#i'm genius for how i made horns

[lagrosselegume]

I decided to post it here cause I FUCKING proud of myself. As a person who have never made a costume in their entire life, I decided to go and try it for this Halloween.

It was chaotic, I hadn't had any proper plan. Just some ideas. But I am very happy with my first try.

P.S: I love my friends. We are 30 years old in general (some are little younger, some are older), living in a country that try to delete Halloween as "Western propaganda", but we still stay silly ourselves.

[ashprompts]

𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒

a collection of sentence starters from dropout tv's game changer. feel free to alter pronouns/text as you see fit

“I’ve been here THE WHOLE TIME”

“It’s hard to hold this much anger in my body.” 

“If you never hear from me again, you know what to do!.”

“If they don’t find me it’s because I was chopped up and fed to the pigs!”

“I SOLVED YOUR LABYRINTH, PUZZLEMASTER. THE MINOTAUR’S ESCAPED, AND YOU’RE GONNA GET THE HORNS, BUDDY”

“I. CANNOT. WIN!!!!”

“A lot of people have been saying that ___ is a singularly evil, wildly incompetent, befuddled nepo baby silver spoon motherfucker. This is what people are saying.” 

“If you can do ONE swing on the swing I will let you play with all the math puzzles that you want” 

“You’re not getting a FUCKING JOKE OUT OF ME until you let me out of this room! You want bits?! You let me out of this room for bits, motherfucker!”

“Are we gonna die before we get outta here?” 

“I’m gonna lose so fucking hard it’s gonna blow your fucking mind”

“But in this sick rodeo, this bizarre fucked up clown festival, we’re here celebrating what I can only describe as the sickness at the core of America.” 

“Give me the assignment and I don’t miss. I’m gonna DIE before this is over.”

“Your tower’s gonna fall. Laugh it up now.” 

“A river of sweat is running down my back right now.”

“I do hate zombies and I will have nightmares about this tonight. But in this moment I just feel like I’m surrounded by friends.” 

“We don’t give a cum.”

“If you’re in a hole, DYING. I WON’T BE THERE.”

“I showed them my feet, [name]! I SHOWED THEM MY FEET FOR NOTHING?”

“Stop shaking your cock in the middle of a fucking huddle, dude!”

“I’d fuck that pie.”

“If you’re like me, you eat a lot of ass.”

“I hate capitalism but I also hate losing.”

“I get my tongue so far up somebody it’s like I’m tasting their tonsils. I get so deep in there I’m gonna burn myself with stomach acid.”

“I like perching like a little bisexual gargoyle”

“If you were performing on a subway I would take money away from you.”

“I’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN TO PULL THE THREAD ON THIS SWEATER.”

“Icarus flying too close to the sun, but it seems Daedalus our little mastercrafter over here had some WAX WINGS OF HIS OWN, didn’t he? Wanted to see his son fall, faaaalll from the sky, OH HOW CLOSE TO THE SUN HE FLEW”

“Hey can I get an ah? … Don’t scream at me.” 

“You kinda have the vibe that your kids call you by your first name.”

“The day I DON’T curse when a body falls from the sky, call somebody.”

“Could I place an order? I’m hungie. What do you think would be the best pizza to order if I’m quite hungie? Um, I like cheese, what is your largest pizza? Yeah let’s get an extra large because I’m hungie. I’m hungie, I’m hungie, I’m hungie.” 

“WE ARE NOT ANIMALS!!!”

“So long as I am on this stage and drawing breath, you can good and goddamn believe I’ll be trying my best in every challenge.”

“Was it bad that we just started smashing shit?” 

“You didn't count on INGENUITY did you motherfucker?!”

“FIGHT THE BOURGEOISIE. I WILL VENMO YOU $20.” 

“This could be hell. This is very Satre-esque.”

“YOU ARE NOT GOD. THE MACHINE IS GOD.”

“Can you tell us why you’d do this to us?”

“I won’t be made a fool”

“I do feel like I’m in a nightmare”

“I’m the only one OUT of the loop it seems”

“Everybody do the wenis! The wenis is a dance! Everybody is a genius! Who knows it in advance!” 

"DANCE IS A SIN!"

"You think I'm gonna fucking roll over?!"

"It'll be a COLD DAY IN HELL when I go out like a fucking chump!"

"I don't care about winning, I just don't wanna lose"

[libby-for-life]

can we PLEASE get a part 2 of Adam being given to Lucifer and Lilith as a peace offering, maybe it would be about the two yandere trying to woo Adam, OH or maybe throwing a party for him introducing him as the second queen of hell

My my. You are a genius, my dear. Though I was thinking more Consort to the King and Queen. Read part one of the Deal.

Adam was confused, to say the least. Didn't they hate him? Didn't they leave him? Didn't they want him dead?

But as he was hugged by Lucifer and Lilith in the back of a limousine, he couldn't help but feel very confused. He shivered when he felt Lucifer's claws gently run through his hair and how Lilith's soothing humming filled the car.

"You're still so beautiful," Lucifer said, hugging him and Lilith brushed a hand over his toned stomach.

"Wait. Just wait." Adam gasped out as he felt hands roam over him. They stopped immediately and looked at him in concern. "Why are you acting like you want me all of a sudden? You made it quite clear in the Garden you didn't want me." Adam felt the hurt, bitterness, and self-loathing seep into his body.

They were quiet for a moment before he felt a clawed hand pull his face down to Lucifer's level. "Adam, we never wanted you to feel that way and we're sorry we did. We wanted you with us, but the moment we tried, Michael banned us from the Garden." Lucifer explained.

"Everything happened so fast," Lilith added. "And by the time we were banished to Hell, we had already lost you."

Adam refused to cry. What if this was a lie to lead him into a false sense of security? He had to be resilient. He had to be strong-willed. But as he felt hands caress him so lovingly, Adam felt himself melting. God forgive him, but he was a sucker for touch.

The next few months were filled with confusion and longing. He didn't trust Lucifer and Lilith but they were the only ones keeping him safe from the dangers of Hell. What if he refused them too much and he was kicked out of their home?

So when Lilith kissed his cheek, it took all of his self-control to not run away. She looked deep into his eyes and she frowned.

"I'm sorry. I went too far. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." She didn't try to kiss him again but she also didn't stop saying she loved him. Neither of them did.

Slowly, but surely, Adam realized they weren't just keeping him as some sort of sick entertainment. No one could be this good at acting and not show any tells.

So, Adam allowed them to touch him. He allowed them to give him presents instead of refusing them. He allowed them to say the words, "I love you."

And one day, he said it back. Two years. It took him two years of them consistently loving him unconditionally, but when they ate breakfast together and Lucifer gave him some pancakes to eat, his favorite, the Devil told Adam that he loved him.

Asam smiled with a blush staining his cheeks and shyly replied, "I love you, too." Lucifer dropped his syrup and Lilith choked on her tea. "What?" Lucifer asked in a small voice.

"I love you. Both of you."

Lilith smiled and hugged him close while Lucifer teared up and clung to his side. "We love you. We love you so much, Adam."

Adam didn't notice the obsession growing in their eyes. He didn't notice how they held him possessively, demon features poking out. He just felt safe and protected.

"Are you sure this looks good on me? I'm not exactly...the right shape to be wearing this." Adam mumbled, embarrassed. He was wearing a short gold dress that hugged his chubby figure. Three years in Hell and he put on some weight from the treats and gifts through food he was given. He was by no means obese, but he was definitely chubby. He also grew more demonic, his soul becoming corrupted due to being exposed to Hell for so long. He now resembled a ram, with small curly horns, a fluffy black tail, hooves, and ram ears. Ears that Lucifer and Lilith loved playing with.

"Oh, Adam. You look beautiful no matter what size you are." Lilith said as she applied makeup to her lover. Adam smiled, blushing deeply at her comment.

"I agree. Besides, it just means more to hold." Lucifer said with a smirk before caressing a hand over his love handles. Adam squeaked and swatted his hand playfully.

They were getting ready for a big party. A party that was officially introducing Adam as the King and Queen of Hell's Consort. They wanted him to be their Queen as well, but Adam pointed out that was not how the ruling system worked. He read up on the ways of Hell's hierarchy and he did not want anyone rioting because the system wasn't being followed.

"This was the system you made, might I add," Adam said when Lucifer just said they could change it. "We want them to accept me. Not be angry because you don't follow your own rules."

They finally agreed to Adam being their Consort before making sure they knew he was still important and not less than them just because he wasn't a Queen with Lilith.

Adam honestly didn't care as long as he spent all his time with his lovers.

They walked into the Palace's ballroom where all of Hell's most important figures danced or talked with each other. They looked up and bowed before the King and Queen, but looked at Adam, confused as to why a sheep demon was walking alongside the most important figures in Hell.

"Everyone. Might I have your attention?" Lucifer said, gaining the room's attention. He brought Adam forward as he blushed under the attention. "This is Adam. He is Lilith's and mine's Consort." Several gasps had filled the room and some really looked at Adam, sizing him up.

Adam tried not to squirm under their piercing gaze.

"Now, if anyone has a problem, I don’t give a shit," Lucifer said with a grin. "Let the party begin!"

Adam was having fun! He danced with Lilith and Lucifer, ate good food, and even talked with some of the Hellborn Aristocrats but found them a bit judgemental.

It was a quarter to midnight when it happened. Adam was drinking some champagne and relaxing in a chair when he heard voices behind him.

"He doesn't look very pretty next to them. Far too fat next to the King and Queen of Hell."

"And so plain! Even makeup can't fix a fatass. A pig in a dress is still a pig."

"Do you think they even have sex with him?"

"Do you think he breaks the bed?"

Chuckles and whispers filled Adam's ears and he felt himself blush in shame. He knew it. He didn't deserve to stand next to demons so pretty and powerful.

"Adam? What's wrong?" Lucifer asked as he sat down next to him. "Nothing. Want to dance?" Adam tried to change the subject. He should have known Lucifer knew him too well to be swayed.

"Adam. You can tell me." Adam didn't say anything but Lucifer must have caught the whispering. His eyes turned red and he looked five seconds away from tearing them apart.

"Lucifer. Let it go. I don't want you killing them." Adam said firmly. Lucifer looked ready to argue but reluctantly agreed. "Fine. I won't kill them. But I want you to come with me." Adam was led away to a spare bedroom, but not before a quick mind message to Lilith was made.

'Some scum are insulting Adam. Take out the trash.'

Lilith smirked as an image of the demons responsible for making her lamb cry was revealed. She gently excused herself from the demon she was talking to before making her way over to the demons laughing in a corner. Time to make a public example.

Everyone turned when they heard screams fill the ballroom. They turned to see Lilith holding three decapitated heads in one gloved hand. She was smiling and looked at everyone as if she hadn't just brutally killed three powerful members of the Goetia Household.

"Now, these three died because they insulted my Consort. That simply won't do." She burnt the corpses and the heads in purple fire. "Anyone who insults my Consort will suffer the same fate. Are we clear?"

Everyone was quick to give them their reply while she laughed. "Wonderful! Have you tried the cake? Simply divine!"

"Ah~!" Adam moaned as he felt fingers dig into his hair and pull. He was always sensitive to touch like this.

"My beautiful lamb, I love you and your body." Lucifer purred and Adam moaned when a kiss was placed on his cheek. "Say you're the cutest lamb, my love. Say it."

"I'm the cutest lamb!" Adam cried when his neck was bitten. "Good boy~."

Lilith had told him that she had killed the demons who hurt Adam and even showed an image of their burnt ashes before it was cleaned up along with their blood.

No one could hurt Adam. No one.

"Ready to get out of this dress, my little lamb?"

"Ah~!"

[thumpypuppy]

hey can you talk about I WON’T LET YOU GO HOME from ISAT and how you went about making it? It is so good. me and friends really like it. thank you in advance if so! the game is so good and your soundtrack has played a key role in making it literally life changing.

Lindar here!

Thank you SO MUCH for the kind words.

Firstly, I have to give credit to InsertDisc5 who gave incredible direction and has been to date one of the best people I've worked with.

So let's start from the beginning: We establish a specific instrumental tone with the pseudo-chiptune synth we've heard a lot, especially in the title theme. This was created using NI Massive, which was one of the most heavily used synths in the OST. We're doing kind of a basic heavy metal riff here, but making it chiptune-y.

Next we fade in for the first and only time in the soundtrack a SNES strings pad to fill out the chord structure and provide additional melodic content.

Then of course for our more intense moments we roll out Toontrack Superior Drummer 2 + Metal Foundry, featuring the amazing drumming styles of the one and only Sandra Baker. I think she went absolutely ham to contrast with how simple the first section is.

So next we hit our stride and establish what the piece is really saying. The drums simplify a bit to leave room for the melody, and then we hit a "drop" of sorts into the next section.

Now we're rocking to a reprise of the title theme in a more major tone, but it's feeling less hopeful and more like a longing attachment to memories of the past.

In the second half of the title theme we run a reprise of the death/loss theme as a counter-melody while also introducing a new little motif stab underneath. We hear it in the strings as sort of the response to a call that hasn't actually been made, and then it's repeated in the bass, and finally the whole band states it all at once as we move into the next section.

Again we're stating the title theme, but this time in a different mode with a gliding, reverby, monophonic lead that feels like it's floating. Each phrase keeps rising in intensity, desperately reaching for that memory.

Finally after all of that wildly changing energy and anxiety ramping up we hit a breakdown featuring probably some of the best orchestral composition I've managed thus far (not to toot my own horn). I was really shooting for "pained" as the sound of this section. Half-time feel drums where we're so incredibly out of energy, but no! The drums pick up into double-time as we desperately reach out for comfort!

I gotta say Sandra went absolutely wild with the blastbeat snare while still doing a half-time feel. Like it feels like there's so much tension even while we're winding down to the end of the piece, floating in a place where we keep moving towards hope but always resolving on the minor. We have a lot of movement here through different keys and modes that continually give us a feeling of moving forward while always returning to the feeling of loss.

Finally, for the album version, we cap the ending with a slow restatement of the beginning of the piece for piano and violin (I don't remember the specific piano I used here but it wasn't the Spitfire Labs muted piano for once, and the violin is from Spitfire's Sacconi Quartet).

As far as an in-depth musical analysis goes, I'd have to open the session again to get really specific with what I did on a theory level because it's been like a year or more since I wrote it, and my computer's primary hard drive died (luckily I have all my sessions on a different drive), so I'm spending the weekend reinstalling everything.

I think the crux of this piece in particular is that, while there is new melodic content that explains the emotional context of the scene, we still rely on the recontextualization of leitmotifs for added effect. I'm not sure if it makes me lazy or a genius, but it's something I leaned into heavily.

It's like…

Step 1: Someone is crying. Their friend tries to cheer them up. Play something kinda sad and a little bittersweet.

Step 2: Play that same melody in a different situation but slightly different to be totally appropriate while also calling back to the original event.

Step 3: Make it into a major-key power metal song because you're winning with the power of your friends caring about your feelings.

Humans are pattern-recognition machines. It works with motifs, it works with specific instrumentation, it works with pretty much anything. Make an aesthetic choice about your instrumentation, utilize it, and punch people in the feels.

As soon as the studio is back up and running I'll see if I can't add on to this with an actual theory analysis, and meanwhile I'm gearing up to start doing classes on mixing and sound design, so look out for that as well!

Thank you again for your ask!

[the-monkey-ruler]

Are there any changes in the adaptations that you liked better than in the book?

I kinda answered this once about how I really enjoyed the Monkey Magic 1998 and how they included Sanzang sneaking out of China to get the scriptures. This actually is more aligned with Sanzang's original journey rather than being similar to Xiyouji the novel. I thought this made Sanzang far more exciting as it gave him an in-depth look at how much he is willing to put his life and reputation on the line for the sake of these scriptures. It also makes sense that Sanzang doesn't want to get in trouble with any law if he is reported to the Tang Empire and deported back. It makes the stakes even higher for me as Sanzang is trying to keep three god-powered demon hunters in line.

I also really loved Bajie's backstory change in the 1996 series, where his punishment isn't that he was reborn as a pig but actually goes through 1000 heartbreaks, only to live through 501 of them and Guanyin saving him from the rest of the 499. I thought it made his vice of how easily and how deeply he falls in love shows the danger in how he can't control himself and just throws himself headfirst into any romance without forethought. The 1996 doesn't make love or romance a bad thing but rather gives a great insight into what you lose if you keep trying to chase happiness in other people when the only happiness you can attain is one that is found within yourself. Also I love the Sanzang of that series, as it was clear that he valued ALL life, yaogaui or human, making it fit much better why he wants Wukong to not kill ANYONE even if they could be a demon. Sanzang had that mindset that Wukong SHOULDN'T kill when someone hasn't hurt them... which made the audience question should WUkong punish demon for what they COULD do or must they have to wait for Sanzang to be in danger to really justify fighting them? I thought this made the Sanzang - Wukong fight with White Bone Demon far more interesting as it made the argument more realistic of two people trying to stick to what they believe is right. Wukong protecting Sanzang and Sanzang saving all life, yaoguai or human, has value.

A small detail but in the 1999 series I really enjoy the is that Wukong in the heavens destroyed the Imperial Stables not because of his low rank but because he wasn't really in charge... which is because of his low rank but he was morso made that he wasn't in charge moreso than any title thing. And in that he actually brought his fellow horse stables people to earth where I link to think they became the horn demons that gave him his Great Sage Title.

Also a classic but the 1987 series where they gave Bailong Ma his iconic backstory of his failed romance. This is where I was GASLITE in believing this was canon for YEARS but no it was just the series giving Bailong Ma more screen times where he actually burned down his father's home when he found out his now ex-fiance the Wansheng Princess was CHEATING on him with the Nine Headed Demon. I thought that it gave Bailong Ma at least ONE SCENE that he needed to be more in depth... also Wukong and Bajie being homies in that series and called Nine Heads ugly and how dare he steal their bro's girl. Fantastic arc!

Also any series that makes Wujing a silent genius, I just really like that trope where they show him being both sincere and kind but also he only speaks when he has to. It's not that he doesn't have much to say but when he does talk it always holds value. I see this a lot in actually the Saiyuki video game and Demon Strikes Back movie. It shows to his emotional intelligence and how he understands what is going on but just chooses not to meddle as that is not in his nature. I really like that as it shows his skills in reading people but also his own vices in his inactivity. I'm a big fan of the 1996 Wujing but he played as more of the emotional comfort of the group, the loyal and honest campaign between Bajie's and Wukong's stubborn pride that needed to break the group tension. I feel like there could and should be a perfect blend of these characteristics in a future series.

Honestly, some so many media and adaptions is it kinda hard to think but these are some of my favorite!

[things-arent-what-they-seem66]

(Beauty and the Beast AU)

*Lucifer stepped out of the cottage he lived in with his sister and made way to the village, people would stop and whisper about the strange young man who preferred reading over more accepted masculine pastimes and his eccentric inventor sister*

Lucifer internally: Just ignore their gossip, I wish that there was more than the provincial life.

*thankfully he made it to the book store and found his favorite book about far off places, magic spells, daring sword fights, and Prince in disguise, he thought that he would make it out without having to talk to someone but Lilith and her crony Alastor stood in front of him*

Lilith: Hello Lucifer.

Lucifer: Bonjour Lilith.

*Lucifer hoped that his tone of voice conveyed how much he didn’t want to talk to the arrogant woman, but Lilith just grabbed the book from him*

Lucifer: Lilith, may I have my book please.

Lilith: How can you read this, there are no pictures.

Lucifer: Well some people use their imaginations

Lilith: It’s about time you got your head out of those books and started thinking of more important things, like me. The whole town is talking about you and your obsession, it’s not right for someone to have his nose in a book at all times, it’s not very manly.

Lucifer: You are positively primeval.

Lilith: Why don’t we go to the tavern and look at my hunting trophies.

*it wasn’t lost on Lucifer that he wasn’t allowed to act in a way that was seen as unmanly, but Lilith could hunt all day and be the town hero*

Lucifer: Not today, I need to help my sister.

Alastor: Crazy old Charlotte nerds all the help she can get.

Lucifer: Don’t talk about my sister that way.

Lilith: Yeah, don’t talk about his crazy sister that way.

Lucifer: My sister isn’t crazy, she is a genius.

*Lucifer grabbed his book from Lilith and ran back home, in a castle close by Adam dug his claws into the painting of him as a human and tore it to shreds*

Adam internally: You make one fucking mistake and you get a curse placed on you.

*Adam looked down sadly at his his fur covered arm, he then put his hands on his head feeling disgust at the large black and gold horns on his head, everything about his beastly body made his feel so disgusting, he had until the last petal on the enchanted rose fell to find love and break the curse on him or else he would be a beast forever, Adam curled up in a ball on his bed*

Adam internally: Who could ever love a beast.

*sobs shook Adam’s body until he fell asleep*

Lucifer could see smoke coming from the windows of their home, he ran to be sure his sister was okay.

Lucifer: Charlie? You okay in here?

Charlie: All good! Just blew a fuse in the machine but Lu, I tell ya this is the one. The one that will work and get us out of this little town.

Lucifer admired his sister so much, ever since their parents died she has taken care of the pair of them. She's been inventing in the hopes that someone will buy one and they can move away.

Charlie: I just have to fix this one thing.

Lucifer: Char, do you think I'm weird?

Charlie: What? No of course not. You're the kindest person I know Lu. Don't listen to those people in town, they don't know anything.

Charlie fixed her machine and loaded onto the back of their wagon.

Charlie: Okay, I'm going to the city for a few days. This is the one I can feel it!!

Lucifer smiled: Good luck sis.

They hugged and Charlie took off. After a while it got dark and she feared she was lost.

Charlie: Oh no......

Wolves spooked her horse who bucked her off and ran away.

Charlie: Shit!

Charlie ran as fast as she could until she came across what looked like an abandoned castle. Fearing for her life and being very cold she entered the palace.

She had no idea the beast that was inside.

-

Lucifer heard his sisters horse running back. He went outside but didn't see Charlie. He feared the worst and unhooked the horse and took off to look for her.

Lucifer: Come on girl, take me to Charlie.

[ceasarslegion]

Anyone who's close to me knows that video games as an interactive art form is something I am very passionate about, and it's a shame to me that so much of it gets glossed over in the moment of playing, especially when it's within a popular, mainstream game. I feel like indie games get a lot more attention paid to the artistry within them while the very real creativity of the dev teams of massive A-list titles get reduced down to the mass market audience that does not tend to pay attention to the details.

I'm thinking of this since hearing Penny's battle theme in Pokémon Scarlet on my second run of the game. Admittedly I was also too focused on beating her in my first run to notice how well-constructed her song is. And then I downloaded it and gave it a proper sit-down listen on my commute.

I think hiring Toby Fox to compose for them was one of the best artistic decisions the pokemon company made in recent years. He's definitely known for his video game music, with his big flashy chiptune-esque songs that are fundamentally difficult for any human hand to play with how complicated their structure is, but still convey entire stories in their own right. The two main things everyone praised Undertale for back in 2015 were its simple but heartfelt tearjerker story, and its music. And you very rarely see music noticed by wider video game audiences at all.

I think that's because there's a certain auditory genius in what Toby Fox does. You can hear a lot of 8-bit and early digital leitmotifs in Penny's theme. It's harsh, angry, very quickly paced, but it's not hard on your ears either. It somehow sounds like a lonely, bullied kid at her breaking point letting all her pain and rage out at you in the only way she knows how. That part of the scene and her character culminate so well through the music that I feel the message could get across even without the context. Character themes are what Toby Fox has always done best imo.

Also love how he composes music that is nearly impossible to play on physical instruments. He really grabs the video game medium by the horns as a fully digital art form and relies primarily on his skill with computers to create music for fully digital stories.

[izunias-meme-hole]

Top 5 supervillains?

LOOK AT THIS DUDE ASKIN' ME FOR MY TOP 5 SUPERVILLAINS!

In all seriousness though, I'll be glad to indulge, though be forewarned that my top 5 consists of supervillains from Marvel and DC, so like if this seems basic forgive me but I am allowed to be cringe in this instance because I've been dragged back into full on purgatory.

Number 1. Doctor Doom -As I've said before, I've always respected Victor, but I've never been super crazy about him. His animated and game adaptations are good but not perfect, and the movies so far have failed to get his character across in a great way, so that might've been a part of why I wasn't a Doom Superfan. Though after getting back into the absurdity and impactfulslness of superhero comics, it soon hit me... Doctor Doom is a villain made for comics. He's overdramatic, grandiose, terrifying, bombastic, egotistical, pragmatic, powerful, absurd, nuanced, insecure, lonely, the whole package placed within a suit of armor and a green cloak. He's an arrogant, tyrannical, cold hearted technological and magical genius who embodies every inch of supervillainy you could imagine, while remaining a genuinely sophisticated, and honorable figure even with his history of pettiness. Overall Doom is just one big magnificent bastard.

Number 2. The Joker - The Joker is a crook who fell into a vat of chemicals and got a clownish makeover, who ended up becoming the nemesis of Batman. While the other rouges have their particular danger levels, they all have some type of cause they're fighting for or they're purely out to benefit themselves. Joker just causes chaos, death, and suffering, for the sake of his twisted sense of humor. He is willing to kill and ruin lives in the most creative way possible, so long as he finds it funny. Yet despite how twisted he is, this evil ass clown actually can be funny. Not only that, but he's the most effective contrast to Batman, even more than the other rouges. Batman is a frightening figure with a semi-demonic visage who suffered one bad day in his youth, yet he is a hero dedicated to the cause of justice and protecting the innocent citizens of Gotham City. Joker is a colorful figure with a big 'ol grin on his face and a jovial demeanor, yet he is perfectly okay with causing as much unwarranted harm to others for the sake of artistic chaos. Ultimately, the Clown Prince of Crime is a villain that's managed to last for decades, despite the ever marching clock, for these exact reasons.

Number 3. Magneto - He's honestly on par with Joker in my honest opinion, and I'm saying this as someone who's been familiar with Erik for a LONG time thanks to the X-Men films and Evolution, and has gone through his history in the comics. Magneto is basically one of the most famous examples of a "Knight Templar" in fiction, a self-righteous figure fighting for a crusade that he deems noble at any cost. As for why he feels the need to do this? He's a holocaust survivor, it's as simple as that. The comics are the legit only piece of media that go into deeper details about Magneto's life in the concentration camps and the aftermath of that hell which only led into more hell, but that's the basic gist of what makes him tick. Magneto's lived in a world where innocent people got killed because of state approval, and he's not letting that happen again.

Number 4. Loki - Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Larry Leibber making the norse God of Mischief, the Poetic Edda's best figure, a supervillain... wasn't a bad idea. The result of that however was a wannabe king in a silly little outfit with devil horns who also happens to be Odin's adoptive son and the brother of Thor. This is inaccurate as hell and shouldn't work, yet it somehow does. He's a delightful trickster at every turn with a lot of gears consistently turning in his head, and while in the comics he's not really a villain anymore and his (in)famous run in the MCU ended on a surprisingly high note, he's still fun. Am I overrating him? Maybe.

Number 5. Lex Luthor - Superman's biggest hater being a self-made millionaire that is the embodiment of the best and worst of humanity will never not be fitting. Though if I'm being honest, I don't feel like DC has gone far enough with Lex. Still he's genuinely a pretty good villain for the man of steel to face.

[silver-grasp]

Anyone who likes Hamlet should go listen to Elsinore by Vanessa Cardui because it's so BONKERS good. I somehow forget how good it is, and then I listen and go insane all over again. The lyrics are REALLY hard to follow in places because of the multiple overlapping lines so I'm putting my transcription below the cut, but ohhh my god some of the pairings in the vocal lines... absolutely galaxy-brained genius. Also I recommend just listening to it first to Absorb before picking apart the vocal lines.

(disclaimer that notes about voicing (soprano, alto, etc) are my vague guesses based on no actual singing training - I just needed something to distinguish them)

[1 voice, Alto] The child that from the tear of Eve’s Snake and knowledge haunted eyes Sprang down now forever grieves to return to paradise

[Soprano, Alto] Let father wise and brother strong be pillars by my side, If he with lips of columbine should take me for his bride! My virtue as a violet that withers in desire, To flaming youth I am as wax and melt in mine own fire!

The child that from the tear of Eve’s Snake and knowledge haunted eyes Sprang down now forever grieves to return to paradise

[3 voices] [Soprano] And of the homicidal heart of Adam the fleshéd horn sprang up and tore his breast apart And god knows what was born [Alto] If I could leave behind the echoes in my mind, And flesh could melt away to mingle with the clay, [Bass] Mark my words and

[3 voices] [Alto (?)] My dirge would rise to meet a melody so sweet As ever could be sung, but I must hold my tongue! If I could leave behind the echoes in my mind, And flesh could melt away to mingle with the clay, My dirge would rise to meet a melody so sweet As ever could be sung, [Bass, Soprano] Find me honest Break my heart or bring me justice

[Alto ?] but I must hold my tongue!

[Soprano, Alto] The child that from the tear of Eve’s Snake and knowledge haunted eyes Sprang down now forever grieves [Soprano] – I must hold my tongue to return to paradise

[Alto] And of the homicidal heart of Adam the fleshéd horn sprang up and tore his breast apart And god knows what was born

[3 voices] [Soprano] The child that from the tear of Eve’s Snake and knowledge haunted eyes Sprang down now forever grieves to return to paradise [Alto] If I could leave behind the echoes in my mind, And flesh could melt away to mingle with the clay, [Bass] Mark my words and find me honest

[4 voices] [Soprano] My words fly up, my thoughts below, False words will not to heaven go! [Alto] My dirge would rise to meet a melody so sweet As ever could be sung, but I must hold my tongue! [Alto 2] And of the homicidal heart of Adam the fleshéd horn sprang up and tore his breast apart And god knows what was born [Bass] Break my heart or bring me justice

[Alto with interjections from other voices] Oh, what a noble heart is here o’erthrown! [Soprano] - The glass of fashion and the mold of form It hath been paralyzed and fallen still! [Soprano] - Courtier’s, soldier’s, scholar’s, eye, tongue, sword His name doth bleed upon the frozen ground, [Bass] - Mark my words and And night hath made descent upon his brow. [Bass] - Find me honest So bear him like a soldier to the stage, [Bass, Soprano, Alto (?)] - Break my heart or bring With those he loved, who loved him, and were slain. [Bass, Soprano, Alto (?)] - Me justice Some have gone to heaven, some to hell, [Soprano] - The child that from the tear eve’s snake and knowledge haunted eyes But prince and cause will hover in between. [Soprano] - Sprang down now forever grieves to return to paradise And I, who loved, am left to stand alone, And cry his words to spaces yet unknown.

[carla-ld24]

Your design of Diane Is GENIUS! What made you decide to give her Snake traits such as a wide jaw and scales? (Aside from the fact that the Snake is her tattoo) And how can it be explained in the nnt universe? Keep up the good work!

OWWWWW THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!���💖💖

Well...

I read some myths where giants are described as creatures with snake-like features. I found it quite interesting and obviously wanted to implement that in my drawings!

💫

And how could it be explained in the nnt world? That's a good question!! It would be the same as with the rest of the races (with my headcanons), it's a gift of chaos.

A gift to make them unique: lush feathers, prominent horns, majestic wings and resplendent scales.

💫

I'm so glad to know that some of you like my designs!! You're going to make me cry 🥺💖

I'll be working on more drawings, stay tuned!! And if you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer!!! ✨

[sleepy0s]

The Ariana Griande concert

Havent written Ariana much so lemme know any tips!

Some au facts for this certain one-shot

Allay Grian! (I felt like Allay grian made the most sense to be a singer cos there like musical??)

His voice sounds different due to Allay stuff- makes it higher pitched?

Hermits know he's an Allay but no one knows he's Ariana Griande (Not even pearl- very important for this)

I've decided. When Grian is just grian he is he/they and when he's being Ariana Griande has she/they

This is my longest one yet! (1303 words)

—---------------------------------------

“Pearl! Pearl! I got them!” Gem came sprinting round the corner, clutching four tickets in her hands

 “Let me see!” Scar pushed Pearl to the side wanting to see the tickets, 

“Gem! You're the best!How did you get four VIP tickets?!” If Scars Vex wings worked then you best believe he would be floating

. “I have friends.” She smiled, handing the tickets out to her friends before pocketting her own. “We are forever in your debt Gem.” Scar bowed down, almost hitting Mumbo in the nose on his way back up. 

“What are you doing?” The voice made all four jump, having not noticed Grian get closer, the small allay was trying to climb Mumbo to see what was in his hands but was failing due to the suit material. “Gem just got us V.I.P tickets!” He made sure to take a pause after each letter in VIP, Grian just looked at him, sliding down the suit. “To who?” 

“Ariana Griande, of course!” Pearl responded before Mumbo could.

Now, they’re not sure what they expected from Grian but it certainly wasn’t for him to lay on the floor and sigh in what seemed to be sadness, “Grian?? You all good down there?” Gem put her arm out to help him get up- he took this as a chance to climb onto Gems shoulders instead, whatever her fault. “Yep. I'm fine.” Scar however seemed offended that Grian had responded this way to such an idol, “G, do you not like Ariana? She is the best idol in the world and you need to agree.” Grians response was a sad sigh as he hopped of Gems shoulder and fluttered towards his base. (Can you blame the guy tho? He just found out four of his friends were going to be at his concert, pressure much.)

~ ~ ~

Ok, so it turns out Gem is Amazing. They had front row seats to the concert and would be able to see everything perfectly, she had managed to get her hands on some merch so all four were decked out.

Gem was wearing a nice laced white shirt with a baby pink skirt, her hair was put high pigtails (One of Ariana's signature hairstyles) with two bows clipped on.

Pearl was wearing a pink shoulderless shirt, a bandana wrapped around her wrist, and her hair had been put into a plait with pink ribbon.

Mumbo was wearing pink glasses (Vampires don't do well with the lights), he had a pink jacket on which was covered with pins.

Scar, who was arguably the most enthusiastic, was rocking a pink cowboy hat, heart shaped glasses, a half buttoned up white and pink striped shirt (Think limited life) and had a bag covered in pins, bandanas and keychains.

So yea. They were decked out.

~ ~ ~

They had gotten there early and had been waiting for around half an hour (Though all would claim it was worth it) and now, finally the lights were dimming around the stadium  signalling the start was near, all the chatter quieted down as people looked to the stage. 

“I'm so excited!” Scar whispered from beside Mumbo

“Scar shush. I'm concentrating.” Pearl elbowed him, making him shush,.Just in time as well because suddenly a bright pink light appeared on the stage and a platform rose from underneath the stage, and there she was! Ariana Griande rose from the stage, wearing a sleeveless white shirt and a gorgeous red and pink skirt, her hair was put in high pigtails with ribbons wrapped around. It was genius really, the pink she had claimed as ‘hers’ matched the light blue of her wings and the small horns in between her hair.

“Good evening Ladies, Gents, Hybrids and Humans!” The four screamed at her entrance, waving their hands in the hopes she would notice them, “I hope everyones having a lovely night, and hopefully you're happy to be here!” She began walking to the front of the stage waving at audience members as she spoke, “We have an action packed night ahead of us, so first let’s just have a little talk!” She gave a young girl a high five, causing the girl to scream, someone threw a poster up luckily, Ariana caught it before it hit her, “Guys, please don't throw stuff.” Ariana began talking and walking again, just chatting normally as if one would with a friend about how her day had been and occasionally pointing the mic towards someone else to let them respond. 

She got to Scar, Mumbo, Pearl and Gem and gave them each a high five and smile, and honestly they looked like they were on the edge of passing out. “All right everyone! I think it's time we start!” 

~ ~ ~

The concert was around 2 hours long and honestly they wished it was longer. But now it was time for the best part. “We get to meet her!? Gem I dont think ive said it enough but you're amazing.” Pearl was smiling madly, hugging Gem as if she was going to disappear, “Yep, Yep I know- pearl. I can't. Breath.” Pearl immediately let go, making sure she was okay before running to go find the VIP line. “Pearl, wait up!” Mumbo called after her.

The three met her at the line, she had gotten near the front and was talking to one of the body guards, who seemed to know her? “Pearl! We're here!” Gem waved her hands in the air to get Pearl's attention as they got closer. 

“Ah! You guys made it! Look, meet my friend Martyn!” The three introduced themselves to Pearl's friend, “Martyn I wish we could talk longer but it's nearly our turn!” Martyn just laughed and gave Pearl a hug, promising that they would have to meet up sometime.

Scar dragged them forwards once it was their turn to meet Ariana Griande.

“Hello! Welcome, it's lovely to meet you!” Ariana smiled at them happily, from where she was sitting. “Hello! We are such big fans!!” Gem led the group to sit on the seats opposite Ariana. “It's great to see you so enthusiastic. Is there anything you'd like? I can do signatures, photos, could just chat, or really anything you’d like- under reason of course.”  There were probably loads of things she shouldn't do, but c'mon. They were gonna do anything bad. Hopefully. “Can you sign our photos? Please??” Mumbo had been put in charge of holding all four photos, and happily handed them over to Ariana to sign them. “I am so going to brag about this to Grian.” Scar said, causing Ariana to chuckle, The five talked for a bit, it was mainly just questions like if she had any pets, her favourite song she had made, just the normal things you ask your Idol. But obviously others needed a go so they had to leave, “Would you guys like a picture before you leave?” Ariana asked,

“Yes please!” Scar answered for the group as they all stood up to take the photo.

“Alright! Have a lovely night you guys! I hope to see you at the next concert!” Ariana smiled happily at them as they left the Private room, and headed back to the hub.

~ ~ ~

Scar popped around Grians base the next morning, poor lad looked exhausted. What had he been up to whilst they were at the concert? 

“Griannn!” He called out in a sing-songy voice, “Guess what I gottt”

Grian just sighed, rolling over and looking at scar, who was proudly showing off his Signed Ariana Griande poster. 

Grian rolled back over, “Scar, that's great and I love you. BUT. Its 5am go back to sleep.” Scar laughed a bit before wishing Grian a good sleep and leaving his base, promising to tell Grian all about the concert once he was more awake

[pocketramblr]

5 ask game: au where Aizawa gets shot with a quirk erasing bullet during the Overhaul arc

Ok so the main obstacle here of course is I don't want Izuku to die, like, five minutes later. Perhaps my special little guy can stop this.

1- Lets say when Chisaki grabbed Nemoto to pull a fusion, Nemoto's gun was caught up in all this too. This doesn't matter until after he's been beaten and thrown to the side, and watches Eri and Izuku struggle in the middle of the crater. Asui brings Aizawa up, and Chisaki knows that if Eraser stops them, they're all taken for good. So he shoots at Eraser- and its a hit.

2- A moment later, a swordfish pierces his shoulder, but the damage is done. Asui shouts. Izuku screams. Eri wails. Amajiki "Do i have to do everything around here myself" Tamaki "the only big three who actually takes out a third of the expendables and the top brass on his own" Suneater picks up the gun to crush it. Then he looks at the sobbing Eri, and thinks about how Mirio wanted her to smile. "I'm sorry," he whispers to no one, and fires- the first one's a miss, he's not as good a mark as Chisaki. But he is one of Snipe's students, and the second one hits.

3- Since the bullets are made from her own quirk, Eri reacts.... differently to them. It doesn't rewind her as much as it gives her a reset. her horn shrinks but doesn't vanish, and the effort catches up to her as she passes out on top of Izuku.

4- Suneater crushes the gun, then starts trying to find the cure bullets in Chisaki's jacket, but frankly his second wind cast by Mirio's distress is running out so he ends up dragged to an ambulance while the police bag evidence. In a true stroke of genius, they do not transport Chisaki with all of his weapons and bullets, so Tomura doesn't grab them when he takes the man's arms.

5- In the hospital, they don't exactly want to just take Chisaki's word for the cure bullets and jab who-knows-what into Aizawa and Mirio, so they very carefully start studying one first. Unfortunately, Ujiko hears about this and nabs the other cure bullets. (much easier than trying to nab Eri.) Tomura and AfO won't be able to use the eraser bullets in any plans (no baby-afo fight) but they will try to ransom the cure at least. Tamaki attempts to give back his hero license and withdraw from the school, but Nedzu stalls him then guilts him into staying because for reasons beyond the teen's comprehension, Eri actually really likes him and with no erasure to stop her quirk if it goes out of control, they need anything they can get to help. Aizawa continues teaching because if being in full body cast didn't stop him, losing his quirk won't either, and Mirio is like 'well hold on a minute. if he's not stopping, why should i?' and continues training at school while quirkless, even if his actual work outside of school isn't happening anymore.

[siriannatan]

Count fWhip's Well-Deserved Rest - SausagefWhip

I'm still going strong with writing something every day this month, which can't be said about Integrated Strategies in Arknights or all the quests I have backed up in Genshin… I'll slowly catch up there. Eventually :D

Sausage never saw fWhip asleep. Like deeply asleep, not just fell asleep after Sausage shoved him into the bed. He was the go-to man for fWhip's advisors to call if the count, the head of the Wither Rose Alliance, current Lord Emperor, probably the most powerful ruler around... Refused to rest.

Yes. When fWhip refused to rest. Sausage would fly all the way from Mythland to pick up the half-dragon. Wrap his soft feathery wings around them and... drag fWhip kicking, screaming, scratching and biting to bed. And stand over him and wait until fWhip got ready for bed and actually fell asleep. It happened at least twice a week.

But today was the first time no one knew where fWhip was. He was never late for WRA meetings. So they split and looked around the manor. Gem went to fWhip's lab. Pearl to his library. And Sausage, with little hope of finding him there, fWhip's bedroom. Just in case he stayed up too long but somehow made it to bed, and was still asleep. 

But against everything he thought he knew, Sausage did find fWhip in his bed. But as soon as he recognised it was fWhip there his brain short-circuited.

He would never expect fWhip of all people to be a cuddler. Or at least get grabby in his sleep. But here he was, staring at fWhip practically wrapped around a pillow. One wing folded close and the other stretched out, blocking sunlight from reaching fWhip. His tail almost touching his nose which scrunched in the most adorable way. Too cute for Sausage's heart. 

What was Sausage supposed to do? Let fWhip rest, obviously. So he went to find Gem and Pearl and proposed they let fWhip sleep today. Volunteering to stay to inform fWhip when he wakes up. Shockingly they didn't mind. Could be all the hard work fWhip was doing recently or they were simply too busy to argue or wait. Or something.

Anyway. Sausage was glad they agreed and made himself comfortable in an armchair in fWhip's bedroom. To avoid advisors and inform him about everything as soon as he woke up. Not to stare at him contort around his cuddle pillow and tear another pillow apart with his horns. He was just making sure fWhip got all the rest he needed.

Watching fWhip wake up was just a nice bonus. Even if Sausage would never expect to get warm watching fWhip yawn widely, all sharp teeth on full view, and stretch, it was rare to see how wide his wings were without fWhip flying away within seconds. And he could see the way the sunlight shone through it.

"Sausa... The meeting!" fWhip instantly panicked when he noticed he wasn't alone. And would fall off the bed if Sausage didn't catch him at the last moment.

"Whoah, calm down, we decided to move it till you're fully rested. Your advisors agreed that you need a day off as well," Sausage calmly explained as fWhip steadied himself. 

"Were you watching me sleep?" fWhip realised far too quickly. That's on Sausage for trying to outsmart a genius. 

"I was waiting for you to wake up so you don't panic and hurt yourself," Sausage still tried to defend himself, "as you nearly did."

"Because you were here, otherwise it'd take me a second to..."

"Shush, I'm not explaining to Gem why you haven't rested for a change," Sausage cut the argument before it took over the whole day.

fWhip just sighed and leaned his full body weight on Sausage. Between the wings and tail and everything he was shockingly heavy. Not that Sausage would be complaining about having someone as pretty as fWhip this close. "I'm going to assume I get to keep you here the whole day as part of this resting arrangement?" he hummed in a manner that could only be described as flirting.

"Of course, I... I'll just need to send one quick letter," Sausage agreed. Anything for fWhip and his pretty eyes...

"You have until I'm done with morning bath," fWhip announced and ran off. Sausage wasted fewer precious seconds than expected on staring after fWhip's tail.

[that-ari-blogger]

A Throne Of Ash And Dust (Echoes Of The Past)

How do you characterise a joke character?

Perhaps they have specific idiosyncrasies that drive them to making silly decisions. Maybe they have repeated blindspots that cause them to take the complicated rout when the simple would have been safer.

My favourite way is this: The character repeatedly cold guesses plot beats of the story, and nobody, not even the character, realises the significance of this. TV Tropes calls this the "Joke and Recieve", and it is almost entirely built on dramatic irony.

But dramatic irony isn't always funny. It's a tool that can be used to create some truly agonising stories, including Echoes Of The Past.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD: (The Owl House, One Piece: Enies Lobby, Romeo And Juliet, Four Weddings and a Funeral)

Throughout season one of The Owl House, King was written as the comedic side character. This is partly why I rarely mentioned him in these posts, his antics were usually thematically relevant, but not the main event of an episode, and there is little I can analyse from well made jokes.

But comedy is difficult to write, and even more difficult to act. So, when comedians get to act dramatically, they usually make that part of the job look easy. Essentially, Alex Hirsch is really good at his job, and to prove that, I'm going to dive straight in and talk about the revelation scene.

"You're all just making fun of me, like usual, right?"

This line read is phenomenal. You don't have to understand the words he is saying to understand the inner turmoil that this character is experiencing, and the hyperventilating is a genius touch.

The framing of King in this shot is fascinating. Luz is knelt down like she is reaching for a scared child, or a wild animal. Fitting for addressing a character who's entire sense of self has just been eviscerated. King meanwhile is small and frail, with his arms and tail squeezed in to make his silhouette tiny within the frame.

Meanwhile, a Dutch Angle of the shot (the horizon line is slanted) gives an unsteady vibe the scene, while simultaneously cramping Luz in to make her look bigger by comparison and doing the reverse with King to continue his isolation.

Between them, in the foreground, there is the broken piece of his horn, pulling double duty for two different themes. First, it separates King from Luz. Second, it highlights the injury that King's psyche has just suffered.

Finally, King is clinging to his self image. He is desperate to believe that he is both a king and a little guy. He is the underdog who people make fun of, but who is right in the end. But he can't believe that anymore.

The foundation of King's character and comedy was that he was either right and everyone else's misunderstanding produced the dramatic irony that makes it funny, or he was delusional, and the irony was instead derived from that.

In this season, we get two revelations about this dichotomy, and the first is the gut punch. King abruptly realises that he has been wrong all this time, and that hurts him, and by proxy, it hurts the audience.

How do you characterize a tragic character?

Perhaps they have specific idiosyncrasies that drive them to making silly decisions. Maybe they have repeated blindspots that cause them to take the complicated rout when the simple would have been safer.

My favourite way is this: The character repeatedly cold guesses plot beats of the story, and nobody, not even the character, realises the significance of this.

If you don't understand my point here, please go and read the introduction of this post again.

The line between comedy and tragedy is razor thin. If a character is funny, their idiosyncrasies are called comedic traits, or blindspots, or jokes. If a character isn't funny, those same traits become tragic flaws, hamartia, and foreshadowing for their doom.

Both types of story work in similar ways, they feature a long build up, and then a turning point in which every plot thread comes crashing down in either a display of humour, or an agonising train wreck. Often it is difficult to know what you are watching until that peripetia (the punchline) hits.

Case and point, Romeo and Juliet is a romantic comedy until Act Three. Romeo is an idiot who makes ridiculously stupid decisions in the first moments of the play, something that is called out in story. He is a starstruck lover who can't bring himself to look at the world around him, leading to him meeting Juliet and marrying her in quick succession, which causes antics. He's the type of character who Hugh Grant was born to play.

But then that same impulsivity causes him to get Mercutio killed, and kill Tybalt, Paris, and then himself. All of the tragic events of the story could have been avoided if Romeo had thought with his head and not his... I'm not going to finish that sentence.

This isn't a bug in the story at all, its the entire point. The idea of a tragedy is that the flaws cause the story. Those folks who complain into the ether about why characters making illogical discissions is a plot hole are, in my most humble of opinions, wrong about how stories work.

I don't believe in genre.

Well, that's not entirely true. A more nuanced explanation would be that I don't believe writing for a specific genre is worth it. Genre is a means of categorisation, for agents and libraries to arbitrarily seperate stories to allow for ease of access.

A genre exists so that a reader who likes specific stories can better explain what they are looking for. Instead of saying "I like books with the falling in love stuff and the will they won't they drama", a person can say "I like romance books" and leave it at that. Ease of access at the behest of accuracy.

But at what point does a romcom become just a regular romance story? How many explosions are needed to make something into a thriller?

My point is that trying to write within a specific genre isn't worth the struggle, and some of the best stories out there bend genre conventions entirely.

I mentioned Hugh Grant, though, and that's not just for the obvious reason. Four Weddings and a Funeral, a film that Grant starred in in 1994, makes my point for me.

Four Weddings and a Funeral is a comedy (kinda) about a collective of friends going to a series of weddings and seeing people they really don't want to see. They talk about how none of them have found their own love in the end, and comedy is derived from the obliviousness of Charles (Hugh Grant's character), and the over extroverted nature of Gareth (Played by Simon Callow).

Unfortunately, when Gareth's antics cause him overextend himself and he suffers a heart attack, that obliviousness turns tragic as Charles finally realises the true nature of the relationship Gareth had with Mathew (Played by John Hannah).

"Yes, it's odd, isn't it? All these years we've been single and proud of it and never noticed that two of us were, in effect, married all this time."

But then the film pivots back into being funny with the final wedding, which goes about as chaotically as the rest of the film. It's a story about enjoying the moment you are in and taking what life gives you with the understanding that it won't last forever. One of the film's theses is that something being short lived makes it more precious, and having elements of both tragedy and comedy in there really heightens that message.

As a side note, if you haven't seen this film, please do. There is a reason that Stop All The Clocks is so iconic, and it is this film. Please watch it, it's good.

King's arc had me worried when I first heard about it. I was late to The Owl House, starting watching when season two was already out. And so, the friends that I had who had already seen the series spoke really highly of "what the show does with King".

The problem came from my preconceptions. In my experience, when a piece of media tries to do something with a comedic character to give them more plot significance, that character gets murked about halfway through the process. I have seen this happen enough times for it to get stale.

But, you will notice, they don't do this with King. Instead, they give him context, and they reframe his character. All they do is make him matter.

That there is the key to how to make a comedic character heartfelt. All you have to do is take them seriously, and you can keep the comedy while fully embracing the emotional depth of the story.

In One Piece, Usopp is easily one of the most human of the main characters. He isn't a great swordsman or a devil fruit wielder, he's human, and he knows it.

Usopp is also the single most insecure character in the entire cast, and that is what I want to link to King, because the way in which Usopp is given depth is really interesting. At all times, he is taken fully seriously.

Usopp's comedy comes from a place of fear. He is a liar who specialises in the Joke and Recieve style of storytelling to the point where it has become a running meme in the One Piece fanbase. But that was rarely explored until Enies' Lobby, when the straw hat's ship was wrecked and going to be left behind.

Suddenly, all of those jokes, all of those incongruities, find a reason. Usopp is afraid of everything but is most afraid of being left behind, something that I am willing to bet money will come up again when the Straw Hats finally meet back up with the Red Hair Pirates.

Context.

King gets this too, his comedy comes from a place of ambition, and a genuine belief in his own past. This episode rips that out from underneath him, and so he needs to redefine himself in relation to the world around him, and so his comedy needs to rebuild itself too.

From the moment the characters set foot on the island, this episode takes itself entirely seriously. There is no laughing at characters, no wasted space at all. This episode knows what it is doing.

This episodes' use of light is phenomenal as well. Light illuminates, and combined with the motif of an obscuring fog, the thematic of revealed secrets could not be more obvious. They also, however, create a style that reminds me of the luminism of baroque paintings, which leans into the historical nature of this episode.

You will notice in later episodes that King makes fewer jokes than usual, and that difference is part of the emotional core of this season.

Now that I think about it, this season of The Owl House has a lot of characters trying to redefine themselves. Eda with her lack of powers, Lilith with her new allegiances, The Golden Guard with his storyline, and King.

We will see how that goes.

Final Thoughts

I am finally getting back into the swing of things with these posts. I took a break to go to a family wedding overseas, and then got back and had a few mental health complications. But I'm all better now, and ready to go.

King's story is a key part of season two of The Owl House, and this episode is pretty much the reason for him being a fan favourite character. Up until now he was funny, but with a hint of quirkiness. But from now on, this is a fully dramatic role, and Alex Hirsch nails it completely.

Also, I have to get this out of my system because I am way too proud of this joke. The title of this post is a reference to a generic book title (a _ of _ and _), as well as a song by Imagine Dragons, because King is the King of Demons. Admittedly, its a reference to Radioactive, but it still counts, right?

Next week, I will be taking a look at Keeping Up Afearances, an episode that I have mixed feelings about. So, stick around if that interests you.

Previous - Next

[panestates]

life is strange characters and the twin peaks characters they share the most similarities with because this is an ongoing issue and I'm a genius of watching tv shows:

Rachel is Laura Palmer. I cba to explain this one. Teenage missing girl secret diary issues with authority figures same birthday dude did you know they put fire walk with me in the two whales bathroom?????

Max is Maddy Ferguson, Laura palmer's cousin who is mistaken for Laura and who eventually faces the same fate as Laura. she is bookish, quiet, and innocent; she moves to twin peaks in the middle of season one and serves as a stark contrast to the Laura that Donna and James once knew.

Chloe is Donna Hayward or James. I hate to say that she's like James at all because fuck that guy but she's fairly representative of Donna. Donna is Laura's former best friend who was aware of the double life Laura lived, but still didn't know everything about her; when Laura was alive, she made an effort to protect Donna from what she experienced because she believed Donna could still be saved from evil. Laura and Donna are also implied to be LOVERS!!!! James is kind of like Chloe because he's a baby and drives a motorcycle and has a dead dad

Victoria is Audrey Horne. both the Horne department store and Ghostwood development were used as fodder for the (cut) prescott plot in lis 1, but I think Victoria has more in common with Audrey than Nathan does. Audrey is the only daughter of Benjamin Horne, who is a rich business man that wants to kill the environment and have sex with sex workers including Laura he's not a good person but anyways. the entire cast and town of twin peaks seems to be stuck in midcentury America, but Audrey's anachronisms are the most glaring because of her clothes and affect. She also becomes obsessed with Dale Cooper, who is an adult man, and is willing to put herself at risk to be validated by him. she is also jealous of how much people love Laura - not at all like Victoria's jealousy of Rachel, but it's a little similar!

Nathan is Bobby. Sucks. Um just kidding but it's really just the letterman jacket. Bobby's dad is actually really nice. Wouldn't it be funny if at one of the Rachel amber search parties he'd be like "you wanna know why Rachel ran away? we all made her run away!" like haha yeah sure man. Nathan is Bobby Audrey reverse mitosis

Okay that's all thanks.

[phantombmoll]

Hiiii 😊

Would you mind doing this one 'Kisses that mean everything to one party and nothing to the other party' for Greg lestrade x reader. Where they're detectives together and maybe nearly get caught on a stake out so he kisses her to keep thier cover but he doesn't know that she's actually in love with him?

Greg Lestrade x Reader - Executive decision

Rating; T - mild angst, heavy petting

Author note; Thank you for the request anon! Hope you like it, I had to stop myself making it all romantic! I do love romance. You've inspired me though because I also have this prompt saved to write something really angsty and heartbreaking when I'm fully back in the swing of things.

As you watched the desolate building in the distance and the figures moving around you were starting to wish that you hadn't pointed out the Delvaney brothers to Greg in the pub.

An after work pint had quickly turned into a mini stakeout. You'd told him you could report it, have Sally get someone on it. Greg was having none of it though. The Delvaney brothers had escaped arrest five times now, all either technicalities or the bank roll for high set bail. The force needed harder evidence, they needed to catch them at something with fingerprints all over it and no excuses.

There was no way you could let Greg follow them on his own. So though you were apprehensive about walking, well driving, into a fight you were both unprepared for, follow him you did.

You'd hoped for somewhere a bit busier, or somewhere with a bit more nature to it. Places like those the car wouldn't have drawn to much attention. There was no luck though, the Delvaney brothers were meeting whoever it was at the tail end of a disused industrial estate in a huge empty and crumbling building. It looked like it could have been a factory or warehouse.

"There!" In his excitement to point out a side entrance the brothers were using Greg clipped the horn. "Shit!"

You waited, holding your breath to see if the noise would draw attention. It did.

"We need to go." Greg said about to turn the key, the lights flashing and drawing more attention.

"We can't." You put a hand out to his arm to stop him. "They've seen us, if we take off it'll spook them. They'll move whatever is in there and we'll be back to square one." You watched out the windscreen as a large man began heading towards the car. You could see him cracking his knuckles.

Greg ran a hand over his face and up into his hair. For a second you were struck by just how handsome he looked slightly dishevelled. It wasn't the first time you'd thought about what Greg would look like on just waking up. In fact it wasn't even the second or the third. At some point you'd fallen head over heels for him.

"It's a lacky, they won't know us. We just need an excuse for being here." You said the man getting closer with every beat. "Driving lesson?"

"Pretty dodgy instructor bringing you up here." Greg said running a hand through his hair.

"Dogging." You laughed despite the situation but Greg was looking at you like you were a genius. "Absolutely not."

"Not dogging but here's as good a place as any for a seedy little shag in a car." Greg said, raising a brow. You couldn't deny the way your heart stuttered a little at the idea. "He won't be able to see us yet. We just need to be a bit rumpled. Maybe get in in my lap."

"No, no we can think of something else." You said looking back out the windscreen to where the man was getting closer. "Developers?"

"At this time of night?" Greg shook his head.

You sighed, in all the ways you'd thought about ending up in his lap, this wouldn't have even made the top hundred. God you hoped you wouldn't blush or flush, at least the kick up in heart rate could be put down to adrenaline if Greg even noticed it.

"Right. Executive decision." Greg said loosing his tie, undoing the top button and then running both hands through his hair to make it look tussled and messy. The sight was delicious and heat coiled deep in your belly. "Come on."

You slipped the belt off and moved to straddle him on the seat.

"You've done this before." He teased trying to ease the tension as you settled in his lap with ease.

"Where is he?" You said trying not to shift too much on his lap as your fingers came up to undo the buttons on your shirt, at least down to show casing your ample bosom. You were trying to keep your mind from wandering too, wandering to a place where you and Greg were actually getting hot and heavy in a car. Wandering to a place where the car would be steamy and the air muggy with heated passion.

You shook your glancing back towards the lacky who was about 3 foot away from the car. "This is stupid, we hardly look like we're in the midst of a passionate embrace they're going to-"

As you turned back to look at Greg his hand slid into the hair at the base of your neck and his lips were suddenly on yours. Heat spiked inside you, your hands sliding over his strong shoulders, up his neck and into his hair. The weight of him beneath you was thrilling. The idea that this was play, a ruse to stop you getting the shit beaten out of you both fell by the way side. You lost yourself in the kiss. A kiss you'd thought about, dreamed about and he was just as good as you imagined.

Greg made a noise and your hips rolled involuntarily. You should have been embarrassed but the feel of him, his hair in your hands, his lap beneath you, his chest pressed against yours completely enclosed your brain. You felt like you belonged here, wrapped in his arms.

The knock on the window brought you back to reality and you turned to see the large man who'd been coming towards the car with a sly grin on his face. You moved off Greg quickly. Embarrassment that should have been for play suddenly very real.

Greg wound the window down.

"I was going to ask what y'were doin' here pal but I think I can see." An Irish accent left the mans mouth as he gave Greg an approving seedy smile. "Look, I'm not one to stop a good time but this is private property and the boss, well, the boss thought you might be coppers, told me to move you along." He flashed a metal bar in the street light, not explicitly threatening but definitely implied.

"No, no trouble, sorry, we ah, we thought it was all just abandoned." Greg said, injecting his voice with a hint of fear. "We'll be on our way."

"About 3 miles down there's a little turning, weird desolate spot. That ain't private property and people use it all the time." The man winked.

"Thanks." Greg said starting the car. "Sorry again."

Greg wound the window up and the Irish man slapped the top of the car as it pulled away and turned around.

"Jesus that was close." Greg ran a hand through already mussed hair. You were quiet as you buttoned your shirt. "Sorry, about-" he gestured to his lips a stupid grin on his face.

You weren't sorry though, not right now when the heat of his touch was still on your skin.

"Just you said we didn't look-"

"It's fine." You said, knowing deep down that he just thought you felt awkward. Knowing that the kiss hadn't affected him the way it had you. Knowing that the memory wouldn't linger for him like it would you, knowing that his heart wouldn't ache tomorrow in the cold light of day.