#it's a fucking crime that they released it in July

[running-in-the-dark]

okay so I saw a post about the new Haunted Mansion movie yesterday and decided I want to watch it, and then saw that my cinema is showing it for the last time today. so I bought tickets and we just saw it and

it's so good?! I had literally no expectations whatsoever, I didn't even read the full description, I just thought it sounded fun. and it was! but it was also really emotional and adorable and LaKeith Stanfield is very beautiful (it was actually distracting).

also, since we saw the dubbed German version I didn't even have to hear J*red L*to's stupid voice 😁

[fuckyeahaudiodrama]

☀️JUNE LISTENS☀️

i still don’t have a brain! ah!!!! but i do have ears for listening! i actually listened to a lot of stuff that i ended up not liking as much, last month, but i still have plenty to rec.

Remnants — (ep1-2 early access) a dark fantasy mystery anthology. hard to describe without giving anything away. i love everything by Hanging Sloth (creator of SBR, NQD and Clockwork Bird), so i knew that i was very likely to enjoy this regardless of the premise… but my god, absolutely surreal vibes. the sound design is breathtaking! feeling very grateful to be a HS patron right now. keep an eye out for this one coming 15th july! subscribe now and don’t miss it.

Mockery Manor — (3 seasons, 37 eps + miniseries, between seasons) a murder mystery set at a theme park with a comedic twist. i didn’t think this was going to be my thing and i was so wrong. the protags are twin sisters with plenty of baggage between them. their shenanigans and banter keep the tone light even when the plot takes dark turns. looking forward to s4!

Limelight: The Specialist — (5 eps, complete) self-described as a “dark medical thriller” set in rural wales. Limelight series are generally good but satisfying endings are hit or miss; this one was VERY well-paced, with a satisfying payoff, and gave me hope for a series 2 in future. i loved the execution of the gruesome mystery and i loved the protagonist to pieces.

Close Your Eyes — (1 season, 9 eps, s2 in production) having recently listened to RQ’s Neon Inkwell: The Pit Below Paradise, which also centers around cult dynamics, i found this to be a very fun contrast. here we see how someone can be immersed and isolated by a cult, regardless of their personal skepticism or strength of will. the suspense was so delicious i had to listen to all nine episodes in a row. ends on an incredible cliffhanger — can’t WAIT for season 2.

The Silt Verses — (44 eps, finale soon) a grim religious fantasy dystopia. some of the most intricate and fascinating worldbuilding i’ve ever seen. huge cast. i know that everyone in the AD space has rec’d this pod a hundred times over, but i can’t stress enough how it’s one of my very favorite stories in the medium. the penultimate ep left off on an absolutely deranged note and i have no idea what’s coming! so exciting, if you’ve been waiting to check this one out — now might be the time!

Dice Shame — (2 seasons, 200+ eps, ongoing) classic dnd actual play ft. Harlan Guthrie of Malevolent fame, and his equally charismatic friends and family. i don’t listen to a lot of APs bc i have trouble focusing on such long episodes but i just love the chemistry of this party. slapping it on the rec list bc the current storyline has me hooked!!

Bridgewater — (1 season, 22 eps, ???) supernatural mystery, notably starring Misha Collins as the protagonist. this one has a lot of complicated family dynamics read: mommy AND daddy issues. the length of the series is just enough to let you spawn several of your own theories, which is fun, and i was really pleased that i was able to predict the true conflict and identify the antagonist. excellent use of foreshadowing etc, biggest props to Lauren Shippen of The Bright Sessions fame.

Consumed — (12 episodes) small town horror/mystery through the eyes of a stranded newcomer. this one did NOT go where i expected it to, because i started it before i listened to Bridgewater; they’re set in the same universe, so the same worldbuilding applies. i would honestly recommend listening to this one FIRST because if you do listen to the end of Bridgewater, it will kind of spoil the twist in Consumed.

The Penumbra Podcast — (5 seasons, 2 storylines, both ending this summer) still barreling toward the finish line for both Second Citadel and Juno Steel. as a patron, i was notified of early release for the SC finale this morning, which i know is gonna wreck me. just wanted to feature this because i don’t see it recced as often anymore and that’s a fucking crime. one of my top AD recs for sure.

Red Valley — (While You Were Hypersleeping 3) three ep miniseries featuring our main best boy, warren, who has been notably absent from most of this season! so nice to hear from him and to get a glimpse of what might be coming in the next part of the season.

Observable Radio — (11 eps, ongoing) my favorite recent sci-fi/horror anthology by far, tied up in a terrifically dreadful meta narrative. afaik this is a limited series but i’m really savoring each and every episode; the most recent, “Earworm”, was one of my favorites. very dark and dystopian. mind the content warnings!

The Network Defenders — (ep1) the debut of a new Planet Arcana miniseries, featuring some new voices and a fresh new tarot-based system (crowdfunding this year!) has all of the appeal of PA in terms of prod. quality, vibes and emotional depth, just new mechanics. 2nd ep is out now so i’m hopping right on that as i post this!

Waterlogged — (ep1) a new indie horror that i’ve been waiting to drop for a while now, and i really enjoyed the soft-spoken eerie vibe of the pilot. there’s a couple more things in the feed now so i’ll have to go catch up.

[writing-mlm]

Right here

Druig x male!eternals!reader

wc: 2.8k

summary: dinner with the Avengers gets unexpectedly cut short

��Uh… Mr. Corpus, sir?” Peter looks up from where he’s working on his homework, watching as you swirl his LEGOS in the air. They click into place, quickly forming some version of the Titanic but the colors are off. They release from their form and swirl in the air again as you look at him, your fingers held in a cupping motion. He looks away for a second, fiddling with his pencil. “Do you know what happened on July 14th, 1789?” 

“Storming of the Bastille,” You answer without thinking too much about it. “Very important moment in the French Revolution; Bastille was a prison that many aristocrats preferred to go to because it was a very… relaxed prison. Almost a thousand people surrounded the prisons, cannons, and gunpowder ready. They were afraid the King was going to arrest the new National Assembly. They were also wanting to fortify the prison, crime was horrid those days.” As you speak, Peter writes it down. He has no use for fact-checking you, you’re the Avengers history nerd. 

“Thank you,” He smiled and flipped to the next page. You nod, returning to your LEGOS and recreating the prison. It spins around and you look into the box of loose legos, using random pieces to create canons around it. 

Living with the Avengers was far from the plan you had set in your head when you finally broke away from your family. You didn’t want nor need a team of people to boss you around again but this was the easiest way to ensure the world was safe. At the top of the world, nothing was hidden. 

At least to you. 

You look at the other Avengers who’d found themselves a spot in the common area, blissfully unaware of the truth. They think they know it all, there’s nothing they don’t know. Anything and everything that happens on Earth— they’ll know it. And they’ll stop it. 

God, they were so fucking wrong. 

Sinking into your seat, your eyes drift off to the woods that surround the compound. They’re smaller but denser than the forest you’re used to back home, which reminds you that you ought to visit soon. It’s been almost a year since you’ve last been there and you’re sure you’re being missed day and night. 

And you miss it, too, of course. The dreams cannot replace reality. 

“Hey, Chronicle,” Tony calls and you look over to him. He lifts his cup to point towards the TV and you see you’re up for the next match of Mortal Kombat. Pulling yourself to sit next to Sam, you take the controller from Natasha and pick your character. Sam picks his and the round begins, you end up winning but that’s almost entirely due to the fact that for some odd reason, Sam could not have a steady grip on his controller. 

“He always cheats!” Sam points to you as you hand the controller to Tony. “Nah- nah, get the power blockers! I want a rematch!” He demands but everyone knows that for some stupid reason, it doesn’t work on you. 

   “It’s okay, butterfingers,” You tell him, patting his shoulder as you return to your spot creating LEGOS. “I know you're getting all hot and bothered around me.” Sam closes his eyes, telling Bucky that he’s about to send you away and you offer an amused smile. 

The place settles down after that, you end up losing in the game because you had a long-standing promise with Bucky that you wouldn’t use your powers on him unless it was necessary. Some type of PTSD you didn’t care to dive into. All that mattered was that Bucky absolutely murked your character and Sam was cheering the entire time. 

Dinner rolls around and you agree to make something quick, but with how much everyone eats even a quick meal takes an hour with how much needs to be made. Thankfully, the kitchen has four ovens for that exact reason. Seven lasagna and garlic breads later, dinner is served and everyone is eating around a table. 

Thor, Steve, Bucky, and Peter each got their own pans. Although, Thor needed another and you’re glad you made seven because the remaining two were just enough for the rest of you with normal appetites. 

Midway through your slice, you feel a certain tug in your mind and smile, doing your best to not look away from your food. It’s a tug you’ve grown to love and adore, and it’s more than welcome to invade your mind. 

What’re you eatin’ tonight? Druig asked, his soft voice mulling over the voices around you. 

   Lasagna, the recipe I showed you. You answer, grabbing your cup of juice to hide your smile. You? 

    Soup. He replies. Arishem, I miss your cooking. You laugh, although you manage to keep it silent. 

I’m planning my next return, just have to make sure there’s nothing coming up here. 

Good, I cannot go another month without you, my love. 

Neither can I. You look up, seeing everyone is looking at you. One moment, darling. Like a phone call, you put the connection on hold and clear your throat. 

“Sorry, what did you say?” You ask, setting your cup down. 

   “Peter was asking for the recipe,” Wanda says, offering the kid a smile when you look at him. 

   “Oh, yeah, sure,” You nod. “Remind me later.” He nods and everyone slowly goes back to their conversations and you take Druig off of hold. 

You have to stop letting your mind wander. He teases and you roll your eyes, finishing up the last of your food. 

   Only to thoughts of you. You reply and he makes an ohh sound. Not in that way. You add, leaving the table with a simple see you later. 

One amazing thing about the compound is the fucking dishwasher, it’s honestly a lifesaver. 

I do not need a dishwasher. Druig says as you close the door to the washer. 

   You don’t have electricity, you cannot have one. He takes the reminder with a grain of salt and your conversation continues well into the night. Eventually, he falls asleep and you allow yourself to as well. 

—

One thing you absolutely dread about living with the others is the fact that whenever someone who’s not Tony or Peter is there, they insist on working out at the crack of dawn. 

You’re awake at four in the morning, several hours before you normally do, and have only managed to get two hours of sleep so you’re more than annoyed when Thor makes an announcement over every single speaker in the house. 

Begrudgingly, you get prepared for the workout and join Sam for the pre-workout smoothie. He makes the best ones, Steve just eats it dry and Bucky cannot make it taste good for the life of him. The others don’t take any before their workouts so it’s just the four of you drinking (and eating scoops of protein powder) before you head up to the gym. 

Workouts with the Avengers last for hours, although Tony taps out two hours in, Peter had to get ready for school, and Clint wanted to finally go home soon after. Sam is the next to go, he’s beyond tired three hours in and chooses to watch everyone instead. 

You’re on your ass as Natasha flips you over, the wind knocks out your chest as you land on the padding. She stands over you, her weapon tossed to the ground and you twitch your fingers. It flies through the air and knocks her backward as you pull yourself up. 

“Cheater,” She teases as you twirl her stick in the air with a shrug. “Mama never taught you to play nice with friends?” Dropping the stick into your hands, you swing and she ducks. This continues for a while until you have her pinned down— albeit using your powers but it was getting a little tiring using your arms. 

Training ends with five laps around the compound— which only Thor, Steve, and Bucky actually completed. You gave up after two and Natasha got through three and a half. You were many things, a try hard was not one of them. 

Cleaning up, you head to the common area to find something to watch. 

There’s a lot to which, with Tony having every single streaming service possible, but you eventually settle on some show Peter had recommended. 

“Dinner is ready!” Tony calls and for the first time since you started the show, you look away from the screen. It’s dark outside and you were well into the show… that's a little embarrassing. “C’mon, Matilda!” He calls when you’re not moving fast enough. 

    “Shut up, white man,” You grumble, pausing the show and heading to the others. Peter is back for the weekend but Clint stayed with his family. 

Dinner is a large order of pizza, boxes piled up on the table and the super eaters take theirs before everyone else takes their slices. Tonight you’re able to engage with them completely uninterrupted and come to think of it, you’d gone the entire day without talking to Druig. 

You couldn’t feel him in your mind, either. Normally there’s a small feeling when you focus, letting you know he was there but today he wasn’t. 

Sighing, you decide not to dwell on it just yet. He’s gone through periods where he doesn’t want to talk before, the longest being a week. You’d give him two days before you stole a jet to go and see him. 

“Unknown subjects approaching the compound,” FRIDAY says midway through dinner. “Unknown mass in the air approaching at rapid speeds, engage?” He’s basically buzzing to use the systems defense system. 

“Describe the mass,” Tony says, afraid FRIDAY is alerting them of another bird. It’s happened at least six times already. 

    “A large black triangle with unknown carvings on it, approaching in approximately five seconds,” FRIDAY says and you take that time to think about it. It sounds familiar and as you’re rushing out with the others to find out what the fuck it is,  it clicks. The Domo. 

“Holy shit!” Peter gasps when he sees the Domo hovering above the field in front of the compound. There’s a couple flashes of light and you rush over to where they’re going to be landing while the others remain a good distance away. You’re glad for their sake that they aren’t a shoot-first ask-questions-later type of group. 

“(Y/n), do not engage!” Tony shouts, stopping the others from going after you. You ignore him, stopping exactly two steps ahead of where you know they will land in a couple of seconds. The others are calling for you to get back— Sam is sure it’s some type of alien and he tells Bucky he’s always right about the people they have to fight. You tune them out, watching as the light shoots down completely from the Domo and as it falls to the ground. 

Druig is the first to land and wastes no time in his arms wrapping around your waist and you hold his face. He looks at you with these puppy dog eyes, a smile creeping up on his face and you dip your head down. 

Kissing him, one of his hands grabs the back of your neck, deepening it. You move one of your hands down to his belt loops and hold him. He laughs into the kiss but neither of you pulls away. You hear a gag but it’s clearly from Sprite so you ignore it. 

“I didn’t need to see that!” Sprite groans as she lands. “They’re worse than you and Dane.” She tells Sersi as you pull away from the kiss. But just slightly, you can still feel his lips on yours and you carefully rub his cheek. 

“Hello, beautiful,” He mutters against your lips. 

   “Hey,” You mutter back, going in for another kiss but Phastos pulls the two of you away. 

“Dude!” You whine as he holds your collar and drags you across the lawn until you’re more than an arm's distance from Druig. “Let me kiss my fuckin’ husband!” Druig smiles and you wink, finally getting put back on your feet. 

“Did he say, husband?” Natasha whispers to Tony who blankly nods. 

“You can kiss when we’re done here,” Ikaris says, floating down from the Domo. 

   “You’re not the only one who can fly, asshole,” You tease, rising to his level. “But yeah; whatever. Why're all— most of you here?” You correct yourself, seeing that Ajak and Gilgamesh aren’t with the others. 

“Aren’t you and Gilg a package dead?” You ask Thena and that seems to be the wrong question to as everyone looks sad. Lowering yourself to the ground, you look between everyone. “What’s going on?” You slowly ask, looking at Druig as he walks up to you. 

“Ajak and Gilgamesh are dead,” He says as he holds your hand. “Killed by deviants; they're back.” He softly adds. 

“There’s some more stuff,” Sersi steps forward, her hand on Thena’s shoulder. “We’ll explain everything in the Domo but we need to go now.” 

“Now— like, right this second now?” You ask and she nods. Looking at your team, you sigh and look back to the others. “Give me a second.” They nod and you rush over to the others. 

“I’ll be back, I just— I’ll explain when I get back.” You tell them, giving everyone a once over. “Um… yeah, see you!” 

“No way,” Tony says as he grabs your arm before you can go too far. “You aren’t just up and leaving like that! Where are you going? Who are they?” 

“We’re on a bit of a time crunch!” Kingo shouts and you sigh, apologizing to Tony before removing his hand with your powers. 

“I’ll explain when I get back, I promise!” 

—

Sitting on the beach, you look over at Druig who’s already looking at you rather than the very large golden hand sticking out from the sea. 

“I should’ve stayed with you,” You whisper, a frown forming on your face. “If I hadn’t been with the Avengers Gilgamesh would be alive, I could’ve stopped Ikarus long before this became such an issue.” Looking back to the water, you rest your head on his shoulder. 

    “Don't think like tha’,” Druig replies in the same whisper, brushing hair from your face. “You were doin’ your best, you joined that stupid team to help people. No one could’ve seen this comin’, darlin.” He wraps his arm around you and lays his head on top of yours. He glances at your red and gold suit, tracing the shapes that he’s traced for centuries before as the waves roll in. 

You stare at the crashing waves, your eyes drifting to and from the head and hand every so often. There are so many thoughts running through your mind. You’ve lost three friends, you look at Sprite and while the others might be able to forgive her you can’t. 

Sure, she looks like a child but she was… born at the same time everyone else was. She grew as everyone else grew, despite how it looked from the outside. You can’t look past the betrayal, no matter the reason. 

Then there’s Kingo, who you weren’t too sure about either. You’d always fought, no matter how dire the situation seemed. You fought and you fought together. And he ran. It left a bitter taste in your mouth. 

“I can still hear your thoughts,” Druig whispers. “Mind if I change those thoughts?” You hum, and move your head from his shoulder. His head moves back before it moves forward, his lips finding a home between yours. They’re dry, but you don’t doubt yours are either. And probably taste of sand just as his taste like volcanic ash. He smiles, glad your mind has drifted to other topics and you pull him on top of you. 

“Do not fuck on the beach,” Phastos grumbles. You pull away and tilt your head back to grin at him. Druig doesn’t pay him much mind, letting his eyes and hands wander your body. Although that’s probably to just annoy Phastos even more. 

   “You’re such a cockblock, y’know that right?” He rolls his eyes and joins the others several yards away. 

“We should head back, though.” You tell Druig, squeezing his arms. He looks at your face, and you stare at his blue eyes. God, they’re really fucking blue. 

   “They’ve always been blue,” His lips quirked into a smile and you shove his face away from you before bringing the two of you to your feet. 

“I know you want to go to space and like… save the others out there…” You start as the two of you walk back to the group. 

  “But you don’t?” He finishes and you sigh. “Can I ask why?” 

“I like it here,” You shrug. “I’ve built a life and I get to play with LEGOS and cheat during game night…”

“You’re afraid of space.” 

“I’m afraid of space.” You concede and he lets out a small laugh before his face softens. 

“We don’t have to go anywhere, darling. Right here is perfect.”

[eww-y-tho]

The hypothetical debates surrounding the whole "Lady and Lord Whistledown" vs "Colin and Penelope Bridgerton" make me wither because

Lady and Lord Whistledown.

I'm telling you, this shit would be so fucking funny. I can picture it in my mind's eye: Bridgerton season 4, we get a quick shot of Colin and Penelope talking shit and giggling like crazy in the background, maybe with some PDA to match because Colin can't keep his hands off her, only to hear a male voice actor of a similar calibre to our angel Julie Andrews join in sometimes while Charlotte picks up the paper and cackles. Obviously, the reveal would happen, but I want to believe that our Queen would be down for Whistledown to continue as long as it doesn't get too personal. It would be kind of unfair and a bit indicative of the period, monarchy and all, but Charlotte being in on it would amp up the comedy points. Plus some ~historical cultural commentary~ would just be that final flavouring of spice.

It would kind of feel like Colin's turning to the dark side because we've already seen quite a few scenes where he seems possessed by Lady Whistdown's attitude and I love the idea of him coming from hating Lady Whistledown's guts to protecting her and joining in because it's fun and it activated his little shit reflex. Plus the subtextual implications of just how much Colin and Penelope actually are best friends and are connected beyond normalcy would just be *chef's kiss*

I would also love it because it feels very partner-in-crime vibes, giving another aspect to their relationship that would be fun to see. Combined with the power Lady Whistledown has on the story, we'd be guaranteed to see our beans quite a lot. Also a "Hello, my Lady," followed by a "Hello, my Lord" after a particularly steamy scene would literally have me shaking crying giggling dancing kicking my feet.

As for Penelope, it honestly depends on how you view her character and her relationship with Lady Whistledown. If the person in question thinks that Lady Whistledown is a vital part of her personality, an aspect of who she is, limiting her by making her quit would just feel really, really sad, man. Lady Whistledown has caused Pen a lot of grief, however, and we see it a lot throughout the story, so I think Colin being there, sharing the secret and partaking would make her feel much more comfortable in her own skin.

Anyway. Love the idea, and would perish if it happened, but probably won't.

Colin and Penelope Bridgerton.

This one's more cute than anything else. Two writers as a couple release solo and joint works sometimes while establishing their reputation as respectable authors and leaving Lady Whistledown behind them. I can see another scene in my mind's eye, Colin and Pen are sitting across from each other on their respective writing desks, writing and then handing each other their work to review and give opinions, paired with a kiss after they start teasing each other about their writing. Considering that the designated Sexy Desk Scene has already been taken, this would have to be in a secluded area or in their bedroom. And then shots of people buying their books and enjoying them would ensue.

With the amount of journals and letters and things Colin's done, he's practically primed for an author's role. Maybe they can be more exposed to Colin's love for travel in this version. Having Penelope with him on his trips while writing their little hearts out would be adorable. Sadly, though, this would mean that they would probably have less screen time.

If you see Lady Whistledown as an outlet for the suffering Penelope was going through throughout the story, she wouldn't need Lady Whistledown anymore and abandon the alias because she's served her purpose as Penelope's coping mechanism, and Colin and Penelope would find their fix through other means. Maybe continuing to gossip but only between the two of them, going back to the beginning of the series and the final link to their relationship.

It's been established over and over again that they both love reading, writing, gossiping, and discussing all things philosophical. And each other for enjoying those qualities. So, I think this dynamic would be particularly interesting because it would be yet another way to connect. They could probably also make each other all hot and bothered by leaving random sexy letters sporadically, which would just be so fitting, tbh. However, that would also work for the Lady and Lord Whistledown dynamic so it's kind of a null point. It would be hot, though.

And, yeah, that's how I see those hypothetical dynamics playing out and how that would affect the characters. But now for the negatives. While I love the Lord Whistledown idea, I do think that Colin is a bit too nice and cute for that, and it would probably be a bit OOC, especially because of his personal experiences with Whistledown, it would be a bit weird if his tune suddenly changed to "yeah, I know gossip can ruin someone's life, but I like it now, so I don't care." But I also just can't fathom Bridgerton without Lady Whistledown, and this idea hinges on literally removing the narrator and source of all the tea, as well as making us lose our angel Julie Andrews. At least the Lady and Lord Whistledown idea fulfills almost all fronts of their relationship dynamic.

Again, as the GIF demonstrates, both are good, and I love both of them for the different ways they would take the characters, but let's be real, a combo would be really fun as well. Like Pen keeps up with Lady Whistledown while Colin writes his own books or smth.

Anyway, enough of my rambling. Bye.

[listen-to-the-inner-walrus]

at this point my tumblr is just becoming a british politics blog but anyway, updates on the police misconduct at the coronation:

[Alt text:]

Anti-monarchy arrests at coronation to be scrutinised by MPs

Chair of home affairs select committee says decision to be made whether to hold inquiry into use of Public Order Act

Matthew Weaver, Wed 10 May 2023 10.38 BST

The arrest of anti-monarchy protesters at King Charles’s coronation and intimidatory Home Office warnings to campaigners before the event are to be scrutinised by a committee of MPs.

In a statement, the home affairs select committee said it would examine the Metropolitan police’s handling of republican protests at an evidence session next Wednesday.

It will investigate the force’s approach to public demonstrations, the practical implementation of the public order bill and the arrest of republican protesters. A full list of witnesses will be announced in the coming days.

Dame Diana Johnson, the chair of the home affairs select committee, said there were “real questions” about how the new Public Order Act was used to hold leading members of Republic for up to 16 hours during the coronation.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Johnson said she would be interested in reviewing how broad the law was and “what guidance was given to frontline police officers and whether there is an issue about training”.

Johnson added: “So there are real questions about that and we think this morning we’ll need to look at that and decide whether we want to have that short inquiry to learn some lessons and see what the implementation of that act actually means in practice to frontline police officers.”

The force also released without charge three women’s safety volunteers who were arrested on suspicion of committing a public nuisance for carrying rape alarms at the coronation.

Johnson also wants answers about the treatment of these women. She said: “There’s also an issue about the women who were giving out the rape alarms as well and the how they ended up arrested. I don’t think it was under the Public Order Act 2023, but they were arrested as well.

full article here

so, while the home affairs select committee (its basically like a bunch of mps from different parties who examine what the home office is doing. that includes policies, laws, policing, etc.) are meeting to look at what happened, they havent opened an official inquiry, and we dont know if they will.

the last inquiry the hasc opened was on the 7th february this year relating to human trafficking. there is currently an inquiry open on policing priorities (opened 21 july 2022). this seems to have been triggered by the chief inspector of policing andy cooke (truly these titles are pretentious as fuck) who has repeatedly criticised police for not focussing on preventing or solving crime.

you might think that would be the first priority, but considering on the night of the coronation, they were arresting people essentially for thought crimes, youd be wrong. most forces (including the met) often just dont record crimes, and andy cooke is apparently an outlier in believing police should attend every burgulary.

there hasnt been a report published yet for this inquiry but they stopped accepting evidence last november though the evidence transcripts are available for the public to review.

i would like to note that although the hasc is cross-party, 6 out of the 11 members are tories. the rest are made up of 3 labour, 1 independent and 1 snp. as far as i can tell theres no representation for northern island in the committee.

percentage wise, that makes the committee roughly 54% tory, 27% labour, 9% independent and 9% snp. so while diana johnson is labour and from up north, dont get your hopes up regarding an inquiry. i dont know how the ins and outs of their committee, but tories make up the majority.

we do now have official confirmation that six of the protesters were held for 16 hours on suspicion of committing a crime.

im also glad that diana johnson has brought up how the uh taking away the human right to protest act public order act 2023 was implemented. i discussed with my mom how fucking stupid it was to implement a new law thatll affect an event happening the next day.

i am interested as to what she means by the night star volunteers not being arrested under the no seriously guys the right to protest is protected as a human rights act public order act 2023 because why the fuck else were they arrested then? its been reported as "a conspiracy to disrupt public peace", and they were counted within the 64 arrested.

also just gonna mention, diana johnson has said publicly that she wants to review how broad the this law literally suppresses a human right public order act 2023, and idk, it feels like maybe we should have established that before it was enacted ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

tl/dr: the home affairs select committee are examining whether they should open an inquiry into the police action during the coronation. unfortunately its majority tory so dont get your hopes up for an actual inquiry happening.

[vague-humanoid]

@chrisdornerfanclub

Courtesy, professionalism, and respect: Those are the three things the New York Police Department promises all of us, the phrase emblazoned on the Dodge Chargers and Chevy Tahoes and Ford Transit vans (and even the dinky little parking enforcement Smart cars) that officers use across the five boroughs. 

Yet NYPD officers regularly fail to be courteous, respectful professionals. Instead, they look at their phones all day, decorate their offices with threatening posters, rack up millions of dollars in settlement fees from beating up protestors, detain vulnerable individuals like a grandmother and a Yorkshire terrier, lie, point guns at unarmed people—I could go on. And that's just the stuff we've had time to report on…which brings me to the point of this column. 

Every two weeks, we're going to be combing the headlines for a new column called "New York's Finest": a roundup of arrests, firings, settlements, disciplinary board rulings, and anything else we can dig up that involves cops in New York City and the rest of the state breaking the law, harming the people they ostensibly serve and protect, or just being fucked up and weird. At a time when crime and public safety dominate the conversation about life in New York, spurred on by our ex-cop mayor and other right-wing political forces, we think it's important to keep an eye on the people who make up an agency that gets billions of dollars in taxpayer funds every year—are they really making the city a safer place to live?

In this first edition of New York's Finest, we've got knife-wielding cops, Israeli cops, a cop killing a man with a cooler, a cop's death by friendly fire captured in body-worn camera footage, and more:  

On August 12, off-duty NYPD officer Elisamuel Samboy was arrested and charged with strangulation after a fight with his girlfriend at the end of July.

On August 16, Gina Mestre, an ex-NYPD officer who left the force in 2022, was charged with racketeering. The former Bronx-based cop fell in love with the leader of a gang called the Shooting Boys, then helped him flee to the Dominican Republic while assigned to a task force dedicated to capturing him. (OK, I have to  admit it—that's kind of romantic.) 

On August 17, NYPD officers shot a 17-year-old in the thigh in one of Brooklyn's designated "summer violence reduction zones" after he fled the scene of a fight on a Razor scooter. Cops say the teenager was reaching for a gun he dropped out of his pocket when they caught up with him. "These officers…stopped an innocent person from getting shot with that gun," NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell said at a news conference. Maybe! 

On August 21, the Civilian Complaint Review Board released a report that showed complaints about police misconduct increased by 40 percent from 2022 to 2023 and stop-and-frisk complaints jumped 87 percent in the same timeframe. "More enforcement means more unwelcome interactions with the public,” a source told the New York Daily News. "It only makes sense the complaints would go up."

On August 23, ProPublica dropped an investigation into the NYPD's handling of the friendly fire death of police officer Brian Mulkeen, who was killed in 2019 after he pursued and killed a man with an illegal handgun—which raised a bunch of very good questions about how the NYPD's Force Investigation Division (FID) investigates police shootings. How does the FID decide when, and how thoroughly, to review body-worn camera footage? How do they decide what parts of that footage to release to the public? Why didn't they press officers who lied about how far they were standing from Mulkeen when they shot him? Surprise, surprise: No one even tangentially related to the NYPD gave comment for the story.

Also on August 23, off-duty NYPD traffic cop Kerrielyn Gugliada was arrested on Staten Island after she threatened a man with a kitchen knife, and Eric Adams took some time to drool over Israeli police drones while on his tour of the country.

And finally, 30-year-old Eric Duprey died in a motorcycle crash August 23 when NYPD Sergeant Erik Duran hit him with a bystander's cooler that was full of soda and water bottles as, cops say, Duprey fled a drug bust on his bike. (Duprey's mother disputed this account in an interview with the Associated Press: "He wasn’t fleeing. He wasn’t fleeing. He was just on the motorcycle talking to me on the video chat. And he passed by that place when all of a sudden the call cut out," she told a reporter in Spanish.) Truly gruesome video footage shows Duran picking up the cooler and swinging it into Duprey, sending the rider tumbling off the sidewalk, over a metal barricade, and onto the street,  hitting a Jeep Cherokee. "The use of force here is not consistent with our guidelines," an NYPD official told the Daily News, and clarified that the department "[doesn't] train officers to pick up something and throw it at a suspect." Duran—who has racked up 17 CCRB complaints, one substantiated, over the course of his 13-year NYPD career—has been suspended without pay, and Attorney General Letitia James has opened an investigation. According to the New York Times, which obtained an internal NYPD memo, "the police are preparing for a possible public backlash."

On August 25, the New York Civil Liberties Union shared data with Gothamist that showed that of all the people stopped and frisked during the Adams administration, only five percent were white.

[sixx-writes]

                  Room 208 | The Approach: I

Kurotsuchi Mayuri x Reader

Word Count: 3,679

cw: slow burn, dark content, future nsfw, modern au, surgeon!Mayuri, thief!reader, doctor kink

AO3 Version | Masterlist

Summary: You and your partner decide to steal from a former surgeon who may not be all that he appears.

Pt. 1 | 2 | 3

"What's this guy's deal?" you said, taking another bite of your sandwich, "He really hasn't left his apartment in nine years? What the fuck's up with that."

Your friend and partner-in-crime, Shiki, opens up another article and starts to read out loud while you eyeball the picture accompanying it. A man with dark skin and gold eyes stares back into the camera dully from the moment the picture was taken. Beneath it reads ‘Kurotsuchi Mayuri’. The name rings a bell like maybe you'd heard it on the news at some point.

"Tragedy struck the famous surgeon on July 19th, 2014 when his adopted daughter, Kurotsuchi Nemu, was struck and killed by an oncoming car. But listen this is where it gets interesting," Shiki waggles his eyebrows before continuing, "In a bizarre twist the driver was later discovered to be none other than Pernida Parnkgjas wanted for questioning by police pertaining to a series of grisly murders in connection with the yakuza. He was later apprehended and freed only a few days later causing a public outrage."

There's another picture of Pernida, you assumed, with his arm raised in victory and a smug grin plastered across his face. He was getting into a car presumably after being released from prison. You notice how there's a  very distinctive tattoo of an eye on his palm.

"Oh yeah," you said, "I remember now. There was a riot or something, right? Protests?"

"Yeah. Didn't do shit though. Pernida is pretty much untouchable since he's the right hand man of Reio himself. Everybody knows he has the cops on his payroll."

"So he became a recluse after that? Poor dude," you finished off the last bite of your sandwich with a depressed sigh imagining what it would be like knowing that your daughter's killer was alive and well like nothing had ever happened.

"Well I hope you're not feelin’ too bad for him ‘cause you're gonna be the one that gets us inside. The guy's fuckin’ apartment is shut up tighter than a bank vault. He never leaves. I had a guy watchin' his place for like a month and he has everything delivered to his door."

"Why me? Why don't you just smash and grab the shit; what's up with the extra steps?"

"Because we also know he has top of the line security installed and God knows what else. Ya don't spend that long in isolation after some trauma like that and not become a paranoid fuck. We need this to play out smooth as a virgin pussy. There's a vacancy in the apartment next to his and you're moving in tomorrow."

Your eyes bulged in shock, "What the fuck Shiki. I haven't even said yes. Am I just a whore now? I seduce him and suck his cock until he falls asleep then scope out the place?"

"Something like that," Shiki smirked, "I get the feeling he ain't gonna be that easy. This guy's social life is non-existent. No visitors. Aside from the delivery men but he don't even talk to them just has everything left outside."

"Besides that how do you know that he has anything valuable in the apartment? Wouldn't all his money be in the bank?" you complained.

"Nope. He withdrew all of his savings according to my boy that just so happened to work at his bank. Said it was two big briefcases full of cash. Like some shit out of a movie."

"Ohh," you drawled, "You have a boy that worked at his bank. Well I'm sold."

"Hey, stop busting my balls, the info is good. My sources always come through. Ya know that."

"Oh really," you said with heavy sarcasm, "what about that convenience store last month?"

Shiki stiffened in embarrassment, "That's not.. I didn't know the guy was cheating on his wife with a fucking dude ok. How was I supposed to know they'd be humped over behind the counter going at it when they were supposed to be out for lunch."

"I don't know, man. That's kinda homophobic," you said with a straight face.

He threw a bottle cap at your head and you dodged it with a laugh.

Shiki helped you move your things to the new building located in a much nicer neighborhood than your own. You were a little nervous when you found out that yours and Mayuri's apartments were the only ones on the floor. You guessed it made sense if the guy was a recluse that he wouldn't want alot of noisy people stomping around all the time.

On the last trip up in the elevator you glanced over at Mayuri's door and thought you saw it was open just the tiniest crack before quietly shutting as soon as you noticed. The hall light reflected across the number on the door, 208, assuring you that it wasn't imagined. You shook it off and continued to pack your things inside completely worn out by the time you were finished.

"I think he was watching," you muttered after setting down the last box.

"What?"

"It's nothing," you said, waving it off, "it just looked like he was watching us. Earlier."

"So what? The dude’s a freak ah course he's goin' to check us out. Don't worry about it. As far as he knows you're just a girl lookin' for a fresh start."

"I am?"

"Well, make something up, obviously. I don't fuckin' know. Find some common ground fast and get inside that apartment."

After that you were alone surrounded by a few boxes of your things. You had decided against packing everything leaving most of your stuff at your other apartment and you hoped that Shiki wouldn't try stealing any of your panties that you had left behind in the dirty laundry. The two of you were roommates and long time friends but that didn't stop him from occasionally perving out.

You were too tired to unpack so you flopped onto the bed and looked for something to watch scrolling mindlessly through your feed. Seeing nothing of interest you typed 'Kurotsuchi Mayuri' into the search just to see what came up. Before becoming a recluse he'd received all sorts of awards and was one of the leading surgeons in Japan. You blinked at an image of him shaking hands with the Prime Minister. The guy was practically Buddha or something.

And you were going to steal from him.

You hoped that you wouldn't lose too much karma for your transgressions..

The only problem was you had no idea how to go about the approach. You couldn't exactly knock on the door without a reason and unfortunately there was virtually nothing on Mayuri's personal life or clues to his interests. Up until the death of his daughter it was just article after article praising his achievements as a surgeon. For you it was just annoying surface level shit that wouldn't help at all.

You closed the browser and lay back with your hands crossed behind your head running over different possibilities until your eyelids started to feel heavy and you drifted off.

A few days later you decided to make the first move, your idea is cliche at best and you cringe just thinking about it, but your brain is as dry as a desert on how to approach someone you know nothing about. You weren’t exactly the most experienced when it came to this kind of shit. You’d never interacted with the people you stole from until now always breaking in when they weren’t home.

You prepared a simple dish of sukiyaki and filled a bowl before going next door and standing for several awkward seconds without knocking. You felt stupid like you had failed before trying but you force yourself to raise your arm. Before your hand connects with the wood you hear a soft sound from within making you pause.

"Yes?"

You can't hide your surprise at the sound of Mayuri's voice.

 Was he watching you the whole time you were standing outside doing nothing through the peephole?

"Um, hi, I just moved in next door-"

"Yes, I know. What do you want?"

You were sweating now, made uncomfortable by his directness and getting caught, you hadn't planned on him responding at all if you were being honest with yourself.

Stop overthinking you fucking idiot. Say something!

"W-Well, it's just I made some sukiyaki and I thought I'd bring you a bowl. Kind of like saying hello to my new neighbor.. or something."

"Are you a reporter?"

"Report..? No, I just moved in.. I'm in 207," you repeated hesitantly mentally stomping your own foot for saying your apartment number when it was the only other room on the floor. More importantly it had been nine years since the incident. Why the hell would he think you were a reporter? Did he believe they were still looking for him?

A long silence then, "Leave it outside."

You gave an awkward little bow leaving the steaming bowl in the hall before retreating into your own apartment with your tail between your legs. You had no idea if that could be considered a success but it was a start. You listened intently and heard the door click softly, opening after the jangle of several locks being undone.

He was definitely a weird one that was for sure.

                                                         ⛧

You had plans later that day to take care of some errands and you were on your way out when you noticed a large insect batting against the window at the end of the hall. You furrowed your brow in confusion at the sight of it moving in for a closer look and recognizing the skull marking on it's back right away. You hadn't seen one of these since your mother was alive and it sends a coil of nostalgic sadness through you. You're so distracted that you don't notice the door opening and closing behind you.

"Excuse me."

You gasp and turn in shock with your hand flying to cover your mouth in an overly dramatic way like you're some actress from the thirties. Mayuri is standing right next to you, his hooded eyes drifting from your face to the moth still trying to escape. He was much thinner than his photos and looked more tired, with dark circles beneath his eyes, his hair disheveled as if he'd just gotten out of bed.

He moved past you, not waiting for you to get out of the way, the fabric of his robe brushing against your skin as he captures the moth carefully with a small net.

"It's yours?" you blurt.

"Obviously," he twists the fabric so it can't fly back out making a pocket in the netting.

"Do you raise them or something? It's just I know that moth. It's a Death's Head, right? It's the European species if I remember right because it has more yellow on the wings."

Mayuri slows on the way by humming thoughtfully, "Interesting. It's unusual for someone to notice the difference. Do you have an interest in entomology?"

"Oh, well, not exactly. It was my mom, actually; she used to show me her books on moths and butterflies when I was little. The Death's Head was my favorite. I thought the skull was cool. I had a poster of it on the wall of my old bedroom for years with the different types. So, it's kinda burned into my mind I guess.. haha."

You were painfully aware that you were rambling now but Mayuri didn’t seem bothered. Just gazed at you intently, listening until you were finished, making you blush self consciously.

“Um, I have to..” you trailed off implying that you had to go when he didn’t say anything else.

“Yes, excuse me.”

After showering that night, you noticed that Shiki had texted you and you unlocked your phone to see what he wanted.

 S: Well? Have you made first contact?

You rolled your eyes at his wording.

 R: He's not an alien Shiki. And yeah I just spoke to him not too long ago, actually.

 S: Annnd what's he like? Is he fuckable?

 R: If you mean in the sense of tricking him into letting us steal his shit then I have no idea. It was kind of creepy tbh.

 S: Whoaa for any agents reading this conversation that's a joke ;)

 R: ...

 R: Anyway it's late I'll text you more tmrw asshat

 S: Love u too cuutie<3

Shiki was pissing you off with his entirely flippant attitude towards the situation while you had an uneasy feeling ever since first meeting the doctor. Your gut was telling you that something was off about this guy. You didn’t like the way Mayuri looked at you. It was more like he was looking through you.

He unsettled you more than most of the seedy people you had dealings with when it came to your ‘work’.

You made an oath to yourself the next time you and Shiki went after a high profile target Shiki would be the whore.

Things continued like that, little exchanges here and there, you made it a routine to cook for Mayuri on the weekends and occasionally during the week. You hoped that the way to a man's trust was through his stomach or however that stupid saying went. After being cooped up for almost a month you met with Shiki at the usual restaurant ordering your favorite dish while the lanky thief slid into the seat across from you.

He was wearing a tank top that showed off his tattoo sleeve, something you'd always told him was a dumb idea, yet he insisted it made him look more intimidating. It just made him look more like a criminal and easier to identify.

"Put that out, you moron," you hissed when he slid a cigarette from the pack and dangled it between his lips about to light it.

"Chill, babe. I know the owner. Didn't I ever tell ya about that?"

"No."

With perfect timing the waiter returned to the table his eyes nervously darting between the tattoos on Shiki's arm and the cigarette, "Sir, you can't smoke in here."

"Eh? Listen, I'm friends with the owner just ask him."

"I'm not saying that you're a liar, sir, but I'm afraid the owner isn't here today and the other guests are complaining."

Shiki let out a deep sigh, gusting smoke in the waiter's face, before dropping the cigarette in the pitcher he was holding, "What is this? Shit on Shiki Day? Whatever. Fuck both of ya."

You roll your eyes in irritation from the obnoxious display, "Can you not."

"I'll not when ya stop being a bitch about everything I do."

You give him the finger and hear a disgusted noise from the table next to yours choosing not to acknowledge who made it.

"How's it going with Doctor Frankenstein anyway. Has he fingered ya yet," Shiki said taking a large bite of his food.

"It's going nowhere like I said before in the texts. The guy obviously doesn't trust anyone and I can't say that I blame him."

"Oh, that reminds me," Shiki spoke with a mouthful of unchewed noodles, "I have a guy that knows a guy in the yakuza. So this guy says that a week after the trial Pernida up and disappears. Reio was fuckin' pissed. Search and destroy type ah shit ya know, thinkin' it was a rival family. But it was like Pernida just vanished without a trace and no one ever came forward to claim the hit."

You blinked, "They never found him? I didn't see anything about it anywhere."

"Well obviously not. There's not exactly a yakuza newsletter. One of your top generals goes missing, presumably murdered, and on top ah that ya can't find the one responsible to take retribution so it makes ya look weak. Incompetent. So the info was kept to the inner circle. Only the highest ranking members know what actually happened."

"So, what exactly are you getting at here?" you pinched the bridge of your nose.

"What I'm getting at is that this doctor withdraws all of his money around the same time Pernida is," Shiki makes a swipe across his throat to finish the sentence.

"You think that he put a hit on Pernida? I don't really follow."

"I think I don't know what I think."

"You didn't think to ask a friend of a guy of a friend about this until now?"

"Well, maybe it's nothing. Jesus Christ, woman. Just thought I'd tell ya. The guy may not be as perfect as he seems from the outside. I do care about ya even though you're a bitch to me. Just be careful."

Yeah, no shit, you thought. You hadn’t told Shiki how you really felt about Mayuri. Not when you weren’t entirely sure yourself.

You scoffed, standing from the table having finished your meal, "Let me know if you find out anything else."

You gave an ironic salute on the way out and Shiki rolled his eyes.

You were just about to go into your apartment when the sound of someone’s throat being cleared stopped you. You glanced in the direction of Mayuri's door and found it open with the surgeon waiting for you.

"This may seem sudden but would you like a cup of tea? I've just prepared a fresh pot. I knocked earlier but you were out," Mayuri said.

Uneasiness washed over you and you forced a smile, "I would love to. Let me put my bag inside."

You were a whirlwind inside the apartment, throwing off your jacket and bag. You adjusted your hair in the mirror and checked for any food stuck in your teeth before calming yourself down and heading next door.

Mayuri's apartment was modern and very clean; almost horrifyingly so for someone as untidy as you. Every surface looked like it was wiped down daily. Identical to your apartment he also had a balcony on the opposite side of the building so plenty of sunlight came in through the glass doors. A kotatsu sat not far from it with it's blanket removed for the warmer weather and on top was two ceramic tea cups and a teapot.

You and Mayuri sat opposite of each other and you poured yourself a glass of green tea enjoying the floral hints mingling with the steam not familiar with the blend he had used.

"How is it?" he asked.

"It's really good. Thank you for inviting me."

"Not at all. You have been so kind to me after all. I thought it was time I returned the favor," Mayuri smiled revealing perfectly straight white teeth before taking a small sip from his own glass. You noticed that his right ear was pierced with twin gold hoops that glittered in the light catching your eye.

You inconspicuously take in little details of your surroundings when you think he isn't looking, searching for anything odd. Mayuri had several paintings that could hide a safe behind them although the paintings themselves looked like they were worth quite a bit on their own. There were a variety of other potentially valuable things neatly displayed on shelves and tables proving that Mayuri still liked to indulge in the finer things.

"See something that interests you?"

You tried not to look guilty before answering, "I was wondering where you keep your moths?"

"Ah, that's right. I keep them in there," he gestures to the room adjacent to the one you're in. It's too dark for you to see anything and you squint trying to make your eyes adjust.

"Would you like to see?"

"If you wouldn't mind."

 If it let you see more of the apartment then by all means..

You followed Mayuri inside where he flipped on the light and revealed a room filled with various enclosures, each with a different species of butterfly or moth. Your near childish excitement was real as you wandered around taking a closer look at each. The diurnal species each had a light on their enclosure where they fluttered around in various states of activity.

"Holy shit, aren't these Blue Morphos? And this is a White Witch?"

"Indeed. You do know your species," Mayuri affirmed.

There were several rare species that you recognized, some still in their larval states, munching contentedly at the leaves given to them. It would have been your wet dream at one point in your life to have this setup.

"This one is my favorite," Mayuri called out and you went to his side, curiously.

On a table all by itself was a tall specimen jar and inside was-

"Oh," your knees felt wobbly and you stumbled against the wall clutching at your head. You felt overwhelming dizziness wash over you and your limbs grew heavy.

"Are you alright?"

The concern in Mayuri's voice would have been believable under any other circumstances were it not for the arm floating in the jar next to him with a very recognizable eye tattoo on it's palm.

"What did you put in my fucking tea?"

The muscles in your legs gave out and you collapsed to the floor against the wall. Mayuri lowers himself into a crouching position to join you his arms rested on top of his knees.

He tilts his head assessing your condition before his slender fingers grip your chin forcing you to look into his eyes, "Who do you work for?"

"I don't work for anyone," you mumbled. Your tongue wasn't working properly and the words came out slurred.

You felt like you were having the worst trip of your life and Mayuri's grin was scaring the shit out of you. He was perfectly at ease with what was happening. That's how you knew just how fucked you were.

The severed arm that he keeps in the butterfly room might have been the first red flag..

"What is your true purpose here?"

"Let me go," you begged, "I won't tell anyone."

Mayuri chuckled sending shivers up your spine, "I'm certain that you won't."

[stayarmytinyzenmoa-l]

The Limitless Podcast Transcript [S2E9]

TW: None. Notes: Finally picked this up again! Word Count: 1.9K

[Previous] | [Next] [Other Groups Masterlist] | [Without a Trace Masterlist]

Disclaimer: Please remember that this is an AU and a work of fiction, obviously the idols mentioned/written about in this story would never partake in these actions. The idols mentioned in this work are meant to be seen more as face claims rather than the actual idols themselves.

Release Date: August X, 2021 Episode Title: The Charlatan Run Time: 20:32 Minutes

Intro Song: Fake Luv - thankgoditswknd

Johnny: Hello, hello, everyone! Good evening and welcome to the ninth episode of the Limitless Podcast! We're your hosts Johnny Suh and Mark Lee, and boy do we have an episode for you all tonight.

Mark: Yup, that's right! As highly requested by our Patreons, we're doing an episode on the Charlatan, aka the serial killer who has been terrorizing multiple cities now.

Johnny: But before we delve into that, we have an announcement to make. We will be holding off on the podcast's transcripts for now, none of us have been able to reach Crys since the last episode, so we're going to have to put them on hold.

Mark: Don't worry, though! This isn't the first time Crys has kind of disappeared off the face of the earth, I'm pretty sure she'll text one of us soon with some outrageous story about what happened to her.

Johnny: And, also, as you can see, no special guest today, sadly.

Mark: Yeah, we're back to the old format for now, but we'll see who we can reel in next episode!

Johnny: Yup, so that's all for that for now, let's move onto the news! Mark, take it away!

Mark: Yes... so as everyone expected, the Vigilante Ban has been the hot topic for the last couple of days. It was recently put into question with the fight for better insurance policies and healthcare for victims of sudden mutations as well as for the appearance of the "A" team a few days ago at the bank. Speaking of that team up, they've been quiet since their debut, and many people are anxiously awaiting their next move after their bold stand up against the Charlatan. There has been no word from lawmakers or law enforcement about their appearance. And that's all for news!

Johnny: Onto our main topic, now. The Charlatan! Who are they? What are they? Why are they? Etc. We had you all send us your pressing questions or interesting theories on Twitter and Shotaro went through them and picked the ones that came up the most. But, before we do that, I'll have Mark give you all a brief introduction.

Mark: Yes, sir, the Charlatan, as we all know, is officially listed as a "serial killer" according to the police. All of their victims are specified in a "list" that they publish at random times but always after the previous list concludes. The victims on the list seemingly have no correlation to each other, but this is currently being investigated. The Charlatan's modus operandi evolved from murdering people themselves into a more organized crime ring and, as a result, we are even seeing their influence in other countries.

Johnny: Fucking wild.

Mark: Yeah, and since the first list was published, what, a year ago? I want to say it was in July of last year, and since then the Charlatan worked slowly but efficiently. If your name was on the list, then it was like a guaranteed death sentence. And this was true up until their penultimate list, we know for a fact that actor Han Jisung is still alive and well.

Johnny: Yeah, and all the way in Canada, hoo.

Mark: He really went as far as he could to avoid this, and I can't even be mad because, not gonna lie, same. If I had some known serial killer coming after me and I had that kind of money I'd run and hide too. But, I'm so sure about this, the Charlatan would have found a way to get to him if that group didn't push him into creating a new list. The Charlatan's fail rate is eerily low.

Johnny: Huh... with that much information someone would think you're the Charlatan, Mark.

Mark: Uhhh... I'll take that as a compliment? To be honest I just spent four hours on Twitter and went through the second page of Google.

Johnny: Whoa, talk about thorough there, bud.

Mark: Yeah, yeah, but we've barely touched the tip of the iceberg. To date, there have been up to eighty "Charlatan" cases, but really there have only been a confirmed twenty. Meaning, the actual Charlatan was only responsible for twenty while the remaining sixty were copycat cases. If you reference the Charlatan's list, we really only have evidence for twenty of them.

Johnny: Damn... so the Charlatan has followers then?

Mark: Sure, if you want to call them that. I was scrolling through their blog posts and they just seem like bandwagoners, know what I mean?

Johnny: Yeah, it's a little tasteless, I think. Calling yourself a Charlatan supporter after all the crap that's happened because of them, like, it's so disrespectful to the victims.

Mark: That's what I'm saying! But the fact that the Charlatan has such a cult following is interesting already, you know? When was the last time we saw something like this?

Johnny: Hm... probably the Loveholic cases.

Mark: Oh shit that guy.

Johnny: Yeah, that guy. That shit was crazy.

Mark: Quick aside to those who don't know, before the vigilante ban our last episode of season one was supposed to be about Loveholic, is he a villain or a vigilante? But, ya know, events happened and the episode never aired.

Johnny: We lost the script too, not gonna lie I was really sad about that.

Mark: Me too, but it's not like we had much on that guy anyway. Kinda sketch though, I wonder if his profile had changed over the years.

Johnny: Hold on, let me do a quick Google search and...

Transcriber's Note: Hey, guys! Crys here, this next part of the podcast ended up not being recorded for some reason? The mic went out and those two just didn't realize it. So I'm just going to pick up whenever the audio continues.

Mark: Uh... hello, hello?

Johnny: Dude, I can't believe that we didn't notice our mics turned off.

Mark: I know! Shotaro, how's chat looking?

Shotaro: Chat's saying that they can hear you loud and clear. But they didn't catch any of what you said last.

Mark: Damn.

Johnny: Damn.

Mark: It wasn't really relevant anyway, so I guess we can just move on and get back on topic. Seems like the Charlatan is really having a tough time with these vigilantes, huh?

Johnny: Honestly, they even changed their list for those vigilantes, that hasn't happened before and as far as we know all nine are still relatively active despite it.

Mark: Active and working together but, I have to play devil's advocate here, what's taking them so long? Nine against one? Not to be that person but I think with their members they should be able to pinpoint the Charlatan quickly, I mean, they have Cypher!

Johnny: That's what I was thinking! But they also have Mastermind, you know how particular he is with his plans, and even Timekeeper can be argued to be a careful risk taker too, you know.

Mark: I guess, and with the whole list change it's not like many others are at risk right now, but... it's still scary, you know?

Johnny: Of course. Who knows who's going to be on that hitlist next.

Mark: Exactly. But now I'm wondering what the Charlatan's motive could possibly be, you know? Murders and kidnappings, but why?

Johnny: Yeah, there really are no correlations with many of the people on the lists, let alone on the same list. I hope once he gets caught he explains his whole plan.

Mark: Like in the movies?

Johnny: Exactly like in the movies. The Charlatan just has this intriguing aura that I'm so curious of, and no doubt that's why those nine got together too, maybe.

Mark: I can see it, the Charlatan's always one step ahead somehow, like they have eyes everywhere, and their henchmen seem to be doubling and tripling, it's hard to tell who's affiliated with the Charlatan and who's faking.

Johnny: There's something really interesting about those henchmen, though! Have you noticed that they are using certain weapons?

Mark: From previous vigilantes, I know! Just the other day one of those henchmen were spotted holding onto Agust's pistols, isn't that insane? Where the hell did they get those? I'm pretty sure the police rounded up nearly all of them.

Johnny: Well, that's what they want us to think.

Mark: Of course, it is.

Johnny: It's just... interesting. And then there's why they use them too.

Mark: I mean... if you want to go into it... I have a theory.

Johnny: Ooh, do share.

Mark: Well, the definition of 'Charlatan' to begin with is "a person falsely claiming to have a special knowledge or skill, or a fraud." And if the Charlatan's henchmen are using ex-vigilante weapons, maybe they're trying to mimic them? But with that said, whoever the real Charlatan is might be someone well know hiding in plain sight. Likewise, they could be someone entirely random just throwing us for a loop, you know? It kind of fits when we put it up with how the Charlatan seems to be one step ahead.

Johnny: Wait that's actually really good, Mark!

Mark: Then part of me wanted to take it to a larger stretch and say maybe the people on their lists are also somewhat of "charlatans" but, for the most part, the victims seem very normal, nothing stands out about them.

Johnny: I wonder how much more this case will unfold.

Mark: Me too, it really is a twisting case. The police are having so much difficulty figuring anything out about them, the broadcasts are just encrypted so well that the Charlatan's impossible to track down and the use of henchmen makes it even harder.

Johnny: Let alone their weapons, those belonged to vigilantes, and it's not like many of the police force are trained to take direct hits from those.

Mark: Yeah, the whole thing is just a mess.

Johnny: You think this is what they wanted?

Mark: Oh, yeah, definitely. Chaos of some kind, or at least instilling that fear into everyone.

Johnny: Shit... keep our doors locked, right?

Mark: Yeah. I think we went over a good majority of it all, the casefile is shockingly short.

Johnny: For it being a year old, the Charlatan covers their tracks well.

Mark: Uh huh, there's not much we can do about lack of information. There's only eyewitness reports of their henchmen, but nothing on the person themselves.

Johnny: Like I said, lock your doors.

Mark: And on that note, we can probably end this episode early. Thanks for listening, you guys, and as usual we’ll be active on Twitter to answer your questions on CuriousCat and, also as usual, we’ll be answering the first 100 questions that come in. We’ll leave a poll pinned for what vigilante you want us to talk about next and maybe we’ll even throw in something extra. If you check out Patreon right now you’ll see a nifty poll for a secret thing that I think you’ll all enjoy. Oh, and buy us a Kofi! Link’s in our bio on Twitter.

Johnny: Oh and thanks to Crys, as always, for transcribing! She works hard so we don't have to! Make sure to follow her on @stayarmytinyzenmoa-l​ and buy her a Kofi so she can keep transcribing more of your favorite podcasts.

Mark: And, seriously, stay safe, everyone.

Johnny: We'll see you in the next one!

Outro Song: the simmer down - deep priority

General Tag List: @stopeatread @bat-shark-repellant @raeincitizen @umbralhelwolf @yangsrose @kazooms @sadcoffeecritic 

Without a Trace: @naiify @sunsethw4 @leesalts

If you want to be added to either tag list or removed just send me a reply to this post, and ask, or a DM and I’ll add you as soon as possible!

[intriguingpeoplebyangelafloyd]

CHARLES MANSON

CHARLES MANSON

1934-2017

CULT LEADER OF THE MANSON FAMILY     

            Manson was born in Kentucky, US, and started a criminal career from a young age which included theft, assault, pimping and fraud.  He started a cult during the 1960s, which consisted of young hippies, who liked to fuck, do a lot of drugs and who were easily manipulated.

            Manson was a singer-songwriter, he met Dennis Wilson from The Beach Boys, who introduced him to record producer Terry Melcher. In 1968, the Beach Boys recorded Manson’s song ‘Cease to Exist’ (Never Learn Not to Love) as a B-side on their single but didn’t give credit to Manson. Manson attempted to get a record contract from Melcher but was turned down. Manson threatened Wilson by waving a bullet. The Family were living in Wilson’s LA mansion and were kicked out, and then Manson moved his cult to Spahn Ranch in Los Angeles.

            Manson was a racist and believed there would be an upcoming race war and was growing impatient that it hadn’t already started. He decided to start it himself and called it ‘Helter Skelter’ (influenced by the Beatles song). In July and August 1969 he arranged for a series of murders. One of his followers was imprisoned for murder, Manson had the idea if they killed more people and made the crime scene look similar it would help have him released. They also wanted the authorities to believe the crime was done by an African-American.

            The murders of the nine victims were completely senseless, they were innocent and Manson and his followers had no logical reason to have them killed.

            Initially the authorities were completely clueless of who was behind the murders. They only learned of who the perpetrators were due to Manson’s follower, Susan Atkins boasting to an inmate of how she killed Sharon Tate (she was in prison at the time for car theft). During police questioning she spilled the beans on those who were responsible for the murders. The Family were arrested and the authorities found Manson hiding in a cupboard under the kitchen sink.

            In 1971, Manson was found guilty of the murders of seven people. Even though Manson didn’t kill anybody with his own hands, he had strong influence over those who did.    Manson, had previously shot a drug dealer Bernard Crowe in July 1969, who survived. There was also Donald ‘Shorty’ Shea, a Hollywood stuntman whose body was found in 1977, 8-years after his murder. Two Manson followers were convicted of his murder and it was believed that Manson may have also participated in his death.

            In prison, Manson received more mail than any other prisoner in US history. Guns N Roses, Lemonheads and Marilyn Manson have all recorded versions of his songs. In 2017, Manson suffered from gastrointestinal bleeding and died from cardiac arrest from respiratory failure from colon cancer in November 2017. Manson was cremated.

#charlesmanson #truecrime  

[captainstevenjohnstonme]

'Hands Of Vengeance.'

The following story is about a killer who was put to death in the electric chair and then buried in the prison grounds but his hands re-emerge and go on a rampage.

Hope you like it.

'For fucks sake can you motherfuckers strap me in already, I will gladly flick the switch myself to get away from everyone on this fucked up planet.'

Robert Jenkins a huge white prison guard who has worked at San Quentin for twenty years rolls his eyes as he approaches the cell of a condemned man named Elijah Pope.

'Settle down Pope and eat your last meal or I will come in and shove it down your throat.'

'Fuck you Jenkins' Pope screams out 'I asked for a large pepperoni pizza three chicken burgers a tub of chocolate ice cream and a pint of Dr Pepper but what do I get? nothing but a couple of roast potatoes a slice of pecan pie and a can of Pepsi.'

'Go and get the warden right now or I will hang myself with my own shoelaces.'

'You aren't wearing any shoelaces you dumb fuck and you should be thankful for the small portions because come frying time you will be shitting out bricks.'

'Now shut the fuck up and finish what you got before I shove my baton up your scrawny ass.'

Pope stares back at Jenkins in contempt 'Spare me the pep talk you slimy piece of crap just let the warden know that I will see him bright and early tomorrow and when I begin to broil and bubble I will send smoke signals down to hell where all of the fuckers who put me in this goddamned cell will also feel the pain and heat.'

'I have survived this world for 28 years and after I am electrocuted I will become the master of sparks and come back and destroy anyone for has mistreated me.'

'The only person who has mistreated you Pope is yourself , all of your wounds are self inflicted, you committed all of the crimes that put you where you are today so stop your whining and take your medicine like a man.'

As he walks away Jenkin's adams apple bobs up and down in worry because of all the prisoners he has come across during his time in this hell hole Elijah Pope is by far the craziest, meanest of them all so come morning when Pope leaves this earth he will thank the lord when the evil little man is gone for good.

Pope only stands a smidge over 5' tall and weighs about the same as a teenager and who some say looks like Kevin Bacon on crack may be small in stature but don't be fooled he is one of the meanest criminals in America.

He first came under the radar of the authorities when he was only ten years of age when he attacked another boy with a knife after the victim refused to hand over his wallet.

For that crime he spent five years in juvenile detention.

After his release Pope robbed a convenience store of a measly twenty bucks and as he made his getaway he turned and shot the owner and his female assistant killing them both.

After that Pope went underground eluding the authorities , for that crime Pope entered the F.B.I.'s most wanted list.

Between 2007 till 2011 a serial killer roamed the streets of Los Angeles, in that time he murdered 20 known victims but it is believed that the total could reach as high 60.

All victims were young girls with short brown hair between the ages of 14 to 18 years old but luckily with the use of the latest DNA technology Elijah Pope was identified as the perpetrator and he was arrested without incident on 6th July 2011.

A year later despite protesting his innocence 18 year old Elijah Pope is brought to trial before judge Walter B Carruthers a man with little time for the criminals who sit in the dock under his worship.

Popes lawyer Paul Drew is a young attorney with little time spent in an actual courtroom and now here he is defending an alleged serial killer.

The prosecutor a long time trial lawyer named Daniel Hopkins who can talk the talk with the best of them begins proceedings telling the court that Elijah Pope is a predator who took the lives of a innocent shopkeeper and a member of his staff but then he went on to become one of the nations worst serial killers.

Twelve weeks later with Popes lawyer proving to be next to useless when it comes to giving his client the best advice sits next to Elijah as the prosecutor sums up proceedings, 'Your honor the evidence is overwhelming, shoe prints found at many of the crime scenes match the tread on a pair shoes owned by the defendant plus the DNA evidence proves once and for all that Elijah Pope the man sitting next to his lawyer is a murderer who should be sentenced to death.'

'I rest my case your honor.'

'Does the defense have a rebuttal for the court?'

Drew begins to stand up but than changes his mind 'No your honor the defense rests.'

Pope can't stay silent any longer and stands 'What a load of absolute crap, I am no murderer, sure I am no angel but as my lawyer if he did a proper job would have found out that I was living in South Carolina at the time that these murders occurred'

Judge Carruthers bangs his gavel in fury ; Young man you are to remain silent in my courtroom or you will be gagged do you understand?'

Elijah knowing that he is fighting for his life sizes up the judge 'I am an innocent man you old fool, the so called evidence is rubbish, anyone could have worn my shoes but it is obvious that you don't want to listen so why don't you spit on your gavel and shove it where the sun don't shine.'

'TAKE HIM AWAY' Carruthers screams at a guard who grabs Pope by an arm and begins to lead him away but Pope can't resist a parting shot at his attorney 'Thanks for nothing I will see you in hell.'

At the back of the courtroom the young man who actually committed the crimes that Elijah Pope has been found guilty of silently leaves unnoticed.

Elijah is dragged downstairs to his cell where he is joined by his attorney. 'I thought that you were supposed to represent me to the best of your ability but all you did was sit there saying nothing.'

'I am sorry Elijah I know that you are upset but the evidence against you was overwhelming there was little that I could do.'

'I am innocent I tell you, why want anyone believe me?'

'Rest assured Elijah that I will appeal the decision so just bide your time and I will do all I can.'

Despite numerous appeals Popes execution is scheduled to take place tomorrow 21 September 2023.

At precisely 4.30 am Pope is lead from his cell by six prison guards.

Fully shackled in leg irons Elijah slowly shuffles down the corridor to his final destination.

Most of the prisoners on death row call out their farewells while the more subdued remain silent thankful that they get to live another day.

Entering the small room and is strapped to the electric chair securely with leather cords.

Twelve witnesses including his parents sit a mere five yards away.

The parents Brian and Maureen Pope struggle to make eye contact with their son as he awaits his fate.

They have a secret a secret that they have kept ever since the day that Elijah was born.

A secret that they plan to keep to their dying day.

At 4.58 warden Ian Baldacci a cruel bitter man who has overseen the executions of 28 men looks over to the phone hanging on the wall half expecting it to ring but as the seconds pass by it remains silent.

A minute later the warden asks Pope if he has any last words 'I surely do warden, everybody knows that i am no angel but I am innocent of murder.'

Taking a second to compose himself Pope turns his head and stares directly into the eyes of the warden' Let me tell you now warden if you flick the switch and send me to my death I will come back from hell and kill you at the first opportunity.'

'Mark my words when I return blood will flow from the bodies of all of those responsible for my demise.'

The twelve witnesses are visibly shaken by the outburst and cower back in fright.

Even warden Baldacci is disturbed by Popes words so when the clock ticks over to 5.00 he hits the switch sending the evil fucker to hell where he belongs.

Pope is slammed back by the charge of electricity with whiffs of smoke escaping from his mouth and nostrils while his skin begins to burn and blister.

Convulsing violently Pope takes one of his last breathes, deep inside his bones crack and his marrow boils.

The leather straps bite deep into Popes wrists and when the skin and tissue melt away the restraints cut all the way through to cauterize and fall to the floor of the death chamber.

Thankfully the curtains have already been drawn so none of the witnesses saw the dismembered hands fall away in a shower of blood and steam.

At 6.07 Pope is pronounced dead by the prison doctor Marcus Clarke who despite seeing many dead prisoners is shocked by the sight of the pair of hands that still twitch on the floor near his feet.

After the smell of death dissipates Popes smoldering body is removed from the electric chair and his remains are carefully into a body bag by two prison trustees, the younger of the two has the ghastly task of picking up the hands before he gingerly places them on the chest of the condemned.

The body bag is loaded into a van and driven 500 yards to the northern corner of the prison where it is parked near to a recently dug grave.

The body bag is lowered without ceremony into the hole while up in his office Warden Baldacci watches proceedings with interest. 'You are where you belong Pope may your body rot and your soul travel to hell.'

Three months later under the cover of darkness a single human hand pokes through the surface of an unmarked grave.

Another hand suddenly appears and they scurry over to the prison wall, then using all of their strength the hands grapple up the wall slip through the razor wire and drop down onto the grass on the other side.

The pair of hands hide in the foliage for awhile than they move forward in anticipation for the arrival of the garbage where they will hitchhike a ride on the first step of a journey along the road where they will seek an overdue quest for a bloody vengeance against those who committed a wrong against Elijah Kevin Pope.

THE END.

Part Two coming soon.

[nebulousfishgills]

for the random ask game!

2, 4, 5, 26, 35, 43, 58

Thanks bestie! The other asks are gonna get done eventually, brain has just noooot been letting me do shit lol.

2 - Do you have an accent?

Not really. Although technically my state has an "accent" that people kind of unofficially adopted. Sometimes my "a's" sound like "o's." It's not like southerners saying "wooter" and not "water," but the most obvious example is saying the name of my state itself.

4 - Have you ever slapped anybody?

I don't think so. Definetly not in a real, serious way, but I can't remember if I've done a stage slap or not.

5 - Did you learn a skill or get a new hobby during lockdown?

Honestly... I don't think so. Lockdown was really hard on me even being as big of an introvert as I am. I was depressed and mostly did what was familiar rather than doing new things. I've blocked most of 2020 out tbh.

26 - Have you ever won a contest?

Actually yes! Our big botanical gardens was opening a kids area and they needed a name for their mascot, a Marmot. The name I suggested was picked and I was there to attend the grand opening. It was televised and everything. I was gifted a marmot plush that I still have to this day (this was thirteen years ago).

I went there a couple years ago and the kids' section is still there and the mascot is still around here and there, although I don't think my name is anywhere. I can't even find articles about it.

Here's the little lad:

35 - Favorite dessert?

Fuckin Cinnamon Buns. I could eat so many of those, especially the ones from Cinnabon.

43 - Is there a movie you detest for a very specific reason?

Fucking "Sound of Freedom." As most of you know, I worked at a movie theatre this past summer and it was the bane of my existence. It's about child trafficking and it released on the fourth of july. And as you know, Americans see the word Freedom and go ape shit. And it's a very specific crowd: Conservatives. Your religious grandparents, military members, Blue Line Supporters...

And the tRump/QAnon crowd.

I extend my customer service to everyone but these people were/are ASSHOLES. Getting mad at me when showings were sold out (my co worker even had people ask if she could *move other people* from their seats so she could sell them to this old bat and whoever was with her).

On my last day I had two women buy tickets for it and try to trick me into free food by saying they ordered pretzel bites when they most certainly didn't, thinking I was too stupid to realize otherwise... I read their order back to them twice and they said it was fine both times. Jokes on them cause I rang them up in a separate order so they still paid...

Oh and our ushers have seen SEVERAL religious pamphlets and scriptures left behind on the seats.

But it did lead to this funny story:

When I was working on the 4th of July, every showing was full or almost full. This one dude with a Trump hat and a cross around his neck the size of my palm asked about a solution to the problem of his wife not liking butter on her popcorn but he did. I poured the popcorn into a paper bag we give out so people can share easier and let him use his free refill to fill the bucket again, so two buckets of popcorn.

He called me smart, asked for my name (since I didn't wear a nametag) so he could thank me properly, and gave me candy. I wished him a happy fourth since I really was hoping he would tell my manager I did a good job (praise is praise even if he wears a red hat) and he just bellows "AND A HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO YOU AS WELL, MA'AM!"

...so there was a thin veil made of ignorance and my own resourcefulness that prevented me from getting hate crimed at work since if this man knew a gay pagan had helped him out...

And no I don't think he actually talked to my manager about my helping him.

I seemed to get more respect from these people seeing this fucking movie than others (which says a LOT cause I had so many dicks I had to help) and I've theorized that maybe these nut jobs thought I was religious cause they saw the pin on the hair scarf I wore and assumed it was representative of some Christian sect...

...It's a Volturi crest pin.

But, yeah, to sum up, fuck this movie and the crowds it brings. I knew it was gonna be bad when I read the synopsis on my monitor the morning of the 4th and saw Jim Caveziel was the lead, fucking JESUS in "The Passion of the Christ..." and what's even WORSE is that he's the lead of "The Prisoner," the show I wanted to watch because of baby JCB.

Working Barbenheimer was like a doomsday for me, but Sound of Freedom was a chronic and horrid pain...

Although this happened, so that's horribly ironic:

58 - Are you or were you a good student?

Yeah basically. I was kind of universally known as the smart kid nobody talked to but everyone wanted in their group projects. Finished high school with a 3.97 GPA, but most of that can be credited to my extreme fear of failure. College has been no different lol.

[cartograffiti]

July '23 reading diary

I'm reading so many books these days that I've decided monthly posts would be a fun way to think about what books are grabbing me and shove them in front of other people.

In July I finished 12 books, many of them really lovely.

This summer I've been reading all of Cat Sebastian's 20th century romances, because I'd already read all her 18th and 19th century ones. I like her work a lot, because it's full of really powerful romantic gestures and she writes domestic slice of life as well as crimes. In July I read the last three I needed to have read her whole body of work, and found a new favorite.

Peter Cabot Gets Lost and Daniel Cabot Puts Down Roots are the second and third in a romance series that can easily be read out of order, all about estranged queer members of a Kennedys-ish political family. Peter's is a 1960s coast-to-coast road trip about fresh college grads with outstanding grumpy for sunshine chemistry, and it's the one that became my new favorite (my previous favorite was A Duke in Disguise). It has a wonderful ease and warmth to it, and I would have cheerfully read a version twice as long.

His cousin Daniel's book has some odd pacing--the last several chapters all feel like bonus codas to the main arc--but I enjoyed it all so much I don't care. This one's a cozy plot of friends who everyone knows are couple except themselves, starring a music critic and a doctor in New York's East Village in the 1970s. This is a great pick for anyone who feels like romances tend to move too fast, since their relationship is well established when they decide to change it. Their attraction to each other has a lot of emphasis on each other's quirks and their opposing personal styles, which is deeply cute.

The third Cat Sebastian I read was We Could Be So Good, which is her new release. It's a touching story about New York newspapermen in the 1950s, with an astonishing amount of pining. Like, Pacific Northwest pine content. I remarked in my liveblog that I felt like I was watching pandas in a zoo: "Please fuck the whole world would love for you to fuck, top scientists are trying to set the mood for you." This was fun! I prefer her faster-moving and more explicit books, which is most of them, but it's nice to read about a personable couple helping each other over hurdles so they can kiss.

The English Eccentrics by Edith Sitwell is a book I read very slowly and finished this month. It's a very odd work of nonfiction from the 1930s, and I wish I could remember how I first got interested in it. It's an overview of a large number of historical people whose "eccentricity" ranged, for me, from delightful to pitiable to repellent. Sitwell's style is a bit dense and full of opinion in a way that made me question her research when she touched on figures I had some familiarity with, like the con artist Princess Caraboo. More intriguing than informative.

The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street by Helene Hanff is a more satisfying nonfiction pick, a memoir follow up to the hugely charming 84, Charing Cross Road. This book recounts American writer Hanff's visit to some of the long-distance friends she corresponded with in the first book. I find the first much more moving, as a person with many similar friendships, and I missed the additional voices of her friends, but it's a slim book and Hanff's humor and observations kept me entertained throughout.

And my favorite nonfiction in July was Girls Can Kiss Now, a book of essays on pop culture and queer identity by Jill Gutowitz. Gutowitz is older than I am, but we're close enough in age for events to feel very relevant to me as an individual, and she writes with a lot of approachability and lightness without sacrificing insight. If you're interested in how rapidly media handling of queerness changed in the last 20 years, this is great.

Threshold and Stormhaven by Jordan L. Hawk. I read Widdershins, the first in this series about Victorian boyfriends solving mysteries about eldritch horrors, in 2015. I never quite wanted to invest in buying the whole series, so I was delighted to find one of my libraries has an omnibus of the series in their e-collection. Hawk is very good at writing horror and sex, solid at writing mysteries, and maybe just okay at interpersonal arcs. These first books have some problems common to inexperienced writers and some pet peeves of mine (notably very irritating romantic jealousy), but they're loads of fun and a good amount of disturbing. Is it silly to nervously roll over in bed to cope with an alien shrimp's dialogue? Yes, but that's a selling point.

A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn is the first Veronica Speedwell novel, and it took me a few months to read because I kept finding it a bit thin and putting it aside. I liked the resolution very much because it made the stakes I'd been missing real, and since Veronica and her love interest(?) have great chemistry, I look forward to reading the next. Pleasingly similar in tone and setting to Gail Carriger, though not Steampunk.

Frederica by Georgette Heyer. One of Heyer's best, I think. Heyer wrote a fairly narrow set of types for her main characters, and both of the romantic leads here are ones I like, who are natural and immediate collaborators and challengers for each other, plus great siblings and a chase after an out-of-control hot air balloon.

Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie, who only wrote books I've thought were great so far. This is a 1969 Hercule Poirot and Ariadne Oliver about the suburban murder of a 13 year old, preoccupied with generation gaps and 60s panics about the still fairly new concept of teenagers, ranging from marijuana and early computer technology to sex abuse and suicide. Great insights on the things people blame violent crime on because they don't want to consider malice, and lovely imagery about a famous garden designer's work. It's been adapted by Branagh as Death in Venice, and I'm very puzzled how they got from A to B. Don't pick this up expecting the vibe of that trailer. Do pick it up.

Thinking about young teens and murder brought me back to the Wells and Wong mysteries, an excellent recent middle grade series I started in the fall to surprise a friend with a treat for the Yuletide fic exchange. The second book is Poison is Not Polite in the US, originally Arsenic for Tea--you might want to look for author Robin Stevens instead of futzing around with varying titles to see whether you can borrow this series yourself. Anyway, both books so far are really strong, with cases that have enough subtlety and meat for me as an adult reader, and excellent writing on mystery tropes, race and class, and the particular frustrations of being about 13 years old. I'm deeply invested in Hazel and Daisy, and I loved this take on a classic house party case.

[fictionfixations]

I don't know how long AO3 is gonna be down so I'm gonna post the fics for WC/DC week for yesterday and today ----- July 10th | Scar Reveal |

Jason often got used to his imperfections. His flaws.

He understood that that thing could generally be a turn-off to other people, so he ended up fully existing in the cape community. Because everyone understood. They wouldn’t pity, there would just be understanding, because they all had scars. They all had their bad moments, that was just how it worked.

Except, he’d gone undercover, as Neal Caffrey.

Back into the ‘normal’ world, where things were different. People in New York wouldn’t expect an art forger to have bullet wounds and knife cuts, but those in Gotham would. It was like an average Thursday for them, and why children would be taught in schools self-defense.

In a way, he was double out of his depth, considering he was effectively out of the cape community, and out of Gotham.

He’d been in Gotham for most of his life, and the one time he left, he died, so there were some bad memories there.

Regardless, all in all, it led to a whole lot of issues, in which Jason was probably not the greatest person to act undercover (he’s pretty sure Dickie-bird would be the better choice to pose as Neal, but Dick was also famous. Jason, however, was legally dead).

So Jason endured. 

He’d jokingly flirt despite never having actually been interested (it was why he had so much fun flirting with Diana. Like meets like, gay meets gay– And not to be sexist, but it was generally that girls outside of Gotham were softer. Or at least the ones that threw themselves at him. Likely they just saw his muscles, and fantasized of some buff guy to protect them. However, he’d ended up losing all interest after Talia had taken advantage of him once he’d been resurrected. He couldn’t have.. consented, then), And generally just became the complete opposite of who he really was.

It was freeing in a way, but also constricting.

Freeing because no one would expect the worst of him. No one would see the hood before the guy, and he generally did not have to worry about that. But they’d also label him as a criminal. Honestly, Neal Caffrey’s crimes weren’t even that bad, yet so many had treated him as if ‘once a criminal, always a criminal’. It felt.. racist? Well not racist racist but. That-ist. Criminal-ist. He was failing at his word game at the moment. 

So it was constricting. Especially with the stupid tracker anklet. Goodbye privacy. He’d always been expected to run at any chance, and it felt like sometimes, that it’d been a mistake ever trusting some of them because they’d never share that same trust. 

But with all his friends effectively cut off from his life (unless he called them on his very non-approved phone), it felt stifling, and humans were social creatures.

It only was natural that he came to rely on Peter as a partner.

Except sometimes he’d have moments where it felt like his eyes had been opened, like he’d dipped into cold ice water and had a moment of clarity, where Peter would do something that made him realize that, no, they weren’t a team. He wasn’t even a sidekick. He was just a CI that Peter would never actually trust, no matter how much friendship they build.

And fuck, it felt worse then Bruce. And Bruce was, well, Bruce!

It hurt like a bitch, and he wasn’t being sexist! He knew some pretty tough girls, and bitch slaps have very much earned their right to be called something other then just a slap, because the sound would fucking echo in a room, and it’d sting like hell. 

Truthfully, Jason didn’t know if he was ever gonna be released. Well, the days would drag on of course, but the way they thought made him feel like they were just gonna pull shit to keep him as a CI, with the shitty pay and honestly sometimes shitty people.

Despite all of that, he could get along with some people. ..Mainly Diana. Again, like meets like. She’s faced discrimination, he’s faced discrimination (and even when he was just a street kid, automatically thought of to be a thief. They weren’t wrong about him, but some people kept to their morals even if it killed them). It was cool beans.

So regardless, he’d been mainly content. He didn’t know how much of that was him being so used to pain and dysfunctional teams and partnerships and whatnot, but he could enjoy the silver linings (and people used to say he was a glass half-empty kind of person, hah). 

White Collar crime was the perfect place to take a break. Without any hardcore action, he could relax for a second (not that he didn’t miss it sometimes). 

Until it wasn’t actually white collar and their suspects had guns, which, fucking hell, he hated these suits (how do people fight in these things!?). They were just a little bit too tight in some places, and it’s not like he could get one tailored for him with enough space that it’d be comfortable because then they’d wonder where the hell he got the cash and assume he scammed someone.

Woo, some pent up resentment there.

Unfortunately, this was one of those times where their suspect had a gun. Hurray for him. Except apparently not all FBI are trained enough to avoid it (or maybe they were but got rusty with time), and so he did the valiant and ‘hEroIC’ duty to take the bullet, which ow? But also, hey, not that bad. 

At least they weren’t the ones that really dug in there and would scratch at you when you try to pull it out, so small wins. 

Of course, Jason made the dumb decision of forgetting about his scars that when the medical people (he wasn’t paying attention) took his shirt off, everyone stilled.

And he zoned back in, frowning at their pale and speechless faces, before he looked down at himself, and realized oh.

It was another oddity of his. While many in the cape community had scars that decorated all over their body, almost like a piece of art, however messed up that would be, they didn’t have what he had. 

Not to be pretentious, but it wasn’t everyday someone came back to life, and thus he had the horrid autopsy scar that would horrify even the most veteran of heroes.

With its raised skin that you could almost trace with your eyes where they made the cut, it made a lot of people squeamish. And for good reason.

“Fuck,” he cursed.

Neal Caffrey shouldn’t have a stupid autopsy scar, and they’d be horrified and maybe pity him for whatever he went through to get that (assuming it’d been done on a live person, which that seemed more horrifying because he knew they covered the eyes, stitched the mouths, suck out the blood and fill it with stuff..), in which he might’ve ruined his cover.

After all, Neal Caffrey was smooth where he was rough, and logically never should’ve been in that big of a trouble to have been hurt so bad.

Sometimes he wished that there were ways to remove scars, but he also knew that his body would feel wrong without them, that it wouldn’t truly be his.

Like how the white streak was his too, and to get rid of it felt like he was covering up a part of himself. A part of himself that basically meant he survived.

And fucking hell. 

No matter how hard he puts himself into this role, to encompass anything and everything that Neal Caffrey as a person is…

He is not Neal Caffrey, and Neal Caffrey was never him. ----- July 11th | Identity Reveal | “Your reputation proceeds you…”

Neal had a secret.

For the vast majority of his life, he was a Shadow, an assassin for the League of Assassins. 

If you asked him, he couldn’t tell you who his parents were, or his real name was. 

Neal Caffrey didn’t exist. 

For a while, he didn’t think he could ever leave, and so he barely entertained it as a thought. What was out there anyway? Freedom? 

He wouldn’t know how to live. With too much blood on his hands, he never felt like he could fit into a sort of apple pie life.

But then the Demon’s Heir had left.

The news spread like a wildfire, of the heir who left the nest and ended in the clutches of their enemy, Batman.

And for once, hope blossomed in his chest. It sparked and it grew, until every passing day he’d imagine being free, being able to metaphorically spread his wings and just. Fly.

Of no longer being stuck in a bird cage, only being let out with clipped wings.

‘No more’, he thought.

If the Demon’s Heir could leave, could manage to have a stable life even with all the blood that stained his hands, even with all the messed up teachings and trauma, could become accepted, then who's to say no one else could?

And so he left.

He wasn’t all that important anyway, so it wouldn’t be as much of a priority to look for him, but he couldn’t explain how utterly joyful he felt when he was free.

Such huge relief, as if a weight that had been tugging him down to drown had finally lifted. Where he could breathe. 

The former assassin had taken up the name of Neal Caffrey, going a little bit ham.

Enjoying things that he never would’ve been allowed to otherwise. And so what if he forged stuff? It barely stood a chance against the body count he had before.

Yet he let himself get caught, knowing if he took it too far he’d be found. Neal refused to let himself become an Icarus, flying too close to the sun by becoming too infamous, and then being shot down by the League. 

So he became just another face, until he ended up becoming the CI for the New York White Collar branch.

It was fun.

Sure, it hurt sometimes when they’d no doubt think that he couldn’t really ‘reform’, but he also knew he deserved it. Knowing that they’d hate him if they knew how many lives he’d stolen, over the many years he was in service to the League.

Neal wondered if it was so hard to believe that he truly did enjoy being in their company, however, or if the personality that was Neal Caffrey made his real self seem unbelievable.

It was generally okay. A lot of times there’d be references to media culture and the like, but Neal had been basically sheltered for a large part of his life to where he’d often have not had or seen anything that the other agents would speak about, which would cause them to gape at him in shock. 

(“What, were you sheltered or something, Caffrey?”

Neal smiled mirthlessly. “Something like that. It was all traditional, you know? Barely any technology, no art, no music, not even any books unless they were instruction manuals, or something educational. Terribly boring. It was just ‘work, work, work’. Never thought about leaving until someone else did, and then I realized that was something you could do, so then I did. I became obsessed with art, but you know that. I don’t really regret it. I wasn’t really my own person, then.”

“..Ah. … ..Were your parents really strict?”

“I don’t remember my parents,” he stated bluntly. “I don’t even remember who I was before I became, well, me. Neal Caffrey. I’m sure you know it’s fake, but it's similar to new and carefree. Honestly I don’t remember anything from when I was really young. I refuse to defend that place and say it was like a group home or an orphanage like I want to. It’s bullshit. I can’t even tell you if I was kidnapped, if I went willingly, or if my parents were assholes and sold me to them. I’m not afraid to say that that part of my life was hell, but it was all I had for a while. I guess you could say it was a cult. Surprising, huh? Who knew Neal had such a story. But I don’t regret being here. I have so much more freedom, even if I’m stuck in a radius. It’s good, actually. I’m less likely to be found. If my feats kept going, I likely would’ve ended up on their radar, and killed for abandoning duty. It was a join or die thing, y’know?”

“Oh. I. ..Neal..”

“Was that too much? I guess it’s a lot, since you are in White Collar. Sorry for dumping it on you.”

“No, I- Well, maybe. Why didn’t you tell anyone? If you tell us the name then we can let people know and get it dealt with.”

Neal shook his head. “Too risky. ..Now that I think about it, I think I was in WITSEC for a while before I got involved with the.. cult. That’s right. My dad was a corrupt cop, so they didn’t like me much. Besides, I’m more likely to be registered as a foreigner, even if I might’ve been born here.”

“Wait, you’re not–?”

“I know! My accent is so convincing right? I was in an entirely different country- A new continent, really. Doubt I could be considered American anymore.”)

It all came to a head when one day, the Demon’s Heir had come to the White Collar office.

He didn’t even know why Damian might’ve been there, especially in New York, but instinct came first, and he rushed to greet him, falling down onto his knees to acknowledge the other as superior.

He tuned out anyone else around him, keeping his attention on the heir, and only on him. 

"Your reputation precedes you, my أمير. Are you going to take me back?"

There was a minute flinch from the heir, giving away his surprise.

"Back? Tell me ظل, what are you doing here?"

Neal didn’t hesitate to confess the truth. No matter how much he enjoyed his life here, you couldn’t get rid of loyalty that easily, especially loyalty that’s been so deeply ingrained. 

"حرية. You were able to leave, so I thought I might be able to as well. I am a CI. A nobody. A ظل would've been expected to stay off the radar, so instead I let myself get caught. I wasn't a league native anyway, merely brought into the fold when I was young. I am older now, and I'm content with my life as it is."

Damian stared at him for a long time. 

"-tt-. لا. I will not. The rules state that those who wish to leave shall be beheaded. However, I have seen the kindness of this world in the time I have been gone, and thus I shall spare you. Do not make me regret it ظل, or I will come for your head."

"Thank you, my أمير."

“Do not thank me for giving you the least of mercies. If you are caught, you will face a fate worse than death.”

“I know.”

“Stand up.”

Neal stood up. 

“I will try to avoid you, so that you are not found. Someone else will return. Be safe.”

…

“Neal? What the hell was that!?”

He startled, turning around. “I.. I think I’m free.” (notes:

Gray Son? Demon brat? idk cult damian likely

Jake Daniels - Two Face

HAHA 7/11 --- like 7-11

https://archiveofourown.org/works/46533643

what if: damian escaping gave neal hope to get out of the life as a shadow (assassin) so he ran and he never looked back

"your reputation proceeds you, my أمير. are you going to take me back?"

"Back? Tell me ظل, what are you doing here?"

"حرية. You were able to leave, so I thought I might be able to as well. I am a CI. A nobody. A ظل would've been expected to stay off the radar, so instead I let myself get caught. I wasn't a league native anyway, merely brought into the fold when I was young and wanted more for my life. I am older now, and I'm content with my life as it is."

"-tt-. لا. I will not. The rules state that those who wish to leave shall be beheaded. However, I have seen the kindness of this world in the time I have been gone, and thus I shall spare you. Do not make me regret it ظل, or I will come for your head."

"Thank you, my أمير."

(or i could just have neal be dick and a talon finds gray son. or with damian.. but ;-;)

i feel like lately ive been ending up stumbling into writing fics that require the use of google translate because i end up including more languages

and im so sorry if its butchered (dude i know how much it sucks now i was comparing it to a latin sentence i translated and then looked at google translate and it was horribly wrong. it most likely wont get wrong with single words however so im jujst gonna. fhsduifh)

أمير = prince, lord osmething something (or i hope it does)

ظل = either shadow or shade but then when it switched to shade it changes to a something instead of zala so im just sticking with the first one

حرية. = Freedom.

لا = no

looking at google translate it looks like arabic is meant to be read from right-to-left instead of left-to-right which oop ;w;;;)

[uniquejellyfishqueen]

Fun fact. My senior superlative was most likely to be on facebook at 2 am.

Ace week (formerly asexuality week) falls during the last week of October, 2024 it was October 20th-26th.

Within that week 8 of T.Swizzles albums celebrated birthdays..

(1) Taylor Swift 10/24/2006. 18 years old

4 YEARS LATER

(3)Speak Now, Speak Now Deluxe, & SN World Tour 10/25/2010. 14 years old

2 YEARS LATER

(4)Red & Red Deluxe Edition (oh my goodness the acronyms of that spell RED, was this album supposed to be a double? Does it have a sister? There is more to the ATW story…) 10/22/2012. 12 years old.

10 YEARS LATER

(10)Midnights, Midnights 3 AM 10/22/22. 2 years old.

1 YEAR LATER

1989 TV 10/26/2023 *1989 Deluxe which was released the following day only had 1 additional track on it and that was Bad Blood (ft. Kendrick Lamar). 1 year old.

42101 (8) is the Zip Code for Bowling Green Kentucky. The Area Code is 270 (9) Its also in Warren county which is home to the national Corvette Museum. And was named after Joseph Warren on 12/19/1796. The mayor of Bowling Green is a dude by the name of Todd Alcott, which may make you think of The Alcott by The National ft Taylor Swift which was released on 4/28/2023 and this was also recorded at Long Pond—> Folklore Long Pond was released on 11/25/2020. It was recorded in September of 2020. According to Spotify the total of 34 songs has a run time of 2:14 (there’s 2/14 again)

The next single to be released by tswizzle is Karma and that was released on 5/1/23 (3 days after The Alcott) lol karma is a KAT.

The music video for Karma was premiered on 5/26/23 N1 East Rutherford, NJ. The National also released Alphabet city on August 17 2023. 8 days after her last show in LA which she did not say thank you.. (“Hey kids spelling is fun”) also Alphabet City is in New York.. so like Welcome, I guess?

*ps we haven’t gotten the solid green 1989 set yet. Is this possibly in connection to another album that was also released on 10/22/2012? Kendrick Lamar released Good Kid, M. A. D. D. City on 10/22/2012. Track 5 on this album is Money Trees “pick your poison, tell me what you’re doing. Everybody gon’ respect the shooter” -> imgonnagetyouback “pick your poison, babe, I’m poison either way.” -> poison “that girl is poison. Never trust a big butt and a smile. That girl is poison poison”

**atari means "to hit a target"

But also on that same album track #6 is Poetic Justice ft Drake. Drake is from Toronto, where TS will be for shows 141-146 11/14-11/16, 11/21-11/23. There is a 7 day break for her in between these shows. Then when the Toronto shows end that is 6 days before the release of her BF Target release. (7+6=13).

AND THEN 13 days later the last stop of the Errors Tour is on 12/6 in Vancouver.

I see the VT as a mirror of TV as Taylor’s Version, but also it’s the state abbreviation for Vermont. 8/31/2007 Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler, and TS were there it was rare.. no idk if it was but they were at the Champlain Valley Fair, in Essex Junction Vermont.. it apparently became Vermonts 10th city on 7/1/22, it was incorporated as a village on 11/15/1892.. what an unfortunate date, dear john go fuck yaself.

11/15/2024 N2 in Toronto 7 hours and 43 minutes to Essex Junction. (7+4+3=14)

743 is the area code for Greensboro, North Carolina… (grew AGAIN) *no idea what I stumbled upon but there is going to be a Taylor Swift Camp here on July 14-18, 2025. *speaking of 1989 10/21/2015 apparently is the last time TS was at Greensboro, NC with Vance Joy, and Miranda Lambert. From what the interweb shows me she didn’t play a surprise song at this show. *ok so she might not have given them a surprise song but she did write the song Carolina (6/24/2022) for the movie Where the Crawdads Sing which was released on 7/15/2022.

Carolina was played on the Errors Tour on 6/15/2024 N3/3 Liverpool show #102. This was played on the guitar mashed up with No Body, No Crime. (Sure there was no thank you post for LA, but on the thank you post from Santa Clara on 7/31/2023 she mentioned that she will never forget the HAIM sisters coming out in their dresses from Bejewled to sing No Body, No Crime this photo is from 7/28/23 because she is wearing the yellow dress.)

*HAIM joined TS on 7/22-8/9, 3 cities, 10 shows, with No Body, No Crime replacing Tis The Damn Season.

Seattle, Santa Clara, Los Angeles…. CLASS.

Area codes 310 and 424 are the telephone area codes for West LA, a small portion of Ventura County, and Santa Catalina Island… (like the Catalina Wine Mixer?) the area code 310 was created on 11/2/1991. Then on 1/25/97 it was split to 562 for the southeast portion of LA county and a large portion of Orange County. (The OC? Premiered 8/5/2003. RIP Marissa, Mischa Barton was actually named the It Girl of 2003, kinda like Clara Bow?)

[kudosmyhero]

Spider-Man: Reign #2

Read Date: July 12, 2023 Cover Date: March 2007 ● Writer: Kaare Andrews ● Penciler: Kaare Andrews ● Inker: Kaare Andrews ● Colorist: José Villarrubia ● Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos ● Editor: Axel Alonso ●

**HERE BE SPOILERS: Skip ahead to the fan art/podcast to avoid spoilers

Reactions As I Read: ● Reign suuuuuuucks

● this is so trippy. it feels… Vanilla Sky-ish ● fuck… Kraven the Hunter just skewered a kid ● 👏👏👏👏

Synopsis: This is the city of New York 30 years later. The future is looking bleaker by the second, and it appears that New York is now an independent state, and although no 'super crime' has happened in over a decade, the government employs fascist methods to combat regular crime by using a new form of police, the merciless "Reign".

An old J. Jonah Jameson is giving out illegal copies of The Daily Bugle, shouting about how "The Spider" has returned. A news show the DBN (Daily Bugle News) covers a story of a crazy man (J. Jonah Jameson) who was giving out illegal newspapers and was rushed away by a group of children.

Two heavily guarded people burst through a closed door talking about an old "codger" (Spider-Man/Peter Parker) who took out two armed R.E.I.G.N. officers. Saks (one of the men), the other seems to be the leader of New York, wishes to accelerate the WEBB project, releasing it tonight, and catch Spider-Man. They go down to the Vault. Saks declares that "With great responsibility comes great… Power" Once in the Vault they find six people who volunteered to catch Spider-Man. They are called the Sinner Six, and are all fitted with micro-thermal explosives if they turn against their jobs.

A girl is reading a newspaper and two R.E.I.G.N. officers come up and take it from her, telling her that it's contraband. She insults them and is asked by a boy to join her for a special meeting…

Back to Peter, getting ready to pack, yelling at his fantasy of Mary-Jane to help and to get ready to leave. He shaves his beard and cuts himself. Peter is stunned to see that the blade cut his face.

Back to the girl who is going down a dark alley to an abandoned church. She hears the preaching of a man from inside. Going in she sees J. Jonah Jameson with a congregation of children. He orders a boy named Kasey to hack into the DBN network.

All over New York all mechanical video screens are disrupted and J. Jonah Jameson's announcement comes though, telling of Spider-Man coming to save everyone from oppression.

People start congregating out in the streets to hear the message and R.E.I.G.N. police come and start to break up the crowds. A man named the Hypno-Hustler comes and makes the R.E.I.G.N. officers dance. unfortunately his batteries die out and he is shot, J. Jonah Jameson makes all of his "children" watch the killing.

Out of his window Peter sees Hypno-Hustler being killed and the other officers launching a missile at his apartment. With the explosion Peter emerges in full Black Spider-Man regalia.

Attacking the R.E.I.G.N. guards, telling jokes and insulting them as he goes. J. Jonah Jameson makes sure that the hacked network is transmitting the fight to everyone in New York. Jonah is attacked by an officer and rising up the citizens attack the officer.

Kasey is then impaled by Kraven The Hunter's machete, and Electro and the Sinister Six attack Spider-Man. Peter is severely beaten but is saved by the "Deus Ex Machina" Doctor Octopus. Peter is brought to MJ's grave as Doc Ock digs it up. The WEBB project is being activated tonight.

(https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Spider-Man:_Reign_Vol_1_2)

Fan Art: Doc Ock by omurizer

Accompanying Podcast: ● Amazing Spider-Talk - episode 14

[biglisbonnews]

Madonna Adds Nashville Tour Stop to Support Trans Orgs The Queen of Pop is coming to a city near you!Madonna announced Monday in a press release that she would add eight additional shows to The Celebration Tour later this year. One of those dates will be in Nashville, Tennessee, where lawmakers just passed the hateful Senate Bill 3 into law, widely known as the "Drag Ban" bill. A portion of the proceeds will go towards trans rights organizations in the state in response to the ban. In a statement, she said that "the oppression of the LGBTQ+ is not only unacceptable and inhumane; it’s creating an unsafe environment; it makes America a dangerous place for our most vulnerable citizens, especially trans women of color." She added that "these so-called laws to protect our children are unfounded and pathetic. Anyone with half a brain knows not to fuck with a drag queen."Madonna, who will tour with legendary RuPaul's Drag Race winner Bob the Drag Queen, said, "Bob and I will see you from the stage in Nashville where we will celebrate the beauty that is the queer community.”Related | Madonna Is Going On Tour With Bob The Drag QueenBesides Nashville, the icon also added dates in Washington D.C., Philly, Palm Springs and Sacramento, with additional shows in Phoenix, San Francisco, and Vegas. The tour itself kicks off on July 15 in Vancouver. Madonna isn't the first celebrity to speak out against Tennessee lawmakers and more across the country instituting similar bans. Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams condemned Governor Bill Lee in February on Instagram: “Drag is not a crime. Gender-affirming health care for all, including our youth, is a necessity." She added that “Once again our state has passed two regressive and unfathomably harmful bills," but said she would continue to advocate "Not only for inclusion for our friends & family in the queer community, but for radical acceptance and empowerment for each of them.”Country star and RuPaul's Drag Race guest judge Maren Morris, who performed at Nashville's Love Rising fundraiser for the Tennessee Equality Project and other similar orgs, also said onstage last week "Yes, I introduced my son to some drag queens today. So, Tennessee, fucking arrest me." Photo via James Devaney/Getty https://www.papermag.com/madonna-drag-ban-2659660475.html