#i almost forgot their tale lmao

[alteredphoenix]

I just remembered today at work that one of the fics I want to do for An Exercise in Futility is where Eleanor gets roped into helping Rose hit it off with Alisha and one of the scenes is where as they see Alisha go home for the day Rose goes "Bye, Felicia!" only for Alisha to turn back around and go "It's Alisha! Get it right!" LMFAO

[kimbap-r0ll]

How dorm leaders may fall down the stairs

Something funny I thought of yesterday

Riddle

I believe he doesn’t really tumble down the stairs but instead like, sits down on multiple steps while descending? Like he won’t go down horizontally

He only falls if he is reading a book while walking up and down a set, but he could also fall if he’s not careful with his speed

He never falls if he’s going up the stairs however

If he saw someone watch him go down, he’ll basically threaten them to never mention it to anyone (though Cater likely has a video of Riddle falling down stairs on his phone in a hidden album)

Leona

Walks up and down stairs slowly so rarely falls. However he is the type to roll down the stairs and just lay at the bottom of it for a few seconds before getting back up

He just sighs and goes about his day. He doesn’t really care if anyone saw him he just wants to be left alone haha

Leona might fall if he’s not paying attention or if Cheka left a toy he forgot to collect on one of the stair steps. Most of the time Leona’s pretty careful though

He tends to go up two steps at a time when going up so he doesn’t really fall. It’s going down that’s the issue

Azul

Falls more than he admits but it’s really only because he’s not human and more adept with the sea

Falls almost comically. Like he will roll and then try to get back up only to fall almost head first and then fall horizontally again. He might swear the whole way down

Makes sure no one saw him and if anyone did he will BEG them to never talk about it. Floyd and Jade will tease him about it though for days

He falls if he’s going down too fast but also if he’s not careful going up. Tends to walk slowly on staircases because of this

Kalim

Falls easily but laughs it off (the only one that does tbh). He doesn’t roll down and is similar to Riddle in the way he falls. However he will make a loud scream before stopping

He doesn’t really care if people saw him since he just brushes it off. Jamil however scolds him to be more careful (could break a limb if not careful)

Kalim falls if he is running up or down without really thinking about where he’s stepping. He tends to move before finishing his thought. He also tends to go up two steps at a time like Leona

He definitely got hurt often as a kid because he was super active but honestly he doesn’t think it’s anything to worry about. If someone else falls though he’ll be super attentive

Vil

Cares a shit ton about his appearance so seeing him fall is almost impossible. He knows how to do stunt falls or at least acting like he fell, but that’s different

In the rare case you do see him falling, he’s like Riddle except he’s gripping onto the handles for dear life. His dorm uniform doesn’t help either

He’s probably a pro at running gracefully down a full spiral staircase (just watch the old Snow White film!) but he might fall if he is too busy reading or talking to someone

Will not let anyone live to tell the tale of him falling lmao. Honestly he’s similar to Riddle, though Rook has a photo of him just sitting at the bottom of a staircase with a dumbfounded look haha

Idia

He falls down but honestly barely leaves his room so people don’t know he falls down or not

He tends to be super chaotic when falling too. Sort of comically, he will start out by misplacing his foot, then sliding down before somehow somersaulting

Will swear the whole way down but in a very quiet voice. Or, you might catch Idia screaming but that’s like super rare. Ortho’s seen it though! Idia also just sits at the bottom of the staircase for a few seconds before picking himself up

Idia doesn’t really fall and has a likely chance of falling both up and down the stairs if he’s gaming or watching something on a device. If someone saw him falling he would die of embarrassment on spot lol

Malleus

Probably floats down the stairs haha. But on a serious note he really never falls down stairs because he’s just careful where he places his steps

If you do see him though, he tends to slide down as well. He has rolled down before though and his horns almost broke when he was younger. He also just laughs it off softly and doesn’t really care who saw him (most people are too scared to tease him other than Lilia anyways)

The only time he may fall is if he is too excited about getting somewhere that he thinks he can jump a few steps but miscalculates. Otherwise he doesn’t really fall and tends to be the person catching others instead

He doesn’t make much noises when falling either. He might make a weird gasp before tumbling but otherwise he’s kinda quiet haha

[ladytauria]

Omg your WIPS are so intriguing--are queries limited to one?? If it's one I would love to hear about dicktim (which autocorrect wants to turn into suck Tim) sex ed. And if it's not I also wanna know all about JayTimSteph falling in love!!

no not limited to one at all!

so the dicktim one was supposed to be done in time for dicktim week for the prompt “hands on sex ed” but… that didn’t end up happening, lmao. it’s aob, with alpha!tim & omega!dick~ dick invites tim over, but oh no, he’s out of suppressants and his heat is coming… won’t tim be a good alpha and stay with him? he promises he’ll teach him allllll about how to be a good alpha & please his partners~

Dick is a bad person.

He’s spent a long time trying to deny it, to believe it when his friends tell him he’s being too hard on himself, holding himself to ridiculous standards.

Those denials might work when he’s beating himself up after being stretched thin across cases and civilian obligations. They fall flat in the face of the low, insistent pull of preheat building in his core.

A preheat that should have been prevented by his suppressants.

The pharmacy auto-prompter had texted to remind him to pick up his refills three times before finally leaving him be. That had been a little over a month ago.

If anyone asks, Dick is still going to tell people he forgot.

Buying condoms on his last grocery run was just a coincidence.

Inviting Tim over shortly after he started to feel the tell-tale cramps in his gut and thighs was another one.

He’s pretty sure people will believe him. Dick will be the only one who knows the truth.

He’s gotten accustomed to living with guilt over the years. He thinks he can handle this too.

Tim shows up five minutes early. He lets himself in through the front door. The lack of traps has his brow furrowing adorably before Dick slots himself into Tim’s space.

“Hey there, baby bird,” he greets, a touch softer than usual. He doesn’t need to tip Tim’s face up. By now, the baby alpha knows exactly what Dick wants, face flushed pink in anticipation.

Dick nuzzles him, rubbing the tips of their noses together before nosing against his cheek. Tim smells good. The milky scent of puphood has almost faded entirely, drowned out by a warm, nutty scent. Dick’s mouth waters. He wants to chase it to its source—tease out more of it, and the hint of alpha musk underneath.

It’s harder to pull away than normal. Dick does it anyway, ignoring the way his belly cramps.

Usually, this is when Tim ducks away, adorably pink cheeked as he excuses himself to put away his things or whatever other task he can cook up for himself in the moment.

Not today.

Today, Tim’s lashes flutter. He looks—almost dazed, the blue of his eyes hazy. His flush darkens… and then he drops his bag as he steps into Dick’s space.

They’re so close they’re almost touching. Dick can feel the warmth radiating off of Tim. He swallows, tongue darting out to wet his lips. He thinks Tim watches it—thinks his gaze lingers on his lips, but he can’t be sure.

It might just be a desperate, foolish hope.

Tim scents him. Dick hardly dares to breathe. His pulse quickens. He can feel it—can feel the flush in his skin grow warmer, the ache in his groin grow more pronounced.

It’s not like the scentings he gets from Bruce, or his team, or Babs. Tim is thorough about it. Deliberate. He lingers, until Dick is coated in his scent.

It feels wonderfully possessive—like Tim wants to leave no room for doubt as to who Dick belongs to.

More wishful thinking.

More likely it’s the mark of an inexperienced alpha. Tim is a pup still—much more likely to be scented than to do any scenting of his own.

Still.

Dick clings to the fantasy. If all goes well, after all, it might just become reality.

and jaytimsteph i shared a little bit about here! but have another snippet bc i really love this wip, haha. writing steph’s pov is sooo fun!

Jason’s apartment is one of Steph’s favorite places to be. It’s open and spacious without feeling empty; well-decorated without feeling cluttered. Comfy-but-mismatched furniture and books tucked into every out-of-the-way space. Large windows letting in lots of natural light, exposed brick walls, hardwood floors. Swords and knives on the wall; healthy, vibrant plants on every surface; mementos from various countries on shelves.

And it was clean. Steph was pretty sure he dusted. (Which. Steph couldn’t think about that too long without picturing maid uniforms, and honestly. What was it about these two that turned her into a horny teenage boy? Ridiculous.)

Steph shows up at six with the brownies tucked under her arm. Jason welcomes her in with a smile, looking unfairly handsome in an old, faded tee and sweats. His socks have cats on them; grey ones, wearing chunky black glasses.

“Is that my shirt?” he asks as she steps in.

Steph pauses, looking down. Sure enough, the flannel she’d thrown on over her lounge clothes is Jason’s.

“Oh. Oops.”

She doesn’t even remember borrowing it.

Or who she borrowed it from—it’s equally as likely that she could have gotten it from Tim or even Cass. The three of them basically share a closet, which is also full of pilfered items.

Jason snorts. “It’s fine. It looks good on you.” His eyes sweep over her, but don’t linger—no matter how much Steph wishes they would.

[curious about my wips? send me an ask about one of the ones listed here]

[skylar-jay]

Okay gang, it's time. I wrote this in one go, so there will probably be mistakes lmao

Happy spooky month Sky Community :D

And without further ado, here is my Sky creepypasta!

Moths

They're what many of the people of this game call new folk.

Others call them Sparrows.

Either way, they are admired by all. For such a beautiful game, with such impact, when someone new joins everyone hopes they will reach the end.

Most do.

And many do not return.

But, tragically that is not what this story is about, not quite, at least.

This tale is of a much smaller scale. Something that happened to me almost a year ago.

~~~

Back then I had finally become a pro. Established a main outfit, made some OCs, and had a handful of friends I saw online regularly. Not very many, I've never been a social person.

On this particular day, I was candle running my normal route. Hitting both Prarie and forest, along with Geyser and Grandma.

However, on my way to Grandma's, I noticed the server was completely empty. Not a single sign of there being another person.

Just me.

Alone.

That was, until I saw the familiar sight of a broken star at the edge of my screen. The tell tale sign of someone losing all their light.

Not an uncommon sight in forest.

Naturally, as most people would do, I flew toward where the player was.

I hardly noticed when the music cut out.

But, I rarely had the music on anymore anyway, what, with how often I'll spontaneously start playing music.

As I suspected, I found an unlit skykid in the river.

They were just standing there.

I didn't think much of it, perhaps they had to go afk for a moment and forgot to move somewhere safer.

I placed my torch down, and decided to stick around to grab any wing light they might lose.

I stood there for quite some time, but not a single light was lost.

The skykid was still not moving.

But I noticed they weren't afk either. None of the indications of such were present.

Out of curiosity, I held my candle out to them.

Immediately they lit me, and I saw they were a moth.

Maybe they were confused?

I tried pointing them to the nearest light,

But

They just. Kept. Standing. There.

Eventually, I decided this wasn't worth my time. Grandma was starting soon, and they were probably just a veteran trying to troll someone.

I flew away, intending to go straight to Grandma's.

But I was back beside the moth.

...okay?

Perhaps I just lagged. My game doesn't always run very smoothly.

I tried again.

But...

I was right back in the same spot.

Maybe I was going too fast?

I tried walking away, but, while my skykid woud have the walking animation, they wouldn't move anywhere. I just kept rubberbanding back to the same spot.

The moth

Took a step toward me.

Then another

And another.

Until they were basically standing on top of me.

I tried moving my camera to get a better look at them.

Something was wrong.

Their cape had no stars. And I realized they were taller than me.

Their body stretched unnaturally upwards, neck and limbs becoming slightly too long.

The lights that should have been behind their mask were dark. The light on their chest wasn't there.

They- it crouched down and produced a deep call.

That sound...

Stars that sound.

It hurt. It hurt so bad.

My ears were ringing.

It hurt like hell.

Ithurtit h urt

Like it was clawing my eardrums out.

Like millions of skykids screaming together distorted through a broken speaker.

My ears were ringing. I had to take my headphones out.

I hadn't noticed that my light had run out. My poor skykid was unlit.

I could hardly see them through the black streaks the rain was leaving on my screen.

There was something looming above them.

I didn't know what it was going to do. I didn't care.

I closed the game.

~~~

It took me weeks to start playing again.

I was so afraid that I wouldn't even be able to.

But I had to give it a shot at least once.

Miraculously, it worked! I was back in the game.

Something was amiss.

My skykid looked different.

Instead of my usual outfit, they were in moth attire with a few exceptions.

The red earmuffs, the monk blindfold, and the feast scarf were also on it.

I was back to the default hight, and I only had one star.

One of my friends tped to me and said hi,

But I couldn't interact with the hug they offered.

I could move, but I couldn't use any of my emotes.

My chat wasn't working.

And...

I saw it.

The moth.

I didn't think.

Just closed the game.

~~~

Of course, I could never leave Sky forever.

The next time I logged on, everything was fine again.

I found that friend online and apologized. Told them I had been hacked.

Maybe I had. I still don't know.

Sometimes I'll still see it.

It'll creep up on me, do it's terrible call.

And every time, I stop playing for the day.

Usually the day after I will have that outfit, but relogging seems to fix it. Sometimes it takes a few tries.

I haven't heard of anything like this before. Nobody's talked about it, at least.

Perhaps they all stop playing after it happens.

I admit sometimes I want to as well.

I've had a few close calls, and I don't want to know what happens if I stick around when I see it.

I hope

I hope it leaves me alone.

I don't want to deal with it anymore.

[malrie]

something a bit early since I’m gonna be out tonight

20241023 / Fragments

What: these are fragments of what I assume are stories that the Grimms had heard of but weren’t enough to flesh out. The first is about a princess called Snowflower who, looking for herbs, encounters a swarm of bees. The bees don’t harm her and only added honey to her lips. The second is actually just this sentence:

The last is a fragmented story about these two sisters who inherited a gold cloth from their family. Anything they put in it turned to gold. Between the two sisters, one was stupid, and when she heard a seller outside trading new cloths for old cloths, she went to exchange it. There’s a parenthesis cut here that goes on to say the seller gets turned into a dog and the two sisters into hens, then somehow the girls eventually get turned back and beat the dog to death. The seller is described as a Jew. This is one of the handful of brutally anti-Semitic stories collected here.

Thoughts: It’s interesting to see the fragments included (also a story off the omitted tales), since it’s almost like seeing their process of collating all these stories from hearsay and very specific people. The last story premise is actually very similar to the plot point in the “original” (because it wasn’t originally in the Arabian Nights and allegedly added+stolen elsewhere by a white guy) where the evil vizier guy disguised as a lamp seller and said he’d trade any old lamp for a new one (I think this is how it went). I forgot if it was Aladdin or the princess or the king lmao but the lamp was traded due to the same kind of scheme in this fragment.

Recently I learned a bit more on how revered the Grimm fairytales were and were important as an example of German purity during the Nazi era, and that it was one of the only pieces of literature that wasn’t completely riddled with Nazi propaganda because it was mostly untouched. Definitely a horrible remnant of the time - on the Grimm Reading podcast they had a guest also posit that character/creature descriptions especially like that of Rumpelstiltskin were directly correlated to antisemitist rhetoric too.

[sevi007]

Tales of the Abyss part 46

Where we are on the run again, while I almost forgot WHY we are on the run

(The war. It's the war. I kind of forgot that in this whole mess)

Mohs comes to mind immediately, but I think Van's whole "destroy the outer lands" shtick is close behind

Mans is very straightforward, which is rare in this game!

I'm 99 percent sure we are a bit late for that. Looking at Natalia here

Awwww. Don't worry Natalia I'm still on the regicide route if he does reject you! (I'm half serious here)

UGH Mohs

Hey! At least part of us are royality or high ranking people! "Rabble" he says

Woah what. Sacrifical lamb or what

Dangabit, we should take Noelle with us from now on. Or hide her somewhere safe.

Kinda gay Dist! (Sorry I like teasing him)

Grow up, both of you lmao. Every time you get them on screen together, I feel like I'm back in school XD

Noice Luke's the sacrifical lamb

Theoretically, shouldn't they kill Asch - ah wait, I guess they do not know about the replica situation yet. Or. Let's say they DID know and did kill Asch. Would that then fulfill the score, or not, because he is now going by a different name? Sheesh, future prediciting is ROUGH Yulia has my sympathy

Yeah, what the fuck?!

Omfg - Okay I interrupt this dialogue here to rant. While I UNDERSTAND where Luke is coming from (hello Survivor's guilt mixed with existential crisis and a hint of depression) I was so heartbroken to hear this that I nearly yelled in anger. Of course he is going to twist everything in a way that he is the culprit here!

But let's look at this more rationally - the Score is shit. (Very rational right? lol). What I mean to say is, in the Score there is everything depicting in ONE LINEAR FUTURE. I personally always saw the future as something that is endless ocean of possibilities, of different routes that can be "taken" by making different decisions. The Score only covers the "main route" of this, the most likely one. And since people for thousands of years have been following the Score so faithfully, they have til now never deviated to a different future. Self-fulfilling prophecy and all that.

So say the Score is the main route - then not even that one is a great one! That one is only great for Kimlasca and its prosperity! Malkuth is described to be covered in war, Akzeriuth would have fallen anyway, and Asch would be dead. Who knows what would have become of our party members, or Engreve, or St. Binah, or who knows what else! Is that good? No.

And so far, we only know that Luke is not covered in the main future Yulia had seen. That could mean it's a good thing! We could steer toward a new future! Or at least he does not have to sit around and just take whatever the Score throws at him

Now, let me smack that boy for being an idiot. Or let Tear do it.

YES THAT

apply that brain-to-mouth-filter sometimes, Luke. It helps.

I like how everyone else just lets Tear rip into him XD

(I love this boy but sometimes he is painfully stupid - read as "extremely unknowing, young, and traumatized")

@magicmetslogic

@ahsokaisawesome

[gunnerkriggcritical]

also ive started rereading the series from the start :> so fun. i skipped a lot of whats in volume 2 because rhats the first physical copy i bought so im a bit bored of it but other than that its been so great :) i forgot about a lot of stuff that happened, like the camp they had (i loved that it was so funny). im in the equivalent of about volume 4 rn (my favourite <3) but online because i dont own a physical copy (i own 2, 3, and 8) which is harder for me to read but its worth it for my beloved. im super excited for the later part of 4 and 5 and 6 and stuff. those are my favourites ever i wish i owned them so badly (hoping to get them for my bday soon!!! super excited. i was struggling to think of birthday presents from my grandma because she likes getting me big things but this is good 👍). but yeah its super good. which volume/chapter/section of chapters is your favourite?? one of my favourite individual chapters is 34, faraway morning. :))

"Residential" is SO funny. It's such a great standalone chapter. I love the little moments in it, like the cow quietly saying "Get your hands off me," or Eglamore's exaggerated thumbs-up pose when he says "Alright, camping!" You have so much taste for volume 4 being your favourite. That was a phenomenal run for the comic; some of the very best chapters are in there, and some of Tom's best artwork too (the entirety of "Divine" looks insanely good). I really hope you get the other volumes for your birthday! Are you excited about the new collections being released?

I almost said the run of chapters from "The Coward Heart" to "Tall Tales" is my favourite, but that's like 20 chapters lmao. But there is some really, really good stuff in that era. "Faraway Morning" is SO good. I miss when there were standalone chapters like that. Hardly anything plotwise gets advanced, but it's a great glimpse into our main characters' states of mind, it's hilarious and the art is incredible, and reading through it is kind of like curling up under a blanket and drinking a cup of cocoa. It warms you through.

There are a lot of individual chapters like that in that era. I don't think a chapter like "Microsat 5" would happen today, for example. There would just be a couple of pages about them sending the satellite up and it would be done with. But instead we got a whole chapter about Annie's innermost thoughts and feelings, and insight into Tony, and some new information about who Donnie is, too. Same with "Divine," which tells us so deftly about how Annie, Kat, and Zimmy are feeling, indirectly through symbolism, implication, and Tom's masterful artwork. It seems every chapter back then, whether it was filler or crucial to the plot, did good work to flesh out Gunnerkrigg's characters and make them seem more rounded and real. I think that's why I like that era so much. Not only was the art really fun to look at, the world of Gunnerkrigg and the characters who populate it felt so human and fully realized.

I know I've answered this before, but I don't remember what I said, so I'm sorry if I give a different answer, lol. But I'm really not sure what I would say my very favourite chapter is at this point. "The Stone" is definitely up there. "The Coward Heart," "Fire Spike" and "Crash Course" too. There's so much to pick from. I truly love the comic so much and I'm glad you do too.

[scoundrellyfeline]

great homestuck rereading discussion - day T+3 (Feb 13)

first last next

(cw: irl pet death)

SF 00:52

(forwarded from #homosuck | 00:50) i might go twice as slow with my reread and read every 2 days because college is a PAIN

also placing this here for future me:

also thinking about transcribing this to my website

actually it might be smart to copy this to my tumblr and then to my website

SF 13:34 (CW irl pet death)

just remembered i forgot to do the question for day 1: "do the inventory management shenanigans actually add anything to hometuck outside of padding?"

need to answer this :jadeAnnoyed:

also bella (old dog) was put down today and i feel really bad about what i said about her in #altgen i was having a terrible day then

she was almost 19 years old (may 3)

so yeah

i might not do catposting today out of paying respects

SF 13:49 (CW irl pet death

"do the inventory management shenanigans actually add anything to hometuck outside of padding?" - i think they might. theyre funny and make it seem more gamelike. i also like how it makes the characters flawed because they make mistakes. in all honesty i wish theyd done more with this in later upd8s/acts

ill continue with my day 2 reading later

SW 14:08

makin please im going as fast as i can :crybaby:

SF 14:11

day 2 lets go :33

[Ah, of course! The RAZOR! It's all so simple, you wonder why you didn't...] john no!!!

also thinking from now on im going to put quotes in [] to make it easier to read

ok figured out how to do gifs. now john can get bonked forever >:33

[Let's take this from the top.] okay... sounds good...

[You take three GLASS SHARDS in quick succession and duck for cover.

Your SYLLADEX rains devastation on your room from above.

And now that your cards are packed with glass, you probably don't want to do that again any time soon.] lmao john youre killing me (and anyone else in your room :PP)

[You open the package. There is something suspicious inside.

Something suspiciously dirty and smelly.] oh? OH???

[It is a STUFFED BUNNY. Much like the one held hostage briefly by Malkovich's Cyrus "The Virus" while taunting hard-luck protagonist Cameron Poe. And strikingly similar to the one scooped up from the soot of a burning Vegas strip by Cage's Poe and offered to his daughter, a gesture symbolic of a tattered exterior surrounding a heart of gold. Poe wasn't much to look at. But he was a good man.

But no, it is not merely LIKE that bunny. According to this NOTE OF AUTHENTICITY, it is the VERY SAME BUNNY.]

LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

wonder who that is...

oop, another pesterlog to read

[TT: It looks like you managed to retrieve the beta. Excellent.

TT: I'm going to try to connect.] i was about to say a "she must be psychic or something" joke but then i realized that TT was probably looking at the screen and waiting for John to come online so its a moot point *shrugs*

[TT: I've heard tales of this wretched creature often. Its Homeric legend is practically ensconced in the fold of my personal mythology by now.] TTs going to be one of my favorite characters i can already tell :33

HOLY SHIT OKAY EVERYBODY STAY CALM ITS FINALLY HAPPENING!!!

wicked beats!!! i am PUMPED!!!!! :DD

love me some semi-interactive media(brb checking out how far im supposed to read again)p247 is a bunch i still have to get through @~@SF 18:06           (also i forgot the timestamp for the above but it was a little after 17:42 i think. ill go with 17:42 for the above and be better about timestamps in the future)SF 18:07           ok back to sburbSF 18:07           time to select the magic chest ig

SF 18:08           theif! THEIF!!!

SF 18:09           [TT: I will try to be more careful next time.] im going to hold her to that lol

SF 18:11           another happy john :DD

SF 18:11           literally his face ==> :D

SF 18:11           heheheh :DD

SF 18:12           [You find your missing STACK FETCH MODUS, and quickly reapply it to your SYLLADEX. You can now opt for either the STACK or QUEUE modus any time.] amazing amount of progress! this will def be useful later (i hope)

SF 18:13           my GOG... its the fortnite storm!!!

SF 18:14           [JOHN abjures the meddlesome cursor.] :PP lol

SF 18:15           LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

SF 18:16           also new newspost. could be interesting or funny

SF 18:16           three more videos? okay i guess. lets watch them ://

SF 18:18           bro is literally colonel sassacre i think "ha HEE ho HOO"

SF 18:21 funniest one yet imao

SF 18:22           also thats only 2 videos. uhhhhhh wheres the third??? ',:<<

SF 18:24           w/e i still have a bunch to get through

SF 18:25           me when the sims

SF 18:26           idk why but this gif is cracking me up

SF 18:26           blink-BLINK blink-BLINK blink-BLINK :PP

SF 18:27           [You don't know what the heck this thing does, but it looks neat!] he just like me fr fr

SF 18:28           [TT: You should have received both in separate envelopes. I am running both on my computer right now.

EB: what??

TT: Did you get another envelope in the mail?

EB: no!

TT: Once you install the server and establish a connection, I'm sure you will be able to manipulate my environment in the same manner.

TT: Are you sure you didn't get it?

EB: oh man.

EB: i think i might know where it is.]

SF 18:29           cue image of that one cat meme with the forgetting music

SF 18:30           hes just a lil guy :3(:D)

SF 18:32           she put him in time out :,<<

SF 18:33           ...

SF 18:34           [EB: why is the floor shaking?

EB: are you dropping more stuff in my house?

TT: Yes. Two more large gizmos.] the astute observerrrrr

SF 18:35           his face... its so stupid. the utter gooberyness of it lol

SF 18:36           ok i need to stop for now but ill continue later (currently on page 158)

[opqrstuv04]

Get to know you game! Answer the questions and tag 9 people you want to know better.

Tagged by @theloopus AAND @aheathenconceivably HI GUYS! <33

Last song listened to: last song I sought out because I wanted to listen to it was “Good Morning” from the Singin’ in the Rain soundtrack LMAO because I was having a hard time getting my morning started!! Currently listening to Elle me Dit by MIKA writing this :)

Currently reading: Tales Before Tolkien, it’s an anthology of a bunch of short stories that either directly inspired Tolkien or were connected/related to his works. It’s really neat! My favorite story from it so far is Richard Garnett’s “The Demon Pope,” a funny 1880s story about a guy who makes a deal with the Devil to become Pope and then tricks the Devil.

Currently watching: Doctor Who it’s Doctor Who. Always. Currently nearing the end of 11’s time with the Ponds and you guys I am… kind of over it TBH!!!! Like what do you MEAN they stick around for another season?? 11’s grandiose “old god” complex stops being interesting after the 400th time a scene plays out with no consequences for him it was. Much more interesting when 9 was just telling Daleks to kill themselves and 11 was telling Amy he picked her up to have somebody to admire him. I’m ready for 12 :( I’ve also been doing a movie night w my roommate every week!

Currently obsessed with: I’m relistening to The Adventure Zone: Balance and I forgot how much I absolutely loved it. I’m almost done with Balance and it’s really kick started my character design ability back into gear (🙌🏻), umm and otherwise I am obsessed with going to the farmer’s market every Sunday and trying to get this penny plant to propagate. Because of this and other things my friends are obsessed with telling me I am in my “grandma phase.” Also playing a lot of TOTK 👍🏻👍🏻

Tagging people time >:) @dykebeckett @loneliestcactus @cipher-fresh @dovand @leo-undrgrnd @wellsbering @pigeonse @pyreorpyre @cupothi + anyone who wants to!!!! Have fun go wild have a good day

[caliburn-the-sword]

tlc winter last reactions

no final thoughts because i NEVER have final thoughts. they simply stew around in my head as time goes by and i post as we go

jacin's not gonna die he's a main character. can't wait for aimery to eat shit

yay!! scarlet to the rescue!!!

HOLY SHIT WINTER USED HER LUNAR GIFT OMG

honestly i thought her thoughts were still really muddled like she had lunar sickness. but she's just killed someone. and her character voice has changed ever so slightly. she's describing her surroundings much more than she ever did (she used to only ever describe her hallucinations, which contributed to the dream-like read of all her chapters)

CINDER CHAPTER. this smells like a final confrontation

omg thorne captured OF COURSE. really, this almost brings us back to where it all began, with thorne and cinder having a jailbreak together <3 i feel nostalgic for a book i only read a few weeks ago what

cinder please use the lunar gift PLEASE make her dance in burning hot shoes

so proud of cress for shooting thorne even if it wasn't because she wanted to

NO SCARLET NO WOLF (they came in and got mind controlled silly gooses)

ik this is serious but this has gotta be the strangest duel. lol. i'm sorry (cinder and levana pointing their guns at their own heads because of the lunar gift. i could literally hear the ten duel commandments while reading the whole scene)

NO CINDER NO (cinder got stabbed because she prematurely thought she won and levana is a tricky bitch banking on the fact that everyone knows she's vain)

omg kai <3

okay since we've immediately cut to scarlet talking to her friend i think that everyone was perfectly safe and everyone is fine <3 hope my delulu becomes trululu (it did)

i'm glad scarlet is the rieux's hero

aww maha's death flag flowers <3 no one talk to me i'm emotional

ACKNSDJCKSDHF THE REFERENCE TO PICKING WILDFLOWERS FROM LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD I'M GONNA EXPLODE

OMG I WAS SO RIGHT BACK WHEN READING SCARLET, WOLFLET ARE TOTALLY ALSO A RETELLING OF BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

uh oh are they gonna fuck. please don't fuck i'm in chem and also there's a reason i don't read sarah j maas and whoever else writes a lot of smut

thank goodness for iko AND OMG CINDER'S ALIVE YAY CRESS IS ALIVE

thorne lost fingers. rip

very interested to see adri and peony

YAY THE TREATY OF BREMEN (i completely forgot about it)

with winter asleep like this this might be the climax of the little snow white fairy tale more than getting the cure for letumosis was

omg. jacin is not an orphan. perhaps miss marissa meyer does not hate parents as much as i thought she did. i think it's just him and thorne that aren't orphans. actually cress would have a mother out there somewhere but she's a horrid bitch. i don't remember ANY mentions of scarlet's mother, just that her father sucked, but since she never had her mother i assume her mother also abandoned her. but perhaps now because she's a hero they will reunite i hope jacin gets his chance to become a doctor as he wanted. I BET HE WILL REMAKE GARAN'S DEVICE AND CURE WINTER OF LUNAR SICKNESS

OMG JACIN'S GONNA KISS HER IT'S JUST LIKE SNOW WHITE

omg no don't tell me winter has lost her memory

omg kinney is cinder's personal guard. i had a feeling that would happen since he's the only named guard other than jacin LMAO

slayed. cinder didn't owe her stepfamily ANYTHING. while i personally would have loved her to yell and scream and rip them a new one, but that was so good for her. i'm not even mad

i find it strange that kai himself finds formalities were weird. he was literally raised royal. now i'm gonna write a speculative fic of him being sent to a completely ordinary school in disguise to receive formal education with the commoners as a lesson (which wouldn't exactly be supported by canon considering his dad was a bit yikes. perhaps his mum was totally chill and she was the one insistant on it. and then when she died his dad pulled him out again)

I KNEW IT THE CHIP WAS INSIDE IKO AND I'M A GENIUS

i wish i could've seen the linhs get their come uppance instead of royalties but i'll find it within myself to live with this. hopefully peony learnt a lesson and won't turn out to be a major bitch like her mum. but somehow i highly doubt that

yes. thorne kind of deserves to get pardoned after all he's done for earth. and i have a feeling cinder is gonna negotiate his rampion back. however. i think it would be REALLY funny if after ALL this they just sent him to prison lmao

cress PLEASE become the chief information security officer at kai's palace like he planned on asking, i'm BEGGING you

somehow this makeout scene was even MORE uncomfortable than the last. i feel nauseous

okay in summation of how uncomfortable cresswell make me: the fact she rarely uses his name and only calls him captain. idk if this is just me only ever calling teachers miss or sir and other authority figures sir or ma'am but it literally just feels to me that she's recognising him as an older, more experienced or powerful figure. which is exactly the imbalance (that has come with their age gaps and experience gaps) which is the reason for problem in the first place. god. yikes

gamekeeper winter. i like sound of that (update: i like diplomat winter even more)

“Though I might play fetch, depending on the prize.” jacin has a pet kink confirmed??? (this is a joke. god i can't stand these people sometimes)

i didn't comment on cinder borrowing winter's dress before because i thought that maybe it might've been too big but cinder wasn't vain enough to notice or that it had been hemmed without mentioning, but now that it has been specifically mentioned that cress's dress HAD to be hemmed it's canon that cinder and winter are the same size. i can't believe that i have not one but TWO confirmed flat queens. and winter is canonically the prettiest girl alive

“I was just thinking about the good future,” he said. “The one with you in it.” I'M SCREAMING SHAKING THROWING UP NO ONE TALK TO ME

thorne and cinder high five <3 it really started just the two of them

it is so wattpad of iko to have eyes that change colours based on her mood AND I LOVE IT

ACKGHNDIX THE FOOT. WE'VE COME TO THE END OF THE CINDERELLA STORY. FULL CIRCLE

YES YES YES YES YES REPUBLICAN LUNA FTW I LOVE DEMOCRACY FUCK MONARCHISTS. I LOVE THIS AND I'M SO HAPPY. now it's kai's turn

goodbye foot

WAIT NO WAY THAT'S THE END WTF I TURNED THE PAGE AND JUST NOTHING. this is a federal crime.

only major thought is aww cinder didn't get to torment levana with the lunar gift like the red hot shoes. but also. i completely understand why it didn't and couldn't happen, and i was never expecting it to.

anyway now that i've read all the main stuff will it be safe to start following everyone back without getting major spoilers?? i would LOVE to continue this with stars above and the graphic novels?? (which aren't appearing on goodreads as part of the series for some reason) but most unfortunately i have exams coming up in less than a month and will probably need to put reading on hold until november if i want to stay sane. this was fun while it lasted and i can't wait to dive back into tlc once i'm free<3

@eddisfargo @francforever @winterrhayle @winterpinetrees @shellyseashell @luna-maximoff-22 @queenjazz7 @mtmousie @dramatic-jellybean

[thesimplicityofchance]

Okay this was from last week and I forgot to send but I am catching up on everything from this week rn ! Watching Arifureta, Seirei Gensouki, Nina the Starry Bride, 365 Days to the Wedding, As a Reincarnated Aristocrat, I'll Use My Appraisal Skill to Rise in the World, I'll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History, Tying the Knot with an Amagami Sister, Shangri-La Frontier, Demon Lord, Retry!, DAN DA DAN, Re:ZERO, The Do-Over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor

You are Ms. Servant - If you like female assassin you'll love this one !

DEMON LORD 2099 - He really just goes off like idk its a fucking vibe but the aether vat death damnnn not him going dragon mode hahaha stopp

Good Bye, Dragon Life - Okay not them grieving souls on dragon life hahaha stoppp they have me so fucked up haha

Let This Grieving Soul Retire - The fucking chimera dudeeeee haha I can't ...Killiam

The Healer Who Was Banished From His Party, Is, in Fact, the Strongest - Honestly the fire goddess okayyy I think this show is gonna just keep getting better

The Most Notorious "Talker" Runs the World's Greatest Clan - I am screaming over this anime wtf even .... like losing it !

I will give you are my servant a try. I just finished watching all the new anime out this weekend.

Omg okay so like yeah! That form in the vat fight for demon lord was amazing! I love his attitude, because like he almost seems like an idiot haha. But that fight proved he is definitely just lacking knowledge or care for certain edict. The new episode was really good! I love their new little apartment I felt so bad for machina losing her apartment she deserves a new place 😭😭.

Alright soo that whole play in the healer one! And his horn in that from in the hydra fight. I think he may be the dragon from the tale with the blue haired maiden. Like it's dormant inside him. It's got such a oddly chill vibe to it though it has been really nice.

Let this grieving soul retire and the most notorious talker definitely take the cake for best anime this season. Like both of the main characters are amazing in their own right.

Krai may say he doesn't have any power. But I'm pretty sure without him as the anchor the rest of grieving souls would be causing unknown fuckin terror across the lands lmao. Not a single one so far seems anywhere close to normal. Stiri literally used and turned a bunched of dudes in to a single puppet and went teehee it could be better next time 👀. Like 👀👀. Dude is the only thing stopping 5 world ending catastrophes.

Also the whole reveal of the fuckin masks omg 😂😂 .

[cinemaocd]

Tag Reviews Vol. 1

November Films Watched:

Irma Vep (1996): #ok we have finally watched this it has been on the list for more than five years #interesting commentary on the film industry-angsty arthouse movie that makes fun of angsty arthouse movies #revealing a wriggling mass of hippocrites #paranoiacs and burn outs behind the cameras#and one isolated woman who was being fetishized both as part of the parody and by the film itself #it was really ahead of its time lmao

Ladies in Retirement (1944): #yeah this is really intresting#kind of a hard sell after recently watching arsenic and old lace which is almost a direct parody of this #but some interesting performances and I love having women led stories where the main disruption is a man...such a lesbian vibe about this#especially Elsa Lanchester who stomps around tidying the moors and making ugly arrangements of shells and plants and driftwood in the house#basically me if I had no job or husband/child#anyway...this was interesting though not a hit with the boys and I can see why I guess. Ida Lupino is something to watch in it.

Mermaids (1990): #it's a whole family of manic pixie dream girls and bob hoskins has to try to keep them from murdering each other

#you know I love a bob hoskins lead dramedy#also I learned watching this that my son pronounces “cher” with a hard “CH”#(imagine baltimore accent saying “chair” and that's how he says it I swear)

The Big Sleep (1978): #oh man this was dreadful#the earlier Mitchum as Marlowe film-farewell my lovely--is a classic and one of the great noirs of all time#this follow up...is not#for one thing they just skipped the period setting and moved the whole thing to England because it's still the 1930s in England at all time#the only thing going for it is that it is way easier to follow than the far more stylish and famous 1946 film#thanks to watching this I actually KNOW what happens in the fucking big sleep

Working Girls (1931):#working girls#dorothy arzner#dorothy hall#judith wood#this was good#comedy but very grounded in reality and feels really ahead of its time like something that would be make in the 60s to be honest#pre-code hollywood. #this is a little gem of a comedy...very low key and with a grittier outlook than you'd expect from a few years later#pre-code hollywood#judith wood is really pretty good in this I don't understand why her career died when the code came in

Time Without Pity (1957): #still photos don't michael justice he is such a mess in this and not in a hot way at all#it's the total dissolution of a man's body and soul before your eyes the whole thing is kind of torture to watch from beginning to end#but the cast is stellar and joseph losey cranks up the tension and doesn't let go for a second#without pity indeed#also Dirk Bogard is in it for .5 seconds#as are joan plowright and peter cushing

Canterbury Tale (1944): #Oh I forgot I actually like this movie even though it's slow and ham fisted but I don't mind the whole glue man thing #I kind of wanted Eric Portman not to be real but to turn into some kind of sprite and disappear #Anyway I've been in a very Cahtedral-y mood since being in the old country #and also revisiting the Mirror and the Light#anyway dennis price is really underused in this #but it just makes you appreciate him all the more when he does appear

The Big Sleep (1946): #this film is really confusing but worth making multiple passes at just for the dialog/interactions which honestly every scene is great

[goblins-riddles-or-frocks]

No Hellsing because I sadly don't know her but Nikolina + 9 for the 50 tropes thing? ✨

9. There’s only one bed and we sleep as far away as possible from each other but wake up cuddling

AFDHFFHJD so… answering this nearly a full year later. I had this like 90% done in my drafts for ages and forgot to actually post it. I only remembered because I was scrolling through my inbox for any fun prompts I might do and saw the ask.

Anyway, ambiguously set at some point during R&R after the gang escape the white cathedral and meet up with Nikolai again. Let’s pretend Nikolina got separated from the rest somehow lmao

Featuring a Darkling tether cameo bc I am who I am as a person, I guess!

***

Alina didn’t mind sharing a room— it was more cost efficient, and likely safer if they had to leave in a hurry. Sharing a bed was a little more uncomfortable though.

“I think the innkeeper may have misunderstood,” Nikolai said slowly.

“It’s fine,” she grumbled, too exhausted to care very much. She sank heavily onto the one bed, unraveling the shawl around her neck that hid the collar. “It’s only one night.”

“I could try to get another room?”

She shook her head. That would just draw more attention to them, the last thing they needed was to be memorable.

They had been mostly camping out in the woods at night, trying to steer clear of populated areas as best they could. They wouldn’t have been staying at the inn at all if Sturmhond didn’t have contacts they were intending to meet in the morning. Contacts that might even help lead them to the rest of the group. Alina hoped they were safe.

Nikolai sat down beside her. “I’ll have you know, I snore horribly.”

“Wonderful.”

He gave the bed an exaggerated pat. “It doesn’t seem like a very good bed, to be honest. I don’t think it even has fleas. I could just take the floor.”

She snorted. “Don’t be ridiculous. It’s no use if you’re stiff as a board in the morning. What if you have to run away because you bad mouthed someone?”

“That would be unfortunate.”

“You just stay on your side, and I’ll stay on mine.” And truthfully she was too exhausted to care much about propriety at the moment. And sleeping on an actual bed was a very enticing prospect. She suspected Nikolai was probably feeling the same way.

“I can’t wait to tell Oretsev you insisted on sharing a bed.”

She turned to glare at him. “I could still change my mind. No gloating.”

He held up his hands placatingly, but his grin didn’t slip. “Fine, fine. I’ll leave that part out of the tales of our daring exploits.”

“I just hope we’ll get a chance to recount tales at all,” she replied.

And that was that for the moment. They busied themselves the rest of the evening taking the opportunity to replenish their supplies, and prepare for the travel yet ahead of them. It was a careful thing, they both had recognizable faces. And the last thing they wanted was to be caught before the rendezvous in the morning.

Alina took her turn washing while Nikolai ventured out again to get food.

She’d quickly dressed again and was brushing out her wet hair when she heard it, smooth as silk, almost a whisper. “Where are you, Alina?”

Somehow, she didn’t jump. Though she felt the Darkling’s cool gaze on her. Though her stomach twisted with sudden dread. “I think telling you defeats the point of being in hiding.”

“Why run, Alina? You know I’ll find you eventually. The longer you take the less inclined I am to show you mercy.”

“I’ve seen what you call mercy. I don’t want it,” she bit out, just as the door opened.

“Suit yourself,” he replied, calmly, and with that the apparition dispersed.

Nikolai walked in some time later, carrying a tray of food from the kitchen downstairs. Slim pickings, but that had been the case for awhile now, with the drawn out civil war. And frankly she didn’t have much of an appetite after the Darkling’s brief visit. But she forced herself to choke down what she could.

To his credit, Nikolai seemed to sense that her mood had turned since earlier, if not the reason why, and so he didn’t make many attempts at conversation. She was grateful for it.

Then there was the business of sleeping. It was less awkward than she was expecting. She told herself she was too exhausted and in her own head to care very much.

So she extinguished the lamp, and lay down on her own side of the bed, carefully turned away while Nikolai changed. It was likely testament to his own weariness that he hadn’t made any quips or half hearted attempts to flirt with her.

She listened to the rustle of clothes and then the soft footfalls as he approached. The listing of the mattress. Despite everything she was very aware of how close he was, even when carefully keeping to his own side. The already cramped room just seemed smaller in the dark.

“This is preferable to sleeping on the floor,” he admitted, finally.

“Much easier on your delicate, princely sensibilities, right?” she replied without turning around. She was almost a little afraid to.

He only laughed.

Still, it didn’t take very long for Alina to fall asleep.

She woke some time before dawn, disoriented. Not quite sure where she was or how, except that it was more comfortable than she was used to.

Her memory caught up to her about a minute later. And the realization that she was very much not on her own side of the bed. Just who she was clinging to, and whose shoulder she’d buried her face in. From the steady rise and fall of his breath, Nikolai appeared to still be asleep. Fortunate, he’d never let her live this down.

Gingerly, she tried to disentangle herself without disturbing him. With any luck, they simply wouldn’t talk about this in the morning.

Send me a ship and a prompt for a mini fic!

[meraki-yao]

Omg I don’t like the live adaptions for Disney movies across the board so I just didn’t want to watch the little mermaid and I was so worried people would think it was because of racism! I’m sure she was great in the role and I absolutely did not care that they cast a black woman in the role but I wasn’t going to watch the movie for a million other reasons! None of them having to do with Halle! (Sorry Halle!)

I... I can freaking write an essay on my opinions on live-action Disney remakes. The only one I see of any actual value, which ended up becoming one of my all-time favourite movies, is 2015 Cinderella. It wasn't a one-to-one remake of the original, the costume and cinematography actually looked like a fairy tale book. It also improved upon the flaws of the original, namely giving the Prince a clear personality and backstory, giving Ella and Kit a chance to connect before the ball, cutting down the animal bits, giving Lady Tremaine an understandable yet logical reason for her behaviour, and give Ella a stronger, clearer character as well. It might as well be a new Cinderella movie, separate from the 1950 animated one.

The rest have a lot of flaws and do not add much to the original story while actively diminishing certain messages in the original.

(Spoilers for live-action remakes of Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King and The Little Mermaid, also I went on a rant again lmao)

In Beauty and the Beast 2017, Gaston is painted more sympathetically as he actually helped Maurice, and Belle comes off as arrogant and impolite. Instead of the library being a gift from the Beast to Belle which was a monumental change in their relationship, the library was just Beast judging Belle's taste in books and showing off how well-read he is. It isn't endearing.

In Lion King 2019 (holy shit I'm mad at this one, I mentioned this before but I was such a Lion King fangirl when I was younger) they removed Be Prepared, one of the best Disney Villain songs ever, and took away the menacing factor of Scar. Scar bitch slaps Mufasa and “Long Live the King” was more or less shouted, which just takes away the horror of the sudden, quiet betrayal of the original whispered "Long Live the King" and killing Mufasa by letting go and having him fall to his death. Daylight was present throughout the entire "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" scene. Mufasa didn't appear as this almost religious, God-like figure in the clouds, it was just the clouds because of realism, and that makes the scene so much weaker because there's not a figure to visualize. The CGI was so focused on getting the anatomy right that they completely forgot how animals emote (animals can be extremely expressive) so all of them appear expressionless

In The Little Mermaid 2023, the musical numbers were arranged and filmed/edited in a way that takes away the charm of the original. For example, in "Under the Sea", during the bridge where Sebastian ticks off a list of different sea creatures performing, instead of showing said sea creatures during each line like the lyrics intend, it just shows random stuff randomly. They added an instrumental break that slowed down the song's momentum and didn't rebuild it. And why is Ariel singing Under the Sea when she's trying to leave the sea??? Also, I usually love Lin Manuel Miranda's songs, big fan of In the Heights, Hamilton, and the music of both Moana and Encanto, but the new songs he wrote for the movie didn't add anything, and actually dragged the movie in places that should have been quicker, like Scuttle butt. The reason Triton came to terms with Ariel's longing for the land and gave her legs in the end is because he saw Eric kill Ursala for Ariel, which disproved his original opinions of humans being selfish, dangerous creatures. In the remake, 1, Triton straight up died when Ursala took his trident, so he didn't see the final battle at all 2, Ariel, a mermaid who has never been on a ship's deck before, heck from the movie I don't she even saw a functioning steering wheel, somehow managed to accurately steer a ship, in the middle of a storm and a giant whirlpool, while having no legs, that's not reasonable 3, even if Triton was there to watch, Eric didn't do shit in the final battle and was basically useless, so why would Triton change his mind? The whole point of Triton's trajectory in the original was him getting over his prejudice towards humans and learning to understand Ariel's perspective. That entire arc was rushed and more or less gone in the remake. And see how none of the issues I mentioned above have to do with casting Halle? It's entirely about the storytelling and the musical arrangements

Ok I did not mean to make this so long, I got carried away lol can you tell I'm passionate about the subject

Someday I think I'll write proper Disney essays

Tagging two of my Disney friends/mutual cuz I kinda wanna hear your opinions: @pippin-katz @lfg1986-2

[nyastyaraspurrtina]

Question for youuuuu

Hi! I have never actually listened to the mechanisms, but I’m a big tma fan and really like the very slight aus where it’s like the mechanisms were the archivists college band things, so I’ve read a lot of fanfic that basically references them with not a lot of context yk?

Also. Because I have watched some rusty quill stream vods on YouTube, I’m now getting like 9 second mechanisms clips recommended to me.

And. Last little thing. I am a big alt folk person, and last night I remembered this band I love that I basically totally forgot about and hadn’t been listening to for a bit, and went and just shuffled their songs and it was great. (Robert hallow and the holy men! If you were curious)

But. I was like scrolling through the similar artists, and the mechanisms showed up again.

So now partly because I just keep seeing them come up and partly because of curiosity. I’m tempted to actually check them out.

But I’m really bad with new music, just kind of in general I like my comfortable and familiar songs. And I know really nothing about them besides like. Some of their names and the whole like immortal space pirate thing. But like musically? I have like no info.

So basically uh.

What should I expect? What like. Kind of music would I be getting into? Is it worth it?

I’m asking mostly because I’m looking for someone to be enthusiastic so I have a reason to push my hesitancy against new things aside btw.

Sorry this is so long lmao, and thank you :)

OH MY GOD????? IM FUCKING HONORED THANK YOU

Okay so to start out with, they have 4 main albums. Once Upon A Time In Space, The Bifrost Incident, High Noon Over Camelot, and Ulysses Dies At Dawn. They tend to vary in terms of what their music sounds like, but they always have the same instruments, more or less. (Glockenspiel, flute, drums, sometimes Jonny on the harmonica, bass, guitar that I honestly cannot tell if it's electric or acoustic, viola, violin, Jessica Law's amazing vocals, and I think that's it but I'm probably forgetting something else). High Noon Over Camelot has a lot of Western influence, and is very folk-leaning-country, is the best way I can describe it?

You said you listen to TMA, so here's a couple people to know - Frank Voss and Jessica Law. Frank Voss plays Ashes O'Reilly, an arsonist who burned down their home planet and joined up with the Mechs. Here's the song with their backstory. It's very much like jazz, I think. In TMA, Frank Voss plays Basira Hussain. Jessica Law plays the Toy Soldier, a sentient wooden man (or, according to a tweet she made, a metal man that just looks wooden?) It essentially pretends to be alive, and will obey any order given to it. It pretended to be a rich lady's husband for a while, and then fell in love with an Angel - when it wasn't reciprocated, it ripped out the Angel's voice box. Not sure if it uses it as its own voice box, I forgot. No backstory song for TS sadly :(((. In TMA, Jessica Law plays Nikola Orsinov! And then there's Jonny Dville, first mate, killed his dad for money, killed the guy who paid him to kill his dad, burnt down the guy's casino, and joined up with the Mechs. Here's the song with his backstory. Not quite sure what genre that song falls under, sorry! Jonny D'ville is played by Jonny Sims, who is Jonathan Sims. Don't worry, it's really easy to remember /j.

Anyways, I'm gonna assume you're not very familiar with their whole shtick from what you said - basically, each of their albums tells a story, except for Tales To Be Told Vol 1 and 2. In those, all of the individual songs tell individual stories. There is Death To The Mechanisms, but I'd listen to that last. You can listen to the other albums in any order, though! There are some songs that are entirely narration, no singing. If that's not your thing, TheVoidSings on YouTube, who is an absolute SAINT, has a playlist of all the tracks that do NOT have that narration.

Now, the music type. WARNING FOR GUNSHOT NOISES IN ALMOST ALL THE ALBUMS. Not sure if that bothers you, but they do often have gunshot sound effects. If you like, I can compile a list of songs that have the gunshot effect so you can avoid it, if it would make it a no go for you. High Noon Over Camelot - Western. Heavy folk & country. Once Upon A Time In Space....not sure what to class it as. It's a mixture of things. It can be very loud and fast-paced, but sometimes slow? There's some songs that are like a waltz. Some are very fast and loud. The Bifrost Incident - the best thing I can class it as is "train". Very loud, fast-paced, but melodic in a way. Ulysses Dies At Dawn is heavy blues influence, kinda jazz? idk I don't really listen to jazz sorry :(. And while I am biased, it is ABSOLUTELY worth getting into. Like I said, if a whole album at once seems too intimidating, Tales To Be Told vols 1 and 2 have individual songs that each tell a story. Their music as a whole is always pretty loud and fast paced, so don't go into it expecting waltz, classical, slow and soft stuff.

I'm sorry this took me so long to answer 😭😭😭 I hope this is OK please let me know if you have any more questions!!!!!!

[anonanimal]

ok we watched the barbie movie and i must be ovulating because the emotional levers were successfully pulled and i did cry but i was also mad part of the time.

i'd say i have a few thoughts and questions about the depiction of ruth handler lol but i haven't put it into succinct enough words yet

interesting they'd do the jokes about earring magic ken and growing up skipper and uh whatever pregnant midge was called and do a joke about ruth handler's...tax evasion? did she really do tax evasion? but they didn't touch on bild lilli. maybe they can't

sooo barbie is a god and mattel are her... stewards. lmao? what the fuck is gonna happen in barbieland if god is not in her heaven... whatever. just like in preacher when god goes missing (yes i watched part of the preacher amc series with my mother). i feel like the "barbie is a god, she is every barbie and every barbie is her" would have been the explicit focus of MY barbie movie (what can i say, i love a good story about a god becoming human, it's the christianity i've been steeped in) but they kind of don't do much with it

actually ruth handler = god, barbie = jesus?

ken becomes a ... men's (ken's) rights activist. lmao?

anyone else think the car chase was filmed like a car commercial. like weirdly obviously so? i feel like product placement has come farther than this

they want people to say it's a gay or trans allegory sooooo bad between the birkenstocks and the "you don't get permission, it's something you discover about yourself" they want it sooooo bad ok you win i'm saying it. but i know you wanted me to say it. you won fuck off!!!!!! or maybe i'm reaching because it's easy to read the emotional journey of coming out to yourself in a general coming of age tale. but come on. i'm not that smart so if i'm picking up on someone wanting me to think something, they probably do. the only way this movie could have been gay would have been if the weird barbies led a new society.

so was this their way of saying they're debuting a line of kens with jobs...?

i liked the comedy of 2001 monolith barbie and the barbieland physical comedy stuff. maybe i should have rolled my eyes but i'm easy. rollerblading executives also killed

i liked the little twist that barbie's crisis was precipitated by being played with, not by a maturing child, but her mother. kind of in line with how the movie itself is an ad for the barbie brand for adults. there's quite a few moments that i thought had to be intentional references to the function of the movie itself in the real world, and they all felt weird and bad, like someone screaming "let me out!!!!!" i've forgotten a lot of them now because i'm adding this bit in an edit the next day.

*guy who has only seen south park voice* getting a lot of imaginationland vibes from this

i kind of expected for there to be like a joke about allan being in unrequited love with ken but i now think there probably was in an earlier draft and it didn't mesh with the final product and they had to nix it. or like surely someone floated it at least

you know they tried to save it from being too much about ken by having someone literally say "what about barbie's ending?" and then doing barbie's ending but...it was still kind of more about ken i think. he did a dance number for christ's sake. i almost forgot that barbie got to dance too, but barbie's dance was also mostly about ken wanting her to notice him. "he's just ken" "kenergy" "i am kenough" come on. i think the biggest laugh in the theater was actually the kenough hoodie. biggest laugh for me personally? sasha saying, (and i'm paraphrasing of course bc i'm not bothering to look it up) "are you two shining?"

i got SO close to killing the mood when we walked out by saying "hey lets google mattel factory working conditions right now" but i decided that was too far / probably in poor taste for me to flippantly use in post-movie discussion

the feminism 101 stuff was whatever. it made sense within the setting of the movie since america ferrera as a human had to introduce ideas into barbieland for them to take hold, and ideas just kind of manifest whatever happens in barbieland, but i'm very surprised they didn't do a joke like "gee i wish it was this easy in the real world" like how did they miss that opportunity, it would have worked. or maybe they did and i missed it because i had my hater goggles on

sooo velveteen rabbit?

all in all, as a member of the moviegoing public, i guess i got what i wanted. an experience that left me with something to think and talk about.

p.s. this was, for me personally, an ad for ryan gosling. i didn't find him interesting until now. they really got me there.

p.p.s. obviously any criticism i have of the like existence of the barbie movie is hypocritical because i haven't said it about gundam (yet)