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beccanoodles · 3 years ago

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Cowboy Bebop Live Action- Review(ish)

Alrighty, I know we have seen many reviews already, but I knew from the beginning that I would not let this show go by without giving my 2 cents, so here we go!

Want my short take? I think there was clear effort put into this, but essentially it fails as a good adaptation. There are good moments and bad moments and I will mention them both, but overall I am not a huge fan. My current rating stands at 5/10. I have reasons, if you want to know, please continue forward (:

IT DOES NOT DO THE ANIME JUSTICE

Okay- I know I sound like the seething fans here (which I will speak about later on in this post), but let's unpack that. I came into this series not expecting it to be just like the OG and actually expecting it to be almost like a fanfiction. It got me a little excited because I love Bebop fics! So this should be fun...However, as I was watching, I felt like saying that was making excuses for when it fell short. This is not some random fan work, it is a professional work and so it is held to a different standard. It turns out I don't want a fanfiction out of this. I want them to tell the story that's there (not necessarily exactly the same way) and honor the original series. That doesn't mean they didn't honor the anime at all, I actually feel like they did a good job of that in many ways. They included lots of fun little things that I think definitely called back to the original and made me happy.

For example, I really loved the world they created (not talking about the execution). It was very cool to see it all come to life, especially the ship! I would say the fight scenes had a lot of little moments that shined too. I actually liked that opening scene and I thought Spike kicking the Woolong with his foot was just greatness. There are other moments like this that I did enjoy, but this is just to name a few. Now, unfortunately, where it failed was in the biggies. Story and characters. In turn, that connects with a failure in writing and direction. I said from the beginning that if they touched the story and characters (too much) it wouldn't bode well and low and behold, here we are. We could go back and fourth on the point of this adaptation, but all I can say is, it's still a show called Cowboy Bebop so that is the shoe it must fit.

STORY

Let's talk about the plot. First off, I did NOT want a 1:1 remake. No, in fact I think the moments where they tried to do that were some of the worst (except maybe that last replica scene with Spike and Vicious. That was kind of cool). It's not about the show being exactly the same, but rather it reflecting the actual soul of the original show. The essence that makes it so special, which, one could argue, is the lack of and inability to connection and purpose in the current world, due to past experiences. They are stuck and flawed human beings who wander aimlessly...it's existential. This live action barley touched that with the tip of it's finger. It became a basic level show about found family (Bebop is about this too, but in a very different way) that used an iconic title and iconic characters as the face of it.

I can see why writers would want to add onto or fill in Bebop's (practically non-existent) plot line, however I think there is a way to do that without cheapening it. There were additions I thought were kind of unnecessary. The Jet being a literal father thing. Idk, it just felt like it was only there to give Jet more motivation and cause conflict between him and Spike later on...not a good enough reason in my opinion. Especially because if Jet was a father he would probably not be hunting and have all the purpose in the world.

I also wasn't a fan of the way they adapted some of the side stories too, like Asimov and Katerina for example. It made them less impactful and I think it's because they tried to re-create moments and scenes rather than focusing on the feeling and point of things. I wouldn't have even minded if they created all new original characters and stories with the same kind of energy. Not saying that's the best idea, but I don't know, it would have stood out and been more creative maybe. Again, keeping the focus on the meaning and soul of the show. Like, when it came to Faye's video tape, the part that was like the anime was a bit weird, but the piano addition and her talking to her mom was really nice. Stuff like that.

Of course, changes should never be made for the sake of being different, they should have a purpose. If something won't add to or deepen an already existing story, why do it? Like, how much did making Katerina an heiress (?) really add to anything? I would have been more interested to know more about her and Asimov's relationship and how they got to that point or get a chance to really sit in the tragedy of them. Hopefully, you understand what I mean here...it's not that making changes is bad it's just the kind of changes and the way they went about it. Overall, it just feels almost mock-ish.

The same can be said for the Vicious and Julia (/Spike) storyline. It's just there to be there and fill in the blanks rather than actually do anything wroth while. I thought about going through every bit of this particular section that I wasn't a fan of, but that's just too much. I'll say this, there were some interesting choices, but none of them really felt meaningful. Here is what I would want out of this kind of thing. I want to understand the characters like Vicious, Julia and co and feel for them a bit. I want to see a visible change in Spike. Past Spike didn't seem much different from Bebop Spike. He dressed differently, had a different job, and different name (which btw, that name is so stupid omg), but I couldn't really see a change. I wanted to like and root for Julia and Spike too, but it left me feeling pretty much the same, plus a tad annoyed. It all just felt very flat and very rushed. They should have taken their time to get through it! Spike's story, while the most curious one, is not really the main story. Again, it's about these Cowboys and these struggles. How they see themselves in the many people they meet who are in the same positions!!! They really just turned it into some weird villain origin story for Julia and ...gosh guys don't ask me about the ending. I laughed. I really laughed and that fall from the window did so not earn it's place with that music adjkshs. Just saying.

CHARACTERS

They weren't hungry enough. Haha.

Okay. The characters were the most disheartening thing for me. The one thing I really wish they didn't mess with too much. Before I get into it I just want to say, I think the actors are good actors and gave a decent performance. Really where these characters failed was in the script (and some of the acting choices as well, but that could also be led by direction).

There is far too much chumminess amongst the crew. At least for this point of their story. Going back to the fanfic point, if someone did an AU that takes place during the course of the show and the characters behaved this way, I would feel like they were OOC. The fact that it is a "professional work" makes it worse because it totally missed the point of the characters and the importance of their distance to each other. They're constantly saying what is on their mind and it freaks me out (lol). Is it fun? It can be at times and I won't lie and say some moments were not enjoyable, but it just doesn't sit right in the grand scheme of things. I think it would have been better to build up to those relationships properly. If they wanted to play with the idea of them actually bonding and becoming a functional team that might have been an interesting journey to watch and see how it affects the outcome of the story, but this almost feels like they are trying to "fix" the holes and the relationships the entire time. It doesn't need "fixing." (This was written before I actually saw the comment from the Gren actor...I get the context they're using, but still it's that energy throughout the whole thing). Don't change the characters just to get the chummy heartfelt stuff. Time to go more in depth...

FAYE

I just really need to talk about Faye. Okay, I know a lot of you liked her and as a stand alone character Netflix Faye is cool, but I personally did not see Faye Valentine in this interpretation. Let me re-phrase, I saw one side of Faye Valentine turned up to 10,000 percent. Faye is brash and annoying and doesn't care what anyone thinks. Yes, this is true of Netflix Faye too, but it's too much. I feel like we lose a lot Faye's dynamics, but let's take it one at a time.

All of her femme fatal nature and feminine qualities are basically gone. Faye is constantly shown bathing, doing her nails, getting a tan, shopping, reading girlish magazines etc...she's not strictly a tomboy. Maybe I'm nit-picking here, but it's kind of insulting to me. I have to wonder if they chose this direction to make her a stronger female character, but I always thought Faye was a strong female character as she was. She was a survivor with a guarded heart (let me repeat- GUARDED HEART) that could fend for herself and pull the badass from her back pocket all while her lipstick was in check and in a pair of heels...lol, but you get what I mean, right? There is nothing wrong with characters like the one Daniella played, but it just isn't this character. I am never in favor of changing an existing character's personality to fit a point box. I also just kind of hate when women are stripped of their "girlish qualities" for the sake of being a "strong woman," because all that says to me is they can't be strong and tough if they are too girlish. I feel this shows even more so in Julia, but we will get there in a bit... I like the addition of giving Faye more combat skill and seeing her kick ass, but that's really the only addition to her character I enjoyed from this.

The other thing, Faye was selfish and cunning and unapologetically so. The one thing you could expect from her was to take off when she wanted and gamble away her money or steal theirs. She was not always a good human being. At the same time she did have a lot of heart, but it was hard to see upfront because she was damaged and broken. I have absolutely no idea why Netflix strayed away from this. She warmed up to them (and them to her) way to quickly and she was so outwardly caring about them just... so quickly...I get they want the warm-hearted stuff, but why not let us see that gradual growth instead? Like when her "mom" showed up I was like, omg it's anime Faye! She had the bracelet gadgets, lied, cheated, schemed...Sure she's not exactly a good person, but the point about Faye is she grows from that by the end of the show and I think they missed an opportunity to really flesh that out. To me, she is far less interesting in this rendition. It's nothing I've never seen before.

Side note- what happened to her cards and gambling addiction??

SPIKE

I think I had more qualms with Spike's story than I did his character. I actually don't hate the way he was portrayed, but he had the same issues many of them did. He was too upfront about things. Even the way he went about keeping things from Jet. He was too reassuring about it. The characters as a whole were missing that figurative kind of conversation. Just look at the Netflix scene where they are about to go into Teddy's ship (episode 2 @14:00) in comparison with when they have a similar convo in Ballad of Fallen angels (session 5 @12:25). Anyways, Spike wasn't awful, but there were times when he felt like Spike and times when he didn't. Or maybe it was that he felt like a Spike that lived with different circumstances?

JET

I don't have much to say about Jet that I haven't already said (about his story). I think he is the most bearable and true to the original character. Is it perfect? Not exactly, but I never needed perfection. Just make him recognizable and I think Mustafa, despite some questionable dialogue, did that. I knew who he was right away and that is exactly what should happen.

VICIOUS AND JULIA

Gaawd. I don't even want to get into it, I mean so many of you have already said what I wanted to say so I think you get the point...I'll just touch on it a bit. First off, they're married! That's a choice.

They just totally murdered Vicious as a character. He was just so weak and too unsure of himself and emotional...like Vicious is basically soulless (not literally, but he's clearly been through enough sh*t to act that way) and I wanted to see that in him and see that transition from before to the present day. I didn't see him as "Vicious." I saw him as a sloppy, whiny man with major anger issues. And they gave him this whole "Don't tell me I'm not man enough" angle like- wtf?!?! Just ridiculous on all levels.

Julia. So earlier I was talking about how they must see woman who are girlish as weaker...well they proved their position on that with this one. They gave Julia all the feminine nature while making her a weaker character in the process. Like what is up with this mild sexism??? No? Just me seeing that? It's not that I don't think women can be shown feeling scared and vulnerable, but something about this instance just felt so blaaaah. I guess it just feels corny, the way she came up. In the anime I thought Julia was apart of the syndicate. We do see her being kind and nurturing, but we also see her slinging a gun and outrunning syndicate goons . This Julia was also kind of...annoying? I see where they were trying to go with her deceiving Vicious (I guess trying to make her a femme fatal), but it just was not done well. They really dug into that "it's not possible to escape," thing, but it just didn't feel authentic. I just really wanted to like her, but I couldn't. It's meh for me.

MISC

Okay, I feel like I could go in depth on other characters too, but I'm just going to leave a casual list of characters who were done so wrong, belittled, and deserved better.

GREN!!!

Mao

Bob...?

Teddy Bomber (though maybe that's fitting lol)

I won't be talking about Ed as of now because I don't think I have seen enough to really judge it.

CONCLUSION

If this show was a stand alone show, it might be a 6/10, maybe 7/10 for me. However, because I know the original, we are here. I want to just talk about the fans and all this criticism for a sec. This show is so, SO, special to so many people, and yes, not every major-long time-fan is upset about the live action, but that doesn't mean others don't have a right to feel upset about it. Does it change the original? No, and thank God for that, but it's still just a bad representation of it. Netflix is a major corporation in the entertainment industry and since when are people not allowed to critique and call out this industry or television in general? Everyone who likes the show is welcome to like the show and that's great, but others will not like it and they have perfectly valid reasons to not like it. Personally, I don't think the show needs to be canceled, but I sure as hell am not going to coddle it and stay quiet when it makes such ridiculous mistakes. You can't say not to compare it, because like I said, it has the same name. It IS an adaptation through an official and major production company of a classic show. It WILL be compared. If the Netflix version takes off, it might be what many think of when we hear Cowboy Bebop (if they had never seen the anime before). So in a way, it could affect the original. Overall, I just hope people watch the anime too because it truly is a work of art. If you made it this far in my overly lengthy "review" rant thanks lol. I'd like to know your thoughts too, even if you disagree on something! Please comment or reblog with your say. Talk to ya soon!

Also- remember we do still have the original ❤ I call re-watch time!

#Cowboy Bebop #Cowboy Bebop Live Action #Review #Spike Spiegel #Faye Valentine #Jet Black #Vicious (cowboy bebop)#julia (cowboy bebop)#thoughts

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shark-myths · 4 years ago

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@alienfuckeronmain tagged me to deep-search my soul with these questions, and it is the exact distraction I was looking for! no pressure to do this one, pals, but i tag @carbonbased000 @leyley09 @shoeboxofphotographs12 @glitterandrocketfuel @allkindsofplatinumandpercocet @setting-in-a-honeymoon @toorational and anyone i’ve forgotten!

1. Do you prefer writing with a black pen or blue pen? does anyone like blue pens? who is this product made for

2. Would you prefer to live in the country or city? the city, cuz i spent 7 consecutive years very broke in rural areas with homophobia neighbors and having things to do is so thrilling. but i imagine one day retreating into the desert and living far from my nearest neighbors

3. If you could learn a new skill what would it be? I have learned all the skills I am interested in right now, because learning new things is an a+ quarantine activity. maybe the ability to do physics? i would like to be proficient in physics and i am deeply not

4. Do you drink your tea/coffee with sugar? Never

5. What was your favourite book as a child? all of them! I have always read like i’m running out of time and often get stressed when i think about how few books i will be able to read in my lifetime. as a child I reread Lord of the Rings and Robin McKinley and the Holly Black Tithe series the most, and i was OBSESSED with those gold-paged books with ribbon bookmarks that were diaries of girls from different historical periods, and i have never been able to read historical fiction since.

6. Do you prefer baths or showers? I hated baths passionately until my chronic pain reached a tipping point, and since then i have learned to really enjoy the long hot soak with a drink and a book. (i didn’t like showers either until very recently. life support tasks felt like a huge waste of time until i got a partner who helped me figure out how to enjoy them)

7. If you could be a mythical creature, which one would it be? i have always wanted to be one of tolkien’s elves! I want a long life filled with learning languages and reading books and existing in green peaceful spaces, and then i want to be able to die when i am done.

8. Paper or electronic books? I like paper better--I��ve been building a library slowly my whole life--but my kindle has been life-saving during the pandemic when i couldn’t go to the library.

9. What is your favourite item of clothing? right now i’m doing all my work remotely and clothes feel meaningless, but i have a plain black tank top that i feel really comfortable in

10. Do you like your name or would you like to change it? I don’t like my name at all--it’s Kaylie--because it is so aggressively peppy and feminine. it doesn’t sounds like an adult’s name; it evokes exclamation points and pigtails. i have always wished for a severe, no-nonsense name like joan, or a pretty but to-the-point name like eva.

11. Who is a mentor to you? Leslie Knope

12. Would you like to be famous and if so, what for? I used to fantasize about being a famous writer, and now in my field i do wish i had a name that mattered or was considered esteemed or expert in something in some way. I would love to have a research job where i had paid time to publish! but i don’t want it enough to work on it outside of my capitalist mandatory labor hours, because i don’t have enough time for my loved ones as it is

13. Are you a restless sleeper? lately yes, since my cat died in january i have slept like absolute hell

14. Do you consider yourself a romantic person? not really, but i am a thoughtful one

15. Which element best represents you? earth

16. Who do you want to be closer to? physically i want to be closer to my long-distance pals like @alienfuckeronmain @newleafover @time-less @immoral-crow @leyley09 (leyna let’s have a movie night when i’m done moving???)

17. Do you miss someone at the moment? pretty much all my friends i used to regularly hang out with, sam who moved to seattle, sam who lives in madison, all the people i listed above

18. Tell us about an early childhood memory. I used to play going to work. i’d pack up a backgammon case as a briefcase, grab my stuffed gorilla, and go write in notebooks and move pieces of paper around

19. What is the strangest thing you have eaten? I am an extremely boring person and all I eat is popcorn and bread

20. What are you most thankful for? having an able body that works to support me and keep me whole, having a partner who makes me feel truly cared for

21. Do you like spicy food? yep!

22. Have you ever met someone famous? once at c2e2 i met george r.r. martin and no one else cared he existed because got wasn’t a show yet, so i awkwardly went up to him and proclaimed my love for his work, and then he trapped me in a long conversation about vampires

23. Do you do you keep a diary or journal? a journal! i have since i was pretty small, they take up a full shelf of a bookcase

24. Do you prefer to use a pen or a pencil? pen, and i have lots of Special Pens that i only use for a particular purpose or project, because i am a huge raging...

25. What is your star sign? virgo

26. Do you like your cereal soggy or crunchy? crunchy and without milk

27. What would you want your legacy to be? personally, that I wrote things that meant something to the people who read them; professionally, that i removed barriers to accessing healthcare for trans and gender expansive people

28. Do you like reading, what was the last book you read? see above--I completely adore reading. last book was Sisters of the Vast Black and currently i’m reading The House in the Cerulean Sea and it’s totally charming. I’ve been reading really quality science and nonfiction writing too, please send me your recommendations

29. How do you show someone you love them? I make them breakfast, I tell them so constantly, I send them things in the mail, I bring them small interesting gifts, and I say every nice thought I have about them out loud

30. Do you like ice in your drinks? not especially, but it’s fun to chew on

31. What are you afraid of? surgery

32. What is your favourite scent? smoke from blown-out candles, lavender, laundry detergent my loved ones use

33. Do you address older people by their name or surname? whatever they’ve told me to call them? this seems like common courtesy

34. If money was not a factor, how would you live your life? I do so much less clinical work and work fewer hours in general, I would run for office so I could influence policy and stop wasting my fucking time on the ground level, I would spend more time writing, I would spend so much more time with my family, I would devote the time to running longer distances again in a way that doesn’t aggravate my busted knee

35. Do you prefer swimming in pools or the ocean? the ocean!

36. What would you do if you found £50 on the ground? oh i would definitely spend that on something stupid and self-indulgent i wanted, like a pete wentz hoodie

37. Have you ever seen a shooting star? YES! when i was kid every summer i’d be sent to jesus camp, which thank god because that’s what got me into fanfiction, and it was in the middle of nowhere, wisconsin, and you could see the entire milky way and shooting stars blaze across that thing ALL THE TIME, and it shook me to my foundation every summer and for a time i mistook that feeling for faith in god instead of wonder at the infinite being and possibility that is our generous universe

38. What is the one thing you would want to teach your children? i have none of my own but my partner has a 5 year old, so quite against my intention i have become a parent-adjacent person. i try to teach him about emotional accountability for the effect of his actions on others

39. If you had to have a tattoo, what would it be and where would you get it? the next tattoo i want is a big snake crawling up my mostly bare left arm

40. What can you hear now? my laptop fan

41. Where do you feel the safest? when i’m protecting someone else

42. What is the one thing you want to overcome/conquer? my relationship with my body

43. Of you could travel back to any era, what would it be? i’d really like to be a gentleman of leisure in a jane austen novel

44. What is your most used emoji? the purple heart

45. Describe yourself using one word. earnest

46. What do you regret the most? not going to a 4-year university and having a #college experience. it’s one of my most stinging regrets because it was not a decision i got to make for myself

47. Last movie you saw? what is a movie theater? what does it feel like to be in one? the last movie i watched is charlie’s angels from the early 2000s because that was an unexamined sexual awakening for me--lucy liu being efficient in leather has never left me, efficiency is the single trait i most attracted to--and i wanted my boyfriend to see how bad it is

48. Last tv show you watched? either Kipo and the age of the wonderbeasts or star trek tng!

49. Invent a word and its meaning. instead i will say that i think the most beautiful english word is ache. my favorite way of creating things is transforming and remixing what already exists, which makes writing with words someone else invented the ideal challenge and pastime

(i really loved doing this! it was nice to talk about myself at the end of a workweek. thank you @alienfuckeronmain !)

#tags #about me #a humble shark

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crazy-little-cool-cat · 5 years ago

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Hand in Glove - Chapter 24 | Ben Hardy x OFC

A/N: I’m a shooting star leaping through the skies like a tiger, defying the laws of gravity. Don’t stop me now. Also, y’all can thank the Jewish holidays for giving me so much free time to write. This chapter was written in collaboration with @ramibaby. My dear, thank you for sacrificing your fics for this chapter. You are a champion.

Word Count: Laughs nervously.

Warnings: There’s smut. Also, I’m kind of making fun of fanfics in this one, which means I’m making fun of myself, mostly, so please, fellow writer - do not take this seriously. This is pure fun. If you’re confused by this statement, just read the chapter and your issues will be resolved.

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, ��Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14 , Chapter 15 , Chapter 16 , Chapter 17 , Chapter 18 , Chapter 19 , Chapter 20 , Chapter 21 , Chapter 22 , Chapter 23

“Bullocks.”

“I’m telling you, Jamie. They hated it.”

“Sweet Clara,” Jamie shook his head and pursed his lips, “they’re lying. At least one of them is.”

“Who’s lying?” Annie startled them both.

“You are.” Jamie said, tongue in cheek.

“Enlighten me.” Annie crossed her arms.

“We’ve kissed, what, trillions of times?” Jamie asked. “Not one of them was like kissing a croc. Or an eel.”

“How do you even know -”

“The Snitcher here told me all about it.” Jamie patted Clara’s head. “Anyways, someone’s lying.”

Annie took a deep breath.

“Well, then?” Jamie tapped his foot as he waited for Annie to either tear him a new asshole or come clean. “Which one is it?”

“I mean, it wasn’t that bad.” Annie said, looking at the ground.

“Oh, no…” Clara took a step back while Jamie lifted his closed fist and released it, dropping an invisible mic. “Annie, what are you saying?”

“It wasn’t that bad.” Annie shrugged. “Did I make a whole show of it to get you knuckleheads to stop? Yes. But so did Joe.”

“Wait, what?”

“Oh, the plot thickens!” Jamie leered.

“Fuck off, Jamie.” Annie shot back. “Look, did I like the way Joe kissed me? No. Not really. He’s too gentle.”

“But?” Clara prodded on.

“But it wasn’t as horrible as we both said it was.” Annie said casually. “Will I do it again now that I know what it’s like? Nope.”

“Jamie?” Clara looked at the tall redhead.

Jamie squinted suspiciously at Annie, scrutinizing her from head to toe.

“She’s telling the truth.”

###

“How many more of these do we have left?” Ben rubbed his face with both hands and threw his head back against the back of the sofa he, Gwilym, Rami and Joe were crammed in since the morning. “If I have to answer the same bloody questions again…”

They finally got a break. Gwilym decided to go stretch his legs a bit and Rami went out for a smoke, leaving Ben and Joe alone in the room.

“I know, right?” Joe grumbled.

“Can I ask you something?” Ben removed his hands and turned his head to look at Joe.

“Shoot.”

“You liked kissing her, didn’t you?”

“Look, Ben, I don’t want to hurt your feelings…”

“So, you did.”

“It wasn’t as horrible as we made it seem, no.” Joe started. “But I didn’t like the way she kissed me, man.”

“What?”

“She’s too aggressive.” Joe shrugged. “The lip biting thing? I don’t like it.”

“Wait -”

“I mean, she’s not a bad kisser at all.” Joe rephrased. “Very... passionate.”

“Huh.”

“Just a bit too much for my liking.”

“Good. That’s good.” Ben straightened up. “So it won’t happen again?”

“No.” Joe smiled. “Although, her kiss did make me wonder what your sex life is like.”

“Amazing, actually.”

###

Annie stared at her phone, scratching her head in confusion. After looking through her texts while Ben filled the car with petrol, she had half a mind to pay someone to build a flying saucer for her and her family leave this planet forever.

“What’s wrong?” Ben said as he put on his seat-belt.

“The world.”

“Uh?”

“There’s people out there pining over Clara and me. Like, romantically.”

“Come again?” Ben adjusted the rear view mirror and smiled when Rory’s reflection appeared. “What are you on about?”

“They call us Clannie, Ben.”

“What?”

“They’re writing stories about Clara and me as a couple. Graphic stuff.”

“Can you send me a link to one of them?” Ben smirked.

“No!” Annie shuddered. “You sick, sick man!”

“Could be hot.” He shrugged.

“So could the stories about you, Gwilly and Joe.” Annie smirked back.

“What, like Gwil and me, Joe and me, and Gwil and Joe?”

“No, no,” Annie stifled a chuckle. “All three of you at once.”

Ben blinked, staring at the road ahead.

“Da!”

“Yeah, baby?” Ben replied instinctively, before slamming his foot on the breaks. “Did she just call me Da?”

“She’s six months old, I’m not sure babies start talking at that age.”

“She called me Da.” Ben insisted.

“She’s a babbling blob, Ben.” Annie rolled her eyes. “She didn’t call you Da.”

“She said her first word and it was Da.”

“Ben, you’re being irrational.”

“You’re jealous.”

“Da! Ba! Bfffffffffff!” Rory continued.

“I know, Rory,” Annie turned around in her seat, “but doing press interviews can make anyone hear things.”

“Sssssssseeeeeeeeeeeeee!”

“You’re absolutely right.” Annie replied. “But we love him anyways.”

###

If there’s one thing Annie hated the most about promoting season two of Greensleeves, it’s doing the interviews and late-night talk shows. Same questions, different people. It got tiresome. She managed to play the “Baby Card” more times than she’d expected... Until the producers realised what she was doing and the proverbial party was officially over.

“So, is the cast really that close?” Jason, the host, asked Clara and Annie.

“Some are closer than others.” Annie replied, surprisingly diplomatically. “Jamie and I have known each other before and Clara and I basically grew up together, so that was inevitable.”

“The previous George Boleyn was alright, I suppose. He didn’t last too long, though.” Clara chimed in. “But the new guy? We love Mike.”

“Oh yeah, he fit right in.” Annie smiled. “As far as the older cast members - we look up to them, but we don’t share our nonsense with them too much.”

“What about Jane Seymour’s character?” Jason asked.

“Well, we haven’t met her yet.” Annie confessed. “The production team’s goal was for art to truly imitate life and they want my reaction to be as genuine as possible. We haven’t filmed the part she comes into the picture just yet.”

“We don’t even know who she is, to be honest.” Clara added.

“I suspect someone messed up and forgot to cast a Jane, really.” Annie shrugged.

“Careful, there, Annabelle.” Jason chuckled. “Keep calling the production team out like that and you’ll end up fired.”

“I’ll be beheaded either way.”

“And what a glorious sight it will be.” Clara cheekily teased her.

“You two seem to have an amazing bond.” Jason admitted. “Do you ever fight?”

“All couples do.” Clara answered and Jason audibly gasped. “We don’t like to be too public about our tiffs.”

“Clara, you blithering fool…” Annie smacked her own forehead dramatically.

“Well, since you ladies brought it up -”

“Not this lady.” Annie muttered, pointing at herself.

“- what exactly is Clannie? I assume you’ve heard the term before.”

Clara and Annie exchanged amused smiles and sighed simultaneously.

“The bane of my existence.” Annie replied.

“Basically, I stumbled upon it the other day after a fan sent me a private message on Instagram, saying there’s an actual hashtag people use when they talk about Annie and I.”

“Sounds innocent enough.” Jason shrugged.

“Oh, you dirty, dirty man.” Clara joked. “You know damn well where this is going.”

“You seem to be enjoying this!” Jason laughed.

“Believe me, she loves every bloody minute of it.” Annie chimed in.

“Right, so as I snooped around I found that Clannie is like a code name for Annie and I as a couple.”

“Aha.”

“And the more I delved in, the more entertaining it got. People are writing some pretty wild fanfiction stories about us.”

“Is it really all fiction?” Jason asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, if you’ll look at the screen here,” Jason turned back a little where a huge image behind the scenes of Greensleeves appeared. It was one of Annie licking cake off Clara’s face, “the show’s Instagram page is like fodder for the Clannie enthusiasts.”

“Oh my God, I forgot about that!” Annie burst out laughing. “It was Clara’s birthday! Season one! Jamie took this picture, actually. Right after I smashed Clara’s face into that cake.”

“It’s tradition.” Clara explained. “The cake licking part was definitely improvised.”

###

“Ben?”

“In here!”

Annie followed the sound of Ben’s voice and found him in the living room, folding laundry while watching whatever was on the telly.

“I am absolutely shattered.” Annie wrapped her hands around Ben’s waist and looked up at him. “Longest day in my entire life.”

“Likewise.” Ben murmured and kissed her. “Just got home a couple of hours ago. When I picked Rory up from my mum’s she was already asleep.”

“God, I wish I could be her for a day.”

“Yeah? Want me to give you baths and carry you in my arms and nibble on your little bum after I change your nappy?” Ben raised an eyebrow. “Just say the word. Also Joe and Gwil shot a weird little bit today when they read what Tumblr users said about the movie and cast and do people not wank anymore?”

“I, uh…” Annie was at a loss for words.

“How was your day?”

“If I have to hear about Clannie again I will definitely clock someone.” Annie released her grip on Ben and collapsed on the sofa. “Why are people so obsessed with this?”

“Two hot birds doing naughty things?” Ben shrugged. “I can see the appeal of it.”

“Ben, no.”

“Don’t be such a prude, now, love.” He put the last item of folded clothing in the hamper and flopped down next to Annie, his hand trailing up her thigh.

“Ben…”

“I missed you, alright?” his fingers poked their way under the waistband of her leggings. “I can’t stop missing you.”

“Ben, seriously, I’m so tired.” She grumped as he slid off the sofa and positioned himself in front of her, nudging her legs open. “I missed you too but -”

“Let me do all the work.” He looked up at her through his eyelashes as his hands gripped her waistband again. He looked up at Annie with his best puppy dog eyes and waited for her consent. With a sigh, she lifted her bum up, letting Ben pull her leggings and knickers down in one swift motion. “Good girl.”

###

When Ben’s phone rang for the fifth time and Gwilym’s name showed up on the screen yet again, he knew something was either horribly wrong or that Gwilym is drunk and emotional. Glancing at Annie, they both sighed in resignation before taking the FaceTime call.

“Have you been drinking?” Annie asked when Clara showed up on the screen. “What kind of fuckery is this?”

“We found a good story and we just had to share, alright? Calm your tits, Annie. It’s not a Clannie.” Clara rolled her eyes. “Why won’t Joe pick up?”

“I just texted him to pick up.” Ben shoved the screen into view. “As his husband, he’ll surely listen to me.”

“Bugger off!” Gwil turned his phone around and flipped him the bird.

“Why have I been summoned?” Joe asked, his face appearing on the screen.

“Well, we have a treat for you!” Clara practically sang.

“A treat?”

“Yours socks are going to fly right off, mate.” Gwil added as Clara pulled the story up on her phone. “You’re not ready for this.”

With a devilish smile to the camera, Clara cleared her throat and began.

“’Joe…?’ Ben croaked, eyes still closed, brow low and fingers wrapped firmly around his length over his jeans.” Clara started reading.

“Off to a good start.” Annie teased.

“It gets better.” Clara commented. “Right, where was I? Ah. There.” She snickered. “Suddenly, his eyes shot open and they landed on you once again; glassy and dazed they were as he stared you down, stroking himself with more purpose. He looked at you with such focus and intent, it was as though he was about to devour you whole. You looked at him with such longing, it was as though you were about to let him. ‘Undress… h-her.’ His words came out in a strangled whine and he bit his lip, looking over your body expectantly as Joe wordlessly obliged.” Clara raised her eyes from the screen and huffed. “Gwil, stop smiling like that!”

“What in the bloody hell is this?” Ben was visibly annoyed. “I do not whine. Annie, tell them I don’t whine!”

“He really doesn’t.” Annie nodded. “But Joe doing everything Ben says? That person hit the nail on the head right there.”

“Hey!” Joe’s brows knotted. “I don’t do everything he says!”

“But you do.” Ben and Annie choired.

“Shut up, you two-headed-monster.”

“People, can we please focus on the important stuff? There’s more to read here.” Clara scolded them. “Let’s see… Oh, this is good! Your nerves grew as a pair of warm hands rounded your shoulders from behind. Joe must have felt you tense up a little as he leaned down to murmur in your ear, ‘Alright, Y/N?’ The ghost of his words made you shiver on their way past.”

“Who the fuck is Whyanne?” Ben interrupted.

“Sounds like some hillbilly from a West Virginian trailer park with a potato gun and a cousin with missing teeth.” Joe added.

“What?” Clara was visibly confused.

“Who’s Whyanne and why did I tell Joe to undress her? This makes no bloody sense.”

“It’s written as Y-slash-N, you knobs.” Gwil explained. “Carry on, doll.”

“Anyways.” Clara continued. “You smiled at his redundant question - of course you weren’t.”

“I don’t like where this is going.” Joe commented. “Sounds a bit rapey.”

“Just let me finish!” Clara groaned. “You were certain your panties were soaked through at the mere sight of them - a fact you felt too compelling to keep to yourself. With that in mind, you shook your head slowly from side to side, eyes still on Ben before you, your chest inflating as you drew in a deep breath. Ben shot you a confused look, concerned you were having second thoughts.”

“Yeah, this is definitely rapey.” Joe concluded.

“Joe, if you won’t let her finish a bloody paragraph, so help me God…” Annie threatened, clearly invested in the story.

“Thank you, Banana!” Clara put a hand over her heart with a grateful smile. “Wait I lost my spot again… duh-duh-duh… there it is!” She smiled triumphantly. “Here we go. Hold on to your manties, gentlemen, this is about to get steamy.” She took a deep breath and got into character. “‘No,’ you breathed, tilting your head back to look at Joe. You reached a hand up to cup his jaw as he looked down at you, a look of worry overtaking his soft features.”

“My features aren’t soft.” Joe muttered. “They’re manly and feral.”

“Of course they are, bub.” Annie reassured him.

“Guys! Come on!” Clara snapped her fingers at the camera. “Focus!”

“Sorry.” Annie said sheepishly.

“’I’m so fucking wet and…”

“Whoa, whoa!” Ben cut her off. “Gwilym, control your woman!”

“She’s reading the story, you saggy tit.” Gwil explained.

“Joe emitted a soft whine -” Clara paused, knowing an interruption is due. “Joe, sweetheart, this sounds like something you’d do, don’t even think about denying it.” She pointed at the camera. “- Joe emitted a soft whine and his expression shifted; his eyes dark and nostrils flaring as his grip on your shoulders tightened. Pushing your ass back against his crotch, you disclosed, ‘…I think I’ve ruined my favourite…” Clara burst out laughing. “Sorry. ‘I’ve ruined my favourite -” the pitch in her voice rose ten octaves at the last syllable as she tried to stop laughing like a madwoman. “My favourite…” Clara was absolutely wheezing. She tried to finish the sentence, but all that came out of her was a screechy, “laaaaaace-pannnnneeeeeeeeeeeeeee”.

“What?” Ben looked at Annie in utter bewilderment. Annie shrugged in response.

“What was that last part?” Joe scratched his head as he tried to make sense of Clara’s incoherent shrieking.

“Lace panties.” Gwilym’s voice saved the day and translated his hysterical girlfriend’s nonsensical mumbling. “She ruined her favourite lace panties.”

“Oh.” Joe, Ben and Annie choired.

“Clara, compose yourself.” Gwil chuckled as she physically doubled over, tears running down, her laughter leaving her breathless. Moving to sit next to her and switch to the front camera on his device, he took Clara’s phone from her. “Right, guess I’m going to take charge now. You furrowed your brow, your mouth ajar as you began to slowly grind against him, your hand never leaving the side of his face as his eyes bore into yours.” Gwilym paused. “Seems anatomically impossible if her back is against you unless you have a freakishly long neck.”

“I thought she was looking at Ben?” Joe asked.

“She’s clearly looking at you, Joe.” Annie quipped.

“Joe tried to keep his composure - to play along in the same teasingly innocent tone as yours, but the feeling of you moving against him must have been a little to much to bear as he stuttered ‘oh n-no…” Gwilym snorted. “Wow Joe, got a little excited there, hm? His hands trailed down your waist before resting on your hips. He held onto them tight as he pushed his clothed hard on against you with such force you drew in a deep breath.”

“Oh, wow.” Annie leaned back, her eyes wide. “The power of Joe’s boner really got her there.”

“His voice was low as he murmured, ‘surely we can - ugh,” he licked his bottom lip, eyes closing a moment as you felt his cock twitch against your ass - he was just as worked up as you.” Gwilym paused there, mulling over what he had just read aloud. “Joe, whoever wrote this seems to think you have a speech impediment.”

“Right?!” Joe asked, “Why do I keep stuttering?! I’m the most charismatic one!”

“Anyways.” Gwilym said, ignoring Joe’s last comment. “His eyes fluttered open and he continued, ‘surely we can make it up to you’. ‘I’d like that Joey…’ you smiled.”

Joe, Ben and Annie waited, not sure if that was it or if there’s more to the story. After a minute of Clara’s heaving and the rest sitting in silence, Annie finally spoke.

“To be fair,” she looked at Ben, “if it weren’t for the lace panties, I’d be willing to bet cold hard cash that Gwil wrote that for himself to read.”

###

“Hey, Joe! I bought something for you to take on your tour!” Annie beamed mischievously.

It was the night the guys - minus Ben - were leaving for the press tour and Annie went out on a whim earlier that day and decided to tease Joe in the best way she could possibly imagine.

“Well? What is it?” Joe asked impatiently.

They were all gathered at Annie and Ben’s, from which the car to the airport was picking the rest of the guys up. Ben was mopey and miserable, a stark contrast to Annie’s cheeriness.

“Close your eyes.” Annie drawled.

“I’d rather keep them open, actually.”

“Alright then.” Annie shrugged and left the room to fetch Joe’s present. She returned with a life-sized cardboard cutout of Ben. “Ta-daaa!”

“I love it!” Joe gushed and rushed over to her, taking the present and looking it over. “What’s his name?”

“I call him Ben Cardy.” Annie said proudly. “You’re welcome.”

“Oh Ben!” Joe’s smile was so wide, his face could split in half. “It’s like you’ll be with us after all!”

###

Ben was staring at his phone intently, his hand lazily palming his crotch. He knew he shouldn’t have done that. He should not have gone down the Clannie rabbit-hole. But Annie was away at work, Rory was napping, and he just felt compelled to at least give it a look. He almost hung from the bedroom ceiling fan when Annie cleared her throat, announcing her presence. He dropped his phone with a yelp.

“Jesus, Annie!”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.” Annie choked back a chuckle. “Also, surprise!”

“Why are you home?” Ben fumbled for his phone.

“Well, this is not what I was hoping you’d say.”

“Sorry, I mean -”

“I can leave if you want me to.” Annie suggested.

“What? No. Shut up.” Ben rambled. “Why are you home so early?”

“I figured you’d be sad and lonely now that the guys are away and decided to surprise you and come home early.” Annie shrugged. “Clearly, this isn’t the reaction I was expecting.”

“Christ. I’m sorry.” Ben’s face was beet-red. “I’m happy you’re home, obviously.”

“What do you have there?”

“Nothing.” Ben powered the screen off and tossed his phone aside. “C’mere.”

“No, there’s definitely something.” Annie stepped back and shook her head. “Was that porn?”

Ben had only a split second to think about a satisfactory answer that wasn’t also a total lie.

“Yes.”

“Well, that explains the tent you’re sporting.” Annie smirked. “Were you just getting started?”

“Uh.” Ben furrowed his brows.

“Alright. What’s up?” Annie pointed at Ben’s crotch. “Other than that.”

“Nothing. It’s nothing.” Shame flashed in Ben’s eyes. “Just regular porn, y’know.”

“Ben.”

“Annie.”

“Give me the phone.”

“No.”

“Are you…” Annie grimaced. “Are you sexting someone?”

“What? No!”

“You’re hiding something.”

“Annie, just let it go.”

“Fuck off. Give me the phone.”

Ben bit his bottom lip as he contemplated his next course of action. Either he tells Annie what’s on his phone, or he tries to distract her long enough for her to forget about it. When Annie lunged forward and made grabby-hands at his phone, his instincts kicked in. He physically blocked her.

“Annie, stop.”

“What the fuck!”

“It’s a Clannie story, alright?!” he almost growled at her. “There. Now you know.”

“You’re joking.”

“I’m not.”

“Ben, that’s…” Annie struggled to find the proper adjective.

“I know. I’m sorry.” Ben looked mortified. “I was bored and lonely. It’s horrible.”

“Then why are you hard?”

“Because it turns me on.”

“I’m confused.”

“Look, it’s not Hemingway, alright?” Ben groaned. “But the stuff this person wrote? The mental image I have planted in my brain now?”

“Good Lord.”

“Just come here. Listen.”

“Have you gone utterly bonkers, Jones?”

“Seriously. Come here.” He patted the empty space on the bed next to him.

Muttering to herself, Annie did as asked and snuggled up to her boyfriend.

“Right, so I’m skipping the beginning because that was just all kinds of blah.” Ben’s voice had an animated quality to it as he scrolled. “There. Listen.”

“You’re awful.” Annie mumbled. “This is domestic abuse.”

“Shut up.” Ben got comfortable and began. “’I’ve never been with a woman before…’ Clara confessed shyly, avoiding Annie’s piercing gaze.”

“Starting off with a lie, I see.” Annie scoffed and rolled her eyes, trying to stop Ben from reading any further.

“Annie simply smiled at how bashful Clara had become. Reaching out, Annie tucked a wayward strand of hair behind Clara’s ear. Clara leaned into it smiling softly as her eyes met Annie’s once again. ‘Would you like to?’ Annie asked boldly -”

“Alright, stop right there.” Annie sat up straighter. “I am sick and tired of everyone feeling like Clara is this sweet, innocent, baby angel all the time and I’m some she-devil, maneater, sex-crazed banshee.”

“You were cast as Anne Boleyn for a reason, love.”

“That’s besides the point! Clara is a filthy, naughty little elf!”

“Right. Anyhow.” Ben cleared his throat. “‘Would you like to?’ Annie asked boldly sitting up on her heels so their faces were only inches apart. She could feel Clara’s warm breath ghost her cheeks as she replied quietly, ‘yes.’”

Ben paused and waited for Annie’s outraged reaction.

“No comment?” He asked, genuinely surprised.

“Nope. You know, with me being such a bloody whore and enticing sweet blondes into sex all the time and whatnot. Carry on.”

“I mean, where’s the lie, though?”

“In case you forgot, you kissed me on our first date. And convinced me to have unprotected sex.”

“You should thank me for it.” Ben booped Annie’s nose with his finger. “Gave us Rory.”

“Goddamn it. You’re right.”

“Let me just find where I was when you so rudely interrupted me and scared the shit out of me…” he scrolled through the story. “There. ‘Fuck Clara, so good!’ Annie moaned, bare chest heaving as she grasped at the bed sheets beneath her. For someone who had never been with a woman before, Clara certainly knew how to use her tongue in a way that had Annie screaming in delight.”

“This? This makes you horny?” Annie snorted.

“Shut up.” Ben kept scrolling. “Oh, this bit is juicy. ‘Thought about this for so long.’ Annie breathed, her fingers parting Clara’s slick folds and spreading her wetness around. Slick folds?” Ben blinked at the screen.

“My ears feel like they’ve been sexually assaulted.”

“Slick folds. Okay.” Ben took a second to recover. “Hmmm… ‘Thought about what your sweet voice would sound like moaning my name.” Annie continued. Clara’s breath hitched and hips jerked as Annie began lazily circling her engorged clit -”

“Oh my God that’s not even remotely sexy.” Annie covered her mouth with her hand. “Engorged clit?!”

“-’Fuck, Annie, make me cum!’ Clara almost sobbed.”

“Alright, stop. I’m the one almost sobbing.” Annie looked up at Ben as if she’d seen a ghost. “What the fuck was that?”

“I don’t know, but my cock is throbbing.”

###

“Do you two even realise what you’ve done?” Greensleeves’ executive producers were beyond livid. “The fans are furious!”

“They’re furious?!” Annie barked back. “Did you even see the utter shit that’s out there?!”

“It’s not that bad.” Clara shrugged. “Some of it’s pretty good.”

“Clara, if you don’t zip it -” Annie muttered, clenching her fists.

“Ben seemed to like it.” Clara blurted out in anger.

“Oh?” Jamie’s ears perked up. “Our little Benny Boy wants to see his girl get it on with her best friend?”

“Stay out of it, James.” If looks could kill, Jamie would be dead, resurrected and killed again, for good measure.

“Not a chance, Annabelle.”

“You imbeciles need to stop being so rude to our fans.” The executive leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, pointing at the trio. “If they want to write porn about the three of you, you shut up and look the other way. You don’t go on national television and bitch about it!” he stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

“I’m guessing Ben won’t be into any Jannie stories, then?” Jamie quipped and earned a slap to the back of his head. “Ow!”

“Any publicity is good publicity?” Clara asked timidly.

“I mean, some of our fans loved our honesty. They’re all about Team Clannie now.” Annie said.

“Yeah, and some of them are planning to assassinate you for being evil enough to seduce Ben Hardy and Gwilym Lee with your witch-magic superpowers.” Mike finally spoke. “You two are in for some serious rounds of online shit-talking, ladies. Enjoy.”

#########

TAGLIST: @ramibaby @xgoingdownx @qweenly @violetpond @sweeterthancheese @drummerqueenrmt @westansstuff @justgivemethekeys @blondecarfucker @cheeseedreams47 @deacy-dearest @pinkmarvel @onceuponadetectivedemigod

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mcrmadness · 5 years ago

Text

I was tagged by @cupcakecurl a while back (thank you!) and finally I’m on the mood for doing this myself as well!

Rules: tag 9 people you’d like to get to know better!

Top 3 current ships: I actually have just one OTP, which is Bela/Farin (aka FUB) from Die Ärzte, and then multiple smaller ones here and there. I’m finding new ships way too easily and sometimes it bugs me because I meant to enjoy a thing and boom, suddenly I have a ship there to fuck up with my brain. B/F is pretty much the only ship that I can say to actually ship, the rest are more like just for fun, I enjoy seeing stuff but I don’t really do anything about it, you know?

But now as I think of it, I think of it, I could say another band ship here: Paulchard aka Paul Landers and Richard Z. Kruspe from Rammstein, about these I have also watched videos and read some fancomics too and last summer’s tour was a wild one and I was following the events quite a lot.

And then maybe I could throw one fictional ship here too as it’s pretty much current one since I just finished watching the 5th season of Gotham last week, and that is, of course Nygmobblepot aka Penguin/The Riddler aka Oswald Cobblepot/Edward Nygma. I’ve never in my life shipped these before, even tho I’ve been a Batman fan since 1999 (I was 8) as I saw the 60s series on TV and I can remember almost shipping Batman and Robin back then, and I was only 8 years old!, and then had been watching the movies more or less during my childhood, but this was never something I’d even think of before I started watching Gotham and things started happening in the show. But it’s an interesting one. And I have to admit that while the show was still running and I couldn’t watch it because I live in Europe (and was too lazy to look for a website to watch it :D), I was still browsing the tag on Tumblr after each episode and giving myself spoilers of what happens with them. But I think the ending was a lot different than what I thought based on the Tumblr posts, and I’m actually not sure what to think of it. Imho it was not as bad as everyone else seemed to think.

I’m putting this under a read more link as this is getting way too long and I don’t know if people are interested in reading my weird thoughts about ships and other random stuff, so here you go...

Top 3 all-time ships: Oh my gosh, I have had so many but only like 2 actually strong ones? And I have to say Bela/Farin here as well, the reasons are found from above and I’m just so obsessed with them and idc what it is, already the friendship is like friendhip goals, you know? But yeah, I’ve been making videos about these two idiots for like last 10 years so... :D

And the next one, okay I’m usually not so talkative about ships. I can talk about them with people in private but I don’t like to go and shout about them publicly, probably the only one I talk about this way is Bela/Farin but it’s because Tumblr is a safe place for this and there’s no hate with this ship or anything (and the other one is Paulchard, every now and then I will reblog something that crosses my dash). But mainly I like to keep ships to myself and like I said in that other tag game post, ships are more like a guilty pleasure. Maybe because of my age as it was very normal at the age of 15 but now as I’m 28? Why am I still “in love with other people’s love”? I actually don’t mind it but I think many people would find it weird, especially when I don’t read fanfictions anymore and I don’t want to imagine anything, I just like seeing cute stuff, but with many ships I don’t even want to see too much, I just like seeing them being close but with many ships even seeing them kiss would be too much.

But anyway, top 3 all-time ships... I think I need to mention here a ship that I was very much obsessed when I was 15-17, that I wrote LOTS OF fanfiction and was there to make lots of fan theories and all, and that one was Frerard aka Gerard Way/Frank Iero from My Chemical Romance. I was SO obsessed it’s insane. If you know anything about MCR and Frerard, you maybe are aware of how was the year 2007 and you can probably imagine how crazy we all went when Project Revolution stuff happened. So yeah, I need to mantion that here even tho I no longer “believe in this ship”, but I guess I’d lie if I said, that I didn’t believe that there was something there back in the day. I’ve actually recently been watching some Frerard theory videos just for fun, because there’s so many things I had forgotten and so many things I still can remember, but also lots of stuff that I kinda missed because they happened in 2010-2012, and even tho I was still very much in the fandom and I was to their second gig in Finland in 2011, I still was not that much into the Danger Days album so I was not so into digging up stuff either. And I had my own identity crisis and Die Ärzte had been my favorite band for 1-2 years at that time so I was spending lots of time watching DÄ videos, so MCR was kinda at the background. And then the whole band went quiet for some time until they quit in 2013 (and now they’re back), so all that Frerard hype kinda died after each of them started to get married to other people and the kids were born, so there just... kinda was no more room for the ship, you know? But Freard was my first actual huge slash ship, I’ve had others before it (for example, my first touch to slash fiction was Harry Potter fanfiction and of course Harry/Draco stuff, but that one also later died out), but it was the first really strong one and then Bela/Farin kinda took its place as Frerard died out but B/F has been going strong and the ship has been sailing itself since the 80s, so... :D

And as the last one I think I could again mention something fictional but at the same time something that is super weird for me as it’s not slash fiction but hetship, which is something REALLY weird for me. I usually don’t like heteroships as they’re just... boring and so cliché. But I need to mention this one that I got into when I was 15: Fox Mulder and Dana Scully from The X-Files. Yeah I know it was 2006 and the series had ended already in 2002, but I was a new fan! I had known about the series since I was a little kid as my dad was watching it back then, but I started watching it myself when the show had a rerun here in 2004-2005. And then I met my friend in 2006 when we were 15 and we found out that we both were very much into TXF and I remember how we somehow both started to ship Mulder and Scully (having no idea of how the series ended), and it was probably until the 6th season (there was 9 seasons at the time) when they stopped airing it altogether, so we were so furious about the fact because the last episode was such a cliffhanger and we NEEDED TO KNOW, so I had to buy them on dvd! So I remember how we would meet at school every day and after every episode, we went so crazy, discussing what had happened in the episode and if there was any Mulder/Scully activity, we were just so hyped :D And then, as we STILL hadn’t seen all the seasons, we went to see the second movie (”TXF: I want to believe”) in theaters in 2008 or so, and it’s set to happen after the events of the seasons, we were both so blown away by what was in the movie because we had no clue :D Fun fact: I actually finished watching the 9th season only last year. So now I understand the events of the second movie a lot better, and I’ve also seen the 10th and 11th seasons so now I’m finally aware of everything. But that really is a hetship that I accept and that is not like a typical movie romance type of ship. It has interesting dynamics.

---

Last song: Tatuoituna by Tehosekoitin

Lipstick or chapstick: Chapstick, I don’t use any make-up, but chapstick I need to use daily.

Last movie: Iron Sky. I’ve seen it before tho, but we’re gonna watch the sequel soon, so we had to watch this to remember what happened :D (And it’s made partially by Finns, so..!)

Reading: Atm I have 3 books I’m reading, all of them in Finnish:

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, which has all the short stories in one. But I think there’s some of the newer ones missing and that’s why I bought this bit newer book with more stories, and I’m gonna read those once I’m finished with this one. And I’ve been reading this now for years lol... but I’m slowly getting there, I’m already over halfway through :D

A collection of Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories, I don’t know the name for this book and it doesn’t say any name for the original. This one I also started to read a years back, only to pause if for years and then last year I borrowed it again from my dad and tried to continue from where I was left the last time.

The Heroes of Olympus: The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan. I’ve been reading his books ever since I was a, well, teenager probably, and I have had a long pause with these books and reading overall, but now I’m back at it and trying to buy and read all of his books I still haven’t read.

I wanted to read the latter only after finishing with SH and Poe’s stories but I needed to read something and they’re bit too difficult reading at the times, and I needed something lighter but also didn’t want to start over with Harry Potter for the 5th time so I decided to go for this series instead. I really like reading SH and Poe’s stories, but like I said, they’re bit difficult at the times. You can’t just read them, you need to think and use your brains meanwhile you’re reading, and sometimes it’s just so incredibly hard to stay focused on it and I need to go back so often because I wasn’t paying attention and then had no clue what was happening and why.

And I sometimes I skip some of Poe’s stories because they’re so purely scientific about a topic that I cannot comprehend nor care about, e.g. this one story that was almost like a science essay about hot-air balloon flight in the form of a story, probably super interesting for someone who likes this kind of stuff and even more interesting for a writer interested in stuff like that, but I’m really not the target audience of that story :D But then there’s also lots of really interesting ones, I especially like the ones that have something to do with insanity. I guess people would call them as the horror stories, but idk, I just love that kind of mystery. For some reason all of my favorite stories are those where there is a dead woman/love interest :DD But probably my ultimate favorite is the one about writing an article to a magazine with horror stories, and how this guy become beheaded and all just to write a story about how it feels like and stays alive meanwhile, and I just LOVE IT when fictional works play with death and when something that is supposed to kill you, doesn’t, and I just love the idea of that story so much :D It’s just that you never know how a story will be like, as you start reading, is it a scientific essay or a mystery or a horror story or about insanity or what is it? And then when in the middle of reading and you realize this is bit boring or uninteresting, but still want to finish, but also want to skip, and that’s why I get stuck with that book, and I change to SH or something else. Often I also grab some of the comics (or non-fiction books) I own whenever I feel like reading but these books feel too heavy for that moment.

---

I should tag 9 people but I don’t even know that many people to tag lol. Okay I do know people, but I still don’t know who wants to be tagged and who doesn’t. Maybe I’ll be boring and tag @stufenlosregelbar again? :D And idk, maybe @annika-of-the-lost? Eh, I’m so bad at this whole tagging thing. I’m having a bad conscience if I don’t tag anyone/enough people in case they want to be tagged and I can’t read minds; and then I’m having bad conscience when I DO tag people in case they’re all somewhere facepalming and screaming “WHYYYYYY” into the void, as I still can’t read minds. So you can choose, do this tag game or ignore it and ban me from ever tagging you people again, I don’t mind :p

#mcrmadness' random stuff #tag games

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vintage1der · 6 years ago

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What separates these works from the Harry Potter fanfiction you find online may come down to snobbery. There is an undercurrent of misogyny in mainstream criticism of fanfiction, which is widely accepted to be dominated by women; one census of 10,500 AO3 users found that 80% of the users identified as female, with more users identified as genderqueer (6%) than male (4%). Novik has spent a good deal of time fighting against fanfiction’s stigma because she feels it is “an attack on women’s writing, specifically an attack on young women’s writing and the kind of stories that young women like to tell”. Which is not to say that young women only want to write about romance: “I think,” Novik says, “that [the popularity of fanfiction amongst women is] not unconnected to the lack of young women protagonists who are not romantic interests.” Devotees of fanfiction will sometimes tell you that it’s one of the oldest writing forms in the world. Seen with this generous eye, the art of writing stories using other people’s creations hails from long before our awareness of Twilight-fanfic-turned-BDSM romance Fifty Shades of Grey: perhaps Virgil, when he picked up where Homer left off with the story of Aeneas, or Shakespeare’s retelling of Arthur Brookes’s 1562 The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet. What most of us would recognise as fanfiction began in the 1960s, when Star Trek fans started creating zines about Spock and Captain Kirk’s adventures. Thirty years later, the internet arrived, which made sharing stories set in other people’s worlds – be they Harry Potter, Spider-Man, or anything and everything in between – easier. Fanfiction has always been out there, if you knew where to look. Now, it’s almost impossible to miss.

In the last few years, fanfiction has enjoyed something of a rebrand. Big-name authors such as EL James, author of the Fifty Shades books, and Cassandra Clare, who has always been open about writing Harry Potter fanfiction before her bestselling Mortal Instruments series, have helped bring it into the mainstream. These days, it’s fairly common knowledge that some people just really like writing about Captain America and Bucky Barnes falling in love, or Doctor Who fighting demons with Buffy. The general image of fanfiction has brightened somewhat: less creepy, more sweetly nerdy.

But the divide between fanfiction and original writing holds strong. It’s assumed that if people write fanfiction, it’s because they can’t produce their own. At best, it functions as training wheels, preparing a writer to commit to a real book. When they don’t – as in the famous case of Fifty Shades, which one plagiarism checker found had an 89% similarity rate with James’s original Twilight fanfiction – they are ridiculed. A real author, the logic goes, having moved on to writing their own books, doesn’t look back.

“Here’s the thing,” Naomi Novik explains over the phone from New York. She is the bestselling author of the Temeraire books, a fantasy series that adds dragons to the Napoleonic Wars, and Spinning Silver, which riffs on Rumpelstiltskin. “I don’t actually draw any line between my fanfiction work and my professional work – except that I only write the fanfiction stuff for love.”

In between writing her novels – or indeed during, as she admits that fanfiction is one of her favourite procrastination techniques – Novik is an active member of the fanfiction community. She is a co-founder of the Archive of Our Own (AO3), one of the most popular hosting websites, and a prolific writer in the universes of Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Merlin and many more.

And she’s not the only professional at work. Rainbow Rowell, the bestselling author of Eleanor and Park and other novels, once told the Bookseller that between two novels, she wrote a 30,000-word Harry Potter fanfiction. “It’s Harry and Draco as a couple who have been married for many years, and they’re raising Harry’s kids,” she said. “It’s them dealing with attachment parenting and step-parents and all these middle-aged issues.”

The divide between a fanfiction writer and an original fiction writer can look very arbitrary when looking at authors such as Michael Chabon, who once described his own novel Moonglow as “a Gravity’s Rainbow fanfic”. Or Madeline Miller, whose Orange-prize winning The Song of Achilles detailed the romantic relationship between Achilles and Patroclus, and whose latest novel Circe picks up on the witch who seduces Odysseus in the Odyssey. Miller said she was initially worried when one ex-boyfriend described her work as “Homeric fanfiction” but has since embraced her love of adapting and playing with Greek mythology. The tag could also be applied to classics such as Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea, reworkings of Shakespeare by the likes of Margaret Atwood and Edward St Aubyn in the Hogarth series, and a spate of parodies: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, or Android Karenina.

Others may find it odd that published authors would bother writing fanfiction alongside or between their professional work. But it’s all too simple to draw lines between two forms of writing that, in their separate ways, can be both productive and joyful. Neil Gaiman once wrote that the most important question an author can ask is: “What if?” Fanfiction takes this to the next level. What if King Arthur was gay? What if Voldemort won? What if Ned Stark escaped?

“I believe that all art, if it’s any good, is in dialogue with other art,” Novik says. “Fanfiction feels to me like a more intimate conversation. It’s a conversation where you need the reader to really have a lot of detail at their fingertips.”

For writers still wobbling on training wheels, fanfiction offers benefits: the immediate gratification of sharing writing without navigating publishers; passionate readers who are already interested in the characters, and a collegial stream of feedback from fellow writers.

“There was an audience of people who wanted to read my writing,” says young adult author Sarah Rees Brennan, who wrote Harry Potter fanfiction in her teens and twenties before she published her own novels, the latest of which, In Other Lands, was a Hugo award finalist. “Here were all these people online who wanted stories about familiar characters. Audiences were pre-invested and waiting.”

For writers, whether already published or on the path to being published, this instantaneous readership functions as a writer’s workshop: Novik calls it a “community of your peers”. Spending hours thrashing out the details of Draco Malfoy’s inner life can’t help but function as a crash course in character motivation. And the limits and constraints of working within a pre-existing world, with its own characters and settings, is a unique challenge.

“Fanfiction is a great incubator for writers,” Novik says. “The more constraints you have on you at the beginning, the better. It’s why people do writing exercises, or play scales. That kind of constraint forces you to practice certain skills, and then at a certain point you have the control to bring out the whole toolbox.”

Once some writers get those tools, they never look back. Rees Brennan no longer writes fanfiction. “I had a friend say it’s like the difference between babysitting kids and having children of your own,” she says. “With a world you built yourself, and characters you built, there’s this sense of deep, overwhelming love.”

But Rees Brennan is still a fan of collaborative writing and shared universes, as in the short stories she writes with Cassandra Clare about characters from Clare’s Mortal Instruments universe. “It’s amazing to gather around a kitchen table and yell at each other excitedly about what’s going to happen to mutually beloved characters,” she says. “I want that for every creative person – a chance to find their imaginative family, wherever it may be.”

Novik scorns the idea that published authors should turn their back on fanfiction. She recalls being on a panel where one member said he couldn’t understand why someone would waste their time writing it over an original work: “I said, ‘Have you ever played an instrument?’ He was like, ‘Yeah, I play piano’. I said, ‘So, do you compose all your own music?’”

“When I was first published, I deliberately went to my editors and said, ‘Yes, I’ve been writing fanfiction for 10 years. I love it.’ It was non-negotiable for me. As soon as you do that, by the way, it turns out that like half of the publishing industry has read or been involved in fanfiction,” she laughs. “Shockingly! It’s amazing how all these women who like storytelling have some connection to the community.”

For Novik and many other writers, fanfiction is a fundamental a way of expressing oneself, of teasing out new ideas and finding a joyous way to engage with writing again after the hard slog of editing a novel. The journey to become a published writer isn’t a straight line; it’s a spiral, as we grow older and continue to explore the characters and tropes we love. There’s so many stories waiting to be told – perhaps one or two of them could involve getting Captain America laid. God knows he needs it.

#creative writing #books #culture #fiction #fanfiction #The Guardian

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bughead-fic-request · 7 years ago

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I would like to thank @leaalda for making these amazing banners.

This is an effort to spread the word about all fan fiction writers in our little fandom. If you would like to be featured or nominate a writer, please contact me. Please reblog this post if you can and check out some of @juggiehasmyheart17 work!

1. First things first, if someone wanted to read your stories where can they find them.

Hello! My multific "Dancing Heels" can be found on ao3 and fanfiction as well as here on tumblr. My oneshots can be found here on tumblr.

2. Tell us a little about yourself.

I am 20 years old, I live in Baltimore, MD, United States. I work at a Pizza shop but I am currently in College. I recently switched my major to ASL Interpreting which I'm nervous and excited about. Um that’s it? Im pretty boring lol.

3. What do you never leave home without?

My phone, Stereotypical Millennial that I am. No but really I don’t feel safe without it.

4. Are you an early bird or a night owl?

Definitely a night owl! It is currently midnight where I live and I'm drinking a slurpee and watching videos on facebook.

5. If you could live in any fictional world which one would you choose and why?

Gilmore Girls for sure. A small town with so much love and quacky characters is a great place to be. Besides who wouldn't want to live in a world where Luke Danes lives?

6. Who is the most famous person you’ve ever met.

Um I met a famous Baltimore Orioles baseball player named Boog Powel.

7. What are some of your favorite movies/TV?

TV: Riverdale obiviously. New Girl, Gilmore Girls, The facts of life, Girlboss, Chasing Life, Switched at Birth. Movies: Fried Green Tomatoes, Dirty Dancing, Grease, I'm such a movie buff so there's a lot I won't bore you lol

8. What are some of your favorite bands/musicians?

Panic! At the disco, Taylor Swift, Lukas Graham, anything Broadway really.

9. Favorite Books?

Divergent Series, The Selection Series, The Chemical garden series. Can you tell I like dystopia trilogies?

10. Favorite Food?

Tomatoes like I will eat just tomatoes and salt lol

11. Biggest pet peeve?

Repeating noises like beeping. Someone saying things to me that make me feel stupid or dumb, calling me "Young Lady"

12. What did you want to be when you were little? What do you want to be now?

I wanted to be a cashier- like what was wrong with me lol now I want to be a published writer.

13. What are your biggest fears? Do you have any strange fears?

Heights= panic attacks its awful, crickets, being out of control of things, ending up alone.

14. When you are on your deathbed what would be the one you’d regret not doing?

Not taking chances and always playing it safe and not traveling like I want to.

Okay... lets talk about your writing!

15. Which is your favorite of the fics you've written for the Bughead fandom?

My Dancing Heels fic, I've never been so excited to write something! I've fallen in love with it really.

16. Which was the hardest to write, in terms of plot?

Dancing Heels is kinda easy in the sense that it's based off of Dirty Dancing so the story is set already. But It's also difficult because I'm trying to pay homage to the film but also change it so people don’t get bored with it. It's hard to find a happy medium.

17. How do you come up with the ideas for you fic(s)? Do you people watch? Listen to music? Get inspired by TV/movies?

For oneshots I make are generally ideas I come up with by daydreaming about my crush and then I’m like ooooo that matches Riverdale. Or they come from prompts. And then Dancing Heels was inspired by Dirty Dancing.

18. Idea that you always wanted to write but could never make work?

Theres so many plots Ive come up with but I just cant put it on paper so I give them to other writers to use. One I’ve always toyed with is an arranged marriage fic where the girl is pregnant and her parents send her off to the guy and then they fall in love, kinda like "Magic of Ordinary Days" with Skeet Ulrich who knows I might try it after Dancing Heels is over.

19. Least favorite plot point/chapter/moment you’ve written?

Hmmm probably my portrayal of Archie in Dancing Heels, poor guy isn’t in the fic that much.

20. Favorite plot point/chapter/moment you’ve written?

My favorite moment is yet to come 😉 It's a moment like 2 chapters from now but the idea popped in my head so i wrote it ahead of time.

21.Favorite character to write?

I love writing Jughead in Dancing Heels! He is a very Angsty and guarded Jughead in this and I love peeling back his layers in the story.

22. Favorite line or lines of dialogue that you've written?

I know it's simple but so far my favorite is "That, Baby, is how we dance around here."

23. Best comment/review you’ve ever received?

I got a review on ao3 which included a lot of exclamation points and she asked me to update "asap you know like tomorrow"

24. How do you handle bad reviews or comments?

I don’t have a lot of experience with this but I always see that all the encouraging comments and rave reviews I get really out weigh those few bad comments. You have to put it all in perspective.

25. If you could change anything in any of your stories, what would it be?

Im bad at smut lol wish I could change the way I write it!

26. What is your favorite story you’ve ever written? Any fandom?

My favorite story ive written is actually not fanfiction. It’s a book I wrote while I was in high school and I hope to publish it one day.

27. What are you reading right now? Both fan fiction and general fiction?

I am reading "Summer Storms" by @lazydaizies which is a Bughead AU that I binge read the other night but its still being written. I also am reading "Fate of a Golden Rose" by @bliggyy which is a Beauty and The Beast Bughead AU.

28. Do you have an advice for writers that want to get into this fandom but might be scared?

Riverdale has such amazing characters that are amazing to write! There is so many different aspects of these characters that you can tap into. Also the riverdale fandom is so loving especially Bughead shippers. They are the best, so welcoming and they literally die at any chance to read more bughead fics. So get out there and try it!!!

#bughead author spotlight #fan fiction #fan fic writers #Bughead #bughead fanfiction #betty cooper #ao3 #jughead jones #betty x jughead #jughead x betty #riverdale #juggiehasmyheart17 #dancing heels

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tardisheart134 · 7 years ago

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a destiel fic wrapped inside of a cockles fic...

Word Count: 3,568

Jensen slid into his usual booth at Honey’s Doughnuts. He would call it his usual booth but he really only got up here about once a month. His hectic schedule did not allow much time for coffee house ponderings and when he did have free time he was likely travelling to Austin to be with his family. But on occasion he would have a free afternoon when he wasn’t filming and wasn’t due to be anywhere else, he would sneak up here. It was about a 45 minute drive into the less populated side of town. The drive gave him time to clear his head and sing along to overplayed pop songs he knew too well. He was pretty sure the owner knew who he was by now but thankfully she never treated him differently. She never even asked for an autograph. The Doughnut shop was quiet during the week. It had it’s morning rushes but most of its business came in on the weekend. It was close enough to Baden Powell Trail Head that all the bicycle “tourists”, hikers and nature lovers would stop here for various refreshments. It offered a Vegetarian menu and even had some gluten free options so it had an appeal with the kind of people that hiked trail heads.

He liked it because you could get a decent cappuccino as well as a Corned beef sandwich and from his favorite booth, he had a view of the cove and and where the park spilled into the square. He’d brought Danneeel here the last time they came to visit (he’d sworn her to secrecy) and once he’d even seen Misha out here. Misha was actually one of the health nut, bicycle tourists that maybe once or twice mentioned that he stopped here to rest after his outdoor exertions. Misha didn’t spot him right away partly because the cafe was packed and partly because Jensen had ducked down behind the tall banisters that divided the booths.

Seeing Misha affected him. His heart was pounding in his chest. Part of him wanted Misha to find him, to spend the rest of the afternoon sipping coffee and green tea with him in his favourite booth, getting lost in conversation. He let his imagination run wild with the idea. He smiled at the thought of Misha laughing at something he said. But there was another part of Jensen that wanted Misha to stay on his side of the small cafe. Because if Misha didn’t see Jensen and they didn’t speak, than it would not shatter Jensen’s fantasy with reality. The reality that whenever he so much as parted his lips to speak to Misha it was awkward and painful and in the fluster of it all Jensen seemed to always say something to offend Misha or hurt his feelings. Jensen did not do it on purpose, but when he gets nervous he sticks his foot in his mouth and when he’s embarrassed he gets defensive. It was a vicious cycle.

Jensen made a terrible habit of falling in love with his co-stars. It had happened on Days, and with Danneel on Ten Inch Hero. Even Jared season one, Jensen was a goner from the beginning. And Jared had been good about it. The two of them were truly kindred beings and even though their friendship had taken different forms over the years, Jensen was comforted in the fact that it was always going to be there. Even if the direction may change, he knew their relationship was something that he could always rely on.

Jensen did not know what to do about Misha. The dude was weird. Jensen had never come on to a guy who had been so receptive. Most guys who give the appearance of being straight - i.e. wife - typically scoff at his public advances and innuendo until Jensen disarms them with his charm. But not Misha. Misha was mush in his hand from the beginning. And at anytime if Misha did have his wits about him, he used them to flirt back with Jensen and he was merciless. The crew was starting to pick up on it and their chemistry was so palpable that the fans were already frenzied about it. Jensen wondered how long they were going to flirt and if this would ever turn into anything more. He shamelessly eavesdropped on Misha and his fellow bicyclist. That was actually the day that Jensen wrote his first fanfiction.

Jared and Misha liked to tease Jensen about not being tech savvy and having almost no digital footprint. And Jensen wasn’t about to tell them any different. It wasn’t that he did not get on the internet or know how to use it...it’s just that he preferred to remain anonymous. People already had access to too much of his life. He wanted to be able to sit quietly at his favorite cafe on a spring afternoon and read slash fictions. Some of them were so well written and engaging that it was hard for him to differentiate between canon and fanfiction.

That day though, with Misha so close but still not quite his, it pushed Jensen over the edge between avid reader to writer. Once Misha finished and discarded his iced green tea and mounted his bike...Jensen logged into his tumblr account. He couldn’t risk having it pulled up while Misha could have walked up on him.

The first thing he wrote was a small coda from Season 4 episode 10. It was going back a ways and Jensen was pretty unsure of what he was doing. But there was a moment in Season 4 Jensen recalled how logical it seemed to both “Dean” and Jensen that Dean and Cas should have kissed. Jensen thought that from Dean’s point of view, he learned how much Castiel was really on his side and just how much Castiel was willing to sacrifice for whatever it was they had.

Those two winged dicks appeared out of nowhere. Sam and Dean exchanged a weighted glance as if to ask each other how the hell they found them. Anna was stashed away in the back bedroom. Dean was trying to reason with Cas. He was already ‘Cas’ to him. He could feel the angel shuffling through his thoughts, but he didn’t seem to mind. He used that to reason with him without words. Come on Cas, you know this is the right thing to do. Anna does not deserve to die. You know this is the truth. The angel’s gaze intensified and then Castiel looked off to the side of Dean’s head. He was concentrating and staring over Dean’s shoulder. Dean was about to try to snap him out of it when a sound like an explosion came from the back bedroom and then both Castiel and the other dick (Dean didn’t have time to recall the names of angels except Cas) vanished in front of his eyes. When he got to the bedroom there was blood everywhere and Anna was collapsed in front of some symbol on the wall.

“What did you do, Anna?” Dean and Sam were on either side of her helping her up.

“I don’t know..l just saw it in my head.” Sam busied himself with bandaging her up, but Dean studied the sigil. This was Castiel’s doing. Dean knew it immediately, he could just feel it in his gut. He wasn’t sure how yet but he knew he had Cas to thank for saving their asses once again. He wasn’t sure why the angel was loyal to him but he wasn’t going to question it. The Winchester’s needed all the help that they could get.

The next time he saw Cas, they were alone. “That symbol that Anna used to blast you and junkless out of that cabin the other night...was that you?”

“What do you mean?” Castiel gritted as he cocked his head to the side.

“I think you know damn well what I mean. Anna’s an angel, she’s in tune with your angel radio whether she wants to be or not right? So did you tell her what to do, did you put that in her head, cause you were staring off intensely there at the end...like you weren’t just rummaging through my thoughts any more.”

“You can feel me scanning your thoughts?” Castiel seemed to blush under the shock of it. (Can angels blush?)

Dean took note of the blush even though his mind should be on other important things like the impending apocalypse and not how flustered this angel looked with crimson cheeks.

Jensen nearly jumped out of his skin when the waitress appeared at his side. How long had she been there...could she see his computer screen? He cleared his throat and schooled his face into a tight-lipped but polite expression. The waitress cleared his dirty dishes. “Can I get you anything else, sir?”

Jensen nodded at her. “I shouldn’t have it, but can I get a piece of your chocolate cake and a refill on coffee.” The waitress smiled at him.

“Coming right up.”

Chocolate was thing thing you ate when you couldn’t have what you wanted. Jensen wanted Misha. Jensen chased to too sweet taste of the cake with the scalding, bitter coffee. Coffee and cake were perfect together. One day he was going to be done with this life of acting and the public eye. He was going to eat what he wanted and have a flabby belly and kiss who he wanted to kiss when he wanted to kiss them and the hell with what anyone else thought. He knew that wasn’t true. He would always care what other people thought, it was how he was brought up and no matter how far away he moved he couldn’t quite shake Texas. Sometimes he wished he never had to go back there. Not that he didn’t love it. He would always love it. It was part of him, it was his home and his family but he wished the expectations that were placed on him, that he felt he had to live up to....he wished they would just die. Sitting here 14 hours away from Dallas, Texas, he almost felt anonymous. He felt safe. It was the weirdest thing, wanting to be seen but not seen. He couldn’t articulate it.

“You helped us then...admit it…” Dean’s eyes were sparkling as he implored the angel.

Castiel averted his eyes trying not to admit to anything. Dean gripped his elbow and turned him back to meet his gaze.

“If you want to help us then why are you fighting with them...why don’t you go rogue?” Dean stepped closer and Castiel seemed uncomfortable which was ironic, considering his blatant carelessness when it came to personal space..

“Why did you help us, Cas?” Dean’s ‘voice was softer now as he studied the angel’s every flicker of expression.

“Because…” the angel swallowed thickly. “...because I’m on your side, Dean Winchester and I always will be…” Dean pulled the angel closer still. The silence was the worst kind of pleasurable agony. Dean was going to kiss him...just as soon as remembered how to breathe and move...just as soon as he found his way out of those deep blue eyes. He curled his fingers around the back of Castiel’s neck, it was a soft but possessive gesture. Castiel seemed to question it until Dean pressed a small kiss to the corner of his mouth. Both their bodies were rigid with exhilaration and terror. Dean had never been with a supernatural being before...and Cas...well Cas had never in all his millenia alive...he’d never been kissed by anyone. The held each other for a minute more, Dean’s hand still at the back of Castiel’s neck, playing with his hair and the other hand twisted in his trench coat. “Thank you, Cas.” Dean whispered. His lips were still so close to Cas that they brushed his cheek when he voiced his gratitude.

“You’re welcome, Dean.” and with that Castiel vanished leaving Dean holding nothing but the air where Cas was standing.

The cursor blinked as Jensen stared at the screen. There was something cathartic about writing it out. Even if it was just make believe he swore he could still taste Misha’s mouth...still feel him under his fingertips.

He snapped back to the present when he unmistakably heard Misha clear his threat. Jensen blinked up, wide eyed. “Cas?” The character name just sort of slipped out by accident. Misha doubled over in laughter. His face broke into a broad grin before he scowled and gritted in his deep voice…”hello, Dean”.

Jensen blushed he couldn't believe he'd just called him Cas. He slapped his laptop lid closed. Misha quirked an eyebrow before sliding into Jensen’s side of the booth.

“Porn in a public place...tsk...tsk…you kinky son of a bitch.” Misha glanced down to asses if Jensen was actually hard, to his disappointment he was not. “What brings you out to nature?”

Jensen stammered through a lie about their corned beef sandwiches. “It's okay. You can just say you’d rather not tell me the truth.” Misha said with a smug expression.

“That is the truth I don't often have an afternoon alone I like it here it's quiet, I can read no one knows me or at least they pretend they don't. There is no big secret here.”

Misha nodded in understanding.

“Why did you come back in?” Jensen blurted without really thinking it through.

“So you knew I was in here before and you ignored me is that it?”

“No it wasn't like that. You were leaving as I was getting here by the time I recognized you, you were too far away.”

“How did you know I was in here?”

“I recognized your car in the parking lot.”

“Oh.”

Silence passed between them.

“Well, I better get going if I'm going if I'm going to get back towards my apartment by sundown.” Misha squeezed Jensen's knee before sliding out of the booth.

“Do you want a ride?” Jensen offered. “I'm headed back that way myself.”

“I would love that. I'm just not feeling the two hour bike ride back. I'm getting too old.” Jensen tossed Misha the keys. “Just put your bike in the back, I'll finish up here and meet you outside in a sec.”

As soon as Misha cleared the door Jensen pulled his laptop back open.

“Hey guys, Here’s this little Coda. This is my first fic so I hope you like it but if you don’t then tough shit.”

Jensen posted the fanfic to his tumblr. Jensen threw a couple of tens on the table and winked at the shop owner on his way out.

He followed and had several followers but he did not expect his account to blow up the way it did. He had to turn off his tumblr notifications because for the next 3 or 4 days he got over 600 notes.

“Hey Ackles, did you get a new girlfriend or something...I haven’t ever seen you on your phone this much.” Jared asked.

“No.” Jensen grinned not even looking up from his phone to deal with Jared’s teasing.

“New Boyfriend then?” Jared was always good for taking it just a little further.

“You know you’re the only one for me Jared.” Jensen said with a sickeningly sweet grin on his face. Jensen clicked the phone off tucking it into his back pocket.

“Are we ready to do this scene again or what?” He gruffed in the general direction of the crew which gave him no answer as they were busy resetting the scene.

One of the hair and makeup technicians, Amanda, stepped forward to run her fingers through Jared’s perfect hair. It was her job, it wasn’t like she enjoyed it. And she was only grinning at him to be nice...not to flirt. Jared smiled back as he towered over. “Have you read any more good slash fics lately?” He crouched down giving her better access to the crown of his head.

“Oh yeah tons..you want to hear about the latest one…?”

“Of course…” Jared closed his eyes as she powdered his sweaty brow. Jensen had been paying attention since he heard slash fic, but he kept his eyes safely focused on the ground.

“Well, this one is a destiel fic…”

“What’s that?” Jared wiped some of the excess powder from the corner of his eyes.

“That’s a dean/cas fic. It’s a throwback to season 4 but it blew up this weekend. I keep seeing it everywhere.”

“What episode in season 4?”

“The episode where Sam and Dean are trying to hide Anna from Cas an Uriel.”

(Uriel...Dean muttered under his breath, that was his name...)

“That episode did not seem extremely Dean/Cas erotic to me?”

“Oh it really wasn’t…”

Jensen cleared his throat but didn’t open his mouth. Jared paused because he knew what that meant. He knew Jensen had an opinion that he was keeping to himself. Jared eyed him as if to ask if he’d like to share with the class. A imperceivable shake of the head queued to Jared that he did not want to comment.

“But it was more of a coda, kind of like a sneak peek of what happened within the framework of that episode or just after.”

“So what was the story?”

“Well, if you remember in that episode at the very beginning Cas and Uriel burst in and Sam and Dean are all like you can’t have Anna and then Uriel is like don’t worry we’ll kill her quick. Dean makes the comment that they are both heartless. Castiel agrees with him and then, he seems to blank out, stares at the floor as Uriel takes on Ruby and Dean.

“Ha! You know I married Ruby, right?”

“Everyone knows you married Ruby - Jared - shit man!” Jensen crossed his arms and looked back at the makeup tech as if asking her to proceed.

“Well, Cas walks hesitantly towards the door, knocks Sam out night night, right before Uriel and Cas get blasted to kingdom come. Sam and Dean burst in through the door and ask Anna how she did it and she claimed not to know...claimed it just appeared in her head. In the fic - Dean puts two and two together.”

“What do you mean?”

“Come on Jared,” Jensen butts in - “Dean realizes that when Cas blanked out - he was actually telling Anna how to help the Winchester’s how to blast the angels away with the sigil. He showed her how to get rid of the angels. Castiel was always fighting for Dean-- and Sam...Dean and Sam.”

“Oh, I guess I never really put that together.” Jared and the hair tech were just staring at Jensen. Since when did he care about slash fics or more like since when did he act as if even knew that slash fics existed?

“Well, they did not really bring it out in the episode unless you were watching closely and you as the audience may see it but what you really want is for Dean to see it...to know that Cas was in his corner.” Amanda continued.

“And in the fic you get to see it?”

“Yes - Dean realizes straight away with sigil that it was Cas’ work. He whispers the name under his breath. The next time they are alone together he shows Cas his appreciation with a kiss.”

“Oh- ho - ho!” Jared let out a big laugh and did a couple of vulgar kissy faces in jest.

“What are you guys laughing at now.” Misha joined them his trenchcoat flapping around him.

“We were just talking about how Jensen - I mean Dean - shows Cas his appreciation with his a kiss in one of the slash fictions that Amanda is reading.”

“Oh...sounds steamy…” Jensen and Misha exchange a darty-eyed glance before Jensen excuses himself - faking a phone call and stepping a few feet away. He couldn’t hide his red face but at least he could stare at the wall and pretend to talk to his mother until it subsided. He was sure the back of his neck was red too.

Jared turned back to Misha. “You two aren’t fooling anybody.”

“I don’t have the slightest clue what you’re talking about.”

“Sure you don’t.”

Jensen pulls out his phone to read through the comments while waiting for the crew to reset another scene. If Jared would stop fondling Misha’s balls they may be able to complete a decent day’s work before night fall.

Dude - awesome fic - I always thought there was more there.

I loved this but I think you were channeling your inner Dean with that intro...it was very I want you to like me...but I don’t need you to like me.

asdkj;afls!!!

Please tag me in future fics :)

Do you have other fics?

Do you have ao3 account?

It felt good to not be assessed for his looks, his pretty face, his mastery of body language...as an actor he was under constant scrutiny, there was a standard he had to uphold in the public eye. Hiding behind a computer screen, he felt truly seen for the first time. It was wonderful and terrifying and a complete rush...Jensen couldn’t wait to do it all over again.

Notes: This has been sitting in my drafts folder for a while. I’ve barely proofread it so, I apologize for any continuity errors. It is not really set in any specific time. Also, this is done with the utmost respect for the actors, their friendships and families. I also respect all ships and as long as shippers are respectfully to each other and the actors, I welcome them. I have absolutely no tolerance for hate. I’ve tagged my usual tag list. If any one would like to be added or removed from future posts, please let me know. Thank you for reading!

<333 <333 <333

Tags: @bluecrystaldust @casdean91 @wanderingcas @fandom-life-alwayz @lindsayrose2016 @ships-a-lot @tardisdementor @glassofcity @fool-of-a-tardis @explicit-contentus @oaisara @mancamonster @deanxcasficrecs @destielfanfictions @deanreaderreblog @destieloneshots @destiel-oneshots @deancasheadcanons @youre-alive-and-thats-your-job @poeland @destielette @playfulpanthress @destiel-smut-motherfuckers

#destiel #destiel one shot #cockles #cockles one shot #j2 totally happened #J2M is my jam #J2M #tardisheart134 #hurricane #hate free

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civilorange · 7 years ago

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Multiples of 5 (QoE specific, if you can)! :D

5. Books or authorsthat influenced your style the most.Ayn Rand, was a big influence, just because I devoured her books in high school—Icouldn’t get enough. I really liked the Kathy Mallory detective novels in highschool too—going back and reading them makes me go “oh, wow, this is different”but it wasn’t your typicalprotagonist, or at least, it didn’t seem that way when I was all of fifteenyears old.

10. 10. Pick a writerto co-write a book with and tell us what you’d write about. Oh, easy. @fictorium — for sure.I’ll just enjoy the snappy dialog and wonderful characterization from her, andthen I’ll contribute an unnecessary five paragraph introspection on like, a bagel,or whatever—how breakfast makes our protagonist feel. Let’s see, I’m going to hit up a random plot generator to getour book’s synopsis—Christina Milhouseused to have it all—the fame, the fortune, the family, and many other things startingwith F—until it all came crashing down and she was left to the generalobscurity of being a B-list celebrity. How does someone deal with becomingnothing more than the answer to local Wednesday night bar trivia? “Who used tomatter for five hundred, Alex.” Enter a disgraced FBI agent with a penchant forassuming the worst—and usually being right. Agent Nicole Michael—everyone trustsa woman with two first names—knows the only way to save the world, and stop asuspiciously Illuminati-like organization, is finding the Arcadia. That just sohappens to be a piece of set memorabilia that Christina stole—allegedly, herlawyers still insist—a decade prior. Murder, mystery, eBay, and someone’sex-wife—Nicole’s—may just be involved in the plot.

[random plot generator: mid-fortiesfemale b-list celebrity who is dishonest, early fifties female disgraced fbiagent who is head-strong, story begins in a bar, something important has beenstolen, it’s a story about loyalty, your character bites off more than she canchew.]

15. Where does yourinspiration come from?Oh, I don’t know, meng. I’m scatter-brained enough that half the time I’ll getan idea from something completely unrelated. Or it’ll just happen while writing, since I usually don’t have much of a planwhen I sit down to write.

20. Post a snippet ofa WIP you’re working on.Kara had always been a mosaic of brokenpieces—beautiful shards of a person shattered young. It was world changing forClark to finally see it, for him to realize who his cousin had always been;behind the smile, and within the laugh. She’d held missing worlds in her heartfor most of her life, it nestled deep and true when she was still only learninghow to be herself.

25. Linear ornon-linear, and why?Non-linear. I think it gives a story texture. I do it because I don’t think Ihave the capacity to follow a plot from point A to point B. I get lost in theweeds. Jumping around makes everything seem fresh, every feeling strongerbecause it’s singled out—like each little scene is amidst an ocean ofpossibility. I’ve always been a fan of detective novels, and shows, andnon-linear just feels like a big who doneit to me.

40. Original Fictionor Fanfiction, and why?They both have their highlights—I’ve done a bunch for both, though all mylonger stories are fanfiction. I like fanfiction because you get to touch aworld that’s already there—it’s already existing in the minds of those reading.You kind of get to go, “Hey, this thing we both love? This is how I see it.”Because you’re both fans, and I think that’s awesome.

45. Worst piece offeedback you’ve ever gotten.It was in sophomore year of high school. Against every instinct I signed up fora creative writing class—Amanda (my wife, though we were just buddies in 10thgrade) had joined and I was a sucker and signed up to spend the period withher. It was full of writing snobs who were like manic with their comma placement,and like very critical of any style not their own. We did peer reviews and thegirl I got partnered with basically told me I was writing wrong, and I was under the impression that wasn’t possible.Especially not in creative writing. I would have understood her being like, “yo,your grammar is garbage” because I haven’t found a sentence I didn’t thinkneeded four commas, but just straight up wrong.Nope.

50. Weirdest storyidea you’ve ever had.I once had to write something about inspiration and I remember it involved aninternational soccer game, the song “Stacy’s Mom” and au gratin potatoes.

New ask game for writers. Ask me!

#civilorange answers #writing #get to know me #kasadilla11

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natsubeatsrock · 8 years ago

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Bye, Bye Lucy: Conclusion

There are plenty of other nonsensical tropes in these stories that I could talk about. There's “Natsu’s seller’s remorse”, “Lucy getting revenge”, “Nalu somehow happening in these stories”, “another Grand Magic Games” and others I've mentioned throughout this series and/or probably tried to block out of my memory. In fact, I originally planned talk about some of those things.

However, I've decided to stop tearing down these tropes at this point. Partly because, around this point in these stories, these stories branch off into different patterns with similar bad tropes.

Partly because, to be honest, I stop caring about what happens in these stories once I find out Lucy is being ignored.

Partly because most of the things wrong with those other tropes are just repeats of things I've mentioned before as problems with prior tropes in these stories.

Partly because I feel like continuing the tradition of leaving these stories incomplete.

But mostly because I’d hope you get the point by now.

Now normally, I'd end my posts by summing up all the points that I've made. I've been doing this since my first long post. I even did something close to that when I did the conclusion of my Naruto series. However, that would be the easy way out and, considering this topic, I feel like I should do something different. If you saw even the intro to the first of these posts, you should have immediately known I wasn't going to defend these stories.

To just say “these stories are trash, forget they exist” would be lazy writing that is an incredible disconnect between everything I’ve written up to this point. And considering that’s one of the big complaints I have with these stories - both with how they forget the progression of what’s happened in canon and they don’t take advantage of the stuff that’s happened in the stories already - it would probably be best to end in a way that’s not incredibly lazy.

Do I think these stories should still be written?

At least, not the way they usually are.

As shocking as it may sound after everything I’ve said in this series, I don't have a big problem with a lot of the ideas behind these tropes. Of course, they're all terribly done, a few ideas wouldn't make sense at all, and I no longer have a reason to read any more of these stories ever.

However, the ideas of Lucy being ignored by her friends, not being a part of Team Natsu, not being a member of Fairy Tail, joining another guild and becoming a better mage are pretty interesting ideas. With the right execution, each of these individual ideas could probably make good stories. I can't stand it when people say there's no other way to write the story the way they want without using these tropes. Throughout this series, I've given many different ways these and other different tropes that most of these fics use could work with canon.

Unfortunately, that's the trap of these stories. They're basically the worst versions of a lot of good tropes.

And I find it hilarious that this is about Fairy Tail fanfiction. If there is any way I can sum up the issues with Fairy Tail, it's that there are a lot of great ideas and they're all terribly done.

However, there may be hope. (For the story tropes, this series is almost done.) One of the interesting trends in FT fan fiction I've noticed in preparation for this series is writers playing with the basic structure of these stories and tropes and making something different. I can't say they're all good, but it's cool to know that people are trying to make good versions of these tropes.

If you like still like Lucy leaves stories and have followed through the rest of this series, then I thank you for hearing me out up to this point. But as a musical composer, I believe we should recognize and celebrate the people who do take old things and breathe new life into them. So, especially considering long time followers of me might recognize I've done nothing for 300+ followers, I want to wrap this series up by making some suggestions.

Meow999's currently running work on “The Stars’ Guardian” is astounding. They took the framework of the ideas of these stories and put them all in ways that all make believable sense within the context of the FT universe. There were even hints to obscure pieces of canon I was shocked even existed. I don't usually go out of my way to read Nalu and Gruvia anything. I found this by looking on stephicool’s blog (before she blocked both of my blogs) recommending fics to someone else. What I ended up reading was the thing that legitimately got me the closest to shipping Nalu ever.

On the opposite side, one of my favorite stories takes a different approach to the other side of these stories. “How to Original” is PsychoEmperor’s tongue-in-cheek take on these stories is the funniest fanfiction that I've read, hands down. It's all the tropes you've come to know played up to an extreme amount.

If you don’t mind lemon and Laxlu, Sound Pod on Shuffle by LittlePrincessNana is also good. Lucy gets depressed after Natsu and Lisanna get together and ultimately ends up getting with Laxus. There are some time issues, dragon-Layla connections I talked about in the last section and the whole dragon mating trope that I’m not a fan of. However, I think the way they were written with Lucy and Laxus’ character arcs in mind complement these tropes. Also, it’s one of the few good songfics I’ve read. Though, if you’re like me, you’ll read the story but skip all the smut parts.

Chris-tells-tails wrote an interesting one-shot on his last blog called “Smile” (The name of the story.) It plays with the idea that Lucy knows that Natsu likes Lisanna and is the one that helps push Natsu to ask her out. As someone who loves the Nalu dynamic based on a believe that they push each other to do things they normally wouldn’t, I thoroughly enjoyed it. And I’d hope this is a glimpse of what it would be like in canon if we get a Nali ending.

If you wonder why Natsu, Lisanna, and Lucy can't talk out their issues, I suggest Introductions by Kacy Myth. It's a short story about Natsu introducing Lisanna to Lucy now that she's back in the guild.

It came as a shock to me that most of these authors have Tumblr accounts. I suggested kacymyth and chris-tells-tails a while back as a part a tradition of suggesting blogs every time I hit a follower milestone. As part of that same tradition, I've also suggested luna-myth, claire-starsword, nalu-mage (though kind of ironically at the time) and filiiadcorblog. And in addition to princessnanaxlaxus, I would like to add to that list dragonshost, akihiko-natsuko, kyogre-blue, rivendell101, espada-4-jurabi and lockandk3y-fiction.

Hopefully, you're able to find something or someone that you like. Keep in mind many of these guys may not still do FT stuff, but they're still cool people worth checking out. And if you read fan fiction, it’s generally a good idea to always leave a review.

Always.

If you are a fic writer who’s read through this entire series and think that some of the ideas I’ve given to make these stories more sensible would make a cool story, by all means, take them and run with them. (Except the Chico C. Hammit one. It's mine.) Just let me know you did. I don’t care if you credit me or not, I just want to see what it looks like.

And of course, if you like this series of posts, I do posts like this a lot. I don’t usually attack fan fiction, but I do like talking about the Fairy Tail series and fandom, good and bad. Though, if you don't like my style and somehow got to this point, I also recommend ac-fairytail and fairytail-whathesays. They're both way better than I am at analysis and I'm not even close when it comes to salt.

Even if you don't go to any of those things, I encourage you to think about the things you don't like. Why don’t they work? How would you fix them if you could?

Maybe this is just me, but it's freaking depressing that after over 10 years worth of canon in a story with a cast larger than even the author knows what to do with, a canon alternate universe, two different and important time skips, multiple spin-off series, and a ship-crazy fandom, fic writers still decide to work on stories like this.

Thank you for reading this series of posts. I’ve had a ton of fun writing this series and I hope it shows. By the time this is up, I should be back home and getting ready to post more stuff for the summer. See you then!

The end.

#bye bye lucy #conclusion

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kraut-und-ruam-4-diversity · 8 years ago

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On (physical) disabilities and their portrayal in Videogames.

This post includes significant Spoilers for Final Fantasy XV (everything post-Altissia // Chapter 9)) – spoilers are under a Read More, but mobile-users, beware!

A few days ago, I had an interesting discussion with a friend, about the portrayal of disabled people in popular media, such as movies, anime, games and fanwork, such as fanart or fanfiction. We both found, that while there is some cool representation out there already, it could be done better in quite some cases of physical impairment portrayal in Anime and Videogames (which don’t aim to revolve around these topics, mainly.)

Especially in Anime and Game-design, there are tons of characters who have giant scars all over their body – or some might be missing a limb – or an eye. However, in most of these cases, these impairments have no real consequences for said characters – they have no relevance to the plot. While fans might be delivered an explanation in form of a flashback as to how said impairment came to be, the impairment itself Is most often used to make said character look ‘bad-ass’ – or to justify flashy gadgets and body-modifications. Many end up not being impaired at all - in a round-about way, because their body-modifications give them even greater power than they usually had. Or the impairment becomes the only, defining trait of said characer.

Let me throw the first stone – I am both fanfiction author and original-story writer. I have tons of OCs (original Characters) or Fan-Characters and I too have added scars or some impairments, only to show that “this character has been through a lot, but despite it all, he is still bad-ass and can easily kick enemy-butt.”

Scars and impairments can add a lot to a character – but as of lately I too have started believing that they only do, if they are taken into consideration throughout the entire story. They offer many chances and open doors, which can enrichen your character. What negative consequences do they suffer? Are there things they cannot do anymore? How do they cope? Can they find ways to still get the tasks done, or do they have to change their lifestyles and find complete work arounds? How does the public react? Do they have any benefits from their impairment? How do they emotionally deal with what happened to them? Does the character lose one or more important fights, because they miss a leg? An arm? Couldn’t see the enemy coming because they only have one eye? Are they deaf or maybe completely blind? Did they have to give up an artistic, creative hobby because their prothesis is not finely-tuned enough and won’t allow small, sensitive movements?

Et cetera.

(Kayori from ‘Your Lie in April’ - due to a terminal disease, she has to give up playing violine because her body soon becomes too weak.)

Basically, what many people demand, are characters who have to suffer the negative consequences of their impairments as well, instead of only the positive aspects.

Don’t get me wrong – it can be very empowering and uplifting to see people who are physically impaired, in positions of powers – to see them do things which able-bodied people can also do! And possibly, even more – and even better! It is a positive portrayal of physically impaired people and many come to appreciate this.

…but life’s not always fun and sometimes people also want to tell the world how their condition can make things rough for them – so other people might understand.

Sometimes, we want our favourite characters to struggle the way we do – because if they do, it can be so much more uplifting and inspiring to watch them learn to overcome it.

..and some things, you just can’t overcome – some things just won’t work and won’t be possible anymore – and that is also okay.

This is where Media can come into play, for representation.

I have played tons of Videogames throughout my life, thus I have seen a great number of diverse characters. As of lately however, there was one game which particularly impressed me, in regard to it’s portrayal of physical impairment – and especially, how it affected the gameplay.

The cool thing about videogames is, that they do something no other medium can do to the consumer to this degree – they directly involve you. While during the game you might be following a sometimes strict, sometimes not so strict path and pattern, it is still the player who makes the characters move – and who makes the decisions.

The immersion is much greater since you are actively taking part, instead of just passively watching, or reading. This of course offers a wide range of possibilities for interesting approaches, if used wisely.

The game I was speaking about earlier, which has left me so very impressed, was Final Fantasy XV – the latest entry to the Final Fantasy Franchise.

Final Fantasy has had a great history of many popular games and thus, the series has seen many heroes and heroines – of course many of them had their fair share of scars –be it mental, or physical.

Final Fantasy VII has one of the most popular examples – namely it’s hero and Protagonist “Cloud Strife”.

In regard to Cloud alone, I could write an entire post of analyzing him and his mental state, but many others have done so, which is why I will just leave a link to a very informative and great post, for those who are interested.

Ahem, back to topic – AND HERE IS THE SPOILER WARNING. DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO BE SPOILERED FOR EVERYTHING POST-ALTISSIA ARRIVAL // POST CHAPTER 9.

This is Ignis Sciencia – he is one of the four main characters and he is the Royal Advisor to Prince Noctis.

During their Journey, Ignis is more than essential – not only for the team within the story, but also, to the player. Ignis, next to being a great Strategist, is also an amazing cook. He takes care of his friends and provides them with delicious meals, after a long, hard day of fighting for their lives. For the player, this means – next to entertaining and heart-warming cutscenes of dinner-conversations over a campfire - Status Boosts. The gameplay makes great use of Ignis’ hobby: depending on what ingredients the Player has collected and how many Recipes Ignis has learned, the Player can pick what will be for dinner.

Depending on the choice, this can make the following day much easier. Some meals will greatly boost the attack, or defense power. Some will allow endless sprinting, double your experience gain, make the boys immune to elemental damage – or it might help them find more items along the way.

If the right dish is picked, a battle which would take you 1h 30 to 2 hours, can be completed in only 45 minutes, which is an amazing deal. (Adamantoise fight, anyone? Unthinkable without the 100% Critical Hit Chance dish.)

Everyone who has played this game is aware of just how essential and useful Ignis’ cooking on it’s own already is. BUT – he is not only a cook – he is also an excellent fighter, using quick, deadly daggers – or lances to attack from above. Also, he can heal his party members and aid them with spells, or items. There really is a notable difference between having all 4 boys fighting – or one of them being unavailable, or momentarily not able to fight.

Ignis is great for many reasons - …. But with Final Fantasy XV being a dark game, taking place in a world where a war is just about to start, things of course take a turn for the worst.

Plot happens – and after Chapter 9, when Noctis awakes from a coma which had lasted a few days, he finds his dear friend Ignis blind.

…and this is, where many things change - for the four friends, and also for the player.

The four heroes are escaping from Altissia, making their way to Niflheim where the enemy awaits and where they hope to find their stolen crystal, which could end the war & stop the longer-and-longer growing nights, which threaten to cloak the entire world in everlasting darkness.

However, Ignis being blind greatly affects the gameplay – and the chemistry between the main-cast, which gives our heroes troubles.

Noctis and Gladiolus, who have been like brothers, are constantly fighting.

Prompto, the sunshine of the group, is trying to ease the mood and keep them from getting in each other’s hair, but he fails, as everyone is on edge.

And Ignis? Well, he is blind. He remains composed, trying to still be as useful as possible. He is not holding any grudges, but behind this mask of him trying to remain collected, it shines through that he too is of course bothered by it.

From this point of the game on, the player is faced with what this disability means – and in quite a realistic way.

Ignis can no longer cook – there is no way to obtain all these great status boosts which had been so useful before. Ignis now has to use a walking-cane and thus, he is much slower. If the Player goes too fast, a very angry Gladiolus will leave a sarcastic remark, telling you to slow down – whereas Prompto will always stay at Ignis’ side – helping him along the way. Ignis also trips a lot – and man, MAN, does it hurt seeing him like this.

Additionally, to the group being slower and the boys having to live off pizza and cup-noodles from now on, the player also now lacks manpower during combat.

While Ignis does try his best to fight along, he is still very slow – and does almost no damage. While Gladiolus and Prompto easily deal 1200 damage per hit, Ignis deals 10. He can no longer use his daggers or lances – he will use his cane.

To make things even worse, he cannot use his Limit Breaks (special commandos and attacks, which can give the player a strategic advantage if used wisely) anymore.

One of his attacks featured him, marking the enemies with daggers which he would throw at them, so Noctis could warp-strike attack them at the speed of light, since he would just have to warp from Dagger, to dagger, instead of having to manually aim.

However, a blind man cannot mark enemies, can he? (instead, he learns to infuse his friends’ weapons with elemental magic, so they might be more efficient when fighting.)

Chapter 10 to 13 do an amazing job of making the player understand just how devastating Ignis losing his eyesight affects the entire group.

The poor man trips, slows his friends down considerably, cannot do great damage during battle – and of course, it has taken a mental toll on everyone involved.

FF XV was praised for being immersive and for making the player feel like he belonged to this group of friends. Everyone who has played this game, will probably agree on this. Thus, seeing Ignis like this hurts on a very, very personal level.

For story-reasons, there is a time-skip of 10 years and after this time has passed, Ignis is almost back to normal. While he is still blind, he can walk without a cane and fight very well on his own. Since Ignis insists on carrying out his duty as Royal Advisor to Prince Noctis, and since these four are best friends, it is only natural, that Ignis will stay with the group for the rest of the game. Thus, gameplay wise, it was a good decision to have Ignis return to almost his old glory after said time-skip. While some might argue that this completely nullifies the tragedy of him having lost his eye-sight, I would disagree and rather see it as him coping with his disability in a believable way. Final Fantasy XV takes place in a world where magic and great technology exist – it is believable that after 10 years, he would have learned to cope in such ways.

Also, it would have negatively affected the experience, as it would have been frustrating to keep Ignis around in this helpless state during all final chapters. (Sorry Ignis, I love you, but I would much rather have you had stay at home where all is safe, if you still had been completely blind and unable to help yourself ; ____ ;) Thus, in order to not completely frustrate the players, it was a good call to make Ignis regain most of his abilities, while still keeping him impaired. (Because hey – some things just cant be cured – not even in a world where magic exists, which is a realistic and grim reminder of just how brutal war can be – and how it can affect your life forever. ) To me, there was a great balance - a realistic portrayel of how a sudden impairment can affect not only an individual, but also his friends - and the already threatening situations the boys are in, during the game, only adds to it - and, seeing how a person can cope.

Final Fantasy XV – in my opinion – tackled Ignis’ disability in a great way. The player really came to understand and witness first-hand, through clever use of gameplay, just how off-throwing and life changing losing one’s eye-sight can be. Not only did it affect Ignis and his mental state – but it also affected his friends and their dynamic in a great and yet terrible way.

I remember – when Trailers of the game teased that Ignis might become blind – many people said “But he will be fine again, won’t he?” or “he won’t be permanently blind! It’s probably just for now!” – since Square Enix has never gone so far as to disable one of their main-characters over the course of the game. We have had characters die – but this? This was…new. It was interesting. ..and it was tragic.

I really hope to see more Game Developers be brave enough in the future, to include more disabled characters – and to dare showing their struggles in a realistic and hopefully equally gripping and dark way, as real life itself often does.

- Mod Magical Mario

#magical mario #mod magical mario

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