#i don't actually care who's driving

[harbingersecho]

they had to pause their morning workout to drive wash to the ER at 7 am bc he somehow got hit by a car while getting mail. there's traffic. maine fiddles with the radio and carolina is imagining herself parkouring over the other cars

[essektheylyss]

was reminded that people get riled up about this the way they get riled up about pineapple on pizza and honestly, as a knowledge org nerd, it is weird and unnecessary 😌

[everypanelofizuku]

Chapter 83 - Loss

[smoshingatut]

I'm kinda tired of dungeon meshi fans blatantly misinterpreting Kabru's goals, motivations, and character so they can ship him with Laios...like obviously it's awesome if you enjoy Laikabu but can you nooot twist Kabru's intentions for involving himself with the guy who constantly triggers his monster trauma and pisses him off so bad he gets brain damage so that he turns into "the guy who wants to suck Laios's dick" as his entire character? I've even seen people cut off Kabru's words to make it seem like he is admiring Laios because it would disrupt that narrative

[bookaddictedrose]

Spectacular rant

What is it with people making their newest books/experts much more explicit than they used to be?

I've seen a lot of people complain about this, but Night in Prague was not the mystery/adventure we were promised, it was practically just non-explicit smut with a side of riddles and half an answer.

And now Spectacular?

Scarlett and Julian were so cute...and Tella genuinely made me want to throw the book at a wall. I already hated her previously, but at least she had a few redeeming features back then. Oh, by the way, could you perhaps move the New Year back a few days? I haven't picked out the right present for my negligent boyfriend who doesn't even like this holiday ｡⁠◕⁠‿⁠‿⁠◕⁠｡

And then whatever the actual hell happened with the kidnapping thing? It was so confusing to read, and it had such strange themes?

Spoiler in case anybody hasn't read it, but either way it's not worth reading.

It starts with Tella being drugged, then handed a revealing outfit while surrounded by a bunch of clueless and brainwashed girls, who she doesn't even try to help.

And then they're led one by one into some kind of auction or audition where they basically have to act like a stripper.

Tella's tied up and blindfolded where she's led into a room with the guy who arranged it, and by the way she has no idea who this is, and at some point she's straddling him and being very intimate, and also did I mention she doesn't know who he is at all besides the fact that he had her kidnapped and a bunch of girls acting as prostitutes?

And then she finds out it was, in fact, Legend who did all of the above, but oh, it's okay, because it's my handsome and strong boyfriend who just violated me in multiple different ways loves me.

This is not the Caraval I remember?

[orcelito]

I've been working on Finally finishing Naruto Shippuden (after being a Naruto fan for nearly 15 years), & I just finished episode 420. And I have some THOUGHTS about the "Naruto is the reincarnation of Ashura" thing. This started as just me rambling for my normal liveblog posting, but I had a LOT of thoughts about this actually, so I am presenting them to u all Now.

So. Naruto meeting the Sage of Six Paths! Cool!!! I'm finally learning about Naruto being the reincarnation of Ashura, which... honestly is not a choice that I like very much. Narratively speaking, I mean. The Point of Naruto's journey was that he was the underdog, the bottom of his class, the orphan that everyone hated and made fun of. Through hard work and perseverance, he managed to drag himself from being a complete social outcast to someone generally really loved and respected. That's compelling!!! It means a lot!!!

But then the show is like. "Oh...actually, he's the son of the fourth hokage. And Also, he's the reincarnation of the son of the literal creator of ninshuu aka the precursor of modern ninjutsu." I mind him being Minato's son less as a narrative choice (for reasons I will get into shortly), but making him Ashura's reincarnation?? I've got Several things that bug me about that.

So First, for him being Minato's son. It's not like that's ever Actually given him any sort of status (since most people don't know), & Minato was also kind of just a random guy?? Just incredibly skilled, enough so to become the 4th hokage. And then there's also Kushina, descended from a very successful and very Feared clan that ended up almost entirely killed bc of that fear. Naruto being an Uzumaki means great power, huge chakra reserves (not even including the extra chakra he gets from Kurama), & some innate skills (that Naruto mostly didn't inherit, but one can play pretend sometimes). BUT ALSO, they were almost entirely killed off. He's a survivor of his clan's genocide that happened well before he was even born, and he doesn't even REALIZE it yet. So even though being Minato's son means he's the son of a very influential person, it doesn't give him the same leverage as being a Senju or Uchiha would. And the clan he Does belong to bc of Kushina does not give him status either, bc they're almost all fuckin Dead. And we know that Minato is a Namikaze, but as for what that actually *means*.... it's basically nonexistent. There is no mention of a Namikaze clan. Minato was just a prodigy in his own right.

SO.... All that is to say that while appending Naruto's orphan story with a "well, Actually, his parents were very powerful and well respected" does discount it a little bit, it's still not Especially unique in terms of what other people in their world may experience (there are other descendants of current and/or former kage + Many other powerful clans running around) OR in the benefits that it gives him (essentially nothing, outside of his physical strength and the inheritance of Kurama himself)(which inheriting Kurama did grant him access to IMMENSE power, but it also was the source of So Much of his suffering growing up, so I think it balances out).

The "reincarnation of Ashura, son of the Sage of Six Paths" thing tho... that one really kinda does. At that point, Naruto is no longer just the orphaned son of two respected shinobi & the current jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi (something special, but not entirely original, given that there are Other jinchuuriki who are descendants of powerful shinobi). He is now something that NO ONE ELSE ALIVE can be. It is saying that He, above Everyone Else, is special in this way. Outside of Sasuke lol, but I'll touch on that in a moment.

It just feels kinda cheap. It's cool I guess, but at this point it feels like we've completely lost the Plucky Orphan who works hard to overcome his circumstances plot. It's saying that he was Always one of a kind, he was Always destined to become Someone Special (or that he was, in fact, special the whole time). It removes the importance of his hard work in the equation. It makes it so that this is no longer something he earned for himself, but rather something that was a Given, since he is, of course, Ashura's reincarnation.

Cheap. It's cheap. And I don't like it.

Then we get into Sasuke being the reincarnation of Indra. Which I haven't gotten to that yet in the show, but I know from seeing it around. I do enjoy the sun and moon aesthetic between Naruto and Sasuke (so SO much, in fact), but. Making Sasuke the reincarnation of the Other son of the Sage of Six Paths is... frustrating? In several ways. There is of course the fact that Naruto and Sasuke have such extremely gay vibes (and Always Have), so making them the reincarnations of brothers so late in the story feels like an insult to anyone who reads their relationship in that way. Which to be fair, we do see Naruto mention at a few points that he thinks of Sasuke like a brother, but it's only a few points + feels like a kind of narrative cop-out. Sasuke himself said he doesn't think of Naruto in that way (though that could also be his self-denial speaking & it could change. Haven't gotten that far yet.), & I think there are much better choices for Naruto's "brother" figure (primarily Iruka, but people like Killer Bee and any of the other konoha 12 would be fitting too). Personally, it feels like Naruto was trying to put a name to his very strong feelings for Sasuke, & since he doesn't realize being gay is an option (since Kishimoto is clearly homophobic & made this ninja society to reflect that), he settled on Brother. But Sasuke is like "what the fuck? No, my only brother is Itachi." Instead, Sasuke has called Naruto his best friend. Which also doesn't fully encompass their relationship, but it's still closer than Brother.

So here we are, Kishimoto saying around 555 episodes into the plot (only 80 more to go) that they're actually the reincarnations of brothers. And not just any brothers. THE sons of the Sage of Six Paths. Incredibly influential, incredibly powerful, two sides of the same coin and very historically significant figures. Sasuke always had the "descended from an elite, yet disgraced clan" thing going for him, so in my opinion it doesn't hold the same kind of insult to his story that it does for Naruto. But it still feels like an insult to THEIR story.

Naruto and Sasuke were just two orphan boys. Their moms were best friends, but they didn't know that. They died when they were too young. But Naruto and Sasuke still gravitated towards one another. Understood each other like no one else. And got on each other's nerves like no one else. But that irritation stemmed from their genuine admiration of each other. They wanted to be able to beat each other. They became Rivals. And it was on their own terms. No one else pushed them together. Outside of them ending up on the same team, their entire relationship was fueled by their recognition of one another, Jealousy of one another, and the simple enjoyment of being around one another. They were the ones to decide the importance of their relationship. Sasuke recognizing Naruto as his closest friend & thus thinking he was the one he had to cut off to achieve power, and Naruto recognizing Sasuke as his first peer that acknowledged him, a precious bond he finally made, and thus someone he had to cling to FIERCELY. That was all them.

But here we are. They're a reincarnated set. The sun and the moon, but Officially. One could say soulmates in a way, in a non-romantic kind of context (considering the first iteration was a pair of brothers). While this is cool from a story standpoint, it really takes some significance away from their relationship to me. It makes it less of something they chose for themselves and more of a given. Pretty much just like Naruto being Ashura's reincarnation cheapens his own story, it cheapens their relationship too.

I dont want a story about two boys who were destined to be important to each other!!!! I want a story about two orphans who just happened to become important to one another thru a series of coincidences and personal choices. In that way, their relationship gains greater gravity bc it's born from their own hearts Alone. It's Naruto moving mountains for the sake of this boy he loves, and it's Sasuke finally coming back around bc of the force of Naruto's dedication. It means so much more than the implication that they were always meant to be a pair. So I really don't like this narrative choice.

[reminiscentrainclouds]

Abandoned

Original image from Pinterest

[silverselfshippingchaos]

don't think I've mentioned here, but there actually is a S.ugiura fankid! She's very lovely!

[oidheadh-con-culainn]

the "this is a war on motorists and we hate you and you aren't real residents of this city if you don't drive a big car and want to go as fast as possible and kill as many cyclists as possible despite the city being five miles long with no hills and therefore an ideal place for non drivers to live" folks really are the absolute dregs of the facebook comment section, huh

war on cars? bro I'm anti war but sure let's do it. die faster. or just get out of your fucking car for once idk it probably won't kill you to experience A Bus. if you're really nice to me I'll even teach you to ride a bicycle

[bragganhyl]

ngl these "which eoran god is/isn't problematic" polls make me wanna rant about Magran but I don't have the braincells rn

edit: i did end up ranting in the tags whoopsie lmao

[tarraxahum]

Randomly remembered all those times someone on a forum or wherever would ask, like, "if your comic was ever turned into a movie or a tv-show, what would you want it to be like", and I was always spewing something about obvious answers like Fortiche or whatever

BUT ACTUALLY. That's wrong.

The correct answer is that I would want it to be filmed as one of those film-student-project fan movies. Where no one has any money and their camera isn't stabilized and the 'sets' are all local buildings but everyone is very committed to making it work with what they have. And all the actors are friends or classmates or someone's parents and therefore look especially real and human.

[f1owermoon]

sorry i just. need to rant for a second

[1mnobodywhoareyou]

Well to solve your last issue, 67 words this time? 😉

He directs a wry look her way but agrees to leave her in the company of the two men who were now circling the car with exaggerated appreciation. 

Carrie waves Luke and Willie back to allow Henry room to leave. “It’s like you’ve never seen a town car before. Do you not use drivers?” 

“Hm? No. We drive ourselves,” Luke explains, gesturing toward a nearby car. Carrie didn’t even know cars this old could still be on the road, if she was being entirely honest.

send a number and i'll add that many words to a wip

[draco-renn]

Man. All I do these days is fail to meet expectations and then get upset at myself for failing to meet those expectations. This sucks.

[time-like-tears-in-rain]

Does anyone know a solid watch guide to Classic Who? Like the different ways you can get hard copies (in the US), the various ways they've been collected, streaming sites, episode/serial order? A list of missing episodes and where they were supposed to fall in the series would be helpful. The Tardis Wiki has an episode list, marking which ones are lost, but it doesn't say how to watch.

When I hopped into Classic Who it was a nightmare, Netflix had like...a handful of random episodes for a few random doctors. I thought I watched most of One and Two, but apparently It was just a couple serials, the were just all that was available at the time.

[ohbutwheresyourheart]

girlies I'm losing my mind.