#half the fun of this post is how bad my screenshots r

[crimeronan]

god i know i keep half-tongue-in-cheek saying that my dad is literally belos owlhouse but. i've apparently gotten a little desensitized to Just How Bad He Is (because i have ESCAPED, YAY) & so today has been a delightful adventure.

i wrote an AITA post from his POV about stuff that happened several years ago, bc i was curious about how bad he'd get dragged - i updated the timeline but the Only fact i changed was the reason for his Woes (i blamed COVID economic struggles, which actually makes him a Hero compared to the truth. the truth being so ugly i'm not gonna detail it here good god).

i kept it true to POV by only using things that he actually did say to me at the time about why he was doing the things that he was doing, & blocking out all the relevant info about why the wronged party (me) was so upset, & having him praise his daughter (me) and go "i love her so much :) she's so smart and independent and i would never hurt her :)", & having him half-assedly admit he might've sounded unreasonable/angry/malicious, in a way that was clearly supposed to earn Good Dad points for being so Willing To Admit Imperfections, despite a continued constant doubling-down refusal to answer questions about actual important shit or fix anything ever.

cannot emphasize enough that this was not a fictionalized/embellished/creative POV. the only points of fiction were 1) my dad did not write these things on reddit, he said them to me in real life word for word instead and 2) this happened many years ago, not like... yesterday.

anyway the thread blew up and the commenters were all so kind and genuinely worried for me (as in, the daughter) and offering so much help that i hopped on a diff account to be my past self so i could reassure people i'm okay & had a plan in motion for gettin' the hell outta dodge. because i felt REALLY BAD that they didn't know i..... did in fact get out. people were so nice it made me actually fucking cry jesus CHRIST. i had in fact perhaps forgotten that these things were all as bad and worrying as they were

now. this is all a very serious and harrowing-sounding prelude to the actual point of this post, which is. a bullet list of some of my FAVORITE FUCKING RESPONSES. revel in these with me i had so much fucking fun. i have taken DOZENS AND DOZENS of screenshots to peruse whenever i need a healthy dose of Perspective

here they r:

you are CARTOONISHLY EVIL?

HOLY ABUSE BATMAN

DO BETTER. RIGHT NOW.

did you even listen to yourself writing this. HOW

there's something seriously wrong with you. like on an intrinsic unfixable level

hey this happened to me too! my parent died and i had a party about it btw

your daughter is never going to speak to you again after this

(note from the future: yeah)

you're going to act confused and sad when she goes no-contact aren't you

(NOTE FROM THE FUTURE: HE SURE FUCKING IS)

i think you are creating your own problems and then getting mad at them. maybe instead you could not do that

is this ragebait. i can't imagine anyone this horrible actually existing

this isn't ragebait. i can tell this isn't ragebait because I Know This Kind Of Man So Intimately

you are the asshole on literally so many levels i'm going to write a 15 paragraph response line-by-line dissecting everything wrong with you

are you aware that you're lying or are you literally this incapable of 2 seconds of honest self-reflection

i need to donate to a gofundme for your daughter right now immediately

(note from the future: i am not going to scam people by pretending a long-done sitch is a current emergency on gofundme. have no fear.)

wow. okay i'm gonna go hug my mom and thank her for not being you

you are Actually Literally Empirically the Actual Literal Worst Parent who has Actually Literally Ever Existed

HOW FUCKING DARE YOU????

WHO DO YOU FUCKING THINK YOU ARE.

I AM A 57-YEAR-OLD MOM OF FOUR ADULT CHILDREN AND THE MERE THOUGHT OF DOING ANY OF THE THINGS YOU HAVE DONE HERE MAKES ME PHYSICALLY NAUSEOUS

these vibes are so skeevy. leave her the fuck alone????

along with ASTONISHINGLY accurate inferences about exactly what was happening with the daughter (me) in all the missing missing reasons & like..... exactly how the situation was So Much More Ugly And Horrifying than an innocently confused i'm-so-well-intentioned dad-POV post would have you believe.

so. anyway. that was literally the most validating experience i've ever had in my entire life. i know i've said he's a bad guy before but i also always forget just how far beyond the pale he is. like wow that was. that was not a normal average human experience to have growing up huh.

IN CONCLUSION.

if you guys are ever wondering why i am the way that i am about, like........ anything....... everything....... whatever......

just remember.

i was raised by belos owlhouse.

[8bitsupervillain]

Higurashi When They Cry Hou Ch. 7 Minagoroshi pt. 11

Rika and friends have a nice lengthy chat about how they need to force the Children Consultation Service into helping Satoko out of her nasty situation. Rika becomes a lot more passive, because she's seen this scenario play out before and she's become overcome with depression over the fact it's happening again, and she just doesn't see it ending any other way than it usually does. She also becomes a lot more cavalier about mentioning events from other timelines (they eventually settle on calling them worlds) mentioning point blank to Shion that she's surprised she cares so much about Satoko this time around. After school they go off to the Child Consultation Service, where they're more or less given the brush off. It's only been one day since Teppei came back, and surely they're overreacting.

So Keiichi starts forming the plan to gather various townspeople together to help them show up to the CCS and show them how serious the situation is.

Remember, Teppei is a bad guy because he would sexually abuse Satoko if she were a few years older. Kameda is a goofy fun guy because he's a bit of a creepy loli weirdo. Or would Irie be the better contrast here?

You ever read a scene that you can feel it in your bones that if this had been translated even a few years earlier it would be rife with "edgy" jokes? I seem to remember reading somewhere that the MangaGamers version is a re-translation so I don't doubt that there's one that just is peppered with the occasional slur randomly in the dialogue. I would like to point out that to this day the version of Final Fantasy VII you can buy digitally still includes the scene where Tifa uses the r-word. Also, I just want to say this is a really weird tangent for Ryukishi07 to go on in the middle of this arc.

Tower of Druaga and Dragon Buster won't come out for another year Keiichi! You're being nostalgic for games that don't even exist yet you time traveling weirdo! Man, Keiichi is going to be in for the time of his life when the MSX or PC-88 becomes a thing. There's going to be so much pornographic mahjong games out there for him. Assuming he hasn't already seen them since, again, he's a time traveler reminiscing about the arcade games of 1984 he shouldn't have been able to play yet.

Please forgive the repetition for half of the screenshot here. Also, if you're not super loyal to Metal Gear Solid, the answer to the question is both. Although I think you should just grit your teeth and bear the burden of owning a PS3. You'll get some better games. The Yakuza franchise, for a start! Hell if Dead or Alive is really that big of a get for you, just wait, DoA 5 will come out on PS3. Although I guess you're missing out on DoA Xtreme 2. Anyway, I think Ryukishi forgot he wasn't posting on 2ch and accidentally wrote his "kids these days don't appreciate the classics" rant into his murder mystery.

Oh god, would Keiichi be that gamer? You know the type.

I kind of love how everyone's knee-jerk reaction to the Teppei situation is to just go immediately to violence. Except for the "reasonable" adults, everyone's reaction has more or less just been "let's kill the fucker."

Rika is being much more open about her desires to drown her sorrows. I think she might have a problem. (I'm quietly mourning my lack of photo editing software, or drive to edit Rika onto Stone Cold Steve Austin.)

Lighthearted silliness aside now it's time to get back to talking about the Satoko Houjou cruel abuse hour. During a meeting for the festival Keiichi and Ooishi talk about how they plan to go to the Child Consultation Center the next day and make them see their resolve. Ooishi talks about how hey maybe don't, cause it might cause issues if you know what I mean. Keiichi says nuts to that and he's going to do it anyway. He's gonna be the biggest, loudest, most persistently annoying thorn in their side, and no one can stop his manly resolve! Ooishi basically applauds this resolve, and the two have a manly fist bump affirming their manliness across the generational gap.

[necroromantics]

Properly addressing the drama

For the millionth time (The tone on this entire post is lighthearted and not mad)

I'm gonna start this off by saying that I have made multiple posts apologizing for my past actions, and acknowledging the harm I have caused in the past. I have apologized sorta- directly to Void (my friend sent my apology to them cuz Void didnt want me to contact them which I respected). I know I bring up my ASPD a lot, but please try to understand that personality disorders are dysfunctional behaviours ingrained into someones way of thinking/acting. I never want to excuse my bad behaviour, which is why I am fully open to hearing the others side. I do fully acknowledge that the jokes I made a year ago were in very bad taste now. At the time, I was very deep into drug addiction, in communities that encouraged my bad behaviour, and I grew up with people who held very discriminatory beliefs. This is my explanation for why I made those jokes. I'm trying to explain how my brain works, because it very clearly doesn't work how "normal people"'s brains do, which is why I was diagnosed in the first place. I understand my behaviour was harmful and incorrect, I take full accountability for what I have done, and I am slowly learning how to combat these habits and mindsets that I have grown up with. Its just very hard to do so when these things are heavily ingrained into me, and Im constantly bombarded with drama and being dehumanized and treated like a problem rather than a person. This is the ableism I have faced my entire life, and it follows here too.

I have mental disabilities of my own (very severe ADHD), I have been bullied a lot growing up for it, and also why I actively reclaim the R slur. But I grew up around people who would make fun of me, and people like me, and the way my brain works is that I'm not able to empathize or feel bad for people struggling with things like disabilities or whatnot. At the time, I didn't acknowledge that it was wrong, because to me that was normal and ok. I know now that it's not, and I'm in a place where (for the most part) I am able to try and consider right/wrong.

I do apologize if my tone in my posts or anything has come off as hostile or aggressive. I have a bad habit of that because of my hyperactivity where I speak faster and louder than I can control, which reflects into my tone in text. I have said numerous times that I'm not interested in fighting with minors. My intention was never to cause drama, but to defend my name against people making posts on me, which I have every right to do after they have spent 5 months straight constantly stalking and harassing me.

I do understand that they are all minors. In the past, they got mad at me for not wanting to interact with them due to their age. So it doesn't make sense that they're pulling the age card now. I swear from the bottom of my heart that I am not interested in any of this drama. Ive said it before, but I dont expect forgiveness or people to like me. All I want is to be left alone, and given space to continue my recovery for my mental health issues.

The reason why I bring up their ableism towards me isn't because I want to play victim, or to turn away from what I have done, or use it as an excuse. I take full accountability for what I have done, and talking about my ASPD is my way of explaining why I may think, talk, or act in certain ways. I have been very open about my ASPD from the beginning of this account, and on Discord. My issue is the fact I am being harassed, and have been for nearly half a year now even though I have long cut contact and blocked all of them, because I have "no morality", and I lack empathy. I think that is entirely dehumanizing and stimatizing towards people, not just me, who suffer from these things. If I am expected to take accountability for my ableism, which I have been, then I expect the same from these people as well.

I have screenshots where these people have talked about "cancelling" me on Tumblr way back in January. I have screenshots of death threats, and inappropriate things they have said about me. I understand they are all minors, but my ASPD doesn't excuse my bad behaviour, and their age doesn't excuse theirs.

This was never about caring about those effected by the jokes I made. These people have a long history of trying to cause drama for the sake of drama, and they have tried to do it with another big creator who I wont name. Also my DMs are open if anyone has any concerns, or wants to communicate about this maturely, I've always wished them well and hoped they would find peace and happiness in their lives as I have been trying in mine. Constant thriving off of drama is not good for anyone. Ive stated in the past Im not interested in that. I would like to move on from things that happened half a year to a year ago.

I have already been contacted by those who were involved in the January drama to get on better terms, which I very much appreciate.

I do not have the time or energy to cause unnecessary beef with random kids online. I have kept entirely to myself about this until they made a very public "call out post" about me where I do appreciate them showing me what I still needed to acknowledge and own up to in my past, but they cropped screenshots, not shown context, twisted stories, and have lied about me publicly on other things. My posts have only been about clearing my name and sharing my side. My only concern is telling my side. Anyone else would do the same with the things they have been saying.

I wish them all well wholeheartedly, and I want to make it clear I'm not mad, though I will admit I was for a bit there which is understandable when I have reached a tipping point after 5 months or so of non-stop harassment that I have tried my best to ignore.

I never cared to take any of this too seriously because it's the internet, and I know more than anyone who I am, what I believe, and how hard I'm working. No one else can speak on that, because none of you know me, really. But I have seen how they have insulted people who have nothing to do with the drama, calling someone a 'freak', flooding someones comments on a completely unrelated video, harassing random people in their DMs simply for being in my server. Many people of these are minors. I'm not going to let them do that to random, innocent people. That is entirely unfair how I am not allowed to say a slur I can reclaim, but they are allowed to go out of their way to bully innocent people who have nothing to do with me.

Thats where my issue lies. Thats what makes me upset. I'm a grown man, I have a life, I can defend myself and speak on my own issues. I've said many many times I don't want anyone to involve themselves in the drama, because honestly I think its a waste of time. If they truly cared about what they say they do, they would reach out to me, and we can talk maturely about it as I have done with some people previously associated with them.

I'm not asking for forgiveness, or for people to defend me, or take my side, or anything. All I am asking is that you stop stalking and harassing me, let me live my life in peace as Ive been trying to do, and please leave people alone who have nothing to do with this situation, and that includes my friends. I'm sure none of us want this to continue. Thank you.

(Also, I wanted to add onto the ASPD aspect of this cuz Ive been bringing it up a lot and I wanted to make it clear why. The way my brain works due to my mental health conditions is that I don't have the same emotional responses to words and others problems as most people do. Theres many studies on this, you can read up on it. When I hear certain topics, or words, or phrases, I'm unable to respond with the appropriate emotions and in all honesty it rarely ever bothers me, because I'm unable to empathize with those effected for the most part. I have a very strict moral code, but it's not the same as most people have due to this. I am learning how to combat this, because it causes issues like this. To me, saying hateful things is not the same as believing or doing it. Which I fully understand isn't the way most people see it, and I'm taking steps to unlearn this view. Of course my behaviour and views are going to be socially unacceptable, that is the entire premise of the disorder. Pleaaaase understand that when you berate and dehumanize me for that, youre berating and dehumanizing people with ASPD in general. There are many many other people out there who deal with the same things I do. What also bothered me was the obvious fakeclaiming in the comments of the post, when I have always been open about my diagnosis. I was diagnosed when I turned 18 in a forensic setting and my father has it as well. I have talked countless times about it. Thank you for all who understand.)

[borom1r]

1-25 choose violence ask game ❤️

ALL OF THEM?????? you’re so real for this ty snfnsnbfns. doing LotR bc of course I am

1. the character everyone gets wrong

PIPPIN I HATE TO SAY IT BUT PIPPIN. all those incorrect quote polls that have been posted where pippin keeps fucking winning YALL REALIZE HES AN ACTUAL CHARACTER RIGHT?? with like depth?? and bonds?? and a personality. yall realize that right?????? right??? ik we all love 2 joke but he would not say half of those things

2. a compelling argument for why your fave would never top or bottom

ok I personally enjoy both for Boromir BUT if he IS topping. he is a service top. I will die on this hill

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you've seen on tumblr

I block ppl for these takes so no screenshots but everyone who thinks Boromir is a villain. if you think Boromir is a villain I will key your car.

4. what was the last straw that made you finally block that annoying person?

there is one singular straw and it is bad Boromir takes in the Boromir tag

5. worst discord server and why

I don’t join fandom discord servers bc I love myself too much for that 💗

6. which ship fans are the most annoying?

ummm idk? most of my lotr mutuals have different ships from me and it’s all chill. but tbf I’m very selective abt who I interact with now lmao.

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

no one yet thank fuck.

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

Aragorn/Arwen isn’t actually romantic sorry I think it’s fucked up actually. the vibes are off there for SURE

9. worst part of canon

FARAMIR’S “yeah I’m gonna take you from your home and tame you. haha wdym. you don’t need a blade during times of peace.” SHTICK WITH ÉOWYN IN THE BOOKS. UNPACK YOUR BIASES YOU LITTLE FREAK!!!!!!!!

10. worst part of fanon

HM. I will stick with “people who horrifically misinterpret Boromir’s character”

11. number of fandom-related words you've filtered

at the moment I only have rings of power blocked but I’ve had that blocked since it came out bc if I look at the armor in that show I will commit crimes.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

MOVIE!FARAMIR MY SPECIALEST LITTLE GUY OOOOOOOOOO MOVIE!FARAMIR I LOVE YOUUUUUUUUUU he’s so handsome and special and I love him and you WILL all look at him and clap and cheer. it makes me insane that his temptation by the ring mirror’s Boromir’s and he’s actually fucking normal abt the Rohirrim AND I just love him very much :)

13. worst blorboficiation

ummm idk… maybe Frodo

14. that one thing you see in fics all the time

HMMM exposing myself but I basically only read Aragorn/Boromir fics lmao + since we’re Choosing Violence the most annoying thing is Boromir just being A Brute. like damn I love the surface level reading of the text maybe try engaging with it above a 1st grade analysis next time 💗

15. that one thing you see in fanart all the time

hmmmmm idk cuz again I don’t interact w a lot of fanartists so there’s nothing like. annoying. all th ✨motifs✨ I do see r very fun + I like them :)

16. you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

ummm for Serious, portraying Pippin as Stupid. for Silly, uhhhh Trans Faramir is so real to me I completely forgot cis people both 1) exist in the real world and 2) probably interpret Fara as cis too. i don’t get it :(

17. there should be more of this type of fic/art

trans Faramir 🩵💗🤍

18. it's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on...

HM idk. trans Faramir again. also bc I love it, utilizing Old Norse culture for the Rohirrim teehee

19. you're mad/ashamed/horrified you actually kind of like...

OK IM MAD THAT FINNISH BOROMIR IS JUST ME. THATS ME. THATS AN OUTFIT I WEAR REGULARLY MINUS THE LONG HAIR. I DRESS LIKE THAT TO BUY GROCERIES. i love him for that tho. I’m also mad that MtG Boromir’s stupid pointy muttonchops have grown on me. freak behavior, keeping his facial hair trimmed in those stupid little points

20. part of canon you found tedious or boring

I’m fighting for my life reading the histories rn 😑 I find them very dry for the most part

21. part of canon you think is overhyped

idk? I think there is an appropriate level of hype. but idk if Rings of Power had a lot of hype. if it did, then Rings of Power is my answer

22. your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

idk if it’s IGNORED necessarily but the fact that Boromir carries a Rohirric shield in the films does actually genuinely make me insane 💞 I love that sm

23. ship you've unwillingly come around to

UNWILLINGLY?????? idk?? ummmm I think it’s all fine for the most part I’m just A Fag so I don’t write het ships. it’s like a moral thing. Éowyn/Faramir gets a pass conceptually bc they’re T4T to me tho

24. topic that brings up the most rancid discourse

idkkkkkkk I don’t engage w discourse bc I want this fandom to remain pleasanttttt

25. common fandom complaint that you're sick of hearing

again idk.. I block on sight if I see a Bad Take + then I erase it from my memory so I can continue to live in a beautiful blissful world where I. forgor abt cis people ☺️

[translightyagami]

top 5 light's horny outfits

ALRIGHT. SO.

I know u wanted my top 5 of light’s horny outfits BUT there r not that many?? That I can do?? Without repeating??? So I’m just going to give you my

TOP FIVE LIGHT OUTFITS

BIG BEANIE AND TRACKSUIT

I want to marry whomstever decided that light has a giant beanie just waiting to b used in his closet. A friend of mine said it was that over sized beanie that like every trans guy has bc he bought it pre-transition and can’t get rid of it now. Paired w the tracksuit like wow! What a sneaky look! Who is he???

BLACK ZIP PULLOVER AND KHAKIS

Light rlly does dress like he’s a macy’s mannequin. And I love him for it. Also I just want to note that it does look like he’s not wearing an undershirt beneath that very unzipped pullover which is p r e t t y racy. Its like a fun flirty office party look but the person wearing it is a 18 yr old murder suspect

TENNIS OUTFIT

There’s no rhyme or reason to this list. I just happen to think light’s tennis outfit is a five star look. The little shorts. The crisp athletic t shirt. The way he seems to b saying “I love sports but I love being dressed appropriately for sports even MORE.” Light seems to get his kicks being dressed appropriately.

WESTERN SHIRT

WESTERN SHIRT!!! This is one of the UGLIEST shirts light has even worn and I LOVE IT. The color is glaringly not in his season and it fits terribly on him. Yet it’s still such a bold statement. It says “yeah! I’m well aware that pale colors wash me out!! But I’m gonna wear this baby blue western shirt anyway bc I hv the ability to do it.” He looks like a fucking 8 yr old. Misa nvr stood a chance at not falling in love w him.

BIG COAT

I’m so sad we don’t see light’s big coat after the first arc. Its such a cute statement piece. Seems cozy as hell too. I don’t hv anything funny to say abt it rlly; I just like light’s big murder coat.

[therealvinelle]

hello! i just wanted to respectfully share some perspective. i enjoy your metas a lot & i think a lot of your takes on canon are really great! about the jacob being redeemable & jasper not, a lot of this has to do with how racist smeyer’s writing is & how deeply it runs through jacob’s characterization. jake is beloved on here but if u go to any other platform u will see obscene hate spewed at jacob with absolute vitriol & edward/the cullens showered with praise to the point where it’s disgustingly racist. and ur take on his canon is very interesting but while smeyer prob. didnt realize what she wrote for him was as bad as it was, (her ignorance is sad & baffling) the way she ultimately paints him against her white hero as a love interest is very racially fueled bc the goodness of his nature didn’t serve her white story well anymore bc edward has to be the hero & not the ‘aggressive brown man.’ this is very harmful writing & hurtful to a lot of real people. i don’t think anybody on here would ever excuse or forget jacob’s canon, but this is a big part of why a lot of us view jacob beyond that & not jasper, who does not have the excuse of being a brown kid written by racist whose characterization needed to serve the needs of the white ‘hero’ as POC so often do. this is definitely not hate to you & you are obviously not obligated to acknowledge it, but this is just some perspective on how a lot of us view jacob and why a lot of us think he is deserving of more redemption than others.

(Referenced post)

I actually wasn’t aware those fandoms had a racism issue. I sometimes browse r/twilight to marvel at how shitty it is, and I’ve taken a glance at the Twilight instagram, and all I see on both is tumblr screenshots. From this I figured these communities had to overlap with the tumblr fandom community in terms of opinions as well. I do remember fandom being awful ten years ago, but that was ten years ago and I thought we’d changed.

As for tumblr fandom, I totally get why people like Jacob and feel he deserved better. There’s just no end to the shit he goes through. He lives in poverty, his mother is dead, he’s the sole caretaker of his disabled father, his friends join a gang, he finds out he’s a werewolf and his life as he knew it is over, his best friend wants to become a bloodsucking demon and he’s unable to save her, and then he imprints on Renesmée so he’ll always be stuck with the Cullens. Life is so cruel to him, and because Meyer thinks imprinting is great we’re supposed to accept Jake/vampire baby he imprinted on against his will as his happily ever after. 

And as you point out, there are unmistakable racial dynamics happening with violent and aggressive non-white man Jake, whose imposing physique is emphasized throughout the text, and elegant and composed white man Edward.

So, yeah, I absolutely get why people want a better life for him, and reject the racially toned aggression and violence to enjoy the character he could have been instead.

My exasperation, and what I was referring to when writing that post, is that I think his sexual assault of Bella, threats, and attempt to kill her child should be acknowledged. It happened, it sucks but it very much did happen, and yet there’s no shortage of meta and takes on this site listing all the ways Jake would have been good for Bella. Reimagining canon is half the fun of being in a fandom, but presenting canon Jake as a good partner for a woman he assaults is... perhaps I missed out on some unsaid cue where everyone knows without saying that they’re not actually talking about canon Jake, but the character he could have been, but if so then I wish they would clarify.

Apart from that, I'd like to stress that the other Quileute characters are all great, I tend to focus on the vamp part of Twilight but I really do enjoy their characters, especially Billy, Leah, Sam and Emily.

I hope this cleared things up, and I don’t feel attacked at all, no worries. I’m glad you let me know.

[thatyanderecritic]

First Impressions: XOXO Blood Droplets

Hey there everyone, Kai here! As everyone knows, Julie and I are at the end of our rope when it comes to content for the blog. But just yesterday, a saw the download link for XOXO Blood Droplets demo being shared around. Normally, I much rather wait for the full game to be released instead of playing a demo; it’s just not a satisfying experience for me. But I decided to change my tune and give it a try. This is just my impression of the game so far and not a review, since the game isn’t even finished. That being said, here’s my opinion.

TL;DR

Well, I have a lot to say about the game since I’m an otome fan (I’m a picky highly opinionated girl). But I’m sure everyone here cares more if the guys are really yanderes or not based on the screenshots on the game that has been floating around. And my answer to that question is… I guess? Like I said, it’s way too early to give anything concrete. But from what I have seen, the guys are more… how to put it… they all give me this “psychopathic oresama” feel than a yandere feel. The way they all treat the MC rather cold or dickishly, just like an oresama or a kuudere (in Pran’s case). The only real exception to this behavior was from Shiloh, who was far better on the yandere scale since he’s more open with his affections with the MC. I guess we can think of them all as Yandere Hybrids… an oresama-yandere mix but they don’t feel particularly lovesick unless you forcibly trigger that side. They’re all in a 2-4 range on the yandere scale… Shiloh being obviously a 4 and Bae being the lowest with a 2. The MC is on the same boat in that she’s more of a “psychopathic oresama” or maybe a Yandere Hybrid. But unlike the guys, she’s like a flat out 1 on the yandere scale. Let’s just say… she’s not much of a fighter (What a surprise for an MC). But does this make her a bad MC? Nah, she’s actually pretty good and I really like her. She’s just not that great of a yandere herself.

For the story and otome game itself… eh, it’s alright. Besides the psychopathic/yandere gimmick it has, it’s pretty ordinary in terms of otome game. High school setting, check. Slice of life, check. Literally no plot besides trying to get with the guys (and the emotional baggage they come with), check. The most interaction is just the choices and figuring out where the guy hangs out, check. It’s just a solid 3/5 otome game. I’ll toss in half a point, making it a 3.5/5… I can appreciate the quirkiness of it.

Below the cut, I have a more detailed opinion piece that you can read.

Music

Normally, I don’t really mention something like music when it comes to media. It’s mostly a “meh” topic since music is subjective and isn’t something to mention unless there’s something remarkable about it. And the music in this game is pretty… bad. When you first hear the music playing in the background, it’s your generic otome music that you could easily zone out. But then there’s certain scenes where the story turns “twisted” and the music follows suit. Fucking yikes on the twisted music my dude. Shiloh’s twisted music is fine and there’s this second one that isn’t bad either. But there’s this particular song that’s on the tip of being almost ear r*pe. This twisted song is used way more than I would like. Like, headphone users be weary. How to describe the sound… it’s like that weird pitch a mic would do if you scream in a mic and your scream is so loud that it doesn’t even sound like a scream anymore… just pain. It’s that sound that comes up at random intervals of the song… it’s almost like the sound mixer realize it’s a bad idea to make the song completely ear r*pe. I had my computer at 5 volume and it still hurt my ear like a goddamn dog whistle for a dog. Either mute the sound or don’t use your headphone when playing the game.

Art

Again, like music, I don’t particularly like mentioning this since art is subjective. I’m just talking about it since this is an otome game, so I’m just going “why not toss in my opinion on it.” In general, it’s alright. At first, I didn’t particularly like it. But after playing the game, I started to dig it. It’s very cartoony… reminded me of the sort of art a kid would doodle when they’re bored in math class. And I find it rather cute. But I really like the expressions and the eyes… reminds me of twitch emotes for some reason.

Story

Story? What story?

Well, joking aside, there’s really no story here. Not like I was expecting anything. Practically all otome games are like this. Slice of life and the only “drama” would be the emotional baggage the guy you’re chasing after carries. But there’s two things that bother me about the general story. The first thing is that it’s very obvious that it’s trying to push you to play the original game. If no one knew, XOXO Blood Droplets is actually an AU spin off of their original game XOXO Droplets. In the original game, the gimmick there was that everyone and the MC are a bunch of assholes. Since Blood Droplets isn’t the original game, the story progresses as if you should already know the “overall story”, character background, and character family life. Everyone just drops information like it’s the most obvious thing and clearly we should know this shit; stupid players. Well… it’s not like I’m expecting much. Blood Droplets is an AU spin off after all.

The other thing about the story is the over the top/shock value scenes the story would have sometimes. This isn’t exactly a bad thing in my opinion. But some parts feel kinda forced for the whole “OoooOOoOo they’re crazy! They’re psychopaths!” It’s a comedy game and it is a bit funny. But sometimes it’s just cheesy. I think the one scene that got me to roll my eyes was the very first scene where all the guys were going “Sooooo, who do you want to kill the most~?” Context wise, it’s funny but it was made to be an abrupt cut to break the illusion that “everything is normal~” to the audience. We already know this game is supposed to be fucked up and crazy in a funny way, don’t pretend that we don’t already know that.

Love Interests

From all the otome games I played, the love interest cast here… aren’t my favorite. I prefer different casts than this one. Though no one should be surprised seeing how all these guys original counterparts were assholes. If you know me by now, y’all should realize I hate the asshole/oresama type in otome games. I don’t find them fun to chase after and go through the verbal abuse for. That being said, their asshole nature is reflected here… even if they’re “yanderes” now. It’s just not fun. And now, I shall break down each character and why they’re weak yanderes.

Pran Taylor- One word: Kuudere. Based on his looks, he should be my type. But that cold attitude isn’t something I was keen on. But personal taste aside, he was so cold to the point that he straight up just abandons the MC after Shiloh taunted Pran about his parents and the MC not needing him. Not very yandere of him to just ditch the MC once the going went tough. He’s also not particularly affectionate either. If we recall back to the Yandere Hybrid post, I mentioned Kuudere-Yandere mix. To handle them well, we need to really see how the character’s mind is working. But since we don’t see that, Pran just doesn’t seem lovesick. But I have to say: the scenes that he does act yandere was fun and rather cute. He’s probably the cutest with the yandere actions, second to Shiloh.

Jeremy King- What a weird character. He’s a bit of a tsundere besides being a misanthropic clean freak. Unlike Pran, Jeremy’s asshole side and yandere side are more balanced. But since he’s a bit of a tsundere, he doesn’t seem very affectionate. He’s pretty cold actually. Don’t have much evidence for him being a yandere but him overreacting about someone puking on the MC’s shoes and jumping to the solution in cutting off her feet isn’t very… smart? I can’t blame him too much since his quirk is that he’s a germaphobe.

Bae Pyoun- Now here’s the perfect oresama for you all. Probably my least favorite, imo. While Bae does have his moments in being slightly fond of the MC, he pretty much doesn’t care about her interacting with others or showing his ownership of the MC. Like there’s one scene where a side character tells Bae that he’ll take the MC out on a date. Bae just went “Okay then.” I get he’s confident that the MC won’t leave him, there wasn’t even a tinge of jealousy. Not very yandere like of him. While Bae isn’t social cold, he’s emotionally cold. He’s like the least affectionate of the bunch.

Shiloh Fields- I really like Shiloh, lol. He probably has the best yandere potential out of all of the guys. When the MC asked him to kill someone for her, he did. When people try to get in the way of their relationship, he kills them, threatens them, and manipulate people to doing his dirty work. He also stole the MC’s phone and he’s obviously a stalker. His affections for the MC is also very clear too. Really, the only thing that was bad on his part was that he killed the MC by pushing her to oncoming traffic.

Nate Lawson- Probably the next best yandere potential surprisingly. His affections for the MC is there and he’s shown to get jealousy, easily I might add. He’s a bit possessive of the MC too. And… that’s about it. There are a couple of scenes where Nate is clearly jealous and about to snap but that’s about it. He’s mostly a workaholic and cares more about his work than the MC. Wrong priority there for a yandere…

Everett Gray- Eh… I don’t know what to say about this one. Third most likely to have yandere potential. He’s clearly the “flirt” love interest otome games would have. He’s shown to be possessive of the MC and has affections for her. But he has the same problem as Nate in that he has a priority issue. Though his priority list was probably a joke in the game, there was some truth to it. Andddd, that’s about it. Everett wasn’t really remarkable.

MC

As everyone knows, here at ThatYandereCritic have our issues with MCs. Nine times out of ten, the MC usually sucks. But surprisingly, the MC here wasn’t that bad. She’s like a breath of fresh air for MCs. She is an asshole but she’s one of those charming asshole that are actually passible in media. The only issue is her “yandere” side. It ain’t that strong fam. Someone fucking with her man? Eh… let’s just simmer down here fellas. Someone threatening her and telling her to give up on her love interest? Lol you funny… anyways, have a nice day! :-/ I guess it’s just nice that she’s ride or die. Though, she does give up on Nate in one of the paths.

[thisweekingundamwing]

This Week in Gundam Wing 10-16 February 2019

Here’s this week’s roundup!

Remember to give your content creators some love! And join in on the events at the bottom!

~Mod Hel

Fanfiction/Snippets/AU Ideas:

@anaranesindanarie​

Happy Not Valentine’s Day https://archiveofourown.org/works/17776349

Trowa Barton/Duo Maxwell

Valentine’s Day, Gundam Boys use Heero as a pain measurement scale, Teasing, SO MUCH TEASING, Just do it already - Freeform, tiny bit of smut at the end, fluff?, gw valentine event 2019

Duo doesn’t see the point in Valentine’s Day.

@burningwreckage​

Lucifer https://archiveofourown.org/works/17777351

Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy

Duo Maxwell, Heero Yuy, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner

Cats, Sappy Ending, Valentine's Day, Post-Canon, GW Valentine’s Event 2019

For Valentine's Day. Duo wants a pet, but Heero is hesitant.

@doctormegalomania

Eldritch Holiday (Creature of the Night) https://archiveofourown.org/works/17802668/chapters/42002303

Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy, Trowa Barton/Quatre Raberba Winner

Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner, Chang Wufei, Lady Une, Sally Po

Horror, Body Horror, Occult, Comedy, Eventual Romance, Post-Break Up

There’s something wrong with Happiness. Duo doesn’t know what, and he’s determined to find out. The rest of the Gundam Pilots tag along to make sure he doesn’t get himself killed.

@duointherain​

Beneath (Ch. 2) http://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/182706019769/beneath-2

disclaimer: I don’t own ‘Gundam Wing’. I also don’t own ‘Beneath’ which is a Syfy B movie I just watched and this story really doesn’t go with that one much. Monster in the water… it’s a common B movie trope.  Corvis is mine though. He gets a copyright date of 2018

Note 1:  So it’s a get together. There are elements of 1/R, ¾, and ½, there might even be a 2/R kiss in there, but in the end it’s ½, cuz that’s where my heart is.

Over a bullhorn, ancient ass technology, someone asked, “State your name and intentions!”

Beneath: An L2 Girl http://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/182780760504/beneath-an-l2-girl

Notes: This was just a sudden thought. As will all my work… canon? What canon? Though I hope my characterizations are good.  And I think I need a bowl of ice cream. I’m nervous to write a female pov. Also! I got up to 51 subscribers on my favorite original work today. So… Let’s see if I can do this thing! And now that I’ve done it… I hope it’s okay :)

Warnings: Graphic violence and death

Notes: beginnings of 1x2, this is set at least half a year after Beneath

She crouched behind a file cabinet, heart racing, her phone pressed to her cheek, a hand over it to hide the light. “Come on, come on! Answer the phone.”

Small Thing based off of clip http://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/182754323059/optimysticals-lyrangalia-tflatte

Oh man.. this is going to be a story.. .and it’s Duo in a prom tux and Relena in that pink confection of a dress that are going to do it!

Then I can see them sitting on the roof as he teaches her how to smoke and they talk about Heero’s ass…

Beneath (Ch. 1) http://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/182702825024/beneath-1

disclaimer: I don’t own ‘Gundam Wing’. I also don’t own ‘Beneath’ which is a Syfy B movie I just watched and this story really doesn’t go with that one much. Monster in the water… it’s a common B movie trope.  Corvis is mine though. He gets a copyright date of 2018

Note 1:  So it’s a get together. There are elements of 1/R, ¾, and ½, there might even be a 2/R kiss in there, but in the end it’s ½, cuz that’s where my heart is.

Note: If  you want to see my original stuff, it’s at www.themoonspermission.com

“This isn’t a ship,” Duo said, staring down at the rowboat. “It’s more like one of Q’s tea service bullshit things.”

@gundayum​

Courage https://archiveofourown.org/works/17776919/chapters/41945657

Duo Maxwell/Hilde Schbeiker, Relena Peacecraft/Heero Yuy

Duo Maxwell, Hilde Schbeiker, Heero Yuy

To Catty her father is a legendary hero, at least the version of him in her head. When war breaks out in her own backyard she defies her parents wishes and joins the rebellion, forcing Duo and Hilde back into combat to try and get her back.

harotype

Hearts In Space, Mk-II https://archiveofourown.org/works/17788157

Quatre Raberba Winner/Heero Yuy

GW Valentine’s Event 2019, Snark, Tea, Canon Compliant, discussion of consensual violence, references to things that happened elsewhere, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Empathy, Newtypes (Gundam Wing), Newtypes, Newtypes (in general)

On the first February 14 after the formation of the ESUN, and having very little awareness of Valentine's Day on a personal level, Quatre R. Winner receives a few things even he had no idea he was getting— all courtesy of one visitor.

@helmistress​

Curious Quat https://archiveofourown.org/works/17804942

Quatre Raberba Winner/Heero Yuy

GW Valentine's Event 2019, Cocktail Friday, Valentine's Day, V-day dates, Fluff, Snark, really bad jokes

Quatre takes his new boyfriend on a date for Valentine's Day.

@lemontrash​

If It’s Raining https://archiveofourown.org/works/17788334

Trowa Barton/Duo Maxwell

GW Valentine’s Event 2019, Sex, Kissing in the Rain, Friends to Lovers, Sex Is Fun, Accidental Relationship, Emotional Warmth, Fluff and Smut, Feel-good

It was not that they had intended to sleep together, it was just boredom and, in part, the weather. Interminable rain. Days of it, ruining the holiday. It makes the trailer a claustrophobic little tin but going out is too much of an effort.

Sprawled out full length on the couch, the resources of their four magazines and the deck of 51 cards exhausted, Duo says, as a by the by, “Hey. Do you wanna fuck?”

@lifeaftermeteor​

Saturday Snippet https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/182857318662/winner-family-compound-l4-v05001-30-december-210

Winner Family Compound

L4-V05001

30 December 210

@miss-m-muses​

Why Duo Does Not Like Valentine’s Day https://archiveofourown.org/works/17814422

Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy

Duo Maxwell, Hilde Schbeiker, Heero Yuy

Valentine's Day Fluff, Cliche, Drabble, GW Valentine's Event 2019

“...it’s just a pointless commercial holiday designed with the intention to sell chocolates, greeting cards and flowers,” Duo complained as he picked at the remains of the crusty cheese on his plate.

@offspringchick29​

An Imperfect but Perfect Valentines Day https://archiveofourown.org/works/17790569

Duo Maxwell & Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell & Original Character(s)

Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Fluff, Single Parents, Heero tries to be a good dad, Father - Daughter bonding, Valentine's Day plans fall apart

It’s Valentine’s Day and like most people, Heero has plans for the evening. But, what happens when your plans get thrown out the window because your child gets sick at school and you need to play the part of dad while your “date” made plans elsewhere because she felt you were taking your dad duties too seriously for her? You take it in stride and spend it with who actually is the most important girl in your life.

Fanart:

@cedesdraws​

http://cedesdraws.tumblr.com/post/182693915575/that-moment-when-you-suddenly-find-yourself

Duo Maxwell

http://cedesdraws.tumblr.com/post/182744044895/did-anyone-ask-for-modern-versions-of-the-gundam

Trowa, WuFei, Duo, Quatre, & Heero

@chemicalcrush​

https://chemicalcrush.tumblr.com/post/182821076715/now-i-am-become-death-the-destroyer-of-worlds

Deathscythe, Model

@christianmswanson​

http://christianmswanson.tumblr.com/post/182418492074/heavyarms-build-pt-1-saying-bye-bye-to-the-red

Heavyarms parts, Model (WIP)

http://christianmswanson.tumblr.com/post/182703653579/heavyarms-build-pt-2-i-havent-touched-this-thing

Heavyarms build, Model (WIP)

@duointherain​

http://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/182862729059

Duo Maxwell

GW Valentine’s Event 2019

http://duointherain.tumblr.com/post/182755273884

Beneath - Duo & Relena

@gundayum​

https://gundayum.tumblr.com/post/182773919146/youre-gonna-regret-giving-her-that-pop-tart

Duo Maxwell & A Kiddo

https://gundayum.tumblr.com/post/182793650851/uh-happy-valentines-day-i-guess?is_related_post=1#notes

Duo & Hilde

https://gundayum.tumblr.com/post/182841289551/so-im-writing-my-fic-with-the-intention-of-having#notes

Duo & Hilde

@heytherechief​

http://heytherechief.tumblr.com/post/182713562646/operation-meteor

Quatre, Duo, Heero, WuFei, & Trowa

@noartificialfruitjuice​

http://noartificialfruitjuice.tumblr.com/post/182855375886/zechs-is-not-a-consistent-man-by-anymeans-but-he

Zechs/Noin

GW Valentine’s Event 2019

@seitou​

http://seitou.tumblr.com/post/182749381130/heero-fidgeted-with-the-box-behind-hind-his-back

Heero/Trowa

GW Valentine’s Event 2019

@vegalume​

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/182835162485/clear-picture

Duo/Heero

Cosplay:

@lifeaftermeteor​

https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/182852730504/yeah-motherfucking-gundam-wing-skit-at-katsucon-to

KatsuCon, some random lovelies LAM saw.

Photosets/Screenshots:

@ransomedbard​

https://ransomedbard.tumblr.com/post/182775984828/incorrectgundamwingquotes-zechs-look-noin-you

@incorrectgundamwingquotes​

Zechs & Noin

https://ransomedbard.tumblr.com/post/182751527088/incorrectgundamwingquotes-hilde-manga-lied-to

@incorrectgundamwingquotes​

Hilde & Duo

Head Canons:

@lifeaftermeteor​

https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/182835578194

Quatre Raberba Winner

@offspringchick29​

https://www.pillowfort.io/posts/497749

Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Serena Yuy (OC)

Chats/Discussions:

@lemontrash​

https://lemontrash.tumblr.com/post/182707931319/ms-gundam-a-different-side-of-the-story

MS Gundam: A Different Side of the Story

World building things.

Quotes/Dialogues:

@incorrectgundamwingquotes​

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182702396231/sally-lets-talk-about-wufeis-birthday-i-think

Sally, Quatre, Duo, Heero, & Trowa

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182715086566/duo-leaving-for-a-mission-i-got-a-mission-wish

Duo, WuFei, & Heero

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182720770959/quatre-nudges-trowa-awake-at-3-am-pretty-messed

Quatre

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182730050777/wufei-duo-can-i-speak-to-you-for-a-minute-duo

WuFei & Duo

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182787161965/quatre-i-mean-its-one-banana-duo-what-could

Quatre & Duo

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182799667168/trowa-looking-at-his-wedding-photos-i-remember

Trowa & Heero

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182809255131/duo-when-he-first-stayed-at-the-maxwell-church

Duo & Father Maxwell

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182820926110/trowa-im-mysterious-but-not-on-purpose-trowa

Trowa

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182698431287/wufei-so-is-this-thing-between-barton-and-winner

WuFei & Heero

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182838526620/zechs-walks-in-on-heero-and-relena-making-out

Zechs

https://incorrectgundamwingquotes.tumblr.com/post/182851855808/trowa-i-might-have-depression-and-not-function

Trowa & Catherine

No Idea What To Put This Under:

@idkmybffflamingo

http://idkmybffflamingo.tumblr.com/post/182864441940/gundam-wing-episodes-re-titled-in-the-style-of

Gundam Wing episodes re-titled in the style of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia – Episodes 41-49, plus Endless Waltz

There are 5 parts in all, this is the first one. (Hint: don’t try to actually go to their tumblr, tumblr hides it. Just use the ‘dash view’ thing if you can. You get the option to view it there.)

@lemontrash​

https://lemontrash.tumblr.com/post/182846384084/radio-meteor-episode-six-party-night

Episode 6 of Radio Meteor

Calendar Events:

@acworldbuildingzine​

FANDOM ZINE: RHYTHM GENERATION is accepting contributor applications through February 22!!

The collection will include a wide array of world building meta, articles, art, and graphics focused on science, politics, socio-economic matters, as well as art, aesthetics, and edits from the fandom’s resident experts and enthusiasts which highlight the creative dynamism that underpins the A.C. universe.

@gwcocktailfriday​

Cocktail Fridays!

Post responses on Friday, during Happy Hour between 3 & 5 pm in your own timezone.

Here’s the prompt for Friday February 22nd! https://gwcocktailfriday.tumblr.com/post/182846644749/cocktail-friday-post-responses-on-friday-february

For those going to Pillowfort, find us here.

@our-summer-of-zechs

Summer of Zechs 2019 Ideas https://our-summer-of-zechs.tumblr.com/post/181628092091/we-appear-to-still-be-up-and-running-folks

Come let us know how long this summer’s event should last!

What Month is it? https://our-summer-of-zechs.tumblr.com/post/182355135746/what-month-is-it

Come vote on a month for the event to be hosted in!

Here’s the Pillowfort discussion.

[thessalian]

Thess vs Break Time

This has thus far been a very much needed bank holiday. The last couple of weeks have been unadulterated hell, and I needed an extra day to recoup, pretty clearly. Thus far I have had it, and thus far it has met and in fact exceeded expectations.

One thing that took up my time this weekend was the Apparently Unending Search For A New MMO. Look, I know I’ve been recommending TSW and I still love TSW. The thing is that TSW is currently in maintenance mode as Secret World Legends goes through its beta testing phase. I was actually in the beta. I had to stop playing after a couple of hours. To keep it to stuff that’s actually common knowledge because I’m not going to be like those jackholes who were posting screenshots and detailed shit about the beta on Reddit in violation of their NDA ... they are moving to ‘action RPG’, which has a significant impact on the actual control. I think a lot of this actually made it through to the devstream awhile ago, so ... y’know, if you saw that? Maybe you get an idea of what I’m talking about. Thing is, a lot of stuff may change but that core element of how they’re doing combat now isn’t going to. That’s been pretty clear. And for me personally, it’s a deal-breaker. Other issues aside (and those would probably violate the NDA so I’m not going to go there yet), it kicks off my migraines. Like, badly. I didn’t get through two minutes pain-free, and by the half-hour mark just mostly running around the zones, I had to stop because I could barely see from the pain. And that migraine lasted two weeks.

Now, keep in mind that I am particularly prone to migraine and that kind of thing is one of my primary triggers. It’s why I have issues with a lot of movies. Remember the LOTR movies where they had those sweeping 360-degree panoramic shots of the Fellowship marching across open fields to show ‘The Majesty Of The Landscape’ and all that? Leave us simply say that I learned my lesson about going to the movies with my mother and stepfather because they do not understand “I would prefer make my own way home separate from you because it is generally good manners to talk to your conversational companions and I would not be able to because my migraine is so bad that I cannot string a sentence together”. Anyway, all that to say that other people might not have those issues. They might (and some I know did, and some even had a hard time watching the devstream as a result), but they might not. You might not. I ... just can’t play it anymore. The combat as they’ve set it up causes me too much pain, and they won’t change it. So I have to go find something else.

I’ve resubbed to FFXIV for the time being. I mean, I haven’t got very far. Conjuror / White Mage at level 39 (I R still Healbabe enough to get all the commendations when we hit Brayflox’s Longstop, our tank opens proceedings with, “New to DRK, sorry in advance!”, aggro is bouncing around like a racquetball in a tumble dryer and I’m having to throw out Esuna more often than Cure II because Aiatar is flinging poison fucking EVERYWHERE - oh gods I hate that dungeon although not quite as much as Toto-Rak OH HELL NEVER MAKE ME GO THERE AGAIN ... sorry, I’m done now), Arcanist about to hit 24, Thaumaturge at 21, Rogue 12, Lancer 11, Archer 10. Lancer has been great fun. Particularly when you consider that I play a Lalafell. Well. A Lirafell, my friends call her. So teeny tiny lalafell beating the almighty SNOT out of you with a polearm nearly twice as long as she is tall is just hysterical.

Of course, I have been considering going Paladin, so marvel at Jallira the Gladiator for, like, thirty levels. Bwahaha.

Yeah, basically I want to unlock all the base jobs at least for my teeny tiny lalafell. Just for shiggles. Though I am starting to significantly run out of inventory space. That’s partly down to the fact that when I get bored or can’t decide what I want to do, I tend towards what I refer to as ‘zen crafting’. I can spend literally hours going Botanist and harvesting everything that isn’t nailed down. Mostly in aid of upping my Culinarian skill. Yes, all Liras cook. It’s a thing.

So that’s basically been my weekend. Bit of Port Knowhere shenaniganry, occasional runs to the shops and mostly just vegging out. Oh, and Critical Role episode 44. Ouch. OUCH. Anyway. Fact being that while it’s a pity, maybe it’s a good thing that Short Story Sunday tanked. I needed the break.

[celestialallstars]

Episode #4: “Everyone hates a puzzle god.” - Drew

This swap was PERFECTO, well, had I been on Nu Orfeo, it would have been but, Nu Tuatha was my next best choice and already it is great! I have Kori/Bryce and then Loris for sure. I talked with Mitch and Sharky a bit, so I'm optimistic on that. But I go and talk to Stephen. Lo & behold, he tells me there's a rumor that Kori and Bryce are working together. He says he heard it from Jared, but I figure hey, why am I not living a little? I say wow if we lose they go but...I immediately told Zach haha what he wishes to do with it is up to him, but if the rumor happens to spread, then I guess we'll see. If Mitch happened to feel this way, then I can at least use it to avoid being a target for a little while, even if I am sticking with KB.. this is gonna be one heck of an intriguing dynamic!

Oh my goodness, what a great swap! I got Chris, I got Bryce, and I got Mitch all of whom I doubt will be voting me. If I play my cards right I'll also be able to use this opportunity to get closer to Sharky or Loris in the event we never go to tribal. Ideally I wanna make sure me and Loris are especially good since Sharky seems the more likely first boot from our tribe.

I'm not sure what to make of this 24 hour challenge, wanna be optimistic but who knows.

I fucking love Alyssa, literally as soon as we swapped she looked at my teammates, messaged two of them to talk to me and gave me info on Zach and Stephen having history in the season. The equivalent of like "Okay go to the backdoor, meet the guard and tell them you like to fly with the eagles, he'll let you in, tell them you're with me and I'll leave the rest to you." So while yes I am the odd duckling out being the only one from Cyrena I'm going to do my best to work with what I have.

So not very much has changed on Tuatha as far as I can tell. My tribe winning the immunity challenge has helped me delay any confrontation between my 2 alliances which is great, as it should theoretically allow me to maintain relationships with all 6 members of the tribe. Still, it's going to keep being important to win immunity or pray for a swap in order to keep these groups from clashing.

Jared and Rhys are still a ? for me. I don't know why/how Rhys was able to convince Kori to invite Jared to the alliance of 5 instead of Mitch, and it worries me that those 2 may have a stronger bond than I immediately suspected. Hopefully I'll have an opportunity to deal with that when the time comes.

We're going to lose. I hate for it to sound so defeated/pessimistic, but the fact of the matter is unless we have a turn around in the AM, then I only see this setting the pace for the remainder. I know Bryce and Kori must be sleep. Mitch is trying, Loris possibly went back to sleep? And I guess Sharky is shooting for a late night swim or something. Regardless, I'm just already going over who the best person to leave would be for me. Unfortunately, with Kori/Bryce and then Loris, that only leaves me with Mitch or Sharky. Personally...I'd be open to Sharky, just cause, yea it would've been cool for Orfeo Seven to be a thing, but like I only feel secure with Zach/Loris and that's to a certain degree. All in all, this might be the tribal for Sharky to go and if the others are very sad over it, well, I guess they will have to come to terms with it.  I know Mitch is with Stephen and now that I know Steph is gonna probs wanna target Kori/Bryce, I'll need him and Mitch around for them to battle it out against each other...hmm decisions.

So we swapped. Yay. I have Jared. Yay. Stephen, eh kinda doesn’t speak to me a lot, well he speaks to me the least in my tribe. But we’re in an alliance. So I’m gonna have to figure how to navigate that.

Chloe Mo and a Zach all talk to me more than Stephen. So If I can figure out a way to maintain numbers and sack off Stephen, bye bye Stephen.

Also Mo is amazing. Staying up to try to prove worth in challenges 😍 no one deserves mo.

Y'all know me, one wrong social interaction which ends in humiliation or making me look like a dingus will ruin my entire day. Like oh no one laughed at my joke? Time to disappear into nothing and mope for a couple hours.

I’m lowkey scared about this challenge. I’m on my phone which sucks cause I can’t really do much in terms of puzzles. I can do them just always not the first one to finish. So looks like I’m not doing much yikes.

hi! we swapped! um. the last 2 hours. what a mess. so. like. kori posted a screenshot that showed the names of all his alliances and like. i told everyone maybe... ?? i told zach and then.. mitch.. and then.. i confronted bryce bc one was called 'three kings' so it was obv him chris and kori.. and bryce confirmed it. then sharky does the same thing but oh well thats insignificant hes only in 1. also. me and mitch r like. close now!! all because of this mess. but kori hates me. hehee

So the tribe swap has hit, and I'm back with my old pal Zach! You know, the person from my season who I tried to vote out like a million times before finally succeeding due to finding the idol at F5. Woohoo.

In all seriousness, though, I'm kinda happy to be on a tribe with him because he's a challenge beast and I don't think our relationship is totally unworkable. I made it clear to Zach as soon as the swap happened that I wanted to work with him, not against him, so hopefully that'll work out.

Chloe and Mo are 2 people I've also been working to get to know since the game began so I'm not too worried about them targeting me right away. I think this is a strong group overall.

And then there's Jared and Rhys. Probably not the first 2 people I would've chose to swap with but at the very least they both have incentive to keep me around. We are in an alliance together after all!

I made the decision to tell Chris about my situation with Mitch and the alliances on OG Tuatha because I really want them both to survive and unite with them at merge, and if Chris knows that Mitch was on the bottom of the totem pole on Tuatha, then maybe he'll take it into consideration.

So I had a glimmer of hope but we lost it and that's okay. I already prepared myself to vote for Sharky and it seems that is where we're headed...and yet craziness ensued in the time I was away! Kori accidentally reveals three kings and I try and do what I can to talk to others but nobody has said anything so they're either good at hiding things or they legit dropped it after questioning Bryce and Kori. ON TOP of it all, I learn from Loris that Sharkys alliance chat could be from an org..with Drew, Chloe and maybe Matt. It would definitely explain why Chloe didnt except the alliance offer..so that is fun. And now Stephen has told me he/Bryce/Kori/Rhys had majority alliance. So now I have a lot of info. It's just mattering how to use it

Shoutout to Drew for carrying everyone’s ass while drunk for half the challenge

I wanna explain my plan. It might sound ridiculous but... shut up. So I have this chart I made to show who’s doing the best and worst in challenges. I made four charts, three for each tribe, and one for everyone overall. The overall chart comes in handy if I make it to merge. So my dumb strategy is using said charts to kind of vaguely suggest who should be voted out each round. For example Tuatha is going to tribal and Mitch is doing the worst statistically so I can see him being eliminated (Mitch ily I’m sorry if you’re reading this). The bumpy part happens when and if I get to merge. Because then I’m going to be playing with a bunch of incredible comp players. My goal is to kind of use them as a way of getting to the end, by pinning them against one another until eventually it’s just me. Several problems in this plan, the first one is if my tribe goes to tribal which isn’t super severe because like I said I do feel comfy socially but I am doing the worst statistically so there’s a chance I could be eliminated. Second problem this is a very fragile plan and one crack could leave me looking like a goat trying to make something out of nothing and I’m not tryna get biggest goat in touchy subjects again. Will this all fail? Most likely. Am I gonna try to be a cool strategic genius? Yeah. But it’s worth a shot. Ok rereading this whole thing I’m kinda thinking this plan is garbo but I took so much time to write it so I’m gonna send it anyway.

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I’ve been like bouncing in between moods of. “I’m gonna be an early out” and “I’m gonna go far/win.” Right now I’m feeling like an early out again.

appreciation the thumbnail + title please.

God, the last 24 hours  could not have gone worst. We lost the challenge, AND I was such a dumb idiot that I posted a screenshot in the tribe chat where you could see my alliances.

So naturally I had to basically inform anyone I was aligned with that it happened. I feel like such a flop right now. I've missed the window 3 times for searching for an idol, and it's just like how can I be so absent minded. I need to get myself together if I want to even make the merge let alone win the game.

So far the only people I know for sure saw the Screenshot are Loris and Zach. Chances are other people know and just haven't told me. I'm just trying to keep a level head after having a mental breakdown over what an idiot I've been. We're at tribal and I'm hoping the votes on Sharky are there because we do talk the least. (I'd rather Loris goes but we're actually in a chat together because apparently Jared and him talk a ton.) I have 0 desire to keep working with Loris though, so if I can push it I wanna send Loris home next if we lose again, he literally went up to Bryce asking if he was in Three Kings and tried to draw attention to my screenshot without flat out saying it in tribe chat, asking Mitch if he saw it etc etc.

It's obvious he's trying to basically draw attention to me because I did win our season. His fake-nice apologeticism isn't fazing me. If it's genuine, well he's bad at seeming sincere then since the actions I've seen don't reflect it.

Boy I hope I wake up and get my shit together because I really need to. Granted I could also be seeing myself going right now, so who knows. I haven't been the most useful in the challenges even though I've never not been trying. So hopefully I stick around for awhile longer. I've still got so much more I've set out to do and I don't want to get sent home without accomplishing any of it.

So we SWAPPED and I wanna give a little bit of insight as to my thoughts. New tuatha consists of me loris chris sharky kori and bryce. The first challenge was this 24 hour puzzle crap where Zach and Drew H from the other respective tribes CARRIED their teams to victory. It is about 5 hours before tribal and I already feel like I am on the bottom again. IDK WHAT IM DOING WRONG. I always seem to be on the bottom premerge,  but thankfully this is how I flourish. I am SO good at getting out of situations like these and finding myself in a power position at merge because nobody wants to get rid of me. RN I created a chat with Loris and myself just so he can keep me updated on what is HAPPENING with chris and sharky, and i also have my old alliance with Jared and Stephen who i hope are doing ok. The targets for this round are me and sharky for being perceived as inactive. The vote should be 5-1 with Sharky going, but it HAS crossed my mind to throw a vote on like Bryce to shake the cage a little bit. I dont trust Bryce one bit and I feel like he'd throw me to the curb the first chance he gets unless loris keeps him in check.

Everyone hates a puzzle god mwah!!

Lol so we swapped, I get Michael and Alyssa but the former blue tribe has 4/6 majority here, I like them enough as people but like...we're just gonna go ahead and not go to tribal here, if I have to drag them to the immunity statue kicking and fucking screaming. Which is what I did. F17 ladies

Fourth tribal safe. It’s a weird feeling to be safe so many times in a row but I’m glad my all stars game is getting off to a strong start by making connections here there and everywhere. I’m praying for Sharky tonight because I know that he’s close to me and Chloe so if he goes it’s definitely worse case scenario.

So it seems sides are forming so that's cool. Mitch is possibly going to end up with me [and Loris] and then there would be Bryce and Kori. However, after chatting with Stephen and Jared yesterday, I've concluded that I am in a pickle! Let's say Kori/Bryce are legit about this Three Kings thing. Well, I know I'm a possible third wheel for it. On top of that, I'm assuming Mitch might get boned if we lose again, however, Stephen trusts Mitch a lot and so wants us to use him to take shots at Bryce/Kori if we lose again. Mind you, according to Jared, Stephen is a sneaky dude (Sneaky Pete), and him and Rhys don't trust him longterm. SO what does this all mean? All of my allies are hot messes. And on top of it all, I am beginning to feel for Sharky. Yes! I get that its been optimal for me to get him out, but it still sort of sucks now that I've talked with him more. Unfortunately, it is for the best he goes for my game right this instant and hopefully the wrath of him and his allies shant be too horrible.

So we swapped!!! And by some fucking miracle, we have a majority of me, jack, Alyssa and Bodhi. Was very unexpected tbh but we'll take it! Michael and Drew joined us which is good cause they r both v.good at challenges which I would hope means we can immunity run. Cause no thank u hate tribal not dealing with that. Drew also like carried us in the challenge which was a yeet, I swear I tried tho hehe. Mo and rhys I want to try and get to work together, would be very fun n flirty. Sharky messaged me like "lol I'm leaving" and if he does, I'm fucking fighting people, cause that is NOT ON. HE is my one true love and if he leaves I will be annoyed so much and will be quite fucked tbh.love that for me!!

at orientation last year we were told about a “rule of 7” to not overcommit ourselves. I’ve just about doubled that threshold and depending how the next few days go it might go even higher. Pray for me.

I wish I had more energy to dedicate to this game but i need to fucking relax in my free time. So I’ll talk to people at my current rate and hopefully that’ll get me to merge. Then I’ll drop all other responsibilities and fucking dominate.

I really think the game is starting to slow down for me. Now what I mean by that is I am continuing to get more woke and more misty, and the aura of this being all stars and the spectacle of the other players being so great is starting to dissapear.

I feel very much as though I have perfected my craft in terms of how I like to play, and I'm doing it very well here. It's cool to think about on a meta level like from AnnaJane's perspective: "oh my god Jared did really well for himself in Wakea and had major influence to where some people couldn't even notice, I wonder how he'll stack up against these all stars." I can feel myself back in that zone and coming into my own even in this field. To the point where these legends like Chris and Bryce and Sharky, I know deep down that I can play ball with them. Now, they may beat me at the end of the day and I may go home at some point, but I can understand even at this moment that I am probably top 3 if not the #1 best player here. Or at least I CAN be.

I want to zoom in on this and really get my shit together and take advantage of what is in front of me because with the game dynamics as they are, I can very clearly see myself as the winner. I need to keep doing what I'm doing, but at the same time make myself dissapear and be able to do this undetected.

My new strategy is called "fast and loose" because I'm going to get into these conversations, knock it out of the park and get out. Leave people feeling good about me every time I leave the room. I don't need to spend a ton of time working on anyone to the point they can tell what I'm doing. Calls? After tonight they are done. Not calling with anybody unless they ask. I want to be gaining social capital and influencing people's decisions without being detected so it has to be a hit and run.

I will reevaluate my position soon and probably recalculate my alliances, maybe I was wrong about Stephen and I need to get closer with him while no one else is. But at this moment I need targets going into the merge. That's how I'm gonna set it up. I want everyone to be shooting at each other and then at the key moment boom challenge advantage, boom idol, boom you gotta vote out Bryce can't vote for me, oh look I'm at the end.

Having the One World twist is so interesting because in a usual game when you don’t know everyone until you get to merge usually. You don’t know what’s going on, on the enemy tribe, you don’t know who’s inactive, who is starting drama or who is messy in challenges. Because you’re focusing all your social energy into your tribe alone so when someone you haven’t made contact with on the enemy tribe gets eliminated you think nothing of it. But here there are no walls, you can see and communicate with everyone and it’s in your best interest to focus your social energy into the one world chat because that’s what everyone else is doing. So my point in saying this is it’s now incredibly difficult to imagine having to lose 8 people before we get to the final 10. Because literally everyone is social, there are like two quiet people but everyone else you talk to on the daily and everyone is kicking ass in these challenges (except like two people). I think that’s why I keep thinking myself as an early out is because it’s so hard to imagine anyone else getting voted out. But fuck that I got shit to prove.

I can’t even begin to explain how it feels to have been immune for 10 days in a row. My glow up front wakea is real.

Bodhi wants to get the 4 of us OG Cyrena's in a majority alliance, which is super convenient bc we can just combine our alliances into one. Problem is? I would HATE to vote either Drew or Michael out, especially given Drew singlehandedly got us immunity this time. So if there was ever time for an immunity streak...

Also I keep forgetting to search for idols this is why I never find one

________________________________________________________________

Sharky is voted out 5-1.

[theconservativebrief]

In the not-so-distant past, makeup and skin care companies used to get new customers by hiring celebrities to be official ambassadors for their brands, buying TV ads, and working with beauty editors at magazines to secure editorial placement for their products. Brands would send free products, wine and dine editors, and give them access to those celebrity ambassadors for interviews. (Being an advertiser in the magazine also increased a brand’s chances to be featured or recommended.)

This still happens, both at magazines and on editorial websites, but beauty editors are no longer the predominant “influencers” in beauty.

As social media grew, people started to trust the so-called “regular” people they were seeing on Instagram and YouTube, instead of the homogeneous models in magazines. There was an authenticity and relatability there, and soon it became evident that influencers could, well, influence people to buy stuff. It gave rise to personalities like Michelle Phan, Jeffree Star, and Huda Kattan, who all ended up with massive followings and makeup brands of their own.

The authenticity of beauty influencers has been coming under question for the past year or so, with a steady stream of scandals and an increasingly unwieldy number of influencer wannabes trying to make a career of it.

And this week, we’re seeing another big challenge to the reign of the influencers: an unveiling of the staggering sums that they are paid for their endorsements, including claims that brands are paying influencers to say negative things about competitors’ products. And it’s all wrapped in a cloak of distrust about whether influencers are actually disclosing any of this.

“If I made 60 thousand dollars in one day, multiple times a year, I don’t even know what the fuck I’d do with all that money …” wrote one user on Reddit’s r/BeautyGuruChatter. Another tweeted: “I never thought the beauty ‘community’ would come to such a cut throat time. Dang Y’all. Makeup is supposed to be fun! Personally it’s a way for me to clear my head & not focus on bad in the world when I’m playing w/ makeup. These influencers have made it stressful!”

If the influencer bubble hasn’t yet popped, the air is surely leaking out of it slowly.

The “gurus” who post about makeup and skin care to large followings on YouTube and Instagram have had a rough few months. Hot on the heels of the racism scandal that has rocked that world and cost some high-level influencers a lot of income comes a new controversy about payment, deception, and transparency. It’s a global issue in the influencer economy, but beauty is getting the focus now.

Some in the industry have alleged that unnamed influencers are asking beauty brands for $20,000 to even $85,000 for a single video or Instagram post to tout their products. (Kattan revealed this year that a brand once offered her $185,000 for one post.) Even more explosive, though, were suggestions that brands were willing to pay influencers these sums to post negative reviews about competitor brands. Vox spoke to industry professionals who confirmed some of the practices and numbers. It provides a window into how marketing works more broadly in the beauty industry now and how truly opaque it all is. It can also have serious legal consequences.

The current controversy started with a video posted on Monday by Marlena Stell, a makeup artist who started filming YouTube makeup tutorials in the first wave of beauty vloggers about a decade ago. She has since launched her own brand called Makeup Geek, so she has the perspective of both a brand owner and an influencer. In her video, she alleges that her brand has not been supported recently by influencers because she couldn’t afford to pay them the fees they were asking. The video has almost 600,000 views.

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“Where does it become a racketeering business and it’s all about the money and not about the passion for the business? I could not afford to pay $60,000 for a video or $20,000 for one post on Instagram,” she says in the video. “I was really struggling personally as a brand owner. I’m an influencer, and I know what it’s like. I get it.” (Stell did not respond to requests for comment as of publication time.)

Those five-figure amounts were shocking to beauty fans, who left almost 17,000 comments on the video. Huge influencers like Samantha Ravndahl weighed in too. Ravndahl tweeted, “I’m the first person to agree that there are many influencers who are absolute garbage humans who only care about money. But there is a whole community beyond that, flourishing with integrity and passion. Don’t let a few bad apples spoil the bunch.” In other words, #NotAllInfluencers.

Then a skin care blogger who goes by the handle @HeyAprill posted a screenshot on Twitter showing an Instagram caption written by Kevin James Bennett, a makeup artist and brand consultant who has been working in the industry for 30 years. Bennett posted on Instagram and praised Stell for bringing transparency to the issue. He then went one step further and added some numbers of his own.

Bennett wrote that “a brand I consulted with asked me to inquire about working with a top-level beauty influencer,” and alleged that the influencer’s management team asked for $25,000 for a “product mention in a multi-branded product review,” $50,000 to $60,000 for a “dedicated product review,” and $75,000 to $85,000 for a “dedicated negative review of a competitor’s product.” The last one was arguably the most shocking since paid/sponsored positive posts are a known entity in the industry but posts to bash competitors are not.

“I wanted to back up Marlena a little bit. I was like, ‘Wow, this could totally destroy your business,’” Bennett said on a call with Vox. He declined to disclose the unnamed influencer, citing privacy and client relationship concerns. Bennett stands by those numbers, which he said came via a call with the influencer’s management. “Examples like that do not get sent in any printable or retainable copy. You’re told verbally. They don’t want any record.”

Bennett clarified several times that he “respected the hustle” of these influencers and that his biggest concern was that they did not often disclose they were being paid for posting. (More on this in a bit.) “I don’t hate influencers. I dislike people who give the industry that I’ve devoted three and a half decades to a bad name,” he said. “They make us look like a bunch of thugs. This is what pays our bills.”

HeyAprill’s tweet and Bennett’s accompanying Instagram post were then put on blast by James Charles, who tweeted it with commentary to his own 1.5 million Twitter followers. Charles is a 19-year-old beauty guru with 7.6 million Instagram followers and 7.8 million subscribers on YouTube. He was the makeup brand Covergirl’s first ever Coverboy; in fall 2017, he had his own racist tweet scandal, from which he recovered. He’s been influential in the industry as part of a burgeoning and popular group of “beauty boys.” He wrote, “I’ve NEVER heard of this happening and believe what you want, but most of us DO disclose sponsorships …”

So is any of this true? In short, yes.

Influencers get paid in several ways. There is YouTube ad revenue, which is dependent on subscriber and view count. In recent years, YouTube has decreased the amount of income an influencer can make this way, in a process that has been dubbed the “adpocalypse.” So influencers are counting more and more on other sources of income, generally from brands.

Brands will pay for anything from a single mention in a video to an actual collection collaboration with an influencer. Historically, when trusted influencers mentioned products, their viewers purchased them. (A Nivea men’s aftershave went viral 15 years after it launched when a popular guru said in a video that it made a good makeup primer.) Brands want to harness that buying power.

MAC, a popular and beloved makeup brand, is a great example of this shift. It has done collaborative makeup collections throughout the years with celebrities like Mariah Carey, Rihanna, Brooke Shields, and even Catherine Deneuve. But this year, influencer Patrick Starr landed a year-long deal with MAC to release multiple collections with the brand.

The rates that made the rounds on social media this week are real, according to influencers. Chloe Morello, who has 2.5 million YouTube subscribers, said in a tweet: “Based on what I make, this would be for around the 3 million subs mark … for a dedicated video. larger than that would be heading towards the 100k area.”

An Australian YouTuber named Alex, who goes by the handle Pretty Pastel Please, also weighed in. Like Stell, she straddles the worlds of the paid and the paying, as she has a full-time job in marketing and works with brands that pay influencers. She has since posted two videos on the subject. In the first, she said of Bennett’s post, “That’s all true.”

No one is quite sure how much influencer marketing is “worth.” Back in 2017, an agency representative told Digiday that she calculates $1,000 for every 100,000 followers as a baseline. In Alex’s second video, she went into detail about how CPM, a common marketing term that means cost per thousand impressions, is used to calculate influencer fees. With that metric, she illustrated how an influencer could justify asking for $30,000 or even $60,000 for one video.

Not everyone can command those rates, though. Gil Eyal, the founder of HYPR, an agency that acts as a middleman to match influencers and brands, says it depends on the platform. “On Instagram, they would need at least a million, and probably more, highly engaged followers. On YouTube, for a dedicated video that could be a 200,000 [follower] influencer,” he said in an email, referring to the broader influencer population. “Generally speaking, [over $50,000] is reserved for the bigger players. Smaller influencers make way less — $100 to $1,000.”

There are online marketplaces like Octoly and Tribe that exist to match influencers with brand campaigns. While most are aboveboard, Alex said in her video that she has seen brands post campaigns that “specifically said ‘we are willing to pay more if you are willing to say that our product is better than the other one,’ or that you recommend our product over the other one.” (She also notes that some platforms remove these requests because they’re not appropriate.)

The allegation that influencers are possibly posting negative reviews at the behest of brands is surprising. It’s important to note that so far, no one has been willing or able to name either a brand or influencer who has actually produced this kind of paid content. But Eyal says it’s happening across other industries like video games and fashion too.

“The intense competition between influencers often leads them to do inappropriate things in order to stand out. Remember that while they have hundreds of thousands of followers or sometimes millions, most of these influencers are interchangeable, and many of them can barely pay their rent,” he says.

“Think about the advantages. No need to disclose, because no one will assume this is paid. Negative content is a breath of fresh air, and none of the audience will ask if it’s legit or if the influencer has sold out. The brand gains the benefit without having to worry about being ‘on brand,’ showing their logo, or whether or not the audience will think the post is authentic. Win-win, right?” He also clarifies, “It’s not always disingenuous. Influencers should and do criticize products they don’t like.”

Both Bennett and Eyal said this type of deal request often comes from an influencer’s management team, so the influencers themselves truly might not know that their teams are offering this “service” on their behalf. Obviously it crosses the line if an influencer consents to creating that content. And Eyal notes that if a brand gets caught paying for this type of negative coverage, the PR fallout could be damaging.

Bennett’s frustration with a lack of influencer disclosure has merit. They haven’t always been great about it. In April 2017, the Federal Trade Commission sent warning letters to influencers and celebrities reminding them to “clearly and conspicuously disclose their relationships to brands” when posting on social media. The FTC’s Endorsement Guides recommend using words like promotion, sponsored, paid ad, or simply #ad. While many influencers do disclose their paid sponsored posts, some likely don’t.

In her first video in response to the Marlena Stell revelations, Alex told viewers of seeing a beauty campaign offer (she declined to say what it was for) with a large budget on an influencer marketplace. The next week, she saw several large beauty influencers promoting the product without disclosing that it was paid. Could they all have been posting coincidentally about the same product? Yes, but it seems unlikely.

It’s still an area the FTC keeps tabs on, according to Michael Ostheimer, an attorney in the division of advertising practices at the FTC. “We do continue to have investigations and cases involving issues related to the endorsement guides,” he said on a call.

While it’s sometimes obvious when a positive review is paid for, it would be difficult to know if a post or video making negative claims about a product had been paid for. Ostheimer said, “I’m not aware of this happening, but I wouldn’t say it doesn’t happen.”

It’s a practice that’s not explicitly addressed in the FTC’s endorsement guide. It might have legal implications, however, if the influencer lied about disliking a product on behalf of another brand. “If the person was saying negative things that either were not true or that they did not believe, that would be deceptive and it would be deceptive advertising against a competitor,” he said. “And the failure to disclose that one is paid by the competitor would be deceptive, in my opinion.”

There’s been a lot of chatter within the beauty industry about whether the influencer bubble is popping. The racist tweet scandal illustrated the damage that influencers can do to themselves and the business model. It’s been a pain point in the industry recently, with companies increasingly hiring micro-influencers with 20,000 to 100,000 followers. They tend to have better engagement and conversion, meaning they sell the stuff they talk about.

Stell said in her video that executives from “multibillion-dollar companies” asked for her advice about influencers, telling her, “We feel like we’re losing traction and we want to support them, but this is the amount we’re getting charged for it and we don’t see a return on it.” These large fees and potentially shady practices could prove to be the pin that pops the bubble.

Original Source -> The shady world of beauty influencers and the brands that pay them, explained

via The Conservative Brief

[topicprinter]

It has been over 10 years since I quit my job and started working full time online.It has been a wild roller coaster ride but now it has gotten me to a point where I make more than I've ever dreamed of, working less than 3 hours a day.In fact, scratch that. I DON'T even have to work 3 hours if I didn't want to. I can work 3 hours a WEEK and I'll bet you if I check my bank account at the end of the month, the earnings will still be the same or HIGHER.No, this is not a "spam" or "hype" - in fact, probably like you, I hate spam and fluff. Because when I look back, it's because of all the fluff and BAD information that got me spinning wheels for years and years!But when I finally "got it" - I tell you my friend, money floodgates literally "ERUPTED"!And it just blew my mind why there was such a stark difference between "what people say to do to make money" vs. "what REALLY makes money".I don't come to this forum that often but today while I was browsing for fun I saw a lot of really BAD information that seemed to make people confused and overwhelmed.Kind of how it was making me when I was first starting out. So even though I was planning to go to the beach (I live close to the beach here in Los Angeles) - I think I'll share some "secrets" that you might not hear about here in the forum before I head out.Considering the fact that here is where I got my feet wet, and since then I've coached literally HUNDREDS of students all around the world make a full-time income online and quit their jobs, I think I'm now at a good place to give back.And now that Thanksgiving's around the corner, I feel like it's a good time to share some good ole' value with you guys.This will be a newbie friendly post and if you heed this advice, I'm sure you will save yourself a lot of frustrations and heartaches no matter where you are at.And if you're more advanced, you will nod your head in silent agreement because it's the same strategy both me and my millionaire friends employ daily.If you're ready, let's begin...1. Killing the "Superman Syndrome"It's interesting because NOBODY talks about this.1 of the 3 FASTEST way to make any change is to change your mindset.You can change the course of your entire life by changing just this one simple thing.So I'll be sharing a few KEY mindset shifts that got me skyrocketing from a four-figure marketer to a six figure marketer.Here's the first one:A lot of people seem to have the "Superman Syndrome".They try to be good at EVERYTHING. They think they're Superman.But in reality, you should have 1 or 2 things your PHENOMENAL at, and suck at the rest.In order for you to succeed with internet marketing, you need to be good at a WIDE RANGE of things. (you need to know copywriting, have technical skills, be good at tracking and optimizing, etc.)Not only that, you need "soft skills" like focus, discipline, taking action, managing time, etc etc.If you lack in any one of the (let's say 10 skills needed to be successful) - that will ALWAYS be your tripping point. You will ALWAYS run into that wall. Over and over... until you tire out.When I realized this and finally ACCEPTED that maybe I can't be really good at everything, I began to delegate...And it ironically REVOLUTIONIZED my entire business!They say smartest people are the laziest. I think it's partially true but in a different way:I think deep inside smart people know that we don't want to spend our precious time on this low-value activity. Why do this when I can do something that is MUCH more impactful and enjoyable with the same amount of time? And this leads to so-called "procrastination".Now I can just do what I'm GREAT at (which is coaching and delivering BIG results and breakthroughs faster than ANYONE) and delegate EVERYTHING ELSE I am not good at or hate (like technical things) - and then, almost immediately you score these incredible benefits:Benefit #1. You can make FAST progress and not get stuck (because nothing trips you up anymore)Benefit #2. Your bottom line SKYROCKETS (as a natural result of #1)Benefit #3. You have MUCH more free time (because everyone's doing YOUR work while you're doing something fun)Benefit #4. You can SCALE much easier (meaning more profits into your bank account)Benefit #5. You spread the wealth instead of hogging it yourself (and you can get it delegated for pennies on the dollars overseas)There's a LOT more benefits but you get the idea.One of the best places I find workers is either freelancer.com or upwork.com.Tip: Try to find workers who have at least a hundred hours logged for the skill you're looking for as well as 4.5 star reviews and up and you won't go wrong. Don't be afraid of hiring workers from overseas because surprisingly a lot speak excellent English and their work ethic is superb.If you're thinking,"But Stevie! That's going to cost me a lot of money!",think again.Keep this as your mantra and you will never go hungry again:MAKE MORE THAN YOU SPENDIf I asked you if you want to trade $1 for $8, would you take it?In a millisecond right?Same thing here. Yes you are paying these workers but you will make MULTIFOLDS that amount from your sales.which brings me to my next point...2. "There's No Such Thing As A Free Lunch"EVERYTHING'S an investment.If you "get this" tip, your life will change forever. Guaranteed.You might think it's free if you're doing all the work yourself. Not true.Our time in a day is limited. Our time in a week is limited. Our time here on earth is limited.If you are spending hours and hours in a day trying to figure out how to set up your Wordpress site even if you hate it or doing data entry (which I can get it done at $3/hr), You are missing out on the most important resource of all - TIME.You are missing out on other things you can do such as spending time with friends or family, your hobbies & passions, or traveling.So unlike before when I was trying to be a "Cheap Superman" - I do the opposite now - I spend spend spend! Like a BOSS..I see EVERYTHING as an investment and try to simply make more than I spend.That's why I have NO PROBLEM spending thousands of dollars on services and coaching programs because it makes "more money than I spend". Sometimes up to 500X times! (where can you get THAT kind of investment?)Because you see, contrary to what you believe, "free" is not good. And here's why:3. STANDING ON SHOULDERS OF GIANTSOne of the BIGGEST mistakes I made when I was first starting out which got me spending wheels for years and years was spending too much time on forums.I was consuming information after information and taking notes. It was mental masturbation.It was fun learning and I thought I was going somewhere but it did just the opposite.I became overwhelmed, confused, and stuck.I didn't have a solid direction or focus. I was getting distracted everywhere by the next "shiny object".And one day, it got VERY bad. I got so frustrated and sick and tired of being stuck.I became DESPERATE.So I decided to do something that TOTALLY went against my norm.I decided to look for a "coach" (or what you call a mentor)And my life IMMEDIATELY changed for the better. And it has never been the same since.Because check this out.Anybody with a computer hooked up to the internet can type and give advice. Even a monkey with half a brain.And lots of guys seem to soak it up not verifying where it came from or if it's even true.Robert Kiyosaki, the financial guru, says "what's worse than no advice is BAD advice.When it comes to business, you should be VERY careful who you are listening to.Your key job will be to figure out who's the 5% to listen to and ignore the 95%.But if you FIND the 5%, who have walked the walked and been in the trenches and not just spitting theories, listen to EVERYTHING he/she says.Because EVERYTHING he will be saying will be something that is derived from experience - the TRUTH. (hint: when you listen to truths, it should have a 'heavy' feeling in your gut)And applying just a handful of these "truths" that is distilled from hundreds of trials and errors, your income will take off like a damn ROCKET.It doesn't matter if you haven't made a penny online. It doesn't matter if you've failed 10 years. It doesn't matter if you think it's hopeless.If he's a legitimate coach/mentor - he will get you cold, hard, RESULTS. Period.I did this for years for my students. And trust me, they were in BAD shape. It's things like these negative limiting beliefs and lack of accurate information and guidance that keeps people stuck.Don't worry - You are NOT broken. If you just tweak a few things here and there and apply the correct strategies in the right order, you WILL break through. Period. End of story. Often LIFE-CHANGING results in just 30 days. You won't know what hit you!But unfortunately, you won't find many coaches who are successful hanging out here in this forum.I'm not saying they're not here, but like me, most moved on. To a bigger game.So even though it will be rare to find a legitimate coach/mentor, if you do have one, do yourself a favor and work with him - no matter how much he charges! It will be worth it.But choose CAREFULLY. Do your due diligence. There's a lot of "wolves in sheep skin".And here's the questions I ask when picking out my coaches: (yes even the most successful marketers get coached even though they're making millions a year - it's a continual learning process)Can he show a verifiable income proof? Screenshot of some sort?Do you feel it in your gut that he knows what's he's talking about?Does he care about you and not in it just for the money?Does he have testimonials of various kind from his past students?Ask sharp and smart questions. And trust your gut. It has more nerve endings than your brain. Don't be lazy about it.Meeting a legitimate coach may be a bit tricky, but once you find one, your income and life are almost GUARANTEED to change. Period.4. Freedom vs. Another Job?If you want to be free and not have just another job, you need to be in an industry with a PASSIVE INCOME model. Not earned income model.I see a lot of guys who quit their jobs and start doing something like graphic designing, web designing, and programming.While it's okay to get you started, I don't recommend staying here for too long. Because you simply don't want to trade time for dollars anymore.The beauty of internet marketing and probably one of the reasons why you started in the first place is the fact that you can make money while you sleep, right?That's why you gotta pick business models that spit out passive income, not earned income. I see too many people get stuck in the wrong industry and can't get out because they're making some money.They end up working needlessly, way too long. But it doesn't have to be this way.One of the business models I have my business in is Amazon Kindle publishing.I love this business model because all the books that you publish become a "mini-asset". It spits out passive income every single month into my bank account like clockwork!It's a "set-it-and-forget-it" kind of thing.In fact, I have books that I've published 5 years ago that's STILL making me money today! (and I haven't touched it for years)Imagine what will happen if you have HUNDREDS of these books?Yes, your "internet marketing dream" is indeed possible if you play it right...Since it's PASSIVE INCOME, it will make money with or without you. In fact, you won't be able to stop it if you blocked it with TWO HANDS!And here's the step-by-step process I used to build up my six-figure Kindle business that I've been secretly teaching my private coaching students.5. Pick a BIG niche that sells well.Here's another KEY mantra to remember:"Sell What Sells".A lot of writers come into this industry writing books they know a lot about or they like. Big mistake.Sure, you might have a passion for candlemaking or Labrador dog traiing, but how many people in the world shares the same passion as you?Thing about Kindle is you need to sell in VOLUME.If you're selling nonfiction, you'll make about $2 - $4 per book.That means, if you want to earn SUSTAINABLE income, meaning $3,000, $5,000, $10,000+ /month,You need to sell these many:$3,000 / $2 = 1500 books per month / 30 days = 50 books a day$5,000 / $2 = 2500 books per month / 30 days = 83 books a day$10,000 / $2 = 5000 books per month / 30 days = 166 books a dayThat means, you need to be in a BIG niche. Small niches won't have the traffic to yield this kind of sales.What are the BIG niches?I'm glad you asked.Anything that is related to:-mass media-diet/weight loss-fitness-self-development-cooking-dating-gaming-make money...will be a good start. You won't go wrong with these.6. Create An Irresistable "BAIT"You don't have to reinvent the wheel.In fact, this is one of the BIGGEST reasons I see guys failing.They try to be creative.I know we're all entrepeneurial and enjoy creating new things, but when starting out, this is DEADLY.I tell my students until I'm blue in the face (in a loving way of course"Don't reinvent the wheel... just make it CHROME!"What does that mean?You see what's selling in the marketplace.Look at books that are selling under Kindle Bestseller Rank of 20,000.That means, they're selling around 10-15 books a day.Which means potentially,15 books a day x $4 earning per sale = $60 a dayThat means,$60 a day x 30 days = it's making $1,800 from ONE (1) book!Can you see how this can get profitable very quickly?Now, you will want to MODEL this book.Meaning, you LEARN from this book. What works and what doesn't.Don't let your ego kick in. It'll trip you up.You need to be humble and in the mindset of LEARNING.Take a look at their reviews. Especially 5 star and 1 star reviews.What you will be doing is TAKE what people are raving about, and IMPROVE what people are complaing about.So let's take an example. I think it'll make you understand a bit more clearly.Let's say you are looking into the COOKBOOK niche.You find a cookbook that is under 20,000 Bestseller Rank. Let's say it's called "Easy and Delicious Paleo Diet Recipes"You check their 5 star reviews and it says these things:-Loved the pictures! -Really like the clear instructions -Found the grocery shopping list incredibly useful!And you see these 1 star complaints:Formatting was horribleGrammar and typos were everywhereCouldn't careless for stories - just give me the recipes already!So, jot that down on a piece of paper. All of it.What you'll be doing next is totally NINJA.You will now KEEP what your customer says they like and IMPROVE what they don't like for your own books!So it'll go something like this:Formatting was horrible >> Have proper formatting for YOUR bookGrammar and typos were everywhere >> Have correct grammar and spelling for YOUR bookCouldn't careless for stories - just give me the recipes already! >> Just give them the recipes and not stories.And once you publish your book strengthened on your competitor's weakness, you will have 0 reasons why people will give you a negative review for.Remember, on Amazon review is KING.People who are in rush only buys 1) looking at title 2) Cover and 3) reviews.So if you have all these 4,5 star reviews and very few 1 star reviews, you will be GOLDEN.Your book will eventually get more and more sales than "Easy and Delicious Paleo Diet Recipes" and eventually TAKE OVER its spot.Meaning, the sales that he gets $1,800 in monthly passive income will now be YOURS!BOOOM!!!THAT's the power of being in the right, BIG niche and having a KICKASS book that strengthens other book's weakness.!But I can hear you saying,"But Stevie! what if I don't know ANYTHING about that niche? Even though it's profitable, I won't be able to do anything about it!"WHOA! Slow down young grasshopper!I'll tell you all about it in the next step...(btw, are you liking this so far? Just curious...)7. Have an expert to create the perfect bait FOR YOU.Here's where it gets fun.Now you know what to sell. Now you know what to do to out-compete your competition. Now you know how you will guarantee your earnings.But the challenge is, you don't know anything about PALEO, dating, or meditation right?What in the world should you do?Do you think you can figure it out?(hint: check step #1)If you said "outsource",BINGO!You hit the nail on the head!!What's so amazing about outsourcing is, you can get just about any writers who specialize in all kinds of different topics!Here's what to do in 5 simple steps that will work over and over like clockwork:7.1 Just go to either freelancer.com or upwork.com7.2 Post a compelling ad looking for writers in your topic. (make sure you have it in your title)7.3 Invite some candidates to get the momentum going (look for guys with hundreds of hours logged and over 4 star reviews)7.4 Give a simple test to writers to prove they're good7.5 Hire and give them clear, specific instructions about your book!That's it!They will get to work right away!Remember, you know you're going to be making $1,800 /month for this book so you can spend anything under this and you'll come out ahead! (For nonfiction books, I usually get it for $50-$100 for 35-50 pages)Keep it simple.Just make more than you spend.That's it.So while you're at the beach enjoying a fresh margarita, your writers will be hard at work creating your "perfect bait" for you.Speaking of beaches... I think I'm late for MY beach! LOL! But oh well...If you guys are getting value from this post, I'm happy and will be a time well spent.8. Get a MAGNETIC Cover That Is Impossible To IgnoreThis is one of the 3 MOST important pieces to your marketing.You MUST MUST MUST have a magnetic cover.Why?Because we are all busy these days.You will have 0.7 seconds to capture their attention while they're scrolling.If you can't make them STOP on their tracks, battle is lost even before you started.All your time and money spent creating your book will be wasted.Your book will never see light of the day!Don't let this happen to you.Create a MAGNETIC cover. One that is IMPOSSIBLE to ignore.Then how can you create a magnetic cover?Glad you asked. You will absolutely LOVE thisHere are the steps:8.1 Look for a great cover designer specializing in KINDLE cover designs. (it's different from physical book design) - hint: you can get one at Fiverr.com for $5 and it will outperform a $500 design from a US based cover designer if you tell them these instructions.8.2 Ask them to make the titles BIG and BOLD.Thing about Kindle is most people are looking through the titles on their phones. If the titles are small, it won't be read.8.3 Ask them to use High Resolution graphicsPeople associate higher resolution = higher quality. So if your book uses HD graphics as the background, they will IMMEDIATELY think your book is high quality and they will pay more for your book even though the content is the same.9. Load it up with at least 8 reviewsOkay. Now you have your book and your cover. You are good to publish.After you do so, you will want to load it up with reviews. Why?Because it's scary to buy books that has 0 reviews. You need to take a risk and nobody, including you and me, likes to take risks. And that in turn becomes an OBSTALCE for your sale.But by getting reviews in there, you are REMOVING the risk (obstacle) which leads to an effortless sale.Some "gurus" will tell you to get reviews from Fiverr or Facebook review exchange groups. Don't listen to them.It may have worked 5 years ago but recently Amazon has been cracking down on these like crazy.It makes sense. Amazon is BUILT on reviews and they don't want to be known for fake reviews. They want to keep their business.So the best way to get it is 2 ways:9.1. ask your friends, family, acquaintences for a genuine, legitimate review after you send them your book (most will do it happily)9.2. create a review group by adding an email "opt-in" page at the beginning of your book. These will capture interested browsers and you can later ask them to review the book in exchange for a free copy.These are 100% whitehat and legal by Amazon which means, the strategy is EVERGREEN and you can use it over and over without fail without worry about your account getting banned!10. Do a KILLER PromotionHere comes the fun part.Now that you have a HOT bait, magnetic covers, genuine reviews you are 98% AHEAD of all the books out there.Now you just have to do a KILLER promotion.And here's what to do shoot your book rankings higher than the freakin' Empire State Building. It will BLOW. YOUR. MIND. (please keep this a secret between us)Here's what to do:10.1 Right after your publish your book, your book will be ranking high for a keyword for a brief period of time. You will want to get downloads in SPIKES because that's what Amazon likes.So in order to get these spikes, enroll in KDP Select.10.2 Promote your book to as many promotion sites as you can. There's tons of Facebook groups. Just search "Kindle Promotion" or "Kindle Free"Another good resource is this: Free Amazon Kindle Book Submission Tool | Author Marketing Club10.3 Set your book on a "Free Promotion" in KDP Select.That's it! Amazon doesn't give you contact information o fyour customers but your opt-in page will capture a LOT of interested buyers!10.4 If you have your book in a series (recommended), link all of your books together and as soon as the promotion is over, set the 2nd book on the promotion. This will cross-promote your books and your sales will have a COMPOUND EFFECT.10.5. Continue to do this and you'll have generated TONS of sales and amassed a HUGE mailing list that you can sell over and over to!NOTE: Keep on doing steps 1-10 as many times as you can. The more you do it, more CASH you'll make.11. BONUS: Automate EverythingAnd I mean EVERYTHING.Get a Project Manager that replaces you.Now all you're doing is doing market research and telling project manager what books to publish.And your ENTIRE book pumping FACTORY will be rolling non-stop with or without you!12. BONUS: SCALE It To 6-7 FiguresIf you have a project manager working for you, sky becomes the limit how many books you publish.After the project manager starts managing about 5 books a week (or 20 books a month) he'll start running out of capacity. That's when you hire another oneFinal Step: Sit back, relax, and watch the MAGIC all happen.By the way, you could've stopped at Step 10 and still created a 6 Figure business....But if you want more... and you want it done FASTER... then follow all steps to a T.Well, it took a LOT longer than I thought! HahaGuess I'll be hitting the beach tomorrow!But I hope it was useful for some of you guys.Try it out, and let me know your results!*p.s. if you found this post useful please upvote so more people can find out about it!*p.p.s. I know this is a long post so I compiled it into a PDF file along with some bonus materials that are not on this post. PM me if you want a copy!Or if you have any questions, feel free to PM me as well! :)