#i love axl so much its not funny

[vizziefizzie]

Have you seen him??

[spinningbuster98]

Mega Man X7 Part 1

So I know that technically speaking Zero 1 should be next since it came out the year after X6 but y’know what? There’s only 2 X games left, might as well do them sooner rather than later. Besides the Zero series has a much more connected story throughout its games so it’s more fitting to do them all in sequential order without interruptions.

It’s just too bad that we now have to deal with quite possibly one of the worst games ever made

X7′s issues are much more...explicit than X6′s. You can spot them just by looking at it.

Probably the first thing you’ll notice is just how ugly it looks. This is a 2003 PS2 game, this thing came out at the same time as Sonic Heroes and yet it looks like a Dreamcast game, if the character models were completely and utterly inexpressive, the characters animated like actual puppets (and barely at that) and the environments looked as bland and uninspired and murky as fuck. The opening stage is a recreation of X1′s (because X7 came out to celebrate the X series’ 10th anniversary, now where have I seen a similar situation before?), and it just serves to further drive home the point of how despicably low we’ve fallen

So this game wants to be 3D. Well 3D and 2D as well, with different sections in each level. Barring Legends, which was 3D but kinda cheated by having a different gameplay style altogether, this is technically the first....and only time a traditional Mega Man game has ever been translated into 3D.

You may already spot the main issues, like the camera being stuck in this pseudo bird’s eye view half the time while also being stuck to your ass, making it damn awkward to see where you’re going during 3D sections, especially when platforming is involved.

Another big issue that you wouldn’t notice unless you were playing this is the controls: the characters feel sluggish, slow, they have little sense of fluidity, 3D sections, with their extra spacious design, pretty much require you to dash jump all over the place if you intend of moving at a pace that’s greater than that of entropy and wall jumping feels awkward as hell with the characters jumping way too far away from the wall and the camera moving alongside them even in the 2D sections

The game has an auto lock on, because the devs must have figured that it would be needed in a 3D space and it is, but this also means that Mega Man’s trademark gameplay style of taking aim and firing is neutered since now you can just spam a button indisciminately and stuff will die. They won’t die immediately  because enemies like to be tanky and you can get knocked on your ass by stuff like explosions, which does WONDERS for this game’s pacing but hey.

Word of advice: go to the options and turn on rapid fire. Trust me you’ll see later why you’d wanna do this

Anothe thing you may have noticed is the voice acting

MM8 and X4 are infamous for their voice acting but y’know what? They were somewhat charming in a “so bad it’s funny” kind of way, plus I could count the voiced cutscenes on one hand

X7′s can get funny in a memey sort of way but mostly it’s fucking ear-grating

Zero sounds half decent but the direction they gave the actor makes him sound like he’s changed his mind about coming back to life and now just wants to gp back to the void

Signas is voiced by Robert Belgrade, the man who voiced Alucard in Symphony of The Night, probably the only voice actor in that game who put any kind of genuine effort (besides Dracula’s in his own way). Here though he sounds completely zoned out, like he’s here fot the check and nothing else

Alia sounds like a timid teenage girl

Axl sounds like every annoying shonen kid stereotype all rolled up into one

And X

Ooooh X....

So unlike what my previous criticisms of Zero becoming the de facto protagonist of the series for a while (and my profile picture) may have suggested I actually don’t have a lot of love for X aside from his design.

The series has just never done anything of substance with his concept of being the first robot capable of true free will, and due to his general lack of dialogue and interesting story beats when compared to Zero he just doesn’t amount to much kre than “angsty Mega Man”, like he’s exactly like Rock except you swap out his childlike optimism and drive with lots of angst and doubt. On paper this should be enough to make X different enough but in practice, like I said, the execution has simply never been there.

Theoretically a story where X decides to no longer fight the good fight because he can’t take it any longer would be great; not only is it very human but it also showcases X’s ability to make his own choices in a negative way by having him make a bad decision. It’s a far more interesting idea than simply having him go evil as was the original idea behind the Zero series....which actually ended up having X also retire from fighting out of sheer mental exhaustion before X7 was even a thing.

However what we get here is one of the worst cases of flanderizaton I have ever seen

In past games X would have usually only 1 brief (BRIEF) moment where he laments that he has to once again take up arms and fight to save the world. He’s a pacifist at heart so it makes sense.

X7 makes it X’s entire personality. And in the whiniest, most hateable way possible. And I don’t mean Shinji Ikari kind of whiny.

He just stands there at HQ doing fuck all all day (as far as we can see at least), criticizing others for using violence to deal with dangerous criminals, while not coming up with a better alternative and just being a douchebag overall. He sounds like your average Twitter user who rants about the injustices of the world and how other people are shit for not doing anything about them while they themselves are just sitting there typing at a keyboard from their mother’s basement.

That moment when he tells Red that if he wants Axl back he can have him because he has no intention of fighting for the likes of him is fucking putrid. He’s literally saying that he’s A-OK with handing over a kid, even if a troubled and irresponsible one, to a criminal organization just because “fighting bad”.

It’s pretty funny. Inafune has long left the series and you can tell because Zero is no longer the center of the universe, but now this new dev team want to impose ANOTHER main character in the form of Axl and X is treated worse than ever.

And we’re just getting started

[grimescum-2]

hi hello flea just popping by to give you the opportunity to let you tell me whatever had taken over your brainspace today even if I might not know anything about it :3c

TEETH CHATTERING SWEATING SHAKING AND QUIVERING ok so.... theres these guys... and ummm... theres actually a lot of them im rotating in my head but

hes def one of my favoritest characters of all time hes so fuckingy SILLY snd his past is so sad.. all that shit and yet he remains kind & silly. love him dearly. i think you'd like him too actually :o3

and then theres him :o33333 his name is slayer coz he slays and hes a vampire BUT he's also super silly. he has a wife canonically and im very jealous of her but it's cute how much he loves her so ill let it pass (he gets pegged) (sorry guys i got hacked idk who sayd that)

also hes irish and voiced by the one irish guy. thought that was funny

i mostly like this guy coz hes sexy so no real infodump here

SECOND FAVE UP THERE W FAUST but i dont have many good pics of him yet sorry girl </33 his name is axl hes so damn cute. hes british as u can very obviously see but he makes up for it by being a genuinely good guy. he has a gf but he cant see her :( all he eants to do is see her and its sad. i am however a jealous bitch and wish i was her instead

THANK U SO MUCH U HAVE NO IDEA!!! i was actually considering taking my autism to ur inbox but i was like "naww she doesn't know anything about this" so knowing that you'd be willing to listen regardless is wonderful <33 not to mention that i worry abt being annoying by posting abt my guys on here

[the-90s-music-colosseum]

its funny cause i give my parents updates on this tournament, and the only frame of reference they have is the bands/people i'm into generally. (my mum says "well, you should be glad i don't know who you're talking about because that would mean i'm trying to be hip and cool" lmao). anyways

i think its soooo funny because like. my parents obviously know who oasis is. i have a poster i got from knebworth 22 in my room (place of pride for real), and i've played them in my care a LOT. my mum has a very vague idea of who HIM is because i've got a shirt for them (heart pentagram is such a sick design and i will die on this hill). i showed the two of them to my mum and she was like "obviously liam. the other one looks too much like a girl." and on one hand it was like "you don't understand." but on the other hand, validation. cause like. yeah. liam's gorgeous obviously. but then like. i showed her other picture of ville valo cause i totally voted for him (i'm so sorry liam but how could i not) and she GOT IT.

anyways, dad's upset mariah carey won because "she sings that hideous christmas song and anyone is better than her" and also, he's of the opinion that i should have immediately wanted to vote keanu reeves instead of holding out until i knew who he was up against (still not over liam vs. ville valo the ultimate betrayal and sadness lol)

dad's opinion is also that axl rose should win the next round solely based on the fact that he knows who he is, but really, what does he know, cause he made fun of me rooting for jarvis with my entire being.

idk where i'm going with this sorry. i love this tournament, and hilariously i'm more invested in this than the original bracket, but that's cause my most beloved albums got eliminated soooooo quickly (seeing the same in the 2000s bracket and i tell myself that my taste is just more niche rather than bad)

-from the very tipsy anon that sent something in quite awhile ago. very sorry that you only get these very long winded anons when i've had a few

n.e.ways. this blogs great and i got a kick out of you saying you'd integrate the trent reznor fuck or be like teenage girl thing into your belief system.

also, i agree with the anon that said than radiohead man aged real nice where as damon didn't. given, i last saw him with a mullet, and thought he aged like spoilt milk, but radiohead man (remembered his name Thom! aged real nice)

also, as much as creep is like the stereotypical radiohead song and kinda considered overplayed, it UNDERSTANDS ME and also me as a teen. props to him. idk if i can bring myself to vote for him though (not cause he's kinda weird looking - odd looking people are HOT ok) but cause i had a devestating crush on a guy who was obessed with radiohead and he literally told me that i give off "emotionally unavailable vibes and its cool to make friends with someone so similar to me" and it ruined me emotionally for a good like 5 months)

also, props to oasis for having supersonic as one of their top songs, cause hell yeah Give Me Gin and Tonic! literally my drink of choice lmaooooo

once again, very sorry for very long anon, had another g+t while writing this (that makes 6!)

have a very good evening! i adore this blog! and i think youre hella cool and i could never imagine trying to rum a tournament and answer all the asks that you do (there's reason i'm anon unless i have the amazing urge to send pics in aid of my very special blorbo)

<3

omg no this is lovely actually

Apparently my blog has already met the parents?? I'm so proud ahaha and your parents have some of the funniest takes. I love reading these long asks, it's like a sneak peek into the minds of my viewers and honestly means the world to me. Enjoy your gin and tonic, anon, and a wonderful evening to you as well <3

[mrmckagansmissus]

All I wanted..

angstyy

Think of me when you're out when you're out there  I'll beg you nice from my knees  And when the world treats you way too fairly  Well it's a shame I'm a dream 

Tiffany sat on the couch, watching his skinny tall figure sit with the rest of the band on the tv. Not that she was listening to what they were talking about, she missed the smell of vodka that he trailed everywhere with him, she missed the short jokes he used to make about her. she just missed him. 

All I wanted was you  All I wanted was you... 

“why do you care so much anyways tiff, it’s a little date get over it”  

“it matters because it hurts seeing the man I fell in love with go on date with people who aren’t me ,it hurts duff”  

“well then your fucking stupid falling in love with a rockstar tiffany lee” 

I think I'll pace my apartment a few times  And fall asleep on the couch  Wake up early to black and white re-runs  That escaped from my mouth 

The rest of the night tiffany remained on the couch playing the argument through her head, regretting ever telling him she was in love with him but he was right she was an idiot for falling in love with a rockstar who didn’t see her as anymore but a friend. 

All I wanted was you  All I wanted was you  All I wanted was you  All I wanted was you 

The ringing of the phone was starting to get on tiff's nerves, and so were the voicemails of various band members with the constant “hey tiff it’s steven I was just calling to check on you, call back as soon as you get this, we are all worried about you” or “tiff Its Axl, I know you’re at your house pick up the phone dammit, steven thinks you’ve died and won't get off our asses about it” tiff laughed at that one, steven was always by your side, although one voicemail came through that absolutely shattered her heart into a million pieces “tiffany answer the phone the fucking argument wasn’t even that bad” hearing the voice of the man that stepped all over her heart was too much to deal with. 

I could follow you to the beginning  And just to relive the start  And maybe then we'll remember to slow down  At all of our favorite parts 

Tiffanys eyes burnt, the last of the remaining week spent sobbing into the shirt he brought her for her 21st birthday, she remembered it clear as day she was so happy, giggling and having fun with the band it was one of the best birthdays she had ever had. 

All I wanted was you  All I wanted was you  All I wanted was you  All I wanted was you 

The house was eerily quiet, the only thing being heard was tiffs own breathing for once she could hear her own thoughts but did she really want to?. It almost didn’t feel right without the boys being here, she didn’t have slash to talk about snakes too, steven to laugh about anything, or even Izzy who would always laugh at her stupid jokes, funny or not. She missed her boys. Looking out the window into the busy world she wondered if it would ever go back to the way it was. 

[runimanio]

2024 Game Clear #11 Mega Man ZX Advent

This is largely the last mega man platformer that I hadn't played and beaten yet- there are some technically like maybe ill suffer through the DOS games sometimes and also if you count Mighty No. 9 as a mega man game then yeah I haven't played those yet but its pretty much just RPGs and oddities at this point. It also obviously the last game in the Zero/ZX collection that i had yet to clear which is significance because that collection is what started this misguided attempt to slowly playthrough every mega man game back in 2021 so to have that collection completely behind me now is kinda crazy.

I played through this twice doing a Ashe run and a Grey run respectively and while the changes are pretty minimum I am glad i did because I think I would've left with a little bit of a bad impression if i didn't replay it due to external stuff making me frustrated during the end game, cause me to play bad, making me even more frustrated! My Grey playthrough was much smoother, a good reminder that sometimes these games are better the second time after you know what your doing and man yeah this game rules.

What an improvement from first game, in the first game it very much felt like the search action game design and the Mega Man game design were getting in each other ways and not really melding together well. It feels a lot better balanced here. I will say that I think the overall aesthetic™ is a little stronger in the first game but y'know that comes at the cost of getting across the map being a pain so it's a fair trade.

It's also kinda nice to have a subseries that deals in the X series terminology of Reploids, Mavericks, A-Trans etc without being super bleak at all times lol.

This story does feels like it was written more for Grey than Ashe, I didn't really understand why Ashe- the non amnesic was so desperate to learn her past when her intro seemed to set her up as someone chasing the future rather than the past, so it's a bit odd

The voice acting pretty funny though I've been quoting Thetis's "I won't give up💅" to my friends a lot. looking through the folks involved it seems to be alot of Shenmue alumni or are only credited on this, one of the actors I looked at had credits on the original dub of Symphony of the Night, Shenmue, Baten Kaitos & X7 the forest gump of cheesy game dubs. But this honestly it isnt anywhere near the worst mega man voice acting out there, nobody audibly flubs their lines and like the best cheesy dubs there alot of line delivery that are pretty memorable im sure if i grew up with this game would live in my head like dubs such as Sonic adventure and Beyblade do. I mean even only playing this twice Atlas's "History of the world, History of the war" got stuck in my head just because it's odd rhymical delivery.

Also Zero and X's X7 actors are in this cast but not as model Z and X I just think that kinda funny.

Shame that we'll probably never return to this world in a meaningful way because I still have alot of questions about this world: What's Ciel up to? I'd love to learn more about the biometal holders, is Thomas teased plan related to Legends? since the other Biometal holders survived the crash does that mean Model Z is alive and other enemy control?, will we ever address Model A just being Axl? so many possibilities for the future of this story

[robotsafari]

66, 6, 87, 1, 45

prepare for snothing but guilty gear: 66 - Make Oneself (Guilty Gear XX)

not surprised since like any other xx track, well, i listened to it alot. i like this song a lot !! make oneself is a song i can only describe as a very "axl" theme. idk how to communicate why i feel this way but i can just say this song fits him like a glove. i prefer the xx version over the x version personally. idk, the x version just gets too noisy for me. too much of a cacophony most of the time. sorry x version lovers. burn me at the stake or smthing.

6 - Doubt (Guilty Gear Xrd)

WHY. why is this so fucking high .. this song isnt even that good. its just a funny story mode track that plays in some assassins scenes. i guess because i kept making a joke where i played like the ffirst few seconds of this song??? whatever. its fine. press x to doubt or whatever.

87 - Drumhead Pulsation (Guilty Gear Isuka)

YEAAAAAAHH NOW WE'RE TALKINNNNN!!!!!!!!!! this song fucking rules and its honestly a crime i havent listened to it more often. this is like. roadtrip music material to me idk why. i could blast this shit in a car or something and go nuts. so awesome. im so lame.

1 - i think i hauve autism

yeah. its the xx version of a solitude that asks nothing in return. i love venom. you know i love venom. you know the entire guild does insane things to my brain. you know the solemn vibe of the track makes me shake and cry for 500 hours. you know that violin part gets me every time. you know the fact that venom's theme changes so drastically between x & xx breaks my soul into an unfathomable number of pieces. its a modern fucking masterpiece except that this song is probably a decade old at this point. hey. did you know that in the violin part, the bassline has a motif from the old version of that part? yeah. just wanted to let you know that.

45 - The Original (not the original version for some reason)

wait why the xx version i like the x version better--

jokes aside. yeha i like faust's theme in this game its very good. i guess the xx version is so high because i found out the x version exists and is good too late. sad. well the xx version isnt that bad its just well.. its missing the saxophone, the funky synths, the whimsy, the heart, the soul.. sorry. its inferior but its still a bop.

so if you wanna send me an ask of this please do a batch like this its very fun and i dont have a lot of followers or ppl who pay attention to what i say.

[finsterhund]

Past few days have been going in a haze and idk how to feel about it.

Sore, tired, stressed. Not as active online as I would like to be. Getting ready for a convention I don’t know if I even want to go to because I miss Cazza. Can I afford to spend money at the con? No. Do I even have the drive to get art at the con? Also no. Why am I even going then? well I put effort into a cosplay of Kevin from Skinamarink and there’s gonna be star wars cosplayers there I guess.

There was a massive heatwave. A horrible spike in temperature. It’s frying my brain. I hate the heat so much it’s unreal. Miserable. How much of that is why I’m not having a good time? Probably a lot.

I am very very sore. Needed to do laundry days ago already. They don't close the laundry room so I wanted to do it tonight but I'm so tired and weak. Accidentally “just laid down for a bit” and now it is 4AM. Probably gonna do laundry now anyways now that it’s cooler.

Money gets tighter and tighter. It’s honestly depressing. Should be used to it by now but I still hate it. Roommate seems convinced his car is going to die any minute now and is stressing out about trying to find another one and wants me to pitch in. As if I have the disposable income. Personally I think his car is gonna be fine for at least until winter. I’m used to things being run into the ground. He’s been stressed and has been making me stressed too.

Feeling defeated because it’s a struggle trying to repair music boxes when you don’t have the right replacement parts. I now have two broken music boxes. Very sad. The newest broken one is a relatively easy fix with the right part though. The ridge that holds the mainspring in position snapped off of winding key axle. I keep hoping to find broken movements I can cannibalize for parts but that just doesn’t keep happening. I’ve been trying to modify the drum of a particularly difficult movement and I also need to find a replacement mainspring for another. The issue being I don’t want to scavenge from working movements if I don’t have to. When I have some disposable income I should just bite the bullet and buy one of those job lots full of various states of disrepair vintage movements. But yeah. Spent all yesterday trying to modify the one note drum that has a way too fucking long specialized metal rod through its center that prevents it from being put into the base of compatible space movements. Scraped up my fingers about as bad as you can without making them bleed. I love working on mechanisms but not having a success is always very frustrating.

But in theory my music box problems can be solved.

Yet another bean has sprouted. Also my first bean plant is now climbing. Also got my first sunflower sprout. So even though I HATE this temperature my plants in the window fucking love it apparently.

Hoping to find good sunlight emulating LED bulbs for my room. I found cheap grow lights (the weird colored ones) but they're not ideal for anything other than plants. Just gotta make sure they’re not carcinogenic you know?

My neighbor found plant rooting hormone. Can’t wait to illegally download plants. I find it so funny people talking about propagating cuttings online have the nerve to be all “make sure you’re not doing it with a patented plant...uwu” bitch I literally do not care. I will steal every plant. They’re fucking plants. You can’t stop me. (nevermind the fact that I don’t even think I want to propagate the stupid weird patented plants anyways.)

My neighbor is being very nice to me so of course my stupid PTSD brain is telling me it’s a trap. God why can’t you just be fucking normal. Maybe just maybe somebody from an older generation is genuinely a nice person and wants to help you and wants to be your friend? Is that such a fucking alien concept to you? idiot? My brain keeps holdings its breath waiting for the ulterior motives to drop. What’s the catch? Why am I being treated nicely? Maybe there isn’t one. Maybe this is a genuinely nice person and they’re not going to take advantage of you being an idiot child? Maybe learn to trust fucking moron. All this time I’m talking about wishing I could make more friends in-person but I’m too scared of people to feel safe in doing so.

Did not sleep today. Probably not for 24 hours+ so I'm having a nap and rest now that I have some level of downtime. *edit* lol okay so unlike above apparently I did start write this intending to have some level of nap. lmaoooo

I think I’m forgetting to take some of my meds which honestly would explain some things. Roommate doesn’t want me to turn on our AC yet because “it’s expensive” but I am fucking dying dude. Please.

I am so glad Scott has Nexguard. This baby brat will manage to find and eat some random thing he found on the ground before I have a chance to stop him. Fortunately I did prevent him when he found half a dead bird in the yard. Gah.

I guess that is a negative to my grandparents farm. Summers get hot there too. But like, there’s also enough sun that I could make a solar farm and entirely cool the small house with that? Wind farms are viable there too.

Anyways I’m putting off my laundry obligations. :(

[tazma-art]

OMG YES THAT'S PRETTY CLOSE TO WHAT I WAS THINKING. His wings as a cloak is big brain.

Also I love picturing him as being able to mostly look like a person standing upright and using his wings as a cloak but then he gets on all fours and that's DEFINITELY not a person

The image of a digger slowly freaking out more and more as they get closer to him is so funny! And of course Volnutt would be the one to approach something like that.

I imagined a scenario where Barrett and Areo once encountered Zero on one of their digs and told Axl about it. When Axl heard about the red cryptid with soul piercing blue eyes, a wild blond mane, surrounded by spirits, and with two pairs of horns on the back of its head that goes around saving people, he was like "that Сукин сын is alive" and asked Barrett to take him there Immediately. Unfortunately, Zero doesn't stay in one place too long unless there's something particularly of interest in it so he was long gone by the time Axl got there. Barrett and Areo are very confused about why his mentor is desperately trying to find this creature, so much so that they even look in the surrounding islands, but Zero is not easy to find unless he wants to be found and he doesn't know anyone from his time is alive.

Axl starts questioning everyone he can about the Cryptid but they all say mostly the same things. Scary red thing with a blond mane that saved me by killing a reverbot with it's bare hands and he is pretty sure that's Zero, but he can't be 100% certain. Though when he asked Volnutt about it the kid said "oh yeah I met them! They were terrifying but nice enough! Saved me from being crushed by a reaverbot when I was just starting out but when I got up to thank them they got a weird look on their face. Almost like they recognized me. They said it was nothing and just gave me some food and a really cool artifact and left, I wish I had talked to them more but the way they looked at me was a little unnerving " Axl is now a lot more certain that that's Zero.

Also, I was picturing the kid he accidentally adopted laying down on his hair with him and 🥺 Dad Zero is my weakness. But my man does not know how to parent. I imagine him trying to give his kid straight up raw or barely cooked meat cuz he doesn't know the difference, and the kid is like (⁠•⁠ ⁠▽⁠ ⁠•⁠;⁠) I cant eat this. Or maybe they would eat it idk, I have no idea who this kid would be. I am not an expert in megaman legends lore so I would not know if it's anyone from cannon. I think he would let his kid do a lot of insanely dangerous stuff because hey he was just born when he first killed a man so eh. I also pictured him with a coffee mug that said Worlds Okayest Dad and hahsjhshdjjjs

Hello! So this was originally going to be an ask but it spiraled out of my control and it got too long so here we are :D I hope you enjoy my ramblings. Also I'm not a writer so I'm sorry if I sometimes don't make sense (⁠•⁠ ⁠▽⁠ ⁠•⁠;⁠)

@absolutely-normal-about-x

Your legends reborn AU has given me brain worms and ideas and I would like to share them if you don't mind! :D

It's mostly about Zero.

So, in one of your posts you said that you view the guardians' animalistic traits as a sign of freedom and that got me thinking about Zero.

I'm not 100% sure on how you interpret him, or how you want him to be in the au but from what I've gathered you like to see him as a Creature™ and it's how i view him too most times!

I love your head cannon that Zero can go on all fours because was not only made to be the ultimate weapon but also the ultimate predator (or hunter I don't remember the exact word you used)

So I was thinking that in your legends reborn au, since it's a time of peace and he is not a war machine anymore, he's (mostly) not a weapon anymore! :D

So, his predator/ hunter side is more present which makes his animalistic traits more prominent then the guardians. He can run on all fours, has paws :3, I like imagining him using his hair/mane as a bed or a blanket, and maybe give him some wings to reflect the absolute armor and the mother elf a little since she was based on him. (I still think he wears armor though)

I just want them to represent how free he is in the new world. I see the world of megaman legends as being very freeing for a being like Zero.

I think he has always lived in very restricting conditions. As I said before this man is a Creature™ and I don't think Wily ever intended for him to be a social one or to live in crowded places like a city (cuz he was supposed to Destroy those). I imagine living in the hunters HQ with so many reploids never felt quite right to him.

And Sure he could act like other reploids and mostly blend in but his mind was still so different he had to work extra hard to fit in. (Basically he's had to mask so hard for most of his life)

I think the only time he felt most like he was in his natural habitat was in the Zero games when he was mindlessly destroying thousands of enemies in large spaces to achieve a goal, and mostly not talking to people. It was still not very fun for him though, since missing most of his memories, and missing people he did not remember did not feel nice.

Then he wakes up in a world where there is no war, no virus, no mavericks, no great or good he needed to die for. Only (relative) peace and a strange new body that needed to sleep and eat.

His body is hard to get used to. The prospect of hunting is not new to him, but eating definitely is, and sleeping is just as hard. Getting used to it is challenging enough that it distracts him from thinking about his situation too hard at first.

After a while, it starts to hit him that he doesn't have a purpose. He had always had something he had to do, something or someone to fight for. But now there was no one and the peace he and his loved ones had fought so hard for was achieved. Now his only purpose was to keep himself alive and help some of the people he finds in trouble, because what else does he do?

This makes him feel empty at first but then it's starts to feel so natural. To just exist, to hunt and help people he finds along the way, to learn about this new world and finally live.

He had never really lived before, not like this, his life was always dominated by being a weapon first. And later, accidentally adopting someone will really make him feel like he's alive.

He still misses X, Axl and many others terribly, but he tries to keep himself busy

Aaaa anyway, what I wanted to get at is that he's finally truly free. Like X is. And I like to portray that as him being able to be more wild.

[theflyingkipper]

why Rebbeca look like she almost has Gordon's attitude 😂 but anyway she look so good on your drawing style

ohhh thank you 🤗💕

making her look a bit more snooty/uptight was my intention, I dont like her bland happy-go-lucky personality

if we can show love to ONE snooty express engine, why not two ? and also because *ahem* girl characters who act arrogant rarely get redeemed or appreciated in spite of their attitude. and I feel girl characters in thomas kind of get stuck with this :) im nice personality, and I would like to give them more distinct attitudes because... girls have just as much variation and depth as boys why is this something that needs to be said

ANYWAY here is my take on rebecca in writing (+some of her development and relationships with other characters, especially Nia)

In my headcanon, Rebecca is more of a "little miss perfect" type, she has a clean record, excellent performance. shes a modern light pacific and she knows it . Her attitude actually drives Gordon a little insane because Rebecca seems to be stealing sir topham's good graces from him XD

(Thomas tells him not to be such a hypocrite.)

Rebecca has a few glaring problems that she masks with anger or indifference. she has mechanical trouble (wheelslip mostly) that can get especially bad sometimes, and if anyone points it out she tries to pretend she heard nothing.

[I like to think around this point (I should mention I dont have a clear timeline for anything I make I just have vague estimates of decades/time periods because ill make my head explode if I try) which is about the late 70s, is some years after Emily arrives. I really like the idea of Emily being a replica of a stirling single, rather than an original because its fitting of her attitude and ive seen a lot of REALLY detailed headcanons of it by various people.]

Emily and Rebecca butt heads at first. Rebeccas shiny and modern, while Emily's a thing of the past- and not even one deserving of high regard because she's a replica! The two start off HATING each other and Emily doesn't have anything nice to say about her to the rest of the fleet. And it's not like Rebecca has had any compliments to give either! She calls Rosie a latrine-mouthed three-humped camel.

Nia at this time is being switched around between jobs, and while Rosie is out of service, she gets to be station pilot at Tidmouth for a while.

(I HC that Nias paintwork and general upkeep wasnt too good before she was rehomed on Sodor, and at this time she's been NWR blue since her arrival)

Rebecca initially thinks the engine who will take over Rosie's shunting duties is Thomas, since she's told a "little blue engine" will be arriving to help. Since the last impression Rebecca had of Thomas was him telling Gordon not to be such a hypocrite, she expects he'll be waiting on her wheel and axle.

She realizes there's more than one little blue engine, and is surprised to see a long engine with 8 wheels, a cowcatcher and extra cylinders. Blue with red stripes, but not Thomas.

Nia greets Rebecca with her usual "how are your wheels? how are your axles and boiler?" And even agrees that her "three-humped-camel" joke was funny. Rebecca starts off thinking Nia's going to kiss up to her.

She is wrong 💕

Nia knows a thing or two about dealing with grumpy sticks in the mud.

Rebecca, several times, tries to push Nia's buttons. She implores "aren't you tired of pushing coaches around all day? Don't you want to see the world?" And expects Nia to get all puffed up. Nia says she's been all over the world, and likes to stay in one place for a change.

Throughout Nia's time as a station pilot, she learns that Rebecca is actually very insecure, and she can see how her wheels spin painfully if she starts too fast. She points this out once and Rebecca, who's been trying to hide this, and is at her wits end that day, just blurts out that it's nothing, nothings wrong with her.

Rebecca ends up damaging her drive wheels and axles after she fails on Gordon's hill and is shamefully sent for repairs at Crovan's gate. and Henry pushes her to the works.

While Rebecca's being loaded in, Henry tries to be kind and tells Rebecca that it isn't her fault she was built the way she was. Rebecca thinks:

what would you, a big strong Black 5 know about that? Aren't you lot Stanier's swan song?

She's achingly tired of engines noticing her faults, especially ones who perform mechanically sound and clearly wouldnt know a thing about what fronts she has to put up to stay respectable. She's pleasantly surprised (though she doesn't show it) that Henry does, in fact, know exactly how she feels.

Rebecca's damage is more severe than originally thought, and a more extensive overhaul is planned. She's hoisted in the air and much of her chassis is detached.

Meanwhile, Nia arrives at the works for maintenance and a new coat of paint. Rebecca watches from above as Nia's repainted in KUR colors.

Rebecca: That's a... distinct color. It's quite becoming. Nia: was that a compliment I heard? From you?

*Rebecca has to keep from spluttering.*

Rebecca: ...I know a nice livery when I see one.

Nia: (grinning) maybe you should get repainted to something nice and bright too. Like a bright yellow and red.

(She looks across the works at Molly and Rosie, who are trying not to giggle)

Rebecca: *gasps and scoffs* I like my paint the way it is, thank you very much.

Rebecca comes back from the works a different engine, still prone to bouts of arrogance and uptightness, but a much more understanding engine who doesn't have to put up such huge facades to be respected.

Over the next few years she ends up properly becoming friends with Nia, Gordon, Rosie, Molly, and Emily. I think the idea of she and Emily having a race and making funny banter would be amazing.

See, Mattel ???you can do cool and interesting things with your girl characters and Im only at the TIP of the iceberg with my Rebecca story ideas XD

[wisteria-lodge]

Archetypes: Sorting Hat Chats

I’ve been asked about my rationale for naming different primary/ secondary combinations. I did this originally as a tool to help me sort characters - I wanted to see how these types tend to be used, so I could more easily see what subversions looked like. I'll run through my thoughts, but know there’s a lot of variation within each category. But even WITH that variation, I do think that each one has its own specific energy that makes it interesting to talk about. An explanation of the terms I'm using.

DOUBLE LION “THE REVOLUTIONARY”

Pretty straightforward. The Lion primary knows something is wrong, they know it in their bones even if they can’t articulate it, and they’ve got to go out and do something about it. Probably charging at whatever power structure is directly in front of them. It’s unlikely you find a character leading a revolution who isn’t a Double Lion. These guys are intense, inspirational, single minded.

The villain version of the Lion primary tends to be the person who “went too far" or "became the monster they were trying to fight.'' But I think that the much more interesting Lion primary villain trope is the Traitor. Since Lions work from their feelings, and their philosophies can’t necessarily be articulated or linked to individuals outside of them - they can definitely have their head turned while still feeling moral about it.

One of my favorite examples of this Revolutionary archtype is actually Christian Bale‘s character from Newsies. He’s the spark that starts the unionizing revolution, but 100% needs his Badger and Bird lieutenants to keep him focused and keep him from defecting

LION SNAKE “THE ROBIN HOOD”

These guys are similar to the Double Lion - they will recognize a cause or injustice revolutionary style - but Robin Hood doesn’t go up and bang on wicked Prince John’s door. His move is the snake secondary one: confront the problem indirectly. Undermine the regime by stealing tax money and re-distributing it to the poor. Be simultaneously Robin Hood the outlaw and Robin of Locksley the noble, infiltrating and getting information. The Lion Snake is more likely to work within society (or deliberately separate from society) versus just breaking everything down.

LION BIRD “THE LAWMAN / THE VIGILANTE”

The fact that the Lion Bird can either be the Lawman or the Vigilante shows off the very clear hero/villain split you get with Bird secondaries. We also see this with the Snake Bird (simultaneously the Mastermind and the traditional Villain) and the Double Bird (either the Scientist or the Mad Scientist.) This is why I think I had such trouble naming the Badger Bird. I wasn’t leaning into the duality of the Bird secondary enough. The Badger Bird can be the King Arthur, or he can be the Mob Boss, and he’ll look kind of similar either way.

The Lion Bird also has that Lion primary conviction and drive, but they want to follow up on it with investigation, evidence, and plans. I actually think there need to be more stories about Lawmen turning into Vigilantes and vice versa. Because Lion Birds are their Cause no matter what external alignment gets attached to it.

LION BADGER “THE LINCHPIN”

This is my own sorting - although when I came up with this name I still thought I was a Double Bird. The linchpin is the pin-axle thing at the center of a wheel that prevents the whole thing from falling apart, and I think it's a good way of talking about the energy of this combination. The Badger secondary means they’re a lot less single minded than the other Lion primaries: their power comes from being part of a group. They become the emotional “heart” a lot, and have a way of quietly keeping things together just by existing. They can be leaders, but a Double Lion will lead from up front while a Lion Badger will lead from in the middle (if that makes sense.)

I do think it’s really funny that this is a common sleeper villain trope. Peter Pettigrew, Prince Hans, and Randall Boggs of Monsters Inc. all became integral to a group, and then exploit their position within it. They’re kind of the evil bureaucrat. Maybe that's a good trope for children’s media

DOUBLE SNAKE “THE TRICKSTER”

This is another straightforward one. Double Snakes are in it for themselves (and maybe like three other people.) They're going to be clever and tricksy about how they get what they want, and will not mind doing things backward and unofficially. And they won't mind if you know that's what they're doing. There’s something very unapologetic about the Double Snake which makes for very attractive characters. They are consistently voted the sexiest... and when they’re villains they’re fun villains. You know what they want, and what they want is not that complicated. I think that’s a big reason for the appeal of Snake primaries in general. They’re the easiest primary to understand and explain.

SNAKE LION “THE LANCELOT”

I used to call these guys “The Rebel,” which... is too generic, doesn’t really mean anything. So I started thinking about the Lion secondary as the Knight secondary, and I liked that. Double Lions are the Crusader Knight, riding for their Cause. Bird Lions are Grail Knights, riding for their own personal truth. Badger Lions are Champion Knights, here to help the helpless and defend the innocent.

And if that's that case… Snake Lions have to be the Knight Errant, the knight who rides for his lady. It is that simple. Lancelot might be a Knight of the Round Table, but he’s riding for Arthur the person, not Arthur the King. And for his lady, Queen Guinevere. I feel like his dilemma is one that’s common to a lot of Snake Lions: what happens when they’re forced to split their loyalty? It’s tragic, but Lancelot can’t have Arthur and Guinevere simultaneously.

(At least not until my awesome Arthur/Guinevere/Lancelot OT3 which I will totally write at some point :)

SNAKE BIRD “THE MASTERMIND / THE VILLAIN”

The classic. We see a little more of the Bird Secondary split, and well… this is your stereotypical villain. They want power. They’re going to use an elaborate plan to get it. There’s a lot you can do with this sorting, but I actually do think it’s fun that whatever you do, this slight undercurrent of villain and/or mastermind… never quite goes away.

SNAKE BADGER “THE LOVER”

The Love Interest sorting. Chances are very good that if there is a love interest (who does not serve some other role in the story...) they're going to be a Snake Badger. Devoted to one person, solving problems by caretaking. This is the Badger secondary who is likely to have the smallest group, which is just going to make them look excessively devoted to their friends. This type is pretty gender neutral, which is fun. A lot of female love interests, but also your Mr. Darcys and Peeta Mellarks.

One of my favorite things about this trope (mostly just because I think it’s funny...) is that if you write a character who is not supposed to be a love interest, but who is a Snake Badger... subconsciously I think people are going to read them as a love interest anyway. Looking at you Jaskier, Horatio, and even Captain Barbossa.

DOUBLE BIRD “THE [MAD] SCIENTIST”

I think that (especially if you aren’t a Bird Primary yourself) your response to hearing a fictional Bird Primary’s motivation is kind of …huh. That seems random. Or oddly specific. You get your Hannibal Lecters, whose entire motivation is... wanting to eat people while drinking nice wine.

Double birds seem especially unusual, just in terms of society. They are Bird secondaries and they interact with the world through gathering data, but their Bird primaries mean that data can literally lead them to any conclusion, no matter how potentially wacky. These guys consciously build themselves from the ground up, and that can make them kind of detached - either in a logical way, or an unmoored way. They're written as either really stable, the rational mentor figure. Or really... not. And that’s how you spot a Bird villain. They’re not after money/power/safety, they’re after something weird.

BIRD LION “THE GRAIL KNIGHT”

This is the trope of Perceval or Galahad, questing after the Holy Grail chalice... which is really just meaning, and truth. It’s a personal quest. Grail Knights tend to ride alone, and a lot of the things that concern them are metaphysical, to do with identity, purpose, things like that. You can have extremely different Bird Lions, but I do think there is a sort of spiritual core there. Doctor Harleen Quinzel sees freedom and truth in whatever the Joker is doing, and then once she recognizes his hypocrisy, has to go build her own meaning.

I actually think these guys are pretty easy to spot because of that Lion secondary. When they change direction, they change direction, and there’s probably a period of despair between the direction changes. I’ve talked about how Bird Lions having a habit of falling apart pretty dramatically, and that’s where this idea comes from.

BIRD BADGER “THE SURVIVOR”

A rare sorting, but an interesting one. I call this one “the Survivor” or “the Last Man Standing” because, well, they seem to be. They seem remarkably stable. This is the Bird primary least likely to be a villain, and maybe the sorting least likely to be a villain. I think what’s going on is that they are grounded and integrated in whatever community they happen to be in (because of that Badger secondary), but they can define themselves and rebuild themselves in the Bird primary way. This makes them uniquely suited to building a new version of themselves for whatever situation they happen to find themselves in.

Maybe a better name for these guys would be “The Adapter.”

BIRD SNAKE “THE ARTIST”

Like all Bird primaries, these guys are inspired by their own projects and their own worldview, but because of that Snake secondary, Bird Snakes have a more easy-going ‘take the world as it comes' kind of energy. They are “the Artist” because everything they do is art: they want to use themselves and the world around them, put all of that towards whatever their Bird primary happens to be interested in.

You can have villains like the Nolan Joker, or the Talented Mr. Ripley, who kind of turn the world into their own personal philosophical social experiment. Or Scotty from Star Trek whose meaning is solely the well-being of the Enterprise. Maybe they just like traveling, and that's all they need. (It's a way for the Bird primary and the Snake secondary exist very happily together, so I wouldn't be surprised if that was pretty common.)

DOUBLE BADGER “THE PEACEMAKER”

Badgers are interesting, because while I think they’re generally regarded as “correct,” they’re also seen as kind of boring. That’s the case with both Badger primaries and Badger secondaries, which means it is doubly reflected in the Double Badger. They often get written as simplistic, the sweet Jane Bennet type who loves everybody and caretakes everybody and just wants everybody to get along.

They are often the targets of what TV Tropes used to call “Break the Cutie.” What could be more interesting than making this character, who wants to be happily part of a community, be forced to build protective models, be all tortured and angsty? I actually think we’re seeing a return of the Double Badger as an interesting character in their own right, with people like Aziaphale, and I'm here for it.

BADGER LION “THE PROTAGONIST”

What can I say? There are a lot of protagonists that are Badger Lions. They want to help the group - so we know they're the good guys - and then they charge and make stuff happen. Lion secondaries are very useful in fiction - you drop them into a situation and stuff just happens. I also think of this as the Starfleet officer sorting - because if you’re a Starfleet officer, either you are the sorting, or can model it really well.

I will say that this is kind of the stock Protagonist sorting, the way that the Snake Badger is the stock love interest and the Snake Bird is the stock villain. There’s just something sort of generic good guy about this one, which is why I want to see it used as a villain sorting more. Badger villains - mostly people who define ‘human’ very narrowly - are insanely terrifying.

BADGER SNAKE “THE ADVISOR”

Possibly “the Power Behind the Throne.” This is another one I had difficulty pinning down. I called it “the Politician” for a while, which unfortunately came off as a little bit more negative than I meant it to, since I think this sorting has a lot in common with Lion Badger, the linchpin of a heroic team. The difference is that Lion Badger takes on that role kind of unconsciously, while the Badger Snake does it very consciously.

Their loyalty is to the group, but their skill set is all about subversion and different ways of going around the group, which is why there’s an interesting contradiction at the heart of Badger Snake. A lot of real life Badger Snakes struggle with feeling like “bad people" and it's too bad. These guys are ridiculously powerful and competent when they are sure of themselves, and I love seeing them in action

BADGER BIRD “THE KING / THE MOB BOSS”

Another difficult one, despite (or because) I really like them. I was calling them “the Architect” because “The City Planner” sounded too boring… but that’s what they do. They’re all about the community but they problem-solve the way all Bird secondaries do, by prepping, and gathering knowledge. I talked more about this in the Lion Bird entry, but Bird secondary seems to have this villain split going on, and that’s what I see here too. This is a controversial love-them-or-hate-them sorting, and I think that’s why. There’s a lot of room in whether or not you see this sorting as villainous.

[enixamyram]

Thor Love and Thunder Review

Summary... I didn't like it.

Warning Spoilers Bellow:

Little Pet Peeve: I really resent that I was expecting a film of Thor and the Guardians and instead they got rid of the Guardians as soon as they could. Makes Thor leaving with them at the end of the last film extremely pointless.

Now I know this is an unpopular opinion but I was not the biggest fan of Thor Ragnarok. It was a funny film and alright on its own but I just felt it didn't flow with the rest of the MCU films and the scenes kind of just bounced along from point to point in a way that didn't seem to fit smoothly. And in a way, this film is very much the same but also worse.

For starters, the tone seemed all over the place. When it was funny, it was very funny. When it was scary, it was very scary. It might have worked individually. Altogether? It feels like a mess. Like the funny parts and the scary parts should be their own movies but instead, for some reason, they're pushed together into one film that gives me whiplash and I kind of get confused on how I'm supposed to be feeling. I mean one minute you have the villain ripping off heads of creatures and throwing it at the kids to terrify them, the next you have Zeus and the other Gods talking about the orgy they're planning to have.

There was also so much that was so forced purely for plot convenience and it really isn't subtle. Axl for example. Heimdall's son, who appears from nowhere, doesn't have any emotional connection to his deceased father (or anyone really) and is purely around so they can use Heimdall's powers when convenient to move the story along. Like when he needs to help Thor figure out where they are, or at the end when he can get the kids out of there so Thor can focus on fighting.

Or how Thor can suddenly temporarily bestow his powers onto all the kids at the end. Where was this power before?! There's no real explanation for why he can suddenly do it now so all I can think is that I'm sure Steve, Tony and everyone else would have really appreciated a bit of a God-boost when they were fighting Thanos.

Then there's Jane. Now Mighty Thor was my biggest reason for going to see the film and I adored every scene she was in. The action and emotional scenes with her were on point and amazing!

Only they decided to just kill her off at the end and like the rest of the film, it feels so tacked on for the convenience of the plot.

Like it was done to manipulate the audience into rooting for Thor taking in the Gorr's daughter. It's so painful how obvious it is. I mean, Thor's girlfriends dying and the Love's dad is dying so hey, now they're alone they can just slot together and make a sad ending a happy ending, look how well that works out.

It did have some good things. - Like I said, it was funny and scary when it wanted to be. - All Mighty Thor scenes were wonderful. - I loved all Korg and Valkyrie moments. - Even the parts that were bad were still entertaining. I may have issues with how he can suddenly hand out his powers, sure, but it was still a lot of fun to see a dozen kids running around and fighting with Thor's powers (the girl with the stuffed toy cracked me up)! - And I am looking forward to what they'll do with Love now since she's kind of a blank slate at the moment that has a lot of potential.

But in general, very disappointed. I hoped for so much more. Was very let down in the end.

[grimescum-2]

part 2 !!! with talk of shitty old fandoms i was in so cw cringe for that (no offense intended). i talk about better stuff after the first 3 paragraphs though. mostly one big ramble for fun

i remember when i was huge into danganronpa i had a new wife every month or so it was kinda funny. i guess thats what kept me in the fandom for so long

umm..... kazuichi will always be my number one fave character from dr evn if he contributed jack shit. i love that he's a sad weirdo with a big stupid crush on a woman way out of his league. korekiyo (minus the inc3st shit), gonta and twogami are fairly high up there

when i was really big into bnha my stupid ass was more obsessed w todoroki than the superior choice of Literally Everyone Else (not really but still). when i finally gained sentience and got better taste i was big on iida and shigaraki :o3 i like shigaraki because hes ugly and weird. when i saw how they anime boy-ified him in the recent episodes i was so fucking mad u have no idea.. and umm i like iida because he is autism incarnate and very cute

not an old fandom but jojo!! kinda the same case w dr, i always had a new character i had a crush on. given just how fucking many characters r in jojo its no surprise its the fandom ive been in for the longest.. anyway if i had to choose my absolute faves it would be mista, gyro, kira and mikitaka. but again i love so many of them its crazy

persona 5 :o3 HUGE on yusuke. i still think he's cute, him n futaba are my faves. i've been starting to appreciate ryuji more now though.. other than that i like maruki, the other guy with the long black hair and futaba's dad who's name i just forgot. also i love yosuke from persona 3 but i havent seen much of it

i love basically everyone from guilty gear but faust, axl, testament and slayer hit the hardest. i was so shocked when i found out slayer had an irish accent it was so fucking crazy.. irishman jumpscare..

from the various horror movies ive watched i love brahms heelshire (hellshire? forgot), billy lenz, herbert west (duh), otis driftwood/firefly and umm. whicherver guys i forgot. I haven't watched tcm yet but i am in love with chop top and leatherface ok <3

w/ kaiji ultimate survivor its very easy to pick. def just ichijou and kaiji. the rest im either uninterested in or find them to be too ugly. i did have a brief thing for kazuya though

... i think thats mostly all of the significant fandoms ive been in . THANK U IF U READ ALL OF THIS U R SO AWESOME!! even if u didn't tbf i dont blame u HWYAHA

me writing this

[broken-clover]

🎥💕💔💎?

🎥 do you have any favorite scenes from your hyperfixation?

I have the Valkyrie Garden fight saved and tabbed because I go back and watch it so often. Swear at this point I could make a damn thesis paper on its narrative themes. The bar porch scene is also a favorite though that's less for it being deep and complex and more because I like seeing Sol and Axl interact

Also lowkey Happy spinning around in the chair and monologuing but not because I thought it was interesting and philosophical but more that it was like watching a zoo animal I wanted to throw pebbles at

💕 tell us about one of your favorite characters and why you like them!

Anything I could say about my usual big three (Bedman, Faust, and Zappa) I think would be redundant so I'll do another I don't ramble about as much even though I should.

Axl! My beloved trash man. I do genuinely love basically everything about this disaster. The shitty clothes are endearing. He's a dork. He's trying so so hard to be cool and failing basically every time. He's friends with some random vegetable vendor. He can absolutely be smart and thoughtful when need be but when need not be oh my god is there nothing going on up there. And I'll always love the concept of a fantasy world with extreme stakes and complicated lore and then there's just Some Guy uninvolved in basically all of it. He's just here.

💔 tell us about one of your LEAST favorite characters and why you dislike them.

Zato. I shall not continue because otherwise we will be here all day.

And though I always felt kind of iffy about her I've developed a dislike for Jack-O, I just really don't care for her personality and presence in Strive, plot-wise and gameplay-wise. She just rubs me the wrong way in so many regards.

💎 are there any fun facts or trivia that you would like to share?

Man, what haven't I already yammered about the kingdom come? I'll try and think of a couple

-President Vernon in the English Dub is voiced by former Dolphins member Anthony Alabi, which funny enough iirc Vernon mentions being a fan of American football.

-So far Ky has had a different dub actor for every mainline game that's had one- Liam O'Brien in Overture, Sam Riegel in Xrd SIGN, and Sean Chiplock in Strive, making him the character with the most number of VA's in terms of dubbing

-(Maybe less trivia and more just fun coincidence but I like that in Breath of the Wild Revali says he dislikes blonde knights with holy swords and went on to voice Ky who is literally all of those things)

-Bedman has the same voice actor as Marth in both English and Japanese

-For some reason in his AC art Zappa has six fingers on one hand and I'm not 100% sure but I don't think that occurs in any of his other character art or in his Xrd model

[lost-in-the-80s]

The Hotel - Halloween Special

Pairing: Izzy Stradlin x Reader

Words: 4,859k

Summary: You and your boyfriend, Izzy decide to make a road trip, however, strange events end up leading you to a strange hotel on October, 31st. (kind of angst) 

A/N: Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, so I decided to make an Imagine with the Halloween theme. It is inspired by the song Hotel California by Eagles.

Warnings: Swearing, mentions of death, ghosts and paranormal events. It’s a horror fic, if you don’t like this theme, maybe this isn’t the right fic for you. 

Tag list: @roger-taylors-car​ @ladieswttda​ @teasid​ add yourself to my tag list :)

It was the fall of 1990, you and your boyfriend, Izzy were enjoying the last few months you had together before he went on another world tour with his band, Gun n Roses.

The two of you were in the living room of your shared apartment in L.A. You shared a cozy blanket while sitting on the couch, watching some romantic movie on the TV. Izzy didn’t really like this type of movie, but made an effort because he knew how much you liked them. 

You snuggled in his chest, pressing yourself even more on him, he chuckled a little and passed his fingers through your hair.

“We should do something.” He stated.

“Like what?”

“How about a road trip? We take the car and drive until Portland, then come back.”

“Portland? You mean, Oregon?”

“Yeah, Oregon. I was looking on the map and it has some beautiful locations there.”

“But how long will it take us?”

“It’s a 14-hour drive, we can make it in a week through the coast and then come back in another week, taking a different road.”

“Hmm, sounds nice! Let’s do it!” 

“How about we leave by the end of October? So I can have enough time to finish some stuff at the studio.”

“Sure, babe!”

And so October went by, Izzy finished some final touches at the studio, you rescheduled some appointments of yours, you two organized your bags, bought a map, a flashlight and some other travel essentials and checked the car with a mechanic. Everything was going as planned. 

You decided to leave on Monday, 22nd, because the roads would be less packed. So you both woke up, took shower, had a delicious breakfast and started your amazing trip.

You knew that the reason why Izzy wanted to leave town for a while, was because he was stressed. Axl was a perfectionist, while Izzy liked things to sound less rehearsed, for that reason the two of them have been bickering towards each other during all this album recording, and Izzy really needed some time away from all of this. 

The trip started just fine, you drove through the coast and you got amazed by how beautiful California’s coast was. All its colors, shapes and beaches getting a special place in your memory.

The first stop was Santa Barbara, you two enjoyed it’s beaches, becoming friends with a group of sourfists that taught Izzy how to surf. By night you went to a nice restaurant in front of the beach, delighting yourselves with cocktails and seafood.

Then you went to San Francisco, where you decided to stay for two days, visiting all its touristic places, like the Golden Gate Bridge, Lombard Street, Pier 39 and the Coit Tower.

Moving on to Sonoma, you could savor some of the best wine you had had in your life and spend the night at a cozy cottage, reading a book and cuddling together in front of the fireplace. 

The last stop in California was the Redwood National Park. You got completely stunned by that place, admiring the magnitude of the world, as you looked so small beside those trees. 

Soon the greenish color of the sea turned bluer, the sunset became less orange and the mornings turned more grey, the sand turned to earth and the breeze became colder and you arrived in Oregon. 

You glimpsed the strength of the sea at the Samuel H. Boardman Scenic Corridor and Cape Sebastian State Scenic Corridor and admired the sunset at the Face Rock State Scenic Area. 

And finally, you got stunned with the Devil’s Punchbowl and spent a day relaxing at Neskowin Beach ending the week taking the most beautiful pictures at Cannon Beach, where you bought souvenirs for all your friends. 

Then you finally arrived in Portland, spending the weekend there, seeing all the touristic places and visiting museums. On Sunday night, Izzy took you to this fancy restaurant, you wore a beautiful blue dress he had asked you to bring along, while he put on a black shirt with a blazer.

You had just eaten delicious lamb meat with a glass of wonderful wine and were waiting for the dessert when he started talking.

“I’ve been thinking these past days, about the tour and stuff.”

You looked up at him and his eyes caught yours.

 “I don’t know how long I’ll be gone, but I’m sure it will be a long time and I didn’t really want to leave without doing something first.”

He touched your hand that was resting on top of the table.

“You’ve been with me for years now. You met me when having a big band and becoming famous were just dreams, you saw me in my best and in my worst and you never let go of me, even when I was being an asshole with you.”

He made a pause.

“I wake up happy every day, just because I know that I’ll see you when I open my eyes, and I can’t imagine my life without you. So I was wondering if…” He stopped and started to search for something in his blazer pockets, he took a small black box out of it and you gasped, covering your mouth as a huge smile appeared on your face. “If you would like to marry me, Y/N?”

Recovering a little from your surprise, you replied with teary eyes. “Yes, Izzy, I would love to!” 

He placed a small silver ring with a single diamond on top of it, on your ring finger and kissed the back of your hand, then he leaned a little on the table and pecked your lips.

“I love you!”

“I love you too, Izzy”

When Monday came by, you two fueled the car and started driving back home. stopping at some locations you haven’t been before.

You had the chance to drive a buggy at the Oregon Dunes, take lots of pictures at the Heceta Head Lighthouse and make a forest trail at the Cape Perpetua Scenic Area before camping at Beverly Beach. Which, by the way, was a disaster, you forgot the repellent spray and the mosquitos had a nice dinner over with you and Izzy. 

Soon, day 31st arrived. You woke up in your tent with a single sunbeam illuminating the place, you felt Izzy’s arms holding you close to him and you took a moment to admire your engagement ring. 

You stretched up a little bit, which woke him up. He yawned and squeezed you harder, before speaking with a husky morning voice. 

“Good morning, beautiful!”

“Good morning, Iz!”

You turned around and kissed him quickly on the lips.

“Happy Halloween.”

“Today’s Halloween?” He frowned.

You just hummed in response. 

“All right, let’s get up then.” He pecked your lips one more time and let go of you, as he sat up. 

You got ready, packed your stuff and exited the tent, starting to walk towards the parking lot. 

You looked up to the sky and saw the grey color became prevalent.

“I think it’s gonna rain.” You said.

“Maybe if we have breakfast fast enough, we can get to California before it starts.”

You sat on the passenger seat, scrolling through the radio stations until you found one that pleased your ears.

After a few minutes driving, you stopped at a cafe, taking a table in front of the window and ordering pancakes with coffee.

“Where’s the next stop?” Izzy asked.

You took the map out of your purse and looked cautiously.

“Mount Shasta.”

“Hmm. I think we’ll get there for lunch.” He paused to take a sip of his coffee. “A friend of mine told me about a hotel there, I don’t remember the name, but it has Wale on it.”

“Nice. We should spend the night there!”

“We really should.”

You finished eating and started driving again. Izzy took the wheel while you gave him the directions. It was a little past ten when the rain started pouring, making Izzy drive slower, not trusting his car to stop fast enough if you needed it.

About 2 in the afternoon you got to Mount Shasta. It was still raining and the trail had been closed due to the bad weather.

Not having many more things to do, you both had lunch at a local restaurant and took pictures of yourselves at the mounting foot and other places you found interesting. You smiled as Izzy made a funny face for you to take a picture.

An old man started walking near you, and you asked him if he could take a picture of the two of you, which he happily complied. 

You went to Izzy’s side and rested your hand on his chest, while his hand circled your waist. You saw the flash and then Izzy kissed your forehead, the second flash hit your eyes and Izzy thanked the man, getting the camera back.

The day started to grow dark and you decided to head to the hotel, since it was about an hour away from the city.

The rain became stronger and the mist started to cover the road. You passed by the numerous trees that surrounded the road while listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd.

In the distance, you saw a red light appear beside a big house. “There!” you shouted.

You were right, it was the hotel. You were both sure as you saw “Californian Wale” written on top of the house. There was just one problem, the red neon light in front of it said “No vacancy”, which meant you would have to keep on driving, during that weather, until you found somewhere else to stay. 

As the sunset and the night arrived, the weather got worse, thunder and lightning turning the night into a spectacle and you barely could see anything until it was really close to you. 

You were becoming hopeless, you thought you wouldn't be able to find anywhere to stay for the night.

By 7 in the night, Izzy didn't see a hole on the road, a loud sound broke in the darkness and you knew you had punctured the tire.

For a second Izzy lost control over the car and you ended up out of the road. 

"Fuck! Are you alright?"

"Yes." You let go of a breath you didn't realize you had caught.

"Where's the flashlight?"

You searched through the glove compartment until your hands touched the cold material. You handed him the object as he thanked you and exited the car.

After a few minutes, he came back. "Fuck!" He was dripping wet. "We don't have a spare wheel."

"What do you mean we don't have a spare wheel?"

"I mean we don't have a spare wheel, Y/N!" He replied to you as if he was talking to a toddler. 

"I thought you had checked the car out with the mechanic!"

"I did it! But we just checked the engine and shit, I didn't even think about the step!"

"Fuck! What do we do now?"

"I don't know." He leaned his head on the wheel while cursing.

Suddenly a car headlight lightened the road.

"Look!" 

Izzy lifted his head and you smashed the car's horn, making the driver stop his truck beside your car, turning on the alert lights. 

It was a squeak. You breathed out in relief.

"What happened?" He shouted through his window.

"We punctured the tire and don't have a spare wheel!"

"Alright, hold it!" He lined up his truck with your car and exited it.

"Wait inside." Was all Izzy said before exiting the car to help the driver hitch the car on the truck.

After a few minutes he came back and the car started to be pulled back on the road.

"He called us crazy for not having seen the weather forecast on the news. We're underneath a huge storm cloud." He chuckled.

"He said there's a small city not too far from here, he'll let us there."

"Good" You sighed.

After some minutes you saw the city's entrance, he wasn't joking when he said it was small. It had just one main street and all the houses looked old.

He left you and Izzy in front of a mechanic garage and refused to get the money Izzy offered him for having driven you there.

You entered the office of the garage, hand in hand, and a man in his 40s appeared behind the counter. He had a toothpick between his lips and looked like he hadn't taken shower in ages. 

"Hm, good night. We have a punctured tire." Izzy spoke up.

"I see, let's take a look."

He moved outside and looked at your tire. 

"Well, it's not that bad. I have a tire of this type here, I can fix it in 30 minutes or so."

"Good!"

"Do you have a car jack?"

"Yes, it's in the back."

"Go get it while I get the tire then."

Izzy moved towards the car and the man looked you up and down, making you feel a huge discomfort. 

You walked quickly to Izzy's side while the man walked back inside the office.

"I don't like this man." You whispered.

"Me neither, but we need to fix the car, baby." He put a lock of your hair behind your ear and closed the trunk. 

The man came back and you leaned against a wall while you watched them working on the car. 

"All done! It's 250 bucks." The man said, while he scratched his nose.

"250? Wow, that's way more than I had thought."

"I'm working at night, kid, my time it's not for free."

Izzy stared at him.

"I can take the tire off if you want." He said, leaning down. 

"No, it's fine." 

You both walked inside the office, while Izzy paid the man.

"Do you take a check?"

"I don't, usually." 

"I don't walk around with 250 bucks in my wallet, man." 

"Alright, I'll take your check then, but I want the date for tomorrow."

"Alright, man."

"Where are you guys going?"

"We're going to Los Angeles."

"It's a long road until Los Angeles, especially with this weather. If I were you, I would spend the night at a hotel… We have a good one, a little bit after the city. They serve a good soup at nights like this."

Izzy signed up for the check. "Thank you"

He grabbed your hand and you walked back to the car.

"What do you think? Should we check out this hotel?"

"I think it's a good idea. I'm soaked, we're hungry and it's raining cats and dogs outside." He turned on the car. "Plus, we don't know if we'll find somewhere else nearby."

You agreed. 

He drove until you saw a huge Victorian house with a sign saying "Hotel Hoffmann".

"I guess we're here."

He parked the car and you both exited, running in the rain until you got to the main door of the house.

You knocked repeatedly until an old woman opened the door for you. She had white hair and dark eyes and was dressed as if she still lived in the 50s.

"Come on in, kids." She gave you a creepy smile.

You gulped, grabbing Izzy's hand before entering the place.

"What a night huh?" She laughed a little. "Bill called saying you two would probably stop by."

"I'm sorry, but, who's Bill?" You asked.

"The man who fixed your car, darling."

"Oh"

"We still have some open rooms for you. Do you prefer it on the first or second floor?"

"Second, please" Izzy cleared his throat, the rain starting to make him feel sick.

"All right, I'll put you in room number 13." She looked through the multiple keys behind her, before putting the one with a locksmith with a big 13 written. 

"We'll be serving soup until nine at the main saloon." She put a leather-covered notebook on the desk. "In which name should I make the reservation?"

"Jeffrey Isbell." Izzy spoke before you could answer. 

She wrote his name down with a beautiful calligraphy before handing him the pen to sign. 

She handed you the keys to your room and said she would take you both there. Izzy interjected saying he would go grab your baggage in the car.

"Do you want help?"

"No, honey, it's okay." He left the room and an uncomfortable silence filled in. 

"It's been a long time since we last had a young couple like you."

You forced a smile, not really knowing what to say.

Izzy came back with the bags and she led you to your room. Once inside, Izzy locked the door.

You stopped for a moment to look at the room. It was big, the walls were painted in peach color and the furniture looked old.

"Finally some peace." He hugged you from behind, kissing the top of your head.

You turned around, hugging him back. "You need to take a shower, or you're gonna catch a cold."

"Hmm, and will you join me?" He asked suggestively.

"No, I'll go later, babe"

"Are you sure?"

You nodded your head and he walked towards the bathroom, closing the door behind him. 

You took a long breath. Something was wrong. You couldn't quite put into words what, but your heart was clenched ever since you got in that town.

You took a seat at the bench underneath the window, looking at the dimly light garden. No cars were passing by, the only thing you distinguished outside was a dog running down the street.

"The rain is starting to stop." 

Izzy's voice made you jump a little, you hadn't realized he had left the bathroom, nor that you had been there for so long. 

You looked at him. "Why don't you take a shower and we go down to eat something?" He caressed your face and you instantly felt calmer.

He always had this power over you, no matter what was happening, you always felt safe and calm when Izzy was with you. 

"There's something wrong, Iz."

"What do you mean?" He sat in front of you.

"I don't know. I don't like this place, there's something wrong with the energy around here."

"I don't like this place too, but it's only for one night, tomorrow morning we get in the car and drive to the next destination ok?"

"Okay"

You stood up and walked towards the bathroom, closing the door and turning on the shower. Taking off your clothes you looked at yourself in the mirror before getting underneath the hot water, letting it warm your body.

Exiting the bathroom you put on a pair of jeans and a red sweatshirt and walked with Izzy to the main room. There was just a couple with a young daughter there. They stared at you until you sat down. 

Another old woman brought you two plates with soup and you started eating. The taste was horrible, but you were so hungry that you ate everything.

Back to your room, you guys were feeling so tired that decided to call it a night, Izzy removed his clothes and you put on his sweater, before climbing on bed with him. You adjusted the blankets and closed your eyes, allowing yourself to fall asleep.

A loud scream woke you up. You sat down on the bed and turned the night table light on, looking at the clock you saw it was 3 in the morning. 

"Did you hear that?"

"Yeah." Izzy said getting up and putting his pants on.

The corridor light allowed you to see a shadow passing by the door.

"Turn the light off." Izzy murmured.

You did as he said and you saw the person take another direction.

After a few seconds you turn it on again, and a scream left your lips as you could swear you saw someone behind Izzy.

"Shh, it's okay." He climbed on the bed and cupped your face. "I'm here, nothing is gonna happen to you, ok?"

"Okay." You breathed slowly, trying to calm yourself.

Suddenly the bedroom windows opened and the cool breeze of the night invaded the room.

"Izzy…" you tugged on his arm.

"Let's get out of here." He grabbed your hand and dragged you out of the room.

The corridor was empty and you started to walk quickly towards the entry door. You turned left and were faced with a long corridor full of doors.

That's when you hear what looked like a child asking for help. Izzy started walking towards the sound and you pulled him back by the hand murmuring for him not to do so. 

"It's a child Y/N!"

He let go of your hand and moved towards the only room with an open door. You walked closely behind him. You saw a boy sitting on the floor crying as he asked for help again. 

Izzy entered the room, but before you could do the same the door closed behind him.

"IZZY!" 

"Y/N!" He yelled back, trying to open the door. 

"IZZY!!" You started to shove your fists against the door.

You heard a loud sound inside the room and Izzy saying: "Oh my God!" And you became hysterical.

You tried to open the door with all your force, shoving your fists and shoulders on the wood trying to take Izzy out of there.

"Y/N Leave!"

"I'm not leaving without you!!" You started to cry.

"Get on the fucking car and leave!!" 

Before you could reply the corridor lights started to flick and you saw someone approaching you. Turning your head to the left you saw a young man getting closer to you, illuminated by the moonlight. 

You were about to ask him for help when the lights flicked on again. He was tall and was dressed in 60s clothes, everything looked normal except for his white morbid eyes and his broken neck, his head slightly leaned to the side.

You screamed loudly this time as you started to walk back.

"Y/N!!" Izzy hit the door trying to open it.

You turned around and started running down the stairs, while still hearing Izzy calling for you. 

Running towards the main door you were stopped as a woman with a cut neck appeared in front of you.

"Where are you going, sweetie?"

You screamed again and turned left, getting in a corridor you haven't been before. 

She started to walk behind you and you saw an open room, getting inside and closing the door behind you. It was a library, with big windows. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck."

You heard a loud sound coming from the second floor and one of the windows breaking. 

You saw someone falling from it, and when you got closer to the glass you saw a white man with black hair and red leather pants. 

"Izzy!!" You yelled punching the glass, seeing his lifeless body laying on the grass.

Tears started to fall from your eyes as you heard the door of the Library opening.

"You are going to be with him soon, darling, don't worry."

It was the old lady.

You ran and passed through the second door of the room, ending up in another corridor.

You ran until you found two big doors separating the corridor. You opened them and were greeted with an indoor pool area. The ceiling was made of glass, just like most of the walls. You looked from one way to another but there were no other doors. You were stuck.

"It's useless to run." She reappeared behind you.

You turned around, facing her. "Please, just let me go!"

She said nothing, but took one step closer, making you take one step back. 

"Please, I didn't do anything! Just let me go!"

The couple from the dinner appeared beside her, alongside the boy with the broken neck and the bleeding woman, along with some other people you haven't seen before.

They all looked hurt in some sort of way and their eyes were white as if a cloud was hiding their true ones.

You kept walking backward as they kept walking towards you.

"Please, let me go!! Please!" Your crying was evident in your voice and you were starting to freak out.

"Please, don't hurt me!" You took one last step back and was involved in water. You fell in the pool. 

You were so scared that you forgot the pool was there, and most importantly, you forgot you didn't know how to swim.

You tried as hard as you could. Moving your legs and arms to try to get to the surface again, but it was useless. The more you moved, the deeper you got.

You opened your mouth to try to breathe but was greeted with water filling your lungs, making you choke.

You moved your hand to your neck as if the gesture would bring you some oxygen. You looked up and saw all those people circling the pool and then darkness overtook you.

You woke up gasping for air, touching your body to check you were ok. Sweat covered your forehead and most parts of your body and hot tears left your eyes.

You suddenly saw the lights turn on, realizing you were still in the hotel room. "Shh, it's okay." 

You pulled away when he touched you.

"It's okay. It's me!" You didn't look at him, so he touched your chin and lightly made you look in his direction. "It's me Y/N!"

You let go of a long breath and hugged him tightly. 

"It's ok, it was just a nightmare. You're ok!" 

"You were dead and I was dead and the pool…." You dragged on, sharing the first memories you had from your dream.

"Shh" He kissed the top of your head. "We're fine Y/N."

"She was following me…"

"As long as I'm here, no one will hurt you, okay?" He parted from you to look in your eyes. 

You nodded slowly.

Looking at the clock on your bedside table you saw it was 2:35 am.

"Let's get out of here, Izzy. Please!"

"But it's in the middle of the night, babe"

"Please, Izzy, please, let's get out of here!"

He saw how frightened you were. "Okay." He paused for a second. "Let's get dressed then."

You both got up and got dressed, throwing all your stuff back in your bags. You paused before exiting the room.

"Promise me that you will ignore anything you might hear!"

"What?"

"Promise me, Izzy!"

"Ok! I promise!" 

You grabbed his hand and dragged him down the corridor and down the stairs as fast as you could. 

Arriving at the reception you rang the bell on the table tirelessly until the old woman appeared. She was wearing a robe, but didn't look tired at all.

"What's the problem kids? Didn't like your room?"

"We want to check out!" You replied quickly. 

"Now? But it's still early!" She paused for a moment, trying to think about what to say. "Wouldn't you prefer to leave by morning?"

"No! We have to go now!"

"We serve a good breakfast here."

"I said we have to go now!" You were growing frustrated.

"Okay, but I'll have to demand the same price as if you had stayed until morning." 

"Ok! How much?"

"45 dollars."

You opened your purse, looking for your wallet, getting 50 bucks, and putting them on her desk.

She opened a drawer to get your change, but you rushed in saying she could keep it, before grabbing Izzy by the hand and leading him to the door. Trying to open it, you realized it was still locked.

"The door is locked, mam" Izzy spoke up.

"Oh, wait a minute, I'll get the keys. They might be somewhere here.” She entered a small room behind the reception and you started to stomp the ground anxiously.

"She's taking too long!"

"Calm down, Y/N!" He touched your shoulder, making you feel calmer, but you were still cautious.

"We're in a rush!" You shouted.

"Oh I'm sorry, I was not finding them." She walked calmly towards the door, using all her time to open it.

Once she finally opened, you stormed out of it, dragging Izzy with you.

"Where are the car keys?"

"Jesus! Relax, Y/N! They're here!" He took the keys out of his pant's pocket and opened the trunk of the car first.

You literally threw your bag inside and rushed to the driver's door. "I'm driving!" You extended your hand for him to put the keys on. 

"No way! You're too shaken to do so. You're gonna end up killing us."

"Fine, but be fast!" You gave in, rushing to the passenger door, seating fastly once Izzy unlocked the car.

Turning on the engine, he drove the car back to the street, driving out of the city.

"What time is it?"

He looked at his clock. "3 am"

You looked back just in time to see all the hotel lights turning on and strange people appearing at the windows.

A shiver ran down your spine as you sat still on your seat again, thanking that you were out of that place. 

[blueforthecrue]

Been awhile since I sent you an ask,,,

I planned on just sending some hot gifs of axl... but then there were some funny gifs...

Well.... then I guess it turned into an axl roast.😎

Enjoy😏

This is like a scene out of the shining or something⬇️ (Also this radiates you & me vibes)

Every teen girl who says 'its not a phase" and throws up peace signs 25/8⬇️(aka me)

These two gifs are what you see in the corner of your room at night during sleep paralysis ⬇️

When you see a spider on the floor⬇️

Me, age 7, no rhythm, attempting to dance to Shakira's Hips Don't Lie⬇️

YOU’RE A GENIUS

BUT ALSO LEAVE MY BOY ALONE 😭

HE IS TRYING HIS BEST

but i literally love this so much