fandomlurker]

A Ponderous Rewatch: Cameo in Sir Yaksalot

We’re having a mini-post about a cameo for this entry, and it’s the longest and most involved cameo yet. Plus, it’s animated by TMS Entertainment, which is always a delight to see.

Let’s take a look at “Sir Yaksalot”.

This has nothing to do with Pinky and the Brain, but I thought I’d point it out anyway since I find it delightful. Back in the late 1970s, TMS Entertainment animated the Lupin the 3rd “Red Jacket” anime series. In this episode the very first populated scene has an appearance by Jigen, who is one of the characters in that anime. I imagine this easter egg flew right over the heads of most of the western audience back in the 90s. It’s so charming that TMS made reference to their old work all these years later.

If you’ve never watched this Lupin the 3rd anime, have a few out-of-context bizarre and funny moments from the series to get a taste of it. It’s a delight.

Anyway, the basic run-down of this episode is that it takes place in Camelot, where Sir Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table live. All is pretty peaceful until a dragon starts attacking the place, burning down houses, and roasting people alive in the street.

…Like so.

But hey, that doesn’t have anything to do with our duo of mice, right?

Well, I hate to have to spoil the whole twist to the situation here, but it’s kind of important to do so for the analyzing purposes of this rewatch. So what’s the twist?

The dragon is actually a mecha assembled and piloted by Pinky and the Brain.

I’ve gotta say, this is actually quite bizarre for the duo to do. Brain’s plans are nearly always non-violent. And even if the odd plan involves violence or lasting harm, Pinky is quick to admonish Brain for doing so.

But now in this episode we have them terrorizing a kingdom, burning down houses, burning folks left and right… What’s going on here?!? I mean, I guess the part where they’re roasting people is moreso in a cartoony character-is-just-blackened-with-soot-and-they’re-fine kind of way, but still.

OH LORD, IT’S HEADED FOR US!

Anyway, the “dragon” defeats the knights of the kingdom and begins trying to break into the castle.

We’re going to skip a large part of the story here as it doesn’t involve the mice directly. All you need to know is that King Arthur asks Merlin to conjure up a brave and powerful knight to slay the dragon…and Merlin’s magic summons the Warner Siblings instead. Eventually, the Warners agree to do their best to get rid of Camelot’s dragon problem.

Meanwhile, the dragon has gone back to the kingdom at large to continue the rampage. I guess the castle door was too much of an obstacle for some reason?

Oh no, they’ve spotted something…

BOYS, NO! What the fuck?!?

I guess…I guess you could say that since this is actually a mecha that we’re looking at here, this old man would just be held hostage inside the belly area and our duo is just doing a really good acting job at the moment. However, this is still something that’s really, really out of Pinky and Brain’s usual modus operandi. Maybe Brain’s the one doing all the work at the moment and Pinky’s somewhere else in the mecha, distracted and unaware of the chaos happening? That’s the only way this could make any sort of sense to me, and having Brain working by himself without Pinky there do second-guess him and be his conscience usually results in Brain getting more carried away and having his morals slip a bit.

“Comedy! Dragon comedy! The best dragon comedians in all of Camelot!”

Oh thank goodness for your distraction, Yakko!

“Right here, free peasant with every drink! Oh yes, right this way, sir!”

“Hmm?”

The dragon goes right on in. Curiosity got the better of Brain, I suppose.

“And now, dragons and drag-ettes, the Camelot Comedy Cabaret presents the funniest dragon in all of Camelot: Henny Dragon!”

Oh my lord, Yakko, that dragon kigurumi is adorable!

“Ah-haha! Thank you, thank you! You’re too kind!”

“Hey, how about that lady in the lake? I mean, how long can she hold her breath?”

Aww, Wakko has one too.

“Hehehehehe…”

All right, this is totally not Brain at the reins anymore. He’s not one for these kinds of jokes. I’m guessing Pinky got curious about what was going on and Brain let him have control for a little while?

“Candy? Gum? Dynamite?”

And there’s Dot in her own costume! You look very cute, sweetie.

The dragon shakes his head in refusal, but—

“On the house, sugar.”

The dragon’s all blushy and he mumbles something unintelligible and waves in thanks. Yeah, that’s definitely not Brain controlling the mecha anymore.

“How ‘bout that King Arthur, huh? I’ll never forget the first time we met—“

“—but I’m tryin’.”

Oh boy, the dragon’s laughter is getting more intense and…umm. Hmm. I think we all know where this is going.

“I’m slayin’ ‘em.”

[snerk] Thanks, Yakko.

“Hey hey! What’s green and stands in the corner?”

“A naughty frog.”

We’ve got full-on belly laughs here, folks. It’s only a matter of time now.

“Naw, really, you’ve been a great audience. We’re outta here!”

Welp, here we go.

Yeah, sorry. This one’s all on you, buddy.

HOLY SHIT! That’s much more violent an explosion than I was expecting!

See you, space cowboy.

There’s the reveal. How did Brain (with some help from Pinky) assemble a mecha like this in medieval times? He’s just that good, I suppose.

This junked mecha is giving me Five Nights at Freddy’s vibes and I’m not sure how I feel about that.

“Ah hehahe—‘naughty frog’! Narf! AhHAhaha!”

There’s our boys! Man, TMS makes them so adorable. Look at Pinky’s smile! He’s so precious. And Brain is, too, even though he’s so frustrated right now. ‘Lil grumpy-gus…

“Hysterical, Pinky.”

BONK!

“Zort!”

“…Mice?”

“But WHY?!?”

Honestly, King Arthur? Same.

“We were trying to destroy Camelot in yet another attempt to take over the world.”

W-were you, now? I… Listen, I know you’re not one to think about the details at all, Brain, but this is on a whole other level.

“Come, Pinky. Back to the drawing board.”

“’Stands in the corner’… ‘Naughty frog’… Ah HAHAHAHA!”

SMACK!

“They’re Pinky! They’re Pinky and the Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain--!~”

SPLAT!

That’s it for the cameo. It sure was…something. I honestly don’t know quite what to make of it. The whole Pinky and the Brain twist doesn’t really work unless you make some leaps of logic to try and puzzle out who was in charge of the mecha and when, and it’s an overly aggressive and violent plan…which is very rare for the two mice.

At least the animation was a joy to look at!

[serahne]

kyouko, sayaka and hinata

Okay, apparently it was in my drafts all this time ? I’m so sorry !

Kyoko Kirigri

What is your opinion of this character? If you like, explain why you like him/her. She is the one I blame to fall into Danganronpa as a serie, so I sort of love her, and sort of hate her. More seriously, she is everything I like in a character, especially a female character : she is smart, she is active, she is strong but she still have weaknesses that she tries her best to control. She has a great developement, through choices that are - sometimes - very very harsh for a teenager.

Is he/she important to the general plot? Uh, yeah. She is like, the most important character in dr1. You literally have a bad ending if you don’t decide to sacrifice the protagonist for her. She is the one saying 90% of the interesting stuff in the trials. She is the one who is directly linked to Hope’s Peak history, through her father.

Can you relate to this character at all? Does he/she grip you emotionally? She does, in a way. Through dr1, you can feel how lonely she is fighting her battle, and how everyone except Makoto is ready to turn on her so easily. You can also feel her conflicted feelings about his dad, and it’s done in a very clever way.

Do I relate to her ? In some ways. Like how I’m always reluctant to ask for help and would rather try and manage everything myself, even when the task is hard. I’m far from having the drive that she has, though.

Do you ship this character with any other character? Or, are you particularly intrigued by his/her relationship with any other character(s)? (romance-wise or platonic) I ship her with Naegi and that’s her canon relationship that I enjoy the most. I have other ships (Celes or Sonia) but they work more in AU and stuff. Platonically, I have a fondness for Komaeda and Kirigiri working together in FF. I’m also hella intrigued by her relationship with her dad during the year she spent in Hope’s Peak.

Is there anything about the character you would change? I’m still super mad that they made her die in dr3 to ‘prove her love’ and appease the fuckers who call her a bitch for not accepting her death in dr1, and pretty much made her useless until it was time for her to come back as Naegi’s trophy at the end.

If you were in the fandom with this character or knew this character in real life, how would you see yourself interacting with him/her? I’d probably be too embarassed to really talk to her first. She’d be the kind of girl that I get really flustered to talk with, and I would be scared to sound stupid. I might have an intellectual yeah right crush on her.

Does this character make the cut as one of your all time favorites (if you like) or least favorites? Oh yes, definitely.

Would you hype up this character (if you like) or warn about this character (if you dislike) to someone new to fandom? I… tend to let people find out about characters by themselves, just so I can get their unbiased opinion. Between the two, I would hyper her up, though.

Is this character popular with the fanbase? Mostly yes, I’d say. You have a few people who can’t stand her for… reasons that I don’t undersand but respect, but most of the fanbase have positive - if not very strong - feelings about her.

Sayaka Maizono

What is your opinion of this character? If you like, explain why you like him/her. I really like her ! I think that no matter what your opinion of her is, you have to admit that the twist with her character was done very well, and the first taste of what the Danganronpa serie could do best ! On a more subjective level, she is just the kind of character that I like : so perfect looking that most people won’t notice that something is off inside.

Is he/she important to the general plot? Uh, I’d say that she definitely sets the tone for the serie, though of course her actions don’t carry beyond the first chapter. She only is there for half a chapter, but her character is still used as the background of the trial ground in ndrv3 whereas Twogami and Amami are... fine, I guess, but a lot less in the serie’s DNA, in my opinion.

Can you relate to this character at all? Does he/she grip you emotionally? She does, in a way. She is so young, and with so much pressure on her shoulders. She is sixteen, and has the terrifying feeling that she has peaked and that there is nowhere for her to go but down... this is really sad. I can’t say I relate to her, though. We have really nothing in common, and it’s probably for the best !

Do you ship this character with any other character? Or, are you particularly intrigued by his/her relationship with any other character(s)? (romance-wise or platonic) Celes is my OTP for her because they are both very amibitious and deceptive in their own ways and they would complement nicely. Nae/zono is cute, Kiri/zono too. I like the idea of her, Kaede and Ibuki being friends since, you know, ~ music ~.

Is there anything about the character you would change? I would cut off this weird scene in dr3 where there is a joke about a magazine where she is undressed/wearing a bikini. Even ignoring the fact that she is sixteen, is this really what her character comes down to in dr3 ? All this angst for a stupid pervy joke with Teruteru as a guest star ?

If you were in the fandom with this character or knew this character in real life, how would you see yourself interacting with him/her? Hard to say. She is friendly on a superficial level, so we probably would have good relationships, but friends would be a strong word.

Does this character make the cut as one of your all time favorites (if you like) or least favorites? For the serie, sure ! She is in my top 3 in dr1, at least !

Would you hype up this character (if you like) or warn about this character (if you dislike) to someone new to fandom? Sayaka’s narrative force is the twist behind her character, so I would probably lead this person on to make them believe she is a stereotypical character.

Is this character popular with the fanbase? ... Good question. I’d say... yes, mostly. There is this weird ship war between her fans and Kirigiri’s fans, as if these two ladies weren’t too good for Naegi on the first place. Some people really can’t understand her actions and consider that she is a manipulative bitch, I suppose. Bleh.

Hajime Hinata

What is your opinion of this character? If you like, explain why you like him/her. He is my favorite character in the franchise, and I think it’s well deserved. He is just a great character all-together : he is full of contradictions, insecurities, his growth isn’t as easy/obvious as Naegi’s, he is also a bit grumpy and snarky and judgy and all that makes him very endearing when you spend all this time in his head.

Is he/she important to the general plot? Well, he is the protagonist of sdr2, and technically the reason AI Junko took over the Neo-World Program. Despite how centered around Komaeda the game is, I still think Hinata is the one really at the core of the game, and that’s done in a very interesting way.

Can you relate to this character at all? Does he/she grip you emotionally? Oh, he really grips me on an emotional level, yes, and it’s probably also because I relate to him - or, I guess I can understand him while looking at him from an older perspective. He feels trapped, put on rails that he feels he can’t change the destination of, he feels like he is missing something, that his life is passing him by and he can’t help but feel like being someone else would make everything better. It’s a mix of teenage ridiculousness and existential crisis that we all felt at some point, right ?

Do you ship this character with any other character? Or, are you particularly intrigued by his/her relationship with any other character(s)? (romance-wise or platonic) I’m not going to rant about Koma/hina again, but yes, I might *cough* ship them, just a bit. I’m fine with other relationships, romantic or not, like Sonia, Mahiru or Natsumi. I like his brOTP with Kazuichi and Fuyuhiko. I like to think about his relationship with Naegi, because I feel like it would be a lot more complicated than the canon let it on, too. And if we consider them different people, his ‘relationship’ with Kamukura is also very important !

Is there anything about the character you would change? The ‘man nuts’ scene is not only dumb but very OOC. Can we... not. Do this. Also the ending of dr3 shits all over his character’s growth, and his ‘god mode’ is a but insulting toward Hinata’s fans I think, but... whatever. It’s what fanfics are for.

If you were in the fandom with this character or knew this character in real life, how would you see yourself interacting with him/her? I hope we’d get along ? I feel like we would, at least a bit, haha.

Does this character make the cut as one of your all time favorites (if you like) or least favorites? Yeah, he is #1, baby.

Would you hype up this character (if you like) or warn about this character (if you dislike) to someone new to fandom? I mean ‘he is my favorite character in the serie’ is hyping up, I suppose ? As I aways said, I like the idea of people making their own ideas. If someone ends up not liking Hinata, then they have terrible taste, but I won’t drop dead because of it, you know ?

Is this character popular with the fanbase? Oh, he is. I’m not sure if he is the most popular protag ( the fandom is still on the Shuichi-hype train ) but I don’t think I really saw one really negative opinion of him ? Which is fine by me, haha.

[mothmckrakken]

salzrand

replied to your post

“I saw Bleach live action advertised on Netflix today!! I can’t wait to...”

How did you like it? :D

Well, in response I have written a HUGE REVIEW! :D (which you don’t have to read all of, it’s mostly just me getting my thoughts down in writing) (you could just go straight to the highlights at the end to see what’s important to me haha)

As far as LAs go I was personally really impressed with how realistic it felt and how even though they changed some things it still worked. It had its comedy moments without trying to replicate anime humour which helped it come across as more professional; for instance Keigo wasn’t hurling himself at Ichigo and yelling all the time, but he still came across as a funny and enthusiastic character through his interactions with the others and that repeated “Ichigo died” joke which, tbh, I laughed at every time :D

I am OVER THE MOON that Kon wasn’t included and that no girls (or anyone for that matter) were sexualised throughout the whole film!! It IS possible!! Basically that made it so much more comfortable and enjoyable to watch, so respect to the director for that.

The hollows looked brilliant, I loved how their skulls were almost ornate looking, excellently creepy and detailed 👍 and the Grand Fisher fight was glorious chaos 😂 the way it’s hair was shooting everywhere and Ichigo was just flat out running through the town like HOLY SHIT with this giant guinea pig thing whirl-winding after him…yeah that was good stuff. It was weird that Uryu got involved since it was meant to be Ichigo’s personal fight to avenge his mother, but at the same time I liked how they made Ichigo more vulnerable and less of an instant-hero (pour some training on him, wait for a montage of 2 minutes and he’s done!) I also liked the fight against Zabimaru; I often forget how intimidating and scary Renji’s shikai is in battle, especially considering it’s the first shikai Ichigo sees, and that did come across in their fight.

So as for the characters, I thought Rukia was brilliant. Hana did good job with Rukia’s mannerisms and I think she looked like a decent LA equivalent to Rukia. I know some people didn’t like her hair, but I think it fitted with the realistic feel of the film; it’s a different genre to anime and if they’d tried to replicate Rukia’s anime hair it might have looked out of place compared to everything else. A tight ponytail seems fitting for Rukia, if I over analyse it it could represent not only how strict her job is, but also the strictness of the Kuchiki family. The one loose strand of hair was a nice replacement for the between-the-eyes strand from the anime, and her ears looked adorable. If I’m going to complain about anyone’s hair then I think Tatsuki’s could have been tuftier instead of being a neat bob; I don’t think it suited her character as much.

It would have been cool to see Orihime and Chad’s powers, but I get that they could only fit so much into one film. Ideally there will be a sequel which looks at them in more detail, after all they have already been shown to recognise Ichigo in soul form and they’ve also met Urahara. Ichigo was well-represented and he looked the part, and although he wasn’t as grumpy as his manga equivalent I was happy with his portrayal.

Now Renji and Byakuya were a bit more of a shock, they were bad enough in their manga entrance but the film took it to a whole new level :’) Byakuya telling Renji to execute Rukia on the spot and repeatedly telling Rukia to kill Ichigo was unsettling. Renji was entertaining to watch but his character appeared to be an exaggeration of his first appearance and he didn’t seem to have any redeeming qualities 😂 the only implications that he was concerned about Rukia was when he side-eyed Bayakuya after being told to kill her, and when he told her to just kill Ichigo so she could be pardoned, but even when saying that he was yelling aggressively. 

In the manga there are parts in Renji’s first appearance when he was reflective, stunned by Ichigo’s power-up and thinking about Byakuya, but in the live action this doesn’t happen. It was very out of character when he stabbed Uryu in the back, (god that scared me), he would have faced him in a fight, not killed him like that. (Also it was never explained how Uryu recovered, should we assume he was hospitalised?) Renji was very much made into a vicious assassin in this film, he even seemed ready to kill Rukia until Ichigo miraculously rose from the flaming carnage like a sword-wielding phoenix. I struggle to see how he would be revealed to have good intentions if there was a sequel.

The one part of the film where I got bored was probably meant to be the most tense scene, and it WOULD have been tense had it not gone on and on and on. Yes, the “Byakuya strikes Ichigo down, Ichigo crawls back to him” scene that repeated several times and just seemed to drag. It just lost its effectiveness around the third time Ichigo got back up. Also I assume Ichigo survived Renji throwing an effing car on him (way to go the extra mile Renji) by his hollow powers waking up, but that wasn’t shown :( I guess that would have to be something to develop in the sequel if one happens.

The ending was strange because it was completely different from the manga, and it was weird that Rukia had to go back with these nasty people who were going to kill her while Ichigo forgot everything :0 but at least there was that end bit when he seemed to remember her after reading the note, it gave a bit of hope that there could possibly be a continuation. That and the way it referred to the specific arc at the end could imply that another arc is to come. I’d certainly watch it if it did!

Highlights!

Uryu hanging out at ‘Rob’s Burgers’ (it just...seems so unlikely?)

In the middle of every fight scene when the song says DRINK ALL YOUR MILK (cue the invention of a milk drinking game)

Renji using Zabimaru to pick up a car and hurl it at Ichigo (not the best way to work through jealousy Renji)

Rukia’s awesome smooth purple hollow detector~ (the 90′s child within me was fascinated)

That glimpse at Soul Society *-* (It looked so modern! WANT MORE)