#helluva penguins

[anthurak]

So recently reading an interesting/disturbing post/article on the Franklin Expedition and rewatching the Helluva Boss shorts have combined to produce this random little brain fart of an idea:

Who do you think wins a fight between the racist, xenophobic murder penguins from Mission: Antarctica, and the fucked-up monster polar bear from that one book/show about ‘What if the Franklin expedition had a fucked-up monster polar bear?’

Personally my money’s on the penguins. If for nothing else than by sheer weight of numbers.

Heck, while we’re at it let’s expand these matchups:

How well do the bunch of unhinged, murderous xenophobes fair against the unhinged, murderous xenophobes who happen to be penguins?

I.M.P. vs Fucked-Up Monster Polar Bear?

And finally; three imps vs. two ships worth of British dudes high off their asses on lead-poisoning.

Well for round one I’d say the Franklineers don’t even last long enough to start their Donner party. Like I imagine the penguins take one look at those Englishmen and are immediately infuriated that anyone else would DARE try to be more racist and xenophobic than them and massacre the lot on sight. Heck, maybe the penguins then try and get the ships free of the ice so they can sail out onto the open sea and make war on the English.

As for I.M.P. vs F.U.M.P.B., while it’s not an easy fight by any estimation I do think our imps come out on top. Maybe they need to call in Loona for some extra muscle/rip-and-tear. Like yeah, that bear is tough, but it also has to contend with armor-piercing sniper rounds from Moxxie, shotgun blasts from Blitzo, AND a Millie likely in full feral-murder-gremlin mode going all stab-happy on it with a knife.

Alternatively, maybe Loona in full-on berserker-mode 1v1’s the thing? This one is entirely due to my bias of wanting to see Loona do cool shit :D

Finally we have our imp trio vs. the two ships of loony, cannibal-happy british dudes, AKA; I.M.P. getting a bulk order with the promise a very nice payday.

The funny thing about this matchup is that I feel like each side has an entirely different perspective as to what’s going on.

For the Frankliners, this is (more of) a horror story as they are gradually being picked off one by one in brutal fashion by a mysterious, unseen killer who appears suddenly to brutally slaughter one or two of them, then just as quickly vanishes without a trace.

Meanwhile, while Blitzo, Moxxie and Millie might LIKE to go all inverse-doomslayer on the hapless would-be colonizers, there is the little problem of it being REALLY FUCKING COLD. So they instead decide to take it easy on this one, using their Asmodean crystal to just pop in and take out one or three guys before popping back to the comfort of Hell for a few hours/days, rinse and repeat.

And the best part is that when our heroes pop in to take out a couple guy only to find that they’ve already been whacked by a third guy who also seem to be trying to eat them for some weird reason, our imps realize these humans will just kill themselves for them! Now they just need to pop in every other day or so, whack one or two dudes, and the rest will do their job for them.

Admittedly, after a few days the remaining humans are looking pretty gross and possibly a bit undead, so Blitzo, Moxxie and even Millie start taking out their targets from a distance. Thankfully at this point they don’t really even need to be killing them directly. Like one of them just saw Moxxie perched on the mast, screamed about demons and angels, then immediately stabbed one of his mates to death and started eating him.

So by the last few days, Blitzo, Moxxie and Millie are just popping in to go ‘OOGA-BOOGA’ a few times and letting the job take care of itself.

[seaweed-eater521]

[nervousninja-art]

✨Fierce, Elegant, Moisturized✨

She ✨is✨the moment

🦛 💅 👑💕

[cerbero2518]

"Penguins don't have teeth. Instead, they have backward-facing fleshy spines that line the inside of their mouths"

Pretty accurate

I love Helluva Boss, but now I have a new fear 🤣

[gods-favorite-cl0wnboy]

new helluva short which is amazing but this. is so fucking funny

@sunnysaystuff

[mimiscappini]

Before i forget to post this here.

[kandy-sticks-zaza-blogs]

Shows I watch instead of Hazbin Hotel/Helluva Boss

Pls don't attack me I am autistic pls respect my boundaries

Mixels my fav childhood minisodes about lego characters that learned to work together and their fusion are awesome. Also I understand what Kramer is saying.

3 2 1 Penguins have good bible quotes in the christain kid show I only know Veggietales when I was watching it on YouTube also 4 talking penguins are cool also Kevin is my fav autistic British penguin.

When it came out I got excited when it came out I was waiting for season 2 but it never came I love the cool rubber hose cartoon style in the adult animated show.

I love how it is about cooking and DND anime like Campfire Cooking in another world it’s wholesome,dark,delicious food and amazing animations also I love how the food look tasty and the intro song is a vibe but I wished that they added the missing moments in the manga right to the cutscenes when I’m watching it.The anime turns me into a gay simp fr.

When I first saw Red dwarf on BBC my mom tells me that Red dwarf is her fav childhood show I love how funny the sci-fi series is also the cat slaying in every episodes.

I love watching Bravest Warrior as a pre teen I love how they look like Adventure time but sci-fi Catbug gotta be my fav character.

Scooby doo is my fav when I grew up watching it on my old iPad and watching it on tv what I hate the most is scooby doo mystery incorporated they ruined Scooby doo and Velma relationship Velma loves Scooby doo when she met him as a puppy it’s so adorable I love how Velma treats him as a good friend instead of being jealous of eachother also I hated the Velma show.

I love watching Gravity falls on TV whenever I am on vacation with my family I love watcit everyday since my favourite is Mable cuz she’s like my fr as a kid now I become Robbie but without nobody cuz I never interested in dating. Alex Hirsh the legend who made a successful discontinued amazing 2 seasons show and made a coolest lore about Bill Cipher.

I love watching it since the show came out the year after I was out of the womb and still a baby I love how cool the robots are transformers are a greatest franchise since the 80s I love that the transformers characters are different from the original one like an alternate universe Prowl was my fav when I was a kid.

I love Monkey wrench since it came out I love the funny duo between Beebs and Shrike relationship they are the funny duo in the indie series the stories isn’t rushed and I love Sci-fi genre so much!

[tealvenetianmask]

Not to overanalyze a joke (I would never do that), but this moment from the fucking penguin short says a lot to me about Blitz and Moxxie's relationship and why it's so rocky.

Moxxie: I first read this interaction as Moxxie messing with Blitz, not gonna lie. But after some reflection, I don't think he is at all. Based on how fucking dialed in to every single task Moxxie gets (think all of Unhappy Campers or how carried away he gets with paying the street vendors in Seeing Stars), I think he's just so fixated on taking the notes Blitz is dictating that he completely fails to realize when Blitz's comments start to be not for the notes.

I think it also reveals a way in which Moxxie fundamentally doesn't understand Blitz. As the audience, we can tell right away that when Blitz switches to complaining, it's not for the notes. But I could see Moxxie viewing Blitz as sort of unpredictable/chaotic and truly not knowing that he wouldn't want it included. Will he yell at me for not including it? Don't know. Better be thorough to do a good job! And then he gets yelled at for including it. Poor guy.

Even though he's often critical of Blitz, Moxxie relies on Blitz's approval for his self-esteem a lot. So he's used to getting yelled at by his boss, but it still hurts him.

Blitz: Okay, our guy has a short temper in general, but especially with Moxxie. From his perspective, Moxxie is doing something completely nonsensical, and yes, beyond stupid.

At the beginning of the penguin short, it's clear that Blitz doesn't want to do this job. He thinks that what the client wants is pointless, and besides, they have to go somewhere freezing. And we get quite a few clues that he's been feeling down about the whole Stolas situation and he's not excited to work any job, much less this one. And in the midst of all that, Moxxie is making a mess of the notes, so now it will have to be fixed. It's very annoying.

Also, Moxxie often has this air of superiority with Blitz. He likes calling out Blitz for having stupid plans, and he often comes across as judgmental. In Truth Seekers, we saw that he feels like Moxxie is smarter than him and/or judging him. So his annoyance might also relate to the idea that Moxxie is both judgmental and always fucking up.

If we want to stretch it a bit (yes, I know it's a stretch), Blitz is relying on Moxxie for accurate and quick notes because if Blitz's dyslexic ass did it himself they'd be a mess. He doesn't want to spend time fixing his own work OR Moxxie's work.

In all: No, I don't think this is a big moment in the plot by any stretch. I just think it's a really funny and interesting way to highlight some aspects of their dynamic, especially since the short later sets them against each other in *cough* other areas.

As a final thought, there are absolutely conflicting trauma responses impacting the friendship/working relationship between these two, and very likely differing neurodivergences as well. Blitz for sure needs to apologize to Moxxie for how he treats him, but Moxxie could maybe stand to explain and possibly adapt some of his behaviors as well. (Get all these characters good mental healthcare please.)

[starleska]

there's a fun little thread going over on Bluesky asking for your favourite non-human animated characters that you're attracted to - thought it might be fun to do over here 🥰💖

[changeling-droneco]

My sense of humor is broken because this is the funniest thing in the world to me

[akirathedramaqueen]

HOW'S THAT FOR A TOP ANTIS? SUCK SOME CLOACA

[zero-rabbit]

I think I'm cooked

Also guess what Batman villian is my favorite

[darwuzhere]

Fundraiser by Diaeddin Salemdawod : Help my sister and her family get out of Gaza

@octodrawn @chrlotpony @leffee @wascallywabbit1938 @rajbows @thebearme @folium-basement-show

[coimbrabertone]

Offtopic Offseason #1 - I Don't Believe in Superhero Fatigue.

Hello guys.

So with motorsports coming to an end for the year, I've been thinking of what I'm going to talk about during the offseason. There will be some news, and obviously I can talk about some racing history stuff, but what I've decided to do instead is begin this series: Offtopic Offseason.

What is Offtopic Offseason? it's pretty self-explanatory really - I'm going off topic for the offseason.

First up is...I don't believe superhero fatigue is a real thing.

Instead, I believe that the fatigue is for a certain type of cookie cutter, quippy flavor of superhero slop. A flavor of superhero movie that many recent MCU movies have fallen victim to.

What characterizes this slop?

A certain kind of shame, I think. These movies - and TV shows for that matter - feel almost ashamed to be doing superhero stories, so they undercut the drama with jokes and quips. That's not to say that superhero jokes can't be funny or quippy - in fact, I'd argue that some of the best superhero shows recently have focused on humor and absurdity - but it's about how those jokes interact with the story. I think one of the best examples of this is the Marvel Cinematic Universe's treatment of Thor.

Thor walking around like a dumb jock, getting made fun or, and getting sassed and backtalked by the people around him sabotages what is supposed to be his character arc.

Thor is supposed to be the goofy, spoiled Prince of Asgard who is sent down to Earth to be humbled, a lesson he learns in the first movie, and he should be played as a smarter, more responsible character from that point onwards.

To some extent, he is played that way in movies like Thor: the Dark World and Avengers: Infinity War, but that is in contrast with his portrayals in Thor: Ragnarok and Avengers: Endgame.

I see the claim, semi-often, that it's Taika Waititi's fault that Thor went in this direction, and maybe it is to an extent, but that doesn't explain Avengers: Endgame.

The character who was a headshot away from stopping Thanos in Infinity War turns into a fat drunk the very next movie made by the exact same team.

Now, I get it, it's a despair arc, but he never truly recovers from it. Thor appears in the climactic final fight, sure, but the key moments ultimately go to Captain America and Iron Man.

Thor, meanwhile, goes on to star in Love and Thunder, in a performance that Chris Hemsworth himself calls too silly, labeling him a "parody of himself."

We are constantly told that Thor is supposed to be one of the strongest and most heroic characters in these movies, but time after time, he reverts to the strong, but dumb character that he was at the beginning of his own movie.

His character development constantly resets to zero.

Thor effectively has no more consistent character progression than Peter Griffin.

So...how to fix this?

The short answer is better writing.

I know that's obtuse, but hear me out: there is a piece of recent superhero media, with absurd humor, regular jokes, and complex character arcs that show both progress and regression in realistic and emotionally heavy ways.

DC's Doom Patrol.

Let's talk about Cliff Steele. In the 80s, he's a successful NASCAR driver at the height of his career, owning a mansion, starting a family, and famous enough to cameo in bad soap operas. He's also cheating on his wife with the maid while being suspicious of his wife. This culminates in Cliff causing a crash after he sees his wife feeling up his crew chief to deliberately make him jealous.

Cliff narrowly avoids this wreck.

He's then implied to go on a drunken bender and cheat on his wife again before realizing that it all makes him feel hollow and empty inside. He tries to make amends, picks up his wife and daughter, and they're all driving home together.

Only for Cliff to get caught up in a crash that kills his wife and leaves Cliff as little more than a functional brain. Yadda, yadda, yadda, a quack scientist named Niles Caulder uses a combination of technology and magic to build an immortal robot body and puts Cliff's brain in it. Thus, Cliff becomes the Robotman.

Here, Cliff is given chances to do better. Jane, a young woman living in Caulder's mansion, appears as a surrogate daughter for him, and not long after that, Cliff finds out that his real daughter, Clara, is alive to, and he's given the chance to make amends with both.

He tries.

Often, he fails.

During one sequence, he backslides deep into self-destructive behavior as he gets high on Parkinson's meds and gets addicted to a camgirl and online gambling, to the point of selling his friends' (including Jane's) stuff, and using his daughter's credit card on it, so...yeah, he's being a pretty shitty person at this point.

The thing is, he does better.

He cares about the Doom Patrol, Jane in particular. He wants to be there for Clara and her son Rory, and despite being the robotic bruiser of the team, time after time demonstrates that he's ultimately one of the most gentle and merciful characters in the show.

His character development is hardly a simple case of A-B, but it's written in a serious and sensible way, in contrast to Thor's yo-yoing between characterizations.

For another example, let's look at something that's not a superhero show, but contains a similarly complex character arc: Blitzø from Helluva Boss.

Yeah, I'm critiquing the MCU and bringing up Hazbin Hotel/Helluva Boss as a positive example. I'm well aware that if this blogpost breeches containment, I'll be dealing with the worst people on the internet.

Anyway, Blitzø is a prickly little shit that makes bad decisions and pushes away anyone that tries to make a real connection with him. This is where a lot of the crude humor and absurd plot elements of Helluva Boss come from, so it draws a lot of criticism, but the thing is...that's the point, Blitzø is a problem.

The show, particularly in the second season, is about Blitzø opening up and becoming a better person.

We see him saving his old friend Fizzarolli and ultimately reconcile with him. We see him show moments of genuine care for his employees Moxxie and Millie, as well as his daughter Loona, but we also see his unwillingness to truly be vulnerable around the people closest to him.

We see in Full Moon that he rejects and lashes out at Stolas' attempts to turn their transactional relationship into something more serious and equal. Now, granted, Stolas' own self-worth issues mean that he isn't communicating well, but Blitzø still assumes the worst and screams at him.

This trend continues in the next episode, Apology Tour, where they argue again and Stolas asks Blitzø if he's ever really apologized in his life. Blitzø's answer isn't to reflect on his actions, but to "Apologize the fuck outta everyone!" to prove a point. Naturally, this doesn't particularly work, and it ends with Blitzø following Stolas to an "Anti-Blitzø Party."

Here, Blitzø finally sees the impact of his actions, and begins by making two legitimate apologies: the first attempting to apologize to Stolas, and then making an apology to Verosika, an ex-girlfriend who is hosting the party to begin with. Talking with Verosika makes Blitzø decide to leave the party and give Stolas space, even if it means watching as Stolas dance and kiss another guy.

In the most recent episode, Mastermind, we see the culmination of Blitzø's progress as he is willing to sacrifice himself to protect his friends. This ends with Stolas coming in to take the fall himself, and with Stolas disgraced and brought down from his status as a Goetic Prince, Blitzø lets Stolas stay with him.

The episode ends on a comfortable note between the two of them, with the implication that Stolas has become a lot more aware of their previous power imbalance, while Blitzø has become a lot more awae of how much Stolas means to him.

So, to summarize this long rant about a movie I didn't like and two shows I love: there are ways to write flawed characters, character development is not always linear, and characters can backslide. The problem is that Thor does none of these things in a natural or believable way.

Now, some of this is inevitably down to the fact that a show gives more time to develop a character than a movie.

However...Thor has been in how many MCU movies by now? He's had more than enough screen time to have had a deeper character arc, Marvel just didn't care to deliver one.

That's the kind of superhero content people are sick of.

People are sick of Marvel trying to replicate its earlier success, people are sick of DC constantly rebooting in its own attempts to build a cinematic universe, and people are sick of cinematic universes developing around other movies and franchises.

That's because cinematic universes aren't about writing the best stories possible in the same world, they're about chasing the runaway pop culture success that the early Marvel movies had.

For more proof of that, look at what DC's most successful projects have been lately: the Batman, a standalone movie focused on a single character and the surrounding setting. Penguin, a spinoff from that that is a serious, gritty mob show in the same world as the Batman. Or the aforementioned Doom Patrol which was its own little show on HBO Max.

Doom Patrol started in 2019, ended 2023.

The Batman released in 2022.

The Penguin released in 2024.

All successful and critically acclaimed work in the so-called era of superhero fatigue.

People aren't sick of superhero movies, they're sick of bad superhero movies.

So yeah...this has been my first Offtopic Offseason blogpost, I hope y'all enjoyed it and I'm interested in hearing your thoughts.

Oh, and for the motorsport people...yeah, I'm aware that the Qatar Grand Prix happened last weekend, I just would rather forget about it.

[haleomay]

Watching the latest Helluva Boss minisode.

Also, the penguin has biceps!

[spicylove4ever]

Just the penguin that was shot. For science.