#i love the lore of this show its like ‘he’s separated from the woman he loves by time and space itself.

[hottestthingalive]

absolutely insane bit of doctor who lore i know is that at one point after losing rose (and i think before martha but it might have been between martha and donna—the point is that he was between companions at the time) the tenth doctor ended up with a cat that he called rose-the-cat who was capable of speech, piloting the tardis, and wearing a suit, but also got space fleas and fought with k-9 for literally no reason. and basically all rose-the-cat did was go “you pathetic little bitch stop moping over beautiful women and accept these space mice i’ve brought you” and the doctor would reply by crying harder and pulling his covers up over his head. anyways eventually rose-the-cat left (and then got adopted by rose tyler somehow) but she is credited with being one of the reasons the doctor even considered taking on new companions after rose. insane

[ultravioletqueen]

Some time ago my sister introduced me to the world of the video game Hades and its sequel, all the lore and references to Greek mythology fascinate me (I'm a Greek mythology nerd, it's my weakness), I didn't think there would be anything that would bother me about the game Well, except one thing, ODYSSEUS.

Odysseus is by far one of my favorite heroes in Greek mythology, not only for his cunning, gray morals and determination, but also for his immense love for his wife and son, that made him different from the rest of the Greek heroes for me. ,that he was a genuinely loving father and a truly devoted husband even with the situations with circe and calypso, which to clarify, NEITHER OF THE TWO WAS CONSENSUAL, it was extortion and sexual abuse, Odysseus did not want to be with either of them.

For this reason it made me sad to see that Supergiant showed Odysseus as an unfaithful man (when in the Odyssey this man is the personification of simping) who is separated from his wife.

Even if I find the idea interesting that he is lying and Penelope is and working from the shadows like the partner in crime that they are, I have another idea:

After what happened with Circe and Calypso, he thinks that he no longer deserves Penelope, who according to his words "was waiting for years for an unfaithful man" and that is why he separated from her and calls himself "unfaithful" even though both situations were far from his control.

He loves penelope,he loves telemachus,he waited for years to meet them again,but the calypso and circe incident make him feel DIRTY(wich is common in victims of sexual abuse) and not deserving of the love of penelope and penelope in general.

using the lies about being unfaithfull could be a form of trauma block to avoid thinking about the incident,but at the same time it makes him feel WORSE because he thinks he betrayed the WOMAN HE LOVES,HIS SOULMATE AND LITERALLY HIS OTHER HALF.

Im not okay guys...i just want them to be happy again.

(Español)

Hace tiempo mi hermana me introdujo en el mundo del videojuego hades y su secuela,todo el lore y referencias a la mitología griega me fascinan(soy una nerd de mitología griega,es mi debilidad),no pensé que habría algo que me molestaría del juego,bueno,excepto una cosa,ODISEO.

Odiseo es de por lejos uno de mis héroes favoritos de la mitología griega,no solo por su astucia,moral gris y determinacion,sino tambien por el amor inmenso hacia su esposa e hijo,eso hizo que para mi fuera diferente al resto de heroes griegos,que fuera un padre genuinamente amoroso y un esposo realmente devoto aun con las situaciones con circe y calypso que para aclarar NO FUERON CONSENSUADAS NIGUNA DE LAS DOS,fue extorsion y abuso sexual,odiseo no quiso estar con ninguna de las dos.

por esta razon me puso triste el ver que supergiant mostro a odiseo como un hombre infiel (cuando en la odisea este hombre es la personificación del simping) que esta separado de su esposa.

incluso si me parece interesante la idea de que esta mintiendo y penelope trabajando desde las sombras como los partner in crime que son yo tengo otra idea:

que después de lo ocurrido con circe y calypso piensa que ya no se merece a penelope que segun sus palabras "estuvo esperando por años por un hombre infiel" y por eso se separo de ella y se denomina a si mismo como "infiel" aun cuando ambas situaciones estaban lejos de su control.

El ama a penelope,el ama a telemaco,el espejo por años para volver a verlos,pero los incidentes con circe y calypso lo hicieron sentir SUCIO(que es común en víctimas de abuso sexual) y no merecedor del amor de penelope y de penelope en general.

Usar las mentiras sobre ser infiel podría ser una forma de bloqueo traumático para evitar pensar en el incidente, pero al mismo tiempo lo hace sentir PEOR porque cree que traicionó a la MUJER QUE AMA, SU ALMA GAMELA Y LITERALMENTE SU OTRA MITAD.

no estoy bien gente...solo quiero que sean felices otra vez.

[thee-horny-thicky]

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series)? And why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....Thanks...

Okay, so, technically, Satoru and Suguru are two different characters, but they're canon parallels to each other, two halves of a duo. When that stopped being the case, a chasm was created and their worlds shifted. Their relationship is a major part of both characters stories, so separating them is difficult.

It isn't hard to guess that I love them. They're complex characters, and both serve as a cornerstone of JJK. It's impossible to imagine the series without either one of them, and their respective ideologies and the reasons behind them can be essay material. (I know because I've written one for school)

Bella Goth is an iconic Sims character. She's a baddie, and has some of the most intriguing lore of the game. I think it's a shame the Sims 4 slacked up on the storylines of the townies, because even though I've never owned the original game or Sims 2, the lore of the first two games is compelling. I have fond memories of her, often revolving me breaking up her marriage, and protecting her from those mean, scary aliens.

I was six when this movie came out, and my mother took my sisters and I to see it in the theater. That first watch is something I'd never forget, and even though I was upset that my older sister stole my snacks, the magic of the movie overrode it all. To see a princess movie set in New Orleans endeared it to my entire family, and the fact that she's the first and only Black princess gives Tiana a special place in my heart. She's hardworking, ambitious, and persistent. Not to mention, she's a baddie.

Her and Naveen's love story is one of my favorites, and I adore the fact she showed you can have a loving husband and a prosperous career. She's an independent woman, but can still accept love.

Speaking of....

The original Disney baddie, (argue with your mama), and the first to spark my interest in martial arts. I thought she was so cool, and seeing her growth always puts a smile on my face. When she sat on the top of that pole, I was so proud of her. She started out headstrong and determined, and more honorable than most of the men around her. The crowd bowing to her was exactly what she deserved, and her Father giving her her props was such a sweet moment to me.

As a side note, she deserved better than Li Shang. I fully subscribe to the theory that Li is bisexual and developed an attraction towards Ping. I love the hypothetical queer representation, even if he ends up in a straight relationship. What I don't love is how he left her to die. He tried to pose it as an act of mercy, showing his gratitude for her heroic actions, but he still left her on a freezing mountainside in barely anything. Then, when she escaped and tried to warn him, he refused to give her the time of day. Put short, he was raggedy.

Saiki is one of my favorite anime protagonists. The way the anime pokes fun at tropes is so funny, and Saiki being done with the world around him is a mood, as is his fear of bugs. Anime is riddled with all powerful characters, and a lot of the time, they have a copy and paste personality. Seeing Saiki longing to be normal, (to the point of stalking someone who's scarily average), whilst also being over reliant on his powers and being comedically apathetic is a nice change of pace. It also makes him surprisingly complex. Though this is a theory and not canon, he's great ace representation. He's content with having no romantic partner, and I like how he grows to deal with having friends without having a sudden interest in romance.

Another good example of Ace representation, in my humble bisexual opinion, is Barbie. She shows that friendship and sisterhood can be fulfilling on its own, without any need for a romantic relationship.

Now, I don't think the Barbie movie is as revolutionary as people made it out to be. It was feminism 101, with the core message being the patriarchy oppresses women, and grossly limits men. A message that's still controversial in 2024, but not one we haven't heard before.

Still, it was an incredibly fun movie, and Barbie was a great heroine. The moment she chose the high heel over the Birkenstock, I knew I'd love her, and I was right.

I love Avatar: The Last Airbender. It was so ahead of its time, and is an example of how complex 'kid' shows can be. It's pretty hard for me to pick a favorite character, but if I was forced to choose, I'd say Uncle Iroh.

Long ago, I saw a comment about how if there was a character that embodied the pleasant warmth of a fire place or cackling campfire, it'd be Uncle Iroh. I completely agree. He's the perfect mentor, standing in Zuko's corner no matter what he wanted to do, while subtly guiding him down the right path. He also wasn't blind to his nephew's flaws, but never addressed them in a way that made Zuko feel unwanted. Even after being backstabbed, he was simply sad that Zuko lost his way.

We don't see his character arc on screen, but we know he underwent an incredible transformation, going from a fearsome Fire Nation general, to a humble old man reflective about life, though he can still kick ass if needed.

Leaves From The Vine still makes me feel mushy and teary-eyed. It's bittersweet knowing that losing his son was the catalyst for him to become the character we see, and the reason he's so dedicated to Zuko. He's trying to prevent him from suffering the same fate, and right a wrong that's haunted him for so long. Learning that the tears in Iroh's voice was genuine, because that was one of the final things Mako Iwamatsu recorded before passing, made me want to curl up in bed. He brought the character to life, and is one reason he's so iconic.

Finally, Mr. Shouta Aizawa's fine ass. Now, besides just being fine, I love him for many of the reasons I love Iroh. He's nowhere as cheerful and warm as Uncle Iroh, but he takes his role as a teacher and mentor seriously. He stands in his students corner no matter what, and has shown time and time again that he'd give his life for them. Furthermore, he isn't a hero for fame or recognition, but because he believes it's the right thing to do. He knows the society he lives in is flawed, and tries to right U.A's quirk prejudice system by mentoring Hitoshi.

One might not peg him as it, but he's a very parental character. It's shown with his students, with Hitoshi, and most especially Eri. He's dedicated to guiding the next generation to achieve their fullest potential. Plus, his quirk is cool as hell, and he can throw hands.

Bonus:

Anya Forger and Nezuko, because they make me reconsider my stance on children. They're so cute, and highlights of their respective shows. And I love how Anya is shown to be childishly intelligent. It's due to her powers, but still.

TF141 also gains an honorable mention, especially my baby girl Ghost. Despite being the most secretive character of the task force, we have the most information on his background, and I love his fruity friendship with Johnny. Likewise, I love the mentor relationship Gaz and Price have. On a hornier note, I wish there were more threesome fics with Gaz and Price taking a lucky lady to Pound Town. All and all, these four awful people are my favorite pieces of military propaganda.

[artbyfinnbrown]

Screenshots of my favourite moments from Re:Zero Arc 7 (Part 1):

Todd, it’s chapter 7. You don’t even hate Subaru yet. Why are you already talking about things that could potentially act as parallels to Return by Death?

This death (and the subsequent loops that follow) is probably my favourite sequence of Subaru deaths. I had to do a double take reading this when I realized that the words had started repeating. It starts so suddenly.

I love the O’Connell siblings. Nothing bad better happen to these to or I will be very upset.

“No trust me, I have to keep using the girl voice, it’s about staying in character” Sure buddy, whatever you need to say to feel better about yourself.

So I know this is meant to be screenshots of my favourite arc 7 moments, I guess this is also screenshots arc 7 moments that just make be feel sad and go “Aw, Man”

Wow, Subaru, you’re weirdly into making sure your boobs seem real. I wonder if that means anything.

Priscilla is weirdly one of the characters that seems to be most okay with Subaru’s crossdressing. She’s still mocking him, but she’s not mocking him for crossdressing, she’ll mocking him for being Subaru. She basically says “Yeah you’re a pretty hot woman. Unfortunately, I know your true cringe nature, so your good looks have no effect on me”.

Al. How many times did you die Al.

HA.

“I’ll fill you in on the correct information about Natsumi next time”. This implies that Subaru has Natsumi Schwarz lore that he actively maintains, which is incredibly funny (and also shows just how much dedicated he is to the Natsumi Schwartz persona)

Abel: Good that you’re here Priscilla. I assume you brought troopS with you to help support my cause? Priscilla: Nope! Just me and these 3 useless men I got to follow me around. Abel: Abel: Girl I am trying to retake a nation here-

I really like what arc 7 does with Priscilla’s character. Because arc 3 really just sets her up as an arrogant asshole. And arc 7 never disproves that, she’s still an arrogant asshole. But she’s an arrogant asshole who cares some very specific people.

On my first readthrough, this just seems like another instance of Subaru and Abel’s banter. However knowing everything there is to know now about Vincent and China’s relationship… yeah, it makes sense why Abel might not want people to talk about Chisa betraying him.

“Either is fine” She says. Okay sure thing buddy (Googles “What is Bigender” on a separate tab)

Damn Rem, I’m pretty sure killing him would have inflicted less psychological damage at this point. I do think it is interesting that despite being unfriendly towards Subaru for most of the arc so far, Rem does try to help him by trying to make him feel less guilty about not being able to save everyone. Unfortunately, she had no way of knowing that Subaru was basing a large amount if his self-worth off the belief that Rem thinks of him as a hero, leading this to backfire.

Those are some great questions about Al being brought up. Does he know about Return by Death? Does he have an ability like it? If He does, why wasn’t he able to prevent the loss of his arm? NOW IF ONLY HE WOULD GIVE US SOME ACTUAL ANSWERS-

I don’t know how to feel about the fact that horses exist in the Re:Zero world. I always assumed that Land Dragons just filled the role that horses did in this world. So that fact that there are actual horses feels kind of weird. I don’t like it . Unless horses have always been a thing in Re:Zero and I just somehow never noticed. Does anyone else think that horses existing in Re:Zero is weird? maybe it’s just me.

I mean, I could do an analysis on Natsumi Schwartz, but at this point I feel like Re:Zero tumblr has analyzed Natsumi to hell and back, so I don’t know if there’s really anything meaningful I could add at this point. I’ll leave it at this: At minimum he’s a Drag Queen, and at maximum she’s a trans woman, with the truth probably being somewhere in between those two extremes.

On its own this is nothing. The fact that Subaru says this right after the story refers to Natsumi Schwartz as Subaru’s “ideal self” is what really gives me the sad “Aw, man” feeling.

No Abel was right I don’t think that deserved a response.

AL GODDAMMIT HOW MANY TIMES DID YOU DIE THIS TIME YOU CRYPTIC MOTHER-

Anyway, expect part 2 of this post soon.

[gamfart]

i was looking at your robot master/ megaman oc ideas and i really love them its fun to look at the process do you have anymore to share?

I'm sorry for just seeing this! I don't get notifs about my inbox and I rarely go on here so seeing this was really swell to see.

But yesss I have so many megaman ocs!! I realized I didn't post any of them on here look back on my archives now so here's all what I can dig up and share! I'll probably be reuploading the same pics I used on my previous post, but there is wayyy more I kept away in the vault on this one.

I'll put a keep reading tab for those who are interested in taking a peek and a gander. I haven't went back to these ocs in a while, I'll see if I can make a proper ref for some of them in the future if I have the time..

Snow Woman (name pending)

An ice related robot master that's was created to try to generate snow to help prevent the ice caps melting. A lot of her concept art and design was based off of Chill Man's old concept art. I also just wanted to make a female robot master that was humongous. She's however tall Frost Man is in terms of height.

Last image is her most recent sketch

Steam Woman & Angel Man (name pending)

Both of them are one of the first robot master oc's I made. I lump them in together bc some of the art I have of them happen to have both of them in it.

Steam woman is very heavily steampunk themed hence the name and design. She's an old robot master model that operates with steam generation and was remade with the intention to show off that feature and as a possible alternative for robot masters to be built buy.

Her personality has changed over time, she used to just be sweet and cute, but over time she became a bit more zany and slightly more menacing.

Angel man I've been thinking about changing his name to Seraph Man or something else entirely. Maybe just make him a robot master with just one name and get rid of the ____ man motif just because in my own brain I made his role to be more important than just a simple robot master.

He doesn't remember his own origins or why he was built in the first place, but knows that he's built to help and save people. His eye is all fucked up because it ties into his memory issues.

Art from 2017 - 2019:

Recent sketches of Steam Woman:

Shell Woman & Pearl Woman

Shell Woman and Pearl Woman were both designed together as a duo to document the wildlife in the sea. They have more of a parental/mentor relationship with each other.

I used to characterize her as sorta shy, but over time I've revisited her, I dabbled with the idea of Pearl Woman being more bratty and abrasive to contrast her cute and bubbly design recently.

They're both interested in music but Shell Woman is more into Classics and Opera and Pearl Woman is more into Rock/Pop music.

Quarry Man

A robot master made to navigate the quarries. Honestly I'm really unsatisfied with his design so I've left it alone for a good while. I've been meaning to revisit it someday though.

I dabbled in giving him a possible romance with Shell Woman but that's about it.

Flamingo Man & Phoenix Man

Kind of a joke character I made a while ago. I thought about giving him ties to Phoenix Man in the story maybe? Like have them be the same robot but with a different alter-ego. But I like them better as separate character's so I dropped that idea.

I think the current lore is that the blue prints for Flamingo Man was used as a basis for Phoenix man to be made. Flamingo Man is a dance instructor and Phoenix Man's purpose was to take down Mega Man, but after he was defeated he reformed and is doing his own thing.

Ghost Man (name pending)

Have not revisited this guy in a while. For some reason the idea of the Yellow Devil's properties being used for other robot masters really appealed to me. I also just wanted an excuse to find a way to incorporate scythes into his design. All Ghost Man does is patrol around graveyards to make sure nobody vandalizes or causes trouble there.

Topaz Woman

A very recent robot master design I made. The idea has always been on my mind though, I just haven't had the chance to put it onto paper. Her theme is a psychic/clairvoyant. She's able to assets the probability of a future decision when asked. I just settled on Topaz just because I couldn't settle on any other name regiment that wouldn't make her sound awkward.

MISC. SKETCHES

Misc. Robot master designs that I explored but never settled on anything. Plus a bonus select screen that I tried to make.

That's the end of that!! Thank you for reading all of this if you had the chance. I reached the image limit, but I think I shared all that I had on me for now! You really hit a big hyperfix of mine that I never have shared until now because my perfectionist ass didn't want to share at the time. So I hope you enjoyed this master post lol.

[feministsouthpark]

Tegridy Farms Filler Guide - Season 23

Link for Seasons  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22

This time, while I guide you through the canon of it all, I might include some other notes since I feel like it.

S23E1 Mexican Joker is CANON

So the first episode doesn't really set up the season (S22E4 had the honours), however it gets a follow-up episode that ties everything together, called Season Finale, and there is also the fact that Kyle and Eric go to camp, and because of it, they are absent during most of the next episode. Also Towelie got added to the theme song, which is wacky. He's a main character now. S23E2 Band in China is CANON

Episode 2 of the show Tegridy Farms turned out to be the most popular one, and that may very well be, because it's about censorship vs artistic integrity, which is the one topic creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are most passionate about. The reason it is canon, is the fact that there's a plot about Randy trying to do business with China, and that plot point is heavily featured in the next season, as his ventures with Mickey Mouse might bite him in the butt later. Stan and his board game addiction is further seen in his new room. S23E3 Shots!!! is CANON

While Randy and Towelie might have an arc that is the continuation of the last episode, but the conflict itself is only apparent in this one, and while it fleshes out both Towelie and Liane, ultimately the very special 3th episode of the show Tegridy Farms is just overshadowed by other episodes' content. That is where I first left it, and called it a filler. However by nature of the show, as I found ways for the other episodes to all be canon, and this episode does get referenced in minor ways, the intent clearly was every event being tied together by Season Finale. So I decided by finding my better judgement to conclude that Tegridy Farms as a story arc is actually all canon, even if this one is a breather episode. It builds upon the previous episode and even a serialized show is allowed to have an episode that is not as significant as the others, but adds to the experience both in atmosphere and character building. S23E4 Let Them Eat Goo is CANON

There's a new trio in town! Eric, Butters and Scott are now seen regularly together, which I find to be a neat and sensible team-up. The reason why this episode is canon, though, are the dead cows. S23E5 Tegridy Farms Halloween Special is CANON

Randy poisoning many people is the main reason why he will be sentenced in the Season Finale, so the penultimate episode of Tegridy Farms, which by the way has the cows return in zombie form as well as Winnie the Pooh, earns its role as canon material. S23E6 Season Finale is CANON

President Garrison finally has another major role in the story, and we have bookends from the season premiere in the form of Mexican Joker appearing. Jason White dies, and his parents adopt Alejandro and another child as well, the latter stays with the family. S23E7 Board Girls is CANON

Ultimately, PC Babies seems to be another serialized show, just like Tegridy Farms. We learn some backstory, that Heather was Strong Woman's ex, and Stan's love for board games are expended upon, Eric, Butters and Scott are seen as a trio still, I considered putting this as a lore episode, but this batch of episodes follow the logic of characters developing in some way or another, so it makes sense for me to count it as canon, especially since all the PC babies episodes got to be. For these characters and their arcs this episode is important. Also, I'd like to get political here, so feel free to skip it if you get offended by the topic. We have to ponder about including people in sports who may have different hormones than their opponents. I think we should all ask ourselves: What is the point of separate gender divisions in the first place? If you think you know the reason, you might as well know how we should determine who gets to compete in which division. While the trans person in this episode was a fraud, and that was the root of the problem, biology IS considered to be the reason why women compete without men, so by that logic, women with more similar biology to men shouldn't compete with the women who don't. However if you consider the reason for separation to be something only done for appearances, the strongest should win, as is the nature of sports anyway. (can you tell I'm really not into the whole 'fight each other for fame and money' thing?) S23E8 Turd Burglars is FILLER

Well, okay, while I love One for the Ladies as an idea, the episode in execution is basically just another classic type boys episode, and while that is not a problem at all, the call-backs for this episode are basically just a shot of the One for the Ladies logo, but since the episode has other fake show-within-a-show content like this that have no previous reference, I think this one is truly a filler. S23E9 Basic Cable is CANON

While in the last few seasons we had the finale to tie the season together, I feel like for this faux spin-off season, this is the episode that does the honors. Also Scott was built up as a regular character anyway, for him to finally have his spotlight. But the main reason that makes this episode canon, is of course, Sophie Gray, who moved to town and is seemingly here to stay. Only time will tell how important she is going to be after this, but right now, I can't just consider her to be a one-off quite yet. S23E10 Christmas Snow is...

All right, this is the biggest question mark for me, because one hand it is a filler episode, that doesn't really get a mention again. Except one of its main motifs does. South Park, the television series is an expansion of two internet short, the second of which is called Jesus vs. Santa, so the very DNA of the show is based on these mythical characters, and while the episode is a rare modern townfolk-based episode, in which the children curiously stay in the background, in the next season Stan makes it very clear that his childhood adventures can be summarized by adventuring with Jesus and Santa. So this is clearly one of the roots of the show, and is deep in its heart. Still, since basically you have all necessary information in Red Sleigh Down, I won't get sentimental over this, and actually consider this as the filler it is.

SPOILER-FREE RUNDOWN

S23E1 Mexican Joker is CANON S23E2 Band in China is CANON S23E3 Shots!!! is CANON S23E4 Let Them Eat Goo is CANON S23E5 Tegridy Farms Halloween Special is CANON S23E6 Season Finale is CANON S23E7 Board Girls is CANON S23E8 Turd Burglars is FILLER S23E9 Basic Cable is CANON S23E10 Christmas Snow is FILLER

CANON counter:

S1: 9 out of 13   S2: 3 out of 18   S3: 6 out of 18   S4: 10 out of 17   S5: 8 out of 14   S6: 11 out of 17  S7: 6 out of 15  S8: 4 out of 14  S9: 8 out of 14  S10: 4 out of 14  S11: 4 out of 14  S12: 8 out of 14  S13: 3 out of 14  S14: 7 out of 14  S15: 6 out of 14  S16: 2 out of 14  S17: 4 out of 10 + a highly lore based game  S18: 8 out of 10  S19: 9 out of 10  S20: 10 out of 10 S21: 7 out of 10 + a highly lore based game + 2 DLCs S22: 9 out of 10 S23: 8 out of 10

Overall: 154 out of 308 Personal notes: Happy to announce that no matter what happens next, at this point I can say that I cut the episode count by half by omitting fillers. Even if it's nonsense, I pride myself in creating a nearly accurate take on filler lists with this ironic thing.

[thefirstknife]

Please tell me you've read the lore on the new Trials items??

I have and I haven't stopped crying since.

It starts with the new Trials ship, Valiant Memory. It's the opening Lightfall cutscene but told from the point of view of Reed-7, the Titan from the Trials fireteam of Reed, Aisha and Shayura. They were a constant background lore characters on Trials gear. Here's a brief post I have about them from before. Since then, Shayura has been re-captured, gone to therapy, healing and reunited with her fireteam. Among them, Reed was a really sweet Exo who was known as "Strike dad," basically the heart of the fireteam, really sweet and warm.

The ship lore tells us that Reed, Aisha and Shayura were in the battle in space at the start of Lightfall when Pyramid fleet attacked. As the lore tab progresses it becomes increasingly clear that these three are the fireteam we've seen in the cutscene. Specifically, the Titan we've seen sliced? Reed-7.

The Witness is nothing more than a sliver of dark shearing through a field of white, but even at such a distance, Reed can feel its eyes on him. A chill jolts down his spine the moment the reticle locks on. His Exomind throbs with the sense-memory of a migraine.

He immediately knows something is wrong. He turns to his Ghost. His Ghost looks at him, but it's already dead. The world separates into slices.

And

so is

he.

I don't think I will ever emotionally recover from this. Aisha and Shayura survived for unknown reasons. Neither Aisha nor Shayura know why their Ghosts were spared; possibly because they both toyed with a version of Darkness. Aisha was a stasis user and Shayura's issues led her to killing Guardians. We don't know.

Either way, after the ship lore, I suggest reading the Ghost Shell, Hero's Wake. Immediately knocked out by the flavour text:

"He was like a father to us both." ��Aisha

The lore tab itself has Shayura grieving and preparing to go therapy.

Next on the schedule for the emotional breakdown is the sparrow, Survivor's Journey which shows us Aisha personally traveling to Titan to tell Sloane about Reed. This also shows us that Sloane knew this fireteam, which is neat. But yeah, Aisha is devastated and had to tell Sloane in person.

The final bit is the Trials glaive, Unexpected Resurgence. Shayura is in the Tower and she has the remains of Reed's Ghost. She is approached by a woman who introduces herself as Sister Faora. Faora was the leader of the Cult of Osiris, but now introduces herself as an "outcast." The link between them is that Shayura and her fireteam were Trials regulars. Faora gives Shayura the glaive and offers to be her friend. No clue why Faora is an outcast. Maybe the whole Cult of Osiris has been somehow restructured, disbanded or made defunct after Osiris' ordeal with Savathun and after he lost his Light. It would be nice to get an update on it!

Outside of the assault on our emotions, I am curious about Faora's reappearance. Paired with them mentioning Vance again (albeit jokingly), I wonder if this is meant something more than just randomly dropping names. Vance is the only remaining "missing" vendor that we have yet to learn more about and Mercury is a potentially very interesting place to revisit, if we can, given its ties to Darkness through Lighthouses (which emit Darkness-aligned tones; the same tones that are being emitted by Pyramids and the planetary anomalies, as well as very likely egregore). Maybe a hint for a future season? I would love to revisit Mercury and get some nice lore reveals about the Lighthouses, Vance, Mercury's secrets (the planet houses a prediction engine!) and the Vex.

But until then, pain and suffering even. Goodbye Reed, Strike dad.

[cowbilover]

lo and queer masc/man rep

or therefore the complete lack there of. which is incredibly insulting considering how common and prominent it was in original myth (although not always perfect but what greek myth is regardless of straight or gay). also i will be using queer in place of LGBT+ as an umbrella term so if you're not comfortable with that then sorry.

now rachel has made attempts at including queer rep through hestia and athena as lesbians and morpheus (and maybe chiron? idk) as trans women. which could be a whole separate post on its own with the problems that arise with them, but seeing as i am not a lesbian or trans woman, i will not be speaking on them in this post nor to the same degree if i do ever mention them.

what i am is a queer man, both bisexual and trans. i am also a big enjoyer of greek myth. i am not a big enjoyer of lore olympus nor of rachel's complete lack of representation when it comes to men like myself despite it being again very prominent within the original myths. now seeing how badly she has handled other forms of representation for other groups, i am partially glad she hasn't tried. but while i am a little happy, i am more so overall upset and annoyed at this. it comes off as nothing more than simple erasure.

the closest we've seen of rep for queer men/mascs is aged up storge who is more feminine then other men in the story, but this has not been explicitly confirmed therefore i will not be including this. besides men can be both feminine and still cishet. finally storge is a minor background character with little importance, so even if rachel did decide to make him canon queer we likely would not see much of that.

his brother eros is another annoying case as he is unarguably coded as a gay best friend stereotype. but without being gay. he is fashionable, witty, intelligent, dramatic, and always serves as a shoulder for his straight friend to cry on. but again he is not even fucking gay. he is married to a woman with a child. while i would like to see better representation then the gbf stereotype it is still insulting that rachel while coding eros to act like that couldn't even do the bare minimum of making him bisexual.

now it has been pointed out to me that names of male lovers to gods have been used and slapped on female nymphs. krokos (one of persephone's dead nympth friends) was a male spartan lover of hermes, and ampleus (the name pysche took as a nymph) was a lover of dionysus. now i am not upset that rachel didn't include the original stories since the story is already messy enough. i am upset that she took the names of two queer men from myth and slapped them on two woman. one of which ends up marrying a man, and the other dying. a quick google search could show that these names belonged to male lovers of gods, and so to me it comes off as at best lazy and at worst erasure.

i won't be discussing much of dionysus since he was only recently introudced. nor of apollo since the erasure of his queer identity is only one of many problems that occur with his character and how rachel wrote it, which could constitution a completely separate post.

i will be discussing hermes though. as both a character that we have seen a lot of, and as one that has not been completely villainized by the plot. he had an incredibly early appearance in the webtoon and had a handful of myths where he had male lovers or expressed homosexual love. but not a single mention or even passing comment has ever been made about this. it would be incredibly easy for rachel to just throw in one allusion to any of his male lovers (besides krokos who has been turned into a nymph for some reason) yet this never happens.

zeus is another character we have seen a lot of, especially in regards to his many affairs. all of which have canonically been with women. despite the many affairs he carried out with men. one of the most famous being ganymede and the foundation for the myth behind aquarius and the cup bearer. again it would not be so incredibly difficult for rachel to add any allusion to his male lovers. yet again though, nothing. (i will come back to this post after some fast passes become public and i can discuss his treatment as a pregnant man)

poseidon also had a couple queer lovers but besides the reference to the fact that he has a polygam "pod" we haven't actually seen any of his partners besides his wife.

the way rachel draws men with all perfect six pack bodies is also something that annoys me, and i'll be discussing it briefly here. people always comment on the lack of body diversity for the women in the comic but for the men it is much more severe. hermes, thanatos and eros who were all shown to be more skinny and not completely jacked in the beginning of the story are now all ripped with washboard abs. the men are all built like brick walls and it is just upsetting to see as a trans man who does not fit into that category. it sends the message that to be attractive a man must be perfectly fit. not scrawny or skinny or god forbid even fat.

also again as i said in the beginning many of the myths for queer men were just as fucked and problematic. it’s greek mythology it’s inevitable. but i’m more upset over the fact that if rachel can modernize and (attempt to) make hetero myths less gross, then where is that effort for homo myths

overall despite the overwhelming amount of queer man/masc rep that exists within the source material, rachel utilizes none of it. there has not been mention or allusion to a single queer god, forget any trans god. to me it comes off as purposefully ignorant and as erasure of queer men/mascs. which is fucking annoying considering how many of us see ourselves for once fucking represented in these myths. she has plenty of opportunity to include rep for people like myself but continuously chooses not to, instead adding another hetero-centric plot line for no reason. it is tiring and annoying to see so many gods that were queer in their myths not be represented as such. i will not make assumptions about why rachel chooses not to include this kind of rep, i will simply say to me it comes off as blatant erasure.

i could go on, and probably will come back to this post but for now i have said what i have wanted to say.

[sloshed-cinema]

Heavenly Creatures (1994)

If his film BrainDead showed that Peter Jackson is the Kiwi Sam Raimi, Heavenly Creatures demonstrates that he can take that kinetic freneticism in his camera language and channel it into a powerful aspect of the way a story is told. Especially when Juliet Hulme and Pauline Parker are together, the world is topsy-turvy. The camera rockets around in running POV shots or snaps in on facial features, distorting them beyond recognition. Clay figurines spring to life, and the girls are transported to an otherworldly paradise of the Fourth World. Ordinarily, this would not be at all conventional for a crime drama. But when looking at the Parker-Hulme murder case through the eyes of its perpetrators, this is the only way to convey it. The world is a fantasy for Juliet and Pauline, full of operatic highs and lows. Nothing feels better when the two are united, the film leaping joyfully into bravura camera moves to convey just how ecstatic this partnership is (how in the fuck they pulled off that sandcastle shot is beyond me). Even when they aren’t involved in a scene, their version of events colors the depiction: when Juliet’s father Henry visits the Parkers to suggest she needs psychiatric help, snap-zooms and Frankenstein claps of lightning are plentiful, and the suggestion that she may be a L-E-S-B-I-A-N is a full-on comedy reveal. Parental figures, often the object of ire for these two girls who see them as opponents seeking to separate them, pop into frame like monsters in a jump scare. But while darkly comic throughout, Jackson peppers the film with extracts from Pauline’s diary. Often the sentiments or events she describes are quietly juxtaposed with the reality of the matter. Her eventual love for Henry Hulme because she thinks he has her best interests in mind is contrasted by his apparent thinly veiled dislike for her. A diary can be a record of events and an insight into someone’s perception of them, but it isn’t objective reality.

More nuanced too than BrainDead or other early works is Jackson’s delicately layered sense of tone and emotional sensibilities. A woman died at the end of all of these escalating events, after all. That is no laughing matter. Honora Parker is handled completely straight, and through all of her frustration with and love for her daughter, it’s clear that this was a woman put into a very difficult situation. Her genuine, fraught grief at being pushed away by Pauline is wrenching. When the “Happy Day” of the planned murder comes, Jackson begins to toy with the audience, checking in on clocks and watches at any opportunity, creating a sense of dread and anticipation. But unlike most crime thrillers, you genuinely don’t want this to happen. But happen it must, like something written in a book. The fixation with Juliet and Pauline’s fictional kingdom throughout is another arm of tragedy often played more straight, if accompanied by gaudier trappings. This fixation on their fantasy kingdom, calling one another by character names, building out elaborate lore and interlinking it with their lives, quickly moves from playground imagination to something altogether more troubling. Whether this is a coping mechanism or the outcome of repression, it carries darker implications. Pauline’s brief encounter with a disgusting exploitative border at her home is never portrayed as anything other than predatory, rendered all the more tragic as the teenager tries to process that through the lens of her character’s fictional lover. Early in the film, Juliet is seen in a princess dress, suggesting an innocence and play to her. But when she appears in similar attire upon her reunion with Pauline, it’s utterly wrenching, no matter how happy the two may be to see one another again.

THE RULES

PICK ONE

Select either JULIET or PAULINE and sip when someone says their name.

SIP

Running POV shot.

Mario Lanza is name-dropped.

Location-establishing text.

Clay figures appear in a scene.

BIG DRINK

The Fourth World or the Bahamas are mentioned.

Lord of the Rings style circling helicopter shot.

The film changes to black and white footage.

[alteredsilicone]

Warframe Quest tier list

Explanations of ratings under the cut:

Great: Quests that hooked me conceptually and are the core of how I view the game/my own characters and worldbuilding

Sacrifice - This quest is worth the hype. That's it. Even though I have gripes with Umbra from a fandom perspective, I love the lore of the Warframes a lot.

Glast Gambit - personal sentimental favorite, this is purely my own bias. I think it's a really good early example of a fun character interaction (Nef and Ergo, toxic old man yaoi LONG before WITW; they are divorced, the worm in my brain told me so) and also an interesting way to show the "choice" system via a moral dilemma (Neewa's fate).

Whispers in the Wall also goes into the "Great" tier, great quest, great characters, great setup for the next era of Warframe and imo a culmination of all the ups and downs that Warframe has been through the years and that ended up in a truly great narrative experience.

Good: Quests I liked but that missed a certain "oomph"

Duviri Paradox - I love Duviri as a place and the mythology around it, but I expected something different from the quest itself. Certain story beats didn't land because I did not feel the emotional connection the game expected me to (coughcoughTeshin'sfakeoutdeathcoughcough). Also didn't like Drifter being a snarky ass in a Marvel-esque way. I'm too used to RPGs and MMOs so when a game forces a characterization on my character I get really antsy if it's something she would not say.

Deadlock Protocol - I LOVE the Corpus so any Corpus content gets instant bias bonus points. Introduction of a very solid villain, Nef bullying. It has it all. This quest could also go in "great" but I think the narrative itself isn't compelling and earth-shattering enough to warrant that.

Waverider - hot take alert! Corpus bias once again, Nef being humbled is always a plus. The k-drive was annoying but I got gud and finished the quest, it was entertaining.

Vox Solaris - good introduction to the Solaris faction but I feel the conflict was solved way too quickly, but I also wasn't around for the release, the ARG and the introduction of the Orb Mothers. Still, I think Nef and the Solaris' conflict could be made into a cinematic three-parter on its own. Oh well, that's what fanfiction is for. (Ps. Nightwave Season 3 had a forgettable side character, Cutter, who touched upon a subject I wish the Solaris plotline explored more)

Call of the Tempestarii - I almost want to put it in "wasted potential" only because I wish Vala had more of a prominent role. Sighs. I love Corpus, I love evil women, I got an evil Corpus woman. Please give me more evil Corpus women.

Chains of Harrow - overall good quest. Rell's story is heart-wrenching. I still headcanon that "Margulis cast him out" is Red Veil propaganda and Rell got separated from the rest of the Tenno in other ways and was brainwashed to believe he was cast out completely.

Second Dream - I knew the Operator existed before I played this quest so I didn't have the HOLY SHIT WHAT!!! reaction, but I think this is a good quest and I understand why people guard the Operator secret even though I think it hurts the narrative of Warframe overall. Oh Well.

New War - To me it's like a Marvel movie, a huge spectacle. It was fun in the way a popcorn movie is fun. It was more fun gameplay wise than story-wise, though I enjoyed the Void/Wally/Zariman lore the most (it's my second favorite thing after Corpus stuff).

Okay - these are quests which either didn't particularly speak to me, or I just have completely forgotten. All the early quests fall into "forgotten" category and things post War Within are more on the "okay" side.

Wasted potential - Silver Grove. My joy, my pain. I WISH this wasn't an ancient quest and the post-quest moral actually applied to New Loka. I think as a concept New Loka are very interesting, but poorly executed, so now they're just "lol ecofascists/plant nazis" so I can't even get people to engage with them on a serious level. Forever seething and malding

Disappointment of the century - Angels of the Zariman. I was there, I participated in the ARG to the best of my ability, I read the logs, I changed my blog title to "Abyssus accipit et Abyssus dat" because I liked it that much. Then I got a 30 minute tutorial quest with a bunch of NPCs I don't care about and my Operator had zero emotional reaction TO RETURNING TO THE PLACE WHERE IT ALL FUCKING BEGAN AND THEY KILLED THEIR PARENTS AND LOST EVERYTHING THEY EVER HELD DEAR JESUS FUCK WHY WHY WHY

anyways

I warmed up to the Holdfasts and Yonta is cute so I have forgiven her crimes. Also this was during an era where I was constantly miffed at DE adding new characters instead of building on old ones.

So yeah, that's that.

tl;dr - I have a bias towards lore regarding the Warframes themselves, Corpus and anything regarding the Void/Tenno. Also I have shit memory.

[nkatr84]

Summer Movie Catchup

It’s been a while Tumblr. But I’d thought I’d bring you guys up to speed on my thoughts about the movies and media I’ve seen this summer … with a special separate post about the latest movie I just saw…before we get back into Only Murders in the Building.

Here we go…

Ghostbusters Frozen Empire

Not as good or emotionally satisfying as the first of these legacy sequels, but it was still fun. I liked seeing the Ghostbusters back in New York, I liked seeing Phoebe’s struggles balancing being a Ghostbuster with becoming a teenager and I liked the supernatural lore they added with ancient versions of ghostbusters. And the actors looked like they were having fun being there. Even Bill Murray.

The Fall Guy

I LOVE this movie! The love letter to making movies and to stuntmen especially, the romance the comedy, the plot, the stunts! And Ryan Gosling as Colt Seavers is Baby Girl. I don’t make the rules.

Inside Out 2

I came out of this thinking that this movie was good but not as emotionally satisfying as the first. But then I realized something. The first movie was resolved by making you feel sadness. A emotion everyone needs to feel. The second movie is about anxiety taking over. And at the climax of this movie you feel for Riley as she starts to literally have an anxiety attack. And Joy learning that what Riley needs as a person is to accept all the parts of herself. Not just the good things. It’s expanding on the first movie's idea and growing with the character of Riley as she grows up. it's not groundbreaking, but its still good.

Twisters

I don’t have much nostalgia for the first movie, and this wasn’t high on my list of movies I wanted to see. But my family did so see it I did. And I was pleasantly surprised and was glad I saw it. It only winks at the first movie and it has its own plot and you genuinely feel for the main character as she tries to overcome her survivor’s guilt. And learning the main actor is adorable enough to try to get his parents cameos in his movies was chefs kiss.

Doctor WHO

I knew I would love this new season of Doctor WHO! From Space Babies to the brilliant Maestro to the random Bridgerton fanfic RTD obviously threw in, slugs that literally eat the rich (and racists) leading up to a satisfying finale that actually ties in a classic Who Villain and a bittersweet (farewell for now) to a compelling companion in Ruby Sunday. Now I just need to know who the heck Mrs. Flood is…

Who are you woman!?

The Garfield Movie

Yeah I forgot I saw this one but I do remember liking it. The animation is good and looks like the comic. It’s funny enough and had just enough heart.

Despicable Me 3

Yeah this was cute but the plots are so mid they might as well just make it a tv show at this point

And finally…

Let’s Go…https://www.tumblr.com/nkatr84/757566938199228416/deadpool-and-wolverine

[blogger360ncislarules]

Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage, the spinoff of the recently concluded Young Sheldon, which was a spinoff of The Big Bang Theory, is an opportunity for producers to tell new stories involving Georgie Cooper (Montana Jordan) and his wife Mandy (Emily Osment), the older brother and sister-in-law of Sheldon Cooper (Iain Armitage, Jim Parsons) now that his tales have been chronicled.

TV Insider caught up with executive producer/head writer Steve Holland, Jordan, and Osment on the Paramount lot at a press event to kick off the new Fall TV season to preview the CBS sitcom, which will appear both familiar and new to viewers.

“There wasn’t a grand plan behind it,” Holland tells us about why the characters of Georgie and Mandy were chosen to be spun off from Young Sheldon. He says the idea came about after the producers, including series creator Chuck Lorre, watched the two actors and saw their delightful chemistry.

“They were just so much fun to watch,” Holland says. “We were like, ‘We want to watch these characters more.’ It was born out of that.”

While this is Jordan’s second series for Lorre, Osment has done quite a few for the genius hitmaker. Her first job with him was when she was 17 and she appeared in an episode of Two and a Half Men, titled, ironically, “Bazinga! That’s From a TV Show.”

Next came parts on Mom and The Kominsky Method. Initially, she was hired for a lone episode of Young Sheldon as Mandy, a former local TV weathergirl who fell into an unlikely “May-September early August” romance with Georgie. That turned into many more, and now, she’s starring in Georgie & Mandy. “You can’t plan your life when Chuck Lorre gets in the way,” Osment says with a smile. “I’m so excited.”

“When we first cast Emily, it was a one-off,” Holland says. “We had a thought of Georgie dating an older woman, and we cast Emily, whom Chuck loves working with. She’s great. We brought her back for another episode and then another.”

Holland and Osment are happy to be returning to the multi-camera format after working on Young Sheldon’s single camera style of shooting. It’ll also be refreshing to tell stories with characters whose future lives aren’t etched in stone quite the way Sheldon’s was.

“We know Sheldon grows up, has friends, gets married, and wins a Nobel Prize,” Holland says. “So, there were [some] constraints around the stories we could tell. Now, there’s [more of a] clean slate. We don’t know much about Georgie. We know a little bit about the tire entrepreneurship, but we don’t know much [beyond that].

“It seems like there’s a whole world of stories that we can tell,” the exec adds. “We get to bring in new characters – [some] that people already know. But we get to tell entirely brand-new stories, and the show can go anywhere we decide to take it.”

Holland adds that shooting in front of a live studio audience will help “separate Georgie & Mandy from Young Sheldon so it doesn’t feel like we’re just doing Young Sheldon Season 7.5. We want to make it feel like its own show and stand on its own. We’ve missed doing audience shows.”

Jordan is not as familiar with multi-camera work but he’s got his TV wife to provide support. “I’ve got someone by my side who’s going to give me some pointers,” the actor says.

And not that the show needs any lucky omens, but it will be filmed on The Big Bang Theory stage on the Warner Bros. lot.

Georgie & Mandy has a rich legacy of characters it can draw from, given that there’s lore not only from Young Sheldon but The Big Bang Theory, too. “Right now,” Holland says, “our concern is Emily and Montana, and Will Sasso and Rachel Bay Jones as her parents [Jim and Audrey].”

That said, Holland says, “[Georgie and Mandy] still live in Medford [Texas], and I think we’re going to see familiar faces from time to time.”

Does that mean we might see a Meemaw (Annie Potts) on occasion? “We might see a Meemaw,” Holland responds with a smile.

Who we may not be seeing – or at least hearing – is grown-up Georgie, played by Jerry O’Connell. Parsons narrated episodes of Young Sheldon but as Georgie & Mandy is multi-camera, the format doesn’t easily call for voiceovers from characters’ future selves. But older Georgie’s player is a familiar face to the series stars.

“I was excited when I met him,” Jordan says of meeting his TV older self. “We had just gotten back from a skiing trip. My face was all sunburn and chapped. Jerry’s a nice guy, really down to earth.”

“He played my dad on Young & Parents,” Osment says, “and now, he’s my…future baby-daddy husband.”

Might Osment do someone singing on Georgie & Mandy? The actress is also a singer. “I go by @bluebiirdmusic with my music and I have another single coming out next month,” she says. “Georgie has done some singing to our daughter on the show.”

Quips Jordan, “I sing…in the shower.”

[catsvrsdogscatswin]

Someone asked me to do a part two of my vampire history infodump that covered more modern stuff like Blade and Anne Rice, so here’s an updated version of my reblog in its own separate post:

(Warning: my confident historical coverage of vampiric lore pretty much hits the curb and faceplants right around the time of Dracula.)

That warning being duly given... with the collation of stories spanning the 1800s (such as The Vampyre [1819], Varney the Vampire [1845-47], Carmilla [1872], and Dracula [1897]), the vampire was spring-launched into popular literature with all of the deliciously mental tropes that the Victorians so loved to create. As mentioned, these vampires created the power sets and archetypes that were the initial blueprints for our modern concept of a vampire.

One of the tropes that got baked into the genre was... sensuality, I guess is how you’d phrase it. I know we all joke about sexy vampires, but the physicality (and moral questions built into it) were a part of the vampire concept ever since it got absorbed by the Sturm und Drang crowd and vampires were no longer (solely) the gross corpse of your asshole neighbor.

As I mentioned earlier, part of the lure for Sturm und Drang artists was how inherently unholy and blasphemous vampires were. I won’t divert this into a lecture on Christianity and Catholicism’s more batshit practices, but to cut a very long alternate post short: sex and sexual pleasure were considered immoral. Lust was inherently worse than love.

You’ll see this in period novels a lot: loving something or someone in a spiritual/emotional way makes a character inherently purer and better than someone tied to earthly/mundane/physical pleasures and attachments. Off the top of my head, I can think of examples in Tarzan (the original 1912 novels, not Disney), a number of the Sherlock Holmes stories, and Dracula. The novel goes out of its way to indicate how a character (usually a woman) has a loftier, purer, and just generally better soul because they love spiritually. In modern terms, it’s a bit like the book has her walking around with a punk jacket’s worth of pride/ally pins and charity awards and “every spiritual leader ever says you’re just the bestest” medals.

Because vampires were supposed to be the inverse of goodness, however, much of their actions were tied to physicality, specifically in the crude and sensual way of wanting someone bodily. A lot of the post-Sturm und Drang, pre-modern material uses the eroticism the vampire brings or carries as a threat. 

It’s in several poems, including Lenore: the titular Lenore is lured away onto her fatal midnight ride because her dead fiance told her that he was bringing her to their bridal/marriage bed -which, if he wasn’t dead and obliquely describing a coffin, would traditionally be the bed where he would deflower her to consummate their marriage. In The Vampyre, Lord Ruthven is constantly attracting women and killing them soon after. The horror of the book is heavily founded on how the protagonist is helpless to do anything but watch as Lord Ruthven seduces the women he cares about and then murders them, one after another.

We see this same sensuality-is-a-threat in Carmilla, where she is predatorily obsessed with the female lead, and in Dracula, when Jonathan is almost fed upon by the vampire ladies. There’s more examples in Dracula, but in consideration of how good an example it is (and where we are in DD), I’ll leave it at that one. There’s sexual tension between Jonathan and the three vampire ladies in that scene: it’s erotic, and it’s scary. This scene is meant to show us how horrible and unnatural they are, that they can evoke this primal interest from both us, the readers, and Jon, when we know they will try to hurt him.

(We can also argue that there’s much of the same tension with Jonathan and the Count, with Jon caught between feeling attraction and simultaneously feeling fear, but that’s a post for another time.)

Essentially, early vampires were spooky and threatening because they carried undertones of overt sexual pleasure and carnality, which was taboo according to the conventions of the time. As the pop culture interpretation became fully fleshed out and they became infectious rather than fatal, the horror and threat shifted to how they would make you enjoy these things, whether you initially wanted to or not.

And (as I creep out to the very end of my shaky little branch of knowledge) as the vampire solidified as an idea, this intwined sense of danger and arousal was carried with it. As the vampire became less and less an actual creature people commonly believed in and more and more just another literary device, people started doing what they always do: use said horror device as a metaphor for the current neurosis, fears, and struggles of the time. 

(And repressed desire, because humans are horny and that’s how we do. Sometimes there’s both horror and repressed desire simultaneously.)

There’s a lovely (and true) post going around that explains how you can use trends in horror movies to tell you about what people are afraid of at a certain period in time. And this holds true for vampires!

One of the big landmarks after Dracula itself was the black and white film Nosferatu, made in Germany in 1922. Although this is a matter of debate due to the director knowing and being friendly with a number of Jewish people, both the film and the vampire within it, Count Orlok, have been stated to hold significant anti-Semitic overtones. Count Orlok has features that mimic caricature-esque depictions of Jewish people and brings plague-carrying rats to the innocent German town he invades, which reflects the rising anti-Semitic sentiments of the era and the location.

I Am Legend, which was originally a novel written in 1954, also reflected the horror of the day, which was concern over what nukes would do and what they would leave behind. A pandemic has turned every human on earth into vampiric creatures, and one man is left to stand against them. This got adapted into film not once, not twice, but three times, the most recent of which is I am Legend (2007) starring Will Smith.

I admit that I have very little knowledge beyond the surface of the Interview with a Vampire series (the first book of which was published in 1976), but if said knowledge is correct, vampirism partially serves as a metaphor for both homosexuality and the changing attitudes around it. They live among us, indistinguishable from us until they make one specific action to out themselves, and then they aren’t recognizably us anymore. They’re frightening, but there’s a curiosity about them, and a growing (perhaps fatal) urge to find out more. The vampire serves as a vehicle for the horror of “maybe this will be fine, maybe this will damn you forever, and there’s no way to tell which one it’ll be until it’s too late.”

We can also thank/blame Interview with a Vampire for being one of the stories that first began to nudge vampire media towards the dark/paranormal/tragic romance. The other major contributor was the original run of Dark Shadows in 1966-71.

There are also doubtless a number of other examples of vampire media from 1900-1998. Off the top of my head, I do not remember any of them, or know enough about those that I do remember to talk about them (i.e. Buffy the Vampire Slayer).

In regard to Blade, however; I will, first of all, admit that my knowledge is limited solely to the three Wesley Snipes movies; Blade (1998), Blade II (2002), and Blade: Trinity (2004), which I believe deviate significantly from the comics. However, vampirism-as-a-metaphor for the contemporary horror/fears of the day still tracks! 

In the movies, at least, vampirism is treated as a metaphor for the risks of modern society, particularly viruses and viral carriers. In each movie, vampires hunt for -and find- prey at nightclubs and other slightly-seedy locations, and they tend to feed on the young and uninhibited --the subtext being our fear of catching STDs. 

Vampirism is explicitly viral: Blade “catches” it in the womb after his mother is bitten and gives birth prematurely (paralleling birth defects created by parents carrying a virus), and the strain that causes vampirism is compared to cancer in the second movie onscreen. Blade II’s main conflict also comes from him having to deal with a mutant strain of vampirism that infects even other vampires, removing their weakness to silver and garlic at the cost of their intelligence and functioning metabolism. (Invoking the horror of evolving viruses.) Blade: Trinity has him dealing with Dracula, the patient zero who has a super-strain of vampirism.

While I’m sure there’s a whole lot more I’m missing due to knowing sweet-jolly-fuckall about the Blade comics (and superhero stuff in general), in the Blade movies, vampirism in general is partially used as a vehicle/metaphor for our fear of viral infection and disease: this being one of the few things we, as modern humans, are still largely as helpless against as our ancestors were. 

(This particular fear is also why there’s been an uptick in zombie movies within the past few decades. Fun fact!)

I am contractually obligated to mention the Twilight (2005-2008) series. While it certainly wasn’t the first vampire romance designed for teenagers, Twilight is notable for basically nailing the target audience of teenage girls and encapsulating a lot of their feelings and struggles. The way it was written gave said girls a sense of new power and embraced vampiric sensuality full-heartedly, which was what made it a landmark in vampiric literature history.

That isn’t to say modern vampires aren’t still used for full-on villains and horror. Vampireology (2010) and the Vampire Plagues series (2004-2006) are the only two examples I can really think of off the top of my head, but in both cases, vampirism is an unholy metamorphosis that strips away your very soul. In Vampireology, faint echoes of the human personality remain, but in Vampire Plagues, the memories and knowledge are really the only thing that’s left: everything else is lost as the new vampire becomes an undyingly loyal puppet for the evil god that is their master. In both cases, vampirism is explicitly a curse and an act of evil, and vampires are unequivocally the enemy.

However, the 2000-2010 decade was basically the last nail in the coffin (heh) that had the majority of modern vampire depictions shifting over from “evil undying spawn of Hell” to “personable, if not outright sympathetic.” Nowadays, vampires tend to be neutral creatures, antiheroes, or even sometimes just plain good guys. Vampires are used outside of horror to explain superhero-esque power sets or scifi tropes. There’s supernatural vampire romances without even a hint of horror in the classic sense. Quite a shift from Dracula!

In summation, thanks to its incredibly long pedigree and wide folkloric spread, the modern vampire is a literary device that content creators can use pretty much however they damn well like. There are so many traits that vampires have been given over the decades that you can basically just cherry-pick want you want and go, blending it with other genres and literary conventions as you feel necessary (or interesting). The history is already right there, which also what makes it rather difficult to put a truly new spin on any vampire media: usually, someone, somewhere, has already done it before.

Vampires are an inverse of what’s good, a parasite, a blood-born pathogen, an unholy creature from beyond the grave, a tragic victim, a spreader of disease, a mystic/exotic threat, a dark fantasy, a hidden minority, etc. etc. You can use them for horror, religious symbolism, sociocultural ideas, romance, superhero origin stories, an additional monster in your bestiary, an aesthetic filter over your fantasy species, even more etc. etc.

In conclusion:

[alicent-apologist]

1) Do you think the dance would’ve still happened if Viserys had married someone else instead of Alicent in either the books or the show? A lot of people blame the dance entirely on the Hightowers and their ambition but that never really made sense to me because 1) every noble family whether great or minor in Westeros is ambitious as evidenced multiple times throughout all of Martin’s work and 2) the law at the time was that the firstborn son would inherit and any woman who married Viserys and had a son would expect the crown to go to him over and fight just as the Hightowers did. Would love to hear your thoughts on this!

2) Kinda related but sorta separate. I saw your post about ideas of what would’ve happened if Viserys chose Laena and loved it. I also really loved how you adapted and honored and worked the lore behind House Baratheon into The Targaryen Doe. If you’re taking requests for future prompts, I was wondering if you’d ever write a story where Viserys’s second wife is someone else from an important family (not Alicent or Laena and not from the Hightowers or the Velaryons) and how they would react to 1) becoming the Queen consort of the 7 kingdoms 2) the royal court and all its intrigues and plots and dynamics (like Camyla I imagine this woman was born and raised in her family’s ancestral home and then only came to court for the first time for her marriage) 3) their new in laws (Daemon and Rhaenys) and stepdaughter 4) personally being married to Viserys and all the good and bad that comes with being with him 5) how she will react to the news that Viserys doesn’t intend to make their son his heir. I hate how the show made it seem like Alicent or Laena were the only two choices he had in the world. Also I love politics and background lore/history and worldbuilidng and you did a great job with Camyla and her Baratheon ties so I would love to see how you would write another woman from a different house. I don’t think I’ve ever read a HOTD fic where Viserys has an OC wife so that just really interest me. Thank you!

Sorry it took me this long to answer! I thought about it so much that I would have sworn on my life that I'd already posted a reply!

The Dance became a certainty the second Viserys remarried, had a son and kept Rhaenyra as his heir. There is no house in Westeros that would not take that as an insult. They would have married their daughter/sister to Viserys with the (reasonable) expectation that any sons that resulted from that marriage would be in line for the throne. Otherwise, they would not have offered a woman of child-bearing years. I will grant Viserys that it was a difficult position to be in - when Aemma died (was murdered on his orders while she had no idea what was going on) he only had one child standing between Daemon and the throne and literally no-one wanted Daemon on the throne. Sad for him really, if only he hadn't been impregnating his wife since she was thirteen years old ... I'm not even sure if marrying someone from a really, really minor house would have helped really. The bigger houses would have taken it as an insult that they were passed over, and it's likely that the Great House of the region would also have taken it as an insult when Viserys kept Rhaenyra as his heir. Potentially, another way out of it would be to marry an older, likely widowed woman who would not be able to have more children and marry Rhaenyra to Laenor to appease the Velaryons. It ties together the two contesting claims and it ensures that Viserys won't have any children who could fight Rhaenyra's claim. And then, of course, Rhaenyra does as she did in Fire and Blood and everything goes to hell in a handbasket anyway!

Thank you so much for the lovely words! That would be very interesting! The Lannisters would be very interesting as they felt quite slighted by the crown at that point. Or a Tully! Or a more minor house in the Riverlands! House Mooton might be a good choice, as they're very wealthy and it could be quite fun as the Riverlands are quite fractured so, unlike the Hightowers, they probably wouldn't expect full support from their Kingdom. They're also a 'Bay of Crabs' house which means that they're very close to the Crownlands and the seat of Rhaenyra's support.

[rassilon-imprimatur]

Long rambling post but. I haven’t rewatched The Trial of a Time Lord as a whole in years, and I dunno, it’s hard to separate from all the behind the scenes crap and my eyes kind’ve glaze over once we get into the Pip and Jane Extravaganza, but... 

The Gallifreyan space station, the music, a sense of weight and gravitas to the power of Gallifrey that haunts and remains (even if the actual set and courtroom scenes are less striking). The Time Lords as the ever-faithful watchers of the Doctor’s adventures through the Matrix, the constant focus on the Inquisitor as the only woman amongst the dusty, sleepy, impassive Lords. “A Merry Christmas to all of you at home” now wrought actual lore, the Doctor’s life accessible to Gallifreyan TV. 

The Mysterious Planet as the show’s “Past,” what the show used to be. Holmes, of course, The Krotons pulled through Full Circle, State of Decay, but that lingering chill of Bidmeadism is more melancholy. Wetter, colder. The forest, the costumes, look of the Tribe of the Free, it’s all more hauntingly fantasy than ever before, overtop the plastic tunnels and trundling BBC props. But it’s the Past as an untouchable “gone before its time, gone too soon, hold onto it or its gone,” the Doctor and Peri at their most ideal snapshot. From Holmes’ previous take on the Fourth Doctor as a mid-life crisis bohemian loom to this, the Doctor in the prime of his life, not a single bite of venom or a bad bone, wearing his hearts on his sleeve, joyful and smart and pompous because of his love of life and experience. Peri gets compared to Sarah Jane, and it’s hard to deny the ache of “this is so familiar” to she and he’s friendship, banter, love and worry for each other’s safety. The Holmes comedy act of Glitz and Dibber, the continued ideas of human persistence, of revolution for the right causes, of the universe’s worst oppressors being comical robots. HG Wells’ Morlocks and Eloi. The Earth’s history broken and interrupted, Ravolox a glaring shift in the universal continuity the show was so beholden by not a season ago (look at Attack!). Something is deeply wrong, frothing under the sad smile of this serial, and that terrifyingly vast station representing Gallifrey’s power feels too connected. 

Mindwarp as “Present,” what the show currently is. Saward and Martin just going full out. More The Twin Dilemma, more Varos, more The Two Doctors, more the Re-Animator gristle and body horror from Revelation of the Daleks. Lynch’s Giedi Prime under the toxic pink sky, the ever-returning caverns and caves sticky under the strobes. It’s hard to deny the sense of perversion through the absurdist humor and world-building, the slime and cruelty soaked in quiet snickers of sex, rape, bodily agency prodded and pulled apart by capitalist slugs. The Doctor’s brain broken, retooled and reduced to his Twin Dilemma and s22 sneer and snide, parodic now only for the point. “This Is The Doctor, This Is What We Have Made Of The Show, Awful Isn’t It?” said almost gleefully. It’s the final bite of everything from Earthshock to Warriors of the Deep to Caves of Androzani and Martin’s own Varos, even as it collapses under its own nasty weight. Peri’s trauma and treatment, finding comfort in something like fucking Brian Blessed because it’s the only thing not trying to hurt her. The final scene, swirling in the Time Lords’ temporal bubble, is legitimately horrifying. Crozier’s distanced and clinical nature going full Davros maniac, ranting and raving of how he would spread this bloated poison to the rest of the universe. Peri’s corpse shouting with demonic relish as Kiv goes from a sinister joke to a full on monstrosity. The universe ravaged and left behind by Logopolis has fully dived into a capitalist nightmare of ooze and neon, and in that horrible swirl of screams, it’s finally all put down, shot, and blown away. Nicola Bryant was right, that should’ve stayed as Peri’s fate. “You killed Peri” the Doctor mournfully says to the Time Lords, the viewers of “the show” that intervened (the very thing they accuse and try him for) for an ending they found better. 

Terror of the Vervoids as an ideal “classic, good old-fashioned” Future, what the show will be or should be. Mel is genuinely an incredible idea for a companion introduction, making her mark after years of unseen adventures. She and the Doctor’s first scene with the exercise back is insanely “Children’s TV Hosts,” moreso than the show ever came close to touching again. A visual backtrack into Graham Williams’ space travel and spaceships, Nightmare of Eden and Horns of Nimon, turning out into The Golden Girls’ breakfast trellis and a lasertag course. And it’s honestly a slog. I get it, not yucking anyone’s yum, but it’s just... too safe, too much retooled and remade, too unambitious, creaking under the colors and tone. Saward’s absurdism presented without darkness, without nasty jokes, and what Pip and Jane set rolling here is what snowballs into the Teletubby feverdream of Time and the Rani. The Doctor is a harmless friend and hero, Mel is a cartoon more than a person. Not for me, but so integral to the narrative decay. The future is just as much of a mess as the present. 

The Ultimate Foe. Holmes’ The Deadly Assassin remake clashing with Saward and JNT’s drama, wrapped in Pip and Jane Pip-n-Janing like their lives depended on it. Some of the most striking surrealism the show had done since the Mara duo and the Black Guardian trilogy, all of it haunted and scary in the shadowed Victorian streets, fighting for life against the courtroom tedium and stroke-serious nonsense everyone announces at each other. The Doctor abandoned the role of the President in the show’s 20th anniversary celebration, and in that void grew a genocidal conspiracy, the Time Lords flexing their cruelty. The Doctor once, on trial, pleaded with them, mentioning the Cybermen and Daleks. Now, on trial, he declares them worse. Holmes’ original ending of the Doctor and Valeyard locked in combat, falling together through the disintegrated Matrix, a cliffhanger vs the finished episode of the Doctor and Mel safely and comfortably leaving to Vervoids’ promised, dull future. Safe, cozy. The Valeyard now so buried in the silly and absurd his threatening laugh just adds to it. 

(Each day that passes, BF Gallifrey making the Inquisitor the most awful goddamn person in this entire franchise becomes more and more absolutely hilarious.) 

[thevindicativevordan]

On Kong Kenan/Super-Man

It should've been him. He should've been the Superman of 5G/Future State/right now not Jon, and he should be the one getting an HBO Max series not Val. Hell he should be getting a movie!

God this dude is literally the best legacy character Superman has ever gotten, wholly his own person with his own lore and status quo while still building on the idea of "Superman". I am so pissed at DC for essentially just dropping him after his ongoing ended, what the hell Lee? You keep trying to make the Wildstorm characters happen, I need you to get my man Yang another Kenan book.

Have to admit I was a bit nervous at first about whether or not Kenan would be a worthwhile character. Yang's New 52 Superman run had been a disappointment to me overall, with only the the arc where Superman has underground wrestling matches against forgotten gods really sticking with me. Now he was introducing a brand new Superman? Didn't feel like he had "earned" that yet. But from the first issue I was hooked on this new character.

Kenan was unlike any other member of the Superfamily. He wasn't kind or sweet, he was an asshole! He was a bully! He was fantastic! Right from the start Kenan was set up to undergo a very different kind of character journey than the other members of the Superfamily. Empathy, humility, respect for people weaker than himself, these are all traits most heroes wearing the S-shield already posses by the time they first don the crest, but not Kenan.

Like all bullies he was even a bit of a coward himself at first, trying to bail on the experiment meant to give him Superman's powers right as it begins. After "saving" Lixin (the kid he bullies and steals lunch from every day) from Blue Condor he demands all the money Lixin has on him as payment. He's not courageous or selfless either at the start, Kenan is as much of an opposite of Superman as you can get short of being Bizarro. Learning the appeal of these traits formed the basis for his growth over the course of his series.

Seeing Yang bring in a lot of recognizable "Superman" elements in the series, but with a twist, was also great. Kenan is the one who bullies "Luo Lixin" rather than the traditional Clark/Lex friendship of Pre-Crisis and Birthright. Initially Kenan develops a crush on intrepid reporter for Primetime Shanghai, Laney Lan, but she dismisses him as too young and Kenan eventually ends up pursuing Avery Ho (Flash) instead. Baxi the Bat-Man of China has a similar relationship with Kenan as the traditional Superman/Batman in terms of being vitriolic best buds, however Baxi is the one who has the most respect for authority while Kenan is the rebel. Kenan is a part of the "Justice League of China" which does not meet with the approval of the already established Chinese superheroes, the Great Ten. That contrasts nicely with the good relationship the Justice Society and Justice League have, as well as seeing Yang lampshade the "Chinese copy" trope and incorporate that into his storytelling.

One of the funniest differences is how Kenan chooses to immediately reveal his identity as Super-Man to the world by taking off the compliance visor he was forced to wear, contrasting with Clark's choice to hide his identity. He was so eager to impress people that he never gave any thought to the danger he could put himself or his family in by revealing his identity until it was too late, something Clark is well aware of and has taken great pains to keep his identity secret. Was a missed opportunity for DC to have Kenan comment on Clark copying him for once when he outed himself under Bendis.

But one of the most poignant differences between Clark and Kenan is the gulf in separation between their relationship with their parents. Clark has a loving relationship with Ma and Pa Kent, trying to live up to their lessons as best he can. In contrast Kenan's mom was believed to have died in an airplane crash when he was just a child, and he never really knew her. His father was distant from him after that and the two weren't really close despite Kenan's attempts to impress him. So Kenan lacks that strong connection while still clearly loving both of them.

Pa Kent's death is one of the most tragic examples of Clark's love for his parents, and I've always been a fan of takes where Clark promises his father to fight for the powerless on Pa's deathbed. Kenan gets a similar scene at the start of his career, his dad "dies" (after being exposed as Flying General Dragon, a pro-democracy "supervillain" from the Chinese authorities perspective) and wants Kenan to promise he'll fight for Truth, Justice, and Democracy. But because Kenan's dad never really bonded with him, Kenan doesn't know what those mean, and can only promise that he never wants to see people die, something his father takes comfort in at least. In classic comic book fashion it's revealed that Dr. Omen, Kenan's "boss" and the one who gave him his powers, saved Kenan's father, because she is Kenan's mother! Kenan's relationship with his parents forms a lot of the crux of his character arc, and seeing how Yang utilizes the classic Superman concept of family kept the storytelling exciting.

Yang's brilliant exploration of the concept of "Superman" through the prism of Chinese culture was a great way to differentiate Kenan as well.

I absolutely freaking love how he tied to the concept of Qi to the S-shield in particular. Connecting the shape of the shield with the way Kenan has acquired his powers along the path of the Bagua (eight trigrams used in Taoism that represent the fundamental principles of reality), with his octagon S-shield outline representing all eight principles together, was mindblowing! So was the idea of restricting Kenan's access to his powers unless he was actually acting in a Superman manner, that tied his character growth to his power growth in an entertaining manner. There were so many characters and concepts that meshed Chinese and DC lore together, like how Emperor Super-Man was Kenan's "Doomsday", they even recreated that iconic dual kill shot! The Chinese Wonder Woman Peng Deilan, being based on the Chinese Legend of the White Snake! There was even some Korean mythology referenced with the Aqua-Man member of the JLC "Dragonson".

Yang also managed to do a Superman Blue/Superman Red story with Super-Man Yin/Super-Man Yang!

Shameful that it took me a while to realize what Gene Yang was doing but once I caught on I was touched. You can tell how much Yang loved Superman and his mythology, and how he was excited to incorporate as much from Clark as he could, while still using it in a way that was solidly Kenan's. And not just Superman's mythology, but the history and lore of the entire DC Universe. I-Ching got to be brought in, fleshed out, and used as Kenan's mentor! The "Yellow Peril" villain from Detective Comics #1, the comic DC gets its name from was brought in and revamped as I-Ching's twin brother All-Yang! Hats off to Yang for taking a racist caricature and attempting to make him into something more.

This series was a beautiful attempt by Gene Yang to build a space for Asian heroes and villains where they could be more than stereotypes, Kenan himself being a defiant mold-breaker in every regard as the complete opposite of most Asian characters in Western media (a jock, a bully, loves his dad but not on great terms with him, a powerhouse as a hero, etc). So much thought and hard work was poured into this by Yang and his team of artist collaborators.

Especially the costumes, man Kenan had so many great looks. From his starting outfit (which is my favorite Superman variant not worn by Clark himself), to the one with the Yin/Yang shield he acquired later on, to his Super-Man Yin & Super-Man Yang outfits, Kenan looked damn cool. Part of me is bummed they didn't go with the Chinese character shield they toyed around with, but I loved how Yang used the "s-shield" as a plot point, so I'm not too broken up over it.

All that great work Yang did to build that space up has been more or less forgotten sadly. It was nice to see Kenan in the DC Asian Month Celebration issue. Avery is going to be in Justice Incarnate at least (unsurprising considering she was created by Williamson). So fucking bummed that Superman Family Adventures cartoon didn't happen, they were going to have Kenan and John Henry Irons in it! Would've been a dream come true for me to see Irons in animation again, and Kenan making the jump to outside media! Maybe that would've encouraged DC to let Yang keep writing New Super-Man, or at least encouraged them to use him elsewhere instead of allowing him fall into Limbo.

Unfortunately I'm not sure what the future holds for Kenan. Jon is being pushed as Clark's replacement in the comics, with DC keeping all the other contenders such as Kon benched. Calvin is leading the Justice Incarnate team likely due to the upcoming Coates reboot that will make Clark black. Val will probably get something once Taylor leaves Jon's book or once they officially announce the HBO Max show is happening. So where does that leave Kenan, my new favorite PoC legacy hero? Currently my only hope is that Yang is working on something for DC involving him. Yang left Batman/Superman, where I was hoping to see a Baxi/Kenan team up, to go work on "exciting other opportunities" per his Twitter. So fingers crossed that there's something in the works for Kenan!

One day I hope he gets his day in the sun again.