#i had this era recently where i was just doing this and i thought wow this is sick but now it's OVER i'm back to being HORRID and USELESS

[binch-i-might-be]

been hyping myself up to do one (1) chore for like three hours now WHAT is wrong with me

[readerihardlyknowher]

In Every Universe | Pt. 6

Can't believe Amanda's going to be a mom for real now oml

Spencer Agnew x Reader Warnings: None WC: 1,824 Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3, Pt. 4, Pt. 5, Pt. 6, Pt. 7

“Hello, welcome to Smosh Mouth. I’m Shayne-” “-and I’m Amanda, and we have a very special guest here today: Y/n Y/l/n!” Both of the hosts look at you, and you wave to the camera, saying hello. “And today we are going to be talking about romance, is that something you know a lot about Y/n?”

“Oh wow, romance,” you chuckle, a little nervous. This is the first time you’ve been able to come onto Smosh Mouth. “Yeah actually, I do. I mean, I’ve had romances before, and I recently rewatched Pride and Prejudice.” Amanda gasps at this.

“The one with Colin Firth?” “No, the one with Matthew Macfayden. From Succession.”

“Right, okay, and was it any good?” Amanda’s perpetually enthusiastic voice makes you smile. Talking with her just feels natural, which is why it’s good she’s one of the hosts.

“Yeah, actually. I mean, it’s one of my favorite movies. I can’t lie, I love a good fairytale ending where everyone’s just happy and in love.”

“Same. I love seeing people happy and in love,” Amanda’s excited voice agrees with you, before looking at Shayne with an expectant look.

“Yeah, I mean I’ve watched my fair share of romance movies, and there’s some good ones out there.”

The rest of the podcast continues on in a much similar manner. Amanda and Shayne ask you questions about shows, games, and even basic questions about your romance life, like your first kiss and whatnot. You share more than you thought you would have, but nothing too intimate or personal. Gotta keep some semblance of privacy on the internet. Eventually, Amanda’s face breaks into a smirk, looking down at her paper before back up at you.

“So, you’ve had many on-camera romances with our favorite Spencer.” You chuckle at this, having known from when she first mentioned romance that it would lead to here.

“Yeah, I have. I mean, I’ve also had a few romances with other cast members in other games, but I think Spencer and I have had the most romances. I mean, besides you and Angela.” You throw it back to her, with a smile, which she laughs at.

“She’s my wife, man!”

“Your work wife,” Shayne throws out.

“Yes, my work wife.

“Anyways, Y/n, we wanted to know straight from you how it feels to be shipped to such a degree. All of us here have been shipped with other cast members many times in the past, but how do you feel about it?” You go silent for a moment to think about it, trying to give a sort of political answer to the question. Honest, but nothing to stir the pot.

“I guess I don’t really mind it. I mean, even if I did mind, it wouldn’t stop anything. Besides, what girl hasn’t been shipped with her boy best friend at some point? But really, it’s no different than how Amanda is with Spencer, so I really don’t get why I’m the one getting shipped. I know you’re married and I’m not, but still,” you finish with a smile, feeling a little hot under the heat of the lights.

“To be clear,” Shayne begins, “we do have it on record that Amanda does in fact have a crush on Spencer.” This comment makes your face heat up more, smiling nervously and shaking your head.

“Oh right, well nevermind that comparison then. What I meant was that we’re just really friendly with one another.”

“Yeah I mean,” Amanda scratches behind her neck. “There’s just something about Spencer that makes everyone love him. It’s so weird.”

Shayne chuckles at that. “Oh yeah, I mean even back in the Defy era everyone loved him.”

You can’t stop smiling throughout the conversation, and you know it must look a little silly to the audience. The truth is just that you love your best friend, everyone does. He’s a very lovable guy, nothing “weird” about it. But what is weird is how your heart flips when you hear what Amanda says next:

“Which is why we’re bringing on the one and only Spencer Agnew to join us here today!”

Immediately you turn your head and watch Spencer as he walks up on set from behind the cameras. You hadn’t even known he was there and silently you wonder if you’ve embarrassed yourself. You have half the mind to move your chair over as he brings one of his own to sit next to you, between you and Shayne.

“Hey, how’s it going guys?” Spencer says to the two hosts before looking over at you, his familiar, all too comfortable grin on his face. “Hello, my wife.”

You huff out a laugh and return the smile. “Hello, my husband.”

“Guys,” Amanda’s voice draws your attention. “Knock it off. There’s too much chemistry already and we haven’t even gotten to the question we’ve all been wanting to know.”

You both pause at that, turning to face her, expectantly waiting for her to continue.

“Where did the marriage joke come from?”

At that you both turn to each other, smiling and silently asking who wants to be the one to tell the story. It only takes a second before Spencer looks down, a little embarrassed.

“I’ll tell. So, back when we were working as editors with Defy, we were good friends. So, one day we’re about to start a shoot, I’m helping to set up, Y/n’s across the room working on something else and she calls my name. Now, I don’t know what was with me that day, but I said ‘Yeah, hun?’ in front of EVERYONE there.”

“And that’s what got us our first trip to HR.”

Amanda “aw”’s at the story. Shayne merely chuckles and shakes his head. Amanda’s brows crease as a question enters her mind.

“Wait, but why did you call Y/n that?”

Spencer can only shrug as a response before laughing. You catch him glancing over at you and can see a light dusting of red on his cheeks.

“I don’t even know, man. If I’m remembering correctly, it’s because that’s what I was calling the girl I was with at the time and was super tired coming into work, so I just slipped up.”

“And that’s called a freudian slip,” Amanda says, nodding. This causes Spencer to laugh and put his head in his hand, saying her name under his breath in exasperation. You step in to continue the story.

“So yeah, then after that, people on set thought we were together. Once they realized we weren’t they just turned it into a running joke that we’re the married couple on set. But I guess that title now has to be handed off to you and Courtney now,” you say, directing the energy back to Shayne who nods.

He ends up telling a story of his own about how the people at Smosh were told/found out about them dating, and how they wondered at first whether or not to ever tell the audience, but ended up settling on telling them once they got married. It’s a nice change of pace at this point in the podcast, getting to listen to a sweet story. Eventually, the conversation falls back into the topic of romance movies, in which they end up asking Spencer what his favorite is.

“Excluding Attack of the Clones? I’d have to say Princess Bride right now. Y/n and I rewatched it about a month ago and it still holds up.”

Amanda “ooh”’s at that choice, agreeing that it’s such a good movie. Shayne takes this time to turn towards the camera and speak.

“So, just for you guys at home, Spencer and Y/n like to watch movies and shows together in their free time.”

“Hey, we’ve invited you two to join us sometimes and you always blow us off!” You say playfully. It’s true though, when watching a movie you knew one or the both of them loved, you would ask if they wanted to join, but most of the time they end up being too busy.

“I come whenever I can. Mostly though, after a long day I like to hit the gym and relax with Courtney,” Shayne responds, a slightly offended tone with his first statement, before going back to the casual style he speaks with. Amanda nods and looks as though she’s about to speak before you feel Spencer’s warm hand through the sleeve of your shirt, resting just on your upper arm.

“Yeah, gives me more time to relax with my wife as well,” his smooth voice replies to Shayne. You turn and shoot him a confused smile before smacking his hand.

“Get your Mountain Dew fingers off of me,” you huff out as he pulls his hand away with a smile.

“See what I have to put up with? Women, amiright?” Amanda immediately boos Spencer’s comment, Shayne putting his head in his hands.

Pretty quickly, the topic turns back to movies and TV shows, Amanda talking about her love of Turkish dramas, and you talking about your favorite movies. Shayne turns to you once you’re done talking.

“So, Y/n, aren’t you and Spencer having your movie night tonight?” You nod and hum as a response to his question. “Do you know what movie you’re going to watch?”

The two of you turn and look at each other, silently wondering if you should share it, before you take in a breath and turn back to Shayne, a giggle in your voice as you speak.

“We’re actually watching The Notebook.”

“My choice,” Spencer adds. Amanda gasps and holds her hands to her chest, while Shayne hums and nods.

“Oh my gosh, such a good movie.”

“Well, I think that we’re nearing the end of our episode here,” Shayne’s voice calls to attention. You had hardly noticed how quickly time had passed since you first sat down, Amanda and Shayne’s energy, as well as Spencer’s presence being so welcoming. You almost wished this episode would never end, however, it does comfort you to know that you and Spencer will be seeing each other later tonight.

“Thank you for having us, I hope to get invited back soon. You guys were amazing as always,” you say, being nice for the end of the video. Amanda looks at you with an excited look on her face.

“Yes, and you have to tell us more about your movie nights,” Amanda teases you, which makes you a little flustered but you brush it off. You’re about to speak before Spencer talks first.

“No way, if you want to know about our movie nights, you’ve got to come when we invite you. What happens at movie night stays at movie night.”

Amanda opens her mouth to protest, and you realize this is just going to prolong the end of the video, so you turn to the camera, a playfully panicked look on your face.

“Quick, cut the video now! They’re not going to stop otherwise!”

Tag list: @lisiliely, aliceblxck, burrowedinnature77, 65percentleg

[manikas-whims]

how Rafayel from Love and Deepspace will react when he finds out you're on your period..

You walked past the gallery at the Mo Art Studio and headed towards the second floor where this famous artist of your era, Rafayel resided.

He greeted you in his usual cheerful tone and proceeded to dish out the entire plan for your day out with him.

You would've focused a little. Even made sure to cross check the places he mentioned for any signs of recent Wanderer activity as you are supposed to guard him after all.

But your mind was slightly preoccupied by the shallow numbness and weariness you felt in your limbs. And if the wetness you felt between your legs was an indication of what you suspected it to be, then that would be truly mortifying.

Not simply because you hadn't brought any emergency supplies but also because of the company you were in. You couldn't even begin to imagine Rafayel’s mocking reaction. Or the words he'd say if—

The snap of a finger right before your eyes drew you out from your train of thoughts, and you looked up to find the very topic of your concern, better known as Rafayel. He was staring at you, brows narrowed in confusion.

“You okay, Miss Bodyguard?”

“Can I use your bathroom?” You blurted out.

His eyes narrowed even more but then he simply shrugged his shoulders, and gave you the directions.

[moments later]

You returned to the living room with the grim realization that sure enough, your period had arrived. Two days earlier at that!

“Uh...Rafayel, do you..happen to know any general stores nearby?”

He blinked. “What are you up to?”

“None of your business.”

“Wow. Rude much.”

You felt the numbness in your belly slowly turning into a full on cramp. You did not have the strength to bicker with him right now.

“Ugh! Just tell me where it is!”

“Not until you tell me why.” And he went on and on, babbling about how you were the one wasting both of their time by dragging this conversation for so long.

You clenched your fists, bit your bottom lip and inhaled deeply. Oh to hell with decency. To hell with embarassment. To hell with whatever else they said about keeping personal matters to oneself. To hell with it all!

“Because I'm on my fucking period and need some napkins!”

There! You did it, anger momentarily helping you forget about the ache in your limbs.

He asked and as such, now he was informed. Only his reaction was nothing like you had expected.

There were no hints of teasing. Not even a sign of mirth dancing in his pretty eyes.

If anything, his ears were now burning bright red. And so were his cheeks and well..his entire face.

Rafayel put a hand to his mouth to cover up the blush coating his face but it was already too late for that.

He took a moment to compose himself. Then spoke. “Why didn't you tell me yesterday?”

“Because, as I said earlier, it's none of your business!” You yelled. “And I didn't have periods until I arrived here!”

“Okay okay calm down.” He waved a palm wildly in front of you which irritated you further, coaxing you into slapping his hand away.

But before you could do so, he pointed towards the array of furniture lying in his living room. “Go take a seat.”

You rolled your eyes. “And stain your fancy couch? No thank you.”

“Ouch! Did someone ever tell you that you become meaner when you're on your—”

“I’m not mean! You just rile me up!”

“Right okay.” He patted your back and guided you to the couch. “I don't care about the stains. Just sit.”

You stared at him even as you followed his request and sat down.

“What?” He asked.

You scrunched your nose and narrowed your eyes in suspicion. “Why are you being so nice all of a sudden?”

His eye twitched upon hearing that. “Nonsense. I'm always nice.”

“No you aren't.”

He sighed and rubbed his eyes. “Right. Well, I've texted Thomas. He'll be here with your napkins and other necessities in no time.”

You frowned. “But there's no need. I can just go home if—”

“Nuh uh uh.” He wagged a finger in negation and shook his head. “You rest here for a while. Then I'll drop you off.”

He left before you could utter a word in protest.

And when he returned, he had a pair of clothes in his hands. Dark sweat pants and a baggy t-shirt.

“These should feel more comfortable. Go change.”

You wanted to protest but the dark pants did seem a far better option than the pink skirt you currently wore. Besides, if the skirt got a stain, it'll be hard to get rid-off, and might even ruin the fabric.

Huffing, you took the clothes– his clothes now that you realized– and went back to the bathroom.

Upon your return, you found him seated on the floor mat by the couch, peeling fruits and arranging them in a plate.

“Here.” He poked an apple with a fork and beckoned you to him.

You blinked. “Seriously who are you? And what did you do to the real Rafayel?”

He rolled his eyes. “Haha, very funny. Now come here and eat.”

You were still suspicious but sat down on the couch.

You tried taking the fork from his hand but he refused. “No. Open your mouth.”

You shook your head but decided to comply for once instead of bickering.

“See? That wasn't so hard.”

You chuckled. This reminded you of that one time he got admitted at a hospital, and you were the one who had to feed him.

You smiled as he fed you another apple.

“This is so unlike you.”

He pouted this time and looked directly into your eyes, frustration evident in his gaze. “Miss Bodyguard, you're always taking care of me. Entertaining all my whims. So just..for this once..let me return the favor.”

The earnest tone and his sparkling eyes made your cheeks slightly warmer. For a moment you stammered with your words. Then responded. “Alright then. I'm in your care.”

“Yeah yeah.” His demeanor changed immediately, and he was back to his usual teasing self as he winked you. “Just don't get used to it.”

Here's Rafayel’s version. HOPE YOU LIKED IT.

I'm not entirely confident about my portrayal of Raf but I hope it was alright and not too ooc.

Please let me know what you think. And if you'd like more such headcanons of Love and Deepspace boys.

» MASTERLIST «

[xelbleedsglitter]

Hey, what's up, hello, I'm Xel, I truly have Donald Duck levels of bad luck and yet I do not have the rage button that makes things work out if I throw a tantrum, which feels like yet another failure of media, what is the deal with this.

The deal is:

Temp job had to let me go instead of make me permanent because the economy scared the 5 people over 65 in that department out of feeling safe enough to retire

None of my applications are getting interviews and I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Donald Duck tantrum did not assist me in this realm.

Holy shit seasonal depression I can't get out of bed like.... A Lot.

I have a convention to go to in February where I am selling art in the art show and where I will see many of my friends the only time per year.

I'm scared of everything haha wow 😬

I'm am an artist who just feels too upset and worried to art

I'm having trouble getting everything together and maybe will feel better with some level of stability? I need to do a lot of paperwork. It is proving hard. I have the Tumblr popular suspicions about my level of neurodivergance. (Fun story: I told members of my my family that I have thought in the last two years especially that I might have ADHD or Autism or something, and my cousin said, "Oh, honey *just the last two years?*" Obliterated.)

My abusive dad recently joined a cult and my grandmother thinks he'll try to contact me after 15 years and I'm fucking scared of him and that is Affecting Me in A Way boy howdy.

I do not have the money to pay rent even a little bit! I'm trying to get January and February taken care of maybe? So I can try to exist for this period of time and maybe not have a breakdown or get evicted or something?

Some real not awesome medical junk happening also because why not.

SO, I'm doing Tumblr's favorite thing and being a starving queer artist with brain worms who needs help. If you are interested in helping me out and making a donation to the "Why don't my Donald Duck tantrums solve my problems" fund, I would be Really Grateful.

I am on Ko-Fi, which is really just a funnel to PayPal, over here.

$2500 would keep me on solid ground. I'll try to keep a tally here in a read more along with a expenses tally if that would help you feel better about me! I know I've had to ask frequently in the last few months, so I understand thinking I'm full of it.

I have a commission to finish currently and a few buttons and things that need to be mailed. You could also ask for button and commission, but I am doing prep work for my part of the art show in mid February, so I'm not available until after then for that!

My grandfather used to do a Donald Duck impression that was really good and it convinced me that either he WAS Donald Duck or that old people all knew how to do this because they all talked like this in the era Donald Duck was from.

Here is Ko-Fi again. If there's something you'd like to see me post or unearth in atonement, let me know. If you'd like other places to aim your dead green American presidents, I can give you that too.

Thanks for reading and/or reblogging! Tell me how Donald Duck's freakouts impacted you. Take care of yourselves!

Rent is $710/month, so 1420 is January and February.

65 for the internet, 130

65 for car insurance, 130

65 for electric unless I can get the assistance plan up again, same 130

250 to survive at the con maybe?

Also just like food until i can get the foodstamps stuff sorted??

Gas???

Anyway, that's an idea of what and why, if that is helpful.

Jan 8:

We are at $460!

Thanks!

[geddyqueer]

i would love some tunnel fic AND (/or) ⛏️💕⛏️

ok i'm holding off on posting more about tunnel fic until i actually write more words. but because you asked so nicely, you're getting some background of geology fic AND a snippet.

this fic came about because annie sent me some bts shot of lou where he's wearing a fishing vest and i was like this is geology professor core. and then i simply couldn't stop thinking about it. back in my wayward youth i was a geology major and i've always thought that a field study would make for a great character study template, so the fic is laid out like a report:

the OTHER major player in this fic is that concept a few people were kicking around several months ago when that interview dropped about buck and tommy learning more about each other as their relationship developed (LOL LMAO!) that maybe tommy had a past partner who had died. and annie and i were sitting there in the sandbox, and we were like: what if his partner who died was older than him. what if his partner who died had been in a position of authority over him. what if his partner who died had been not only his professor and academic mentor, but also his gay mentor. and now, what if buck, a young spritely 20-something, recently self-actualized, with the hots for his older professor, was pushing up against all of that history of tommy's. all set against the background of my second-favorite thing to think about: rocks!

anyway, here's a snippet:

The room is dark, but the door's unlocked. Buck takes a chance and pushes it open. It doesn't look like there's anyone else in there, but there is a weird lump in the front corner behind the desk, and he can't quite make out what it is until he flips the light switch on and the lump startles and jumps and–it's a guy. 

Not just a guy, but the guy.

Even with the memory of the jacket he was sleeping on imprinted deep into his face, Buck can tell he’s good looking. He has eyes, after all. And speaking of eyes, this guy—and it has to be the same one whose papers Buck has been reading all week—well, his eyes are piercingly dark blue. He blinks rapidly, sits up, and stares Buck down with those eyes.

"Uh, hi," Buck says, as the guy shoves his jacket off the desk and slaps his own face a couple of times and gets to his feet. "Are you Dr. Kinard?"

"Shit," the guy says, his voice cracking a little with sleep. He clears his throat. "Was I supposed to have a TA this semester? Sorry–"

"Oh, no, no, I'm, uh. I'm just a student," Buck says with a chuckle. He doesn't mean to, but he bobs his head like he's shy. He's not shy! He's just clearly in the right place at the wrong time. Maybe he should let the guy snooze, come back in half an hour.

The guy–Dr. Kinard–frowns, and wow, the picture of him on the UC-Pasadena Geology Department website does not do him justice. He's really earned that spicy pepper, Buck thinks, and then mentally kicks himself for it. "Huh," Dr. Kinard says, then: "Christ. Did I sleep through class?"

"No! No, you're good, I'm just–I'm super early, first day on campus, all my classes were remote last year, and because I'm, you know, 'non-traditional', not fresh out of high school, I didn't go through the, uh, standard orientation." 

Real smooth, he thinks. He's rambling. He needs to stop rambling. At least the hot professor standing in front of him is starting to grin instead of rolling his eyes. 

"Anyway, I'm a Bio major but I picked this class because, well–"

"Easy credit?" 

Buck stares in shock, but Dr. Kinard isn't even looking at him; instead he's shuffling back toward his desk, hand reaching for the stack of papers that he was just using as a pillow. 

"What? No way," Buck says, and it comes out a little more forceful than he intends. "No, I read your dissertation. It was really interesting. The, uh, the section about the volcanism in the Quaternary era? Am I saying that right? At first I was just like, woah, this is cool, I didn't know about any of this but then I was looking at the timelines and realizing that the earliest humans were literally walking around getting all, you know, homo-erectus-y while that volcano was spewing! And now people walk around Yellowstone and we just have no idea!"

Dr. Kinard's hand hasn't moved since Buck started talking. He's just… still, leaning over his desk. "You. Hold on. You read my dissertation?"

"Yeah," Buck says. "It was good!"

[9w1ft]

fam…. wow, what a year.

in the summer, i went to karlie’s birthday show, and on the way back i stopped through santa monica and pacific palisades just to soak in the rich kid ambiance, and well, no, actually, i wanted to check out jennifer meyer! because, well, idk. inspiration struck. it’s such a fun kaylorverse brand! and i thought, if enamored enough, i might be convinced into buying a tiny heart ring or charm or something, but they had just gotten in one of something recently and when i saw it i immediately knew i would be talked into it.

…so i picked up this tiny necklace from jen meyer. for obvious reasons.. i couldn’t help it! it spoke to me!!

fast forward to a handful of weeks later and taylor is… wearing evil eye jewelry! several pieces! more than several pieces!! even an evil eye stud!! and i come to deduce later on that the first time she wore the bracelet was the day before karlie’s birthday concert. which is a true coincidence that i love, because, it’s the day @taylorrepdetective and i happened to arrive in LA. and so today, reflecting on the eye theory as i do, i was thinking today about how my life changed shape, because of all of these things.

for april 18th is, as you may know, eye theory day! the day @swift-79 and i finalized and i posted the og eye theory post, back in 2019. also known as the eyepocalypse, discovereye, the start of many things.

today marks the four five year anniversary. it’s pretty wild that we’re still kickin it five years in! and it’s become a sort of tradition for me where i like to post a little something personal in honor of the day. so allow me to continue this one gratis.

second part of my story is that a little over a year ago now, i went to opening night of the eras tour with @theprologues and the day after the concert, on my way back, i stopped through scottsdale and walked through all the boutique shops and souvenir shops and picked up a trinket. a ring that called out to me, for…obvious reasons.

i mean, how could i not?? to commemorate a wonderful trip to meet a dear friend, and for all the eye theory things that happened on opening night!

and it’s been a year since then and i’m one of those people that just doesn’t take jewelry off, so it’s been on my finger for all this time. it was a snug fit, and silver, so it both wasn’t coming off easily and wouldn’t be leaving a green ring on my hand or anything, so i have kept it there. for a little over a year now.

but the other day someone was asking me about it. and i was like oh, i got this in arizona and so i went to adjust it to show it off because the center stone was off to the side and when i twisted it i noticed a mark on my finger, an indent, for having worn it so long.. and i sorta laughed to myself because, you know, there is an indentation. in the shape of an eye.

so i decided to take the thing off for a sec and let my finger breathe and so i take off the ring and notice— the shape of the ring has changed.

what once was centered, has now fully to morphed and warped the right side. 🙈🙈 c’est la vie.

i only write this out to say that, it had me thinking. about all the fun we had for this fourth fifth (!) turn around the theory, all the dear friends i have met, all the tour outfits, the accessories and merch?!… all of the little connections we have made over this… thing 😆 it had me thinking about how there are always going to be these fun little moments in life where the universe winks at you and, and how if you can manage it, it’s a charmed way to live, really. reminded me of the time i lost karlie’s gem on my swarovski evil eye bracelet at rep tour tokyo! that is to say, when the going gets tough, it can still be fun. if you work to give yourself permission. as one might say…there are cathedrals everywhere for those with the eyes to see 🥴

it didn’t really occur to me until this week just how close the release date is to the eye theory anniversareye ☺️ and i’m not sure what this countdown is for but it’s running out so close to when the op was posted five years ago so i decided to post around now :) not to say any of it was anything more than accidental. but hey, laughter is the best medicine, is it not?

so omnom, i say! omnom!

and so today, on ts11 album release eve,

i implore all of you (and myself) to open our hearts juuust a crack,

and keep on the lookout for the gold nuggets that are going to be there. assume taylor will perjure herself a bit during this trial, relax, allow yourself the enjoy what we get, like nobody else truly can.

and so eye enter into evidence…

literally a bajillion things let’s be real like oh my god

our tarnished post of eyes, my indentations, shaped like…occulations,

our talismans and charms.

the tap, tap, tap of me selecting bert memes, my veins of bloodshot pink.

all’s fair in love and…

poetreye.

[milfjuulpod]

Down The River

request: yes

Can you do one of Melissa protecting fem reader after someone tries to hurt them or something? And then she holds them while they cry?

warnings: uhhh idk scrape/minor yelling?

A/N: carissima=a more “serious” term for my dear.

thank u for sending a request! it means the world, and i hope i did it justice ! much love 🫶 also this gif wow anyone else got butterflies

Somehow between Janine’s persistent pleading and Melissa’s not-so-empty threats, you found yourself at the Twin Tubing River with more of your coworkers than you would have liked. Sure, you got along with everyone well considering it was still your first year teaching at Abbott, but something about Ava’s “tubing era” made you a bit uneasy. Floating down the river with Melissa would be a dream, the two of you finally sealed the deal recently after months of flirting. Despite being head over heels for the red headed woman, the both of you wanted to wait before telling everyone such an intimate detail about the both of your lives, now shared.

So here you are, at a picnic table playing with the rope on your tube, surrounded by such an odd group of people, but you were happy to be there nonetheless. Of course, Janine and Jacob brought way too many snacks for a day in the water, the table overflowing with food. Ava was busy attaching makeshift pillows to her float, getting ready to round everyone up to make their way down. Somehow, your eyes found themselves on Melissa again, taking in every detail of her. The green bathing suit she wore looked so good against her skin, her hair was blowing in the wind so perfectly, as if there was a fan propped right in front of her. Her eyes locked with yours, and you both knew she caught you staring. She gave you the sweetest smile she could, and went back to flipping through her book.

“Alright y’all, buddy up and attach with ropes, I don’t want to have to hire new staff next year,” Ava said to the group, passing out said ropes. Melissa immediately stood up and walked over to you, laying her arm over your shoulder as casually as she could. “I’ll take the kid, make sure she doesn’t drown,” She teased you. Blush made its way to your cheeks, both from your girlfriend and the attention it brought to you from everyone else. Although you and Melissa hadn’t explicitly come out as a couple yet, the two of you had a hard time keeping your hands off each other, and none of your friends are that blind.

One by one, all of you descended into the cold, Melissa and you holding hands under the water, of course. Despite your nerves earlier, you had to admit this was nice. You did love everyone you worked with, and everybody had found their own groove to follow. “What are you thinkin’ about over there?” Melissa asked you quietly. She could always tell when you were deep in thought. “Nothing much,” you answered honestly, “just appreciating where I am, and who I’m with.” If Melissa’s eyes could turn into hearts, they would have in that moment. Each and every day spent together she could feel herself falling deeper and deeper in love.

“You’re too sweet,” She shrugged the compliment off. “Yeah? Sweet enough to get a present when we get home tonight?” You asked, giving her your best begging face you could in that moment. Melissa’s grip around your hand tightened, and even with the sun as bright as it was, you could never miss that dark look in her eyes when her thoughts about you became…less than professional. “Yeah baby, maybe even sweet enough for two,” She smiled at you, and there were the blushed cheeks again.

After about an hour of the river, the gang decided it was time to head back to land and have some lunch. The way back was, to say the least, less than successful. Everybody piled up by the stairs, trying their best to exit their tubes gracefully. A couple was at the exit at the same time as you, a man and a woman. Just your luck, as you were making the exit, so was the man, who was much larger than you. As he swung his tube out of the water, his arm and float shoved into your back, pushing you onto the concrete. Before you could even express the sudden pain in your knee, the clumsy man started yelling. “Why don’t you stay out of people’s way and things like this won’t happen?” He exclaimed. You felt your stomach drop in fear. Not from the man, not from the wound on your knee, but from Melissa.

If there was one thing Melissa would protect more than anything, it was you. “Are you fucking kidding me?” She yelled back, her voice much louder than his. “Maybe if you were actually using your head you would’ve looked around before swingin’ that thing around like a god damn dance ribbon,” Melissa was now out of the water, hair tied up, and she was just a few feet away from a fight. Luckily, Gregory stepped in and took Melissa’s arm, pulling her more towards your direction rather than the idiot who caused the scene. The sight of you still on the ground pulled Melissa back down to earth and she immediately rushed to your side. “Come here baby, let’s go,” She said, not caring about the pet name in front of anyone anymore. She took your arm in hers and started walking you towards the bath house.

You didn’t have to ask her for anything, Melissa jumped right into taking care of you. She turned on the shower and let it warm up before walking you in with her. “Let me rinse it hon, does it still hurt, are you okay?” She asked. Moments before, Melissa was red hot with anger, and now here she was, being oh so gentle towards you. When you didn’t answer, she again knew something was wrong. For whatever reason, you had started crying and couldn’t stop. The scrape from earlier was stinging, the confrontation was overwhelming, not to mention it happening in front of so many people. Your chest heaved as you began softly sobbing in the shower. You reached out for Melissa, desperate for her touch. You wanted to calm down and tell her everything going on in your head, but all you could get out was her name.

“It’s okay carissima,” she whispered, taking you in her arms, letting the hot water hit your back. “You’re okay, I got you, you know that,” she assured you, gently planting kisses on your head as you cried into her chest. The tears didn’t last much longer, with Melissa they never do. She always took care of you, like nobody else did. You were special in her eyes, and she made sure you felt it every day. “Thank you, Mel,” you finally said, tears subsiding. She lifted your head from her shoulder and gave you a kiss, this time on the lips. “You don’t have to thank me, it’s what I’m here for.” Most times your showers with Melissa were much more sensual, but right now, with her gentle caresses and words, all you felt was love. Pure happiness and love.

The door to the bath house opened, shushing you and Melissa immediately. “Hey, it’s just me. You okay?” Ava’s voice sounded from beyond the curtain. “Yeah, I’m alright, thank you though,” you told her, hoping she would take that answer and leave you back to your girlfriend. “Alright, just wanted to check on ya. Oh and Melissa, while you’re in there can you look for my shampoo bottle? I know you have better eyesight than the other one,” Ava said, and walked back out the door. Melissa and you stared at each other wide-eyed. “Well, I guess Ava knows now,” you said. “Yeah,” Melissa said, giving you another gentle kiss, “I guess she does.”

[amazing-spiderling]

For the character ask game, Scott Summers and/or Kurt Wagner, #7 & #12

<3

7. What’s something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

Scott: People making jokes about Scott yelling "JEAAAAN :00000" all the time will never not be funny to me. IDK there's just something about people who end up marrying their high school sweethearts that's a little wacky. And as much as I enjoy ragging on the guy, I am glad that the fandom has come around and is appreciating his character development, especially from the last 20 years of comics.

Kurt: I've literally never met an X-Men/comics fan that doesn't like Kurt. Like he may not be their FAVORITE, but he's kinda the unproblematic fave of the fandom, so if you bring him up, the odds of people having something positive to say are pretty high. If anything, I think people are better about criticizing a bad writer or bad production decisions for any wonky characterization, rather than jumping to, "this is why this character sucks" like I've seen them do for other characters in comics.

12. What’s a headcanon you have for this character?

Scott: Wow, my feelings about Scott are kind of a jumble. I haven't read that many comics that focused on him specifically, so I feel like I'm drawing from all of the various media interpretations... I hesitate to make a claim about comics Scott because I'll say something like, "he writes a blog about baking" and someone is going to come in and be like, "X-Factor explicitly stated that he writes about gardening".

Okay, upon a little thought, I do have one. After he was resurrected following whatever the hell was going on between the Inhumans and Mutants in "Death of X", Scott felt REALLY BAD about what happened to my boy Alchemy, and we didn't see it, but offscreen he made sure that Tom was at the front of the line for Mutants to bring back to life on Krakoa. He yelled at Emma about it, too. (That last part probably was elaborated on, but I want to imagine that he was mad about that death in particular, since she used his voice/commanding personality so heavily and ended up getting Alchemy killed without a second thought.)

Kurt: I guess I'm not really sure if this is a headcanon or just like, a gut feeling- but... I don't see Kurt ever settling down, getting married, having kids. Which is kind of a wild thing to say because the man is HUSBAND MATERIAL THROUGH AND THROUGH and Marvel writers who get to take a swing at future versions of the X-Men love giving him a family... but he's always married to some rando who showed up in one (1) forgettable comic from 30 years ago that nobody remembers. It's sort of the problem of having chemistry with everyone, but then maybe not having a "spark" with one person in particular.

My use of the word "spark" here is intentional- as those familiar with his arc during the recent Krakoa era of X-Men comics might have picked up. Kurt creates the idea of a "spark" as a universal concept for Mutants of any/all faiths to embrace, a means to protect the sanctity and respect for the miracle of life. He was one of the few to recognize the need for Mutants to have something outside of themselves to pursue, and it came at no small cost to himself. In fact, he became something of an outsider, observing the community he loved, so that he could better serve them- and that I think is the crux of the issue. His "true love" is not another person, it's the preservation of a dream, and providing hope to all mutants. Even in the alternate world where he married Wanda and they had TJ, the couple lives apart from one another, each a part of their own respective teams because while they loved each other, they realized they could not focus on their duty when they were together. The mission still came first. I don't know that I mean he should join the conventional priesthood (if only because time has shown not enough comics writers are well versed enough in organized religion to write convincing and compelling comic stories about it) but his devotion to the Legionaries was close enough for me.

It's a bit of a double edged sword- I think it's something that makes his character unique, and I could turn this idea over and over in my head endlessly, but it comes at a bit of a cost from a meta perspective. I think part of the reason there's not as much fiction for the poor boy is because he doesn't have really solid canon ship fodder (NightWolves shippers have all my respect, mind you, but somehow it seems to draw a niche crowd?), so he tends to sit in the background like charming blue set dressing. It's okay though, we all still love him.

[thespacelizard]

Okay so! I haven’t read ANYTHING long-form on AO3 in a hot minute, just too much else going on so I fell off the Obedience train pretty hard. I think the last time I read about these two was actually around the end of the Graduation arc! I recently saw one of your updates on tumblr, went back to catch up on what I had missed at around 2am last night and haven’t gone to bed yet because I had to binge every chapter of Sabbatical up until now. 

I was going to comment along the way as I did, but I saw that non-Archive users weren’t able to comment so I decided to wait until I finished before storming into your DMs to tell you how much I missed these two and all their will-they won’t-they nonsense. And imagine my absolute jubilation when I realised WE’RE REALLY DOING THIS BOYS. THEY’VE FINALLY ADMITTED (TO THEMSELVES, AT LEAST) THAT THEY’RE IN LOVE. WE’RE MAKING PROGRESSSSS

I’m not going to go through all the minutiae, but I’m delighted with all these new characters. I love that Shen has new friends in the lifestyle with Mara, Verin and River, and Kelran says what we all wish we could beam through the screen into Rizeth’s thick skull. TELL! HIM! THE! TRUTH! I will say though, for all they didn’t appear again after the arrival in Waterdeep, I’ve got a soft spot for the wonderful lady Scheska Jadefoot, as well as our loud-mouthed drow caravan scout and their surly dwarven co-worker. I am absolutely rooting for Xullzalle and Bhalrom to kiss.

Rizeth remains incredibly hot but you didn’t need me to tell you this. Bastard. Shen is also incredibly fun in his brat era. More Rizeth backstory reveal! Which also made me very sad. I do love these little windows we've been getting into his life "Before" and the ways it influences the man he is now.

And then, wow. Chapter 14 absolutely devastated me. The sequence where Shen recounts the change-dance floored me, and then it let me get up just long enough to knock me back down again. Like three separate times. I mean all of this as the highest possible compliment. Fucking hell.

“Is that allowed?” And she’d smiled, and taken his hands very gently, saying, “Of course it is, beloved. Would you like to dance it with me?” [...] “Will it hurt?” he’d whispered. “If it’s what you want, it will feel like joy.” [...] When it was over, he’d looked down at himself and something had welled up inside him, a rush of some great, overwhelming euphoria. His entire life opened up anew, and he felt for the first time how wonderful it was to be elven, to be drow, and have so many years ahead of him. This was Eilistraee’s miracle, and he would never need another.

I wept. Legitimately. The gentle understanding of that priestess. How happy and relieved Shen is to finally be himself! All that joy and hope for the future! But then his mother’s reaction came in with the steel chair. It was devastating in a different way, in just how true to life it felt, knowing that there are so many parents out there who react just the same, who make their kid’s happiness and journey of self-discovery all about themselves and how hurt or distraught or embarrassed THEY are, that poisonous sense of entitlement. You captured it so well in Shen’s mother.

All in all! Damn, it’s good to be back.

exe!!! welcome back to boy hell, i have missed you!

im kicking myself i did NOT realise i had set the comments for archive users only. that was not on purpose TT_TT i cannot believe i accidentally deprived myself of your readalong comments i feel like i stole the wings off an angel.

but this comment!! a delight to find in my inbox, an absolute joy. WE REALLY ARE DOING IT! FINALLY!

(feel free to barrage my inbox with comments at any point, btw, minutiae and all. i am never not ecstatic to receive your thoughts)

im so very happy you like all the new characters, i had soooo much fun coming up with them and writing them. (especially Kelran, who yes, gets to say what we all wish we could beat Rizeth about the head with.) and the pre-Waterdeep characters too; i was a little sad i only got them for a little while, but they did their jobs and they have a special place in my heart.

(Xullzalle and Bhalrom should absolutely kiss. in the world where Obedience has a thriving fandom, they are the runaway pairing with an outsize number of fics. to me. in my Mind)

Rizeth being too hot to be reasonable is a vital part of Obdience :p i've had a FANTASTIC time finally getting to post his backstory things. i've kept them secret so long and im very proud of myself but also NOW YOU ALL KNOW AHHH! the building blocks that make him 'him' are much more on display and it seems it's as satisfying for y'all to read it as it's been to write it

brat era Ashenivir is a DELIGHT to write. he's a menace and we (and Rizeth) love him for it.

Chapter Fourteen my BELOVED. i cannot tell you how much it's meant to see you and all the other people who've commented say how emotionally hard that chapter hit. as a trans author who was only a baby trans when making Shen, writing his story has kinda come alongside some of my own Life Things, so that part of him is very close to my heart.

The part you quoted especially just…like you wrote, the understanding and the relief and joy - and then his mother's slap down of it. 'true to life' is exactly how i wanted it to feel - because there is a place for trans stories where it's more vicious, but i really wanted that more…not insidious, but the emotional hurt that happens when someone makes it all about themselves, and how much damage that can do. she's never laid a finger on him, she's never done anything you'd call overt abuse, it's just the kind of selfishness that has devastating consequences for other people.

all that to say, thank you for weeping, and for reading, and for returning. i hope you enjoy the final few chapters <3

[avelera]

Come Live with Me and Be My Love ☼: how i came up with the idea :)

Funny enough, I can share with you the EXACT post detailing my thought process back from when I first had the idea!

But to looking back... I think I really just wanted to do a "fake dating/arranged marriage" type AU where Dream is sort of forced to fall in love with Hob throughout the course of pretending to be in a relationship?

Like I truly think that if you put a gun to his head and told Dream "You have to marry ONE living human and stay with them for a year," he'd first scoff at the notion and think it's beneath him but again, gun to his head, would probably be like, "Hob has occasionally amused me in the past and might not be totally unbearable/doomed if I was forced to spend more than the usual amount of time with him so, sure, let's go with Hob." But like... not *really* expecting to get anything more out of it for himself beyond some mildly interesting sex?

But I think Hob is kind of the essence of, "I do much better in the interview than on the application." Like on *paper* as a former peasant etc, he's not really a good match for Dream. But he's *so* resilient, and *so* likable and *so* willing to put up with Dream's bullshit and (in my opinion) so starving for pour all his affection onto someone like Dream (well, *specifically* Dream) who isn't going to up and die on him that once you're trapped in the web of a relationship with him, you're like, "Oh shit, this guy is some grade A husband material, huh?"

So I was really interested in writing a version of Dream who *isn't* in love with Hob, who doesn't *expect* to ever love Hob, but thinks Hob is tolerable in a "If I had to pick a human" sort of way, only to get smacked across the face with like, wow this guy is actually *amazing* and an *amazing* match for me and wow this is all gone to shit real quick and all my plans are in tatters because this guy I knew who once had *fleas* is a really amazing husband and partner and we're very well suited and oh no, I'm actually really falling in love???

And 1789 made the most sense to put that story in, I want to say, for a variety of reasons, but mostly it seemed hmmm.... It seemed the era where Dream had the most *recent* memory of having been at least a little tempted to sleep with Hob. So if it's within a few decades of that meeting (it had to be decades later, I wasn't going to place it directly in 1789 because Hob *had* to have made some amends for the shipping business before that, he had to be LONG out of that business before I'd cast him as a romantic lead) and Dream, gun to his head, was told he had to pick a human, I figured it was realistic that he'd go, "Oh yeah, Hob and I had that flirty exchange recently. He doesn't seem *totally* unbearable, if I had to pick a human." (1589 or 1889 the vibe would be VERY different and Dream absolutely would NOT have picked Hob, and obviously Giving Sanctuary is my 1689 take on if their relationship started then).

But yeah, mostly it was out of a desire to see Dream give Hob a chance and for Hob to knock it out of the park, and then everything sort of fell into place after that that it would be a wager gone wrong, that it would be post 1789, etc etc because that was the supporting details necessary for this sort of silly wager to occur, y'know?

[animatedminds]

The Day The Earth Blew Up

Oh, people call me Daffy They think that I am goony But just because I'm happy Is no sign I'm looney tooney! Went to go see The Day The Earth Blew Up - spoiler alert, it's great and you should go watch it - a few days ago, and really wanted to give myself a minute to put thoughts together enough to make a post about it. This is really the little movie that could, left to pull itself up by its own bootstraps when its home company wasn't interested in it - and helped across the finish line by the little studio that could. Praise for bringing us this movie rightly goes to Ketchup Entertainment, and always should: getting this made and released, let alone marketed on top of that even the little bit it is has been, must have been an enormous hassle and a huge gamble, and one I sincerely hope pays off for the studio. They deserve it, and animators could always use more safe havens out there.

Onto the movie itself. Now, I'm a huge classic Looney Tunes fan, with pre-Jones (Clampett, McKimson, and others in between) Daffy Duck in particular being my favorite. So even if I weren't locked in to support the animators and studio, this would've been an instant watch just for that. This film draws largely from Porky and Daffy cartoons, naturally, but in particular their run of "two roommates" cartoons like Porky & Daffy, Porky's Last Stand and Porky Pig's Feat. To be the most precise of all, this movie is an evolution from Looney Tunes Cartoons - the most recent major Looney Tunes television series which aired in the last decade - with much of the same production team, and which also drew mostly from that era for its depiction of Daffy and Porky.

This was a very good pick for a number of reasons, but the reason that really wowed me the most was in the narrative. This movie wasn't just fighting to get itself released, it was also a risky experiment in a kind of storytelling Looney Tunes has never done before. This is as far as I can recall the first ever Looney Tunes feature in theaters that solely starred Looney Tunes characters and their worlds, without filling the space with guest stars or live action characters like Space Jam or Back In Action, filling the space with cartoon reruns like The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie, or using the Looney Tunes characters to fill for other existing characters like Bah Humduck.

This movie had to answer the tough question: "can these characters that were created to work within seven minute shorts carry over an hour of story?" Looney Tunes has always been a franchise about trying new things and reinventing themselves in new ways. They needed to eventually ask this question. And the answer is... they can, and pretty well, actually. Porky and Daffy's classic dynamic are a good pick for that because they are a very archetypical duo. One is sensible, but naive and easily overwhelmed. One is off kilter and destructive to the other's plans, but also driven and a doer who makes action happen. This is a classic character duo concept that is pretty tried and true: maybe of all the Looney Tunes characters and their dynamics, it might be the best starting point for a film like this (though this wasn't actually the first attempt, but more the attempt that actually made it to the light of day), because it's one that traditionally works.

And work it does. It's the building block on which the plot is able to deliver structure, while still maintaining a world where everyone is as Looney and off-kilter as you can expect from a Looney Tunes production. Their number one ally is a brilliant scientist who is obsessed with tasting things like sponges and rock shavings. Their nemesis is an alien whose master plan involves world domination through bubble gum (played by Peter MacNicol and man do I miss him as Doctor Octopus). Things get weird. And they get weird while actually building endearing character arcs in a way you wouldn't expect for characters like Porky and Daffy that still neverthess work perfectly for Porky and Daffy. In the classic Porky and Daffy set up, Daffy is a screwup, one who drags Porky into insane situations and usually blows things up instead of fixing them. And the movie leans into this, exploring how and why they still work as a pair and as friends despite this, having an actual emotional core without getting so serious that it loses the core that these guys are here to make you laugh.

Visually, this movie is great as well. It's an offschoot of a television series, so there's a bit of more simplified character designs than you might be expecting, but it utilizes those rather than acts in spite of them, making the simple but exaggerated designs a part of the humor and adding a gorgeously vibrant color palate and sense of background and setting to make the whole thing really a treat to look at. And this is just a random note, but you'd expect a Looney Tunes movie to be very cameo heavy, as well. Both Back in Action and Space Jam, though pretty great imo, both leaned heavily into the "hey look guys, it's Tweety / Granny / etc" or "haha! Bugs is doing the Rabbit Season bit again! remember that?" vibes. But this film surprisingly has very little of that. There's cameos and references, don't get me wrong, but it's mostly to older, more historical Looney Tunes characters like Gabby Goat and Buddy (the one that hit me the most is outright obscure, as one the main characters from my favorite Daffy Duck cartoon - A Pest In The House - is a recurring background character). I know some people were disappointed that the alien villain in this wasn't Marvin the Martian. But looking at what they made in the end, I get it. That isn't the kind of thing they wanted to do with this film, it stuck to its guns on that, and I love the film for it.

Now, like with any comedy - any movie, for that matter - there's a couple things that didn't hit me as well. A few jokes here and there that didn't land as well as the others, but that's to be expected. This is a nitpick, but I wish the very last punchline of the film had a bit more set up earlier on to call back to, just to really push the humr of it. And plotwise, without getting into any actual spoilers there's a pretty major shift in the climax of the film that I found myself wishing hit the movie a bit earlier than it did. But that's about it. It's a pretty darn good movie, and I'll almost certainly be seeing it again in theatres if it doesn't get pulled early. I said it before, but go watch this film! Not just because it deserves support, but because it's fun. Watch it if you're a Looney Tunes fan. Watch it if you're an animation fan. Watch it if you're a comedy fan. Watch it if you just love to laugh and aren't self-conscious about laughing at something silly. Because silly it is, and that's why we love it. I'm hoping more Looney Tunes projects see the light of day, but it's not looking likely. I'm hoping more Porky & Daffy content gets made, but that doesn't look likely either. So I'm going to enjoy the hell out of this while I can, and I recommend you do as well. Now you know why I'm dizzy And do the things I do I am askew and you'd be too If the Merry Go Round Broke Down

[funnuraba]

My review of Most Ardently as A Transmasc (not the worst recent transmasc YA book, but not great or even good):

I didn't care for this? The dysphoria is well-described, but I didn't get anything else out of the experience. I thought at one point that Bingley might get fleshed out a bit more than the original book, and Oliver could enjoy being one of the guys in a way that strengthened all their characters, but then it was mostly just Oliver and Darcy after that.

Firstly, there are three or four scenes where the author was clearly feeling it and putting in effort--the fair, Oliver's dream about going swimming with his ideal body. Those are fine. All the other prose is so turgid and dull that rereading it for this review was a chore. There are at least four scenes where Collins/Wickham/Mrs Bennet/Lady Catherine says something outrageous, and Oliver stares at them thinking, 'Bwahh? Are they seriously saying that (PREMISE OF SCENE)? They can't be serious. It's almost like (OTHER CHARACTER'S FATAL FLAW).' Not funny. Not fun. The support Oliver gets is boilerplate "I love and support you always." Everyone else is constantly saying, "Wow, you're so feminine and should be more feminine, I love women and you are a woman and women are feminine, do you have dysphoria yet or should I start over?" Please trust your audience a little bit, even if you're writing YA!

One guy bothering Oliver at a ball comments that he admires women who can embroider, because it's such a feminine art. This is an inanity worthy of Mr Collins. In this time period, it's like saying that childbirth really reminds him of women. Fire hot. Snow cold! What he would say is that being good at embroidery shows a woman's class and good breeding: she's been educated well and has a talent that speaks to her overall character, because that's how they saw things back then. "Feminine" was not a quality that some women possessed, or one end of a sliding scale. It was what a woman was.

Beyond that, I don't feel like this was Pride & Prejudice in any meaningful way. It doesn't engage with the characters or setting except that the plot is vaguely "hot rich guy might hate you, and someone spreads rumors about him?!?" It felt more like Disney's Beauty and the Beast if Belle (or Beau) had a sister and the Beast had a friend. Collins and Wickham might as well be two halves of Gaston, because they're not Collins and Wickham. Nobody is the same as the original: Mr Bennet isn't witty but lazy and passive-aggressive, he's just the smiling kindly father who accepts Oliver instantly, and takes decisive action to protect him. Crazy old Maurice! Jane is supportive but sassy, not at all the Jane Bennet who refuses to think or speak ill of anyone down to the man who runs off with her sixteen year old sister. She's Oliver's Generic Sister. Oliver himself has no wit, no spark, no pride, no prejudice. No growth or flaws to overcome except being closeted. Collins isn't one of the most famous comic figures of English literature, he's just a dull guy who complains about modernity and tells Oliver he has beautiful child-bearing hips in public (what?!?!). (Collins in the original book has a very distinctive way of speaking that usually vanishes in remixes; as usual it's gone here. I'll grant that it's exhausting to replicate!)

Now, Wickham had unbelievable potential to explore in this remix, because how does Oliver, who likes men, react to being charmed by a handsome, charismatic man whose charm is predicated on addressing him as a woman the whole time? That's never addressed, because Oliver can simply sense the child molestions radiating off Wickham with his built-in Geiger counter, and dislikes him immediately. And Wickham is like a real sad sack here and has no game at all. Just straight to "Darcy is a bastard man, mean to my cousin. Maybe gay 🤨??"

There's very little engagement with any of the social mores of the era, even the ones that only require an annotated copy of P&P to research, because they're already in the original book. Oliver says "arse" at a public ball while presenting as a woman. Jane says "bastard"!!! Oliver is addressed regularly as "Miss Bennet" in situations where his elder sister is present. Later, Mr Collins calls him "Miss Elizabeth" and he's shocked at being deadnamed, but has a whole little moment explaining in his head that oh, that makes sense, because there are other Miss Bennets in the room. ....Except Oliver Bennet wouldn't have that thought, because there was a basic etiquette rule to deal with the surname problem, which he should know. He would always have been Miss Elizabeth unless Jane was totally absent.

Furthermore, the Bennets' financial and class situation seems to have been completely altered, except I don't think the author realizes it. Oliver mentions that they can only afford books on special occasions, and he dreams of having a library--but Mr Bennet in the original book has that very library, because they have a good income that they've spent rather than saved. They wouldn't be in their social circles otherwise. In Most Ardently, the Bennets don't live on a countryside estate with tenants who pay them rent. They live in a London townhouse that supposedly has servants, but in practice nobody acts like they do. Oliver has regular chores, Mrs Bennet brings food out to their guests, and Oliver offers to bring a broom for a dropped teacup. Mr Bennet is vaguely mentioned to have "work". Is he in trade? This is a pretty major change to their class, and it makes them into a family that would be excluded from every ball and gathering that the Bennets attend.

Except none of that matters, because the author wasn't trying to write anything but a modern single-income family that has to scrimp and save on some fronts. So Most Ardently just doesn't take place anywhere or any time in particular.

Charlotte, meanwhile, is now Charlotte Lewis for some reason. Her father isn't wealthy, he was never knighted, and the rest of her family doesn't exist, so it's just her and her hardworking father with no servants. We're told that they can't afford servants. Again, this is a worldshaking alteration to her class. Oliver Bennet, if we assume he's in Elizabeth's position from the book, would never socialize with a woman this poor. Not ever. They wouldn't be friends. He wouldn't go over to her servant-less house. Not even if his father were in trade. Charlotte Lucas helping out in the kitchen sometimes is already an object of derision from Mrs. Bennet in P&P; to have zero servants at all was the sign that your family was itself in the servant class.

(While I'm here: Charlotte Lewis was renamed from Charlotte Lucas, and her girlfriend is named Lu, which makes me feel like she's dating a gijinka of her original last name? Is that why Lu has no discernible personality? There's a lot of Oliver going over to their homes, talking to them alone in private, being in their bedrooms. It would've been interesting to see how a trans man from this time period would feel about all that, given that men weren't supposed to do any of those things--how does this alter the pre-existing friendship from before he realized he was a man? Does he feel invalidated that he has to break the rules of being a man in order to talk to the people who will treat him as a man, or does he find the rules don't matter as much to him now? Nothing like that is ever addressed, though.)

Lady Catherine (who is somehow OOC despite doing the same things she does in canon) is now Darcy's former guardian, because Darcy was aged down. I don't know if a widowed aunt could even be made legal guardian of two underage relatives when Darcy's mother still has a living brother--an earl, no less. But again, there was no consideration of how things might have been different in the past. Anne de Bourgh doesn't exist, which, fine, you can pare down the cast for a shorter story. But we still have to have the famous shades of Pemberley confrontation, so Lady Catherine wants Darcy to marry...... Wickham's cousin?! In the original story, this would be the niece of her brother-in-law's steward. That's not happening! Wickham doesn't seem to be in a different class here in Most Ardently. In fact, I'm not sure what he does, besides stalking Oliver and socializing with Mr Collins (?). I don't think the army is even mentioned. So why on earth would his cousin be a candidate to marry the incredibly rich nephew of an earl? This universe has no anchor in reality!

I guess my issue here is that all the social commentary and character detail from P&P is erased, and replaced with the singular conflict of being gay and trans. However, it doesn't even address that fully, because it might as well be 1990. It feels dishonest and cheap to ignore the actual concerns a trans man (who's white and in a certain social class) would have in this time period, precisely because many of them are IN the original book. Why is Oliver acting like it's solely a question of "living alone" if he refuses to marry? As an unmarried person perceived as a gentlewoman, he won't be able to earn any income, and he'll have to live an unpleasant life of poverty and dependence; not even dependence on his sisters, but on the mercy of their husbands. And when Darcy proposes to "Elizabeth" at the Collins', Oliver just goes "Ummm well first off you're gay" while refusing him. Darcy doesn't know this is Oliver, whom he'd been flirting with previously and knew he was gay. To him, this is a random woman who blurts out that she knows he's attracted to men, while he's trying to acquire a beard to hide that very fact. His response is completely inappropriate. He's somewhat put out and asks where she heard this. In no way does he react like someone whose life could be turned upside down if this fact got into the wrong hands.

Also, why in god's name is Oliver so insistent that everyone needs to Live Their Truth openly instead of hiding it? He comes across like a spoiled little brat with no idea what danger or suffering look like. He goes around demanding this of people as if it doesn't endanger them and their loved ones. Of course Darcy wants to marry a woman! He has wealth and property that need to be passed on, and a little sister who needs to make a safe marriage to a man who can support her. Rich people could get by with a little deviance, but only as long as they played the game in other respects. How would Oliver not understand this?

Then there's Charlotte. She and Oliver quarrel over their respective life plans: she wants to hide herself, marry a man, and go on with her secret relationship with Lu. Oliver wants to be recognized by the world as a man. So, Oliver could be planning to abandon his original identity and live stealth as a working man. There were trans men doing this back then; he could have heard stories about men being discovered "as women" after their deaths, and have a romantic dream of doing this, which Charlotte finds unrealistic.

But instead Charlotte tells him something completely true for the vast majority of queer people back then: that he'll most likely have to hide who he is and marry a man. Oliver gets mad at her for this. They somewhat make up, and Oliver sees things in a more nuanced way, and Charlotte tells him that Collins is actually very sweet to her. But then at the end, Collins turns out to be a blackmailing transphobe.... and not even a smart transphobe, because he finds out from Wickham that Oliver, whom he knows as his female Cousin Elizabeth, is wearing trousers at home. And Collins inexplicably thinks this could be a legal threat to him inheriting Longbourn. Why? Who in this time period would think that? Also, why are they friends? I'm choosing to believe that Wickham seduced him off screen, because it's never explained. They have nothing in common.

So, Collins is so scared that he offers to pay Wickham to coerce Oliver into marriage as a woman, and of course Oliver, who had never considered inheriting Longbourn before they tried to disenfranchise him, is like, "🤨 wait a minute. That's a good idea." And it turns out Mr Bennet was secretly working on having him legally recognized as a man all along. Through the means of... well, it doesn't make a lot of sense, but I'm not gonna quibble with this part, because people did get away with some surprising things back in the day. That part was fine.

So Oliver is declared legally a son, and good for him and all, but as a Charlotte fan, it feels like her arc is just, okay fuck you girl! Woman can't judge people for shit. Enjoy your shit asshole husband while Oliver openly lives as a man, you stupid bisexual(?). (A lot of reviewers call her a lesbian, but Lu says that the two of them aren't repelled by men like other "women who love women", so, bisexual? Or... I don't know?)

I don't want to be tearing down #ownvoices writing, and I do feel like there's a good story about dysphoria and parental acceptance in here. But everything else is so confusing and distracting that it doesn't work. This feels like it was forced into a very narrow shape by having to be a Pride And Prejudice Retelling. (Just like your waist in a fictional rib-crushing corset, huh?! Huh?! 🤣) There are plenty of modern-day P&P adaptations where the writers can write what they actually want to write around a much vaguer core story, while excising or altering subplots and characters they don't want to deal with. That would've eliminated nearly all of my problems with the story.

For example, a reimagined Mrs Bennet could accept Oliver as a man without the baggage of acting like the canon Mrs Bennet for the entire preceding novel. That was just unbelievable! She's been sulking and taking swipes at Oliver ever since he started wearing men's clothing at home, but suddenly he says, "I'm a boy!" and she not only understands immediately, but says, "Of course! That explains why you hate dresses!" What?! It was even set up perfectly for her to be consistent and say something like, "I don't know what that means, but if Mr Darcy's courting you, you can do whatever the hell you want!"

Good lord, there were some clunky moments. Mr Collinsbot at one point says, "All Of Your Sisters Are Of Marrying Age," and Oliver all but forms a T with his hands so he can timeout, look at the camera and think a full paragraph about how Actually, while it's technically legal for my youngest sister, 14, to marry, it would be highly irregular and unexpected, dear readers from the 21st century with ethical concerns. I swear at one point they're talking about Robinson Crusoe, and Darcy pauses to say that "some of the depictions are... questionable"--and that has to be about the racism, right? I'm sorry, but I don't need your wealthy white 19 year old in whatever-year-this-is to be meaningfully anti-racist, because you know what? I just don't believe it. Devote a little time to explaining why he'd feel that way--is his family involved in anti-slavery efforts?--or don't bother.

You know what, even if Darcy himself were an anti-slavery activist, I still wouldn't believe that he's conversant with the dehumanizing effects of colonial stereotypes against indigenous South Americans. Sorry.

The Lydia thing doesn't happen here, because Wickham would rather scheme to force Oliver into marrying him so he can gain..... nothing, really..... but it turns out the Georgiana thing did happen. We never see Georgiana, so don't worry that there might be a character who has anything going on in their life beyond their thoughts about Darcy and Oliver being gay and trans. Original Darcy is deeply concerned with his sister's feelings, and with period-specific worries about her marriage prospects; this Darcy just drops You Groomed My Sister in front of like five other people. No Ragrets. Hilariously, Mr Collins is horrified to learn about this, even though he came here to blackmail his own 17 year old cousin into marrying this same man, so it comes across like he's only upset because a relative of Lady Catherine was inconvenienced. Most in-character he's been so far. In conclusion, fuck you, Charlotte.

{EDIT: I wrote this a few months ago, and just now, a more recent review has made me aware of something I missed from the audiobook and a second look through the text, because it's so completely stupid: this Wickham is of an age with Darcy and Oliver, 18 and 17. So his attempted elopement with Georgiana took place between two people who could conceivably be in a modem high school together. .....Yeah, well, I can't even think of something to say about that. Wow, nobody, but nobody, has anything happening in their life except for Darcy and Oliver's epic love, huh? The review I learned this from says that Wickham and Georgiana were schoolmates in this book. Now, what co-educational school facility are they attending in the grand old years of 1790ish-18whatever? Be serious, Most Ardently.}

One scene in a molly house (a wholesome one, serving young adults and teens) makes me think it was literally written to take place in a modern club, with someone sitting down to play a brief waltz. A few couples stand up and waltz around in the molly house for a short while, Oliver and Darcy kiss... off the basis of two conversations.... then they all sit back down to keep reading. Why is Oliver so casual about kissing Darcy in semi-public? He only realized he was a man about a year ago, and already he's thrown everything he ever learned about physical relationships out the window? Is anyone in the downstairs establishment wondering where all that hidden waltz music is coming from? And why does Oliver casually say that people with no gender at all regularly come to this molly house, then add as an afterthought that he's EVEN heard tell of one or two trans men like him going there? Wouldn't that be way more common than nonbinary people? Just statistically?

Another issue I can't ignore, pursuant to the Charlotte Problem: this is just kind of a sexist book. I hate to be furthering the narrative of trans men being misogynistic, but it simply can't be overlooked in light of the original P&P having multiple flawed, but developed and memorable female characters. There are none of those in this book. Everyone is an accessory to Oliver. Elizabeth Bennet worries a lot about her sister Jane and counsels her, reassures her, acts as her rock. In Most Ardently, Oliver is the one getting all the support and being told that he's valid and wonderful by Jane, who has no personality beyond which men she likes. Charlotte lets Oliver use her home as a base to change his clothes and presses his pants for him--what kind of asshole is he for letting her do this, instead of resting for a few minutes? She has no servants! There are no dishwashers or washer-driers! She's cooking, cleaning, doing the laundry by hand every day all by herself! She's emptying the chamber pots too! Oliver needs his secret sets of pants pressed?? He can do it his damn self!

Darcy casually reveals to multiple strangers that his sister was groomed and nearly eloped with Wickham, with seemingly no thought that Georgiana might be hurt by this. Oliver is the center of everyone's universe. On top of that, Darcy's unpleasant behavior is put down to the fact that he doesn't like women and can't be polite to them. Because he's gay. This is never addressed at all. He's just gonna keep acting like that, and it's apparently not a problem.

Anyway, as I said, Charlotte gets some lip service towards having a valid point about having to live in the closet, but it's all undone by showing us that actually, she's a stupid idiot who shackled herself to an actively malicious man for the rest of her life. Meanwhile Oliver was completely right, and he gets to live his life out of the closet as a man while she spends her life with Collins. The original book lets the reader decide whether or not Charlotte made the "right", or at least workable, choice. Here, she's unequivocally wrong, and her life is going to suck, and she doesn't even get to inherit Longbourn someday. Oh, and she's only nineteen, so why did she jump at Mr. Collins anyway? She has no reason to be desperate yet. Her entire basis and motivation has been erased and invalidated.

And, we cannot forget the main thing mentioned by critical reviews: Oliver thinks of himself and Darcy as "boys" roughly 250 times in this book. (I joke, but Libby's word search shows 99 uses of the word as of chapter 17, at which point it gives up.) Does he know any other words? Young man? Youth? The dreaded male, even? It gets so irritating. The other boy, he's a boy, boys kissing boys, everyone's a boy, we're all boys. Fellas, sometimes we are grownass men and that's okay.

Wait, I just realized Oliver's kinda screwed as a future gentleman at the end, because he has none of the formal schooling boys were supposed to get, and his dad obviously has no money saved up to send him to a good university out of nowhere. Why weren't Darcy and Bingley at university in the book? This is where all that widdle baby shit gets you. Oliver Bennet: Child Left Behind.

I did laff at the author trying to write a straight man in Mr Collins though. Okay diva... We'll go queen out at Rosings...

[worldssmallestlizard]

oh wow i have not had an annoying group assignment in so long until now. but today was the same way

it is a really humbling reminder that i apparently write a lot. bc there has been a theme of people either like saying or implying "ermm youre putting in too much effort" but like aside from being a suckup its just. so easy to overexplain things whenever you get like glossed over or misunderstood without doing it?? if that makes sense

ive also noticed this thing where if someone has a lot of expertise in something theyll super oversimplify things in an "oh its not hard to understand, its just this easy" way. it would feel so so so wrong if i spoke like that. i neeed to be thorough

im also trying to (or not) get out of my "rumination" era bc i have had. so long to think to myself. like so much time in bed explaining things to myself or thinking about how things work. and ive only just recently taken the advice of "hey, you should write your thoughts down so that doesnt happen" and its like floodgates when i finally sit down and do it

so now imagine youre me and you cant quite tell whether the person sitting the furthest from you is like. referring to you when they read your work out loud and mutter a joke about it or shit like "so-and-so wrote a whole essay girl its not that serious"

man

[bellysoupset]

SOUP!!!!!!!

HI HI HI HI I CANT EXPLAIN HOW HAPPY I AM THAT YOURE BACK!!! oh my goodness i was literally typing this when i saw that you asked where i’ve been💀 i’ve been reading fics as you post them (i don’t have notifs on but i check your blog for updates on a regular basis LMAO) but life shtuff has only now died down enough for me to actually write/comment on things!! gosh i’m so excited you’re back!! in the LEAST pressure-y way, it’s almost embarrassing how slowly days went by as i was waiting for you to start posting again LOL like at one point i was telling myself “okay she said 20 days, it’s probably been at least a week”. it had been literally 3 days 💀 HAHAHAHWH

ANYWAYS

AHHHHHH MY BABIES MY BABIES!!!!! i don’t remember what the last thing i talked about on here was but WOW these last fics have made me cry and laugh and blush sooo many different times!! wen finding out was CRAZY and i literally sobbed w her bc the way everything played out was so unfortunate but also so realistic and raw and i had so many mixed feelings about everything!!!! and then wen isolating and bella checking on her!! and wen trying to push her away and then admitting that she felt so lonely GOD THAT WAS DEVASTATING but then bella being so supportive and comforting AGHHHH my girlsss <3333

and then omg the fic after that one??? i was SO surprised that wen forgave vin? and that they’re trying long distance??? i’m so fucking excited and happy abt that but god i’m sure it’ll be hard 😭 but YAY I KNEW THEY LOVED EACH OTHER TOO MUCH TO GIVE UP LIKE THAT ♥️

side note, luke being so depressed and struggling so much to adapt to his meds is so sad but so realistic too :,) i’m glad you’re making this a part of the plot!! but my man is def off his meds already lol im interested to see where this goes!! and also i LOVE how well jon and leo are doing <3 despite everything going on, they’re in their happy era fr <3

and now i’m sorry but the sick vin fic?????????? FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, IT WAS EVERYTHING I NEEDED AND MORE‼️ first off, leo talking to him and being so real but also like calling him out like that??? while still being super supportive??? and the way he described wen was so accurate and so him-coded??? and then AHHHHH i’ve ALWAYS loved vin and bell’s friendship, i’ve genuinely always thought it was super adorable and i wanted more of them, so this fic was gold 🤭 a trope that ALWAYS gets me is when someone is ANGRY at someone they love and ofc being bitchy and sassy until they realise said someone is very much Unwell (it’s especially good if they’re so sick that they’re really out of it), and when they realise how sick they are they IMMEDIATELY switch from mad to concerned + caretaker mode!!!! so yeah you can imagine this whole fic had me on my knees 🤭 obsessed w how protective of luke bell is, and how protective of vin wen is, but also how both girls just jumped straight into action when he was clearly not feeling good <333 and then vin realising wen was using her dr. voice, and then the pure ANGST at the end when he sobs and they just hug and the “god i’m gonna fucking miss you” SOB SOB SOB SOB 😭😭😭🫶🏽🫶🏽🫶🏽

bell sick and luke taking care of her was also AMAZINGGGG🫶🏽 i always love when my girls get whumped <3333 omg and AHHHH luke and vin finally talking abt shtuff🥹 the “nothing to forgive” 😭 luke knowing he’ll get sick AND holding him closer??? GOSH THE BROTP MAN !!!!!

and oh my goodness i just read the most recent fic with the new OC!!!! this is so exciting and cool and i love his vibes ahhhh <3 i love how nonchalant max seems abt shtuff and im so so excited to see where things go!! i hope vin and him become friends but also i feel like there’s gonna be some tension and weird banter going on between them at least at first hehehe

ANYWAYS

your writing is fucking incredible and whenever i see a new post from your blog it genuinely lights up my day <3 i am completely in love with all your characters and the depth and intricacies behind each of them ♥️ i’m so thankful your blog exists🫶🏽 also, i saw you were really struggling for a while and i just wanted to check in and see if you were doing better? you’re so loved and talented and appreciated and you deserve all the peace and love and happiness in the world!!! i hope things are going well/better!

i can’t wait to read more of what you write! i’m super excited about this new character and about reading more stories abt your lovely OCs <3

YOU’RE AMAZING THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING AND KEEP SLAYING!!!

🦦

Soup found DEAD from love cardiac arrest outside of Miami beach.

🦦!!!!! Honestly I don't even wanna post your comments, I just wanna stare at them for hours 🙈🙈

Don't worry about catching up on fics, they'll be here when life slows down!! I know very well how sad it is that we must Adult ™.

I am SO HAPPY you liked the Wendy/Vince developments!! In my head you're like THE Wendy/Vin supporter, so every time I write something with them I'm like "uhmmm wonder what 🦦 is gonna think??"

Caretaker who's pissed and then switches to comfort is also one of my favorite tropes, I looooove the spiciness of guilt thrown in!

Take care babe 💛💛

[besidesitstoowarm]

"The Voyage of the Damned" thoughts

put this off forever bc i didn't want to see it. in the end it was fine even if i keep mixing the title up with "planet of the dead"

ten slaying in his tux-with-converse look that had the 2007 girlies in a chokehold. troy bolton wears the same thing in high school musical 3 btw. if you even care. he gets interested in the angel statues that to me look like craghas "crabfeeder" drahar from hit hbo drama "house of the dragon". do you think the doctor would support the greens or the blacks

we meet max capricorn who is the most "john waters from wish" looking person i've ever seen. and max capricorn as a name sounds like a discount drag name. i like that everyone is wearing 10s-20s era clothing, the mix of titanic-era set dressing with typical sci-fi machinery actually blends really nicely. the two "low class" contest winners are in cowboy clothing which i also like since a lot of the nouveau riche around the turn of the century were oil millionaires from out west (in america anyway). they seem extremely nice and i would love to hang out at a buffet with them

the doctor flirts with kylie minogue, who actually does a really good job in the role, she's very wide-eyed and charming and the character felt fully realized. doctor who is really good at one-offs. he offers a "brand new sky" and she takes it and off to london where we meet WILFRED MOTT, MY GRANDDAD!!!! i completely forgot he was in this one. i screamed "GRANDDAD" when he appeared and scared my bf

the captain is on a suicide mission and apologizes to alonso. i have never seen alonso's actor in anything but he looks so familiar. the actor is gay btw. i loved the captain's "they promised me old men" speech, he's dying and needed the bribe money to take care of his family once he's gone but he was trying to limit the collateral damage to his crew ASTEROID ATTACK

we learn that the doctor is 903 years old. i think this is the first time his age is stated? nine had the whole "900 years of time and space" but i'd assumed he was just rounding. does he celebrate his birthday? i love the idea that he has no idea how old he is and is just guessing. the second doctor was canonically ~450. anyway they're trying to navigate the ship and the cowboy couple try to repair a broken angel bc they were like mechanics back home. i think it's interesting that in sci-fi, robots are stuff for poor people

cyborgs were recently granted rights and "can even get married" which is nice for them. the doctor says "you should see me in the morning" and astrid says "okay" and he looks like he stuck a fork in a socket. they're both sooo down bad this ep. i'd like to have seen her as a companion for a few episodes, adam-style except adam sucked and astrid is cool

max capricorn is a head in a jar. i'm not kidding that this is the exact same twist as the movie "prometheus" did ridley scott steal that from this episode?? it's the same goddamn thing. that movie was awful. i rejoiced when astrid killed him with a forklift, barbara-style (running over bad guys is always barbara-coded for me). the doctor brings the tour guide professor to london cause he's a millionaire on earth and he just like. cries with joy cause he can have a HOUSE with a DOOR and a GARDEN and DISHES and wow he's just like me fr. he refuses to take him with him cause he "travels alone" tenth doctor voice what kind of time lord takes a companion you can't fuck

this episode was in memory of verity lambert who had recently died when it was released. i had no idea who she was last time i saw this episode so i never noticed that. always famous to me verity <3

[kylesvariouslistsandstuff]

I've been on a slight classic Disney TV Animation kick.

I'm talking mid-1980s to early 1990s era DTVA... The era of DUCKTALES, CHIP N' DALE RESCUE RANGERS, TALESPIN, DARKWING DUCK, etc. I loved these shows as a kid, as I caught the many re-runs of them on Toon Disney in the late '90s when staying over my grandparents' house during the summer days before my mum got home from work.

And the funny thing is, when reading up on these shows and their histories... If a ton of these shows were being made today? I think they'd be met with a lot of doubt and skepticism on the Internet...

Like... "TALESPIN? Wtf is this? JUNGLE BOOK characters as cargo pilots in an INDIANA JONES-esque adventure setting? Chip and Dale lookin' like Indiana Jones and Magnum P.I.? Trying too hard to be relevant and cool. So dated! A Disney cartoon about Gummi Bears??? A candy??? Disney is totally out of ideas, man-"

And yet, the fledgling division - a brainchild of the newly-arrived CEO Michael Eisner, who saw that Disney had long barely contributed to the world of episodic television animation - went through with these shows circa 1985-1993... They came out, kids and audiences watched them, they all did very well, are fondly-remembered favorites of American animation's 2nd Golden Age. The early batch of shows arguably changed the game for TV animation in the states, which was by then soaked in toy commercials and cliche kidvid stuff.

And I almost get the feeling that once the Golden Age went full-throttle with the advent of THE SIMPSONS, Nickelodeon's "Nicktoons", Warner Animation's offerings (many of which involving Steven Spielberg!), MTV's groundbreaking adult cartoons, and many more, Disney TV Animation did have some re-routing. The early '90s was a kind of weird era for them, when they put out shows like BONKERS, RAW TOONAGE, and THE SCHNOOKUMS AND MEAT FUNNY CARTOON SHOW. The game was changing fast, and soon they were wowing once more with the likes of GARGOYLES, and venturing into other territory with shows like PEPPER ANN. They'd get creators of shows that were hits on other networks, such as Paul Germain from RUGRATS, who co-created RECESS with Joe Ansolabehere, who had previously worked on another iconic Nick show, HEY ARNOLD!

Kinda makes me think of where Disney Animation has been for a bit these past few years, in an era where the mainstream feature animation game is changing fast. And how! And it's not that what they do is bad or - as largely insufferable people say - "mid". Release something like ENCANTO or RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON or even STRANGE WORLD in 2015, it'd be praised, most people would be in agreement, "Yeah, another strong entry from the revitalized WDAS." Of course, RAYA and ENCANTO enjoyed solid reviews and excellent streaming results, and STRANGE WORLD even got pretty passing grade reviews (whereas something like the MARIO movie... Didn't. Funny how that works), but large chunks of weird animation fans on the internet seem to think they're all just "mid" or whatever... It's some console wars-caliber nonsense, I think, that's reductionist. If I didn't like something, I still acknowledge the hard work put in by the filmmakers/crew (especially crucial amidst the writer and actors' strike), and go about my day. I'm not pitting STRANGE WORLD against PUSS IN BOOTS 2, for sure. There's no reason for me to do so.

I thought about how in ANIMANIACS, they took potshots at BONKERS. The same era as "SEGA does what NintenDON'T." Those extreeeeeeme aaaaattitude '90s!

I know, because I lived most of that decade.

BONKERS is a show that fascinates me (I recently wrote a little thing about it on my main tumblr), and I thought while watching it... Release this show in 1988, and *not* 1993, it's likely hailed as groundbreaking. A cartoon trying to be zany and fun like 1940s Tex Avery cartoons, visually satisfying and nicely realized, and much more original than - say - the umpteenth CARE BEARS cartoon or the new Hanna-Barbera ersatz Scooby-Doo stuff. But, post-TINY TOONS, post-REN & STIMPY, and sitting next to ANIMANIACS, it seemingly just could not compare. It also didn't help that it was heavily inspired by the amazing film that is WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT, its characters and premise ostensibly being a replacement for a property Disney could no longer do stuff with because of their feud with co-owner Spielberg. (Which puts TINY TOONS and ANIMANIACS' potshots at Disney and BONKERS, respectively, into perspective.)

Similarly, Hanna-Barbera - long one of the studio names synonymous with TV animation in America - were in an odd place themselves, until they - under the stewardship of one Fred Seibert - began bringing in some incredible talent like Genndy Tartakovsky, Paul Rudish, Rob Renzetti, to name a few... We had moved away from the likes of YO YOGI!, TOM AND JERRY KIDS, and SIMPSONS-chasing "adult" cartoons like CAPITOL CRITTERS and FISH POLICE... 2 STUPID DOGS, which had been dismissed as a REN & STIMPY wannabe by some folks back in the day, was really a launchpad for those talents. And soon, Hanna-Barbera Productions was rockin' the mid-to-late '90s with all the iconic Cartoon Network shows we all know and love... Kinda makes me think of how Illumination gets looked at, they've been around for some time and they "churn out" stuff that's just "mid" or "bland" or whatever, but I think post-SING 2, post-MINIONS 2, there's a sort-of newfound appreciation for them in some circles. Somewhat. SUPER MARIO BROS. MOVIE got a pass from a lot of people engaging in these weird console wars, despite its middling critical reception and a lot of folks saying it actually wasn't good. (I liked it fine, but I felt it was more a "Mario's Greatest Hits" showcase than an actual movie.) But, Illumination has an adult animation division (Moonlight) firing up, some pretty dynamic side projects and shorts, too. They even got talent like Benjamin Renner, who directed the upcoming MIGRATION. They're doin' something right if they got him.

I think, more than anything, things change so fast in entertainment. Tastes change, things trend, animated movies take a while to come out and are largely determined at a stage long before a print (or digital file) of the finished film projects onto a screen somewhere. How does one know what the world looks like, culturally, five years after they have started their film? Let alone 2 years? It's why I don't pile on films like ELEMENTAL, STRANGE WORLD, LIGHTYEAR, RUBY GILLMAN, et al losing money. They seemed surefire when they signed off on them, and like William Goldman said... No one knows anything!

I dunno, I thought I'd just relate some current feature animation things to what was happening in TV animation some 30 years ago... all because I was watching TALESPIN and BONKERS and such-