#i'm tired of staring at it

[expelliarmus]

[swati-art]

He needed a snack

[cowboah-baby]

from oklahoma for @rockscanfly

[scattered-under-moonlight]

"Monster" Thoughts

GUYS GUYS, When I said last time that the "Just A Man" references made me want to curl up in bed and never leave I wasn't kidding, I think I'm gonna be bedridden when I get home

“I’m the only one whose linnnne I haven’t crossed” goes so hard for no reason

The first “what if I’m the monster” had me almost running a stop sign earlier btw, it had me stunned

I love how Jorge portrays Odysseus's guilt vs his enemies. The implication that Odysseus believes he is the only one regretting his choices, but also its interesting in how he describes hypothetical guilt for them "is he up in the middle of the night?" "Is she going insane?" "Is he scared that he's doing something wrong?" as being something that happens to them vs his own being because of who he is "cause he is vile"

Him repeating Poseidon?!?!?!?!

“I lost my best friend, I lost my mentor, My Mom” Stoppp with those, I cant take it

“And If I gotta drop another infant from a wall in a instant so we all don’t die?!” what stage of grief does this fall in, I gotta make sure to take notes

The echoing "monster" behind Odysseus's "Penelope" and "Telemachus", that's it, that's all I have to say on that

[dovenart]

Who else misses this beautiful man?

[devisopod]

Book of Bill Ramblings

If you don't want spoilers, I'd suggest you stop reading before the cut. This'll contain quotes from the book! I've avoided content and conversation about this thing like the plague, so I'm going in blind. This is gonna be a wall of text if you're on mobile. Have fun, if you're into that.

I'm gonna solve the ciphers by myself, so they won't be included here, it's more fun that way! This is all just my "analysis" or whatever you wanna call it.

|| PREFACE

I am an adult. I'm not here to argue or debate with anyone about the content of this book! I'm simply sharing my personal breakdown, so these opinions and statements are in no way meant to be taken as "the right way" to look at it. They're how I alone choose to view the text! I'm open to discuss it, if you want, like sane and civilized people. Heated arguments or grumblings fueled by the discontent that someone doesn't buy into the way YOU'RE perceiving a work of fiction is unwelcome.

Now.

Before I even had the book in my hand, I knew how I wanted to approach this. I had to keep in mind this is all meant to be written by the worst character in the series (from a narrative standpoint), and he isn't supposed to be pitied. So seriously obvious, I know, but it's THE most important factor to circle back to given ANY tidbit of information.

Since this is his point-of-view, which is such a skewed perspective to begin with, it's ultimately bound to be manic (and god was it). He's everything we already know him to be: out of his mind, a compulsive liar, a pro at manipulation, and literally so self-important. That's what makes it difficult to trust whether or not things that happened (or didn't happen) will be altered by his unstable state of mind.

I think I'd even go as far as to say that he's delusional in a lot of ways. No matter how smart he thinks he is, or objectively is, he's a highly flawed individual that is constantly sabotaging himself. And what's more, he doesn't CARE. Bill, while driven in his own right, is highly apathetic unless events or actions directly impact him significantly and negatively.

INITIAL AND UNCATEGORIZED THOUGHTS:

- Holy shit, it's like Bill prides himself on being some sort of "all-knowing" being, but he's really just a fat gossip.

- Bill says it and stresses it multiple times in this book that not only is reality not under your control, but you don't understand it. Only he understands it, and you're just too dumb. Nothing is real. But the universe is a hologram, and everything is also a multiverse. Dennis and Kyle hold our existence in a binder.

- As suggested, he is quite literally feeding you lies, and he's having fun doing it.

- So, Bill's kind of dead, but not really. He's existing in a "half life" state. "Descending through circles, battling demons, reliving [his] whole life... somewhere far away... where the music is always out of tune. Where everyone smiles but no one is happy". Sounds like a mall lmao.

Okay, we'll get into it. My back hurts.

1 || "SIXER, IT WOULD EAT YOU ALIVE."

Let me just start this by saying that Bill sees Ford as a possession. He spent a lot of time grooming him, so he feels HEAVILY entitled to Ford in an "I made you" sort of way. Which is just about as messed up as you'd expect it to be! Bill EXPECTS Ford to be okay with this and even functions under the assumption that Ford wants to belong to him, which is very likely a stem from how open to the relationship Ford was at the beginning. He's constant in sharing that he's grateful for Bill's influence and that it's made his life so much better.

That aside, Bill is repeatedly suggesting to the reader that people that hate him actually love him a lot. And it's so likely that some twisted line of love and being used was blurred between these two. I've said it before and I'll say it again: sharing a mind and a body with a seemingly god-like being is going to fuck you and your perspective UP, I don't care who you are.

After all, "the more people love you, the more brainwashed sheep you can bend to your whims! So CONQUERING HEARTS is one of the most important things you can do!"

While, Ford is an immensely strong-willed individual, he's so very weak to Bill's manipulation because Bill knows EXACTLY what he wants to hear. He's been learning and planning for this kind of thing for a very, very long time and using countless others to do so. So, his false loyalty and promises, though really suspicious to anyone else, appeal to Ford's ego and subconcious because they're specifically catered to him.

And this is where Bill thrives. He is extremely efficient at finding the selfishness within others and exploiting it because he is selfish. He doesn't care what happens as long as he reaches his goal. Any pain along the way isn't gonna be his, so why not just relax and enjoy it? And he's found his match: a "brilliant, morally ambiguous, and romantically challenged" individual. To him, Ford fits the bill (no pun intended), and no dumb Shaman is gonna scare him off this one. It's all a trick to keep him away from advancing his portal plans, right?

He emphasizes his excitement at the prospect of Ford's potential as a pawn by saying, "This is what a partner looks like. The ego of a king. The insecurity of a circus freak. And totally isolated from anyone who might steer him clear of my plans."

He's impressionable and gullible enough to follow him blindly in the name of discovery and arguably as a result of his alienation in the odd town that is Gravity Falls.

And that's where I think Bill's influence should be addressed. Bill's been whispering in Ford's ear, making his life easier, and "fixing" his problems by offering solutions that HE would use. That's the scary part, I think. Bill uses so many different types of flattery, even gives Ford a lot of confidence that he needs, which really feeds into Ford's trust.

2 || GUYS WITH BIG BRAINS GET ON MY NERVES

After seeing Stan on TV, selling the "Grifter", Ford starts to seem like he's having second thoughts about maybe calling Stan up. Bill is, naturally, quick to shoot this down by convincing him it's a waste of time.

With both Stan and Fiddleford, we see Bill kind of steering Ford away. It's clear Ford wants to be around both of them, but as Bill has already suggested, he wants to keep this one isolated. Ford's attention should ONLY be on him and the work that needs to be done. He's not gonna make the same mistakes he made with his previous puppets.

It's unclear whether Bill complicates things on purpose or not, but he certainly isn't interested in making them better.

As far as the relationship between Ford and Fiddleford is concerned (whether you view it as brotherly, romantic, or platonic), I think it had a lot of potential to bring Ford away from Bill, but Ford is just not equipped to be a solid and reliable partner at this stage of his life. He's too focused, too full of himself, and really desperate to fill the hole Stan left. Or maybe not desperate enough.

I've made this point before and I'll make it again: the vast majority, if not all of, the heavy lifting in the dynamic between Ford and Fiddleford IS DONE BY FIDDLEFORD. He is a very caring and loyal person, very much to a fault in this situation.

The Christmas gifts he makes Ford are very personal. Ford means a lot to Fiddleford, so much so that he doesn't see his family often and chooses to help with the research. Whether or not Fiddleford and Emma-May were already having issues can't be judged based on the information given, but it's possible that it plays a part in his absence. It seems like the most likely possibility to me, though. Fiddleford doesn't seem the type to just forget about something like that, especially exhibiting such a friendly and kind demeanor, so I'm willing to bet they were already having problems.

Ford, as I see it, very rarely goes out of his way to do things for Fiddleford, though. However, I will give him props for being good enough to cheer Fiddleford up after he returns from his family.

What I will say, is that Ford relies on Fiddleford a great deal, and I'm not entirely sure how healthy that is. Fiddleford is Ford's ONLY real friend, and definitely the only one not feeding him questionable advice.

Therapy.

3 || CUCKOO CLOCK

Therapy, right? Yeah.

Anyway, Bill REALLY gets after Ford when the whole portal thing goes south. And that's sure to be a hell of a time. Ford is put through immense pain physically and mentally during it all, and wow does it actually sound horrifying. Even during this aggressive and desperate scramble to get Ford to do his bidding, Bill is beating Ford down and trying his best to use his hardships against him while also trying to convince Ford that he needs Bill. He's got nobody else.

He tries everything: sabotage, threats, you name it. Even though Ford doesn't realize his wrongs entirely here, he still knows he has to do something to rectify all that he's done. And boy, does he wanna kill that triangle.

He even loses his mind just a little bit more about this time, grasping at straws and realizing how bad he fucked up.

But now, we skip ahead. Things are better. All that's passed.

The ending of this book was about as satisfying as I imagined it would be. The Pines family. Simple and clean. A thoughtful message from Ford, and some inserts from Mabel, Dipper, and Stan. Stan's message is probably my favorite, and rightfully so.

These four are what it's all about to me. Each sibling has the other, and they're all happy. Bill can't touch them anymore, no matter how much this book of his tries. They're smarter than he is, and it's because they don't intend to be divided by him ever again.

[captaindamianos]

[bonezone44]

Did i paint Marcus Pike or Dave York? you decide.

[rabidlittlestrawberry]

I'll know it's you ch7 HEREEE

(yes I stole the summary from my last post)

((ENJOY!))

[tropicalcontinental]

This is so real I had to draw the meme (well, it's the brown eyes one instead of blue)

+ this one comment on Kevin's video that's tangently related

He's so stupid I wish paranormal mercenaries were real

[yasmindifference]

sorry I didn't post any fic today, I was having a religious experience*

*eating really good food

[thenighttrain]

it's interesting to me how taylor's newfound untouchable level of fame has alienated some of her oldest fans... i don't care enough to get into arguments (and i haven't read the article) but i dont hold taylor on a pedestal. it doesn't surprise me when she associates with shitty people (like that footballer's wife) bc she always has. it doesnt surprise me when she doesn't speak up bc she never really has, except when it benefits her. even back in 2014, i thought her brand of feminism was shallow. i would kill for her music but i don't really look up to her as a person and i think she's selfish and could do a lot more with her power, but she doesn't. personally i'm at peace with that and it doesn't bother me (and no, i'm not rich or white), i'm here because the fandom is (mostly) fun, but i totally understand why some people are upset 🤷‍♀️

[theultimatekamehamehavoc]

[soapdish290]

I just played 1000xRESIST.

My first thought was "oh this has vaguely breathy voice acting with oodles of weight this is my shit" Shortly later I assumed "ooh I'm playing a smol gay girl from Hong Kong that's cool" This was followed by "oh no I'm actually playing a lightly terrible teen from Hong Kong, complex!" Then I began to understand "...I'm playing a clone who is witnessing the life of a lightly terrible teen?" "The teen has issues?" "There's a cycle of issues, oh no" "oh." "oh." "Oh!" Then it was "oh"s all the way down for about 12 more hours with a fair bit of weeping and sobbing and some very undignified noises

I'm trying to recommend this game but I'm fucking sucking at it because it's 10am and I've spent the last 16 straight hours playing the entirety of this game and every part of my body woke up during the credits and started screaming at me

And this is NOT a good state to be in as far as wording good enough to describe the themes in this fucking game. If you like:

Exploring the cycle of violence and abuse and the desolation caused therein

Exploring the end of the world

The last 2 episodes of Evangelion

Grief and Loss on scales personal and unimaginable

Explorations of immortality

What it means to experience Time and Memory non-linearly

Alternate ways of existing in a temporal space

Alien understandings of Life

Consequences

Love

Explorations of childhood

Coming of age stories

Stories about Asian Diaspora

or Sobbing and Crying

Then you should play this fucking game holy fucking balls I can't recommend it enough.

[nobleriver]

Is Rick the jealous type? If so what would he do if a guy was flirty with Michonne?

[Disclaimer: Tumblr never saved my edits 2x in a row, so if this doesn’t make sense, it’s because my brain is tired of trying to regurgitate the coherent answer I first came up with]

First of all, I want to sincerely apologize for being so, so, so late responding to this. To be honest I think either youledmehere or whateverisbeautiful would give a better, more definitive answer.

I don’t know if I can speak on him because I don’t know the ins and outs of his character. I haven’t watched enough of the show. I’ve only seen TOWL and maybe 33% of the main show. Basically, I’ve skimmed the book, read the epilogue, but never digested it whole (a crime, I know, I plan to go back). I don’t want to pretend I know what I’m talking about. Anything below is just my rambling opinion so far.

It depends. Early Rick? Yes. Current Rick? I don’t think so.

To me a jealous type is a negative thing: a person who feels so insecure in their role and in their relationship, they habitually perceive others as a threat that may take their position. To be the jealous type is to see your value as outside of yourself as external removable component, as something somebody else can mimic, reproduce, or steal.

Early Rick was the jealous type. From my cursory look at the early seasons, Rick – as a husband and partner – comes across as incomplete, his character development half-baked. Possessive, aggressive (when not indifferent), jealous to the point of violence (literally kept killing his rivals). A simmering bomb waiting to go off. His insecurities were still a gaping, festering wound: his lack of confidence as a husband, a father, a leader, a man – which were then exacerbated by Shane’s betrayal, Lori’s death, the fall of the prison, and more. Maybe I’m being hyperbolic, who knows? Yet, the difference between Rick then and Rick now is night and day, and it boils down to, in my opinion, security.

The current Rick, the Rick I am most familiar with, Michonne’s Rick, does not exhibit the aggressive, insecure jealousy of his younger self. He has no reason to be jealous, no reason to doubt or try to assert his importance to her. He knows where he stands. They are the love of each other’s lives, and they aren’t afraid to say it aloud. They exhibit such healthy communication. Michonne constantly speaks life into him, encouraging him, strengthening him, reminding him of his necessity to her and to their family. He is the love of her life and the father of their children. He cannot be mimicked. He cannot be replaced. They have never experienced that level of intimacy with anyone else in their lives, an unbreakable, logic-defying soul connection. They are secure in each other. Almost nine years passed, and he knew her love hadn’t changed. Soulmate connection so deep they act as mirror images of each other: “I know you never moved on from me because I never moved on from you.” What a brilliant foil to his first reunion. Connections like that can make jealousy dissipate. There’s no impetus driving it, no anxious root for it to stem from. Why be jealous when you know she will never desire anyone but you, and you never desire anyone but her?

Michonne represents this concept so well in her interaction with Jadis in 7x10 (?). When Jadis makes a move on Rick, Michonne doesn’t become aggressive or defensive, telling Jadis to stay away from her man. No, she just looks perplexed at Jadis, then looks at Rick, then back at Jadis, and just calmly says (paraphrasing): I think we should go. Then, she walks away, knowing Rick will follow. It’s laughable for Jadis to approach Rick in that scene because he’s so obviously, irrevocably Michonne’s, and Jadis knows that. Michonne is 100% secure in Rick's love for her. When Michonne shows up in the CRM, she never perceived Thorne or Jadis as a romantic threat. No jealousy, even when Thorne tried to say Rick was her family. She had zero doubt her man waited for her, the same way Rick had zero doubt she waited for him. Again. Mirror images.

In short, I don't know for sure. Yet, I imagine current Rick is too entangled and secure in his wife’s love to notice the flies buzzing around them, too busy staring at her lips to register anyone else as a threat (also because he knows they never will be and vice versa).

[a-scary-lack-of-common-sense]

Another Soldier post >:)

----

Some closeups:

And an alternate shower on version: