#honestly made this as a print for cons to be frank

[spookynest]

Bg3 is just fighting trauma together 💜🥲

[meruz]

I’m replying to asks because I don’t want to answer e-mais

this is tough... I have a hard time looking at my art objectively so I’m not sure which inking styles resemble mine. Like so much of it is not just in the sensibility and light/shadow choices but also in the... hand. How light or heavy of a touch etc. There’s definitely artists I’ve looked at when trying to figure out techniques and I can list a couple of those!

Chris Samnee

Tonci Zonjic

John Paul Leon

Matias Bergara

Jamie Hernandez

Huge fan of also: Alex Toth, Stuart Immonen, David Aja, Leo Romero, Sara Pichelli, Pepe Larraz, Kikuo Johnson, Bill Sienkiewicz, Paul Pope, Eduardo Risso, Daniel Warren Johnson, Lee Weeks, Chris Bachalo, and Frank Quitely. Oh and I’m pretty sure it’s multimedia but I’m obsessed with Alvaro Martinez Bueno’s work in Nice House On The Lake

Ok I think that’s all I’ve got off the top of my head.

He was just feeling in the moment LOL!! it’s ok klefki can float

@the-east-hunter​ Honestly? I want to. I’m kind of trying to get into printing more zines/booklets because I kinda draw too much to be selling prints.. I can never fit them all on my display and no one even wants big prints anyways like so many ppl at cons tell me they don’t have space on their walls or whatever. Also I hate shipping merch, i dont like drawing chibis for charms/stickers and theres no good way to mail posters... it’s easier to ship books at least domestically through media mail. BUT formatting books is kind of tedious I have a hard time even arranging my art into photosets yet alone books. I make more fanart than original art but I need to make a LOT of fanart for a specific fandom before a book feels worth it and idk how I feel about making a multifandom book. And printing them is tough. I don’t like using online printing services but I’ve been moving too often to have a local printer I go to for books.. ANYWAYS im just musing to myself but all this to say: yes, I want to but I don’t think it’s gonna happen anytime soon. In physical form at least. Please check out my itch.io for digital pdfs though

I think Jamie is funny. Love to see him. If I had his powers I would make pokemon real I don’t care about the consequences. YOLO, I guess.

These are just rly nice ;-; made my day. Thank YOUU ALL!!!!!!!!!!!! <3

[bettsfic]

loved the fansplaining episode! i would love to hear your thoughts on a little life by hanya yanagihara, i read it recently and had very mixed feelings. honestly, when you guys started to go on that tangent, i was hoping you'd keep going! what didn't you like about it?

i think it would be easier to start with the few things i did like. 

structure: it’s difficult to give a bildungsroman (my favorite novel genre) any kind of urgency because it seems counterintuitive. clever writers can usually thread a long con, though, to keep some semblance of a cohesive plot. in the goldfinch (donna tartt), it’s the painting. in white oleander (janet fitch), it’s ingrid in prison. in body & soul (frank conroy), it’s claude’s music career. in ALL’s case, the overarching thread of plot is somewhat inverted – it’s being strung along for 2/3rds of the book by the mystery of jude’s past. so while you’re pumping the brakes on the present, knowing we’re barreling into a pit of despair, you’re also compelled to keep going to find out what made him the way that he is.

the realistic portrayal of PTSD: jude felt like a constant callout post to me, and i really appreciated seeing my more toxic behaviors rendered in such a clear light. like even in jude’s POV, there was no point where i believed his internal monologue was healthy or good, even though it very closely matched my internal monologue. on a character level, the thread of trauma was definitely well-woven.

the commitment to complicating and appreciating platonic love: it’s just rare to see a book that’s willing to tackle friendships-as-primary-relationships in such a serious and sensitive light. i liked the slowburn between willem and jude a lot.

law stuff: i learned a lot about law. and adult adoption. it seemed pretty well-researched on that front.

and that’s it! that’s all i liked about it. here’s what i hated:

first, the whole thing read like a really long cocaine trip. like yanagihara just got high as hell, locked herself in a cabin for two months, and pounded out this story. and an editor picked it up and was like “lol we good” and shot it out to print. on a very basic level, it’s one of the sloppiest things i’ve ever read, like a toddler running around covering an entire house in paint, and their parent goes “aw how nice.” somebody should have reeled it in. somebody should have said, “this is unnecessarily long, poorly paced, and in dire need of editing,” and then edited it. 

it was difficult for me to turn off my editor brain while reading, and eventually the language started feeling like someone was trying to claw my skin off. did you notice that every single line of dialogue – EVERY. SINGLE. LINE. – had a person’s name in it? no one says the person’s name while talking to them! unless they’re mad, maybe!! it’s like, you don’t walk up to somebody and go, “how are you today, helen?” and helen doesn’t go, “well i’m fine, jason.” that just doesn’t happen!! and maybe i could have tolerated that in a shorter book, but in ALL it just made me want to gouge my eyeballs out and never read again.

on that front, the descriptions got so goddamn repetitive. the themes, repetitive. the plot, repetitive. somebody needed to give that story a mercy killing, just gut it. it might have been a good short story. maybe even a novella or a short novel. but it did not need to be 8000 fucking pages. jesus christ. (and i love long books!! but this was a BAD long book)

eventually jude’s self-destruction becomes so repetitive it’s unbelievable. i know a lot of people like jude, who have similar pasts, who do the same things that jude does to himself. and you know what happens to them at some point in their lives? they go to therapy. they get thrown in a psych unit. they get a psychiatrist. they have dozens of counselors. it’s even happened to me, and i’m the diet coke of PTSD. it would have been far more realistic to acknowledge that even with all the medical help in the world, sometimes trauma still destroys you. that would have been the more compelling story to me, one of recovery attempts and earnest efforts toward wellness. but what we got was jude repeatedly dodging therapy and hospitalization, and all the people in his life going ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

and here’s my biggest beef: it is not written with an ounce of integrity. the entire time, i felt like someone was trying very insistently to pull emotions from me. pity, specifically. i despise stories about pity. pitiful characters in pitiful narratives make me want to puke, and what i hate more is how easily sold readers (and editors! and publishers!) are by it. evoking sadness =/= good writing, no matter how hard you’re crying. you can write about somebody killing a dog and make a reader cry. there was no art to it at all. just manipulation. jude may have been sensitively rendered, but there was a certain sadistic impulse in the writing that felt disingenuous to me, and at no point did i have trust in the story. it’s just melodrama wrapped up as literature. eventually you have to stop kicking people in the nads and write a story that’s true to the characters and world you’ve established. i hate authors who power-trip on making readers miserable.

on that front, the ending was just so OTT. like what the fuck. i believe in tragedies as cathartic but this was just too fucking much. honestly i read to the jude/willem part (where the book! should! have! ended!!), read the wikipedia, and then skipped to the last few pages because i was just emotionally spent by that point. i was just being bludgeoned by “FEEL SOMETHING FEEL SOMETHING FEEL SOMETHING” and i couldn’t bring myself to care about anything that was happening anymore. i’ve written a bit on how good tragedies work, and the quick version is: you should know what you’re reading is a tragedy. here’s no point in hamlet you think he’s getting out of it alive, yk? but ALL (to me) gives just enough hope that you think maybe jude will get better. that’s definitely arguable, though; maybe other people read it and knew the ending all along, and i’m just a glutton for hope.

tl;dr a little life is sloppily written, too long, poorly paced, manipulative, and has a terrible ending.

obvs, if you liked the book, i’m happy for you. i can definitely see how someone might enjoy it, so don’t let my opinion change your perspective. you’re allowed to like whatever you like. but ALL was not my thing.

[elder-schraderham]

So far, this has been my favorite Kastle + Amy domestic au drabble series omg. It started as the slow dancing one but no, this is even more pure omg. I do love writing these so much!

Montana is cold but it’s lovely on fall mornings. Everything is new and pure as a new day begins.

Part 1 | Part 2

___

Fall was the best time to move to Montana. The leaves were changing colour a few weeks after they had settled into their small house in the middle of the woods. Honestly, it was breathtaking. Rolling hills, a menagerie of trees on each side, and a perfect view of the sunrise over the mountains from the back porch. Nearly every day they had to pinch themselves to make sure they weren’t dreaming. Their yard was the scene of countless postcards and preprogramed screensavers on computers everywhere.

Early one Saturday morning, Frank found himself outside on the back porch steps with a mug of coffee. It had been just before sunrise, a force of habit to be up at the crack of dawn. Instead of waking Karen, he got his sorry self out of bed to make coffee. Maybe there would be some left before either her or Amy when they emerged.

Their new puppy, Carbine, followed Frank into the kitchen and sat by his feet as he made a pot of coffee. He was a very obedient puppy and did as Frank asked nearly all of the time, almost refusing to listen to Karen. Normally that would lead to her yelling across the house for Frank to control his dog.

He opened the back door and Carbine trotted out, waiting for him on the steps. The puppy knew the drill. Frank set his mug on the railing of the porch before walking down the steps towards the chain he installed. A single peg in the ground with a long chain so the puppy could run around like a nut for a while without going too far.

The puppy sat patiently by the peg, wagging his tail eagerly waiting for his dad to hook him up to the leash. Frank scratched the puppy’s ears before hooking the dog’s camouflage collar Amy insisted on. Seconds after the dog was secured on the peg, he began to run around like a nut.

Frank retreated back to the porch and grabbed his coffee mug. The mere sight of the dog running like a maniac back and forth like that made him tired. Another sip of coffee should fix that, or maybe seven sips. Eventually he’ll tucker himself out before walking to the bottom of the steps and napping by Frank’s feet as he normally did.

The sun was just peaking over the mountains in the distance when Frank got up to refill his mug. Somehow the dog was still running around, barking at some bats that were finding their perches to sleep for the day. Somehow that switched from bats to birds. If it moved, it was getting barked at by a pitbull puppy that was about as threatening as a rubber duck.

The backdoor had opened and shut behind him. A hand had gently rustled his hair before both hands were on his shoulders, leaning on his back to the view.

“Wow.” Karen gawked. “Now I can see why you get up early.”

He kissed her hand as his response. She stood there for a few seconds before getting off of him and taking a seat next to him on the stairs. Instinctively, she put her head on his shoulder with his immediate response of switching hands with his coffee and putting his arm around her shoulders. At some point, her hand found its way onto his knee.

Everything was just pure. The dog barking as the sun rose off in the distance over the mountains, casting an orange glow onto the already orange and yellow trees. It was unreal and absolutely breathtaking. The two with no space between them on the porch stairs added onto the breathtaking sight from the backyard.

At least, that’s what Amy thought. She heard the dog barking and woke her up. After noticing that both of her “parents” were up, she decided to do a bit of snooping of her own. She made her way downstairs and into the kitchen where she smelled the coffee Frank made already. The main door to the kitchen was open wide with the screen door being the only barrier now between the house and the backyard.

She was grateful enough to have grabbed her phone, expecting to find them in a cute position. Once again, the teen was right. Those two were precious together and she would forever be jealous of their love, setting the standards of love too high for her own love life. She pulled her phone out to snap a picture of the ‘scenery’.

The second she hit the photo button her phone made the camera click, alerting the two outside. In unison they looked behind them at the door to their kid half cringing at being caught. She smiled innocently.

“I was, uh, taking a picture of the sky.” She nodded, that’s what she was going with. “It looks super pretty and you guys just so happened to be in the way of that.”

Frank smiled and shook his head before going for another sip of his coffee while Karen, being the good mom, gestured for her to join them. Amy smiled and walked outside to them. Karen scooted closer to Frank to allow Amy to join them. She snuck past her and sat on the bottom stair.

The dog ran over to her and she happily pet the dog’s head, squishing his face in in hands. Carbine licked her hands and flopped down, finally done running and chasing birds. It was nap time. The bonus was Amy was now there to rub his belly.

Karen smiled and began to run her fingers through Amy’s hair. Eventually she played with it enough to start braiding it. Frank smiled a bit into his coffee at the sight of his two girls getting along. He knew they would eventually, but this was a whole new level he wasn’t prepared for.

Once Karen had the teen’s hair braided, she ran her fingers through it again to undo her hard work with no hair tie to secure it. The girl’s hair was too thick to stay anyway. She had finished undoing the braid when Amy leaned against Karen and Frank’s legs. It didn’t matter that their knees were digging into her back, they were there and that’s what mattered to her.

The three sat in silence for a while, just taking in everything around them. They watched the sun rise over the mountains to brighten the lovely fall day ahead of them. Who knows, maybe they’d go to a pumpkin patch or something fall related. After all, it was going to be a lovely day. There had to be a dog park around there somewhere that Carbine could run around at and meet other dogs.

Their ending moment was Amy, pulling her phone back out. It was time for another picture. Instead of taking a picture of the backyard, the camera was in selfie mode. Karen had to elbow Frank to play along for a single picture. Social media wasn’t an option, it was just for them and their enjoyment. With that, Frank gave in for his kiddo.

Amy snapped the picture and it was done. Karen kissed Frank on the cheek for playing along for his kid.

She nudged him again and stood up. “Come on, help me with breakfast.”

He nodded and finished off his mug of coffee, ready for a third cup anyway. “Alright.” When it was finished he stood up.

A week had gone by since Amy took their first official “family” photo. Karen had found a picture frame at an antique shop near her work. That same day she printed it out at work and framed it. The frame wasn’t too flashy, a nice dark wood with some ornate carvings on the sides. She thought it was tasteful at least.

When she got home, that frame went in the living room. It was nestled on the bookshelf between a small row of books and a fake plant. Somehow, it made the living room a bit more lively with actual pictures of their family. A family of a twice dead vigilante, his badass lawyer girlfriend, an ex-con teenage daughter. They worked well together; as a team, as a family.

[dyde21]

Cafe Half-Caff 2: The Rush

Thank you everyone who has expressed interest in this! I’m super excited for this fic, and it’s really starting to come together in my mind. Please enjoy! Oh, and some of you may recognize two characters. =P

XxXxXxXxX

Annabeth felt a bit embarrassed after her “good luck” to Percy. The morning had been awkwardly dead. Their opening had been rather slow, and it had been about thirty minutes before any customers had even shown up.

Leo and Hazel were chatting lazily in the back as they both continued their prep work, while Jason had decided to get a head start on switching out some of the coffees they had on display. As the season turned towards fall, and the winter holidays, they were rotating their stock to be a bit more appropriate for the time.

Piper in the mean time had taken to grilling Percy, chatting him up and trying to get to know him, while helping break the tension in the air. This had brought a smile to Annabeth's face. She had known Piper for years, they were best friends. She knew that she was the perfect person to ease Percy into working here, and that she genuinely did want to become his friend. Piper had a habit of bringing people together like that. All the more reason she was glad she had managed to schedule this crew for Percy's first day. It wasn't often they got new employees. She wished she could have gotten Frank too, but there wasn't enough reason to justify having him come in in the morning on a slow day. Percy would meet him soon enough anyway.

Annabeth herself was filling out some more paperwork in order to get Percy squared away. Purely incidentally near where Piper was practically interviewing Percy. There just so happened to be a nice table open nearby. She had no interest in eavesdropping on their conversation to learn more about him. Nope. None at all. It wasn't her fault if she happened to overhear a word or two every once in a while.

Even if she couldn't quite admit it to herself, Annabeth did have an interest in the new boy. To her, he was just fascinating. Out all of her time working, never had she shown up to see the new trainee sleeping on their doorstep. Never mind one who was drooling with a goofy, or adorable if she was honest, smile on his face.

The fact he had also gone through so many jobs in the span of the year, while also seemingly to be an alarmingly honest and friendly guy was also a mystery to her. Trouble or no, he didn't seem like the kind of guy to intentionally screw up a job. Surely he couldn't be that bad of a screw up, right? At least that was the bet she was taking. She knew if she ended up having to fire in him a few days Reyna would never let her live it down. But judging by how fast he picked up the register she had a feeling he was smarter than he, or most others, believed.

Her interest was purely based off how interesting of an asset he could be to the store. It had nothing to do with the fact he was seemingly air-headed enough to start changing in a room with her, showing her his alarmingly well toned body. A swimmer's body, according to Jason. Of course he had to have a swimmers body.

Shaking her head, she found herself staring at his chest subconsciously. Her eyes flicked up, to see him staring back at her with an utterly confused expression, next to Piper who was grinning like the devil. Internally Annabeth groaned. She knew the second they all clocked out, Piper would be all over her about him.

She flashed Percy what she hoped was a warm smile, which he seemed to accept and return. Thank God for his ignorance. Her gaze shifted over to Piper, turning into an intense glare, but the Cherokee woman just laughed, winking at her, before going back to listening to Percy.

Before Annabeth could finish weighing the pros and cons of firing her best friend to avoid dealing with her about this, the little bell on top of the door jingled, signaling their first customer.

Everyone perked up at the sound. Annabeth saw Percy's eyes shift towards hers, a sense of panic building up in them. Before she could respond with any sort of encouragement, Piper had already shoved him towards the register, flashing the customer a bright smile before chirping up. “He'll be right with you when you're ready.” She said happily, moving over towards the machines to be ready to prepare the order.

Torn between amused and apologetic, Annabeth just looked back down at her paperwork as they let the customer look the menu over.

Glancing up, Annabeth saw Percy's hand rapidly drumming on the counter as he plastered on a smile that hardly concealed the nerves he was so obviously feeling. She did feel bad for him, remembering back to her first day. But she also knew he had to get used to it eventually, and a lone customer early in the morning was by far the best opportunity she could give him.

Eventually the woman decided as she stepped forward. “Hi! Can I get a White Mocha with a lot of cream please?” She asked, a beaming smile on her face.

Annabeth had to bite her lip to suppress her grin at the wide eyed expression Percy got. She had to admit it, he looked a little adorable when flustered. She saw him freeze for a moment, clearly forgetting everything he had learned. Before she could step up though, she saw him close his eyes, take a deep breath, and she saw his mouth count to three. He opened his eyes and began to hesitantly press buttons. A moment later, she screen flickered and the order popped up correctly. Unable to suppress the proud grin on her face, Annabeth gave Percy two quick thumbs up.  His goofy grin returned, before he accidentally ripped the receipt in half.

Slapping her hand over her mouth, Annabeth did her best to suppress her laughter. If it was Piper, she would have been merciless, but she figured she should be professional and supportive of the new guy. For now, at least.

Luckily the customer just offered a friendly laugh and reassured him that it was no problem. Meanwhile Piper was cracking up behind him, muttering something a good start. Mentally, Annabeth made a note to herself to teach him how to print of a copy of a receipt. Some work places needed receipts, so tearing one could be a problem. Marking down a note on her hand, she went back to working on the paper work.

Piper had congratulated Percy, and this time it seemed like Jason had stepped up and started chatting with Percy.

Again, Annabeth was glad she worked with such a fun crew of people. The last thing she wanted any new employee to feel was to feel out of place. Luckily, between Jason and Piper, she knew Percy would feel home before long. Hopefully, at least.

The morning continued on at a rather slow pace. Between the occasional customer, and Piper and Jason's friendly chatter, Annabeth could see Percy's nerves slowly settle. Finishing the paperwork, she stretched out her wrist before she went back into her office to file it. Annabeth was never a particularly big fan of paperwork, her dyslexia and ADHD making it hard for her to focus on it for long. It took enough effort to keep her effectively studying and working for school, mind-numbing paperwork was a whole different challenge.

Setting it down on the desk for Reyna to finish up later, she moved back to the floor. Judging by the time, the pace should be starting to pick up by her estimations. Moving to the back, she figured she should touch base with Hazel and Leo. She had kind of been neglecting them while she kept an eye on Percy.

Walking into the back room, she was greeted with the usual sight. Hazel was diligently working. She had a few different trays being prepped. Her half of the kitchen was clean, at least as far as bakeries were concerned. The flour explosion was kept to a minimum, and she bounced from table to table, preparing efficiently and smoothly. All the while humming a gentle tune Annabeth didn't recognize, but seeing Hazel work made Annabeth's shoulders relax ever so slightly. Something about the slightly younger girl just felt... homey. The pressure of managing a business slipped away and it almost felt like a girls night where she just got together and baked with her friends.

Finally noticing Annabeth, Hazel looked up and flashed her a smile. “Everything is going smoothly back here. Percy seems to be doing okay too! He seems friendly!” She offered happily, clearly glad that she approved of the new hiree. Annabeth knew the girl could be a bit of a worrier from time to time, so Hazel's approval took some pressure off her shoulders.

Turning to Leo, Annabeth felt the tension in her shoulders increase ever so slightly.

Almost in stark contrast to Hazel's calmer, warmer kitchen, Leo was a bit of a firecracker.

They always made sure to clean the kitchen at the end of every night, but his already looked like it was 5 hours into his shift. It was certainly... used. A small radio in the back corner was playing music faintly, but Leo was bouncing around the kitchen like it was blaring. He bounced from station to station, pausing his dance only for a moment to carefully prepare the dish. Annabeth had to swear some of the mess he made was intentional. Annabeth knew that Leo took his job surprisingly serious, and that always made sure to follow proper sanitation procedures. But she wasn't sure she could offer a better word to describe him than... chaos. Honestly, even after all this time she still had no idea how Frank worked so well with him, they were like opposites. They had some weird chemistry that Annabeth would never understand, but she certainly appreciated it. They both did very impressive work, and made her job much easier.

Pausing in the middle of his little hip sway, he spotted Annabeth. “Yo, boss! Hungry? What can I get you?” He asked, pulling a notepad out of somewhere and a pen, and holding it up dramatically.

Annabeth just rolled her eyes fondly. “Just seeing if the kitchen was on fire yet. You've been here a while, so I was getting nervous without seeing smoke.

Leo just scoffed. “Please. Fire's got nothing on me. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to continue preparing my feast.”

Quirking an eyebrow, Annabeth tilted her head. “What feast?”

“Breakfast sandwiches.” He offered with a smug look.

She stared at him with a deadpan expression for a moment. “You make that every morning.”

Leo shrugged. “And we're always busy. You're welcome.”

Rolling her eyes, Annabeth walked back towards the front of the shop with a small smile. Crazy or not, Leo was a little ball of sunshine in their shop that could always keep spirits up.

As Annabeth pushed through the small door, she saw Percy and Jason both working the registers, while Piper worked the coffees. It was still pretty slow, but just starting to pick up pace. She guessed they were pacing Percy, getting him used to things before the rush hit in a bit.

As Annabeth was about to go back into her office, the door jingled again and a familiar pair of faces entered. A small smile crept on her face as a soft sigh escaped her at the sight.

She saw Percy open his mouth to greet them when Piper leaned over the counter. “Ashe! Tyler! It's been forever.”

The raven haired pair walked up to Piper, the girl beginning to chat happily with her while the boy scanned the menu, as if he didn't already know what he was going to order. They stood arm in arm, Ashe's arm wrapped around Tyler's waist as they stayed glued at the hip.

Seeing Percy's confused expression, she moved over and stood behind him. Tapping his shoulder, she leaned over when he gave her his attention.

“Who...” He asked gently.

“The girl is Ashe, the guy is Tyler. They're one of our regulars here. You'll probably see them here quite often.”

Percy nodded, finally understanding.

Pausing for a moment, Annabeth debated how much to explain. Glancing over, she saw Piper was still chatting with Ashe, but Ashe had said something and soon Tyler was dragged into the conversation. Figuring there was still some time before they ordered, she turned back to Percy.

“They've been coming here for years. Originally they were just friends, but Piper and I started a bet on when they would get together. If you ask Piper, she'll take credit for them finally getting together. A lot of conversations and free drinks, and some gentle encouragement and Tyler had finally asked her out. Piper practically threw a party the first day they walked in hand in hand and she saw them kiss. She actually bought a round of coffee for all of us.” Annabeth finished recalling fondly. “Since then, they come in pretty regularly. Piper says she likes to check in on her hard work.”

Percy just laughed, and Annabeth found the sound a bit intoxicating. It was honest and genuine, like he was.

“Long story short, if Piper finds someone she think is a match for you, don't expect to stay single for long.” She said, her tone a mix between complaining and fond recollection.

Percy raised an eyebrow. “I take it that happened to you?”

Shaking her head, she shrugged. “Nah. Piper says she hasn't found anyone just right for me. She's also pretty harsh of whoever I'm interested in.”

Percy pouted slightly. “Sounds rough.”

Annabeth shrugged. “It's because she cares, is all. I'd look out though for yourself.” She paused a bit awkwardly. “Unless you already have someone of course.”

“No!” Percy said a bit too quickly. A rosy tint slowly crept onto his cheeks. “I mean no, I don't.”

Annabeth nodded. “I see.” There was the faintest moment of awkward silence, before they both jumped at the sound of someone slamming the counter.  

Turning sharply, she was surprised to see an amused looking Ashe with her hands on her counter, and an apologetic Tyler.

“That was rude.” He mumbled, nudging her in the side.

Ashe just cackled a bit. “Sorry. Piper told me to stop their flirting on work hours.”

Piper just snickered from behind the coffee grinder.

Annabeth shook her head. “We weren't flirting.” She muttered, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Ashe quirked an eyebrow, a smirk on her lips. “Sure. You weren't flirting, and Tyler is loves getting up in the morning.” She replied sarcastically.

Tyler just tickled her side, making her squirm briefly before he kissed the top of her head. “Don't be rude to the staff. They've been good to us.”

Ashe just leaned into Tyler a bit more. “I know. I'm not a kid.” She muttered defiantly.

Tyler just laughed, pulling her a bit closer. Turning to Percy, he read his name tag. “Nice to meet you Percy. I'm Tyler, as I'm sure they've said. This here is Ashe. I'll get a large hot chocolate, extra whip cream please. Ashe will have caramel fra-” He squirmed as Ashe nudged him. “She'll have the Pumpkin Spice Frappucino, large.”

Percy nodded, quickly trying to enter their order.

The second the screen flashed the amount, he found himself staring at Tyler's outstretched hands that had almost exact change on it.

“Take it!” He said suddenly, which Percy instinctively listened to and took the money, confused by the sudden alarm in Tyler's tone.

Annabeth just rolled her eyes as she saw Tyler wrap Ashe in a big bear hug from behind, trapping her arms. They almost always did this. They took fighting for the check to a whole new level. She was surprised a punch hadn't been thrown yet.

She offered a sympathetic pat on Percy's shoulder. “I promise not all of our customers are this weird. These two are just... ” She offered, gesturing to them.

“That's no fair! You paid last time.”

“Not my fault you got distracted with Piper.”

“It's your fault we had to travel and couldn't come here for forever.”

“You let your guard down.”

“I hate you.”

“Love you.”

“...Love you too.” Ashe said with a sigh of defeat.

“... special.” Annabeth finished finally.

Percy let out an honest laugh, and an honest grin crept onto Annabeth's face. She was pretty sure she had found a new favorite laugh.

Looking over to where the bickering had stopped, she found Ashe staring at her with the exact same expression Piper was on the other side of the counter. Immediately the two girls turned to each other in hushed whispering.

Dropping her head into her hand, Annabeth sighed. It was official. She was going to have to fire her best friend and ban one of their favorite regulars for being too nosy.

Before she could be all dramatic, Annabeth saw Ashe's predatory gaze shift to Percy. “Nice to meet you. I heard it's your first day! I'm sure you'll love it here. So I was wondering what kind of gi-”

“Okay, that's enough playing around for one morning.” Tyler said, squeezing her hand and leading her away to their usual table in the corner of the cafe.

Ashe just pouted, resisting being led away for a moment. “You're no fun Ty.” She whined gently. Pausing, her expression shifted from amused to warm. Annabeth saw the girl turn to Percy. “For real though, it's nice to meet you Percy. I'm sure you'll love it here, this place is our favorite and the staff is great.” She offered warmly, waving with her free hand before she finally followed Tyler to their table, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek before they settled in next to each other chatting happily.

Standing next to Percy, Annabeth just grinned. “Those two are a handful, but they always brighten the mood in here.” She offered.

Piper leaned on the counter next to her suddenly. “Plus they have to be one of the cutest couples. Don't you just love it when hard work pays off?” She said with a slightly dreamy sigh.

Annabeth just rolled her eyes again. “You have too much fun meddling in others lives. But yeah, I'm glad those two worked out.”

Percy just grinned. “I think I'm starting to see why this place is always busy.”

Piper just shrugged. “We have fun here, and have a good reputation with our customers. It pays off.” She explained, before she side-eyed Percy. “I did happen to overhear that you're single though...” She started off, her eyes flickering to Annabeth after a moment.

Before she could press the issue further, the bell above the door chimed as another set of customers chimed in. Annabeth noticed the slightest pout before Piper perked up, all smiles as she moved back to her register and welcomed them. The other customer walked up to Percy and Annabeth stepped back to give him more space again. The pace was starting to pick up, she was pretty sure they would be hitting their stride soon.

Stepping back, she decided to get a head on their next orders, figuring there wouldn't be much time to chat with the crew anymore for a while.

As the sun rose and and warmed the air, more and more people started pouring in. She had been double checking her current order list when she saw Piper pop her head into the office. “'Beth, we need you up there. We're getting hit with a rush. Percy's doing his best but...” She trailed off.

Nodding, Annabeth stood up and tied her half-apron around her waist. She had hoped they wouldn't be too swamped, but it wasn't entirely unexpected. Following Piper out of the office, she froze, nearly dropping her name-tag. It wasn't just a rush, they were swamped. Glancing over at Percy, she realized he was right. Trouble did have a way of finding him. They hadn't been this busy in a while.

That was when she saw his face. Percy was clearly overwhelmed. She could see the fear and panic was suppressing, masking it behind a friendly smile as he clearly tried to keep up with the customers. He was managing to keep up pretty well, but Annabeth knew first hand how much pressure you felt when you had a line of customers in front of you waiting to be helped. He turned to look at her, the fake smile still plastered on his face but his eyes were begging for help.

Clenching her jaw, Annabeth stepped forward. “Percy, switch to running food orders. I'll check with Piper and Jason. Piper I'll help you on espressos too, so make sure we're taking orders quickly. Reyna will be here in thirty, she can hop in the kitchen when she gets here.” The group all nodded. She quickly stepped up next to Percy as he finished up his current order. “I'll take over. Just worry about picking up the orders and delivering them to the table with the same number.”

Annabeth saw the sigh of relief escape Percy as he stepped back from the register. Pausing, she placed a hand on his shoulder and offered him a smile. “You did great, don't worry.”

He seemed to perk up just a bit at the praise, as he stepped back to the counter and quickly grabbed an order and started to take them to the right tables. Well, hopefully the right tables. Annabeth had faith he could work it out. Turning back to the customer, she put on her best saleswoman smile. “Sorry for the wait, now then, what can I get you?”

The one good thing about rushes, was that it made the workday fly by. They had stumbled a bit, but soon they were getting along well enough. Reyna had shown up, and hopped in the kitchen to assist Leo until Frank showed up. Then she had hopped over and helped Hazel. While Annabeth could handle helping out the kitchen, Reyna was actually pretty good preparing food. Meanwhile, Annabeth just focused on keeping the customers happy and the orders running smoothly.

Eventually the rush let up as people started their work day and there was a less frantic push. Eventually they managed to catch up on the food orders, as she saw Percy lean against the counter, catching his breath.

Stepping away from her till, she moved over towards him. “Take 20. Normally it's fifteen, but you managed to survive a rush on your first day without dropping food or breaking any plates. Relax and grab a bite to eat. You'll need the energy for the rest of your shift.”

Percy nodded. Despite clearly a bit stressed, he had a strange smile on his face.

Tilting her head, Annabeth could quite figure out what it meant. “You feeling okay?” She asked, wondering if the early hours plus sudden burst of work could have him feeling off. Though, judging by his body earlier, it wasn't like he was out of shape...

Nodding, Percy just scratched the back of his head. “It's just... this is kinda fun. I can't explain it, but the rush of everything moving around, all the orders, seeing all these new people. It's just... exciting.”

Annabeth felt a slight rush, looking at his goofy smile. It seemed so genuine and refreshing. Plus, who emerges from a rush in cafe and says it's “fun”? This new guy certainly had interest. She wanted to get to know him, it seemed like everything about what just designed to catch her off guard.

“You're weird, you know that?” Was all she said.

Percy just laughed. “I've gotten that before. Sorry.” He apologized a bit sheepishly.

Annabeth shook her head, still grinning. “It was a compliment, don't worry. Now go on your break. Oh, and go see Hazel first.” She said with a wink.

Seeing the confused boy head to the back of the store, she saw him return a few minutes later, happily munching down on a bear-claw. That was usually how it went. You couldn't tell Hazel your favorite pastry without finding one prepared for you later that day. She was sweet that way.

Turning back to the customer, she continued with the order. She saw Jason walk over, pausing for a moment to say something. She wasn't sure what it was, but Percy seemed to nod and laugh. Annabeth couldn't help the small smile that crept onto her face with the sound of his laugh again. It also seemed like Percy and Jason got along surprisingly well.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow as she saw Tyler and Ashe approach the counter again. Ashe set a fifteen bucks down on the counter before offering a sheepish smile. “This is for you and Percy to each get a drink. You deserved it after that rush. Plus, Tyler was right and I may have been a bit much this morning.” She spoke, uncharacteristically sheepish.

Annabeth was about to protest when Ashe just shook her head. “Don't worry about it. Anyway, get both of you a drink and just drop the change in the tip jar. Let him know he did a good job today.”

Satisfied, Ashe grabbed her boyfriend's hand and lead him away after waving goodbye to Annabeth and Piper, pausing to say something and wave goodbye to Percy as well.

Annabeth saw the pair pause outside the shop, Tyler saying something that cause Ashe to lean up and kiss him, before they walked down the street arm in arm.

Shaking her head at the couple, her eyes flicked down to the money resting on the counter. It was a little too late to say no now. Ordering her favorite drink she motioned Percy to come over.

“Ashe and Tyler bought you a drink. What do you want?” She asked.

Percy looked at the menu, frowning. “I don't know. I haven't really had a lot of coffee before.”

Annabeth quirked an eyebrow. “So you decided to work at a cafe that's like 70% coffee? Brilliant.” She teased.

Percy shrugged. “I needed the money for my mom.” He offered with a smile.

Annabeth raised an eyebrow, her curiosity starting to burn. Why did he need money for him mom. Biting her lip, she forced down her curious side. They were co-workers, this was his first day, and they barely knew each other. It wasn't professional to start prying into her personal and family life. She'd leave that to Piper, who unlike her, had lost her sense of shame.

“Well then, we'll just get you a caramel Frappucino with cinnamon. You wont taste the coffee.”

Percy shrugged. “Sounds good.” He offered before moving over towards Piper.

While continuing to help customers, she couldn't help but watch Percy curiously. She had to know his reaction. Across the room she saw him tentatively try the drink.

His face went from fear, to confusion, before it broke into a smile. He turned to her, giving her a thumbs up.

Oh my god, he's such a dork. She thought, suppressing her laughter to avoid confusing her current customer.

The second half of Percy's shift was much less chaotic, thankfully for him. The following rushes hadn't been as bad, and Reyna was also here running things. She had seen her pull him aside for a bit as they chatted. Annabeth wasn't sure what they were talking about, but she figured Reyna was going over more of the ground rules and basic policies. She was a bit more of a stickler for that kind of stuff than she was. But their balance worked and kept the shop running smoothly.

Eventually though, Percy's shift ended. Right as she was on her lunch. Catching him in the break room, she leaned against the lockers again as he retrieved his stuff from the locker. “Good job surviving the first day.”

Percy just grinned. “I had a great teacher.”

Annabeth just smirked. “Most of your shifts will probably be later on at night. Closing, most likely. I think you mentioned that worked better with your classes?”

Percy nodded. “That'd be nice. Yeah.”

Annabeth couldn't fight the curiosity this time. “You mentioned knowing Jason so I assume you go to NYU with him and myself?”

Percy nodded, clearly surprised. “You go there too? What program?”

“Architecture.” Annabeth replied, a bit proud. She had worked damn hard to get into it.

The boy whistled in appreciation. “I've heard it's a nightmare to get into. I'm impressed.”

Annabeth just shrugged. “It took a lot of work. What are you in?”

Percy shied away a bit, scratching the back of his neck. “Teaching at the moment, but I'm not sure I'll stick with it.”

Pausing for a moment, Annabeth studied the boy. Nodding to herself, she trusted her gut. “I think you'll make a great teacher someday. Keep up with it. You're the kind of guy the students would love.”

Percy blushed slightly. “If you say so.”

Annabeth grew a little angry on the inside. That boy had no right to look that cute when blushing.

Feeling awkward after a moment, Annabeth tried to clear the air. “Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow. Really though, you did great today. I think you'll fit in just fine here.”

The smile Percy offered in return definitely made her day just a little better. He walked out of the room, pausing at the door. “Thank you for helping me today. You're the coolest manager I've had, and that's saying something.” He said with a smirk, before he turned and left.

Annabeth just stared after him. She realized two things. One, he might actually have the best smiles on earth. Two, she needed to thank Reyna for hiring him.

After Percy left, the rest of her day was certainly less remarkable. Everything felt like the same old routine, and time flew by. Yet she couldn't get that raven haired boy out of her mind. When her shift ended and she was walking out with Piper, they paused at the doors to their cars.

“So, it seemed like you two got along well.” Piper said coyly.

Staring at her for a moment, Annabeth ran through a variety of responses in her head, most of them not very appropriate. Finally, a devilish smirk crossed her face before she simply said. “Yeah, I think we do.” Climbing in her door, she quickly started the engine and drove off, leaving a shocked, then very upset Piper behind yelling about demanding details.

As she drove back to her small apartment, Annabeth couldn't fight the grin on her face. Tomorrow would be another chance to learn more about the fascinating mystery that was Percy Jackson. She couldn't wait.

[nellie-elizabeth]

Outlander: A. Malcolm (3x06)

!!!!! Amazing! Pretty much everything I could have hoped for from this episode.

Cons:

I mean, there were things that were changed from the reunion in the books. I don't mind the changes for the most part, but of course there are always those treasured details that you want to see and when they happen a bit differently, you notice. For example, in the books, Fergus comes across Claire when Jamie isn't around, and immediately drops to his knees and hugs her around the waist. Claire doesn't recognize him right away and thinks he's an eager customer in the brothel. I'm not saying I didn't love what they did instead, but... you know. These are the things you remember.

Young Ian doesn't look the way I expected him to. I thought the guy playing him did an excellent job, but still. I pictured him to look more like Jenny, with the dark hair. I can't remember how he's described in the books, but for whatever reason, this wasn't what I was picturing. I also pictured him to seem younger, more like a child. I think he's meant to be fifteen or sixteen, but honestly he seems more like he's eighteen or nineteen. It might not seem like much, but it does make a difference.

One significant change from the books that I really liked is that Jamie tells Claire about Willie straight off. There's no hiding anything there. I think this is an excellent idea. However, it makes it a little jarring that Jamie chooses not to tell Claire about... the other thing. The thing I won't say outright because I don't want to spoil it for non-book-readers. But there's another significantly huge piece of information that Claire doesn't know about Jamie, and while his motivations for not telling her make a certain kind of sense, I sort of wish they'd gone for total honesty here. It's something that bothered me in the book, too.

The episode ends with a strange and dangerous man hunting around for Jamie's ledgers in Jamie's room above the brothel. Claire comes in and this man, thinking she's a prostitute, basically tries to rape her. This show has a problem with sexual assault, and that's that it's everywhere. This man could have threatened her with straight up violence instead of the sexual kind, and I actually would have been more okay with it. I understand that Claire, as the protagonist of an adventure-romance, is going to be put into perilous situations sometimes, but come on. Really?

Pros:

Before we get to the centerpiece of the episode, which is Jamie and Claire's prolonged scenes together, we should talk about some of the other details.

Mr. Willoughby. They made some changes to this character from the books so that the language barrier is less of an issue. This is an acceptable change just from a practicality standpoint. I liked Claire and Willoughby's conversation. It was especially sweet when she called him by his true name at the end.

We meet Young Ian Murray in this episode. While I expressed some concern with the casting choice, the kid playing him did do a fantastic job. I like how he takes Claire's reappearance pretty much in stride. He wasn't even born yet when Claire disappeared, so he doesn't have the personal connection there to make this moment anything special. He just says it's nice to meet her. He seems like a sweet kid so far. He's going to be such a big character moving forward that I hope they do justice to him!

Fergus and Claire's reunion was adorable. Different from the book, but adorable. He's so happy to see her, he hugs her twice, calls her Milady, and is just so overjoyed at her return. Seeing Claire and Fergus together again was so emotional, especially if you think about the last moment they were together, with Claire wishing him a tearful farewell as he left the Jacobite camp. We also get to see Claire's reaction to Fergus' missing hand. This was one of the most subtle and powerful moments of the whole episode, actually, as her face changes quickly from one of pure joy to slight horror, and then she tries to smooth it out so as not to express any disgust. You can tell she's realizing how much she's missed, and is grieving for an injury that happened long ago. I'm pretty happy with adult Fergus so far. He's still one of my favorite characters!

Okay. Now to Jamie and Claire. Man, there was a lot of amazing stuff going on in this episode. The moment of reunion is so... it's awkward. That's the main thing that struck me about it. There isn't an instant reconnection for them. They're shy around each other, and it's glorious and totally makes sense.

The scene where they discuss their children is so glorious. Claire shows Jamie pictures of Brianna, and he's utterly overwhelmed at the sight of his daughter. Claire is a little put off by the news of Willie, but she sees how proud Jamie is of him, and affirms for him that his son is a part of him. The conversation about Frank is also lovely and subtle and ties back to how we left things between Jamie and Claire. Jamie had said that he'd be grateful to Frank for caring for Claire, but he'd hate him forever... and that's basically where things pick up. Jamie wants to know if Claire left Frank in order to come back, and he wants to know if Frank took Claire back and loved her and cared for her. As much as the idea hurt him, he really did want happiness and security for the love of his life, and for his child.

I also like Claire's jealous behavior. When she sees that Jamie has a room in a brothel, she naturally makes some assumptions. She tells Jamie that she knew he'd have a life, and she rationally knows she can't be angry about what he's been up to for the last twenty years. But it's fun to see her a little unsettled by all of this. She took a big leap in coming back to find him, not knowing if he'd have moved on and found someone else. It takes her a bit of time to settle down and realize that Jamie has pined for her just as surely as she did for him.

Okay. So. The sex scene. Was perfect. The best this show has ever done. The whole thing is a parallel to Jamie and Claire's wedding night. They spend time getting to know each other again, and then when it comes to the sex part, they're both very nervous at first. It starts off with this long, protracted, mostly silent undressing scene. Jamie and Claire are just drinking each other in. When Claire is finally naked, she's bashful and shy. Jamie says "you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen," which is just adorable. Earlier Jamie had been a bit sheepish about needing glasses to read, and Claire had assured him that he's just as dashing as ever. It's so cute to see them both so entirely in love with each other.

They need a minute to reorient themselves, and Jamie manages to head-butt Claire by accident, which sort of breaks the mood but also breaks the tension considerably. The fact that they can laugh in bed, and be comfortable around each other in the surreal aspects of this situation, really helps to get the sex going. And of course then it's super hot and intense and all the stuff that we've been waiting for!

Jamie and Claire fall back into a teasing, flirty rhythm right away, as Claire gets information from Jamie about what he's been up to recently. His print shop is only part of his career - he's also a smuggler on the side. This will obviously come into play moving forward, but it was good to get some key plot information in to these scenes as well. Jamie and Claire are torn between being desperately happy to be reunited, and also being undeniably curious about what each has been doing for two decades.

The cheesy dialogue works really well in this episode because it's sort of played for laughs, and it's sort of sincere at the same time. Jamie keeps going on about Claire's perfect ivory skin and all of this stuff, but it's while the two are relaxing and happy after sex. Both of them are marveling at each other's bodies - the changes, the things that have remained the same. It's the perfect wind-down for their series of scenes.

Honestly, this is everything I could have hoped for. The long awaited reunion has happened, and we still have quite a bit of exciting and adventurous stuff waiting for us in the rest of the season! I'm all in!

9.5/10

[nikkiabregoart]

Woo! Needed a few days to recover after a very successful Phoenix Comic Con!!! It was seriously so much fun to see my awesome Arizona family, friends and fans. I would brave the heat anytime just to see you guys. I honestly would not be able to do what I do without you guys supporting my art and just stopping by to say hi. It all means the world to me. And what made everything so awesome this year is that I had an awesome lady purchase my pink and green power ranger prints and she had the green ranger signed by JASON DAVID FRANK AKA THE GREEN FREAKING RANGER!!!! totally made my life!!! Thank you all for your love and support! I'll be posting lots of art so stay tuned! #phoenixcomiccon #phoenixconventioncenter #artbooth #artistalley #nikkiabregoart #DatArtistLife #powerrangers #greenranger #jasondavidfrank #tommy #tommyoliver @jdfffn #gogopowerrangers

[bitterbuttercups]

Review: Monster High’s Posea Reef and Kala Mer’ri

So, last week, I was at the local five and under store and I found a whole shelf of Posea Reefs and Kala Mer’ris. I’ve never owned a Monster High before- and, actually, I don’t think I’ve ever held an unboxed one in my hands before, either. I was excited at the opportunity to get them for $5 and bought both. 

Image heavy doll review under the cut!

I didn’t really intend to review them when I bought them, but after I got them out of their boxes and played with them I knew I had to talk about them- so, I’m sorry I don’t have any photos of their packaging, but, I can talk about it just a little bit.

I was wowed by the packaging on Monster Highs. I buy a lot of My Little Ponies and Transformers and they’re generally pretty conservatively packaged, but- these girls had beautiful plastic windows and really nice cardboard tabs holding it together. I managed to keep most of the packaging intact and everything! I thought their little diaries were a delightful touch. I read a few pages and set it aside for a rainy day. I really do love the puns in Monster High, I think they’re very fun and clever. 

Let’s start with Kala Mer’ri!

Initially I wasn’t sure I wanted to pick Kala up- purple isn’t my favourite colour and I’m not a fan of the big joint beneath her waist. 

I also dislike the spots on her lips.

However, I thought her four arms looked like a lot of fun, and for five dollars I figured at worst I would sell her my next collector con.

Fortunately, though, I was completely blown away and while I like Posea’s blue more than Kala’s purple, I love playing with Kala.

I like her profile. She has a wide, flat nose I think is very cute. I also like that her eyes are round and pronouncedby not buggy. I also like her forehead shape- I often find with dolls that I think their foreheads are too long or short and it pulls the whole face into uncanny valley territory.

I also really like the little divet in the middle of her bottom lip- it makes it just a little soft and pouty. I don’t like her lipstick- I think the pink clashes with the purple and I really think the spots look unpleasant. I wish they were at least symmetric, but they aren’t, and they’re much heavier on the left side.

She has very pretty eyes with light blue irises and large, dark blue pupils. She has orange and salmon, fin-shaped eye makeup and very large black upper and lower eyelashes, as well as some little pink and yellow spots on the inside of her inside nose bridge, and its all on top of a light purple.... blobby shape.

I would have thought I wouldn’t like the dark blue pupil, but, I think it looks fine. I really like the pink and orange fin-like makeup, I think it’s very pronounced and in character and the orange really contrasts with the purple in a nice way. I’m not sure how I feel about the large light purple spots. I feel like something better could have been done, but at the same time, I do think it looks better with than without.

What I don’t like is the... squiggly orange french fries she has for eyebrows. Why? Why do they look like that? I’m utterly boggled.

I’m a little confused by her ear shape, as well. It’s like a dish, almost, with a very flat bottom. Is it supposed to look like a suction cup? It doesn’t look like an ear at all. I’m not sure.

I do like the squareness of her jaw and her strong chin, though. I think it does give her a very strong profile- I think I like her nose the best. It’s very cute.

I tend to prefer slimmer faces in my dolls, but I feel like it works really nicely here. I actually thought when I saw her in the box that her hair was an afro, I was a little disappointed when I got her out of the box and realized it was just a frizzy ponytail.

I I had some fun playing with shadows, too.

And I really like how her squareish cheekbones sharpen the light! It’s really fun.

Monster High faces just seem to have so much depth. Not so much molding it looks weird or buggy but they aren’t flat like Equestria Girls figures, which I have a few of and honestly kind of hate. 

Her arms are what I bought her for, though, and I found them much easier to pose than I had anticipated.

I was also under the impression that monster highs could not easily touch their faces- I am not sure if I was simply led astray or if the molding of these dolls is a little different, because she easily touches her face.

I’m also noticing quite suddenly in this photo which I did not realize when I was taking her picture that Kala’s left upper wrist has been stained by her accessory. That’s very unfortunate.

First thing I did was take off her armbands and the prickly little belt she’s wearing. It’s very soft material. I don’t really like it, aesthetically, but it does help her open front- coat? dress? lay flat.

I do think she looks better without her many plastic accessories. She looks a little more floaty and cool, but, there’s nothing wrong with having a few more accessories lying around.

Under her coat she’s wearing a little band as a top. I’m not sure what the pattern- it’s like a cross between a reef and lisa frank cheetah print. it’s held on with soft  plastic straps. She has these little ridges on her shoulders- I wish they’d left them off, they’re kind of annoying to work around and don’t look particularly interesting, anyway.

It’s held on with velcro at the back. I think the velcro piece is a little too big, but, I really love her shoulders back there! They’re molded really nicely.

Hm.

Hmm. :/

You know, I really like that Kala has a thicker profile than other monster high dolls- she’s wider her back is filled out more, which I think is good. I know lots of people like the stretchy skinny arch of monster highs molds, but I don’t. I dislike HOW wide Kala’s hips get, but I can live with it.

Her torso joint is great, because it lets her turn to the side.

And, well. All the way around, actually. Very monstery!

I wish there was a gradient or something between the light purple of her torso and the dark purple of her midsection and tail. It seems very sudden.

I’m also not sure how I feel about the bright yellow tentacles. I think they’re pretty, and they look better from the front with the patterned gradient, but from the back they look very strange, It really draws attention away from the rest of the doll.

I do love them, though- I think the curves feel really dynamic and natural, like real coiling tentacles frozen miid-movement. I also like that she stands on them! I was a little turned off when I first got her, because I would have rather had a traditional mermaid tail, but, when I let myself get used to the idea I found it very easy to have her stand unassisted because of them. They dont offer her a great range of motion or many poses, but, they are super duper stable.

also super duper detailed, tbh.

Speaking of detail, I love her hands. They have these adorable little suction cups on the fingers.

To be honest, I’m not a huge fan of the flawed hands most monster highs have. I really dislike the heads of Ever After High dolls, but I adore their hand sculpts- very gentle. I’d post a photo, but I don’t have any Ever After High dolls. I think one day I might buy a Cerise, though.

At this point I took her hair down and spent about twenty minutes trying to beat it into submission. it was pretty tangly at the ends, and very poofy. Some hair came out, unfortunately, when I combed it. Not enough to be especially noticeable- but, hair never comes out when I brush my ponies, so, I was disappointed.

poof!

Yeah it was... really not going to lay even remotely flat. That’s fine, I didn’t really want her to have straight hair, anyway. I think later when I have time I’ll boil some water and give her that pretty afro I initially thought she’d had.

for now, though, it’s a little unmanageable so I have to do something with it.

I ended up putting it back up in a pony tail, but thatfelt a little lackluster, so I took down the sides of her head and made some neat skinny braids.

I crossed them in an x on the top of her head and then tucked them into the underside of her hairband.

She came with her strapless top, her sheer coat (I just noticed the squid pattern! How cute), her spiky little belt, two arm bands, one bangle, and two earrings. I am not a fan of jewelry myself and have never liked wearing it. I think her bangle is cute, but, apparently it stains, which is unfortunate. Many bright pink things do. I really like her strapless top the best! I think its bright and fun.

I’m really impressed by her poseability. Her shoulders bend at very tight angles and her elbows bend at almost ninety degrees. Her hands rotate really well, too!

They also spin all the way back! They get in the way of eachother far less than I would have anticipated.

Her torso can even rotate to the left and right a little bit.

She can also tilt just a little bit backwards.

I had thought that her pronounced hip joint would allow her to sit nicely, but, no such luck it appears. She sits very awkwardly, held in place by the weight of her tail.

You can definitely get some nice looking shots if you work for it, I think, but, it doesn’t look great in person.

All in all, I really like Kala. I don’t like her waist joint or her eyebrows but I love her wide body and four arms and cute nose. I think maybe I’ll try and find her a better outfit.

Time to talk about Posea. She has a different silhouette but a similar build.

The first thing I love is her face shape. She has a very sharpley angled face a a triangular chin. I think its very pretty and lets me see her neck. I think her nose is very small and sharp, though, and I prefer Kala’s. 

I think her eyes look very nice and soft, too, and this 3/4 profile looks quite elegant.

I’m not a huge fan of her hands, though. I don’t like webbed hands. I guess that’s a personal thing, but I just don’t think they’re very aesthetically pleasing.

Her makeup is nice, though. I like the dark lipstick, I feel like it matches her hair really well- I wish it was reflected somewhere in the upper portion of her face, though. Perhaps her eyebrows? Because I don’t know why they’re purple when her hair is maroon and green. Her eyes have a very soft look because of the medium blue pupils and the light blue lower lashlines. I think its very pretty! The soft green undertones in her iris are very elegant. She has very very light freckles the same colour as her very very light eyeshadow, too, that are really cute- I dislike her very dark freckles under her eyes, though. I find them very distracting and kind of out of the colour scheme.

You might be able to see her freckles better in this photo.

I let her hair down at this point. I’m not a fan of the pulled back style for her.

It didn’t take much brushing to get Posea’s hair to behave- it sort of already wanted to fall in all the right directions.

I really wanted to try and find a way to have some of her hair fall a bit forward to cover the plugs, but...

I guess I forgot what rooted hair looked like. It’s rooted very thickly, but it is still plugs, so it is noticeable.

I tried pulling her hair back in some thick braids, but, I wasn’t super happy with that.

I ended up just putting her hair in a loose pony tail with her hair ornament on the band.

Whichm by the way, I really like. I think maybe it’s supposed to be coral? I’m not certain what’s at the center. It looks like a little crown- the round kind? I think it’s probably some kind of sea creature. I think it works as a little bow here.

Posea has only one piece of clothing, her shirt. I took it off and I was surprised by how much detail was on her body!

She has all these little spines or nodes along her skin. That’s definitely a sea creature thing and it’s really neat. I kind of liked running my thumb over her tummy, it was a weird texture. I like how ornate it is, too, its not just an even coating. It’s a cool and elegant pattern that looks distinctly intentional- I’ve seen many patterns that looked random or accidental, but this one is symmetrical and pretty.

I also like Posea’s torso better here- they look like pieces that go together, unlike Kala, who’s top and bottom pieces look very different.

Posea, too, can tilt a little to the left and right. I feel a bit spoiled that these were my first two, I’m worried when I get a standard Monster High that doesn’t have this point of articulation I’ll be disappointed.

You know, I like Posea more from the front than I do Kala but I significantly prefer Kala’s portrait. Posea’s face looks to be slopped downward far too much. Also, her eyes are much flatter and her forehead feels too long- perhaps this is a personal aesthetic problem, but, I like her from the front more. 

I do love her cute little fishy ears, though.

The kelp accessory covering her tail is really cool. I am really disapointed that her little animal friends are attached the way they are. some of them have little hooks like the seahorse but others don’t appear to have anything to attach them to the tail. I left the clear plastic rubber bands on because I’m very worried about losing these little pieces. It strikes me as not the best design for a doll intended for children- There’s not much you can do with them because of the way they (don’t) attach, and they’re so small you can lose them very easily. 

Her kelp skirt makes it very difficult to move her tail- it’s soft plastic but not very soft. However, it looks so nice that frankly I think it’s a fine tradeoff.

And there she is nekkie. I like the detail on her bottom half- its very kelpy. The idea of a kelp octopus is strange I suppose but it works. I wish that perhaps her three “feet” were a little more symmetrical- perhaps not with the same swirls but, at least with the same height.

Posea can change her height easier than Kala can by bending her “legs” down at the ball joints. 

Now, they painted a bit of green on the front of her midsection in a downward arch but they also painted a little point on her lower back, too. I guess she has a little butt.

She looks pretty similar from the back as she does on the front, though. Which is fine.

Posea’s limbs were very stiff- especially at the shoulders. I found them difficult to move at all and it wasn’t terrifically pleasant.

Here’s all the clothes she came with. Her seaweed skirt (with friends), her top, her coral top, her earrings, her armbands, and her hair ornament. I really lover her top- I think the colours are really cool and fun. it looks very halloweeny without the rest of her, actually. I don’t like her coral top, though. I think it looks a little silly and accidental or random- which I suppose it’s supposed to, because it’s supposed to look like coral, but I don’t think that’s very fashionable.

You know, actually, I think they would probably look better if they switched tops.

WOW. Posea looks really cool in this outfit, actually. 

The open front jacket and the strapless tube top? She looks very chill. 

Unfortunately because Kala is so much wider than her.... they can’t swap clothes very well.

Unfortunately, as you can see, her jacket is very loose and oversized.

the tube top is far too big.

It’s just sort of hanging there loosely. I guess Kala will need her shirt back.

Before that, though, I wanted to see what Kala looked like in Posea’s shirt. I couldn’t even really get it on!

It’s really unfortunate, too. I think the purple orange and green colours go far better with Kala than with Posea.

But... I can’t even get it to velcro all the way in the back, and her shoulders are kind of stuck because the fabric is pulled so tight. :(

I wish they’d both been thicker, or both thinner. I like the thickness of the upper body on Kala but her butt just looks ridiculous. Posea’s looks much better.

After this I started playing with them and doing some cute poses, because I’ve never really had dolls this poseable and articulated before.

They were really fun to play with! I want to dig up some props later and play with them more. 

So, final thoughts.

When I bought these, I had expected them to cure my Monster High craving. As an avid collector of My Little Pony toys (500 and counting), many people I know collect Monster High dolls. The more I saw them, the more I wanted them, but there were still features of them I disliked- the flared hands, the the hyper arched backs, the unarticulated ankles, the hunched necks. Fortunately (or unfortunately) I found that once they were in my hands, these things were not as big of a problem as I would have expected them to be. I found that I loved posing them and I loved their thick, silky hair. These two especially I found to be fun and interesting toys- I love the extra arms, and I love the seaweed motif. 

I really think I’ll be getting more of these in the future should they come my way. They’re just so poseable and colourful and fun.