#ill actually edit him exactly like that if i end up liking the edits ill share them here with yall

[pixlpxie]

The king of slutty macbook selfies

[bemusedlybespectacled]

since @sketchy-scribs-n-doods asked why birth certificates are racist:

preface: read this post about eugenics so that I don't have to write that overview again.

anywho! the very very short version is that there was a guy named Walter Ashby Plecker (hereafter "the Plecker fucker") who was a doctor in Virginia in the late 1800s/early 1900s. like he was born right around when the Civil War ended and his family owned slaves, if you want to get an idea of the time and place we're talking about.

the Plecker fucker, along with a couple of his good buddies John Powell and Ernest Sevier Cox(1) from the Anglo-Saxon Club(2), wrote and lobbied for a law called the Racial Integrity Act (incidentally, one of the blueprints the Nazis used for their own laws), which did a couple of things:

it legally categorized every person into either "white" or "colored," with "white" being only people with a completely unbroken and provable white European heritage – with a teeny tiny exception for people who were less than 1/16th Native American that he was bullied into including(3) – and "colored" being literally everything else, with no specificity as to whether it meant Black or Asian or Native American or whatever;

it prohibited white people from marrying colored people (though notably not banning having sex with them: we're talking about a guy whose family owned slaves here, so you can do the math on that)

it allowed for the sterilization of certain undesirable people, such as the mentally ill; and, most importantly for our purpose:

it required all births and marriages to be registered in a big state-wide database, with the races of all parties listed.

and he also set himself up as the first guy in charge of that registry, so that it would be done exactly the way he wanted it.

prior to this, if you could get away with passing as white, you were (generally) treated as white. this was to prevent any white-passing mixed race people from marrying into white society (because their birth certificate records would show that their parents had nonwhite heritage), and eventually eliminate mixed race people, period.

now, obviously birth certificates weren't in common use before this law, so at least the first wave of people affected by the law could still (in theory) lie about their ethnicity and establish themselves as white on their birth certificates, thus allowing them to continue marrying "real" white people.

not a problem! the Plecker fucker fancied himself a bit of a genealogist (meaning he thought everyone with the same last name was related, somehow), so he'd just go in and edit people's records to say "colored," invalidating their marriages in the process, and ordered all of the people under him to do the same. like, there's a letter he sent out to the county-level people that was like, "anyone with the last name Collins [yes, really] is actually mixed race, DO NOT LET THEM GET MARRIED TO WHITE PEOPLE, EDIT ALL THEIR RECORDS."(4)

outside of the obvious negative effects of the law in general not allowing interracial marriages (until it was overturned by Loving v. Virginia in 19-fucking-67) and sterilizing anyone disabled or "feebleminded," him going in and literally erasing Native heritage from records has prevented Virginian Native Americans from being able to claim federal tribal recognition, because it's all just "white" or "colored," which could mean anything nonwhite.

anyway, that's why birth certificates are racist. they were made up by a racist guy to do more racism. and then that racist guy got hit by a car and died.

I stg this is the short version. the longer version was idk how many pages before I melted into a depressed puddle of goo and almost flunked out of my senior year of college.

(1) Ernest Sevier Cox was a weird fucking dude in that he was really good friends with Marcus motherfucking Garvey, to the point that they attended each other's events, dedicated books to each other, and wrote each other a lot of letters even after Garvey was deported to Jamaica (and Cox personally tried to get Garvey released from jail when he was imprisoned for mail fraud). This was partly because white nationalism and black separatism accomplished the same ultimate goals (i.e. Black people leaving the US) from different angles, but I think they just also genuinely liked each other? For some reason??

(2) Basically the KKK but for genteel, refined, upper-class people instead of violent, disorderly peasants (yes, they legit disliked the KKK because it was a poor person thing). Also, I can't find it again, but at one point when I was researching all this in college, I was looking through old school newspapers and either William & Lee or William & Mary had a junior Anglo-Saxon Club, sort of like a Young Republicans, and one of their contributions to the student newspaper was a piece about how they definitely weren't racist and how dare they be accused of racism, they just didn't want blacks or whites mixing! How is that racist? (Yes, they used the word "racist," and I have no idea what their definition of racism was, if it wasn't what they were doing) Anyway, I think about that a lot.

(3) This is informally called the Pocahontas Exception, because a lot of really, really influential, prominent and rich Virginians actually took a lot of pride in claiming to be descended from Pocahontas and John Rolfe (even if they weren't), and without the exception, they'd all be classified as "colored." Plecker didn't want any exceptions at all (he was, at the very least, not a hypocrite about what he thought "white" meant), but given that some of the people the law would make "colored" would potentially be voting on the law, he had to include the exception or risk it not being passed at all.

(4) The reason I even got into this subject in the first place is that one of my family tree names is on that list and we're pretty sure they moved to Kentucky because of it, but it doesn't necessarily mean they're related to us OR that they were white-passing mixed-race people: they could well have been just plain white people who happened to have the same surname.

[rainhadaenerys]

Madness and greatness are two sides of the same coin

I wrote about this before, and I made an edit about this as well, but I wanted to write a separate post just for this topic because I think people really don't understand what "madness and greatness are two sides of the same coin" means. I see many people taking at face value that half of the Targaryens are mad and that Targaryens are ticking time bombs, and I also see other people criticizing GRRM for including the madness theme for the Targaryens, criticizing him for supposedly adding genetic determinism and stigmatizing mental illness. But I think both are missing the point.

The madness vs greatness theme is not about half of the Targaryens being mad or great (this isn't even accurate with what we're shown in the books, as very few Targaryens were mad). The madness and greatness theme wasn't introduced just to add some cool mythos to House Targaryen. The madness vs greatness theme is a commentary on what it takes to be great: madness. And it's a theme pertaining to Dany specifically.

The theme was introduced explicitly for the first time in a Dany's chapter, as something that is said TO Dany, right after she liberated three slave cities:

"I am no maester to quote history at you, Your Grace. Swords have been my life, not books. But every child knows that the Targaryens have always danced too close to madness. Your father was not the first. King Jaehaerys once told me that madness and greatness are two sides of the same coin. Every time a new Targaryen is born, he said, the gods toss the coin in the air and the world holds its breath to see how it will land." - Daenerys VI ASOS

In fact, this is the ONLY time in all the books in which the Targaryens are stated to be mad or great (sure, there are times where the books talk about the Mad King, or say that this or that Targaryen was mad, but this is the only moment in the books where the coin toss and the theme of madness vs greatness are explicitly mentioned). It's not something that is brought up several times or given much emphasis, it's something that appears only this time, and is only said to Dany.

And why is this concept introduced only to Dany, and at this moment? Because it's meant to be a thematic reflection on what she just did. Because what she did was MAD. To think that you have the power to defy an institution as ingrained as slavery, to think you have the power to make such a huge change in the world, and to actually attempt it, it's something that most people would consider madness. Because it's seen as an impossible thing, it's seen as crazy, it's seen as suicide. But that's exactly what greatness is: to do things that most people would consider madness.

And this theme doesn't even start in ASOS, it starts back in AGOT. The only reason Dany is even in a position to attempt to end slavery, is because she did a mad thing in the first place: walk into a pyre to hatch her dragons. And the narrative points this out several times:

"No. He cannot have my son." She would not weep, she decided. She would not shiver with fear. The Usurper has woken the dragon now, she told herself … and her eyes went to the dragon's eggs resting in their nest of dark velvet. The shifting lamplight limned their stony scales, and shimmering motes of jade and scarlet and gold swam in the air around them, like courtiers around a king.

Was it madness that seized her then, born of fear? Or some strange wisdom buried in her blood? Dany could not have said. She heard her own voice saying, "Ser Jorah, light the brazier."

[...]

When the coals were afire, Dany sent Ser Jorah from her. She had to be alone to do what she must do. This is madness, she told herself as she lifted the black-and-scarlet egg from the velvet. It will only crack and burn, and it's so beautiful, Ser Jorah will call me a fool if I ruin it, and yet, and yet …

Cradling the egg with both hands, she carried it to the fire and pushed it down amongst the burning coals. The black scales seemed to glow as they drank the heat. Flames licked against the stone with small red tongues. Dany placed the other two eggs beside the black one in the fire. As she stepped back from the brazier, the breath trembled in her throat. - Daenerys VI AGOT

~

She could feel the eyes of the khalasar on her as she entered her tent. The Dothraki were muttering and giving her strange sideways looks from the corners of their dark almond eyes. They thought her mad, Dany realized. Perhaps she was. She would know soon enough. If I look back I am lost. - Daenerys X AGOT

~

As she climbed down off the pyre, she noticed Mirri Maz Duur watching her. "You are mad," the godswife said hoarsely.

"Is it so far from madness to wisdom?" Dany asked. - Daenerys V AGOT

When Dany says she is determined to conquer Westeros, even though it seems impossible for someone who has nothing, she is called mad:

"I mean to sail to Westeros, and drink the wine of vengeance from the skull of the Usurper." She scratched Rhaegal under one eye, and his jade-green wings unfolded for a moment, stirring the still air in the palanquin.

A single perfect tear ran down the cheek of Xaro Xhoan Daxos. "Will nothing turn you from this madness?"

"Nothing," she said, wishing she was as certain as she sounded. - Daenerys III ACOK

Later, when Dany ends slavery, people call her mad for it, for daring to challenge an institution that is seen as the right order or things:

"I have a gift for you as well." She slammed the chest shut. "Three days. On the morning of the third day, send out your slaves. All of them. Every man, woman, and child shall be given a weapon, and as much food, clothing, coin, and goods as he or she can carry. These they shall be allowed to choose freely from among their masters' possessions, as payment for their years of servitude. When all the slaves have departed, you will open your gates and allow my Unsullied to enter and search your city, to make certain none remain in bondage. If you do this, Yunkai will not be burned or plundered, and none of your people shall be molested. The Wise Masters will have the peace they desire, and will have proved themselves wise indeed. What say you?"

"I say, you are mad." - Daenerys IV ASOS

~

Xaro caught it in the air and took a bite. "Whence came this madness? Should I count myself fortunate that you did not free my own slaves when you were my guest in Qarth?" - Daenerys III ADWD

And we also see people looking at Dany as if she is mad when she approaches the sick Astapori, because this is something people consider to be very dangerous:

By the time Aggo returned with Grey Worm and fifty of the Unsullied loping behind his horse, Dany had shamed all of them into helping her. Symon Stripeback and his men were pulling the living from the dead and stacking up the corpses, while Jhogo and Rakharo and their Dothraki helped those who could still walk toward the shore to bathe and wash their clothes. Aggo stared at them as if they had all gone mad, but Grey Worm knelt beside the queen and said, "This one would be of help." - Daenerys VI ADWD

That's what the madness vs greatness theme is about. It's not about how half of the Targaryens are great and half are crazy. It's about how to be great you have to be mad (not in the clinical sense, like the ASOIAF fandom thinks, but in the sense that you have to do things most people would consider mad). That's the whole point of the theme and it's why it’s been applied only to Dany's character so far: she is an extraordinary person, someone who would DARE to do something that most people would consider impossible and mad. And even GRRM points this out in his interview:

The whole point of the scene in A Game of Thrones where Daenerys hatches the dragons is that she makes the magic up as she goes along; she is someone who really might do anything. (source)

Finally, I just want to mention that Aegon the Conqueror, who is considered to be the greatest Targaryen for conquering Westeros, was also called mad for this:

“A bold plan,” Grand Maester Orwyle said cautiously, when he heard it. Mushroom prefers “madness,” but adds, “they called Aegon the Dragon mad when he spoke of conquering all Westeros.” - Fire and Blood

[saltymothball]

my unpopular takes on beetlejuice beetlejuice SPOILERS!! (long post)

(i am a fan of the original pls do not come for me) these are just my thoughts on the sequel :D please feel free to add yours too

context! im writing these notes as i watch so theyre a little disorganized

for reference i also rewatched the original immediately prior to the sequel

not opening with the classic beetlejuice muisic ?? even the stage show opens with that music where is it (EDIT- restarted it and it actually does open w the music, but it is much less fun/campy an and more of a spooky remix so i forgot)

its not plot necessary but i do wish we learned how BJ fixed his shrunken head and death by sandworm

where are the maitlands ???? 0 mention of adam and barbra at the beginning ?

BJ's ex wife intro was a very creative concept but i wish they did it with more sfx props and less cgi/green screen

Astrid is like very boring, theyve done nothing to get the audience (me) invested in her?? disney wish vibes like who is she

call it a headcanon i feel like lydia wouldnt be this fucking awkward of a parent ?? she had good role models ie adam and barbra (even if her own parents werent as active, by the end of the original movie it implied they were now living in a healthy family dynamic

the mother daughter drama feels really forced, reminds me of the out-of-place tension between wednesday and morticia in the 2023 show

all angles are super close up and feel like horror angles. the scene where astrid befriends that boy ?? felt like someone was gonna come up and kill them the ENTIRE interaction (edit i guess that makes sense but it nerfed the scene)

IMMEDIATELY knew his parents are dead btw. not showing their faces is so clearly they are dead. not an ounce of mystery. theory the boy might be a ghost too?

theory astrids dad isnt dead bc Lydia cant see him

the witching hour wrong ?? last i knew it was 3am not 12am. weird thing to get wrong

its like not a silly campy vibe ?? its like uncomfortable.

dont like lydias new man hes pushy and gross

i miss adam and barbra

it doesnt make sense that no one taking lydia seriously ? delia knows she can see ghosts and has also experienced beetlejuice

lydias fiance is a horrid excuse for a partner (how tf did she meet him like did he just walk in bc the plot needed another person to hate lydia

not the dead protester joke :(

the spill-your-guts/pregnancy felt really idk,,, icky??? dont know how to explain it but it uncomfortably long

follow up- a lot of the visual ghost gags felt very gross/gorey ? like in the original movie the gags were inbetween silly/sexual/spooky-but this one feels more like blood and guts instead of spiders and snakes. exhibit A) otho casually shoving corpse barbra out of the way when looking at the closet with delia / exhibit b) the guy with the cigarettes at the end of the original

theory that astrid is going to end up seeing ghosts by the end of the movie

love the "eeee!" noise BJ makes when people say his name

ok BJ with the guitar after lydia tells him off was legitimately funny

i know astrid is an angsty teen but my god she is so hostile towards lydia

calling it at 56mins the boys parents are SO dead bc they deliberately didnt have lydia meet them

listen i have nothing against jenna ortega but it feels like she is type-casted to play exactly one character now, like let the girl play something other than a monotone gothy teen

"they found a loophole and moved on" okay whatever that means

astrids awkwardness w this ghost boy is pretty cute. he is so definitely a ghost though

yup called it hes a ghost

"my mom was telling the truth... shit" lmao

this boy feels very sus bc why are you trying to bribe her w her father

still no info on how lydia and rory met ??

MURDER HOUSE ?? TH BOY IS A MURDERER ??? okay thats a good twist ill give them that

astrid going into the afterlife to see her dad feels very "lydia going to the afterlife to see her mom" plot from the stage show ?

astrid honey you have too much faith in this ghost boy

oh my fucking god delia did you really get poisonous snakes....so on brand for her

Beetlegeuse literally carrying the whole movie

every scene he's in is absolutely giving

william dafoe is pretty good too but adding him just feels like he is william dafoe and not the character hes playing (who is also an actor)

delia correcting herself from saying fuck is really funny like girl was that scripted

okay ok astrd seeing her dad working in immigration was pretty neat

i had actually forgotten abt BJs ex wife until now ? doesnt seem like she actually adds much to the story beyond giving BJ a new reason to pursue lydia... which he was already doing...?

are they all going to end up in the afterlfe wtf

the afterlife desert takes place on the fucking moon of saturn ?? okay

is it just me or is the sandworm not claymation... like maybe its just the way it looks but i swear it looks like they cgi'd it but then cut down the frame rate

damn lydias husband really got eaten by piranhas.. what a way to die oh my god

there was no real stakes to astrid switching her soul? they resolved that so fast like lydia just grabbed her and they ran

oh their husband/dad is back now everything is fixed...? like all that hate towards her mom is now gone bc her mom was telling the truth about seeing ghosts? dad just resolved the only conflict

beetlejuice didnt even help get astrid back he went on a pee break and the plot progressed

love bad cop william defoe

"are you filled with fear and trembling?" "yes im shitting my pants" absolutely gold

BJ on fetchquests this whole movie fr

the soul sucking lady please she ate bobs nametag :(

ok wtf they really solved ghost boy dilemma in 5 seconds, BJ ex machina... like he rlly just got him like that ??? anticlimactic

ok good astrid apologized for being a shitty kid

rory please stop kissing lydias neck

i kind of hate the modern nods like the self securing seatbelt in the priests car, or the influencers at the wedding, really weird unnecessary detail

BJ and Delia wedding crashers my fav

how did Beetlejuice get into the church ? if he is a demon like previously established, shouldnt he NOT be able to step on holy ground

enjoyed the slapstick moment of lydia punching rory, good moment

her red dress omg !! pretty

BJ himself is just too funny, making the priest sing top tier

i still miss adam and barbra :( if they can cgi that dead guy in star wars i think we couldve brought alec baldwin and geena davis who are in fact still very alive and look great

they really didnt make me interested in BJs ex wife other than she is pretty and looks like morticia addams ?

BJ making everybody partake in singing is very silly

everybody dancing at the wedding scene must have been fun to film, everybody looks like theyre jamming

lmao whos dog was that in the hallucinations ?? is that the dog who killed the maitlands

"ghoul squad" ok monster high

oh finally his ex is here

lydia so casually pushed out of the way lmao

why does BJ have more etherial powers than every other ghost?

offering rory to the soul sucking lady is so good

theyre really just gonna sandworm for the plot resolution again ???

his ex wife was a threat for all of 4 seconds

lol the legal marriage loophole was kinda funny

is delia like forever dead ? is she a ghost now? is beetlejuice dead?

i still love delia. "i will find charles and we will haunt you both" good for her

are the influencer wedding guests dead

everything got wrapped up very quickly

good on delia for still loving her husband even though that shark absolutely annihilated him

what ?? astrid is married now???

WHAT ??? SHES GIVING BIRTH ?????

oh ok its a dream

having a second pregnancy bit felt really weird

they alluded to another sequel :(

please remember i am actually a huge fan of beetlejuice !! no hate to the franchise these are just my personal opinions on the sequel. i would love to hear your thoughts as well !!

[heroictoonz]

Wip wednesday!! Sicktmeber? edition (sorta...) [LMK SEASON 5 SPOILERS!!]

“And what about you, young monkey?”  MK looked back up at Xiangliu. “Huh?” “What brings you back to your mother’s temple?”  MK frowned. “She’s not my mom. She’s just… a lady… who created me.” He crossed his arms. “Look man, if anything, the rock is my mom!”  Xiangliu chuckled. “Whatever you say, Xiaotian. But that does not answer my question.”  MK looked away from the beast. His gaze resting gently on everything it touched as he examined the room around him. The walls of paintings, the gold and jade jeweled treasures, finally landing on the statue of Nuwa.  He was almost impressed with how it looked exactly like her. He wondered if the temple was man made or not. He noticed how the older something was made to depict one of the immortals the closer to their actual likeness it was. Things that were made more recently seemed to have a lot more creative liberties to them. He supposed that was just how things like that went.  He turned back to Xiangliu but didn’t look at him. Instead opting to look down at the shards of vase, kicking them back towards the pile of things. “I dunno…” he mumbled.  “You sure did put on a show to get here.” “Wha—?” Xiangliu sat up and gave an over exaggerated fake cough into his arm before throwing MK a knowing smirk.  “That’s not—that wasn’t—” MK frowned. “How the heck do you know about that? Have you been spying on me?!” MK’s fists clenched angrily.  Xiangliu held up his hands defensively. “Calm down, Xiaotian,” he spoke calmly. “I have much better things to do than constantly keep my eyes on you.”  The way he said ‘eyes’ and how the snakes that made up his hair seemed to look at MK at the word made the man wonder just how many of those eyes Xiangliu really could see out of.  MK shoved his hands into his pockets and gave another kick at the vase shards. “Coulda’ fooled me,” he bit back. He gave a big, dramatic roll of his eyes, letting his head move with them as if the action was heavy enough to move it along with. “You did so much watching after you woke me up!” His voice echoed through the halls as it grew louder. MK could only end his sentence with a glare to the beast.  To his credit, Xiangliu did look somewhat sheepish. He sighed, letting his feet fall back to the floor and taking a gentle step towards MK. “Xiaotian,” he spoke softly. “You must understand, I meant no ill will upon you with my actions.” He opened his arms and gave a grand smile. “I wanted to give you life! I wanted to give you a gift that not even Nuwa had planned to allow you! Give you life experience to make your own choices and in the end choose your own destiny. Not one that she-” he threw out an angry hand towards the statue that quietly listened to their conversation “-predetermined for you!” MK’s shoulders slumped visibly. He looked away from the other and he could no longer hide the sorrow from his eyes.  Xiangliu also dropped his hands, watching the expression on the other and matching his falter.  “I can’t help but think that… maybe I still made the wrong choice…”  Xiangliu frowned harder at that. Now a touch of frustration edging into his expression. “You are missing the point of this all,” he sighed. “Choices are not inherently right or wrong. A decision you make has much more behind it than good or bad. The experiences you had—the experiences I woke you for—guided your choices. You did not have black or white intentions as no one ever does. The human experience is so layered and detailed. Isn’t that wonderful?”  “Not if I’ve just doomed everyone all over again!” MK shouted.

[aurienneirua]

trying to think about how aurien would take castor’s death since i haven’t really articulated it quite yet . .

i think ill be using how blue diamond from steven universe take’s pink’s death as a bit of an projection onto aurien and inspiration !

well, ill start on how aurien was with solei’s disappearance . since me and @billwasnot actually discussed this before, i feel like i can articulate and word this much more then i usually do . ill also limit how long this is since that’s probably for a whole nother post .

( edit after finishing : wow im a really bad liar )

to put it into simple and hopefully straightforward words, aurien did not process solei’s disappearance at first, and her feelings about it in extension .

when they finally started to bubble up, she shoved them down . they poison parts of her in response, and she’s stuck in a cage and cycle of grief, slowly shutting down mentally and emotionally . even when she and solei reunite, she still has them shoved down .

now, finally onto cas !

for him mainly, id say she feels empty after his death .

she falls into a prolonged period of time where she either feels just . . empty, or all she can feel is pain and grief .

although she openly expresses her emotions now and doesn’t shove them away, she instead wallows in them, refusing to move on because she just doesn’t want to .

the words im referring to starting at 1 : 07 and ending on 1 : 16 being :

“ im sorry . im so sorry . i should have done more . ————— says it will all be over soon . i wonder what you would think . “

also think blue’s tone matches her exactly as well lol . quiet and low .

the words “ im sorry . im so sorry . “ transferring onto aurien in the way of how she knows she failed to save him, and “ i should have done more . “ being how she wishes that she could have, and regrets greatly how in the end, she did not .

also gonna put down some lyrics from what’s the use of feeling blue as well since that can also fit auri . .

“ why would you want to be here ? / what do you ever see here ? / that doesn’t make you feel worse then you do ? / and tell me, what’s the use of feeling, ( blue ) ? /

oh, how can you stand to be here with it all ? ( here with it all ) / drowning in all this regret ? / wouldn’t you rather forget ( him ) ? /

start looking forward and stop looking back, oh “

( formatting style originally by @sotogalmo ! )

ok, first, “ why would you want to be here ? / what do you ever see here ? / that doesn’t make you feel worse then you do ? / and tell me, what’s the use of feeling, ( blue ) ? / “ would probably be about her extreme unwillingness to move on ? and maybe also how as a result, she only feels worse and worse, inflicting pain upon herself because she feels she deserves it .

secondly and lastly, “ oh, how can you stand to be here with it all ? ( here with it all ) / drowning in all this regret ? / “ this one’s a more clear one for me . . she definitely is drowning in regret . another possible thing would be that the lyrics “ how can you stand to be here with it all ? “ can maybe be her actually asking herself that . .

how can she still stand here— why is she still here with everything that’s been going on ? she’s not special . so many people matter so much more then her . why does she live ?

anyways, i wrap it up here . . partly because i don’t think i have anything else to say, this post is already getting long, and im pretty disappointed about how this came out .

i came in with a clear mindset, ( which normally helps a lot when im trying to write things like this ) but it got muddled pretty easily . although i want to take more time on this, im not really patient with myself, and ive been having a lot of trouble wording things lately .

i don’t know how long it’ll take to “ word this right “, but i know it’ll be long combined with some other factors . I think I’ll maybe come back to update or expand on this though . . anyways, any thoughts about my depressed pookie aurien ?

( castor : @bluemoonscape )

( side note : lolol id love to hear your and possibly cas’s ( if he were still alive COUGH ) on this ! also i already have a little au in my head where auri and solei save cas . . and auri shoots and shatters a screen displaying kyo that was distracting cas mizi all in style . . may i know how he would react to this and hold up if they did save him . .

[summerwritesfics]

🌎More Than A Cheeseburger

Pairing: Hanzo Hasashi/Bi-Han Length: 978 Words Rating: Mature Warnings: Modern AU, CEO!Hanzo Hasashi, Employee!Bi-Han, Teenage!Kuai Liang, Homelessness, Boss/Employee Relationship, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Past Character Death

Meanwhile In Another Universe Masterlist

Notes: Another thing I’ve had written for a while now. Admittedly I am currently working on a oneshot I really wanted to get out before I posted anything else, but it’d been frustratingly slow progress, so I’m gonna edit and post some of these smaller bits today. Starting with this one. Meanwhile In Another Universe is basically an excuse for me to write a lot of little short fics exploring AU concepts without worrying about having to make them a bigger thing. This fic actually started as a much smaller fic, but I ended up adding a bit more to it. This is based on the previous timelines so, no Tomas with the brothers in this one.

Hanzo watched as Kuai Liang wolfed down the cheeseburger, as if he hadn’t eaten in months. Given how thin and sickly he looked, Hanzo supposed that could very well be the case.

He looked back over to Bi-Han instead, the young man glaring at Hanzo rather than eating his own burger. There were so many questions he had. Why was a 20 year old living in his car with his 14 year old brother? Where were their parents? Why had no one helped them?

“I have some questions I’d like you to answer, Bi-Han,” Hanzo started, watching as his employee’s eyes narrowed at him. “But first, I’d appreciate it if you could eat something.”

Bi-Han grunted, but thankfully took a bite.

It would take more than a cheeseburger to get to the bottom of this.

Bi-Han’s behaviour had been suspicious for a while now. Hanzo had noticed him sneaking the snacks left out for all employees into his bag. Initially believing he was just being greedy, Hanzo had scolded him for it. Then Bi-Han had started doing other odd things. Taking toiletries and stationary, getting extremely defensive about his after work plans, generally being snappy and unsociable to everyone around him.

Then, that morning, Hanzo had come in early, to find Bi-Han’s car already outside. It was unusual for Bi-Han to be in at such a time, and when Hanzo finally located him within the building, he found the man with his younger brother in the toilets, washing themselves using the sinks. It was Kuai Liang who admitted that the pair were living in Bi-Han’s car, seemingly much to Bi-Han’s disdain.

He hadn’t wanted anyone to know, clearly. 

“So, how long exactly have you been homeless?” He asked and Bi-Han made a face.

“We’re not homeless,” he replied in an extremely sharp tone, narrowing his eyes at Hanzo.

“We kind of are, Bi-Han,” Kuai quietly added, flinching violently when Bi-Han turned his glare on him. That response didn’t exactly give Hanzo much hope regarding the full situation that the brothers were in.

“About a month after I started working for you,” Bi-Han admitted, turning his attention back to Hanzo. “I haven't saved up enough for an apartment yet, but I’m working on it.”

“Why didn’t you mention anything?” Hanzo glanced over to Kuai, the boy had finished his burger in record time, now licking his fingers as if he was still chasing after the nourishment. Hanzo would have brought him a second burger, but he didn’t want him accidentally eating too much and making himself ill. “If I had known, I would have been able to offer you assistance.”

“I don’t need your handouts,” Bi-Han hissed. He stared down at the burger with contempt, like the very fact he’d even accepted it disgusted him. It was at this moment he seemed to decide Kuai needed it more, passing it over to the boy who eagerly began to cram it into his face like he’d done with the previous one.

“Asking for help isn’t the same as asking for handouts.” Hanzo didn’t know how to explain that to him. Bi-Han seemed like a proud individual, accepting help was likely not easy for him. “How exactly did this happen? Your brother’s still a child, where are your parents?”

Bi-Han paused, his lips tight and straightening himself out. Kuai almost seemed to shrink at the question.

“Dead,” Bi-Han said, voice so void of emotion it made Hanzo himself falter. “Our parents are dead.” Blinking like he was breaking himself out of a haze, Bi-Han’s face suddenly got a lot angrier. “And our foster parents were shitty people.”

That was unfortunate. Hanzo had done his share of foster care, and his priority every time had been those kids. It was disgusting, how some only signed up for material gain. Those kids deserved far better, and Hanzo wished he could take in more.

“I am sorry to hear all that.” It really did put into perspective both of the brothers' reactions to this. Bi-Han’s anger and Kuai’s fear. Both were completely understandable.

“Yeah, well.” Bi-Han shrugged, acting like it was no big deal. “It’s just how it is.”

“I have a spare room,” Hanzo told him, hoping the statement would imply enough. Bi-Han just looked at him with an eyebrow raised. “You both would be welcome to stay in it for as long as you need.”

“No.” Bi-Han shook his head violently. “I already said no handouts.”

“Then you could give me some money towards expenses,” Hanzo tried. As much as Bi-Han probably wanted this to be dropped, Hanzo couldn’t, especially not when a minor was in a less than acceptable living condition. “It would be like renting, just at a reduced price.”

Bi-Han’s mouth twitched, like he was desperately trying to figure a way to turn down the offer. His eyes slowly drifted over to Kuai, who was looking at his brother with large pleading eyes. Hanzo prayed that would be enough to convince Bi-Han.

Finally Bi-Han gave a defeated sigh, closing his eyes as he said, “That… Would be appreciated, thank you.”

“Good.” Hanzo knew better than to think this momentary acceptance of help meant that he’d accept anymore, but it was progress. At the very least, it got Kuai Liang into a more stable home. The question of the boy's schooling was next, but he accepted that would be a battle for another day. “We can talk out the details later.”

Bi-Han nodded, looking somewhat dejected. His face lit up a little when he saw Kuai smiling, looking happy and excited about their new housing arrangements. Despite everything, it was clear Bi-Han priorities lay with his brother. Hopefully, that would be the key to helping them, trying to find what was best for Kuai Liang.

It was still early, but Hanzo had hope that things would get easier from here.

[stuckasmain]

Moulin Rouge - movie thoughts and comparison

I mentioned this in my last post but later in the week after seeing the show, we watched the movie. There’s a lot to be said and my feelings are complicated (just as they are the for stage version). It has a lot of elements I love and a lot of issues at the same time so let’s just get into it.

It has the movie advantage. Big budget flash - pardon the pun- spectacular. The huge cast plays to its advantage and its detriment. We get a wide array of weird, wild and wonderful. Body type, ethnicity, etc. You get a well rounded image of what the district is like. At the same time it sort of takes away in that- the focus is on no one. A lot more  bohemian friends (the musical knocks it to the main three and helps develop that friendship a tad more), more people working at the rouge in general and we get less of a look at they’re relationships to each other etc. It’s? I love there’s more , realistically there would be, but it also takes away from everyone at the same time, if that makes sense.

The editing is everything. It’s the silly, whimsical and funny sort of deal. There’s fast forwards/speeding characters up, random explosions of sparkles etc. My favorite things are everyone tossing their hats into the air and they literally go through the roof, the gun hutting the Eiffel tower, Zidler moon. The musical does a similar effect in the opening number(s) with the confusion and whimsy it hits up with.

Period costuming! For the most part! While I can appreciate and understand the musical going the more bedazzled and more 80s route for the clothes… something about it being a jukebox musical and running around and talking in a more modern fashion while dressing completely like it’s 1899 is so good. Something about Christian wearing white tie- looking incredibly awkward in it might I add- and going 🥺 across the room is everything. More of this! Period dramas- period anything! Take note!

Props for featuring the actual can can

One of my leading criticisms however, as much as I am a complete sucker for a montage scene I feel like there’s too many and it starts to muddy what exactly is happening. There’s context lost that the musical later fills in. Here however “she’s dying” *two month montage of her very much doing the opposite* I know it’s to reveal the illness but still. Montage + to many characters = loss of context/gravity

The duke is great. I love a “oblivious man child who gets violent when he doesn’t get what he wants” however he’s also not really a active threat until the last chunk. They keep putting him off and his threats off until it becomes real in the last act— he’s funny but I think i prefer to musicals take of having him more outright villainous and actually taking Satine away for huge chunks of time. Making a good reason for jealousy and fear of her mistreatment.

john leguizamo. I don’t actively seek out movies he’s in but he’s a treat whenever he does appear. That being said the difference between the two Lautrec’s is wild lmao. Similar but the musical has him WAY more focused on his own pining.

Ewan McGregor Christian 💕

I also mentioned this in the last post but I think the play in the movie is weaker however Satines death is stronger as it knows to do the grand celebration before, thus making it hit all the more harder by it simply ending.

[kirnet]

I love ur analysis of dsom. I read it a couple years ago and got so frustrated thinking "this is the book everyone is raving about??" The magic system and world has such potential but the characters drag it down. I remember a scene where Kell is up in his feelings about his whole. Incredibly fucked up "family situation". And Delilah is essentially like "well at least you HAVE a family". And the narrative seems to frame that interaction as her being cool and edgy and the voice of truth or whatever. And Kell is like. I guess youre right :( ill stop complaining. But the story doesnt grapple with that any further??? Doesnt use that moment to build out either character beyond "Delilah is so cool and also right (and an asshole but thats what makes her cool)" and "Kell's complex feelings about this are now solved/set aside after this clap back". Family is one of the themes of the book but even this scene doesnt really explore the concept in depth. I may be misremembering it but that one scene just summed up for me everything frustrating about the character writing and the way the story uses the characters. Maybe the issue is revisited in later books. I wouldnt know, bc very little about the writing makes me want to read any more.

Yeah!! Yeah!! That scene was… argh, you’re exactly right. The main source of frustration for Lila for me is that the narrative frames her as right almost always and especially in that instance. And like, if I’m willing to engage with it, it is a telling character moment of hypocrisy where Lila is lashing out in grief after losing Baron (?? I dont remember his name) and is displacing all those feelings onto Kell. But the way it’s handled, like you said, makes me assume that no, Schwab didn’t intend for it to be that deep. It’s so frustrating because the world and the characters have so much potential! With a few more drafts and edits this could be a really good book! But as it stands it’s a 400 page book with little to no plot, hardly any interesting character progression or arcs, boring flat fight scenes, and uninteresting prose. The masquerade scene is there bc she thought it sounded cool. The elements are there bc she thought atla is cool. The fake eye is there because she likes bebop. There’s no actual substance. I have read books half the length that have succeeded in all of these places. I’ve heard similar criticisms of her pacing in other books from people who did like darker shade so, idk, it sounds like she needs a better editor honestly.

And like, yeah, maybe this is revisited in later books, maybe her writing gets better, maybe the second book is fantastic. I honestly had a lot of the same criticisms when I read the Founders Trilogy, but the difference there was that i ADORED the characters and the world building. They were so solid that I HAD to continue even if i had some issues with the writing style and pacing. This series has none of that appeal for me. If she had ended it on a cliffhanger, if she had actually set up this world to be as dark and edgy as she thought it was, if Kell had to use his wits as a smuggler to survive in a place far from his family leading him to conclude that yes he does love them, if Lila had to fight to survive trapped in white london and then come to grips with her violent nature and that its not actually a positive, then I would be all over the rest of the series!! Idk, other reviews mentioned that they were disappointed with this after reading some of her other worlds like viscous, so maybe I’ll give that a try when I feel less burned.

[httpiastri]

hi jackie im back and im here to yap

also this entire thing is really disorganised (just a warning)

pepe’s 187 seems short?? 😭😭😭😭😭 also im pretty sure 187 is very recent bc this redbull driver database was updated early this year before the f2 season started (sorry ive realised how insane i must be to know this but i can’t tell if i agree with the measurements because sometimes i think pepe and ollie should be around 190?? minimally!!)

also the girl who edited pepe to guilty as sin is literally so sweet omg 😭😭 ill def make my own pepe playlist soon bc i need it for myself—don’t know if ill ever share it (although i do listen to so much international music from asia, europe, and literally everywhere else so it might be a pretty disorganised mess)

i saw pepe’s pics this morning when i woke up and i ACTUALLY screamed/squealed out loud and now i realise it’s the stubble/facial hair (i kinda think it’s way past the stubble point but regardless of what it is, i love it so so much)

omg also youre so right about liking when pepe shows emotions?? i love him being all soft and sweet but i also want to see him salty and upset and angry like idk i find it so very attractive when i am reminded that he is human?? idk if that makes any sense but i love it when people are raw and so so genuine with their emotions and i also love when he talks about stuff i barely know about because i love intelligence and i love him

and omg feeling guilty about not using the resources you have is so so real 😭😭 my parents are first gen immigrants and im the first child and so i feel so guilty because of how privileged i am compared to my cousins and stuff, especially since i live in one of the strongest academic countries but am still so lazy at times 😕😕 ESPECIALLY since ive had more opportunities than the average student academically because i was gifted but now im there’s so much guilt surrounding not going the mainstream and highest pathway BUT OMG your sport i completely forgot about that but don’t you coach kids or something?? i feel like i have a vv faint recollection of that because i used to follow you from my old blogs but i’m not too sure 🤨🤨 still isn’t it so cool how so many seemingly insignificant things can suddenly turn into such a big part of your life one day?? i find that concept so cool to think about all the time (like in my un-anonymous ask a while ago i mentioned what i was studying and… i used to be so invested in those themes? like it was never serious, i just dabbled in it here and now my career plans kindaaa differ from what’s expected in this field of study but its cool that im getting to experience what i used to imagine for fun and it’s also sort of led me to consider this career path that MANY childhood friends/people who knew me used to think i’d go into, even though i never once mentioned or even considered it)

i believe in karma too!! i think that if you are a kind person and do things with the best of intentions then that will be exactly what is reflected in every aspect of your life. i am also a strong believer that pepe WILL do well for the rest of this season, from this race onwards. i also have such a good feeling about monaco, and it’s not just because of all the pepe content that’s been put out recently… i think 🫣🫣

omg i remember you complaining (?? pls forgive me i have no other word choice rn) about how he didn’t get a penalty, and i also cannot remember if he did end up with a penalty… but i don’t think he did? so maybe he’s just serving unnecessary penalties from last year idk but it’s def his time now!!

and thank you so so much for always replying to my asks!! please don’t feel bad about replying late 😓😓 because it’s vv understandable if you’re busy and you really shouldn’t force yourself to answer asks when you’re tired! take care of yourself jackie, and i’m wishing you a lovely day tomorrow!! 💗💗

- 🪷

hello darling !!! very happy that you wanted to come and yap for me <3

SJDFHDK I KNOW ITS NOT SHORT BUT LIKE 😭 it seems short for him? like to me he seems like suchhh a long boyyo?? thoughhhh im just now realizing that he's taller than my older brother..... but okay let me explain my reasoning: in my head 187 isn't super tall because in the handball world (the world i live in), 187 is like kinda average? the guy i used to crush on is a little over 2 meters 😶 and he wasn't the tallest in the team 😶 but yeah tbh it seems reasonable that they updated it kinda recently. but pleaseeee update the f2 f3 websites ☹️

omg... if you do end up wanting to share it, i will definitely be obsessed...... i have been listening to ☄️ anons pepe playlist way too often to not be super embarrassed over it 😭 but like certain songs come on and i just catch myself blushing on the street because im thinking about pepe and... yeah...... 🙃 and omg don't worry about it being disorganised, a broad music taste is the best one 🥰

yeah it was definitely more than a stubble but am i complaining?? actually not (which surprises even me) 🥰 i currently have a very big obsession with just the thought of his stubbe/beard/whatever... just touching it? don't need to be shaving it? kissing him and feeling it slightly rub me and getting to jokingly complain just to see his cute smile and hear his pretty laughter??? y e s

" idk i find it so very attractive when i am reminded that he is human??" !!!!!!!!!!!! agreed 10000%!!! i love it when drivers have emotions that arent just happy or "well something bad happened, shit happens", and especially pepe. and idk it's something about the extreme contrast abt him? because when he's happy then he's so happy, big smiles and sweet giggles. but when he's upset.... 🫠 and omfg you're SO right about him talking abt racing stuff or yes just stuff i don't really get, because intelligence is SO HOT 😁 i could listen to him talk abt racing for hours and hours and never get bored

ahhhh i see i see !!! i relate to you sooo much... i made it through like all of my years of school just by luck and always managing to get good grades even though i didn't put in a lot of effort? but in my later years, as soon as something got a little hard or i didn't fully like it, i just bailed 😶 even though im so lucky to have all of these opportunities.... :/

but yes i do coach kids hehe 🥺 cute that you remembered 🥺 speaking of that, the fact that i became a coach in the first place was kind of just a coincidence aswell, and now six years later it's one of the biggest things in my life and i'll (hopefully) be studying coaching in the fall and just !! crazy how life works out sometimes 🥺 (the guy who brought me into coaching actually passed away recently and on his funeral i cried much more than i ever thought i would because i realized that i owe him like my entire life... idk what i would be doing today without him..... and he probably had no idea how much he changed my life 😭 idk kinda off topic but also not)... but yes it's indeed very cool!!! and like u said, like when people think stuff of/for you that you don't rlly think about yourself but one day you're just..... oh

yes yes 100%!! i love showing the girls i coach about karma, like whenever we do something kind and then get instant karma for it i'm like "girls look! we did a good thing, now we get rewarded!! 😁" (im making it sound like they're 5 years old when in reality they're 15 oop-), and this one time when i did something pretty bad we all got bad karma all weekend......... 😶 and ik this was aimed at the monaco weekend buT the next race!!!! a good result in barcelona will feel so much better now considering these last few rounds so im okay with this. i know it will happen 🥰

sjdghkdh complaining is an okay word choice because i was upset about a lot of things that weekend 😭 (though mostly during the sunday-) but no i don't think he got one either? it was probs the teams fault so im sure they got a fine etc? but yeah that could be an explanation 😭 100% about to be his time!!!!

thank you so so so much for sending me asks!!!! no but i will feel bad anyway because i do love writing answers but when i answer so late, it seems like i don't enjoy it? when in reality i love it so much??? idk i just feel so guilty and 😭 im so sorry. but thank you again for keeping on sending in asks!!!!! truly makes my day every time <3 take care of yourself too, hope you have a lovely rest of this week ❤️

[ace-and-the-rpg-horrors]

i'm not sure if you've read tsukasa's most recent event too, but just in case, they had met a shy but talented actor named Bakuno Reki there. He had invited WxS to apply to be extras in the movie he was going to star in, which the troupe was accepted for. The original plan was to show up to set, learn more about movie production, be background characters for like two scenes, and then peace out. This is not what happened.

The director ended up inviting WxS to join the team part time as stagehands, assisting with props, set-up, and minor tasks. They decided to accept in order to learn even more about a new style of acting and production.

It was pretty hard work, tbh. The director was quite strict with expectations and it's just hard in general, but they all found the work to be rewarding. Tsukasa and Nene enjoyed learning more about the differences in acting through film (non-chronological, which requires different approaches to displaying growth and emotional connection), and Emu learned a lot about scheduling and administration! Rui wants to learn more about directing, but it's a bit hard to do from the sidelines.

A little ways into the project, the director realizes Rui's passion for directing and drive to absorb every piece of information like a sponge. He decides to accept Rui as a directing assistant for the rest of the project. It's even harder work, but Rui accepts without a second thought.

Nothing really major happens until the day they film the climax. The story they are filming is an adaptation of a novel about a boy, depressed and unsatisfied with daily life, who wants to disappear into the sea, suddenly having his life flipped upside down by a mysterious girl claiming to be his long-lost sister. Slowly, through the light of her joy, he learns to love life, piece by piece. The climax scene occurs at an airport, after the sister leaves with no warning. The boy follows her there and asks why, why would she go, why abandon him after everything? (She has a terminal illness and thought leaving like this would be the most painless way to separate. She hadn't meant to get so attached to him when she first contacted.) It's a pretty emotionally heavy scene- one they can't get right. They tried all sorts of re-directions, edits, angles, but nothing managed to capture the true expression they were going for. The shoot was called of and postponed for the next day.

Rui took it upon himself to try and figure out exactly what's wrong with the scene. He pretty much shut himself in a room with the director to pour over the script (and also skipped a meal, for the second mentioned time this event.) They could not figure it out.

Suddenly, the door opens, and a strange, kinda shady former "friend" of the director walks in. He pretty much compliments the work in a very backhanded, passive aggressive way and acts all chummy towards the director, who is not having it at all. The strange man says something about. something weird. I don't actually remember. but it leaves a sort of impression on the both of them. (Later, the director mentions the fact the strange man is an old college "friend" and current stage director.)

The next day, Rin pops by to check in on the troupe, only to immediately notice Rui Did Not Sleep. He spent the entire night rewatching the current footage, past recordings of Reki's old performances, anything that could possibly help. He didn't get anywhere still.

Emu, Tsukasa, and Nene run up to Rui and hand him a bento box (though it's left unsaid, it's because they know he isn't taking care of himself and want to help him, in whatever way they can.) Emu starts talking about how fun it is they have so many different options for bento, so that everyone can grab the things they like! And, wouldn't it be so cool if they could find a way to personalize each bento to each person!!

Then Rui got it. That's why the scene was off. Though the script works well in the book, it's not suited for a performance. It's not suited for Reki. He runs off to go tell the director his revelation (never having actually accepted the bento offered to him).

Rui explains his thought process to the director, only to find he had already come to his own conclusion. He applauds Rui for making it this far, especially having only done film directing for a short while, but the change that is truly necessary is a step above what Rui suggested. Rather than change the dialogue, he wants to remove it all together. They shoot the change. It was perfect.

The event concludes with WxS watching the initial screening of the movie, really happy with the final product. The rest of the troupe is super impressed with how much Rui helped, even when he feels like he didn't contribute much at all. He wasn't able to fix the scene, after all.

After the screening and WxS's departure, the strange "friend" pops by the theater. He forces the director to show the movie, again simultaneously berating and praising it. He also asks about that "strange young kid you were working with. What's his name, Kamishiro?". He has a feeling their paths may cross again...

Overall, a pretty decent event! Not as earth-shattering as curtain call, but still carries a lot of meaning to Rui's character. It really highlighted his self-sacrificial nature and drive to learn, and how much WxS means to each other. It also sets up a potential new conflict with this mysterious shady guy. Excited to see more of him!

OH MY GOSH, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH!! ah this is. wow, yeah, very helpful actually!! i KNEW that guy had shit vibes...

i saw people talking about Rui's "self-sacrificing" nature but didn't know where it had come from until now!! and aww... Emu indirectly solving the problem? there's so much that can be said about how Emu and Rui are a fantastic duo who bring out the best in each other... rotating in my mind...

[my-gf-is-kazuichi-soda]

I admit, a lot of Nagito's actual mental illness traits went over my head when I played the game, and up until now. If I've talked about him in an ableist way before, I'm sorry (and I'll delete/reword any post with something like that if you point it out to me, none of them come to mind atm but I feel like I may have said something like this in the past). I honestly thought he was just a manipulative jerk acting a certain way "for funsies" and if I've called him "crazy" or anything like that, it was in a place I probably should have used the word "asshole" instead, but even that's not a real fix to the issue. Frontotemporal dementia. I only learned what that means today. I'm glad I wasn't planning on having Nagito have much of a presence in my fanfic anyway.

I had to ignore the parts of that post about Danganronpa 3 because I'm still playing it, but one part I read...I didn't notice that Kokichi was wearing a straight jacket. I thought it was just a white suit.

I never would have expected Danganronpa to have a canonically mentally ill villain after the mess with Toko. Like I've said before, I love playing with ideas of this franchise and I love Kazuichi a lot and I like a lot of other characters too (mostly from Danganronpa 2, for now that is my very favorite), but Danganronpa is a poorly written series full of missed potential (/derogatory) and it's honestly mostly sex jokes and murder (/affectionate). Writers can use it as a sandbox and people can get some laughs from it.

I'm wondering if anyone has made a post about Danganronpa's ableism with Kazuichi. The autistic-coded character misunderstanding social scenarios, being constantly called "dumb" and "annoying," showing an ability and willingness to change when told to stop doing something but nobody actually wants to tell her to stop doing the "annoying" thing that they'd rather mock her for, not to mention the lesson she has to learn through all of this. Having faith in yourself is a good lesson, and Kazuichi did need to learn some humbling (they actually could have done way more on this for her), but they really said her biggest problem was that she needed to believe in herself more when she's been pushing herself to being "normal" (and failing at it, because normalcy is stupid and hurts everyone) and making herself miserable in the process?? She deserved to have a character arc where she doesn't have to act like a "punkass" anymore because she feels safer to be herself around her friends, and where she gets a look she's actually happy with (my trans headcanon doesn't have to be canon for this to work, it's just my interpretation out of many ways they could have done this arc for her). It felt like she had a little bit of vulnerability at the end, but too little too late in my opinion. I had a hard time believing most of these guys were her friends in the end, especially Fuyuhiko and Sonia -not saying these charaters needed to be her friends, their feelings were valid, just that Danganronpa's entire "everyone is friends by the end" thing can feel a bit forced at times just to get a happy ending through (I would not be feeling like this if they convinced me in the writing that the characters were believable as friends). Although at least this group felt like an actual group, the first game was way worse at the "everyone is friends at the end" thing! (You're really telling me everyone is friends with Byakuya and Toko after all of that?! It actually made me laugh with the whiplash of how out-of-nowhere-cheesy that was compared to the mood before they met up with the others.)

Too tired to rant any more. I hope my points came across?

Edit: maybe I'm too tired but I'm feeling self conscious about my wording and I'm not 100% sure if their treatment of Kazuichi is ableist exactly, but it felt uncomfortable for me. Maybe using "ableist" for that part was extreme? I'll get back to you on that in a bit

[sunnysidezblog]

This is something I've always found frustrating about Harry Potter and that's that spells are often said to work but it's not explained *how* they work. A lot of spells are just taken at face value.

Spells like crucio don't need to be explained much because they are pretty self explanatory, but I still would like to know why. I assume, for example, that Crucio works because it fires your pain neurons at a rapid pace all over your body without a break until the user breaks its hold. This to me is a no brainer.

However, spells like Avada Kedavra and imperio are never really explained and dont have clear or intuitive reasons for working. At least not in depth. It explains what they do to a person (kills painless and instant and mind control adjacent, respectively) but not the reason why they work. I have a theory on why these two work the way that they do.

Spoilers below

•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•☆•

First up: Avada Kedavra

The killing curse is said to kill instantly and painlessly, and no one but Harry has ever survived it. Anything that the curse hits that's living dies instantly.

This is explained to the readers in one of the books (it's been a while since I've read them) and it's also demonstrated when Fake-Moody kills the spider in the goblet of fire. And we also see that sometimes, depending on the power put into the spell, it can have a physical impact on the victim of the curse as seen when Dumbledore gets knocked off the tower by snape.

However, other than these examples, it doesn't show what it actually does to the body to kill, only that it *does*. I posit that it shuts down the major organs, specifically the heart, instantly.

I say this because that's the only way I can see that Harry could come back to life at the end of the series. If only his heart was stopped, but his brain was alive then he very well could have come back to life. There are documented cases of auto-resuscitation like this one. (Be warned there are some graphic pictures in it and mentions of illness and death. Read at your own risk). [Edit: I can't get the link to work]

It is a rare occurrence, but it can happen and I believe that could have been what happened, especially as Harry came back from sheer force of will it looks like.

As for Lily's sacrifice, I can see him surviving because 1. She put herself in front of Harry and thus absorbed the curse. And 2. The curse might have rebounded and hit him, but caused indirect damage instead. Kind of like how in Frozen, Elsa's power hit Anna's head and caused her harm but later hit her dead on in the heart and caused her death.

In this way, Harry would gain his scar, but only 'die' for a split second as the spell rebounded off of Lily and him and hit voldemort instead. However, the power of love could have also played a part. Hysterical strength is also a thing so it could also apply to magic, making a shield strong enough to deflect the curse from Harry's heart or body and back towards voldemort.

Since we don't know exactly how the killing curse works, we can't really say for sure and I feel the explanation of "it was loves sacrifice" alone to be a cop out answer, but when used in a joint reasoning like this I find it more believable.

So I think that the killing curse targeting the heart is the most like reasonable and logical explanation as to why the killing curse works the way it does and why it is so different from other spells that can cause death or injury that we see (crucio, sectemsempra, bombardo, etc).

Second up: Imperio

This one won't be as long, but I have a theory that it works very much like how Cordyceps (Ophiocordyceps unilateralis) affects ants.

This fungus affects ants, not by controlling the brain as one might think but instead focusing on the muscles. It builds scaffolding in the muscles of the ants and controls the muscles and organs inside by the use of biotic compounds like hormones and pheromones. You can read more about that in Entangled Life by merlin sheldrake or here in this national geographic article.

When this concept is implied to imperio, it makes sense why Harry could throw it off with a lot of effort. He was fully aware of what was happening, from what I remember, but he couldn't control his body. This makes me think that the spell acts like the Cordyceps fungus in a way and controls the limbs, muscles, and voice box through signals to the brain in order to do what the caster wants.

I also think that that's why, after the first war, Lucius Malfoy was able to claim he was under to imperius curse with so much success even though he could remember everything clearly.

So it makes sense, to me at least, that someone would be able to break free of an imperio even if it takes incredible mental fortitude and physical strength and why someone like Lucius, who was a known deceiver, was believed. Though half the wizengemont was in his pocket, I think that the other half wouldn't have been able to do anything anyway because his argument/defense would be legally sound if that's how imperio works.

Anyway thats all for those.

I think there's great potential for reasonable explanations on spells and why they work, as well as why certain potions work the way they do. And I've seen several fnfics that explain and go more into depth about this kind of thing as well. It's very interesting to think about, and this was just my take on it.

[ecsundance]

Blog #4

From the beginning of this course, my classmates and I have been discussing exactly what independent film is and what it means to us. We have watched various different indie films and documentaries while also reading a book titled, Indie: An American Film Culture by Michael Z. Newman, which is a book that details what aspects make an independent film. Indie is a term that is short for independent film and it has its own genre and culture surrounding it. 

The main aspects that make an indie film are three slogans; characters are emblems, form is a game, and when in doubt, read as anti-hollywood (Newman p.29). These are all various different aspects that define what an indie film is and how it can be spotted in the media. To break these down further I will talk about the first slogan which is that characters are emblems. Newman defines this slogan as characters becoming emblems of their social identities (Newman p.30). Newman emphasizes the importance of character and this can be seen in many of the films I watched in class and out of class. When looking at the second slogan, form is a game, the emphasis is placed on the things like camera angle and aesthetics (Newman p.34). The third and final slogan implies that indie/independent film “allows spectators to make sense of the most confounding avant-garde films by reasoning that they sometimes reject cinematic conventions as a way “to shock viewers out of their complacency”” (Newman p.42)  

In class we watched Stranger than Paradise (Jim Jarmusch, 1984), which was one of the first old indie films that I have watched and it was really interesting to view it with the mindset presented in the Indie textbook by Newman. I have decided to discuss this film because of how new it was for me. I had never seen a film like this so I was intrigued by the directorial choices. For this first film characters as emblems was extremely visible to me. This film follows a New Yorker whose Hungarian cousins come to visit him from her hometown. When looking at the characters I can easily break down each of the characters and determine how that added to the overarching plot. I think that this film is a perfect demonstration of what indie film actually is. It is shot in back and white and there is hardly any editing. The scenes are one continuous shot and then it cuts to black before the next scene begins. To me this is extremely anti-hollywood because it is something that I would not see in mainstream cinema. This can also be seen as form is a game because it approaches the film from an aesthetic perspective. Each of the characters also represent their social identities in ways that affect the actual plot. As an immigrant and a woman, Eva was treated extremely differently and because of that the film ended in the way it had. As men, Eddie and Willie 

Independent film rejects the way that mainstream culture would do things and I can relate this back to one of the films that I watched for my independent film reviews. On the Count of Three (Jerrod Carmichael, 2021), is a much newer indie film which is also why I thought I should bring it up since the film above is older. This film attacks a difficult topic from a comedic perspective which is something that is not done normally. It was interesting to be laughing at a film that revolves around two best friends having one more day before they end each other's lives in a suicide pact. The characters are also extreme representations of their social identities, accompanied by a lot of talk about their social identities. Val is a black man and Kevin is a white man and on the “last day together” they have conversations about their identities. Both of them are mentally ill and that also impacts their identities and how they see themselves in the world. 

Overall Newman does an excellent job explaining exactly what an independent film actually is and how it can be seen in movies. It is important to look at characters as emblems, and to understand form as a game that viewers actively play when watching movies. Anti-hollywood is also an important aspect because independent films go against what mainstream media does and that is something to look up to. I like to see things that go against the societal norms and that is exactly what 

Samantha Levy

[chettercheese-the-fnaf-lover]

Idea/scenario 14: The Pizzaplex collapses

Behold, a continuation of sorts from idea 3

It has been around 4 months since the 3 star ending and everything is going quite well. Vanessa is finally almost back to feeling like her old self again, her nightmares have been getting less severe and less frequent.

Gregory has gotten used to being cared for again and being part of a family again and has grown as close to Vanessa as he is Freddy. He has also been enrolled in a school and is already in the top 5 percent. Freddy is- (Gregory! I must inform you that I am… morbiuously obese :D) -... Freddy. Luis and Vanessa are also in a healthy relationship and are a lot closer, much to Gregory's (joking) annoyance.

The 3 of them have also gotten closer to the other animatronics (on their first official meeting as a group after fixing everything, Luis wouldn't stop geeking out being close to them). They have races  with Roxy, (try) to golf with Monty, and cook with Chica (Vanessa is especially good at the latter). Sun/Moon tells wonderous stories during sleepovers, and also gives Vanessa advice on dealing with nightmares. 

So everything is going well for the Found Faz Fam!

However, all is not well with the Mega Pizzaplex. You see, back when it was first constructed, Fazbear Entertainment didn't exactly have a lot of money. They had invested most of it into what would become their failed venture that was the Fazbear Funtime Service.  So they were tight on cash when they decided to try and build an entire mall. As a result they have to cut corners, a LOT of corners. They don't install enough emergency exits, and the one that they do requires a VIP pass. They don't install a fire extinguishing system, or at least not an adequate one. They build over the remains of their old restaurant because they still own the land it is on (under?)

They also use structural members that can only just BARELY hold up the planned weight of the roof and ceiling. The truss members they end up using are also not rated for commercial civilian use, and aren't designed to handle the vibrations caused by the thousands of people walking through the mall. The ceiling also winds up being heavier than expected, but they don't change anything about the trusses. FE don't even have the trusses installed properly, they need to get the mall built quickly in order to reduce labor costs and try to start making money as fast as possible.

This also isn't helped by the later edition of the DJMM which means the installation of a series of tubes going through the walls, further weakening the entire structure. Roxy Raceway is particularly at risk due to it being located on top of the actual sinkhole. This means that there isn't as much support from the foundation, bottom, because there is less surface area to put foundation on. So the roof of that section is holding up even MORE load.

So every structural member in the building is both pitifully ill-equipped and hilariously overstressed. It is not a matter of IF the mall will collapse but WHEN. 

This "when" was moved closer by Gregory's actions during "that night"; not that anyone knew it, including him, knew. Monty falling from the catwalks, Roxy getting hit by a go kart through a wall, and DJMM's chase only served to make the situation worse.

This is shown by visual signs over the next few months. There are more cracks in the walls, parts of the ceiling sag, and paint starts to chip as other parts of the mall start to deform. Some of the staff are concerned about this, but the general manager assures them that they will, "fix it". All they do is paint over the cracks each time they appear and hope no one notices.

The final breaking point is when Monty and Roxy try "aerial jousting". Basically Monty saw how the daycare attendant could fly on strings and he decided he wanted some of that action. So he tied some strong rope to the catwalks (the same ones he fell from) to try it out. Roxy saw this and wanted to try it out as well. So they both decided to turn it into a little competition. They would run towards each other before leaving off the catwalks and… ok they hadn't gotten to that part yet. They ended up breaking the catwalks under the strain, fell and had to get repaired, much to the chagrin of everyone else. This only further damaged the support structure.

So the stage is set for disaster.

It all starts on a seemingly normal day. This day is a special one for Gregory, he got a 100 on a really difficult test that no one else did that well on. As a reward, Vanessa has decided to take him to an actual front row performance of the band, instead of their "special pass" (from idea 1) location. This consists of some folding chairs placed as far as possible from the stage with a sign that says "special pass performance viewing place, for our worst security guard ever". The front row tickets are ludicrously expensive, which is why Vanessa doesn't get them often.

So Gregory, Vanessa and Luis arrive early and have some time to kill before the show starts. Gregory goes off to harass the staff bots since Freddy and the others are busy entertaining other children. He makes sure to promise to meet back up with Vanessa at a specified time. Luis and Vanessa, meanwhile sit down at El Chips and talk about…idk whatever friends/couples talk about. Maybe a new video game? Actually that makes sense, we'll go with that.

Then, it happens. After only 11 months, one of the overburdened truss members holding up the roof of the mall over Roxy Raceway finally fails. The massive load redistributes to the remaining truss members. Initially they are able to handle it for a few seconds as designed, but they cannot handle even a slight increase in load at this point and they also start to fail one by one.

With a massive roaring sound and shaking that fills the entire mall, the entire section of roof over the Raceway collapses. It crashes to the floor with an even louder BANG! and causes the building to shake even more. Concrete dust fills the room and begins to disperse throughout the mall.

By some miracle, no one is injured. All of the people in Roxy Raceway were undergoing a safety brief by Roxy near the entrance ("You know what's just as cool as me? Safety :D"), so they were spared. Amazingly, everything has stabilized, it would seem that the loss of the roof over the raceway has reduced the overall load on the structure so the poor trusses finally get a bit of a reprieve. Unfortunately the shaking has also caused the truss members to get more damaged as well, so it's a net loss. 

For a few seconds after the collapse, there is total silence. People are still trying to process what has just happened, some think it is an earthquake before dust and the sight of the sunlight being visible where it shouldn't be clues them in. Then the screaming starts and everyone starts making a break for the only obvious exit, causing severe crowding and even more panic. The animatronics and staff try their best to organize an orderly evacuation 

Vanessa, meanwhile, goes into panic mode and starts frantically attempting to call Gregory on her phone whilst running to where he was last located. She is trying her best not to assume the worst, but there is still that little voice of doubt. One she still has after all this time, one that sounds like HER but isn't, one that says, "I knew you wouldn't be able to keep him alive, you failure".

Vanessa steadfastly ignores the doubt and continues running, Luis following closely behind with a determined look on his face.

They find Gregory near Roxy Raceway, looking quite perturbed and staring at the hole where the ceiling used to be. Vanessa nearly faints out of sheer relief. She lowers herself to her knees and pulls him into a massive hug. Luis joins in after a bit of persuasion, before the 3 of them make their way to the exits.

The next hour passes quickly, all the animatronics are removed from the building at management's request to keep them safe. (despite not ordering an official evacuation for the patrons at all) The bots reconvene with the 3 peeps and just sort of stare and talk as ambulances, police cars and news crews fill the parking lot. After an hour police have moved everyone around a mile away from the building and are just starting to make a plan on what to do next when there is a large rumble.

Everyone can only watch as the remaining bit of the pizzaplex collapses, the damage being simply too much for the rest of the structure to handle. With a boom and a cloud of dust, the Freddy Fazbear Mega PizzaPlex is destroyed.

Fazbear Entertainment is quickly sued but isn't even able to afford a lawyer so are forced to pay for everything. They don't have the money for this and file for bankruptcy, finally killing the company and ending a terrible legacy of darkness. 

"But what happened to the robots?" you may be wondering. Well, Vanessa, out of the pureness of her heart, would likely try and figure out where to temporarily keep them until she can find a more permanent solution. Maybe they can stay at her place, if it is big enough. Or she could convince her workplace, Silver Parasol, to have them roam the workspace. (This could provide a great opportunity for writers to make a "FNAF but its The Office" thing)

You could do anything you want! After all, I am not the artist. All I do is simply provide the clay. 

we all know the story wouldn't end here even if it was they way the game ended lol

[bylightofdawn]

WIP Sunday

I'm sorry to say that today hasn't been a very fruitful writing day. But I did get a scene with Tyvokka and Jaster written down. Pretty much, the only context needed is Tyvokka comes to Jaster to warn him about a Force vision he's seen with the warning that you shouldn't take it as a forgone conclusion and there's always a choice or a path that will bring that particular future about. So you know, your basic Jedi nonsense which Mando soooooo love to hear. I quickly debated Tyvokka giving Jaster the ol' shovel talk but truthfully? I kinda hate them. It usually comes across kinda possessive of the person you're trying to warn the party off of them. Not to mention taking way their agency and right to make their own choices. It’s got this icky connotation that the one giving the shove talk doesn’t trust the person to be an adult etc. Maybe they don’t want you to fight their own battles for them and wow welcome to my anti-shovel talk Ted Talk.

I DID think about doing a reverse shovel talk and having Jaster go in expecting the 'Don't you hurt my son' talk. And thought instead. "Be careful that my son does not hurt you. He's a Jedi and he will always choose his duties over you' sorta speech. Cause I love my expectation subversion. Not too sold on this but we'll see. As always, super rough draft, no editing blah blah blah. I might end up switching up the quotation marks on Tyvokka's speech to the same « » thingies they use in the comics. Though I feel like that is just them translating Shyriiwook. We'll see. I'm not completely in love with this scene and may end up re-doing it. Tyvokka seems remarkable chill over Plo kinda skating the edge of acceptable Jedi behavior in having a regular romantic partner.

I might have him give him a come to Jesus speech, I don't know. Again ugh I hate it and it's kinda troperiffic too. But I figure from the Jedi side of things the person who would totally be able to read through Jaster and Plo's super bad attempts at hiding their relationship would be Tyvokka. So we'll see, I suppose? Also wow El how many times can you say we'll see I suppose in the span of two paragraphs? A shit ton, I suppose.

“You are talking like this is some holonovel where good defeats evil and everyone lives happily ever after. But real life isn’t like that, Mandalorian. It isn’t that neat or tidy.” Tyvokka didn’t mince words and while it was strange hearing the crisp Core-worlds Coruscanti accent try to convey the same level of gruff harshness that he could hear in the Wookie’s actual tone of voice. 

But honestly, Jaster could appreciate that brutal honesty. 

“Alright, fine, I will try not to let my hatred for Tor make me stupid.” 

“Good. There is one other thing, this was much more....nebulous. I think there may be a traitor in your camp. Or at least one who has ill intentions. I could not see that detail very clearly, but some kind of betrayal is what will set you on the path toward the destruction that I foresaw.”

“That’s not saying a lot, I’m sorry to say. Half of them barely want to be here and are probably secretly hoping this whole affair crashes and burns.” Jaster felt awful that when he said that, his mind immediately went to Montross and the sort of cold war the two’s once strong partnership had devolved into. 

“That division in your ranks might explain what I was sensing, but I suspect there is more to it. I will meditate on this.” 

“I won’t lie, it all sounds a little far-fetched to me but I have spent enough time around Plo Koon to know that the Force <I>osik</I> you Jedi get up to is real enough. And I am man enough to admit that I don’t know or am capable of understanding the many and varied workings of the universe around me.”

Tyvokka eyed the Mandalorian curiously and with piercing golden eyes. He’d heard enough false modesty to recognize when someone was putting on a facade and Jaster Mereel was not. It didn’t exactly fit with the image he had of what a Mandalorian would be. 

At first, when he’d heard of the strange friendship between Plo and this Mandalorian, it had sounded like one of the most bizarre things he’d heard in his many centuries of living. 

He’d long suspected there might be more to that friendship and while as a Jedi, he did not wish to see Plo Koon come to a point where he might have to choose between his duties as a Jedi and his curious choice of lovers. 

The part of him that had nurtured and cared for the boy like he was his own wanted to see him happy. And this man seemed to make him happy so really, what more could he ask for? 

“You’re looking at me like you’re considering which kind of wine my liver would best pair with again.” The human joked and Tyvokka snorted inelegantly. 

“I was never fond of liver anyway. Now kidneys on the other hand. And humans have two, right? Even better.” 

He half expected the man to wince or cringe back, but the Mandalorian was made of sterner stuff and just laughed sharply. 

“Hands off my kidneys and my liver. I’m using them.”

“You’re the one who keeps mentioning me eating them. How was I to know you were not making me some strange Mandalorian offering?”

“I know we have a reputation for being rough and uncivilized but even we don’t participate in cannibalism.” Jaster snorted and climbed to his feet carefully. “I appreciate the heads up though. Seriously. Stars know when it comes to Tor Vizsla, I tend to get tunnel vision.”

“You must learn to let that anger and hate go, Mandalorian. That is the path to the Dark side. You may not be a Jedi but it can still taint your heart and poison your mind.”

“Easier said than done, I am afraid.”

“Anything worth doing is never easy. Even we Jedi struggle with our own inner demons and temptations from the Dark side. Anger and hatred are uncomplicated emotions, but ultimately, they are hollow and leave you feeling unsatisfying. That is what makes them so dangerous.” 

The dark-haired human had a strange look on his face, one that Tyvokka couldn’t quite parse out despite his centuries of dealing with his kind. 

“Some interesting food for thought.”