#it's also kinda like a genie in a bottle in a way

[m4itreyi]

kenzie solo 🤭

[derangedanomaly]

I’ve just seen that you did my request and I love it, ty!! (I was the one that requested the weird sleep scenario)

I’d like to request something again, bad sanses + star sanses with a gender neutral skeleton reader that sorta has powers like a genie. They can float, turn invisible, (still has most of the powers a usual sans has) and are very mischievous. The way they can grant wishes is giving someone a marble looking thing and when that person makes a wish, the marble will break and they’ll have to repay reader with something (can be either something shiny or some bones to chew on) they also don’t have a bottle, that’s the only genie thing they don’t have lol

Can i be 💤 anon?

Ah! Hello again anon💤! :D

Yes, that request was quite fun to write! Ok, since there are so many characters, they're probably not gonna be very long, still, I hope you'll enjoy this!

(Sorry for taking so long!)

Au Sanses x Genie reader

(Nightmare, Killer, Dust, Horror, Error, Dream, Ink, Swap)

Nightmare:

Nightmare actually found your powers quiet mesmerizing at first.

He interrogated you about the powers, and pronounced that your powers aren't very much helpful to him..I mean, yeah, you can grant wishes, but what exactly can- OH MY GOD IS THAT THE LIMITED BOOK HE WANTED BUT COULDN'T MANAGE TO GET?!

Keeps you around simply just for granting wishes 💀 (Asshole)

Doesn't really like the way your powers operate, but can't really do anything about it 🤷‍♀️

Please, don't try to scare him by turning invisible, he might just kill you.

Your relationship has a very rocky start...but you both slowly started to get along.

I swear...he has a constant headache just by your friendship with Killer.

He would do anything in order for you two to stop pulling these stupid pranks on him.

Sometimes likes to stare at you while you're floating around. He just finds that really cool. (Bitch is not gonna admit that 💀)

He hates how much he loves you 🥰

Killer:

THE BEST OF FRIENDS

Killer always felt like the odd one among the bad sanses...they all had their own perspective best friend, but he didn't have one.

Until you came along.

Killer's so clingy towards you after you became best friends...

You guys do a lot of stuff together! Many of them include pranking the others though..

Killer keeps on flirting with you in hopes of scoring a date with you. And if you don't get his flirting, then he'll just cover it up by saying that it's just a friendly banter. (It breaks his nonexistent heart though :(

The first time you scared him by turning invisible, he got very angry, until noticing it was you. Then his whole mood shifted as he just laughed it off. (Bro is a simp)

He was, and will be, so confused that you don't have a bottle. Like what do you mean that it doesn't work like in Aladdin?!

He likes to bother you with very useless wishes, "I wish for that remote on the table to appear in my hands." It was in front of him.

Bro is BROKE ASFF!!! His wallet cries after every wish he makes.. he could repay you with something else than money..but he didn't like to give his stuff away.

Dust:

Dust is a closeted nerd...so of course the first thing he does is whip out his book and write down everything about you.

It's his first time seeing a genie. Of course he's gonna ask a lot of questions!

He loves to study you, to the point where you felt like a wild animal in the Zoo.

He's silently sitting on a nearby chair as you grant Horror his wish, staring at you.. studying how your powers work.

It's gotten to the point where you're getting kinda creeped out..

You, at first, thought that he wanted to make a wish or something, but when he denied it just as you asked him.. you got confused even more.

Bro is staring so much that he eventually stops studying your powers, and is instead studying you.

He now notices even the smallest things about you.

Is getting a little obsessed, not gonna lie, but it's cute. So you'll allow it ;)

Horror:

His reaction to you being a genie is actually very wholesome.. (surprisingly). He wishes for his Au to not be in deep starvation..and for them to finally get out of the underground. Basically, kinda resetting everything that's happened after Frisk left.

You sadly can't grant this wish of his, which leaves him sad and angry. But you do give him a giant meat. (Which made his mood a little better.)

You started to feel sad for him after this moment, so you started to talk to him regularly. Which he enjoyed.

Horror's not much of a talker, so he'll just listen to you most of the time.

It's also partially because he likes to listen to your voice.. ❤️

Horror likes the sound that your powers make whenever you grant a wish, so he's always nearby whenever you're granting wishes. (It's just a little bell that sounds off)

Becomes attached to you, very quickly.

Defends you from Nightmare to the best of his abilities.

Horror's the tallest of the Sanses, (my HC) so he'll be so mesmerized when you float up higher above him. He won't lie, he likes this change. Having to look up for once instead of down.

He likes how your powers operate. It seems fair to him. 🤷‍♀️

Error:

He immediately took advantage of the fact you can grant wishes.

He wished for so many things! Such as; getting Classic's autograph, make Ink disappear, have a popcorn maker, wishing for chocolate,...

He actually doesn't like how you can float. He can't wrap his strings around you and pull you along now! >:(

You're getting on his nerves by being friends with Killer though.

After Nightmare, Error's your next target. Every.time.

Seriously sick of it. If he could, he would seperate you and Killer.IN HEARTBEAT.

He really, really.. really wants to hold your hand, but his Haphephobia doesn't allow him to 💀

Please, don't try to scare him by turning invisible. He WILL crash.

Dream:

He thinks that you must carry a big burden on your shoulders, if you're a Genie. So he gets really concerned if anything really.

He tries to pull you away from granting any wishes, every.time.

He's so cute.. dragging you away to hang out with him to forget about your work.

But he does want to see how your powers operate.

Finds it amazing that you can float, turn invisible... everything really!

After your long persuadation, he gives in and makes a wish.

His wish is really sad...he wishes to have his brother and Au back. He wants to reverse time! Which, as we know, you can't do. It's against the rules to change what was already done. So you politely decline, explaining him exactly why.

Dream's a really understanding person, so of course he doesn't mind it or isn't angry.

What was past...is past. What matters now, is that you're here in the present. Nothing else should matter. ^^ (his words)

Ink:

Immediately, Without hesitation, nor any filter, he asks; "Can you make me feel emotions?"

You don't grant his wish -> he sulks.

He's a forgetful shit, so he'll forget that you're a genie at times.

It's like he's on repeat at the start of your relationship. He finds out you're a genie -> wishes to feel emotions -> you decline -> he sulks -> forgets 💀

Be prepared for this at times.

But after knowing you for awhile, he finally remembers and stops asking you that damn question.

He doesn't have much opinions about you tbh. He's seen some shit, so he's not all that fazed from you being a genie.

The part that shocks him the most is that you don't have a lamp. (His reaction is similar to Killer. Bro confused you for Aladdin 💀)

Y'all have a rocky relationship 🤷‍♀️

Don't worry though, after you get to know each other a bit more, he'll cling to you like a Koala.

Swap:

Similar reaction to Dream. He feels concerned for your mentality.

Everyone's always going to you to grant their wish, but Swap's soul is too kind for his own good. Instead of wishing something for himself, he asks you; "What do you wish for?"

You cried that time. (He was scared that he did something wrong 💀)

You started treating him as if he was some precious gold. Which got him flustered.

He treats you as if you were his queen. Brings you food, helps you out a lot... You name it.

He just feels so much love for you, it's unbelievable.

Doesn't mind your little pranks with Killer. He just sees that as your little escape from work. Which he feels happy for. :)

He just smiles softly whenever you prank him with Killer in tow.

He's so patient and kind towards you😭

Doesn't mind you floating around or the fact that you can turn invisible, you're you, and that's something he never wants to replace.

[harrywavycurly]

Eddie Munson x Not A Genie!Reader Part 2: Do you like it?✨

Part 1: Here

Tag List: @storiesbyrhi

A/N: I’m not sure what to call this series/story because you’re not a genie in this series because you don’t grant wishes BUT you do live in a bottle and help Eddie out whenever he needs it, but anyway enjoy!

To say Eddie is overwhelmed is an understatement as he looks around his living room. When he left for work this morning he had a sad excuse of a sofa, a coffee table that was one bump away from collapsing and a normal sized television that sat on an old dresser he used as a tv stand. But when he opened his front door after a long shift at the garage he all of a sudden had a brand new couch that looked more comfortable than his bed, a coffee table with random magazines and a vase full of flowers on it and a tv stand with a giant television sitting on it along with your bottle that had the lid off it letting him know you were somewhere in his apartment.

“Oh good you’re home!” Your voice is bubbly as you walk out of the kitchen with a cup of iced tea in your hand. “How was your day?” You ask as you hand him the glass and begin taking off his jacket for him so you can hang it on the coatrack by the front door.

“Uh it was good.” He answers making you smile as you grab his free hand and lead him into the kitchen. “You’ve been uhm…busy I see?” Eddie feels his eyes go wide when he looks at the table and sees its full of all his favorite things to eat.

“I didn’t want to seem useless while you’re at work and your couch wasn’t very comfortable so I replaced it but then it didn’t go with your coffee table so I had to replace that as well and next thing I knew your whole living room was…uh well what it is now.” Eddie doesn’t know what to say as you pull out the chair so he can sit down. “Do you like it?” Eddie hears a hint of nervousness in your voice making him turn his head so he’s looking at so you can see him nod his head and give you a smile.

“Yes it’s uhm…it’s great I just…how did you do all of it?” He asks as he watches you begin to make him a plate, that’s when he looks around the kitchen and notices your redecorating didn’t just end in the living room, he has a brand new refrigerator and oven as well as a whole new black plate and bowl set.

“I just make things appear…I figured you like the color black so picking the colors for your new dishes was easy…I almost picked pink but didn’t want you to be upset.” Eddie knows you’re joking by the way you giggle to yourself as you scoop some mashed potatoes onto his plate. “Just wait till you see the bedroom.” Eddie raises an eyebrow as he takes a sip of his tea you handed him when he walked in the front door.

“You redid the bedroom?” You just smile and nod as you put a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on his plate. “What does your bedroom look like?” He doesn’t know why he asked but he’s been curious as to what the inside of your bottle looks like since you appeared in his living room two days ago.

“Oh uhm…that’s kinda private.” Eddie can’t help but enjoy how your cheeks go a little pink as you politely tell him to fuck off, in your own way of course. “Maybe one day I’ll give you a tour.” You add, worried your previous answer was too rude.

“That would be cool…uhm so mashed potatoes and a peanut butter and jelly with a side of…Mac and cheese huh?” You grin as you put his plate in front of him and take a seat in the chair next to him.

“I also made apple pie and chocolate pudding for dessert.” Eddie can’t help but feel a sense of joy as he looks at you, it’s as if your emotions are so strong they overflow into whoever you’re near and right now you’re extremely happy. “Oh I’m sorry…let me just get that for you.” Eddie rolls his eyes as you reach over and begin cutting the crust off his sandwich.

“You don’t have to do that.” He mumbles but he knows it’s useless because you enjoy doing things like this and he for some odd reason wants to keep you happy so he just sneaks a look over at you and smiles when he sees the look of pure joy on your face all from cutting some crust off his sandwich.

[omegastation]

Once saw someone describe ME as copaganda and honestly... I feel like that's a 100% accurate statement. It honestly dampens my enjoyment of the saga. Genie is out of the bottle, as they say.

Open contempt for civilian agencies, check. Repeated instances where they present fascism as a Good Thing Actually, check. Cops and military almost unilaterally depicted as correct and just, check. Ones like Harkun are treated as merely bad apples and hand-waved away whereas any and all politicians are treated as incompetent at best or outright corrupt/malevolent at worst. Not to mention the whole thing with Khalisah al-Jilani.

Idk. It all just feels so dim-witted and mean-spirited.

There are a lot of good things that make me love it with all my heart, and things that are not so good. I try to do my best to acknowledge the bad stuff and remain critical. So yeah, I do agree that some elements of the trilogy should be analyzed closely because it's kinda fucked-up.

Genie is out of the bottle, I find that the expression explains a lot. Because Mass Effect is a product of its time and place, and /insert the speech from LOTR/ the world has changed. I don't mean to say that it was never this bad, because I think it was, but we now are getting images, videos and live updates all the time showing us exactly how bad it is. We see so much suffering and injustice. And it's us "outside". Some are inside, and they're the ones showing us how bad it is. So... It's harder to see specific themes, stories and characters that are unchallenged. It's harder to see injustice being portrayed, even if the content doesn't always condone it.

I also think we are more critical in general. We are, unfortunately, used to specific issues so it's easier to recognize when they appear in fiction. I can really see that in the way people talk about specific characters. People idolize less, and I honestly think that's an improvement, because idolatry, at least how I see it, is not about seeing characters or stories as they are, but putting them on a pedestal. Characters are complex and flawed, and that's what makes them interesting. Real growth happens when characters change and adapt and rethink their position. Sometimes it means they have to look inside themselves and see the ugliness, and that means we get to see the ugly too. Not only that, but we can also contemplate what is ugly inside us, and see what we can do to change and grow. But not so long ago, before my hiatus, it was really hard to step away from "this character is a god" or "this character is flawless and if you don't see it you're not a fan" and "no no i can't see this issue at all, doesn't exist, lalalala" talk. Now it's harder for people not to see the issue. But the issue was always there.

You talked about Khalisah. I saw a meme on FB recently that says that if we can't hit someone like Khalisah in the new Mass Effect, we shouldn't bother playing it, which to me is 1. disturbing, 2. missing the fact that wars need journalists and reporters, even someone like Khalisah who is not always playing fair. I don't understand the option to hit her. I've ranted about it enough here. If you don't hit her, you get to encourage her and reassure her. It's obvious she's falling apart and she needs to be reassured. One of my favorite quotes in the game is what Shepard tells her: "Keep asking the hard questions." That's what is needed in a time of war. And sure, this one beautiful interaction and line won't take away the fact that some choices can feel mean-spirited but to me, it means it's not black & white. I see the ugliness, I do, but I also see the beauty.

IDK where I'm going with this. I guess that Mass Effect was never flawless and unproblematic, and in a way, I think it's a good thing that issues are seen and we can have a critical look at the worst parts of the trilogy.

But what is very specific to you, anon, is what you can tolerate, appreciate or enjoy. Some parts of the trilogy make me sad and or angry but it doesn't stop me from really enjoying the whole. If you find that you don't get to enjoy it anymore, because too many elements make it difficult to appreciate and it's now a real dislike, don't forget that you can step away. I'm not telling you that you have to do it. You can do what you want, but don't forget that you don't have to force yourself to love something. It's okay to move away from things because you now find them disappointing.

[repldemiurge]

Four months.

The honeymoon period feels like it's over - and July was kinda teh suckz0rs in general. Not even related to gender stuff, it was just a kinda bleh month. I couldn't really see or feel any physical differences since the end of June, which is frustrating. That's not to say I'm having regrets or second thoughts, God no. Just that HRT has become daily life I guess.

Meanwhile, I've been having this nagging feeling of a catch-22 where I'm kinda stuck between:

A) Feeling like I'm not even a human being anymore - just a tgirl, and whatever aspects of me that are outside of my gender are difficult to express, or feel hard to engage people with. (Didn't fucking Halimede make a good post about this???)

B) Being myself obsessed with my gender presentation, in no small part because I relish the attention and support that I get for talking about my gender

I think this is a pretty fake problem outside of my head, but it does leave me stuck where I want to just bombard people with talking about being a girl, because I'm socially rewarded for it, but also feeling awkward that I have nothing to provide to my relationships besides being a girl.

This probably speaks more to more general social issues I have, and the desperation, hell, borderline obsession,,, I tend to approach friendships with. I still have a lot of self-image problems with feeling like I'm too intense, come on way too strong, and impatiently overcommit. I feel so, creepy all the time. I'd avoided this issue for the previous couple years by just...not really having friends? To no surprise, having friends is universally better, but I wonder how capable I am of being friends outside of only. Being trans at people.

But ahhhhh I like being trans at people! And people are very nice and positive to me when I am! And heaven knows I'm addicted to hearing about other people talk about being trans!

A very tense situation.

It's all exacerbated by me breaking my longstanding "no net only friendships" rule, but I've met some like. Miracles of people this year, so. No putting that genie back in the bottle.

Good news is I at least have gotten better about being someone who messages first. Folks seem to dream about people like that, so I can internalize that fantasy I suppose. And I've gotten more comfortable with different people's responses to it. Some people take my message toy and are very playful and conversational, I just have to get the ball rolling. Others take it and just slow blink at me, but I think it's still appreciated. These are both fine and good.

This doesn't really feel like it has anything to do with HRT anymore I've kinda lost the plot. Oh well. Classes start up again at the end of August so hopefully that structure will help me organize my time a little bit better, when compared to this incorporeal July

[blueikeproductions]

The reason why gender is such a mess in IDW is mainly because of Simon Furman stubbornly refusing to let go of his old Marvel G1 belief that the Transformers should be a genderless masculine presenting race. Which, I'm sorry Furman, but you can't put that genie back in the bottle. The girls exist, and it doesn't do you any favors to throw a tantrum and do weird shit with Acree's origin every time Hasbro forces you to write her.

Oh I’m acutely aware, I was there at ground zero, but my problem in IDW was less Furman, though he didn’t help by introducing Arcee as the result of a forced gender reassignment procedure, it was the countless retcons and asterisks other writers felt compelled to fix and only made it WORSE. It would’ve simply been better to just let Arcee’s trans roots be ignored and instead focus on having her become a better character, something IDW did at least attempt but I don’t know if they succeeded.

Like to Furman’s credit, the comical Prime’s Rib at least still showed Arcee to be strong, smart, and capable (what the feminists in story CLAIM they wanted), with most of the humor being Prime trying to appease stereotypical feminists and only making them angrier because they could only see Arcee just being pink and having an interest in men (because she did show an interest in Hot Rod). As much as some don’t want to hear it, the story aged all too well because of the current hyper political environment we’re stuck in now, with even stuff like IDW and EarthSpark being somewhat the result of appeasing radical groups rather than being entertaining to all ages and groups. And IDW lost the license, and EarthSpark had failed on all fronts, only sticking around out of a weak desire on Hasbro’s part to have something on for the 40th anniversary. They’ve otherwise moved on to TFONE and Arcee in Skybound is having a much better time.

I do think Furman may have let it go though, he wrote the Terrans just fine in EarthSpark’s tie in video game, and the tangibly related to Transformers in concept, Astrobots, that he writes, features several main female robots who are strong, capable and smart. Their origins in their race not being dwelled on beyond some handwaved human involvement if I recall correctly.

I do understand his confusion, why do a race of robotic beings who don’t sexually reproduce need females in THAT context, but having them in general doesn’t seem to be an issue beyond that to him. The problem remains is he dwelled on it too long, explained it in a jokey way in Marvel UK that honestly was pry the best way to explain it back then in THAT universe, then tried to explain it in a cooler sci-fi way in IDW and got backlash from EVERYONE that it seemed to have humbled him enough. That said, some ideas are still clung to via Earth Wars, where he gleefully makes fun of both Dreamwave & IDW, and kinda rightfully so in SOME areas. Deathsaurus, with the threat of being sent to Dreamwave’s universe, is horrified at the idea (probably didn’t want to be drawn by Pat Lee among other things). The Prime’s Rib story having a spiritual successor where the Autobots find Melody has written romantic fan fiction about Drift & Prowl, and while they say as a species they don’t romantically pair off and poke holes at the Conjux terminology they don’t even have, they don’t really have too much of an issue with what Melody was doing. If anything they were more confused why she paired Drift with Prowl, and then playfully teased a clueless Prowl about it. Melody is also the main Autobot ally in the game and she and the Autobots get along just fine too.

[gladiatorofthevoid]

Rise April Challenge: Day 4 Dream

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Ao3 Link: Here

(Kinda streched the prompt a little, but I like it. There is some bad grammer but it’s on purpose.)

Raph knew it was coming, even before the jittering and zoning out started. There was only so many life-and-death situations his brain could take before it decided to take a vacation and leave him behind. But it was only when he woke up to find himself not in his bed, but standing upright in the middle of the lair, that he realized how bad this was going to be. So, knowing he had very little time, Raph began to prepare.  

The whole lair was raided for blankets, pillows, and cushions to add to Raph’s ever growing pillow fort in his room. (It’s not a nest, not a nest, not a nest. Even if he stole sheets from his brothers’ rooms so it would smell familiar. It’s not a nest.) The kitchen is emptied of snacks and water bottles. He moves every single one of his teddy bears into the fluffy pile and he sets up a speaker to play the sound of running water. He moves the more important or breakable items on to higher shelves, or out of the room all together. He’s already. Now comes the embarrassing part.  

He decides that Donnie is the best one to tell. He won’t stress about it too much and will be able to talk the others down if they start panicking. Still, Raph sifts nervosity as he stands outside Don’s lab. He shakes his hands out and breathes as deep as he can. He can do this. He can do this. The snapper knocks on the door.

“Come in!” Donnie calls and Raph crouches through the door and into the dim lab. He crinkles his nose at the smell of metal and oil, and he squints at the weird light. The purple light always made it look both too bright and too dark. Don loved it, but it always confused Raph even on a good day. Which today defiantly wasn’t.

Donnie was hunched over one of the worktables with one of his battle shells, his arms half buried inside an open panel. He didn’t look up as the Raph got closer.

“Uh... Hey Donnie? Can... um... we talk really fast?” The genies looked up from what he was doing, goggle lenses glinting.  

“Of course, large compatriot. What’s up?”

“Uh...” Oh man this was not fun. “So, I’m not really going to be around for a bit.” One of Don’s robot arms pushed up his glasses so he could give Raph a worried look. “Not literally. I’m not going anywhere. And it's nothing bad! Raph promises. But I think I’m just going to go a little... weird? Soon.”

“You’re going savage.” Raph winces at the word. It is accurate, but it still makes him uncomfortable. It always makes him think that he could hurt someone.

“Yeah.” He nods.

“Do you need anything?” Raph waves his hand.

“Nope, I got everything set up.” He’s quite proud of himself for that. “But could you or someone just check in to make sure I didn’t do something...”

“Of course.” Donnie says

“Great. The key is hung up next to the door.” Raph moves to the door, but his brother’s voice stops him.   “You’re locking yourself in?” It’s so much softer than what he’s come to expect from his standoffish sibling. Raph’s shoulders raise straight up, and he freezes.

“Uh.... yeah. I’ve been sleep walking and I don’t want to wander off.” It feels like a confection.  

“Are you sure?”

No. He isn’t. The idea of not being able to get to his brothers is awful, and being trapped alone is way worse. But he can’t just go walking into the sewars. (A small part of him worries about more than just him getting lost. He worries about blood splashing across his face. He worries about bones in his mouth. He worries about dead brothers.)

“Yeah, I’m sure. It’s fine, Don.” Raph leaves the lab and hurries to his room.

-

Raph is warm and soft. He is safe and good. He cuffs at the thought and tries to sink deeper into the warm-soft-nice. This is good. He should sleep.

He smells something... important. Something that is also good. Raph snuffles around till he finds where it’s coming from. A thick blanket. He covers his face with it so he can smell it better.  

It smells twirling-acrylic-orange. Mikey. Mikey is good, very good.

Where is Mikey?

Raph lifted his head and pushed back the blanket to look around for his littlest brother. (Not so little anymore, but never as big as Raph. No, never. He never needs to be as big as Raph.) Mikey wasn’t there. None of his brothers were. That was bad. Bad bad bad. Raph needs to get them, to share this soft-warm-safe feeling with them and so they could all sleep.  

He gets to his feet and wanders to the door. He tries to shove it open; it doesn’t give. He grunts and pushes again. Not good, not, not, not, not, not. He wines thinks about breaking it down. He needs his brothers. But it seems like so much work and his brothers are safe. He knows that he just... wants them to be safe here. Is that too much to ask?

He returns to his nest and flops down onto his stomach. It’s not as good anymore.

-

Raph wakes up to something squirming against his side, and hushed words that are hard to understand. He cracks his eyes open and finds a familiar shell lying across the edge of the blanket.

The shell looks like flowing-glimmering-blue. Leo. He looks to his right and finds Mikey leaning on him and drawing in his sketch book, while talking with Leo. Two brothers, it makes him well up with yes-yes-yes-good feelings but where is- 

A voice cuts through his thoughts. It’s shifting-sparking-purple. He turns to Donnie who is sitting on his left with his tablet in his lap looking at Raph questioning. Did he ask Raph something? The snapper lets out a little grumble to ask what Don needs. Words are too hard right now.

Donnie reaches over and offers the eldest a water bottle. Oh, yeah Raph needs that. He rolls to his side disturbing Mike who yelps at the unexpected movement, he takes the water and drinks it. It tastes so good! Should water have a taste?  

He hands the bottle back to Donnie and looks over everyone. Safe. They are safe and good, and they’re here which is so much more good.  

Raph’s mind is worried about them being here. It says that they are not safe if they’re here. That them being here is bad. But that doesn’t make since Raph is here. And Raph can protect them. Even better than that, even if Raph can’t keep them safe, they can keep each other safe. Leo is strong and Donnie is smart and Mikey is kind. They’re so good that they could keep him safe if he needs it.  

(He won’t though, because he’s big and they’re little. No matter how big they are or how strong, they will always be his little ones. His. His. His little ones! He loves them, loves them, loves them-!)

Raph’s mind slips into the haze of pride-love for his brothers, drowning the worry. He lets Mike lean against his chest so he can draw and throws an arm over Leo’s back so he can feel him. He wants to tough Don too, but he knows that tough can be bad for his little brother, so he holds back. Raph can hear him tapping on his tablet anyways.  

He closes his eyes and just lets the overwhelming feelings wash over him but doesn’t go back to sleep. He doesn’t need to. He has his family all around him, safe and good. He doesn’t need to fight or run or even understand what is being said, he can just be. It’s the greatest dream Raph could ever have, and he doesn’t want to miss a second.

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Please check out @zee-rambles who came up with this challenge.  Also take a look at @rise-april-art-challenge​ for more submissions. Please give feedback if I need to work on something.

[pureiceblue]

If you could have weird custom controllers for your games what would they look like

THIS IS THE PERFECT ASK.

I am basing most of these off the really weird controllers for PC games because they can get more wild than the ones for console. Just look at the Barbie Genie Bottle Controller.

Lily's Well would have an entire fucking well with pressable bricks that relates to each action. So there's an examine brick, check rope, take, etc. Of course there'd also be a number pad for the two instances where you need one. You probably have to crank the well controller before going down the well too. It'd be stupid and great.

Lost Cartridge Cold Read is a tougher one. I think I'd go with a controller that looks like the payphone. Like the Lily's Well controller it'd have buttons that correspond with actions, but it'd be cool if the actual phone could produce static noises if a chaser was about to spawn. There could even be exclusive controller user only scares. (Yes this is just The Calling for the Nintendo Wii)

I Cannot Drown is getting the virtual boy headset. It's the only way to make the game even more nauseating to the senses. (I kinda regret putting though nausea frequencies in the game)

Allegrezza Harmony is getting a big old girly keyboard plug-in toy. This is the only true way to play visual novels.

[rudegyaltune]

TUNDE IMANN WRITING CHALLENGE DAY 4 🐉🤓

Prompt: Genies must return to their lamps once their masters make their third wish. Normally this is not an issue, but one genie and its master have struck an unlikely friendship that has lasted several years. Two wishes have already been used up, and a dire situation will force a choice to be made. (WP: from Goblin_Crotalus on Reddit)

In the land of Kanekalon, genies, fairies, werewolves, vampires, and dragons live in “harmony.” By harmony, I mean they decided to drop the beef after a 1000-year war. I kinda get it, you know? If I were practically immortal and you stole my gold, I’d hold a grudge for a millennia as well. Emin Romyln was a young (100-year-old) vampire from a city in Kanekalon called Rose Trench. He and his best friend, Mo Genie (every genie in Kanekalon’s last name is Genie and they all share a common ancestor, but we will expand on that another time).

Emin and Mo met when Emin was just 100 years old and finally reached maturation. To celebrate his birthday, Emin journeyed out of Rose Trench to…

On this journey, he met a merchant with an extensive collection of ancient goods from the time before peace in the lands. When he saw the gold “tea pot,” he was drawn to its energy and just knew it was meant to be his. The merchant educated him on the… and let him know that it wasn’t a teapot but actually an Al Lamp. Basically, a vessel that can contain a magical being that grants you three wishes.

Emin was overjoyed about his find, as he wanted to find herbs in distant lands that would help his bewitched mother back home. A “random” sickness fell over her, and she was slowly deteriorating. Nothing other than magic seemed to be the cause, and even the family’s most trusted high priestess, Sana, was stumped on how to reverse it.

Emin’s mother, Clarissa Ayla Romyln, was the most beautiful dragon in all of Rose Trench, some say in all of Kanekalon. When she married his father, Kiran Romlyn, beings from far and wide came to see their holy matrimony. Even though the beings live in peace, dragon blood was still sold on the black market to vampire elites. This marriage was a testament to a new era for Kanekalon. Many disapproved of the pair; dragons hated the idea of one of their own—a jewel in their community at that—being with a vampire, let alone a Romlyn. The Romlyn Crest, before revamped (see what I did there 🤓😏), was a symbol of death and fear to many beings, especially dragons.

Giving myself only 45 mins sucks because I really want to expound on this too. Like, the ideas that are coming to me are so good. I’m thinking Emin and Mo travel together; they become best friends from the journey, and I already have plot twists in mind. After Emin finds out Mo goes back in the bottle after 3 wishes, he refuses to use the third one. And that’s why Mo accompanies him on the journey to find Cato but also just things along the way that break the curse put on his mother.

Lore: Emin enjoyed watching Sana work; she was an ardent student, and books were always being delivered to the castle. Her master was none other than Cato Michiko, the oldest mage in Kanekalon. He spends his days in the mountainous region called Madina. He’s the type of man that isn’t found unless he wants to be, and Emin is the type that is relentless and accomplishes EVERY goal.

[pyrocortex]

Having just completed the barbenheimer double bill I have some initial thoughts

The first is that the experience is peak cinema. The rest are mildly spoilery so they're below the cut.

My near immediate thoughts on Oppenheimer is that alot of my almost critisms are kinda muted (for lack of a better word) by the fact the film was called Oppenheimer. It didn't delve nearly as much into the more board strokes of the Manhattan project (like Los Alamos itself, or the bombings, or the people who suffered and died due to the three bombs he directly oversaw, or the long term impact of mass nuclear proliferation) but also... The film wasn't called the Manhattan Project, or Los Alamos, or Trinity, or Little boy and Fat man, or Nuclear Fallout or any other number of titles that would indicate a focus on the nuclear aspect of the second world war. It's Oppenheimer, a complicated biopic about a complicated man that begins some time in the 1920s and ends some time in the 1960s and is alot more about the man than the war he "won".

Not that this renders the movie free from criticisms on that front. Honestly I feel the movie is maybe too gentle on the man and his apocalyptic body count, and is probably not as strongly anti-war as the movie thinks it is, especially without any examination of whether Japan would have surrendered without the bombs. Plus the additional angle of "making a biopic about Oppenheimer that glosses over the real people his invention hurt" is, while a choice that makes sense on paper for the sake of keeping the movie right and focused, does take away the weight of what he did.

Then again, as a friend pointed out, having the only presence of Japanese people in the movie be nuclear irradiated corpses would be in poor taste at best and probably qualifies as exploitative at minimum. Plus, as Truman (or at least, Oppenheimer's Truman) points out, Oppenheimer and his team may have built the bombs, but he (Truman) ordered them dropped. Raises the question who deserves more blame, the man who builds the gun, or the one that shoots it?

Honestly I think the movie did an impressive thing in making me both sympathize with Oppenheimer's reasoning for building the bomb (once Fission was achieved, the obvious application for the energy output being a bomb, the Einstein-Szilard letter only doubling down on this fact, it being viewed in 1942 not as a question of whether nuclear bombs would be built, but who would build them first the Americans or the Nazis (Oppenheimer, a Jew, really understandably would rather it not be the fucking Nazis)) and also have me lose that sympathy as the Trinity test neared (once Germany surrendered, it felt like the "arms race" excuse was lost and the reason Oppenheimer kept going was just pure momentum, especially as the humanitarian concerns built and built and built). And in the end, Strauss was probably right about Oppenheimer, he was a man trying to put the genie back in the bottle without regretting having let the genie out in the first place. Complicated man, not necessarily a good one, but one that maybe I understand after watching the movie.

But that end scene... It gave me fucking chills make no mistake. Even if the rest of the movie probably didn't quite have the strength of that scene's conviction.

As for Barbie... She's everything.

No seriously, while with Oppenheimer I'm having complicated thoughts about whether it's possible for that movie to be truly anti-war if it never shows war, or anti nuclear proliferation if it never show a single victim, with Barbie I'm just like... Hell yeah this is cinema.

It probably also shares some of Oppenheimer's flaws, not quite going all the way when it comes to its themes but also shares the fact it was made with buckets of talent, buckets of money, and with an infectious love of movies as an art form.

Possibly I'd have more thoughts about Barbie if that had been the movie I'd seen first, and had more time to stew on it, but as it is trying to understand a Nolan film might have fried my brain for the day.

Broad strokes though: loved the camp, loved the singing and dancing, loved the humour, loved the heart, loved the examination of gender and society, wish it was more queer, wish it had more bitting critiques of corporations, Barbie is everything.

[saivii]

Omg you're doing music asks too

How about 15, 18, 20, 30?

i basically wrote some mini essays bc there are a lot of songs i love shfjskl

15. “this woman’s work” by maxwell is a cover that i really like. for a long time i didn’t even know it was a cover!

18. ooh 1999 was a pretty good year for songs. i think i have to go with “genie in a bottle” by christina aguilera but i have to give honorable mentions to all star by smash mouth, no scrubs by tlc, and i want it that way by the backstreet boys. i’m lowkey bitter that hanging by a moment by lifehouse was released on fuckin january 1 of 2000 bc i love that song and it’s so close to being a 1999 song 😭 there’s also a funny song called “hey leonardo (she likes me for me)” which is basically the singer humble bragging while making a bunch of references to late 90s/early 00s pop culture lol

20. “i just wanna stop” by gino vannelli sounds like it could either be about someone thinking about how everything in life ends eventually, reminiscing over a breakup, or mourning someone who’s passed away. there’s also “american pie” by don mclean, who won’t say what it’s about (and it’s so cryptic that i feel like it could be about almost anything lmao)

30. ohhh man this is hard bc there are a lot of them…on the one hand i’d say the songs “grey street” by dave matthews band and “calendar girl” by stars bc of my experiences with depression but on a brighter side “video” by india.arie kinda reminds me of myself because i’m reminding myself that perfection isn’t realistic and i’m realizing that imperfection can actually be beautiful! y’all should listen to that song, it’s kinda healing 

sorry ik i was supposed to pick one song and i picked several instead 😅

these are super fun to answer, so feel free to send me more if you want! 😊

[sandybuny]

i am going to be real with yall there is no way to restrict bad faith uses of ai art that wont also destroy the art communities and spaces we have, that wont restrict us in our art.

i know ppl are scared of their art being stolen but like, 1 thats not actually how it works, and 2 to keep the freedom u have to make art u have to give otherz the same even theyre directly antagonizing u

yea in the long run this may change some things. the fact is u cant put the genie back in the bottle and as it matures ai art will find some niches that were once filled by human artists. photography did the same thing. like newspapers n books used to have printed illustrations by artists before the camera.

no amount of bullying ppl online will change that, helping disney lobby for stricter visual art copyright laws (like music has had for a while) wont do anything good. ddosing the ai art sites repeatedly might do something tho but yall gotta organize for that kinda direct action

anyway the gulf between the actual capabilities of the tech and ppls fears of it is gargantuan. if u have ever played with one of these ai image generators (u should, its actually p fun) u would know theyre very limited in what they can do and how much control u have over the final product (which will never be quite what u asked for). theyre not v creative with stylization. if it generates something close but with one major thing wrong u cant even ask the ai to correct it. its not very good at most of the things ppl commission artists for. in fact i basically begged them to draw my v simple fursona design and it couldnt get even remotely close, it just spat judy hopps at me multiple times.

basically what im saying is that if yall keep tilting at windmills u might end up attracting the attention of a real giant and it wont hesitate to crush u

[lunapaper]

Album Review: 'Endless Summer Vacation' - Miley Cyrus

Miley Cyrus has gone through so many evolutions at this point that she’s practically a Pokemon. 

We’ve had neon-soaked Bangerz Miley trying to twerk her way out of Disney hell, psychedelic Miley and her Dead Petz, country pop sweetheart Miley on Younger Now, classic rock Miley on Plastic Hearts… She doesn’t give us the best of both worlds; she gives us all the fuckin’ worlds!  

So, I guess Endless Summer Vacation is Miley’s Solar Power? Not quite. This record doesn’t take itself anywhere near as seriously, but it’s not nearly as interesting, either.  

Like most Miley albums, Endless Summer Vacation is a mishmash of sounds and ideas. Some of it works, most of it doesn’t. If anything, Cyrus spends most of her time cribbing from other artists.  

Tracks like ‘Rose-Coloured Glasses’ and ‘Thousand Miles’ (not that one) recall the earthy 00s-style folk rock of Maggie Rogers, which is no coincidence since both tracks were produced by Kid Harpoon, who also produced Rogers’ latest record. ‘River’ capitalises on the bubbly disco pop already perfected by the likes of Cyrus’ one-time collaborator Dua Lipa. ‘Violet Chemistry’ is just something Taylor Swift already made a better version of on Midnights. Despite having a rather powerful team of writers and producers behind it (including James Blake), it’s nothing more than a bunch of chintzy synths on a loop.  

So many people have called this their favourite track on Endless Summer Vacation, but I just don’t hear it. Why? Are the pickings really that slim here? 

Well, kinda. So what does work?  

‘Jaded’ is a swirling Tame Impala rip-off but at least it’s a good one, infused with some early 00s power ballad energy. ‘Handstand’ (co-written with Spring Breakers director Harmony Korine, of all people) is big, fat and glitchy with a bright neon glow, with Cyrus tapping back into her weirdo pop instincts as she recites some swampy beat poetry (‘In the sky, we could see the riders on the horseback/On comets, coming toward us, kicking up with laughter/My friend Big Twitchy rode the boat into the light/Surfed to the north break/We danced until there was nothing left/Just me and Twitchy/'Cause that's all we knew’). ‘You’ is a jazzy, sweeping, aching ballad dedicated to Cyrus’ boyfriend, producer Maxx Morando. 

‘Muddy Feet,’ meanwhile, interpolates both Ella Washington’s 1969 track ‘Starving for Love’ and Christina Aguilera’s ‘Genie in a Bottle,’ and it works. It’s Miley at her best: Bold, raspy and ready to cut a bitch as she leans into the more bluesy tones in her voice. It’s enough to make Sia’s backing vocals feel like an afterthought. 

And then there’s ‘Flowers,’ a sassy response to Bruno Mars’ ‘If I Was Your Man’ with a nice, breezy groove tailor-made for ice cold daydreams and sunny kiss-offs to your ex. There’s also a hint of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’ in there, so Cyrus hasn’t totally shaken off the classic rock aesthetic of Plastic Hearts. It’s grown on me with subsequent listens, but it’s still sort of wild that this song, so glossy and unassuming on the surface, has managed to score a massive 96m streams on Spotify.  

But by the time we reach the final trifecta of tracks - ‘Wildcard,’ the balmy ‘Island’ and the schmaltzy ‘Wonder Woman’ – the momentum wanes, and you begin to forget the powerful high that ‘Muddy Feet’ left you with in the first place. The ‘Flowers’ demo that bookends the record isn’t really anything more than filler tacked on to milk the track’s success, though the more stripped-backed feel does give it a bit of a smoky flavour. 

While looking at Stereogum’s coverage of Endless Summer Vacation, I saw an interesting theory posted in the comments section by a delightful chap/chappette going by the name of Econoline Van Fleet. ‘Not only is it obviously dog shit,’ they wrote, ‘but Cyrus is savvy and talented enough to know that it’s obviously dog shit. I suppose one could make the argument that her awareness of this fact is some kind of subversive performance art (“She knows that we know she knows!”), but that rationalization is itself a huge pile of steaming dog shit. This is the soundtrack of an artistically bankrupt empire in decline. The barrage of dog shit is every bit as predictable and boring as the decline itself.’ 

It’s not a bad theory, but is Miley really that self-aware?  

As an artist, Cyrus seemingly suffers from a sort of identity crisis, always doing a hard reset on each subsequent era. The same also applies to Endless Summer Vacation: There’s no common thread between these songs, the tracklisting almost an afterthought. There’s a couple of empowerment anthems sprinkled here, a power ballad there, the weirdo pop track somewhere in the middle... 

And despite the title, there’s not much to suggest that these songs are bright and summery in any way beyond 'Flowers,’ ‘Handstand’ and maybe ‘Violet Chemistry.’  

Lyrical cliches are also rampant. Whether she’s pouring her heart out or sticking it to an ex-lover, Cyrus’ feelings are often vague and surface-level at best, leaving it to the tabloids and Genius cliff notes to fill in the rest. And it has an awful lot of writers behind it, too: ‘Muddy Feet’ alone has a whopping 11 while ‘Island’ - probably the most boring track on the entire album – has seven. 

Endless Summer Vacation feels more like Cyrus making a cynical play for streaming numbers while still trying to atone for her more controversial eras. It’s all so painfully ‘safe’; I can't believe people actually like this. Y’all were just praising her for ripping off Stevie Nicks a couple of years ago... 

Now 30 and newly divorced, it’s natural that the singer would display a little more growth, but blandness shouldn’t be mistaken for maturity. It’s a problem that’s plagued many a female artist before her: Being forced to file back the edges and tone things down in order to be taken ‘seriously,’ as if fun and lust and passion have a use-by date.  

Cyrus' sharp shift into adult contemporary resembles that of P!nk in certain respects: A talented singer once known for rocking out now churning out bland, radio-friendly dance pop. I'm not much older than Miley, but even I’ve got no patience for this crap. 

Endless Summer Vacation isn’t the long, breezy getaway most were probably hoping for. Rather, it lands right in the middle of the road, just idling there until Miley decides on what sharp turn she’s gonna make next...  

- Bianca B. 

[spectershaped]

My current evaluation of Astro City is that it's not quite what I'm looking for but it's got a lot of merit to it and I think it's at least gonna be interesting to delve deepersee where it goes

I think Busiek is at his best there when he's not in full-on Morality Play Mode (especially given the grating tic of casting the eye of judgment upon ordinary downtrodden folk and also the extremely 70s/80s obsession a number of superhero comics writers have with the specter of Gang Violence and Looting)

It's just, like... in terms of storytelling "registers" or modes or whatnot, the quasi-mythic, anything-goes larger-than-life superhero zaniness kind of scrapes against the social realism stuff with a dull whinge for me. Like, you have this storyline where an attorney tries to use the anything-goes nature of the universe as a defense:

And the thing is that it kinda... doesn't seem to go anywhere with this? The story focuses more on the attorney himself and his attempt to grapple with a situation there seems to be no way out of other than basically becoming the Mob's underling, and I think it's really clever to juxtapose those two senses of the ordinary systems of justice no longer holding sway or maybe never having really done so; but by the end it seems like it's become a nonissue? Maybe in the next arc there's gonna be something, but the narration seems to imply that the boat more or less righted itself in the end and people's doubts subsided, which isn't, like, an incorrect way to end a story but it just feels like trying to put the narrative genie back in the bottle

I very much like bits and pieces and elements of AC - I especially love, quite predictably, when the ordinary and the extraordinary touch in ways that leave both kind of transformed - but I continue to feel like there's something missing there

[kurt-wagner-official]

Post #24: UXM issues 153-154

Issue 153 is Kitty’s Fairytale, an AU of the X-Men in a fantasy setting with the framing device of it being a bedtime story Kitty is telling to Peter’s little sister Illyana (who if I haven’t mentioned stuck around after being kidnapped by Arcade so Xavier could check if she might become a mutant). In this world, Pirate Kitty is a heroic defender of the downtrodden and oppressed, along with her companion Colossus. One day they meet the Wizard Xavier and Prince Cyclops, who are on a quest to save Princess Jean, another sorcerer who was corrupted by dark magic and has become Dark Phoenix. When Dark Phoenix attacks, they fight her off, and then join forces with Kitty’s dragon Lockheed to track her and stop her. Along the way, they meet a horde of little blue elves called Bamfs, one of whom joins their quest, a genie named Wind-Rider, Jean’s closest friend who imprisoned her in a bottle after going dark, and the Fiend With No Name, an angry and cartoonish beast who had feelings for Jean. The group catches up with Dark Phoenix, and Xavier uses a crystal containing Jean’s soul to cast a spell fueled by WInd-Rider’s will and Prince Cyclops’s love that purges the darkness and saves Jean. The Phoenix Force returns to the cosmos, also lifting the curse on Prince Cyclops’s eyes. Kitty leaves the sleeping Illyana and finds the whole team has been listening. Scott thanks her for the ending; he’s still mourning, but he finds comfort in the idea that in an alternate world, this is how it ended. It was a sweet little story that gives us insight into how Kitty views her friends. Peter is her most stalwart companion, and the most real adaptation into the story. Xavier is wise and powerful. Scott and Jean are royalty, which speaks to their legendary status and distance in Kitty’s view. Also, when Wind-Rider casts her spell to give the whole team flight, the prince’s comes in the form of a flying chair, implying that Kitty sees Scott as the next Xavier. Kurt is silly and lovable; they’re friends now, but still haven’t really gotten to know each other on a more serious level. Ororo is an all-powerful savior and force for good. And Logan still gruff and abrasive, but with a goofy lovable aspect. I think my biggest takeaway might be that I wish we had more Kitty and Scott scenes; the last panel with him kissing her cheek and thanking her was so sweet. It’s also really interesting how much of this story will later bleed into the real world; Kitty’s Phoenix Force was an exterior entity that couldn’t be contained in a human like Jean, which was a little ambiguous in the original story but will be the official canon eventually. Kitty eventually gets a dragon and names him Lockheed, although he doesn’t really look or act like this one, and Bamfs are a real kind of extradimensional creature, though I can’t remember if they had some subconscious influence of Kitty or it was just a weird coincidence. Also Kitty is an actual pirate now. Anyway, this was a really fun and cute issue.

154 is a prelude to the Deathbird Saga, which is itself a prelude to the Brood Saga, and a very important Scott issue. He and Ororo are playing mutant power handball for training and fun while looking after the mansion. When they call it a draw after an hour, he tells her it’s hard to have a rival and equal in skill as a hero and leader for the first time, but also nice. Across the universe, Corsair, Major Christopher Summers, is on his way to Earth, pursued by the Shi’ar, while Kurt and Peter are setting up Magneto’s island as a new base of operations after one too many mansion destroying battles. Elsewhere on the island, Carol laments to Logan about her lost sense of self. Logan has some idea what that’s like, and he was friends with Carol years before, so he tries to give her some comfort. Back at the mansion, Scott and Ororo have a conversation that’s been a long time coming- who will lead the X-Men? t’s still officially Ororo, but in Polymachus, Scott kinda took charge.Ororo didn’t want the job, but she’s grown into it and knows she’s good at it. She thinks Scott was better, but he’s not sure it’s what he wants out of life anymore. My take: Scott was the perfect leader in times past, and years from this era he’ll grow into the leader all of mutantkind needs, but with where he and Ororo where they are right now as people, she’s the leader the X-Men need to get them through the coming hardships. Speaking of hardship, Christopher chooses this moment to crash into the lake by the mansion, pursued by the alien Sidrian hunters. Scott finds his dogtags with a picture of him and Alex as children, and Ororo tells him what Jean made her swear not to tell- Christopher is his father. He’s pissed at both of them, but he pushes that all down to deal with the Sidri, who are attacking. There’s a stark contrast between the morality of Scott and Christopher- the latter is open to the possibility of risking innocent lives to destroy to Sidri, but is shocked that Scott is willing to let Ororo sacrifice herself. Luckily it doesn’t come to that, and the trio escapes the now fully destroyed mansion with the Sidri in pursuit. Scott is usually the best at pushing all his personal feelings aside for a mission, but he can barely contain his anger at Christopher, punching him for suggesting he doesn’t care about Ororo and snapping at him for calling him anything other than Cyclops. He and Ororo disrupt the Sidri colony matrix, exposing its weakness, the core. What neither of them realize until Christopher kills it is that it’s a living organism. They’re angry at him, both for this and for endangering innocent lives in the battle, but he says it doesn’t matter, because he believes his mission outweighs that. Shi’ar terrorists have kidnapped Lilandra, blamed the Starjammers, and fled to Earth, and the full military of the Empire is coming for their Majestrix, willing to destroy the Earth if that’s what it takes.

[pencilofawesomeness]

Meet the Blorbos [Part 2/2]

(The propaganda continues)

KALIM AL-ASIM

The incredibly wealthy heir of a merchant family, Kalim is so wholesome it hurts. He’s based off of the sultan from Aladdin, but he is just as easily Jasmine if you look at the context. Either way, Kalim is an extremely optimistic individual who stubbornly refuses to accept the trauma he probably should have on account of countless attempts on his life due to his status and maintains his sunshine disposition through willpower and a painful amount of obliviousness. He wants everyone to be able to be happy and to live life to the fullest, and he has a endless amount of compassion; unfortunately, despite his belief to the contrary, Kalim lacks quite a bit in the understanding department, often leading to innocent, but not inconsequential, mishaps. Much like a golden retriever puppy, Kalim is a very pure-hearted extrovert who unfortunately does not realize that not everyone is an extrovert. Or a fan of parades.

JAMIL VIPER

Jamil is quite possibly the most stressed individual you will ever meet. This is largely due to the fact that he is in charge of Kalim’s well being, a duty assigned to him from a very young age, and made difficult both by Kalim’s often threatened safety and his tendency to be kinda airheaded. Jamil is based off of Jafar, but being that his one life goal is to have a damn break, and his Type A tendency to do everything on top of being expected to be able to do everything, he is also largely Genie shaped. Jamil is constantly under pressure, both external and internal, and lives in perpetual stress and anxiety. Unfortunately Jamil is allergic to asking for help (though he also has a lot of built in fear that this is a failure, and failure leads to consequences for him and his family) and also to being honest about his feelings, which leads to him bottling up all of his resentment until it explodes. A totally healthy coping mechanism, to be sure. He is very intelligent, both functionally and when it comes to navigating other people. Often times this means schemes, as Jamil is perfectly fine with manipulating people and situations into being calm and favorable. Outside of the ongoing struggle that is his life, Jamil is the type to treasure his alone time or his hobbies, be it breakdancing, cooking, or travel planning. (Somebody get this boy a nap, a hug, and a weighted blanket.)

VIL SCHOENHEIT

Vil is a young man of many talents—acting, modeling, fashion, Being a Queen... For someone based off of the Evil Queen and generally concerned about his image, Vil is not a vain person. He simply believes in hard work, and that being your best self—both outwardly presentable and in decorum—is a natural conclusion of tenacity, an uphill journey that will never end. (Yes, that does sound exhausting; it is.) His tendency to project his own impossible standards onto other people is a bit frustrating, but Vil himself is easily frustrated by people not being their best selves. That said, he is the reasonable sort, and Vil does try really hard to look out for those around him. And, just as Vil wants everyone to be their best self, he would like people to see that of him too—and... to stop being type cast as a villain, even from back when he was a kid. Turns out, that does funny things to your self-esteem. Although Vil has a wonderful grasp on his sense of self and his gender security, so he’s got some good stuff going on.

EPEL FELMIER

Epel is the most feral gremlin in this entire game, and it is a game full of feral gremlins. He is a tiny lad (often mistaken for a girl, even) but he possesses the rage only a farmboy from the middle of nowhere can. Much like the poison apple he is allegedly based off of (he’s one of the looser ones), Epel dreams of a world where he can solve all of his problems through violence, and he would love to be big and buff enough to do that. (Yes, he does have self-image problems, like all good Pomefiore students.) Unfortunately for Epel, he’s in the fancy fashionista dorm (and he lost a fist-fight with Vil) so he has to pull back and be a respectable member of society. Though Epel does learn the merit of speaking softly and carrying brass knuckles. Epel is also a generally active guy, and isn’t one to idle about; he likes being helpful, especially to his friends and to those he respects.

ROOK HUNT

Quite possibly the most insane character in this game, Rook is an Experience. (Both to viewers and to the other characters.) He is both based on the Huntsman from Snow White and a literal hunter, but what kind of “hunter” perpetually remains unclear. He has a habit of stalking people and cataloguing every detail about them, and occasionally says off-the-wall remarks about hypothetical violence, but Rook is far more likely to end his sneak attack with a riveting poem in your honor than a killing blow. (Not that the latter is out of the question for him.) Rook may be just a wee bit completely unhinged, but he means well and he hands out compliments unbarred. He appreciates life in all aspects, and the beauty thereof, and seeks to study and discover everything there is. He is extremely optimistic and is the giver of the best honest-to-goodness positive reinforcement one can receive, even if they are not asking for it. (Especially if they are not asking for it.)

IDIA SHROUD

Idia is the poster child for geeks, weebs, and introverted gamers everywhere. (And for soul-crushing grief and depression. And anxiety.) The game claims he is derived from Hades, but he’s actually Megara; either way, it’s not important. Idia is a full-blown genius who dedicates his talents to gaming, geekdom, avoiding people, and to his robotic little brother, whom he loves very much. Despite being a tall, shark-toothed individual with flaming blue hair, Idia is not the brave sort. He has terrible social anxiety and a habit of going non-verbal when he is stressed. Not to say that he doesn’t have a stubborn streak and a habit of pushing people’s buttons. Due to very unfortunate family circumstances, outside of everyone’s control, Idia’s life is pretty much set for him, and he’s accepted this. If he had his way, he would just hunker down and live life day-to-day and game-to-game. However, his lack of ambition is belied by the fact that he can and will move heaven and earth for his little brother.

ORTHO SHROUD

Ortho is Idia’s little brother in every sense of word, even if he is a fully robotic being. The game is absolutely unclear as to who he represents, but depending on which aspect you look at, he is either Hades or Hercules. (Yes, those are contradictory; yes, it makes sense, I promise, but spoilers.) Regardless, Ortho is the most wholesome bean, and his willingness to deal hilariously lethal levels of laser-based damage does not change this. Ortho constantly wants to learn new things, and he is always willing to help people out in any way that he can, be it patching injuries or being Google. He especially wants to help his older brother, who he thinks the world of, even if Ortho is often frustrated by his antisocial tendencies and negative outlook. (Ortho is often the one nagging Idia into self-care, to mixed success.) He is a ray of sunshine to be protected at all costs—except for the fact that he is literally an entire state-of-the-art arsenal.

MALLEUS DRACONIA

A lot of characters in this game are quite powerful, but as one of the Top Five Mages in-world, Malleus takes the case. He is a dragon-fae and the crown prince of an infamous yet mysterious fairy kingdom called Briar Valley, and—you guessed it—based off of Maleficent. Being a super powerful (magically and politically) and super scary dragon prince, as well as possessing an intense RBF and a penchant to attempt to be jokingly threatening, often means that pretty much everyone is scared of him. Anyway, Malleus is a huge dork and he can talk about gargoyles for hours if given the chance. He is rather introvertive and he values his long walks and alone time, but he also craves companionship and doesn’t want to disappoint people or be a letdown. He is the fae equivalent of a (sheltered) teenager, despite being older than most humans, so he gets the double-whammy of being young and old and thus is bad at social situations and at technology. He doesn’t even know how to send emails. All in all, he is a bit of an air-head, and time management eludes him, but he means well.

LILIA VANROUGE

He may or may not be a reference to that little bat henchmen in Sleeping Beauty, but it doesn’t matter. Lilia is the Dad of the Diasomnia squad—quite literally. Also belonging to the fae, his eternal smol-ness belies that he is actually probably centuries years old. He just most likely missed out on a high school education on account of being a military general and the right-hand to the Queen of Briar Valley. He raised Malleus as a surrogate parent and he also raised Silver from infancy, and as Sebek’s mentor he is parent-shaped yet again. Not that this stops Lilia from being a chaotic gremlin. He loves to joke around, sing heavy-metal, play video games, and jump scare people, enjoying life to the fullest whenever possible.

SILVER [VANROUGE]

A human raised by Lilia in a nation of fae, Silver is a very earnest and straightforward character, often unconcerned by his lack of fitting in. He might be based off of Aurora, or maybe Philip—or if you ask me, he’s Mulan—but regardless, Silver is a pure-hearted hard worker. He loves his father very much, and as a palace guard, he is wholly devoted to Malleus as well. He is most likely narcoleptic, but that does not stop him from diligently training himself to improve in his duties. Sometimes he can be a bit airheaded, whether it be his tendency to follow instructions literally or his assumption that others are as honest and straightforward as he is, but that doesn’t mean that Silver isn’t a capable guard and friend.

SEBEK ZIGVOLT

He’s probably a reference to that crocodile-goon from Sleeping Beauty, considering how many crocodile jokes are made at his expense, but it doesn’t matter. A fellow guardsmen and attendant to Malleus, alongside Silver, he takes his job seriously. Far too seriously. Sebek is rather over dramatic in most everything he does, because he wants nothing more than to (make his prince and mentor proud) ensure the glory and safety of his liege. His dedication to making sure everyone knows how great Malleus is often leads to him being sort of racist against humans, a fact which exasperates literally everyone—and is extra unfortunate because Sebek is half-human himself. (Yes, he has some self-worth issues.) For all of his ability to drive people up the wall, Sebek does everything he does with 120% effort and sincerity (and volume), and even if his tunnel vision makes him miss the obvious, his efforts pay off. Once Sebek figures out how to start to make friends, his intensity reveals a rather pure-hearted enthusiasm.

What is Twisted Wonderland and how would you sell someone on it?

Ohoho. Ohohohoho. Anon. You have activated my trap card >:D

(I'm about to be soooo annoying/unhinged and I'm sorry. I'm not.)

Alright, so:

Twisted Wonderland is a Disney mobile game made in Japan and co-produced by Aniplex. (Yes, that Aniplex.) I'm not here to sell you on the game, so much as the story, but it is a sort of story-book rpg with turned based fights and rhythm games, where you build character units from a gacha pull. As far as gameplay goes, it's very simple, and most of the emphasis lies on the characters and the story. And it's wonderful.

The on-the-box description of this game doesn't do it justice, per se, but that might be because Disney has a little bit of influence on it and they suck at knowing who their target audience is. It is about a high school based on classic Disney villains—but no, not in the way you're thinking, because I once made that mistake too. It is not a villain school. Rather, the world of Twisted Wonderland is its own entity, with characters built as sort of nods or foils to classic Disney characters. The world itself is somewhat built with these films as its past, and history has become so twisted (ha) that modern society views some of these classic villains as the heroes or supporting characters of their stories, and respect them as The Great Seven. (The seven in question being the Queen of Hearts, Scar, Ursula, Jafar, the Evil/Raven Queen, Hades, and Maleficent. None of them are remembered by name, though.)

The game takes place in the modern era, a society with both technology and magic. Specifically, it takes place in a magic high school called Night Raven College, an all-boys dormitory prep school where the only requirement to get in is a magic mirror that peers into your soul and determines whether or not you can a) do magic and b) kin the Great Seven. And, of course, the player character is a regular-ass human who gets isekai'd in and gets stuck with a talking magic cat direbeast named Grim.

Now. That is the general synopsis. I, on the other hand, affectionately call this the Mental Breakdown game.

See, here's the kicker. The magic system is pretty nifty; while it's functions as a standard magic-is-magic sort of soft system, it has ✨consequences✨

Magic has this byproduct called blot. It's this icky stuff that builds up when you a) use too much magic and/or b) are emotionally distressed. But less so in a "I'm panicked right now" sort of way and more so in a "I have chronic depression and/or anxiety" sort of way. And, when a mage is powerful enough, and sad boi enough, and then goes and uses way too much magic and sad boi juice in one sitting, this amazing phenomenon occurs called "overblot"—which is pretty much a super-powered evil form that turns the mage into the darkest form of themselves and then uses magic until they die.

Naturally, this happens in the game. A lot. The formula is pretty much that each "book" of the story, there is an overblot. One for each of the seven dorms, which are based off of the seven villains/the movies they come from. (And "based on" is pretty loose. Yes you can see the similarities, but these are dumb teenage boys with their own hopes and aspirations, and, sometimes, the game completely lies to you about what character they emulate the most. The guy who's Jafar? Well yes but he's actually just a really stressed out Genie stand in. The Hades guy? Whoops that's Meg. Is that a card soldier or the White Rabbit? Doesn't matter, he's got problems.)

The characters are so well written. I could gush about them forever, and they are the driving points of this plot and it means everything to me. They are some of the most traumatized and messed up individuals, but also, they are dumb teenage boys who do dumb teenage boys things. It is all incredibly well balanced and startlingly realistic for a game that amounts to beating the emotional constipation around people. Mostly because it cannot be beat out of them. The blot can, but they have to deal with their emotions with their own two hands, with varying levels of success.

And the shenanigans!!!! Oh, the shenanigans. I call this the Emotional Trauma game but I have once laughed so hard someone heard me through the floor. It's not all doom and gloom for sure. Sometimes you're watching your friend fall apart because his toxic mother instilled debilitating perfectionism and slowly start making enemies of everyone and sometimes you're sending three of the most gremlin students plus one cinnamon roll to infiltrate a gala that a bunch of weather fairies are throwing in the greenhouse because they stole your temperature regulating magestone to be shiny jewelry and you want it to stop snowing inside your dorm room. And sometimes you can have the exact same character who experienced losing his little brother right in front of him gush about a magical girl sledding anime and all of his gacha games. It is the best of both worlds.

And, that's not all! No, no. We get amazing character interactions. Not just pre-determined friend group interactions, but also random interactions. Yana Toboso (the writer/artist) really likes to stick names in a jar sometimes and make them interact and it is the best thing ever. Every single one of these characters I hold in my hands. Every single one of them gets to have their moment to shine. You can emotionally invest in all of them and be rewarded for it.

The game itself is free and pretty easy to get into. There's not really a bad power creep so you can get through it with what you got. Of course the fun part of collecting cards is that there are stories attached to them that you can watch, and those are also sources of joy. (And it's well documented, so you can find things online pretty easily to catch up and see more.)

I just think it's neat. (Read: I accidentally became wholly obsessed with this game and its characters and they are all blorbos to me.)

You should definitely fall into this rabbit hole with me :))) It's so worth it :)))