#it’s bc I’m always experimenting with her design but sometimes it’s not. on purpose

[wolvesbaned]

she is different every time i draw her!! i should do a tier ranking of my favorite versions lol

[leejungchans]

— juliet on kingdom (episode 6).

juliet’s masterlist

from may 6’s episode

note: read the tweets from the bottom up 💕 keep in mind that this contains spoilers in case you want to watch the episode first :3 more under the cut bc i also went a tiny bit overboard with this 💀

— juliet’s outfit;

disclaimer: the blurring of faces in my outfit collages is in no way meant as a form of disrespect, the sole purpose is to put the focus on the hairstyle and there is absolutely no ill intent. thank you for understanding!!

when they were deciding on the groups for round 3, juliet was so happy they ended up choosing stray kids and btob

right after announcing that decision she immediately went to felix and gave him a big hug :((

but we came here to talk about the sports day 🤩

let’s make one (1) thing clear: juliet is here to make friends 😇

B U T she is also an ateez member, aka she is very competitive 💀

this is the same person who refused to sleep when playing the mafia game which was partly the reason for why it got banned from their dorms

probably texted felix the night before like “ily bestie but if we ever have to go head-to-head tmr ur going D O W N”

she said 🔥👄🔥

someone collect her please

ngl she was kinda jealous of skz’s pink outfits bc they looked so cute in them :(((

strawberry kids pls 🥺🥺🥺🥺

but her outfit was also adorable like what :((((

THE BUCKET HAT 🥺

this was also the tiniest she’s looked on kingdom since she always wore boots with some form of platforms for the performances :c

ateez and stray kids’ tables were next to each other so she finally had the opportunity to interact more with the others and not just chanlix!! (´｡• ᵕ •｡`)

pretty much became besties with jisung, changbin and jeongin after that day and also became friends with peniel 🤩🤩

there were still a lot of lixliet moments!!!! even in the background you could see them just chilling and having fun 🥰🥰

also bonded with changmin (from tbz, not the mc ahshjws😭) over liking horror movies and stuff

“you have a chUCKY DOLL??? CAN I SEE IT????? DO YOU HAVE A PHOTO??????? 🤩”

not them cooing over photos of his chucky doll like it’s a baby/pet photo 💀

ateez and the boyz: 👁👄👁 should we be afraid orrr...?

hongjoong, in the distance: you can admire it but don’t you dare bring one home

okay the vaulting competition ✨

while watching sf9 go she was like “:ccc but i’m already shorter than the first level (1.7m)” 💀

she got really shy when changmin read that she has 10 years of ballet experience uwu

changmin, jokingly: oh~ she’s shorter than the box already

juliet: ☹️☹️🥺🥺

changmin: whdjgjwhd sorry sorry sorry 😭

eunkwang: hey!!!! don’t make the baby sad!!!!!!!

she killed it!! mostly bc of her flexibility as she could lift her legs high enough to not touch the box!!

she made it past 2.2m so that’s pretty cool 🤩

eunkwang: maybe it has to do with being born in australia and being around kangaroos

gave the cameras a 🥰✌️🕺🏻😚 after every successful jump

everyone else being her biggest hypemen 😌 the privilege smh

okay but one time as she was running up to the box her hat flew off and she went “nooooo” in tiny and ran back to get it

literally everyone on set went 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 uwu

even the judge/referee laughed 😭

you know how people are like “hold my xxx”

that was juliet but with her bucket hat 💀💀

for her last attempt at 2.3m she uhhh... kinda body-slammed right into the box and knocked it over so they both fell onto the mat 🤕🤕

cue yunho, wooyoung, chan and minhyuk who immediately rushed up to her to see if she was okay :(

the others were like “is she okay???? :c”

ngl it hurt quite a bit but she was also very giggly bc she didn’t expect herself to make it that far

but after the adrenaline wore off she definitely felt the pain :(

so they had to vote for the visual king right

mnet was like ok juliet u can vote for the visual king but they can’t vote for u bc we don’t wanna start anything so u can be the visual queen and win by default 😄

“should i be insulted that they made me win by default 😅😅😅”

yes juliet actually said that on camera and they left it in 💀💀

she still took the selfie and mnet put hers up on the board with everyone else’s but with a little crown over hers that said ‘visual queen’ 💀💀💀💀💀

she was pretty embarrassed by that ngl but sigh what else can she do 😔

hyunjae, pointing to the tiny crown over juliet’s selfie: ohhhhhh does this mean we can’t vote for juliet?

eric: if we could she’d probably win by a landslide

sir we caught u in 4k 👁👁

when seonghwa said he thought felix was cute and wanted to adopt him as a little brother though 🥺

juliet went (◕‿◕) and immediately dragged him over to felix like “OI MATE HERE’S YOUR NEW FRIEND SEONGHWA”

Little Miss Indecisive makes a reappearance bc whO SHOULD SHE VOTE FOR?????

“can i vote for someone not on the show?”

she didn’t actually say that don’t worry

she ended up voting for minhyuk!!!

mostly bc she genuinely thought he was really cool but also bc they were far apart enough in age that people would be less likely to spread rumours

it do be like that sometimes :/

“minhyuk-sunbaenim was very charismatic in their performance from last round, and he was so cool just now during the vaulting competition so i’m going to vote for him!”

she did write a tiny disclaimer on her paper slip that said “everyone is handsome!! <3” though 🥺

WHEN FELIX PLACED 2ND IN THE VISUAL KING THINGY

biggest hypewoman

“YEAHHH FELIX THAT’S MY CUTE BESTIE RIGHT THERE EVERYONE SHUT UP AND LOOK AT HIM!!! FELIX VISUAL KING!!!!! SO TRUE BESTIE!!!!!!!!!”

hwjdbwjjs before they announced minhyuk as first the mcs asked juliet who she voted for and she was so shy when she said she voted for him 😭😭😭

she didn’t take part in the balloon snake tag game and the relay bc she was pretty exhausted from the vaulting (and also bc the boys told her not to bc they could tell she was still slightly in pain after she slammed into the box 🥺)

so instead she became everyone’s designated cheerleader :3

when wooyoung came first in the relay she was so proud!!!!

right after he crossed the finishing line she ran up to him and tackled him in a big hug :ccc

then she went up to eunkwang and asked if he was okay bc he fell during the relay :((((

in conclusion she had so much fun that day and was happy to make even more frens 🥰

— fan reactions;

a/n: this episode was so fun 😭 pls the vaulting game was so funny to watch ahdjjwjs but they all did so well???? i wouldn’t even make it past the first level so idk how minhyuk and chan both managed to go over 2.3m 😭 tbz were also so good at it though???? pls the way juyeon and changmin made it look so easy 👁👄👁 also eric was out for blood in the balloon snake tag game ahjshwjsb we stan 🤩 let me know what you think!! your support really means a lot to me and is what keeps me motivated so thank you all sm 💕💕

[reversecreek]

hi it’s me... clicks across the linoleum of the dash wearing high heels w a spray tan like i’m a member of jersey shore suddenly..... best summary of willa is that she got moira rose as her #1 chara on a What Character Are You Most Like personality test out of thousands of options.... says so much. u can find her pinterest here n her playlist here 😋 like this or hmu fr plots!!

* ashley moore, cis female + she/her  | you know willa deneurve, right? they’re twenty-four, and they’ve lived in irving for, like, most of her life, on and off? well, their spotify wrapped says they listened to watch me by the pom poms like, a million times this year, which makes sense ‘cause they’ve got that whole sticking gold stars over old polaroids until you can barely see faces, dressing as marie antoinette at your high school prom & delivering fake laughter to a bratz doll you’re pretending is a talkshow host thing going on. i just checked and their birthday is august 1st, so they’re a leo, which is unsurprising, all things considered. ( nai, 24, gmt, she/her )

HISTORY:

willa ws born to honestly like….. the perfect family not to honk my own tit bt……………. they were jst rly quite wholesome. her mum celeste was this larger than life person who could never b contained by the four walls of any room she was in. she hd the presence of a gold glitter chess piece on an otherwise mundane wooden board. her dad marlon used to always joke that he had absolutely NO idea how he landed her bc he was just this like. rly average guy by all accounts n purposes….. blended into the sea in high skl……. had a few close friends but was never rly Notable or made a proper impression anywhere…… he always retold it as him coasting thru life until he met her in college. kind of like he’d been half awake before. they just Clicked n no-one cld believe she’d chosen him bt she was jst. completely head over heels n didn’t care what anyone had to say bc that was That

willa always very much took after celeste…… there’s this one quote i remember reading that goes vaguely like “my mom and i would sit and listen to leonard cohen and joni mitchell lyrics together. from a young age i remember her being like "i’m playing this song and when it’s done i want u to tell me what’s happening in it” n she would give me a fake glass of wine when i was 8 and i would listen and b like. i think there was an affair.” which so much summarises their dynamic…… she ws just so like. dramatic n fun n always encouraged that in willa too. her mum was like. everything she aspired to be…… got scouted by a modelling agency in college n shot one campaign before blowing it off simply bc she was bored. starred lead in a play. spent a few weeks travelling asia selling handmade candles shaped like koi fish or curled up foxes or elegantly stretched hands. dated a parisian movie star during a break she and her father took n was featured in tabloids on his arm at the premiere. sm fun n exotic stories willa literally cldn’t get enough. whenever she’d tell them to willa as a kid her dad wld roll his eyes like ohhhhh here she goes again but it’d all b playful n he’d smile bc he honestly cldn’t get enough either. the stuff dreams are made of luv (lizzie mcguire stans rise)

(car accident & death tw) so u know when ur walking down a flight of stairs n then out of nowhere u miss a step n u get that lurch in ur stomach like ur in free fall? yeah. i won’t go into it too much but one night they were driving back from getting frozen yogurt and then suddenly they weren’t. she doesn’t rly remember much about it except for completely ignoring the doctors trying to give her the news and just saying “dad chose pecan. who chooses pecan?” n repeating that over n over n over until it didn’t rly register in her ears as english any more.

willa was uprooted from irving at 11 to go n live w her aunt in NY. this was like. a huge adjustment honestly….. her aunt blanche hd always been a little unconventional bt extremely glamorous. she lived in an old defunct theatre she’d bought out n came from a lot of money. willa’s mum’s side of the family hd always been well off bt celeste opted to live a little more Ordinarily shall we say after settling whereas blanche ws jst balls to the walls dripping w eccentric excess…. wld say she was never naked bc she ws always wearing black opium by yves saint laurent…… probably the living embodiment of la vie boheme….. she’d been admitted a yr early to a rly prestigious parisian design school n is an AMAZING seamstress. a corset she stitched a broadway star into got commissioned fr an actress’ red carpet walk at an indie film festival. rly just lived such a life rich w lots of stories n lots of talent too…… had that star quality essence tht her mum had n that was smthn willa found quite comforting everything considered.

(grief tw) u would think maybe a situation like this (one involving so much sudden change) wld cause a kid of tht age to withdraw into her shell bt willa only came out of her shell MORE. she coped w her situation by spinning it into a celebrity origin story inside her head. the tear jerker tale someone tells during their x factor audition to get the judges rooting for them. mentally streamlining things. repackaging all that hurt as a surefire ticket to success bc it had to be useful for something right? there had to b a point to it right? willa decided the point was she’s a star. KFHSGKFHGFKHGKJSFHG. get it girl….. she ws literally just like ok well clearly i’m destined to be famous n i’m the main character of this story. this story called earth. it’s all about me.

rly heavily immersed herself in her high skl theatre scene……. loved experimenting w fashion n literally wore the most outlandish things like. she treated the hallways like her milan f/w debut every new school yr…… a lot of the things she wore were actual like. costumes frm her aunt’s collection…… she has a multi-story closet u have to climb ladders to reach things in like a very rustic library…. it rly wasn’t uncommon for willa to turn up one day corsetted like a pirate with billowing sleeves or sporting the baby blue gingham of a swedish milk maid. it’s like she literally jst…… became a role. always. every day. the world ws her stage. the cameras were always rolling. her aunt only encouraged this tbh n honestly? icon. we love to see it. willa partied a bunch n rly lived a lax lifestyle where responsibility was concerned…. her aunt ws her best friend…… made rly gd friends with performers in the drag club scene n loved the glitz of that….. lots of wild nights turned grossly bright mornings

snagged an agent fresh into her first yr of college (she gt accepted to a pretty competitive theatre program at [redacted] in NY bc i haven’t looked into what that wld be yet <3 i’m merely a helpless british lass <3) n booked a few commercials n things….. when i say willa wld enter audition rooms like she owned the place i’m rly not exaggerating…. once she turned up to a casting call for MEN n just walked right to the front of the line scraping a random chair along the way n then took a seat w her legs crossed popping a bubble in her gum as they all glared at her like wtf is literally going on who are u. she received several complaints n she was just like “ur all acting so jealous of me….”

i feel like she got a pretty big role in a theatre production in her last yr at school. haven’t decided what yet. maybe smthn rocky horror or even mimi in rent. this was meant to b some like huge moment for willa like yes girl finally making it ur on ur way this is what u wanted n she WAS happy abt it but once it was wrapped she jst had this strange like Huh feeling in her chest……. n a la celeste w all her exciting stories was just like well i’ve done that so what’s next? i think she’d graduate n then jst suddenly decide to move to irving in a fit of impulse. to all her college friends she’d be like “ugh a beach retreat is so necessary honestly the city is sooooooooo toxic this place cld literally enlarge my pores if i wasn’t so rigorous with my skincare routine” bt like 🤔 what u seeking girl? results pending.

SO basically i feel like she finally moved back to irving little over a yr ago. she hd a brief stint starring on a reality tv show tht filmed in one of the larger beach houses where her dog gained a handful of fan accounts dedicated to him……. u maybe will see why in the first bullet point of her personality section………… FKGHKSHFGGKFSHKHG. honestly she ws received pretty well too (mostly bc she’s so fking dramatic n like a caricature of a person) bt it wasn’t anything to warrant actual Fame (despite what willa herself might think). she’s mostly jst like. chilling honestly. accepting scripts n flying out fr auditions still. she’ll nab the occasional part bt she’s looking for that One Thing that rly feels like her big moment….. otherwise i cn just imagine her treating irving like a little dollhouse compared to the roaring mansion of NYC n having fun playing around in it. strikes a pose w a hand on my hip…. and now to personality.

PERSONALITY:

got a very large n lithe greyhound n named him marlene dietrich bc she was a black n white hollywood starlet famously known for her affairs n “bedroom eyes”. willa was like ugh. icon status instantly. didn’t rly foresee the responsibilities tht came w owning a dog tht loves exercise n complains abt him being like “ugh he wants to run soooooooooo much 🙄 like where are u literally going”. having said tht loves him dearly n he can often be seen wearing little clothes. a baby’s bonnet. a quilted leather waistcoat. a custom dog boa. he’s very glamorous. willa calls him a gay icon despite no evidence to support this theory. she also says he can sniff out evil in ppl so she brings him sometimes when she’s first introduced to a friend’s new bf n if his nose quivers a certain way she’s like “marlene has spoken. it’s done”. her friends r like omg? what’s done? willa gets up n walks away without elaborating. marlene’s little paws clicking along the floor w attitude.

literally dressed as marie antoinette for her high skl prom even tho there was no theme pertaining to this. jst loves the spotlight. can fake cry and WILL to get out of a parking ticket or teach someone to watch their tone or even simply for the theatrics of it all. the Most dramatic………….. rly fits being an actress like when people find out what she does it’s very like oh that makes sense.

says she doesn’t get hangovers. she’s just like “i revoked that it doesn’t happen to me”. alludes tht this is bc she’s an all powerful deity that was Chosen to be Blessed bt really she’s jst great at bouncing back n acting fine even w a blistering headache. it’s about believing the performance so much that u even convince urself.

has an extremely elevated sense of self importance bc this is kind of the equivalent of several layers of bubble wrap to cushion her frm the world. strives to b extraordinary bc ordinary honestly feels like a death sentence n there’s nothing she’d want to b seen as less. despite this weight she puts on that she rly doesn’t tend to let ppl’s opinions affect fr the most part like she’s quite firmly set in this I’m Literally The Most Gorgeous And Beautiful Angel Star Creature To Walk This Narsty Little Earth view

probably an incredibly big fan of dramatic short lived love affairs. she wants the glamour of it all. the scandal. the randomly breaking up w someone in a public place n sliding on sunglasses after delivering the words over a freshly ordered coffee (tht she’ll leave without drinking bc that’s star power babey she waits fr no man or no hot beverage)…….. has no preference gets w any n all regardless of gender……… romanticises things so they hv a better spin or story in her head n doesn’t rly take things seriously like jst has fun in her fantasy world…. she’s like ugh chuck i know u wanted to marry me but i’m a beautiful bird in a cage n u literally need to undo the latch n set me free……. the guy’s like……. my name’s chase n we’ve only been on two dates….. willa’s like…… please don’t take this so hard i can tell ur besides urself but people r starting to stare……. gets up n leaves. no-one was staring. chase is confused n honestly probably semi concerned fr her welfare.

always has to b the hottest n most glamorous person in a grocery store…. probably goes to them when she doesn’t even need anything jst holding a basket nonchalantly over her forearm glancing over at a cashier in her wizard of oz corset seamed interpretation on a dorothy dress thinking he wants me soooo bad it’s not even funny….. seduces him over the check out counter jst for him to ask her to come back to his so she can lean back scandalised n cry “IS THAT THE KIND OF WOMAN U THINK I AM, PAUL?! YOU’RE A GHASTLY LITTLE MAN, YOU ARE….” with all the gusto of a telenovela. attracts the shocked glances of all surrounding elderly.

speaks fluent french. probably on her brief stint on tht reality show i mentioned earlier was like “ugh can you believe Deneurve of this guy?” n in her head was like this catchphrase is sensational it’ll catch on fast the twittersphere is abt to implode but it didn’t become a thing except for in a small isolated community. despite this she’s like “yeah it went viral….. go figure. just another day in the life.”

honestly like a lot of fun bt also a huge handful at the same time. keeps her real Serious emotions in a locked box bt is always overflowing w melodramatics n rly giving her all at the drop of a hat where Performing is concerned. probably Loves parties n sees them as another form of production in which she wants to b the lead. rly just. loves herself. except does she? 🤔 lifts my hand up like rihanna n winks. find out next time. lucky by britney plays as i slowly disintegrate in spiderman rp…..

WANTED CONNECTIONS

unrequited flame: willa burns thru people like matches. bright n fast. honestly i feel like she struggles to take romance seriously so it cld be fun to play around with someone who’s been singed by that in the past…. mayb they hd actual feelings whereas willa was just messing around n having fun…. living la vida loca so to speak…….. we can discuss a time frame or specifics to expand upon this but. sexy angst perhaps.

those she knew from childhood: willa moved to NY at 11 n i feel like it was very sudden n soon after the accident. maybe she didn’t even say goodbye. maybe they were rly close n all of a sudden she didn’t show up to school the next day n when they rode past her house on their bike the sign said sold and that was that. honestly very dramatic of her even at a young age. we love a disappearing act. houdini who?

acting rival: honestly jst feel like this cld be funny. willa’s so dramatic she’d be like i literally want them dead they’re a despicable little gremlin fr trying to steal my spotlight. cld be as simple as having auditioned a few times fr the same parts or something.

childhood sweetheart: i think it cld be rly cute n sad if there was someone that kind of echoed the dynamic her mum n dad had except she was the celeste n they were the marlon…. (open to any gender)…….. so like. willa was always very larger than life commanding attention in a room n they were more to the sidelines but they just kind of got each other n brought out the best in one another. added angst to the fact tht willa wld maybe want to avoid them as much as possible now bc it dredges up feelings she doesn’t want to confront where her parents r concerned n also in a way any possibility of them winding up together feels like sellotaping an expiration date to both of their foreheads in willa’s brain

someone who was either a fan of or also on the reality show willa was: i imagine it like a reinvention of the hills honestly except based in these irving beach houses…. probably didn’t run that long bt there was a bunch of drama on it mostly staged…… maybe they were willa’s love interest bt it was all fake fr the cameras…… it wasn’t like. a huge deal n didn’t rly catch flight so much where popularity’s concerned bt. cld be fun to play with <3

patti frands: jogs in high knees to translate that into party friends as i adjust my spectacles. willa’s very sociable bt she’s also like kind of full of herself n obnoxious so do with that what u will. KFHGKSHGKGHFSKG. she knows hw to have a gd time tho like growing up she was rly into the gay club scene n the drag scene in NY so like. let’s hear it fr the gays who know how to do it right <3

someone equally over the top: i luv the idea of willa having someone who just like runs with made up scenarios n roles she makes up on the spot n them hanging out is like a 24/7 improv session tht they reel random surrounding strangers just fr the fun thrill

the other woman: willa is quite detached n selfish so she wld easily be the other woman in a relationship n not care about it n this cld make for good spice <3

[filo-academia]

ooo for the character ask you rbed awhile ago, could i ask for sigma or yosano? thank u :)

hiiii! thanks for the ask. your choice of characters is really nice! i'll try my best to lay out my opinions here, but i don't think i'll be able to give you some for yosana bcs i am not that confident with my opinions on her ;;; anyways, i'll go with sigma first~

 • Why I like them 

Sigma is simply not unlikable. It’s just the vibes he gives when he is in his own habitat (e.g. the casinio), he really was so confident there and I just… I’m weak for that kind of vibe. And also, his duality, like despite looking confident, he’s an anxious and desperate little thing. But most importantly, his sense of morality. I don’t know, he crosses the boundaries of the popular argument of nurture vs nature. Even when he was dumped into the world without any family or ties or purpose, it looks like he intuitively knows that his purpose is not bound for killing (remember: he didn’t ever want to stab Taneda-sensei. He was only driven by DoA’s mission.) There might be underlying reasons why, and honestly, I’m still looming over it through headcanons and theories (but for now I am focusing on Nikolai and Fyodor, so Sigma baby have to wait). Sigma just wants something that would define him, or make him feel like he belong. Hence, why he was so desperate to protect the casino because his identity is tied to it. If he loses it, what would he be? Of course, Fyodor nails it on the part that he knows what Sigma wanted – a home and a purpose. Also, he’s really kind to his customers to a point that he gives them a second chance in every game by sabotaging the game himself, lol. (And memorizing his clients’ numbers and needs.) That’s some high level of service right there. So yeah, he’s just overall precious. 

 • Why I don’t 

Who doesn’t like Sigma, let’s talk. Okay, honestly, I don’t think he is ever culpable for not being able to get out of Decay of Angels. The strong reason would be because it’s the only place that provided him home, security, safety, and identity. He’s deeply tied to the organization because of that. And yes, because he experiences what it feels like to be a stray, and to stay in prisons, and he doesn’t ever want to go back there. So yes, I don’t have any reasons why I don’t like him. For me, there’s simply not any. 

 • Favorite episode (scene if movie) 

Since we still don’t have Season 4 yet, so I’m going substitute manga panel/s for it. Though idk why I can't insert photos when answering this ask. Is there a new Tumblr update for the features? I think there was, but anyways, I'll just going to verbalize it. Most of my favorite manga panels of him are those where he's the most vulnerable, like that time he gave up in front of Atsushi and that one where he slipped off Atsushi's grip. It makes me want to hug him ;;; 

 • Favorite season/movie 

I’ll just substitute this is favorite arc in the manga. Of course, the current Decay of Angels arc where he appears the most. 

 • Favorite Line 

Sigma has said some lines that really resonates so much, but I will just cite one that sticks out to me. 

 “Hey, somebody tell me, can’t an ordinary man be forgiven for wanting to protect what’s important to him?” 

 • Favorite outfit 

The one he’s wearing, of course! Sigma’s character design is really interesting. The fact that he’s wearing heels and earrings is so groundbreaking. And also, Harukawa-san snapped when they made him have a galactic design in the interior of his coat. And his turtleneck! I really love the fact that he wears a turtleneck underneath, because strip him off other layers and leave him in that turtleneck and slacks, imagine the power he would have. I think it won’t be a stretch to say that Sigma is one of the characters in BSD with Best Character Design. 

 • OTP 

I know GogSig is a known rarepair with Sigma involved, and yes, I have written it at some point – mind you, it’s the fic with my highest word count – but I’m not totally knee-deep in the ship. But I have encountered a rarepair fic before of Chuuya x Sigma, and when it flashed in my mind the potentials of that ship, I do think it’s nice! Kinda has the same vibes with ChuuAtsu, hence why I’m here for it. 

 • Brotp 

I wanted to put Sigma x Atsu in OTP, but I realize I see them more as siblings/best of friends. I don’t know if that counts as Brotp. 

 • Headcanon 

Not much, but I hc Sigma as asexual and nonbinary. And also, I don’t think he’s scared of insects.

• Unpopular opinion 

People sometimes call him Fyodor's OC but I don't really think that's the case. Maybe, my point here is un-improved and I must have totally missed other information in the manga (so correct me if I did) but I do think that Sigma isn’t made by Fyodor. He woke up in a dessert, right? Three years ago (as of documented so there's a possibility of something before three years ago.) But the Decay of Angels only obtained a page in consequent to the happenings of Sunday Tragedy, and the events all rolled over quickly from the moment ADA was framed. (And the casino was made 8 days prior to Skyfall.) Besides, Fyodor fetched him up from a prison which might indicate that Fyodor must have only heard of him, and that there might be someone else who made him. But is it actually canon that Fyodor admitted to making him or I totally have forgotten that part? My memory is so wack sometimes, I’m sorry. And also if people only dubbed him as Fyodor's OC as a joke, forgive me for not understanding ;;; 

• A wish 

I wish Sigma will be with ADA at the end. He just suits to be there, and since BSD has this way to perpetuating patterns like Oda adopted orphans and influenced Dazai by taking in and helping Atsushi, so it is my own wish that such would also influence Atsushi to take in Sigma. Though he already basically had done it by initiating to recruit Kyouka into ADA, but can Sigma be the other one? Please. 

• An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen 

That Sigma would die when he would touch Fyodor to extract information from him. I think it’s pretty much hinted that Fyodor can control his deadly ability but, like, if he knows that Sigma is getting used by Nikolai just to know about his ability, it’s scary for me to think that he would kill Sigma upon the moment of contact. Well, it’s only a theory, so I desperately hope there are other ways to know about Fyodor’s ability without having to possibly kill Sigma in the process. He deserves a character arc with a happy ending! 

 • 5 words to best describe them 

 Precious, soft, desperate, must protect 

• My nickname for them 

I like calling him “Sigma baby~” in a way to indicate that he’s a baby. 

 As for Yosano, like what I said, I am not so confident with my opinions of her ;;; except that I DO LIKE HER and I ship her with Kouyou. 

 Anyways, that's all~ ah, i hope my answer isn't too bland or too explosive either. ;;; i hope it reached your standards ;;; but really, thank youuu! it was fun to talk about sigma. i always have time to talk about sigma huhuhuhu

[pynkhues]

You (and others) analyze this show to death. I’ve never seen it for a show before & I’ve been a part of a few fandoms. I read all of this analysis & I can’t help but wonder if a) sometimes it’s overkill & there isn’t ALWAYS a deeper meaning to everything & b) should a show constantly be open to such interpretation & analysis? It’s enjoyable to some extent but when you’re having to so deeply analyze everything that happens bc it’s so ambiguous some of the joy of watching is lost (at least for me)

I‘m the anon that just sent an ask about analyzing the show. I ran out of room but want to say it was not meant to offend or belittle everything you do in the fandom! You give some great insight and food for thought but sometimes I’d just like the show to be DIRECT so we aren’t always left wondering and having to ask people for clarification. It’s probably my own issue and maybe I should reconsider watching but (so far) I’m still trucking along!

Ah, haha, that’s okay, anon! I didn’t think you were offending or belittling at all. :-)

I totally get that it’s not for everyone. 

I guess for me personally, it’s the way that I grew up? I’ve talked about it on here before, but my sister’s a costume designer, so I’ve constantly got her voice in my head whenever I talk about that side of the show, haha. What I haven’t talked about before is that I grew up on game show sets across Europe because my dad created a (very) modestly successful one that sold there in the 90s, and my mum is a (highly underpaid, haha) nature documentary filmmaker, so stories have been a huge part of my life from the time I was very, very young. 

I have a creative practice myself too in writing everything from short fiction, to screenplays to books, but I’ve also worked as a researcher for TV shows before, teach creative writing, have a film criticism podcast with a friend, and freelance to be able to pay my rent as what is (very unglamorously, haha) called a ‘document writer’, where I interview SME’s (or subject matter experts) who might be scientists, tradesmen, LGBTQI or disability advocates, lawyers, etc. and basically write things on their behalf that can be made accessible for varying degrees of education levels, including often in pictorial form. 

In other words, breaking down stories is what I do for a living - in many shapes and sizes, and it’s something I love doing very deeply. I love to untangle a story to find cause and character and intent - because it’s always there in some shape or form - no matter the story, and I love to have other people help me to untangle it, and hopefully sometimes help other people in that same way. 

And I love that because I really strongly believe that stories aren’t a passive stream of entertainment. They’re not presented to be uniformly enjoyed, nor are they just told to us. Stories are a conversation. They’re offered in a way that can be experienced on their own, but leave room for interpretation, and are also enriched by context - both the context of those creating it, and the context those consuming the story bring, by social conventions and historic trappings, and personal histories too. 

What makes film and TV so unique, is that there are a lot of people contributing to those stories. 

There are in other mediums too, of course, but film and TV in particular have so many different voices that are in conversation with one another - from the different writers and directors to the costuming team, art department and set dressers, lighting team, and editors and composers. Across a season, each episode at least will have regular HOD meetings (or heads of department - at least that’s what they’re called in Australia, haha) who come together to talk about the intent of each and every scene, if not moment, what they’re saying about characters, what the role of each department is doing, to say nothing of course of the actors. 

One of my favourite film theory books says it plain and simple: 

“Everything you see on screen, someone has put there deliberately.” 

Nothing is magicked up, and if everything is there for a reason, then that thing is ripe to be plucked for analysis. 

But to answer your questions, haha

a) is it overkill sometimes? 

Yeah, for sure. I think a lot of the discussion around trying to identify a plausible timeline around this show proved that, haha. This show’s always been one that’s sacrificed that sort of narrative logic for a different purpose - namely a certain pace and tone that feels right for the sort of show that it is, and that’s okay, but it certainly meant that a lot of our trying to make sense of it became a little redundant. 

With visual interpretation - again, yeah, I think so. There was so much conversation for instance about Beth’s sudden necklace change from the gold bar to the shell during s2 before someone more in the know than me, haha, said that Christina / one of the costume team members had broken it, and they’d had to replace it quickly.

So yeah, sometimes it’s too much, but also - - 

I don’t know.

I think a lot of it’s deliberate too, and I know I enjoy exploring it :-)

b) should a show constantly be open to such interpretation & analysis? 

That’s a really interesting quetsion, anon, and to be perfectly honest, I think the answer to that will be subjective, and depend entirely on how you like to consume TV and, more specifically, how you like to consume this particular TV show.

While I do think Good Girls is a show that deliberately leaves itself open to interpretation and offers a lot in implicit visual storytelling that makes it a rich show to mine, I also do think it's one that has unneccesary narrative gaps sometimes and, to use an exceptionally dated expression, haha - it can sometimes throw the baby out with the bath water. It’s eternally fascinating to me, because it’s a show that is so detailed and so careful in some respects, and yeah - I mean - - hmm. I wouldn’t say careless in others, because I don’t think it is, but I do think it makes narrative sacrifices to serve the pacing and overall narrative thrust in a way that doesn’t pay off for audiences, and fails to serve the wonderful, compelling characters it’s created in the way those characters deserve. 

I also though do think though that it’s a show that can be entirely enjoyed on a surface level.

My best friend is a NICU nurse, and has very limited time for TV and doesn’t do this sort of analysis at all, haha, and she’s watched the show twice through with me - the first time I made her watch it, and the second time, she made me! - and she just enjoys it a lot as it’s offered without any sort of interpretation and analysis (she does always offer a chorus of ‘fuck Dean’ though, of course, haha). She takes it for what it is, and just enjoys the ride, and based on a lot of the show’s social media following, I think a lot of people do. 

I guess what I’m saying is you’re not wrong at all! And also, you choose how much you engage and how you consume a story. The analysis and interpretation will always be here, hopefully to enrich your viewing experience, not subtract anything from it, and you can do whatever you want with that. And that should be true of any story you consume! 

I mean - - take Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night for example – an excellent comedic play about a pair of twins where the boy is lost at sea, and the girl washes up on the shore and poses as her brother to save herself, before her brother shows up alive at the end. (Yes, it is what the Amanda Bynes’ She’s the Man movie is based off of, haha).

You can just enjoy the fun, funny, compelling play as it’s offered, or you can watch it knowing that Shakespeare had twins of his own - Judith and Hamnet, and he wrote it just after Hamnet died at just 11 years old of the plague, and see it instead as Shakespeare writing himself out of a personal tragedy, imagining his son taken from him, and then breathed back to life in a way he never would be in reality.

Stories aren’t created in vacuums.

In a lot of ways, they’re living, breathing things, and I think that’s what makes them interesting and important and a vehicle for compassion and escapism and fun, and I don’t know. 

I love analysing them, and exploring them, but it’s more than okay if you don’t, or if you do, or if you do in small doses. We create our own experiences of stories.

Like I said above - it’s a conversation. :-)

[ambitionsource]

First question: do you have more details on the family lives and back stories of the techies that you could tell us (or we will see)?

i can definitely talk about my fave crew of misfits! i’ll say i don’t think we’ll see much more detail about any of these family dynamics during ep runtimes, just because there’s already so much we’re trying to fit in and not enough time in the world (even tho yes we technically make the rules and can do whatever lol, but es and i do try to adhere to as realistic a tv structure as possible! it feels tighter structured that way)

so quickly i’ll just address dylan and asher, who are not as much mysteries as the other four techie tots just bc we’ve spent a little more time with them. i’m going to be exploring and introducing more of their family and those dynamics throughout the course of the dasher fic, so hopefully after a while they’ll feel as familiar as the rest of the front nine does in terms of their home lives. the short version is that asher is part of a nuclear family and is relatively well-off (they live comfortably, let’s say, given that his dad is an architect and his mom a tenured professor), and he gets along well with his sister lily. dylan lives with his dad and younger brother grant, and his mom passed away from cancer when he was about 6 - 7. his brother has resentment / a bit of a rivalry towards him that is pretty one-sided, but they do get along all things considered. dylan is very close with his dad. their family is firmly middle class and this doesn’t change until dylan starts bringing in substantial youtube coin at the end of high school.

jade is upper middle class and takes pride i think in leading a relatively average, calm life. she was raised by both parents, who are still together, and have a pretty stable marriage although they’re not the most romantic duo. this is where jade gets a lot of her realism from, not as prone towards romanticism or dreaminess even though she does like romance and would like to experience it one day (and can’t help but romanticize nigel). she is a middle child, with one older brother (ethan, 2 years older) and two younger brothers, jacob (3 years younder) and cody (6 years younger). this is part of why she is able to deal with the techie boys so well. overall she gets along very well with her family, and she’s lucky that her parents are highly supportive of her ambitions. her mother in particular loves her talents, because she’ll often make clothing items for her as gifts and then she can tell her friends when they ask about it that it’s “a one of a kind.” they’re definitely proud of her!

nate, as previously discussed, is low income. he lives with both parents but hardly sees his dad because he’s always out late working and exhausted when he gets home. he has two younger siblings, who he has a good relationship with but can often get sick of because of how often he’s asked to help babysit + entertain them when he’s a teenage boy and just wants to be doing whatever on his own time. so he’ll grumble a lot about his family, but he really does love them at the end of the day (despite mixed feelings about his dad, even though he knows how much he has to work isn’t his fault). because of having less disposable income, nate is the most money conscious of the techies for reasons other than being obsessive by nature (like asher). he in some ways thinks of himself as a hack in the aaa system (sort of like lucas, although not at all the same), because although he did have lots of interest in audio mixing and sound design and applied because of that, a major part of him applied to aaa just to see if he could get in and on scholarship. he never thought he actually would get in. although he’d never admit it, being admitted to aaa and meeting the techies was a very grounding and confidence-boosting moment in his life and helped put him on the right path for the future.

jeff is the second most secure financially of the techies after asher, though not too far ahead of jade. he is the youngest of three children, both already in college, though during S1 his sister was a senior at quincy high. his parents are arguably the most stable and truly romantic of all the techie parental units, giving him a realistic yet optimistic understanding of what a relationship is supposed to look like. his father has shares in a local community theater in brooklyn, and he’s highly involved in it, so jeff has been growing up around that world since he was a toddler. his siblings both had stints as actors in the local productions, and while jeff was never personally interested in performing, he loved hanging around the sets and observing the technicians. he started shadowing in the technician’s booth in middle school for extra credit + community service, but his mom noticed he had a real interest and knack for it, so it was her idea to research arts school and put him on track towards aaa. jeff is also the techie who has the best balance between aaa life and his former friends and community, as his main friend group is still predominantly his middle school friends which allows him a healthy detachment and outlet from the chaos of aaa that’s always ongoing.

dave, even to the rest of the techies, is a bit of a mystery. not in a purposeful way, like lucas, but simply because that’s how he is. he’s about dylan’s level of income, living with his mother in a cozy apartment in brooklyn. his parents are divorced, as they split when he was in elementary school, but the dynamic is amicable. his father was the more wealthy of the two, and his child support payments are what really keep the two of them afloat, but it never occurs to dave to grow bitter thinking about how he could give them more (as the other techies might be inclined to do). as far as dave is concerned, it is what it is. he spends weekends / vacations often with his dad in massachusetts where he now is settled down. although his home is far from the most lavish or exciting locale, the techie tots will hang out at his place relatively frequently, second to the orlandos as the go-to hangout spot. this is because there’s a den room that they can basically take over, and dave’s mom is usually home late because of work so they can kind of take run of the place. dave’s den is also the place the group of them will go if they wanna take some risks, like smoke weed now and then. although dave’s mom is still sort of distant from the group of them (not an agreed upon Group Dad, like randall orlando), she’s friendly with all of them and is always welcome to seeing them around when she comes home. dave’s presence at aaa is as much of a mystery as anything else -- he’s a great guitar player, and has always had a penchant for building and piecing things together, but no one can get a clear read on why he decided to apply to aaa, or what his application was like, or what he’s hoping to get out of the place. as dave once said, “sometimes, you just gotta go with it.”

-- Maggie

[shanxy180]

guess who made an entire cast of characters(?) that are related to each boss ghosts somehow.. It’s mee

Though I’m kind of thinking of changing some designs but thats for another day bc this took forever fsndjkfnskj

snkjfnsd Anyway, yea I made a couple good kids/teenagers that are all related to the lm3 bosses, information about each kiddo below..!

Sadie  - The cousin of Steward, younger by a couple years. Perhaps 17-19 years old.  - Acts like a mix of both “responsible adult” and “nervous teenager that doesn’t know what they’re doing”.  - She’s responsible, likes to plan ahead and is hard working, but when faced with something new or unfamiliar she cracks and nervously tries to get through it.  - She originally wanted to go to nursing school, but couldn’t pursue it due to her death.  - Died via car accident, she was crossing the road when a vehicle suddenly lost control and ran her over.

Claude  - The son of Chambrea, somewhere around 14-15 years old.  - The quiet, kind hearted (former) mama’s boy that’s nervous but tries his best.  - Has picked up the habit of nibbling on things while lost in thought.  - Can act very nervous and shy around people,  - He’s jolly and loves to giggle and chuckle, ends up in a 2 minute giggling fit if something really makes him laugh. And really likes to make other people laugh.  - Also likes to hug people he enjoys, or at least let people know that he cares about them, if he’s not being sheepish.

Korey  - The daughter/child of Kruller, 16 years old.  - Is a huge dork, obsessed with comic books and cartoons, sometimes for video games and movies.  - When not nervous about her interest and around people, she likes to ramble about her topics and get really deep into discussions about her interests. And often gets passionate when speaking.  - Has a fear of bats, loves the color purple, she’s a bit of a sensitive person, snorts when they laugh, and likes to collect marbles and coins they find.

Alexandre Soulfflé  - The son of Chef Soulfflé, around 17 years old.  - Kind of an awkward and bitter guy, dripping with sarcasm and a bit of sass.  - He’s a decent cook, knows a couple recipes and some of the things he makes can actually be super tasty.  - He also has a weak spot for animals, loves to draw, knows a lot of french vocabulary, has a slight accent and is just the smallest bit touch starved.  - Though he’s insecure about a couple things about himself, and prefers to keep some things a secret.

Thomas Wolfgeist  - The son of Amadeus Wolfgeist, somewhere around 16-17 years old.  - A grumpy, sarcastic guy, not really that sociable but at the same time lowkey wants friends, and is slightly emotionally distant.  - Has a temper, although not as bad as his fathers, he can still snap and yell at people who frustrate and/or annoy him for long periods.  - Likes attention and receiving compliments, not too big on criticism but will take that to improve if he must.  - Plays piano very well, knows a couple songs but can’t play overly complicated or fast ones.  - Has a mild fear of bugs, not so much when on the ground or distant from him but absolutely hates when one is crawling on him, also knows how to speak german, but he rarely does.

Queen/Princess Drew MacFrights  - The daughter of King Macfrights, 17 years old.  - Has a fiery and aggressive personality, loves to have battles and being active overall. Is decently strong and a good leader, but rarely ever thinks before doing or saying things and is impulsive.  - She’s also stubborn, doesn’t think much on what other people feel, and can be ignorant at times. But, she still cares for a lot for her friends and family, knows when to tone down her edge (sometimes), and can be a supportive and lovely friend. - Is really good with weapons and fighting in general, she’s decently strong and knows how to defend herself.

Fiona Potter  - The granddaughter of Dr. Potter, around 15-16 years old  - Is a really sweet and caring girl, loves to make others happy and is overall very understanding and friendly, but also is a doormat and can’t tell when someone’s her friend or is taking advantage of her.  - Loves plants as much as her grandfather, used to have a small venus flytrap/piranha plant like flower that she took care of but has sadly been overwatered by a house sitter at the time.  - Is a part time bookworm, and has a book on plant care on her and even though she has read it hundreds of times, it’s still a very good pass time.

Micheal  - The son of Morty, around 16-17 years old.  - Has a very passionate and caring personality, he loves to be dramatic and give scenarios a certain flair.  - Always has his notebook and sketchbook on him, along with a couple supplies, he loves to write notes and sometimes doodle about stuff he sees, experiences, etc.  - Basically very creatively driven and is very jolly, although naive.  - Is a very good actor, loves to watch movies and sometimes dreams of being able to record things he’s done and make some “vlogs” of himself for fun.

Oogh - Daughter of Ug, 17 years old.  - Grumpy and judgemental of everything and everyone she sees, though if gained her trust, she’ll only be grumpy. With the slightest hint of sass.   - New thing? Must smash. New person? Must be danger, must smash. Always keeps her wood club with her for smashing.  - Barely knows english, but understands body language and facial expressions enough to know when people aren’t gonna harm her.  - Prefers to be left alone, being used to it for a long time. But has since grown a little bit sociable after meeting the others.

Cathy - Youngest niece of Clem, 15-16 years old.  - Very outgoing and very friendly, laid back and carefree but also wouldn’t hesitate to gently bully her friends or roughhouse for a bit.  - Had at least 3 other brothers and 1 sister, she’s younger than all of them by a couple years.  - Has enough sense to know when something’s a bad idea but will still do it for a dare or simply for fun.  - Sometimes acts difficult on purpose and likes to annoy people for fun, but of course she knows when to stop and actually try to be helpful.  - “Cathy” is actually short for “Catherine”, but she thought that sounded too boring so she mostly goes by the nickname.

Atuumb  - The son of Serpci, around 17 years old.  - Acts like a serious, no funny business and dull kind of person, but is actually a pretty chill and calm guy, he loves to make friends, talk to people, he’s very curious and loves to figure out new things. Though if his buttons are pushed too far he can get upset.  - Even found his prince/king status pretty boring, and having to act like a stuffy, refined and pretty formal person, always busy and secretly getting stressed. Lowkey he’s super glad he’s out of that situation  - But still, he keeps that sense of responsibility, even in death he still feels the need to be responsible for something or to keep busy/distracted.  - Has a love/hate feeling for “Life or Death” scenarios, traps, etc. On one hand it’s super fun but on the other he doesn’t want anyone actually getting hurt or killed.

Ebony Fishook  - Daughter of Captain Fishook, around 16-17 years old.  - Acts mostly like a feral pirate, being raised by pirates/sharks in the middle of the sea, stealing, pillaging, and mostly eating raw fish and drinking milk.  - She loves to use her sharp mouth on things, such as biting things she’s not supposed to eat (tables, chairs, etc.)  - She’s not much of a cook, or can clean all that well, being used to having others cook and do stuff for her. But, she can hunt for her own food, she has a great sense of direction, knows how to handle a blunderbuss and a sword.  - She’s rather excitable, and barely knows proper etiquette. But is very sociable, and just as long as you don’t upset or offend her, there’s a good chance she’ll want to be your friend.

Justin Deepend  - Nephew of Johnny Deepend, 16 years old  - He’s a pretty friendly and energetic kid, always eager to help and loves to get himself moving. Though since he can be so carefree he sometimes comes off as aggressive or uncaring.  - Is a bit self centered, competitive, and often doesn’t know his own strength, he also isn’t that bright. But, again! His heart is in the right place, and he’s always willing to make people happy.  - Has tried a variety of different sports but his two main ones were soccer and volleyball. Soccer was when he was much younger (around 7 years old), and volleyball when he was starting out in middle school.

DJ Tony  - The son of Dj Phantasmagloria (or simply Gloria), around 16-17 years old.  - Although he can get sentimental, he’s a pretty joyful and overall chill guy. He’s laid back, and takes things to stride. He’s very caring and sympathetic, a total softy.  - A huge sucker for music, any kind will do, just as long as it has a groovy beat and it’s something he can bop to. Sometimes loses himself in the music and ends up dancing to the song, totally unaware of everything.  - Despite being only a teenager, and him constantly having headphones around him, he’s a pretty good listener, so he’s nice to vent too and he even sometimes gives decent advice.

Hector Gravely  - The eldest son of Hellen Gravely, 17 years old.  - Is a huge fashionista, and loves to try on different outfits.. When he can.  - He’s a pretty quiet, albeit friendly character, when not in a bad mood, he can be clever and a pretty good friend.  - Is a bit of a spoiled bitch, he’s mostly used to being pampered and having other people do his things. Being complimented and having lots of money. All that.

[comicteaparty]

June 10th-June 16th, 2020 Reader Favorites Archive

The archive for the Reader Favorites chat that occurred from June 10th, 2020 to June 16th, 2020.  The chat focused on the following  question:

How does poor web design affect if and/or how you read a particular webcomic?

carcarchu

it's a huge factor. if a comic is amazing in every way but the website or app makes it difficult for me to read i'm simply NOT going to read it. there are a lot of great series that i've put on the back burner just because the website is so annoying to navigate

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

i've honestly never run into a website so bad it stopped me from reading a comic i was interested in

carcarchu

FYI the worst comic app i've ever experienced is Aqua Kiss which I downloaded to read a single series. it's the most barebones app imaginable with no search bar. if you want to read something you actually have to manually load each calendar week to find it and some stuff are buried dozens of pages back. and to make matters worse it doesn't have a "history" or "bookmarks" feature either

Deo101 [Millennium]

The worst things with sites that I see often are 1: huge headers, and 2: laggy sites (not really site design, but its adjacent I think) Another is if the pages are too big on the screen, so you can't, for instance, see some panels all at once. Those kinds of things can really ruin a reading experience for me

carcarchu

One example of a website that is hostile to the reading experience is ZMYK which for some reason hosts vertical scroll comics but cuts them up into little pieces as if they were comic format so you can't actually scroll through the entire chapter as it was intended to

That kind of thing grinds my gears so much how can something you have to pay for be that incredibly bad

Deo101 [Millennium]

I've also seen some sites that have graphic design issues, where elements are illegible due to their color, and some have very busy and distracting backgrounds. Those kinds of things won't necessarily ruin it, but they're distracting

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

forward comic's website was doing this weird thing where the further I read the longer pages took to load. Near the end it seemed they were taking 10 full seconds. Still read the whole thing though. Reading manga on shady sites with terrible internet connection as a kid has desensitized me

Oh one comic I was interested in but didn't read because of the site: I was kidnapped by lesbian pirates from outer space. It doesn't have a website. To read it you have to pirate (hehe) copies of the archive.

It's a pretty sad story- the author was young and tricked into giving up the rights to her series

She ended up taking the site down to prevent the company from getting any more money off of it

https://rosalarian.tumblr.com/post/65353128180/its-with-extreme-sadness-that-i-announce-that-my

Here's her post about it

I think it can be a good warning message to us

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

For me, the biggest thing that deters me from reading a comic is if the website isn't well optimized for mobile (as someone who reads a lot on the go). This includes the images loading bigger than the page, or navigation being hidden on mobile, or glitchy scrolling, or any number of ungodly things. Also, too many ads. That'll turn me away in a heartbeat.

Deo101 [Millennium]

Yeah ads are definitely a huge turnoff for me too

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

FYI the worst comic app i've ever experienced is Aqua Kiss which I downloaded to read a single series. it's the most barebones app imaginable with no search bar. if you want to read something you actually have to manually load each calendar week to find it and some stuff are buried dozens of pages back. and to make matters worse it doesn't have a "history" or "bookmarks" feature either

@carcarchu okay i just digested this comment and wtf

no search bar is laughably bad omg

how did you even find out about it

Deo101 [Millennium]

Yeah that's ridiculous hahahaha

carcarchu

it's a shame because there are genuinely good comics on there you can't read anywhere else?? and i found it because an artist i adore did a series for it but it got AXED after only 2 chapters and after that was pretty much scrubbed from the internet. i think it's a shame because it really had so much potential and it ended before the story was really able to start

it's a screenshot from the app. you can see that it is categorized reverse chronologically by week

the point of aqua kiss is to emulate monthly/weekly style manga magazines but in app form. however i think the execution of this idea was horrendous

SteffieMusings

Oh no! It must make reading there so challenging. As for me, if the navigation is so hard to understand/pages don't load properly when you click a link or when the website's colours hurt my eyes so much I can't stay there for too long.

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

Honestly nowadays most of the CMS's out there share the same basic functionality and adaptability, so it's getting harder to screw up on that. Most sites are OK, if only a bit laggy. If the site takes less than 2 seconds to load and it's not so crowded that I have to look for the comic, I'm generally good.

Erin Ptah (BICP | Leif & Thorn)

How much bad/inaccessible web design I'll tolerate is directly proportional to how much I care about the comic.

I've dropped a couple series in the middle of the archive just because they changed the site design to screw up the tracking of bookmarking sites, so I would've had to figure out an alternate way to keep track of it, and it didn't seem worth the effort

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Oh yeah, I've totally had that happen too where I was deep into an archive, had taken a reading break for a month or two, and came back to find the urls had been updated and my spot was lost it isn't so bad if a comic also has an archive page, but ive stopped reading a few stories that it would have been too hard to track down where I was.

DaeofthePast

I haven’t had to experience weird websites in a while, but I do sometimes go to an unknown website to read the comic/manga I’m looking for. Mostly what I’ve had trouble with is unnumbered chapters, of that it’s unclear where/how to start reading in general.(edited)

Like, I get to the page for that specific comic and then there’s no easy “start reading here” button anywhere

And when I do find the chapters list, I don’t know which end of the list is the beginning bc it’s unnumbered

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Is a "First page" button enough or are you looking for a "new readers start here" button? (<- is redisigning her page)

DaeofthePast

Is there a difference? :0

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

hm, sometimes yes.

Some old running comics have different jump-on points (schlock mercenary for example).

DaeofthePast

Ooh I see

Well when I first go on the site, I just want to start reading so idk

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

So, I always try to read every comic that's featured in the book club all the way through. Like even if I don't particularly like the opening, or if the comic is thousands of pages long, or I don't have time to meaningfully discuss the comic, I do try to at least give the comic a fair shake by reading through the entire archive. There have been four exceptions. One was because of content (it was a gag a day comic, and the content was SO horrible for SO long that I just couldn't stand it anymore. real "punching down" type of humor). Another was because the comic was literally deleted before I could get to it. The remaining two were because the site design/organization were so awful that the comics were unreadable. One of the two comics had a custom built, hand-coded site (I assume), and it just... didn't work properly. Like the "previous" button seemingly took you to a random page, the "next" button and the "latest" button led to the same place, etc. I'm not sure the creator ever bothered to test the site. The other one used some pre-built stuff, so it was ok... but you had to scroll to the top of the page to go to the next page. Not only that, but the author was posting all their comics to the same archive - which means one page would be the comic that was actually meant to be read for the book club and the next few pages were a completely different comic entirely. And this wasn't a gag-a-day either - it was a story based comic, so the three action minimum to get to the next page made things absolute hell to keep track of.(edited)

DaeofthePast

Wow

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Uff, yeah, that sounds horrible.

Nyx+Nyssa's page is currently a barebone mess, but I made at least sure the navigation works. :/

DaeofthePast

Having the comic be deleted while you’re reading it sounds like such a weird experience lmao

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

i mean, it wasn't thanos snap style lol

DaeofthePast

Was the website gone too or?

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

it was in between days

nah the website was still there, it's just that the author had decided to reboot their comic and forgot that they had submitted it to the book club

DaeofthePast

Oh okay I imagined Thanos snap style

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Not really a design but a site thing: I can't do comics without an archive of some sort. On platforms like Tapas or WT, the episode list serves that purpose perfectly fine. I personally need to be able to see how many pages there are, and I need a way to go to specific pages easily. It might sound like a small complaint, but it's a big thing for me! There have been comics that piqued my interest, but once I saw that there was no archive of any form, I left forever. Sure, I might be missing out, but there are also lots of good comics out there that have accessible archives. My life isn't long enough to read them all, so I'm letting myself be very picky.

copperine

I can manage a very basic site just fine. But if a site is hard to navigate, or just makes reading the page/getting to the next page difficult - I'd be likely to give up eventually. Doesn't matter about the quality of the comic, but if it's a chore to just read it, it's going to put me off after a while

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

I will note - if you want me to actually discuss your comic in the book club, please do have an archive link, and probably a cast page too. Like the lack of one doesn't stop me from reading entirely, but I can't discuss anything without being able to look back at specific moments. (and one of those archives that just has dates doesn't count - lemme know what the chapter is!)

copperine

For example - when I read webcomics on dA, I was absolutely fine with either the author having a dedicated folder with the pages in order. Another option was to link next and prev pages in the description. But if I had to go find each next page, I just wouldn't.

DaeofthePast

By an archive do you mean kinda like a chapters list?

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

A list of all the pages, ideally

That also list the chapters somehow

copperine

Short version: if I feel like I'm spending half as much time navigating the site as I am actually reading, it's gonna get old real quick

DaeofthePast

And same copperine. As long as it’s organized well, I will probably read it

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Like maybe you click on a chapter link to get to a list of the pages, or maybe it's just a list of the pages with the chapter names as headers

some sort of organization

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Yeah! (I admit my own comic's archive page isn't the prettiest, but it's 100% functional.)

DaeofthePast

I only have a chapter list so far ^^; idk how to go about getting an archive

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Chapter list is totally fine if your chapters tend to be on the shorter side

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

I like having chapter lists around, although coding them can be a handful Not sure if to go for an archive with thumbnails or just with page numbers though.

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

It's also workable if you also have like... a dropdown menu for individual pages on the actual pages? So it only takes 2 clicks to go to a specific page (first click to go to the chapter, second click to go to the page)

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

OH yeah, there was also a dA comic in the book club once that didn't have any next/previous buttons. However, it was a short comic - the bare minimum for getting into the book club - so I still read it all the way through. But it was pretty annoying to do so. (it was also pretty obviously a fetish comic, but that's not really relevant to the discussion XD)

DaeofthePast

I want to post by scene so I’ll be dividing chapters like “chapter 3 part 1” to hopefully that will be better

copperine

I'll always take functional over pretty

DaeofthePast

Haha I’m not sure if I want to know the comic for that one

Also what is “punching down” humor?

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Like, the author was a straight man, and nearly every joke was making fun of people who weren't those things.

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

it's like making fun of people but

copperine

Yikes

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

you're intentially trying to put them down

that's punching down in my imo rip

DaeofthePast

Oh

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

yeah....

DaeofthePast

Well at least I know what to call it when I see it in the future ._.

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Like, occasionally I see a shitty joke in a comic and I keep reading because maybe the author improved (we do sometimes get comics with archives that date back decades in here) But this comic was just so consistently awful for so long that I couldn't stand it

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

oof that aint good

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Though that's kinda off topic lol

DaeofthePast

Oh yeah

So bad site design...

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Anyway, I don't really wanna post the examples of the comics I talked about in here cuz I don't wanna call anyone out

Actually, hold on, lemme check something

DaeofthePast

I feel I haven’t had too much experience with bad site designs, but I might have just forgotten(edited)

K

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

ok yeah

so, the comic where you had to scroll up to the top of each page to click to the next one, and the site was multiple comics alternating pages that made the story rough to follow

copperine

Oof yeah having to scroll up to click next won't stop me but it is a bother

DaeofthePast

I like having the next button both on top and the bottom, even if they update page by page(edited)

It just feels convinient

copperine

Yeah same

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Re: punching up/down, here's an overly simplistic set of examples: billionaires making fun of poor people is punching down. Poor people making fun of billionaires is punching up.

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

's good webdesign pattern for everything with continous content - e.g. blogs, web-novels, webcomics.

Ideally you have one on top, between content and comments and under comments

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

the comic that alternated storylines & required scrolling back up to go to the next page was Antibunny: http://vinnied.comicgenesis.com/d/20061002.html if you see that page I linked and click next a few times, there's no obvious distinction between the main story and the spinoff story (no, like, header change between the two, and the art style looks similar), so you can see how it'd be confusing to follow and the scrolling is just icing on the cake (it used to be even worse) the only reason I feel comfortable sharing that is because the author uploaded the comics to new sites, and fixed all those issues in the process: http://antibunny.net/

DaeofthePast

Oh nice. So they realized the problem

copperine

Aren't they in this server? Or am I thinking of another one

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Yeah, the author is in this server

copperine

I thought so

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Hence why he realized, because we told him that there was a problem during the book club

copperine

I'm not gonna take anything said here as a comment on anyway btw

DaeofthePast

It’s cool that submitting their comic to the tea party resulted in some good feedback :3

copperine

You love to see it!

It always makes me happy when webcomic community stuff helps people out, that seems like the ideal outcome

DaeofthePast

Yess

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

i agree on that yeee

DaeofthePast

It’s like having a friend point out a spelling mistake. Embarrassing but you can live with the knowledge that your work is now a little bit better(edited)

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

Yeah kinda off-topic, but I love it when the author of the comic for the book club joins the server. Like not only does it mean that the author could join in on others' discussions in the future (pay it forward 'n stuff), but... it's just really sad when I see a comic pop up in the book club and the author seemingly forgot they submitted it.

DaeofthePast

How long does it usually take to get to a comic? :0 that they would forget they submitted it?

copperine

I always hope I can help others out or support them, and I hope they feel the same

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

The book club had a very very long wait list in the past. These days, not so long.

DaeofthePast

And I guess if you submit a comic with a website, the people here can be your beta testers

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

what's odd is that five months ago, the wait list was six months but now, the wait list is two months y'all need to submit/resubmit your comics

DaeofthePast

I tried going to submit mine yesterday and the site doesn’t let me v.v says you’re booked for July

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

oh yeah, so it is

DaeofthePast

Maybe later :3

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

i guess Rebel doesn't want the queue to get too long

copperine

I would submit mine but I'm only at 10 pages and I believe you need to have 20 to submit

DaeofthePast

Ooh they have a minimum?

Gotta count my pages now

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

I mean it makes sense. Hard to discuss a comic that only has the cover for chapter 1

DaeofthePast

XD

Tru

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

"Let us dissect this cover image for an entire week"

DaeofthePast

It would be a hilarious April fools challenge

copperine

Idk I think it was 20 minimum?

DaeofthePast

shrug

copperine

@snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights) can you shed any light on this

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

The sign up form is where you would normally find that information.

copperine

... very good point

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

But the form is currently unavailable, and it's possible that Rebel might change the requirement when it becomes available again

copperine

Ah

Thank you for the heads up

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

FYI, https://comicteaparty.com/ is where the form will be available eventually

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

They accept resubmissions now?

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I def like arrows on the top and bottom of pages for sites to be more of a thing, as well as clicking the image for the next page too! Honestly there hasn't been a make or break, mainly preferences, and the most complaints i have are with the mobile formatting. I think most comics have been pretty solid in functionality that i've read, and it's clear that having their own website is becoming mainstream enough for there to be help, tips, and tricks to making it work!

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I definitely prefer if I can just click on the comic image to go to the next page especially for mobile.

copperine

Agreed!

Idk about resubmissions tho

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

... Wow. I absolutely HATE clickable images on mobile, because they usually mess with the pinch-zoom.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i've had sites that didnt have image click throughs and the arrow..... was like SO TINY XD

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Didn't think anyone would actually like it, so... huh.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i kept going back and forth

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

yeah, navigation needs to be bigger on mobile for safe tapping.

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Oh, re:resubmissions, I'm pretty sure you can if it's been long enough? I think @snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights) mentioned it recently as an option. But maybe a tangent for #general

boogeymadam

i dont mind the pinch zoom being a little more difficult from time to time cause usually the clickable image is worth it to me

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Same

boogeymadam

am also fond of sites that allow left/right arrows to let you move forward and back on desktop

mariah (rainy day dreams)

Mainly it's just for like Krispy said, reading on mobile and tiny next/previous buttons.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ye my dummy thicc fingers prefer the click through image for sure

ohh yes Boogey that too

boogeymadam

it took me hours of googling to find the very simple comicpress option to just turn that on on my site

copperine

Mmm I do like sites that allow pinch zoom though

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

I also prefer clicking on the image to go to the next page

mariah (rainy day dreams)

My fingers small, but still dummy T-T

copperine

It makes it easier to get a better look at the page

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

iweudhweiu Mariah XD

copperine

Especially if it's got smaller font

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

nyxandnyssa has a seperate navigation for mobile that's much bigger and skipping scene select to make tapping easier.

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I've had the hover text def bum me out for some comics, where you click the image and it just displays the text, then you gotta click the tiny next bar def killed me there

copperine

I've never had issues with pinch zoom affecting clickable images but I can imagine it would be annoying

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

but! never breaks me out of a comic for me to stop reading-! i persevere in the face of adversity XD

boogeymadam

i've never encountered a site so bad i couldnt continue reading. maybe stuff where i'd stop reading until i was less frustrated but i'd come back later.

DaeofthePast

That’s something I’ll have to consider for my site then

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I feel like Smackjeeves had a really obnoxious auto pitch & zoom before they updated most recently. I like when I can turn it off on my phone. I'd rather do it myself most of the time and let my phone try to auto it X')

DaeofthePast

I usually read on desktop more often than on mobile so it’s good to hear from other’s experiences

copperine

Idk I've never used a custom site yet

boogeymadam

same dae, except on tapas and webtoons!(edited)

comics with their own website i'll boot up my computer for a single update of

DaeofthePast

Even on webtoons I read on desktop

boogeymadam

omg your power, webtoons feels so choppy on desktop to me

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

im definitely lucky that our site got a mobile friendly version i remember the 'ol pinchy zoomz was tiresome on our site for sure

DaeofthePast

I get headaches from reading on my phone unfortunately :/

Idk what the difference is between reading mobile and on a desktop but my brain doesn’t like it

Like, I can text fine???? But reading a comic for some reason is like “no”

So yeah, comics on desktop for me

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ohh!! it could be the close proximity!

DaeofthePast

Ooh :0 maybe?

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i know i get motion sickness depending on how close/ far i am from screens

DaeofthePast

Maybe it’s something like that... :O

boogeymadam

whatever the reason sorry you get headaches and motion sickness from comics :'0

DaeofthePast

Every once in a while I’ll try again to read on mobile I never learn

boogeymadam

the only reason i dont like mobile is sometimes comics text is a combination of too small there and the font is hard on my dyslexia

DaeofthePast

Rip

boogeymadam

so i see if zooming in on my computer helps

DaeofthePast

The lesson here is that it’s good to have both mobile and desktop options

boogeymadam

yep :'D

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ohhh yea def agree. I know that feeling and i sometimes ... have a Time reading my own work XD (i admit it lol!!)

boogeymadam

sometimes my own comic is hard on my dyslexia for The Effect so i never have hard feelings with other comics

copperine

(brb)

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

ewiudhiwue the things we do AT WHAT COST XD

DaeofthePast

Asdfghjkl

Meanwhile I use the same font for everything

boogeymadam

wait im gonna generalize this more so it can be a party

DaeofthePast

Please post that on pillowfort so I can reblog it

boogeymadam

you can post it for yourself if you want dae!

i'm having a hard time logging on asdfgjh

DaeofthePast

Rip sure

copperine

Ah see I have both

Because hand lettering

It's great for feeling right for a comic but also eternally wondering if it's readable

DaeofthePast

Ooh yeah I guess that would count as both

What’s your comic btw :0

Wait, we’re supposed to be talking about website design right

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Yep! If it gets too off topic, you can always continue in another channel that's more fitting.

copperine

Ah sorry! Sure thing

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

Mobile is too small for me

DaeofthePast

Yeah

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

(oHHMYYGOSH BOOGEY XD)

boogeymadam

mm archives were mentioned already, and how it can really turn readers away to simply not have one at all? my favorite archive is https://www.vaingloriouscomic.com/comic/archive 's but i've seen some where they attempted an all picture archive and it backfired by just being a page of all empty boxes. this didn't deter me from reading it and it got fixed pretty quick tho~ mine is one of these and its a very chonky slowmoving page cause i uploaded the first 90ish as fullsized pictures. nobody's ever complained so idk if it's ever deterred anyone from reading but i know i gotta fix it someday.(edited)

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I really dont mind any kind of web design in particular though tbh. I prefer desktop sites but it’s fine if the design isnt great

DaeofthePast

Have you guys ever gone to a comic website (for a single comic) and the colors used in the background were so bright that it felt like they were blinding you to the point it was hard to read the actual pages?

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

My archive is down right now becayse it broke and I dont know how to fix it lol

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i def want a fully view-able archive but we're gonna be hitting 800 pages and i dont know how well that will work XD

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

But I have a navigation bar now

boogeymadam

u could have multiple pages of archive, krispy!

i'm starting a new page for chapter 2

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

Or dropdown menus

boogeymadam

but its probably important to have a dropdown if u have more than 1 page, yeah

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I want to switch to picture archives, but I haven't found a good plug in/way to get my word press to do it :( if anyone has recommendations...

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I wish I knew how to make dropdown menus

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

i'll have to bring that up ! we dont do the tech work for our site ( thank gosh seriously) but i love archives that show full pages

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

If I could make dropdown menus I would be unstoppable

copperine

I miss the drop-downs on SJ

boogeymadam

i feel like dropdowns are smth i pretty much only exclusively see on hiveworks comics

i wonder what their secret is,,,

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I’ve inspected the elements on so many hiveworks sites lol

I want to know

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

they use word press I think

for their comic sites

just have to do some digging with the site html and csss

copperine

Right click and inspect maybe...

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

Php stands for my Personal hell pit

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

if i could go undercover for yall i would XD

boogeymadam

also!! @mariah (rainy day dreams) i use elementor for mine

its not perfect and breaks like every time i update it but it works asdfg

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

... I'm currently writing a sparkling fresh wp-plugin for my page (comic easel wasn't doing what I wanted), but I am also a software dev who enjoys coding.

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

My template I use functions in mostly php and xml and its gibberish to me but functions so well I dont know how to improve it to have specific things I want

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

my knowledge with site design is basic at best lmao

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

wordpress is a bit special in that it does most things more complicated than strictly necessary.

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

but I do like fiddling with stuff

^that too lmao

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I know Shiza of osarilho is really good at web designing? she's made some beautiful work with her site!

boogeymadam

i want to ask shiza for more help but not before i have some money to pay her :')

she's helped me a lot already

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I can do html and css at the babiest level

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I'll check that out Boogey, thanks! Even if it does break X') And I guess I'll just make a note to start stashing money to hire shiza XD im definitely at the point where my site needs a general face lift, but I don't have the spoons for it.

boogeymadam

imo i've made some really pretty pges with it. it's a drag and drop that's excellent at galleries, but it doesn't like when you don't have even rows for some reason

the wordpress plugin, Elementor, i mean.

copperine

I've been wanting to try comicpress for ages

I just don't know where to start

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I'm gonna move over to #shop_talk for my response

copperine

I had someone who was gonna help me out but we lost contact so it's on the back burner

boogeymadam

OOPS yeah

copperine

But for websites in general I prefer to have one that feels very basic than one that feels too busy or crowded

I'm not a graphic designer at all lol

If I do try an independent site I'm planning to pay a coding friend to help me

DaeofthePast

yeah i have no idea what I'm doing when working on my site, it's kinda basic, but at least it looks nice

copperine

I just use a premade theme on my ComicFury site

It works and that's good enough for me so far

Oh I guess the other thing that would put me off reading a comic is if the site isn't formatted for mobile, and/or particularly if the site doesn't have adaptive formatting

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

same, but editted it hard core so it looks like it's own thing lmao

copperine

I usually read on my phone because my computer is where I work so I like to get off it for hobbies

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

but for me uh i guess mobile i try to read it either on tapas, webtoon or its own site

I find just clicking the page to the next one helps me a lot lol I don't do a lot of zooming

copperine

Mmm

copperine

It's personal preference a lot tbh!

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I like my comuter because its big

copperine

Valid

Mine is not

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

did anyone talk about paying me please you don't have to do that

copperine

Idk but you can pay me

Idk what for but

I'll take money

mariah (rainy day dreams)

I absolutely would have to if you made my site awesome X') work is work, and you should be paid for it

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

fair enough

Just send me a DM whenever you're up for that and lemme take a look at what you already have

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

I would hire someone to do web design for me but I dont have the funds & I dont wnat to make someone do work for me for free

sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead)

I've been meaning to set up my own website for a while now, since the collective i was originally hosting my webcomic with kinda fell apart, but it's so much work and i'm hella intimidated :'''D

copperine

@sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead) there's been some related discussion in #shop_talk and I believe @boogeymadam might be able to advise (I'm sure others can too but I'm going off the convo from earlier)

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

@sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead) depending on how much it is I can help you out

RebelVampire

Admin Reminder Remember this channel is for experiences as a reader first and foremost, so #shop_talk and #general are better if you want to discuss your own stuff.

DaeofthePast

thank you for the reminder :3

RebelVampire

I would say poor web design is something I have a complicated relationship regarding webcomics. On the one hand, outside of a site being 100% completely broken, I'm willing to sit through a lot to read. So in terms of affecting whether I read a comic the first time or not, there isn't much to say there. But it does affect how engaged I am with the comic. Cause if I can't easily go back to re-read a page, easily find things like character names, have to deal with extreme lag cause the host is garbage, have to deal with eye bleeding color schemes, etc. you can bet your bottom dollar 1 time is all that comic is going to get in terms of reading it. I can only subject myself to so much, and if I don't feel like reading a comic again because of the site itself, I'm going to quickly forget it in favor of comics whose sites don't make me cry. I do give more leeway to sites created by creators in many respects. But professional bigtime hosts like Tapas or Webtoons literally have no excuse for some of their garbage design choices. And some of their design choices are super duper garbage.

DaeofthePast

that's true yeah, there's a big distinction of the quality expectations between sites by small creators and those of big companies like Webtoons

RebelVampire

At the same time, though, I know from first hand experience that poor design choices are literally influenced by user data for bigger companies. So for every decision I consider stupid- at the same time they probably did the AB tests that showed crappy design A had better results for their conversion rates than user friendly design B.

keii’ii (Heart of Keol)

Which boggles my mind

I wonder if there's some kinda causation-correlation thing going on that the A/B tests could not detect accurately

boogeymadam

Rebel mentioned sites that have eyebleedy color schemes and I'm in the same boat; will read the comic, just will be turning down the screen brightness a looot. Sites that have a huge space of extremely neon background that distracts from the comic make me reluctant to read on the site, and I'll look for a mirror before trying. That white background of the 2 big comic hosting sites can at least be affected and turned dark by nightmode when needed, while nightmode doesn't work on half the bright comic sites I've tried it on. u-u

[fatrainbowmermaidunicorn]

Dear Jungkook (Jungkook x You) // Chapter 2

MASTERLIST

Summary : (I suck in doing summary, so yeah)

Jungkook, Y/N and Jae Eun are the best of friends. While Y/N is in love with Jungkook ever since she can remember, Jungkook founds himself falling in love with her cousin, Jae Eun when Y/N introduces them a year later.When both Y/N and Jae Eun move to the States, Jungkook tried to keep in contact by emailing Jae Eun. As the emails grew constant, Jungkook is sure he’s falling more in love with the Jae Eun that he got to know through their emails.Little did he know that all these while, Y/N is the one who has been emailing him back.

Y/N and Jae Eun has been living in the States for almost seven years now. Jae Eun has successfully become the queen bee that she always wanted, with her own little clique who worships her. Y/N has grown into her looks and self confident, turning her into a beautiful young lady, no longer akward and reserved,  who is easily loved by everyone she meets. She's kind, friendly and intelligent. The two cousins might seem like a polar opposite but despite what people might think, they are the best of friends.

"Yah, Y/N, is this really Jungkook?" Jae Eun stormed into Y/N's room one day during one her lazy days spend in bed, shoving her iphone right in Y/N's face. Y/N squint her eyes and saw an article about Bangtan, the current hit idol group in K-pop, attached with a picture of Jungkook and the rest of his members right in the center of it. Y/N knows everything there is to know about this particular group. Jungkook had mention on more than several occssions about his group and his members antics in their still on going emails and online chats.

"Ye...yes," Y/N looked up to see Jae Eun smiling with glee. She can sense something bad is going to happen. Its been seven years since Jungkook's name even crossed Jae Eun's mind, why is she asking about him this time?

"You are still keeping in touch with him right? Still emailing him?" Y/N nodded and earn a chuckle from Jae Min as she plopped down beside her on the bed.

"I cant believe it has been seven years and you are still emailing him! How do you even find time for that?" Jae Min questioned and scoot in closer beside Y/N. "How come you didnt tell me that he has become this hot shot celebrity? And look at him, he is really  hot " Jae Eun tapped her fingers on Jungkook's smirking face on her phone. Y/N just keep her mouth shut, not knowing what to say. She looked at the photo, yes Jungkook is handsome. Very much so, but that is nothing compared to his mind and the way he thinks that Y/N adore so much. She look over at Jae Eun who is gawking at the photo, mentioning something about how cute the rest of the other members are too. Y/N didnt think Jae Eun even remember who Jungkook is anymore. "Anyway, since we are going back home soon, I might as well continue to email him, dont you think? It will be weird when we meet him again and I look lost," Jae Eun ponders, more to herself than directing the question to Y/N. "He still has the hots for me right?" Y/N nodded her head when Jae Eun looks straight to her face. Its true, despite being in an internationally famed idol grouo, Jungkook still seem to be very much in love with Jae Eun. At least it seems like it in the way he write the emails to Y/N. Sometimes it breaks Y/N's heart knowing that all his sweet words are meant for Jae Eun, and not for her, although she is the one who has been telling him things and sharing her own experiences all this while.  "You can stop helping me now. Thanks for your help though," Jae Min who was busy scrolling through her phone didnt even notice the change in Y/N's face. Y/N just sigh, knowing there's nothing she can do. After all, Jungkook thought he is emailing Jae Eun and he is in love with Jae Eun.

Y/N's father had mentioned that they will going back home in about a week's time for the summer. They will be spending the whole season back at home and later, both Y/N and Jae Eun can freely decide if they want to come back to the States continue to theur studies or just permanently stay home. Since the business deal that he had come there for went through, there will be a lot of back and forth trip to the States so he figured its fine if Jae Eun or Y/N decided to stay there instead of their hometown. Y/N's father is never one to forced anything onto his children and always gives them options to choose from. Y/N is both nervous and excited to come back to her beloved hometown to the point she cant get a goodnight sleep for about a week before they did. The place where she spend all her childhood and created amazing memories. The place where her mother is born and buried. Where her parents fell in love. The place where she herself fell in love.

Apparently, seven years did nothing to change her heart. Boys come and go during her years in the States, trying to win her heart, she even go out with a few of them, trying her best to move on but nothing ever worked out. No one ever succeed in taking Jungkook's place. Maybe keeping constant communication with someone you want to get over is not a good idea.

It's true that she is still emailing him even after seven years. Jungkook was so excited when she first responded, and since Jae Eun didnt show any interest to actually even open her email up to this very day, Y/N just kept on replying. And soon the lies has gotten too deep and to big for her to stop. Their friendship had gotten so real, its not possible for her to just cut him off anymore. As time goes by, her conversations with Jungkook turns more honest, and she become more of herself and less pretending to be Jae Eun. They even do more than just emailing,  chatting on the messenger when they both have the free time.

Her emails with Jungkook are the highlights of her day. Jungkook, thinking that its Jae Eun who he's having all this meaningful conversation with, shares everything. His struggles as a trainee, his first performance, concert, tour, his favorite band, his daily activities, everything. Jungkook has constantly asked for a video call, or maybe a photo, wanting to put a face to the person he's been talking to. Y/N, trying her best to dodge the truth, always send him a photo of both herself and Jae Eun together and decline every video call that he made, saying that she's too shy. She make a silent pact to herself that one day she will reveal herself to Jungkook. Y/N guess she will never get the chance to tell him who she really is now since Jae Eun already told her that she will be emailing him herself until they get home. Y/N sat in front of her laptop, take a deep breath and open her chat to see if Jungkook is online. Fortunately, he is. She poised her fingers on the keyboard, taking a deep  breath before she starts her chat with Jungkook, for one last time.

Y/N: Dear Jungkook,

JK: Hahaha. Why do you always start off your emails and chat that way? But its cute. I like it

Y/N: Hahaha. Fine. Hey!

JK: Heyyy! Why are you on9? Isnt it late out there?

Y/N: yeah... Y/N: cant sleep. Y/N: and since ur on9, i want to tell u sumting

JK: wat is it?

Y/N: tq for still keeping in touch with me all these years. Ur emails and stories always made my day Y/N: I enjoy everything that we talked about. And I enjoy getting to know more about you Y/N: I'm glad our friendship didnt wilt just bcs we are far away from each other

JK: .... JK: I had fun talking to you too Jae Eun. JK: U know u r the highlight of my day. No matter how busy I am, I always look 4ward 2 ur reply JK: but... JK: why does it sounds like u r saying goodbye?

Y/N: :) Y/N: i gtg now. Need some zzzz Y/N: gdnite jungkook

Y/N slammed her MacBook shut without waiting for Jungkook's reply. She can already feel tears forming in her eyes but remind herself that there's no point in crying. She's not losing anything. Jungkook was never hers to begin with. This is just a favor for Jae Eun. Seven years might be a long time. One would think its long enough for maybe even Jungkook to fall in love with her, but during all those seven years, Jungkook's heart had always been Jae Eun's. She already know this very fact seven years ago when she started this whole mess, and now that her heart has fallen more deeply in love with Jungkook, she knows there is no one to blame but herself.

/////

After hours of flying, Y/N and Jae Eun finally landed back home. Jae Eun puts on her expensive sunglasses and let the assistants wheeled her numerous amounts of Louis Vuitton luggage while linking her arms with Y/N. Y/N just laugh at her cousin's antics and use her free hand to wheel her own single luggage. She only brought over the neccesities. Who needs a thousand pairs of heels? After all, this is home. She still has some things left in her old room, and knowing Jae Eun, she will probably dragged her for another shopping trip. Yet still, Jae Eun insisted to bring all the latest designer items that she owns, just in case she might need it.

"I'm a model, remember? I have to look good!" she reminded Y/N of the fact. The truth is, Jae Eun has only been doing some small scale modelling in the States and that is all there is, but to her, its a stepping stone to be the next Gigi Hadid. Y/N just chuckle at her bold statement. "And also, the future girlfriend of idol superstar Jeon Jungkook!"  Y/N's heart sank when Jae Eun mentioned his name. She had been restless during the whole flight. Will Jungkook be happy to see her? Does Jungkook think that she purposely stop keeping in touch with him? Will her heart be okay to see the boy she loves after seven whole years? Worse, can she take it when Jungkook dont even know he's been talking to her all this while?

It is a fact that Jungkook still very much likes Jae Eun. At least according to his emails, he still does. "I read some of the emails you guys exchanged. You know, to fill me in. But I skipped all the boring part! And boy, there were  a lot!" she laughs. "But it sure seems like he's still into me," Jae Eun turn to look at Y/N when she didnt answer. "Right Y/N?" Jae Eun knows she had asked this same question before but she needs to really make sure.

"Y..yeah. He does,"

"Oh well. I cant believe he actually think its really me who's replying all those boring emails,"

"Do you...do you even really like him Jae Eun?" Y/N finally finds the courage to ask. Sometimes its ridiculous how oblivious Jae Eun is to the rest of the world. She cant even see how much her own cousin, her best friend is in love with the boy she's planning to turn into her boyfriend

"Well, now that he's a famous celebrity, I sure do!" she said, not even a trace of guilt or shame in her voice. "Oh look we are here!"

///////

Jungkook is puzzled by his last chat with Jae Eun. She sounded cold and she really sounded like she's saying goodbye. He waited a couple of days to see if she will be online again, but she didnt, so he decided to write another email.

Hey Jae Eun,

What happened during our last chat? Why do I feel like you are saying goodbye? Did anything happen? And why aren't you online for the last few days?

Jungkook

Miraculously, Jungkook didnt have to wait long as he received a reply the next morning.

Hey Kookie!

Nothing happen! Oh I have great news. I'm going to come back home in a few days time!

And my uncle is throwing a homecoming party for us, and of course, you are invited! Make sure to wear something nice you hottie. I wsnt to show off my handsome boyfriend to everyone *wink*

Love, Jae Eun

Jungkook is weirded out by the email. Kookie? Love? Wear something hot? Hottie?? Since when does Jae Eun ever say these kind of things. Plus, her emails always starts with Dear Jungkook, no matter how many times he tease her about it. And her boyfriend? Yes, Jungkook did hinted various of times that he wants ti be more than friends and all these while Jae Eun always dodge the question or laugh it off.  He doesnt mind really, he finds it cute and if Jae Eun is finally willing to call him her boyfriend, he is more than happy to be one. So he just shrugged it off, thinking maybe Jae Eun is just excited to come back home and start thinking about the party where he can see the love of his life again.

He made a promised to himself to finally make Jae Eun his the next time he see her again.

When he first met Jae Eun, he admitted that he's attracted to her by her beauty. He knows that Jae Eun never did give him the time of the day but his competitiveness makes him want to fight for Jae Eun's attention.  He spend less time with Y/N in order to achieve his mission, a fact that he knows but he always convinced himself that he will find the time for her later. But that time never comes and the next thing he knows, both Y/N and Jae Eun are leaving for the States. To ensure that he wont regret his decision of neglecting his best friend in order to pursue Jae Eun, he tried to keep contact by emailing her. It suprise him that she actually replied and as he slowly gets to know her better through their constant chats and emails, he finds himself falling more and more in love with the girl behind the screen. He is sure its for real this time, and not because of her beauty like he did years ago. Her thoughts on life, the way she thinks, every story that she tells him, it just makes him find her more interesting.

So he told himself that the next time he saw her, he will make sure she will belong to him. Jungkook did think about Y/N some times. He even told Jae Eun through his emails to ask Y/N to chat him up, he even emailed her once, but she never did respond. Jungkook grew angry at Y/N for disposing their friendship just like that and decide to just move on from her. If Y/N can easily forget about him, then he can definitely do the same to her.

/////

As expected of the Jang Empire, the homecoming party is luxurious. Live band, free flow of champagne, guest dressed in their perfect outfits. Jungkook even saw some other idols and celebrities at the party. Jungkook feels glad that he brought Taehyung and Jimin with him, or else he would have been akward standing alone surrounded by all these guests that he finds to be very intimidating. He akwardly stand around the party, trying to find the face that he had longed to see. Jimin and Taehyung are already off on the dancefloor, doing silly dances with some girl they just met. Jungkook just waved them off when the two boys asked him to joined them on the dancefloor, too nervous and eyes too busy searching for Jae Eun. He can feel girls are checking hin out, especially with his two handsome hyungs by his side, but no one else matter other than Jae Eun. Seven years he had stayed loyal to the same girl, and he can finally see her, smell her, touch her, tonight.

About 30 minutes into the party, Jungkook finally spotted Jae Eun walking down the main stairs into the party. She looks absolutely gorgeous in her red dress and perfect hair. Jungkook felt his breath has been taken away and a large smile crept up his face. A sense of pride start to consume him at the thought that the beautiful girl everyone is looking at belongs to him.

"Woah, who's that?" Jungkook look to his hyung who is staring at the same spot he was looking earlier. Irritation crept into him as he assumed they are talking about Jae Eun. His Jae Eun.

"God, look at her. I've never seen anyone looked so good in such a simple dress before," Taehyung still have his mouth opened. Simple dress?  Jae Eun's dress is anything but simple with its deep red hue, slits on both sides and covered almost entirely in Swavorski diamonds. Then who are they talking about? Jungkook whipped his head up to where his hyung is looking at and is greeted with the sight of a girl behind Jae Eun. The girl is wearing a plain nude knee length coloured dress with the lightest makeup and her long black hair is styled in a messy updo. His hyungs were right, she is gorgeous. The moment she smile to someone in the crowd, Jungkook's heart starts to race crazily and a sense of familiarity hit him. Its the same smile that used to give him butterflies when he was eight, when she shoved him her extra pair of Converse and telling him not to cry anymore. The same smile that he didnt realize he had miss before tonight.

"Y...Y/N?"

[sinto-hell]

boys n fashion

i have uuuuuh very specific ways to imagine how the boys look because i’m never satisfied with canon and i Cannot Fucking Draw™ and i scream a lot about fashion so (mostly because what the fuck is fashion sense in otome i’m looking at u dmmd what the FUCK were those yellow socks and that jacket AN ALSO NOIZ’S ENTIRE FUCKING OUTFIT IM SO ANGRY) anyway this got a bit out of hand lmao i love clothes

nathaniel

LOTS OF SWEATERS

wears a shirt under his sweater with the collar poping out

“preppy” but not frat boy preppy. like comfy casual pretty. soft n warm like marshmallow. he looks soft but he could easily deck u into next week

lots warm cardigans 

lots of light wash jeans. doesn’t really wear black or dark colored jeans. also always cuff his jeans

white adidas are the shoes he usually wears to school

he fucking despises flannels they’re the ugliest thing in his opinion

owns a lot of scarves; never wear any of them

he knows he looks good in stripes so he has a lot of stripped shirt

hoodies are for lazy days

one (1) pair of black ripped knees jeans. usually pair them with a creme sweater

also tries to make his hair behave but he just. can’t. so he tries to make it fashionably disheveled.

owns one of those jacket thats like denim but the sleeves and the inside are like a regular sweater and theres a hood god i want one of those

probably has glasses he wears to read

(i remember i saw an artist that basically drew him dressed like this but i cant remember their name so there’s that)

castiel

boi is a punk 

his wardrobe is 90% band shirt, they’re literally almost all he wears

owns 4 my chemical romance shirt

he has two denim jacket: one black with various pins and small patch on it and one light wash with a big ass misfits patch on the back

also probably found his leather jacket in a thrift store

unironically buys those bad translation shirt that says shit like “try my delicious salt beef” or “way the bridge i burn high the way” credit to @mclfutarinotamashi for that one 

90% of his band shirts are really worn out because he wears them so much

owns a pair of og black converse and red doc martens

usually always has his roots showing and has taken a liking in tying his hair in a half bun. sorta. but he mostly live in his natural bedhead

lys once braided his hair and he didn’t like it on him but he thought it was really relaxing

has a fuckton of spiked bracelet and rubber band bracelets, but only wears one or two at a time nowadays. he used to wear a lot more. like. a lot.

black jeans all the way

also ripped jeans

also own two or three big sweater, and one of them his hands just. disappear when he wear it.

lysander

don’t get me wrong i love the victorian fashion but;; it aint realistic

peg leg trousers. google it. he’d wear the heck out of that.

owns a lot of fancy black pants 

he has those weird pants i’ve been looking for, they’re high waisted and really flowy and they’re called culottes. his are black with white stripes and he owns a black only version

he totally owns a green velvet skirt fight me on this

has a lot of scarves and wears them all

has a simple but very nice pair of brown boots for casual days and fucking 5 inches new rocks platform shoes with buckles all over for when he’s extra

a true Goth™

lots of turtlenecks and long sleeve black shirts. did i mention turtlenecks

he totally owns this sweater in green and black

he loves high waisted pants

plays a bit on androgyny, as he knows he’s pretty tall, but also very delicate so skirt  are the fucking shit on him

owns a trench-like coat. with a hood. also long cardigans

sometimes when he’s extra he’ll play a bit into the steam punk territory

experiment a bit with makeup, but only on his eyes, he still shy away from lipstick

he braid his hair to sleep so it has nice waves the next day. cares a lot about his hair actually 

also basically how @veroww dresses him what a babe

armin

oh boi what a mess

lots and lots of hoodies and generally clothes with hoods so he can hide in them and sleep

literally owns this and that (i have that one and it makes me look like a jedi, so another reason why he’d wear it)

nerd shirts. you know the type.

like he has 3 pokemon shirts and 4 marvel. alexy will not let him go out of the house wearing those. the only one hes allowed to be seen with in public is his star wars one

and fucking memes shirt

like he probably has a white shirt with a shiba inu on it

got that shirt that says “why be racist, sexist, homophobic and transphobic when you could just be quiet” with alexy so they match

one of these guys that only wears black skinny jeans or sweatpants

 basically nerdy emo

has like. 2 pair of shoes. really dirty vans that he wear everywhere and a nice pair of boots for like. ass kicking purpose. kidding alex probably made him buy them

“vans or converse?” “vans what the fuck am i an animal”

probably owns a trasher hoodie (ok now thats me projecting bc i headcanon the only sport he can kind of do is skating so) (beside SK8ER BOI ARMIN AM I RIGHT)

also yes, a lot of beanies

anything comfortable, really; doesn’t really own a lot of fancy or statement pieces he wears regularly. 

kentin

alex is right ok the military pants looks great and he probably has a great ass in it but jesus boy please change up ur game 

i actually haven’t thought a lot about his fashion sense probs because i dont write him as often as the twins or cas or do i thirst over lys

but @ne-neptune has drawn him with glasses and a big jacket today and im lov

probably owns a carhatt jacket thats a bit too big on him

rolls up his sleeves. always. wether his shirts are long sleeves or short sleeves. he. rolls them up. sip sip THEM ARMS THO

wears a concerning amount of beige and green. 

LIKES KNITTED SWEATERS OK. HE IS SOFT™

has a camo jacket

wears a lot of baggy pants but is also warmin up to more slim jeans, (not skinny bc its too tight and he doesn’t understand how armin and castiel do it) bc he knows his ass looks gr8

finally bought himself a new pair of fancy glasses he think he look ok with. hint: he’s both cute & fucking hot with them and everyone is thirsty.

combat boots all the way. he does own a pair of old converse that are seriously starting to be worn out, but he still wears them sometimes

alexy because i fucking can

now that’s my B O I

Thriftshop Fashionista™

seriously this boy love thrifstores. he once fucking found gucci shit in there. he’s lucky.

vintage/90s clothes aesthestic. 

lightwash jeans with a big belt, weird dad shirt tucked into his jeans

HE TUCKS HIS SHIRT IN HIS JEANS

AND ALSO CUFF THEM WHAT A FASHION ICON

probably also own some peg leg trousers like lysander

his favourite pair of jeans is one he found in a really sketchy store, theres hole at the knees and the bottom of the legs are ripped and there are flower patches going down the entire left side (fun fact: one of my friend has these exact pant he found in a thriftsore and every time he wears them i’m just like. vogue is shook. what a fucking look. fashion icon.)

also probably owns a sweater with roses embroidery

has like 4 denim jacket, each very different; one with patches all over it, one with a giant gay flag on the back, one black with rips in it, and one plain light wash

has one of those weird flashy colored 90s jacket that’s like baby blue and bright orange. it was his mom’s. he stole it from his mom. she let him keep and re question her fashion choices every time he wears it.

weird 90s and dad shirt are his shit. also really big sweaters. weird colors. this boy own a purple knitted sweater with a yellow wolf patch on the back. rosalya hates it. he probably bought it out of spite.

also owns vans. and a pair of combat boots. and a pair of converse. and one pair of black high heels. and orange sneakers. and brown fancy leather boots. and-

he probably steals armin’s trasher hoodie for the aesthetic

also steals his beanies bc what he has like 10

loves embroidered clothes or things with patches or weird flower designs on them

also big ass red sunglasses worn ironically.

vogue is fucking shook by this boy

and that’s all folks

[sleepymarmot]

A couple of months ago, after finishing COUNTER/Weight, I spent about a week in a total hangover, relistening to scenes and having feelings. I took some notes, but procrastinated posting them, and then finally got distracted. But, a) I hate leaving things I intended for tumblr unposted, even if they have value only for me, and b) I also hate posting things out of order, and there's a big TM liveblog incoming. So, here's a bunch of really random thoughts about C/w from past me.

The gnosis virus did go nowhere huh. I was hopeful for a minute when one of the finale intros mentioned it, but that was it. What was the purpose of that arc even. [Note from present me: Lol. At least I feel better about this one!]

Oh, and the patch AuDy left never reappeared either. And the idea from the faction game that Aria's images owned by EarthHome/Petrichor transmit Rigour code… That's the flip side of the coin. On the one hand, it's really cool to see the creative process – on the other, it sometimes feels like you're listening to people write a script for the tv show, but only get to see a half of the finished product. It's fascinating to see the universe grow organically and the players to come up with new ideas and get excited about them – but that means numerous retcons, some of them not even presented as such, because the creators forgot what the previous revision was or didn't thought it was important. It's a unique feature of the medium that player choice directs the narrative and it's not bound by railroading – but that means some roads lead nowhere, and some branches dry and fall off.

It's a bit harder to make peace with something that could have easily been developed more within the existing plot of the show. How come there's a player character whose consciousness consists of three different people in various combinations, but nobody seems to be curious how that works? No PC or NPC ever asked “Which one of you is speaking right now?” or something. The final episodes made a lot of things clearer, but it still felt too little, too late. Hard not to be reminded of that gripe about certain two characters sharing one character sheet one of whom was left underdeveloped and half-forgotten… Both are very ambitious concepts that require a double amount of work from the player, so I feel bad complaining they weren't realized to full potential, but…

Speaking of L&D… I still want to know how the hell did that one engineer all by herself design 4 gods, one of which became a basis for technology that was advanced even for the civilizations 80,000 years later? This woman singlehandedly surpassed any technological achievement of humanity before and after. Who Is She

I saw a “Wake me up: before you go go / when september ends / wake me up inside” meme and thought “heh, this sounds relevant, which member of the Chime is which?” and it already made me sad, but then I realized that I'd never actually heard the september song and looked it up and. The lyrics fit so well. What the fuck. It's an old song everyone keeps joking about. Why is it appropriate for a legitimate fanmix. What. I guess the word “September” will never be the same again for me.

I looked up the rules for Firebrands, the game used for the finale. Oh my, challenges for the dance minigame are so overtly romantic when you see them in a list together! Imagine this cast of characters having to answer to “do you place your hand upon my elbow, shoulder, waist, or hip?” lmao. Also I didn't realize “May I?” was part of the rules for “stealing time together”. (And I found out there's a party version of that minigame with bug-themed challenges. I might have dug too deep…) "Tactical skirmish" is a really fascinating concept, I've never seen such a masochistic combat system! Really faces the player with the violence they're inflicting: sure, you can always fight on, but are you ready to live with what you'll have to do? But for it to work fully, you need a lot of non-expendable NPCs on both sides. The one with the most likeable team wins! (Like Mako did.)

I'm relistening to Three Conversations and it's pretty interesting that Ibex has a bunch perfectly lifelike android bodies, right? There is no such technology seen anywhere else. Did Righteousness develop and privatize that? Are they so complex that only a Divine would have enough computing power to successfully mimic organic life? Can Aria convince Righteousness to help her perform on stage without leaving her duties? Also, like with AuDy, I wonder how Ibex & Righteousness' consciousness works. Is it a single mind, spread across every body he has, or even anything Righteousness is running on, having a bunch of different conversations at once if he needs to? Or is the original Ibex just gone, and what's left is a personality imprint hanging on to the connection to his still living body, imitating his former self like the automated recording Cass saw wore his face? In other words, has Ibex completely fused with Righteousness, or assimilated and destroyed by it? Does he not exist anymore as an independent singular being, or does he not exist at all? Most info indicates the former, but there was also “You’re not in there anymore” “No”.

If Orth and Jace are anime fans with their Kingdom Come and Panther, then Ibex is the guy who's way too into dinosaurs or paleontology. It's as if the heads of various confessions were called Triceratops, Stegosaurus etc. and only one of them knows wtf that means, and also he compares his Divine to… Were there scavenging dinosaurs? I'm looking at an article that suggests T. Rex might have been a scavenger, so yeah he would compare Righteousness to a goddamn T. Rex.

Hey what do you think is the most thematically aproppriate part of the Hieron anime for Orth to watch alone at night during the Kingdom game. What's the best thematic parallel for when he turns off the episode and thinks he made a mistake. Do you think that he once, after a long day and a long month and maybe a long year of feeling helpless and doomed, sits down for a distraction but ends up sobbing “How could they let this happen to Mother Glory”

On Joypark, there are definitely statues of Eidolons, ancient and holy, that were repainted and repurposed as Hieron deities. Imagine a giant Greek or Roman style marble statue of Apote – and it’s painted over as Samot, with an anime face and in really bright plain colors like these “reconstructions of original coloring” that actually only use base colors so they look like cheap action figures.

I was reading Austin's top ten games of 2016 list on Waypoint and he gave first place to The Sprawl! Aww!

The Downloads folder in my phone gallery is funny bc it mostly consists of every freely available f@tt map and also that one photo of Tristan Walker (because I tried to redraw it, very unsuccessfully). I go check a map and every time am met by Ibex just. staring at me. It's unsettling

Some of the many options for how Apostolosian gender could have been presented:

Apostolosians prefer to be addressed by the most neutral available human pronoun, represented as "they" in English, because the human languages don't have anything close enough

Apostolosian pronouns are represented in English by a set of real-life common pronouns and neopronouns

There's a list of Apostolosian pronouns and they're just used in English verbatim (Really impractical because the players need a cheat sheet, but the most fair)

Humans apply human genders to Apostolosians. Apostolosians may be offended, may find it convenient, or something else

As Austin said in the post-mortem, the Eidolon system is not gender. It's represented in English by titles/honorifics/etc

Any of the above, and the creators are aware of the difference between personal pronouns, grammatical gender, and social gender

And that’s not even touching the core problem of what the concept of gender in a futuristic, techonologically advanced society would look like. Yes, I'm complaining about this for the third time but I'm just. So tired of native English speakers' takes on gendered language. They could have made Apostolosian gender look like anything and they made it look like that fucking mess... God, I really hope TM is good enough to make me forget and forgive the experience of listening to “he... sorry, they” for 100 hours. [Note from present me: Well… mostly]

Here’s my take on this: eidolons in Apostolosian language are absurdly broad noun classes with associated classifiers (which fits both the idea that they’re gender but not actually, and that each of them is a patron to several unrelated aspects of life) Apostolosian: the word “(Apo)thesa” is used to refer to people who follow the corresponding eidolon, as well as for counting buildings, heavy machinery, military units, specific strategies and tactics, log entries, historical documents and chronicles, history textbooks and monographs, and eras :) Human: what the fuck

Very critical, imaginative worldbuilding in which 80,000+ years into the future humanity somehow has 21st century gender and 21st century capitalism! TBH, I find any sci-fi set in the far future inherently silly – we can’t really imagine the future technogy and its effect on society. But it feels like C/w barely even tried, and to hear it boast about “critical worldbuilding” is kinda strange. I assumed that meant they build the world critically, not that they recreate modern society or some aspect of it and criticize that! It’s just another Star Trek then! And it was already clear right during the setup when they said “We don’t want Star Trek aliens” and immediately created Apostolosians.

I haven't seen a single piece of fanart with Taako and Mako. Come on, does nobody want to see these two next to each other! Especially considering the outfits artists like to put Taako in!

I really don't understand how and why people do fandom activities on Twitter and Discord where the creators also have accounts. It gives me so much secondhand embarrassment. I can barely peek at Twitter posts before running away. Old-fashioned opinion apparently but I strongly believe the main fandom space and the interaction-with-original-creators space should be separate. I need a space where I can voice my opinions, especially negative ones, with complete freedom. I need to be able to say exactly what's on my mind. But I wouldn't want any of the people on the podcast to read something unfiltered like my complaints above. Being in the same space as the source content creators obliges any decent person to be diplomatic and constructive. And the creators, in turn, need a space where they don't come across complete randos yelling at them about something they said in a podcast three years ago. I'm already feeling uncomfortable because hearing to strangers pour their hearts out for hundreds of hours gives me way too much insight on who they are as people. Of course, nothing’s stopping them from lurking on Tumblr or AO3 and even reading this very post, but a platform where they have official accounts is still a different thing! I even feel uncomfortable talking about the podcast creators using their first names so much. To my ear, referring to a total stranger by first name, especially if it's a shortened form, sounds so rude! I'm not their friend, I don't have that right! But, of course, writing something like “Mr Walker” in my liveblogs would have been even weirder, nobody does that...

Is it a common experience to not even think about fanfiction after listening to Hieron, but going straight to AO3 after C/w? I feel like since Hieron is still a work in progress, writing/reading about it is stepping on the GM&players' toes, and C/w is finished so it's like they gave us the keys to the playground, it's the fandom's turn now. This story has so much blanks and they must be filled! In one of the early episodes they joked that something cute they said would encourage people to ship Mako/Cass and I was like "Bold of you to assume they aren't already" and, indeed, I was right and it's the most popular C/w ship on AO3. Too bad I’m so indifferent to it…

It’s a shame we never had a full scene with Ariadne or even learned what they were up to during the finale.

I still don't understand how Ibex went from “evil CEO” to “leader of a proletarian revolution”, these sound like completely opposite concepts to me

I probably have talked about this too much and have pretty much given up on ever getting a clear picture due to all of these reimaginings but… Righteousness and Voice… Ibex takes Righteousness out of Mako but he still has Voice, that was pretty much openly stated, correct? So how does that work? I’m guessing Righteousness is hidden somewhere in Voice’s code. But if so:

Did Maryland know? On the one hand, she’s too competent not to. On the other, why would she ever allow or accept that?

How did Righteousness not get corrupted by Rigour too? Maybe it did, but broke off the connection with the rest of itself to contain the damage? Or maybe, on the contrary, it kept in contact and was sending intel to Ibex the whole time? But in that case he would have provided more help in the finale.

[foxcassius]

okay y’all, opinions on love by chance vs uwma, scroll past if u dont give a fuck

uwma is the 4th thai drama i’ve ever seen, love by chance was the first, and these are the only two that really really stick out to me. the other two, 2moons and sotus, were good and i liked them, but this post isn’t abt them bc today i’m talking about my, current, favorites. editing to say that i should mention for anyone reading who’s unaware that lbc and uwma are also made by the same studio and share a director, so comparing them makes more sense than comparing shows made by different studios and people.

uwma embodies my favorite trope, and no it is not necessarily the soulmate trope. while soulmates does, as a trope, usually embody the aspects of my favorite trope, my all-time favorite bl, sekaiichi hatsukoi, wouldnt fall under soulmates, and sekaiichi is where my favorite trope comes from, it was the first thing i ever watched that has this trope. my favorite trope is people who once knew or dated each other reconnecting years and years later, sometimes in a different life counts if they have memories from the past life, and ultimately everything works out the second time around. idk why it’s my favorite trope, i just know i went hard to some sekaiichi in 2012, and ever since anything that reminds me of sekaiichi even a little gets a big fucking thumbs up.

because uwma has this, it has obviously stuck out to me. i also really enjoy the main couple—even more, to be honest, than i enjoyed ae and pete in lbc. i also absolutely ADORE the soundtrack, the instrumental background music is very very good, though i don’t think any theme song will ever trump the lbc theme for me bc that shit just. goes too hard. i also feel like the acting in uwma is very very good. dare i say? better than lbc. which honestly may just come with more experience from the director and studio, but seeing as the actors are not the same, it’s hard to tell what the cause is. but the crying scenes in uwma are almost bearable, whereas seeing a person cry in lbc always made me like. idk, uncomfortable?? which might have been the point idk but if it was purposeful then that was a bold move. there has also been so much improvement when it comes to the camera shots. lbc wasnt bad, but the shots weren’t really artistic or daring imo. uwma has so so so many shots that are just LOVELY to me. particularly, the first one that comes to mind is the shot of sin on the phone with dean when dean is asking him to look for info on korn and intouch. the purples? the oranges? the perfect balance of shadow? and jesus fucking CHRIST don’t even get me STARTED on the chasxter design for sin, so absolutely fucking *chef’s kiss* where’s the spinoff about sin and sorn i need it fr does it already exist i know nothing about thai dramas.

okay well since i started now i have to go off about the character designs and casting choices. idk the names of these actors well bc i’m not following any of them on social media (yet) but the actor they cast for pharm is fucking phenomenal. he pulls of those awkward smiles and cringes so much better and more convincingly than i’ve seen other actors do with his character type. i love that he like genuinely seems like he could be a college freshman (but don’t even talk to me about how dean looks 30) lots of shows, like 2moons, seem to be “what college freshmen think their life is like while they’re in the middle of it” and others, like lbc and uwma, are like “what college freshmen actually look and act like, you weirdos.” of course, i would, can, and will die for sammy melanie coates, she’s officially my favorite actress in the thai drama world and i didnt even know she was in uwma but when it started up and it was eyes on manaow i almost died!!!!!!!! i love her she’s an amazing actress. and it was super fun to catch glimpses of actors i do know from lbc in secondary and tertiary roles in uwma, tho i’m sad that mean gets typecast as “other guy” so much bc i genuinely love him. and finally, the character design for sin can just strike me down where i fuckin stand, talk about callout post for me in the middle of this thai drama i’m just. i love it.

this is a side note, but i also like that pharm is on the less waifish side. bl is terrible about the set DYNAMIC of big seme willowy uke, even lbc had me like :/ with saint playing pete and playing him In Such A Way like idk i know that plenty of gay people ARE effeminate and all but i do very much enjoy castings, specifically in bl dramas which have such a track record, that break that stereotype.

i don’t think it’s over yet, which i didn’t know when i started it, but the most recent episode was posted like 2 days ago so i hold hope for another episode or two. if not that, it clearly needs another season. seeing as how it is definitely not over, i can’t judge for sure what my overall impression of the series as a whole will be. however, as it stands, i don’t think uwma makes me doki as hard as lbc, and this is 10000% bc of tin and can.

what can i say bro? tincan is one of my favorite couples from anything ever. there is something so fucking good and entertaining about their dynamic, and the way the characters grow and their emotions develop is so so good to me, and the scene where can turns tin down For Real at the end of season 1 absolutely blows me away every time, i cry irl bro!! there is something ABOUT tin and can, something about the actors, something about the way theyre played that i can’t get over. when i think about lbc and i Die, it’s not dying over ae and pete, even though i like them very much. it’s dying over tin and can. i literally can’t think of how to put my opinions on this into words, they just genuinely affected me. they’re a gem in the dumpster fire that is bl.

so anyway, long story short i think uwma is overall? a better series. but lbc owns my ass specifically bc of tincan.

[mishamoonberry]

Metathesiophobia

ERASING IMPOSSIBILITY CH. 18 - FFN

You asked for shorter chapters, here comes shorter chapter. Bc it's shorter, it may not seem like anything is going on in the fic, but things are happening, if not then there wouldn't be anything for me to write, geez. There is always plot development in each chapter. The last chapter's focus is Kishimoto, okay. I'm tired of writing long chapters with perfectly placed climax in each chapter so bear with it okay? Also I'm curious as to why you keep on saying Oro-tan-san… when it's Oro-chan-san lmao.

Anyway, here. Enough about me being salty as fuck.

Here, a new chapter.

Warnings: Oro-chan-san feels, a possible start of slash pairing

It takes me quite awhile to manage to find time and guts to face Orochimaru again. With more and more D-ranks and training and sparring sessions piling upon one another especially with the impending C-rank that shall befall upon us (soon, Minato-sensei said. It is after all, better to experience C-rank at least once before trying out the Chuunin Exams, no matter if it’s an isolated one because of the war), it’s hard to find a leisure time with people other than my teammates and their immediate family or close relatives.

And such, to find a perfect time (and courage) to face the ever so evasive Orochimaru is a bit of a challenge.

Plus, I keep on getting new things to learn from Kishimoto-sensei—he insists I need to learn to make chakra scalpels on my body than only using my hands for combat purposes—and I’ve started on basic sealing with Kushina.

Sealing is fun to learn, even though the calligraphy sometimes hurt my eyes and my brain, but perhaps because Kushina is such an energetic but gentle person—really, she doesn’t babble like Naruto unless she gets too excited—I find it immensely enjoyable to learn from her.

The Uzumaki has promised me to teach me more about stasis seals, which would be immensely useful to keep either corpses or important body parts or even fresh blood for transfusion. That, and also many other stuff. She does tell me I need to be creative; because that’s the bane of fuuinjutsu. Other than the obvious calligraphy and knowledge of sealing as well as its properties, of course.

Minato-sensei has taken to teaching fuuinjutsu to Kakashi, now that Kushina has ‘claimed’ me as hers to teach. He doesn’t seem to dare taking me under his wings for fear of Kushina’s possessive streak that is very sexy, in my humble opinion. Kakashi does lend me the books Minato gave him after he’s done with it though. I am forever baffled on how quick Kakashi can learn about something. Sealing is complicated for me, way more than genjutsu, so to see Kakashi going through books after books is a bit dazzling.

(Perhaps I’m a bit jealous on how he progresses so easily, but then again, he is a genius, isn’t he?)

(I just smile at him; because jealousy is unbecoming and largely unnecessary).

Obito, although curious, ends up not learning fuuinjutsu sans the very basics like storage and exploding seals. Not that he can’t learn it; he just seems to not have the interest for it. However, he does have lessons with Mikoto-sensei who is probably bored beyond belief now that she is no longer in active duty. Despite his dead last moniker, Mikoto-sensei’s gentle but sometimes passive aggressive way of teaching seems to work on him quite well, considering he has managed to produce some more variants of Katon jutsu.

Let it be known that he is no longer allowed to be near the Yamanaka’s flower garden ever again.

(He still pouts over that, the cutie).

(It’s not his fault that he accidentally set almost half of the garden on fire during a spar, he said).

Right now though, I am not with Obito, or Kakashi, or Minato-sensei or even anyone else. I am in front of Orochimaru’s lab, eyes glancing hesitantly to the glass window on the door, which shows me that the lights inside are on, which indicates that Orochimaru is inside.

He doesn’t come outside nor does he invite me to come inside, however.

(“What are you doing, standing there all day,” Orochimaru says, staring down at me as I give him a sheepish grin.

“I haven’t been here all day, Oro-chan-san!” I say, because I just have to counter him on that one, like the suicidal fool that I am. The man does love his dramatics sometimes, and it includes hyperboles, it seems. “It’s probably been three minutes. How do you know I’m outside?”

“There’s something called chakra sensing, child, perhaps you should look it up,” he drawls, looking impatient. I grin at him, a bit awkward now that I realized I should keep on practicing on my stupid chakra sensing skills. “Now what do you want?”

“Oh, well,” I pause, “I heard it’s your birthday!” I say then, breaking out into a smile. I take out a bracelet the shape of a small green-grey colored snake from my back pocket, presenting it to him with both of my palms. “It can work as a small blade too!” It’s hard to get hold of it, in all honesty. I had to ask Mikoto-sensei for pointers of where people sell nice blades—because I couldn’t think of anything else Orochimaru might appreciate; he’ll probably complain if I try to give him books, books that he probably already has read or worse, has zero interest in—and she, quite predictably, sent me to an Uchiha blacksmith near the corner of the clan grounds.

I had to request a specific design that is largely inspired by something I found on the internet Back Then, and it kinda cost me more than it would’ve if I just had given him a pack of kunai, but the result is really good and I’d like to think Orochimaru will appreciate it somehow.

When I look at him, his face is unreadable. Totally blank, and for a moment, I fear for the worst.

“Oro-chan-san?”

His hand reaches out to touch the bracelet, taking it out of my grasp. He looks over the thing for a little while, before his eyes soften a little bit. If I haven’t been looking for it, I wouldn’t have seen it. But I do, and I allow myself to relax.

“Do you like it?” I say quite eagerly, seeing a flash of reluctant amusement in his yellow eyes as he scoffs, turning around to enter the lab without much word, obviously not wanting to answer my question.

The door is left ajar, however.

I grin. It’s an invitation to get inside as much as any.)

My fingers twitch beside me, and I find myself licking my own lips in anticipation. Last time, it took Orochimaru three minutes to get out of the room and inquire me about my presence. I don’t know how long I’ve been standing here, but surely it must’ve been longer than three minutes somehow.

Is he ignoring me? I feel something heavy sink in my stomach, and I have to bite the bottom of my lip to prevent a frustrated sigh to go out.

I… Kishimoto-sensei did warn me to stay away from Orochimaru. But he had been the normal hissing older man I’ve grown accustomed to the last time I met him and—and—

And I’m just a little bit attached. A little bit. It’s perhaps a huge mistake on my part, to let myself be attached to the grumpy (lonely and hurting and lost) Snake Sannin, but now, when threatened by a possibility of losing him to his insanity and power hungry tendencies, I finally find it very hard to imagine a world where I don’t annoy Orochimaru at least once a week.

I… really have to make sure, to really see it for myself, to determine and to judge. Rinny will be there to help me to be as objective as I can, and if Kishimoto-sensei is really only influenced by the rumors (but why now? Why now, when the rumors must have been circulating around for years?) and not because he finds something odd with Orochimaru, then I can be relieved.

Steeling my resolve, I nod decisively to myself and firmly knocks on the door before twisting the knob open, peeking inside.

“Oro-chan-san?”

Orochimaru is there, his body facing away from me while his head is turned toward me. For a moment, I think that his posture looks a little bit defensive, and when I look at his face, I very nearly falter.

His expression is near flat, eyes guarded and mouth pressed into a thin line. No other expression like the usual exasperation or reluctant amusement that he usually shows around me; just a pure, blank canvas.

It’s a face he shows when he’s facing scared, gossiping civilians.

My eyebrows furrow, and ignoring the hurt at his sudden change in attitude towards me, I step forward. “Oro-chan-san, are you busy?”

He is silent for a moment.

“I am,” he says, then, voice a bit raspy.

My shoulders sag, “Oh.”

Silence.

Is he really avoiding me? I peer up at him, a little bit hesitant, and he looks back steadily, not saying anything, not showing anything.

…Perhaps he’s waiting for something? But what is he waiting for? For me to walk out? To talk to him about something? To start singing a random song?

I do not know what to say, in all honesty, but I have never been one with much filter anyways, not with the people I care about at the very least. Therefore, when I open my mouth next, what comes out from me is pure, blatant truth.

“You know, Kishimoto-sensei told me to stay away from you.”

His expression doesn’t change. “I see.”

“But I won’t!” I add hastily, “Really.” I bit my lip, perhaps having unconsciously stepped closer to the man while I was too focused in my anxiety. “Did you have a fight with Kishimoto-sensei, Oro-chan-san?”

He looks at me, and perhaps I’m imagining it, but his gaze looks kinder.

Rinny, somehow, through all this, doesn’t say a thing.

“Your sensei told me to stay away from me, and you’re going to keep on meeting me, anyway?”

My eyebrows furrow, and I say, “Who I interact with outside of training hours is none of his business, actually.” Seeing surprise flash in his eyes, I continue on talking, “and he’s just my teacher for iryo-ninjutsu; my official sensei is Minato-sensei, you know? And Minato-sensei never seems to mind when I say that I hang out with you sometimes, Oro-chan-san, and you’re my friend!” I tack on in the end, “Friends hang out with each other, right? So”.

I look up at Orochimaru, hopeful, and to my immense relief, the man finally sighs after a few moments of silence, a twitch of his lips and the usual reluctant amusement (relief, Rinny says to me, he’s relieved, too) apparent in his eyes.

“What an annoying, stubborn brat,” he mutters.

I take the kind insult as it is. That doesn’t stop me from pouting though. “Oro-chan-san, that’s mean!”

He rolls his eyes, giving me a gentle tap on top of my head. “What do you want,” he seems to still have the ability to ask a question while sounding like he’s making a statement instead of a question. He and Kakashi are both similar in that way.

I brighten, though, at the thought of Orochimaru indulging me and my whims once again. “Can we eat dinner together?” I ask, making sure to put my best puppy eyes ever.

Orochimaru’s eyebrow twitch in irritation at that pathetic attempt to suck him up, looks at the clock, pulls a face at the 6.30 pm that stares back at him, and finally sighs in defeat.

“Fine.”

“Yay!”

XXX

“Rin?” Kakashi’s voice manages to make me jolt in surprise as I walk side by side with Orochimaru, who is standing to my left, the both of us walking in the food district to find an appealing place for us to eat in. I have been too focused on telling Orochimaru about the D-rank missions I have gone through (he seems to be particularly amused by the Cat Catching Mission) that I failed to register Kakashi’s and Sakumo’s presence a few meters away from the both of us.

Kakashi looks surprised himself, though perhaps by seeing Orochimaru’s presence near me than anything. Sakumo looks a bit surprised (though I myself am surprised; Sakumo has been going outside for a few minutes once a day now to familiarize himself once again with something other than the Hatake Compound walls, but this district is far from the compound. Has he gotten comfortable enough with himself?) But he looks more weary and tired and guilty more than anything.

I can’t help but narrow my eyes at that. Did something happen?

“What’s up, Kakashi?” I say, waving, before literally gets in front of Sakumo to chirp, “and hi, Sakumo-san!”

Sakumo chuckles good naturedly, some of his weariness seeping off of him, “Hello, Rin-chan,” he ruffles my hair, his grey eyes finding Orochimaru’s and he inclines his head. “Orochimaru.”

“Hatake,” Orochimaru replies evenly. “It is good to see you out of the Compound.”

“Ah…. Yes,” Sakumo trails off, looking a bit hesitant thanks to the unsubtle jab Orochimaru just threw at him. I am tempted to stomp on Orochimaru’s feet a little bit, because that was rude, Oro-chan-san! “I’m afraid we’ve run out of groceries, so Kakashi and I thought of eating take outs, you see.”

“Oh!” I exclaim, smiling, “Same! Oro-chan-san and I,” Sakumo raises an eyebrow at the nickname, flicking an amused glance toward Orochimaru who looks a little bit longsuffering, “are gonna eat in a restaurant too! How about if we go eat together?”

Kakashi mumbles something.

“Huh?”

He huffs, letting out a bitter, “We can’t. Nobody allows dad to eat inside.”

Silence. Sakumo looks to the side, avoiding my startled gaze.

(Behind me, Orochimaru stares at Sakumo, at his hunched shoulders, the darkness in his eyes, the downward pull of his lips and thinks—

Ah.

He knows how this feels, doesn’t he?)

I feel a surge of rage inside of me, and looking at Kakashi’s eyes, I’m sure he must have the same opinion as I.

Those fucking, self absorbed, gossiping bastards.

I hate them.

Forcefully calming myself down, because blowing up here won’t do anyone any good other than embarrassing myself, I settle with sighing. “Well, we’re going to the Akimichi’s BBQ place,” I say, staring at Sakumo’s eyes. “I’m sure they’re not that stupid to turn you away, Sakumo-san.”

Sakumo’s smile seems a bit strained. “It’s okay, Rin-chan, we can just—“

“Sure,” Kakashi cuts him off, hands in his pockets. He blinks at Sakumo’s startled look, cocking his head. “…What? I want some BBQ. And… It doesn’t hurt to try.”

Sakumo hesitates. “I… guess.”

“C’mon,” I grab Kakashi’s hand, leading him forward. I cackle, ignoring his startled shout. “The last one there pays for all of us!”

“No way in hell.”

XXX

“Hatake,” Orochimaru calls again, inclining his head. Beside him, Sakumo tears his amused gaze away from the bickering children and inclines his head in return.

“Orochimaru. I did not know you’re that close to Rin-chan.”

Orochimaru hums. He won’t say that they’re particularly close. Despite meeting rather frequently than most—than even his old teammates and his own teacher—they don’t really know each other inside out like how he knows (knew) his teammates.

But Rin is kind, fierce and loyal, determinedly so, if how she stubbornly decides that Orochimaru is still worth hanging out with is any indication.

Orochimaru won’t say it, but he’s relieved, perhaps, that this bright young girl who tackles him and calls him with a cutesy nickname not fit with his reputation thinks he’s worth hanging out with, that he’s worth spending time with, with no strings attached, with no other ulterior motives behind it.

That Rin, who reminds him of Tsunade and Jiraiya in equal measures (don’t compare her to them, his mind hisses, if she’s the same as them, she’ll leave. She’s not the same as them, she’s not she’s not she’snotshesnot—), who cares and cares and cares is still bright and there, smiling up at him and trusting him and—

Even after Kishimoto, after him telling her to stay away—

(“I see a monster,” he said, and it rings inside of his head for days and days to come. Sometimes it will be Kishimoto, and civilians, and fellow shinobi.)

(Other times, he thinks he hears her).

(“Monster,” he’ll hear her say. “Monster, monster, monstermonstermonster—“)

She chooses to stay.

She chooses him.

(“You’re my friend”).

Orochimaru’s gaze softens, his hand reaching toward his left wrist decorated with a snake-shaped bracelet. “She’s more like a nuisance than anything, honestly,” he says, expertly ignoring how Sakumo’s lips curves into a knowing smile, walking alongside the former legend as they watch the children, in which Kakashi has somehow find it necessary to smack Rin’s head, the latter letting out an exaggerated whine. “You don’t seem to mind her, yourself.”

“Ah?” Sakumo blinks, “Well, she is my son’s best friend.”

“I see.”

Orochimaru glances at him, the person who is almost as popular as Orochimaru when it comes to nasty gossips, with whispers and talks about how he’s a traitor, a shameful man, a failure of a shinobi and so on and so forth. With one failure, they easily forgets the White Fang’s contribution to the village, forgets his sacrifices and his many triumphs, his many successful missions that brought forth many good things for the village.

Just one failure, and now he’s nothing but a village trash.

Perhaps he can say that it will get better, only that it’s a lie and it’s not like he cares about it, really.

(Perhaps he should feel guilty for the satisfaction rushing in his veins at the thought of someone else bearing the same treatment as him. Perhaps he should feel guilty for feeling glad that he’s not the only one in this god damned village to bear that sort of hate and scrutiny.

Perhaps.

But Orochimaru isn’t really one for guilt, is he?)

“She saved me,” Sakumo’s voice brings him back to reality, and Orochimaru blinks slowly. The White Fang murmurs, “I thought I would have no one left. My own son turned against me and it was only thanks to her that he forgave me for my mistakes.” He shifts his gaze toward the Snake Sannin, his eyes knowing, “She’s a very special girl, isn’t she?”

Orochimaru thinks of her eyes. Her knowing and patient eyes, how she assesses him and perhaps finding something in him that allows her to smile at him, her eyes that sometimes look too kind, too understanding, too old, too old for her age—

“An old soul,” he says. And then, as if in an attempt to amend for something, continues with a mutter, “Still a huge brat”.

Sakumo stares at him for a moment longer, slightly wide eyes blinking a few times before a chuckle breaks out from his lips, his eyes crinkling and  dimples appearing as he smiles wide and—

Oh.

Oh.

That smile reminds him of Rin, too.

(Did she learn it from him?)

“I’d say Rin-chan is very talented and smart for her own age,” Sakumo chuckles, “but an old soul works too.”

Orochimaru rolls his eyes.

“I think Rin-chan said once that you’re apparently very dramatic,” the tone is teasing, and Orochimaru wonders for a moment since when has the man beside him decide he’s good enough to be this familiar with him.

(But Rin did this too, didn’t she?)

(This overly familiar approach, this easy smiles and teases).

(Isn’t that why he likes her?)

“Watch your mouth, Hatake,” Orochimaru drawls out, “I will not hesitate to show you just how dramatic I can be.”

The Hatake raises his arms, “I apologize,” he smiles softly, and Orochimaru once again wonders how many gestures the girl has unconsciously learned from her best friend’s father. “I did not mean to offend you.”

Orochimaru doesn’t grace him with a reply, and at that moment Rin chooses to shout.

“Oro-chan-saaaaaaaan! Sakumo-san! Hurry! I’m hungry!”

He exhales sharply, striding forward to flick the girl sharply with his finger.

“Ow! What was that for, Oro-chan-san?!”

“For yelling in the middle of the street.”

“But—“ He steps into the restaurant, ignoring her.

The sound of Sakumo’s snickers and Rin’s whines are like bells to his ears.

XXX

So.

The Orochimaru angst fest is done. Sort of. He has found an established foundation in Rin’s circle of friends now—he mostlikely won’t doubt her loyalty to him until much later on when things get messy (coughspoilerscough)—and his trust in her is immense. He knows she won’t betray him unless he gives her a reason to. (In which, I’m sure we all know what the reason could be).

Also, I’m thinking of doing SakuOro, but it’s still a plan; it might end up as this close friendship between two shunned legendary shinobi, or it might end up with kisses, idk. Tell me what you think about it.

Also, did you notice Rin internally calls Obito cute a lot of times nowadays? ;)

If you don’t, it’s okay because she doesn’t notice it either.

Next chapter, we’re going to have more genin children bickering and having fun with each other!

We’re getting closer to their first C-rank, so wait for it!

[inkuisitivskins]

Top 5 Series that fundamentally shaped you as a person

Ask Me My Top Five Anything!

ohhhhhh yikes. Lemme think haha, there’s several that immediately come to mind but I really wanna put some thought into this uwu I’ll try to put them in some semblance of a rational order heh

1. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (and slightly 2003)

I had always been into “anime” like Pokemon and Hamtaro when I was a kid, but it was about seven years ago when I started watching actual anime. My first was Kekkaishi on Adult Swim, and I liked it enough, but that was also during the first English dub airing of Brotherhood, and it would come on right after Kekkaishi did, so I would watch it sometimes. I think the first episode I remember seeing was a flashback of Ishval, and one scene I prominently remember was Riza talking to Ed in her apartment (when she’s cleaning her pistol and she asks Ed if he loves Winry LMAO). I thought it looked cool and I realized that my mom’s friend’s (she lives with us) son had all but one dvd set of the original 2003 anime. I binge watched it (only missing the short dvd arc where Hughes was killed, which was later in 03 than in Brotherhood), and I fell in love. After that, I dove into Brotherhood and started buying the manga volumes (which were also being released as the anime aired). It remains my favorite franchise to this day, and I’m honestly glad that I saw 03 first because??? there’s certain things I still like about it, and even though Brotherhood is the superior and truest (to Arakawa’s actual vision of the story) version, I’m glad I was able to appreciate the original. I feel like I’d be turned off by it if I watched it after the fact, you know?

What I love about Fullmetal is just the thought that goes into the characters and the events that go on. In Brotherhood, every single character, including fuckin side characters like Yoki, have a specific purpose. The story and lore of the world is so immersive and well thought out and just so intelligent? I love all of the scientific and historical allusions Arakawa makes, and the character development is so beautiful and wonderful (namely in characters like Ed and Al, whose quest changes from something that only concerned themselves to something that concerns literally their whole country and eventually the entire world, if they hadn’t have stopped Father– and Scar, who only wanted revenge, but eventually saw past it and recognized the same greater good that Ed and Al did, even going as far to make the huge mindset change from REVENGE IS ONLY THE ANSWER AND I WILL DISOBEY MY GOD IN ORDER TO ULTIMATELY SERVE THEM to Miles’s mindset of I will use what has been given to me to change minds and make the world a better place for my people)

No joke I’m literally so tempted to apply for a panel at a convention that would just be a huge love letter to this series, where I discuss all of these things I feel in depth. I have 0 idea how to apply for a panel tho haha

2. Pokemon

When I was little, I would go to my mom’s work and just hang out after school. There was one coworker she had who was a young guy, like early twenties, and he really liked me. One day, he brought Pokemon LeafGreen for me to play, and I absolutely fell in love with it (literally my first playthrough, I got in one of the Ye Olde Metapod vs Metapod Fights hahaha). I think that was around first grade, soooo like 2004 ish? It just so happened that I had a friend who was getting a DS, so she gave me her gameboy advance SP and I bought LeafGreen uwu

After that, I’ve had at least one pokemon game from each gen and a few of the spinoffs since. I have FireRed and LeafGreen, Emerald, Blue on the virtual console, Gold, Crystal (that didn’t work), Pearl, Diamond, Platinum, Black, White 2, Y, Omega Ruby, Moon, soon Moon Ultra, Mystery Dungeron Red and Blue rescue teams, Mystery Dungeon Darkness/Time/Sky, Trozei, Rumble Blast, Battle Revolution, and the original Pokemon Ranger. 

It really helped me when I was little because it exposed me to the world of creature design, which is like my ultimate career path (I would like to be a creature and character design artist for a game company, though for now I’ll settle on an art teacher haha). Some of my first shitty OCs were Pokemon ripoffs, heh. It’s just why it’s always been easier for me to draw animals and creatures; I’m only just now getting into humans tbh.

3. The Land Before Time

This is probably the most random series on this list lmao. I grew up with the original movies, like, big time. Ever since I was 5 until I was like 17, I had wanted to be a paleontologist because of these movies. I still absolutely love dinosaurs so much, and Imma rant for a second buttt

The main tattoo I want is of a Tylosaurus P. skeleton because??? i loved dinosaurs and I bought this wii game where you play as different prehistoric marine reptiles (since they’re not considered dinosaurs but still) ((and i recognize it now but that game was so bad but i loved it to death)) and one of them was a tylosaur, it was my favorite. Fast forward a few years, my aunt took me to go on a dig (which I hated bc it was out in the heat) but I met a woman there who worked at a museum and she??? invited me to come help excavate one in the lab???? and guess what the actual fuck it was

it was a tylosaurus p. skull. My exact favorite dinosaur, right down to the specific genus. 

That was incredible because I was actually able to touch and help excavate the skull? which is a big deal bc the skeletons you see in museums usually aren’t the real thing, just plasters. So the fact that I was able to touch the real deal was one of the best things to ever happen to me.

So yeah I fucking love dinosaurs and if teaching doesn’t work out I’m gonna try and do paleontology stuff

4. Okami

This was one of the first wii games I ever got REALLY SUPER into. If you don’t know what this game is, it’s a literal work of art where you play as the reincarnated Japanese sun goddess who took on the form of a wolf, and her power is that the tip of her tail is like a brush and she can paint things into existence. This really got me to make my first ever “real” OCs, even though they were mainly fan characters. One I’ve abandoned, but two became like their own entities. One I still call a fan character because her entire story has to do with the game and I can’t really tailor her into her own thing, but for the other, I made her her own series. Little Baby Dylan wrote enough content for 4 whole manga series with this bitch, because even I had an “I want to be a mangaka” phase. Obviously looking back on it now, they were garbage, but I really want to redo her series because I miss and love her. Anyway, if Pokemon introduced me to character creation, Okami introduced me to worldbuilding and lore development. 

I also kind of want to write fanfiction for the one fan character bc I feel her story is really good? I just don’t know if there’s a place for fan character-centric fics on Ao3, since she’s the main character and she only interacts with canon characters (especially since she’s kind of an OCxCanon thing and idk how well that’s accepted there;;;;; )

I doubt anyone would want to see them but I may draw them again sometime if anyone’s interested haha

5. Dark Souls

One of my first “more mature” gaming experiences along with Skyrim and Fallout 3, the Souls series exposed me to the wonders of Dark Storytelling and Dark Atmosphere and *gasp* Eldritch themes. The unforgiving and sinister nature of these games just fuckin drew me in, I was enraptured at the tone that this game was able to produce. When I branched off from the Okami verse and made the world for the fan-character-turned-original-character, I took a lot of inspiration from this game and the atmosphere it was able to create. The story was so dark and the characters were all very weird and even some could have been considered otherworldly. I still really love the feel of it all and, through it, I learned how to draw certain creepy things and evoke certain emotions from my art (see: that drawing I did of Envy’s true form haha)

Sorry this was so long Megan;;; Thank you very much for asking though!!

[ol-razzle-dazazzle]

Marisa headcanons

@kiridifferent I’m putting them in separate posts but here is my take on the extra(ordinary) magician

-her borrowing habit used to come from the fact that when she was younger she lived by the sea and dreamt of being a pirate! She was also the kinda kid that climbed everything and dug around for treasure -when she was younger she used to be disconnected from other people, bc I hc that she has some degree of add, which stuns ‘maturity’, but as she’s grown she likes herself and simply sees herself as wise in her child-like fantasy that has come to life in gensokyou -she’s the kind of person who roots for villains in stories- heck her whole design is based on the idea for the western witch. She practices an evil laugh on a regular basis. -she’s amazing at improvisation, can make the best ghost stories and lies you can think of. Only reimu seems to be able to call her out on it. -while more begrudging friend/rival to reimu, Marisa actually appreciates reimu because the two are similar in that they’re ‘singular’. Reimu is the sole shrine maiden, and aside from Marisa, needs to maintain relative distance to humans and youkai alike, and as such, feels no one understands her (or for more in character, I feel like punching everyone in the face) Marisa actually feels that without reimu to envy and be together with, she wouldn’t be half the magician she is today, because of her hard work vs reimu’ talent and that she herself would be 'ordinary’ without being reimu’s friend.

-when she first heard of the hotshot new shrine maiden back in the olden pc-98 days, Marisa decided that she wanted to try being the powerful villain in reimu’s story, because she wanted to be a part of something, despite her magic being undeveloped at the time. After befriending reimu and doing some borrowing, she feels fulfilled in her life as a 'hero’

-she actually prefers youkai to humans. Despite mima’s misanthropic attitude, her father used to be the paranoid type and her family was always focused on what was 'proper’, which caused her to enjoy magic in rebellion. When her and her father got spirited away he called her a witch and yelled at her for condemning him to this life, to which she merely responded that he had made her experience the worst hell, a life of dullness and self-hatred and restriction. She didn’t talk to him after that.

-despite preferring eastern food and alcohol, she likes brandy.

-she has certain parts of her house that are spotless, and others that are messes. She has a garden full of flowers and plants from her games and adventures, from sunflowers to spider lillies. Both for memorabilia and magic purposes.

-she’s got freckles, tons of them- she’s outdoorsy. Sometimes when she’s bored she draws little constellations and sigils on them. She has a laugh that changes all the time, from bubbly bursts like a cauldron to chortles.

-her and reimu’s hair length changes bc she uses them in potions, maybe selling them to rinnosuke or the Tanuki.

-the strangest thing is that she attracts a lot of young youkai, who while initially see her as a free meal, gain respect for her. She gives advice to them and has a granny reputation, though she won’t admit it. Because of her take everything attitude she attracts the better side of people, like y'all see her with Flandre? She’s an irresponsible mom friend and is a testament to hard work and staying true to your flashy shine makes people the brightest

[teacherequality-blog]

An Interview With a Trans Substitute

“Missoula district was really supportive and accommodating. MISSOULA.

I grew up in Columbia Falls

There were two students in big sky high school (brothers) who’s parents called in and rose a big stink over my teaching any of their classes at all.

The school’s response was “well, miss class then.” I was told at the beginning of the day that I had one student in two different periods that I was required to send to the counselor’s office immediately. Heard from another teacher (prior friend) about why. The admin never even told me about it. There was NO change to how, when, or where I could do my job over it.

When I first started subbing, I was covering my tattoos b/c I wasn’t sure their stance. When I called and asked district coordinator about it, she said they didn’t care at all. I never had to cover them at all. Especially nice given that while I used to be able to EASILY hide them all, girl shirts are all designed for cleavage whether you have any or not, so almost none of my shirts could cover the ones on my chest. always wore my sleeves rolled up all day, so everyone saw my tattoo sleeve. Aaaaall the kids know I have tattoos and gauges. When I started with MCPS, Missoula county public schools, they have a checklist sheet you mark all the classes you’re willing to sub for. Grades and subjects. I could give a damn, I can BS my way through anything so I just checked them all without thinking about it. Then I got an assignment to teach gym. Oops. So I dropped the job and called sub coordinator to ask about it, since many gym teacher offices are IN the locker rooms…..  She said she didn’t know, she had never thought about it either. She said she’d look into it and get back to me. Got a call a couple of days later. Ver batim, she said I “could move through any bathroom or locker room in the entire district. Whatever you’re comfortable with.” Frenchtown is not so…. Free. When I asked them, he said that he knew what he had to say, and what was “probably the right answer.” They were implied as not the same thing. I told him that Missoula didn’t care about me and bathrooms and locker rooms at all. He said “yea, that’s probably the right answer. There’s a gender-neutral bathroom by the front office…” I told him no, flat out. Then pointed out that behind me were the FACULTY restrooms. Which, btw, are SINGLE Person bathrooms. One room. One toilet, one sink. I’m honestly not sure I understand the point of separating them at all. What’s it fucking matter if there’s only one person allowed in? after I pointed that out, he conceded I may have a point and didn’t push the matter, but I could tell it made him uncomfortable. He didn’t even respond to the gym issue. But, I found out later that every gym period in the junior high, there is an extra (female) faculty to be there at the beginning and end of every period. Bc the jr high him teacher is male, and they require the locker rooms be “checked in on”. Can’t trust kids to change their own clothes, naturally. Except, when *i* teach gym. Then, there are two extra faculty assigned to be there. I’m not allowed in either locker room. Not that I at ALL want to go into the boy’s locker room, but it just goes to show they don’t have a stance beyond “no, you can’t exist in here.” I stopped trying. Beyond that, Frenchtown has never done anything outright against me. But from the beginning I felt like the entire school staff were watching me. Not keeping tabs, just always cautious. Less welcoming. Missoula was ALwAYS welcoming and kind to me. Never an issue at all. The admin never once even mentioned to me that they had ever been contacted about me. At all.  No changes. It’s not that they were hiding anything, it was just such a non-issue, they didn’t feel the need. If I had to guess given my experience speaking and interacting with the admin, I don’t feel offended at all. It just more than anything feels like “it affects nothing, so we didn’t want to bother you about it.” I heard about it second hand from other faculty. Though, I had noticed that every admin in all the buildings greeted me by my first name. I had never met them. They all just knew who I was on sight. They’ve had board and admin meetings about me. Its not that they didn’t address it before… those meetings were never because THEY needed to talk about it. It was to deal with the parents. Or, more rather, to decide how to respond to parents when they got angry (they were) phone calls about me. I only know any of this because I heard it second hand from other teachers. I have no idea how many times they were contacted over it, all I know for sure was that at least 3 schools got at least 2 calls. I get the feeling there were a lot more…. From what I heard (again, second hand info. Take as you will), that the jist of their “pre-determined formal response” was along the lines of: “we understand you have an issue with this. Please understand we don’t care. We are not going to discriminate against an effective substitute for these reasons. If you don’t want your children to attend class with this substitute, then you can come and pick them up from school for that period, and drop them off again after. We’re not in the business of babysitting kids who don’t want to go to class.” Second hand jist. But that’s how it was told to me. The only incident I have specific knowledge of (big sky), I was also told by teacher friend that the kids could have cared less. It was only the parets raising a stink.

As for the students in general, I for the most part haven’t had any real issues. Sometimes I think I may have heard the purposely misgender me, but they’re pretty quiet about it. No outright defiance (for that reason, at least implicitly. They’re still teenagers). I’ve been told by students on a few occasions that other kids had been making fun of me or being disrespectful when they knew I couldn’t hear, but I never really heard anything. At least not that I was sure enough of that I could say anything. My hearing is juuuuuust bad enough that I cant always tell for sure what pronoun someone uses. Especially if its under their breath. But nothing outright disrespectful to my face about it. I think they know what would happen to them if they did…. Its so hard for districts to get and keep good subs that they take any reports of behavior issues VERY seriously, for any reason or sub. If i said that they disrespected me in that manner, the whole world would come down on their head and they know it. I’ve gotten a few questions in poor taste, but its due more to benign curiosity than any kind of prejudice. It’s also an interesting pretense…. Everyone knows, apparently, they ALL talk about it (students), they all know I’m trans. Mostly. They’re fairly sure, they all know it’s the rumor. But no one has ever been actually TOLD about it. Its ignored. They THINK they know, but not enough to be sure. So, I get the occasional question. “is that a wig?” is one. There was one incident where they seriously raised their hand in the middle of class lecture to ask “are you trans?” My favorite response, is to point out that that’s NOT a question they want to be wrong about….. its like asking someone when the baby is due. If I’m NOT trans, that’s reaaaaaally insulting and worrisome. Once I point out to them the nature of the question they asked, they get this reeeaaaaally horrified look on their face…. Its fucking hysterical. I love it. Its aaaaaalmost worth it. But my usual response otherwise was “no, I’m a woman.” So, they know. Sorta. Mostly. But not for sure…… its awesome. I generally raise my eyebrows at them and make them consider their question. Most of the worst insults and misgendering by students is mostly perpetrated by the trouble students I’m already being stern with.  I do not take their shit. And they KNOW it. Its part of my legend….. But a lot of students think I’m plenty amusing, and I get stopped all the time around town by kids saying hello and asking when I’m coming back. So, yea. The kids being douches, were already douches. Worst kids are still Frenchtown, but again. They’re still teenagers. Anyone is going to have some bullshit. And if they don’t insult with trans, they insult with something else equally offensive. My teaching experience in MCPS has been truly stellar. Not one concession has ever been made on the point, and not once has ANYone employed by MCPS EVER brought the fact that I’m trans up at all. On the FEW times its been a topic, *i* was the one to bring it up. They’ve been phenomenal. Kids have been pretty chill. All things considered, even Frenchtown has been at least moderately reasonable. The never said I COULDN’T teach gym, they just needed locker room people. To be fair. Just a different feel, and they were aware of the more rural attitude of the parents in general, and seem more nervous over it. No faculty has ever insulted me on purpose. Although, I have mixed feels over the woman faculty (ftown art) who approached me to express her support and that she was glad they had a trans teacher, and she’d heard about me and had to meet me. Mixed, because her saying so pretty well proves that she picked me out cold from a crowd….. but people don’t think about that implication. They’re usually always trying to be nice and supportive, in any case. Nice lady, though. She likes me.

Oooooo, one other thing to bear mentioning. I HAVE been approached by several students (quietly, away from other kids), who wanted to ask me about being trans. But, because they thought they may have been trans themselves….. they wanted to know what to do/go/talk to/proceed in general. I always pointed them to anne harris and mentioned that I didn’t point them to anyone. But they’re the only ones I’ve ever not denied it to. They’ve been pretty chill, and just trying to reach out because they were confused about themselves. In that respect, I’m glad I was in the schools particularly. Even, almost, a little, MAAAYYYYYYYYBE glad they could tell. So they knew they could ask. I met one little girl in 6th grade who came to me at start of period to tell me that the role sheet had the wrong name, and what to call her. The knowing look of gratitude was really rewarding. I’ve even been left notes from kids who wanted to support and express gratitude for having me. A couple were totally anonymous. They just showed up on top of my paperwork. So, in that respect, I’m really happy to have been a part of the schools systems in that age group of “flux”. When they really needed an adult that they could actually KNOW wouldn’t judge them for it. I never told anyone I was a “safe resource” or commented on “safe space.” Never had to. At least two of the kids who approached me on the topic were in Frenchtown. They obviously had no idea what to do. So, I’m pretty grateful I could be that for people. For most everyone else, it’s still a good thing to have a visible (hesitate to call myself a “role-model”) adult in their school/non family who is an obvious source of support/info/encouragement/comfort. I think its really good for them to interact with people that way in a CASUAL manner, NOT implicitly for that reason. I’m not a novelty alone, I’m just THERE. Novelty, but it’s not WHY I’m there, or WHY I’m talking to them. Its not even discussed or mentioned. No need for (so this is trans person, be respectful, who knows what trans means? Be sure to treat her normally. Don’t single her out anyone, that would be passé….” The pretense is half of what makes it so damn perfect. Not SURE. Not talked about. Not special. Just….. there. No different. Esp. when I do teach gym. It shows them that its perfectly NORMAL, benign, and simply a fact of life. Nothing to make any kind of issue over. No different. Just real people. Professional adult. Not pointing it out or trying to bond over it. Just Being there is plenty educational.

It’s one of the main reasons I liked doing it. I was terrified at first. I’ve subbed before in great falls, pre-trans. I know I can do it, am good at it, respected for it by faculty. I know I’m good at my job. I was terrified they wouldn’t even consider hiring me for fear of “putting their neck out.” Not wanting to stir crap with the parents. (enemy of ALL faculty and admin). But they surprised me. Not even Frenchtown ever brought it up first. Ever. It was MY question about what policy was. I was never told I couldn’t or shouldn’t teach ANY subject by EITHER district. Even ftown gym. I was especially impressed by them, given their rep for history toward lgbt students. No student group of their own, not allowed, they’re lumped into “diversity group”. But it was never mentioned, not even during hiring or interviews. It was never truly a problem for anyone. So no real “bad” experiences at all. They’re trying to be better. “

- Shannon Sorensen