#it's crazy. it's mind boggling to me. how do you go from thinking you're in love with someone

[megkuna]

the paradoxical effect of like. no i don't really feel any pressing need to be in a romantic relationship. but also why do the failed ones feel like such godawful personal failures. it's not (as cold as it sounds) about missing those people, because i feel like ultimately the separations were for the best, but it's like i failed at this thing i'm supposed to be good at.

[tin-wufborf]

Tin's Favorite Sterek Fics (Part 19)

Hello, and welcome to part fucking 19 of Tin's Favorite Sterek Fics. Good lord, how the hell have I gotten to 19 of these?? I cannot believe!!!

As always, thank you all so much for all of the love you continue to show this little series of mine. I never really expected any of these posts to get more than a passing notice from anyone, so to see that so many of you have liked and shared this series is honestly kind of mind boggling but also pretty cool. Because I just want everyone to read these stories, ya know? Like, I really love all of these fics that I'm recommending. I wasn't lying or exaggerating when I said that I re-read these fics all the time. I love these stories, and I want others to love them too.

I won't go on some of the crazy tangents that I do IRL, but I fucking love fan fiction. I truly believe that a good chunk of the world's more trivial issues could be solved by people simply getting into the right kind of fanfic for them. Because there's really something out there for everyone so long as you're willing to look for it, and I just think that is the coolest thing, you guys. It's just the bees knees. So to be able to share these lists of my favorite Sterek fics has been such a fun and fulfilling endeavor, and I am glad to have been able to share it with you all.

Okay, enough sap from me! I have admittedly imbibed a bit before writing this up, so I am a little bit in my head right now as well as in my feelings.

I hope you're all having as good a day as you can, if not a great one.

Smoochies and squeezies!

List and links to previous parts below the cut.

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DISCLAIMER: This is me warning you all that some of the fics I've included in this list may cover explicit, dark, and/or "taboo" subject matters. I cannot express enough how little I care what anyone thinks about any of that; all I want is for you to use caution when reading anything I've listed here and to please review and heed whatever tags the authors have provided in order to keep yourselves safe. Your experience from this point on is your own responsibility, not mine and not the authors'.

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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19

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Family Day by klutzy_girl (T | 1/1 | 2,447)

Derek and Stiles spend the day with Stiles' (and Scott's) younger sister and come to a few realizations.

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You aren't broken by GreyHaven (G | 1/1 | 4,339)

Derek doesn’t understand sex. Well, no, that makes him sound innocent and sheltered and he isn’t either of those things.

But he doesn’t understand the appeal of sex.

The one in which Derek thinks he's broken and tries to break up with Stiles. Stiles doesn't let him and insists on an open conversation which leads to Derek realising he's not broken, he's asexual. But can Stiles accept that?

(Spoiler alert: of course he can.)

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and the wild things roared their terrible roar by hoars (E | 1/1 | 4,905)

Derek as Khal Drogo (but set in snow beyond the wall) and Stiles as Daenerys Stormborn (although he's a greenseer of the Children rather than a dragon).

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Show Me Your Igloo and I'll Show You Mine by DiscontentedWinter (E | 1/1 | 4,943)

Stiles is finally going to meet the online friend he's had for years.

Instead, the hottest guy in the world walks in.

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that boy is a monster series by hoars (3 works | NR-M | 6,840)

1. monsters steal me away (M | 1/1 | 1,720) There’s a monster in the forest that has taught Stiles to lie and to love. 2. no secret stays secret (NR | 1/1 | 2,558) John follows Stiles into the woods one night. 3. my ghosts approve (NR | 1/1 | 2,562) (optional) Derek loves all his past loves because they all taught him how to love Stiles best.

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Run Wild and Free by greenleaf (T | 1/1 | 6,991)

Derek is a police officer, just recently moved to Beacon Hills, and possibly nursing a crush on the really hot, really powerful doctor with the twin sons.

(Or a story that was almost titled, 'I'm Quite Fawn'd of You, My Deer' but I stopped myself and I don't know why.)

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Do It For The Vine by crossroadswrite (G | 1/1 | 7,108)

“Tammy,” he calls her to attention and his baby daughter turns her sweet hazel eyes to him. “Do you want to go to the skate park tomorrow?”

Autumn gasps and twists until her bony knees are digging into his thighs.

“Daddy,” she says very seriously, placing both hands on his cheeks and looking him in the eye. “Don’t play with my emotions, daddy.” . (OR: in which Derek's daughter gets a skateboard and a cute guy teaching her tricks and Derek just gets the cute guy.)

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The Jackass in the Camaro by isthatbloodonhisshirt (wasterella) (G | 1/1 | 7,237)

To the guy I splashed with water on First and Crown on Thursday, February 27th around seven at night: I am an a**hole. I’m sorry. I was being an impatient driver, and I just wanted to get home, and I cut off the bus to get there faster. I didn’t mean to soak you with rainwater, and I am truly sorry for doing so. That was a total d*ck move of me. With regrets, The Jackass in the Camaro.

Stiles had to re-read the notice four times before he honestly believed he was seeing it with his own two eyes. He’d gotten splashed by rainwater on First and Crown on Thursday around seven while waiting at a bus stop because of an impatient Camaro driver cutting off a bus.

Like, that was actually a thing that had happened. This was a real thing.

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The Plan for Healthy Eating in the Stilinski-Hale Household by inhystereks (G | 1/1 | 8,100)

Melanie burst into tears, screaming about how she didn’t want their daddy to die while Greg tried to comfort her, sending his own anxious glances Stiles’ way. Elena grilled Addie and Clary about whether they knew for sure. The twins started listing examples from their textbook. Ian turned to Derek asking if food could really hurt humans while Kevin turned to Stiles and begged him not to kill himself by eating too many curly fries.

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children of the bad revolution by hoars (NR | 1/1 | 9,506)

Far away and long ago, the only companion Derek has, the only friend and enemy he's known since he was young, is the chain.

Then Stiles happens.

Then the crows.

Then the end of the world.

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to build a home by elisela (T | 1/1 | 13,021)

“You realize you’re at least ten grand over budget on Stiles’ house, don’t you,” Allison says, and he’s not entirely sure if it’s a question or not. “You better hope this works out because we can’t afford to build an entire house for everyone you want to date.”

He doesn’t bother denying it. “I’m going to do a lot of the demo and installation myself,” he says, leaning over her to cross off some of the numbers she’d written down. “It’ll work out.”

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A Crooked Way to Fly by andavs (G | 1/1 | 14,980)

“We can’t just leave him here to die.”

“He’s an emissary, Scott.” Derek tried to make his tone empathetic, but Scott’s tendency to fight back on everything always grated on his nerves. “His pack is gone, he won’t survive more than a day or two either way.”

“Then we should stay with him.”

Derek sighed as he studied the man for a moment; he was too pale against the fur rim of his hood, almost grey from lying out in the snow, and his cloak was stained with dark dried blood around a protruding arrow shaft. It was unlikely he would even last the night. They would probably be able to carry on in the morning with little time lost, if any.

It wasn’t a horrible idea, Derek decided reluctantly. They hadn’t been able to set up a real camp for a few weeks in the open foothills, and they were all on edge from sleeping in exposed areas. A defensible place to sleep would be good for them, even if they were surrounded by death. They would be able to give the pack proper burials, at the very least.

“Fine. One night,” Derek relented, already moving away to check on Isaac. “He’s your responsibility.”

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This Kind of Luxe by sugarybowl, weathervaanes, wishingonalightningbolt (E | 1/1 | 15,113)

As they have for almost every US President since the 1910s, the Prime Minister and the royal head of their country pay a visit to the United States after inauguration. Which is why, when President Jonathan Stilinski is elected into office, Queen Talia Hale of Norland plans their trip.

-0-

Prince Derek and First Son Stiles. Gooey, ridiculous romance ensues.

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Good for you by lilysaid (E | 1/1 | 16,768)

Completely by chance, I saw a "human boyfriend for werewolf roleplay" ASMR video on YouTube and thought 1. Stiles would totally do something as reckless as making an ASMR channel for werewolves 2. He would be really good at it and 3. It would definitely blow up in his face.

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No Other Love by Idday (T | 1/1 | 18,745)

And maybe it’s irony, or the universe at work, or maybe it’s just Derek Hale’s shitty luck, but that’s when, at that exact moment (as Stiles will swear later), there’s a knock on the door. “Laura?” Derek breathes in disbelief, and Stiles feels his own face fall into confused slackness. Because the girl standing in the doorway? The last time Stiles had seen her—or, well, half of her—she’d been very naked, and very, very dead. “Hey, baby bro,” she says with a grin. ... OR: The one where Laura comes back from the dead, and it turns out to be bad for Stiles, because he’s suddenly spending a lot of quality time with one of the coolest people he’s ever met, and her brother. The guy that he might be just a little in love with. He's not okay.

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Nothing Short Of Perfect by GotTheSilver (E | 1/1 | 27,019)

In which Derek and Stiles are made aware of their potential and have to make a choice about what their relationship will be.

“Let me get this straight,” his dad says. “You’re telling me a witch told Derek and yourself that you could be destined to be together and now Derek will be going to college with you?”

Stiles shrugs, resting his hands on his legs to stop himself from fidgeting. “That’s about it, yep.”

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The Weight of an Enchanted Heart by PalenDrome (nerdherderette), 1jet2unknown (E | 1/1 | 31,590)

Marriage to the shape-shifting Alpha King of Lunansholt wasn't on Stiles' bingo card. His magic had other plans.

[excerpt]: Stiles entered Derek’s chambers, slamming the door behind him. “What did you do with my things?”

“These things?” Derek asked, waving his hand with an arched brow.

Stiles gaped when he saw his books lined neatly on Derek’s shelves. His trunk was in the corner, many of his clothes were visible in the partly open wardrobe, and the cloak he’d brought from home hung neatly on a hook.

“It would have been nice if you asked first.” A quick sweep around the room found only one bed. “Where am I supposed to sleep?” he asked, frowning.

“We are married now, Stiles,” Derek said after a moment. “We sleep together.”

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No Mercy by Gia279 (M | 24/24 | 24,743)

The story of the Boy King was this: when he was sixteen, the Stilinski kingdom was at war with the Novak kingdom. King John was on the front lines with his soldiers when his teenage heir came to check in with him. The king was struck down in a nighttime attack, in front of the boy. The boy took up the king’s dropped sword, mounted his war steed, and slaughtered the enemy forces.

When the remaining soldiers surrendered, he cut them down with his father’s sword and returned home a boy king with a bloodstained reputation.

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Salty Sweet by secondstar (E | 11/11 | 46,478)

Derek works at a porn store. One day, Stiles comes in asking all sorts of TMI questions about different toys. That's where it all starts.

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Call Me (Cliché) by orphan_account (M | 18/18 | 84,649)

When the sheriff's sister ends up in a wheelchair for the duration of summer, Stiles' dreams of three months full of pack bonding, late-night video games and bro-time with Scott come crashing down. He's temporarily relocated to Redford, a three hour drive away, and he can already tell he won't be getting many visitors.

Sure the pack will forget about him while he's gone, Stiles is determined to make the most of his summer of isolation, training his body and mind - and his magic - so he can come back with a bang, and maybe catch a certain Sourwolf's eye.

Then Derek shows up at his window one night with a flimsy excuse about needing research done. Suddenly, his summer away is looking a whole lot more interesting.

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[tennessoui]

kit's fics year in review (2023)

it turns out i wrote a LOT this year (last year now, i guess) according to my ao3 stats, and i saw one of those recap games for another fandom floating around my dash so im absolutely gonna pilfer some of those questions for my own little review + add a few!!

how many fics did you write in 2023? it was definitely the year of the silly short fic for me -- i published a total of 6 new oneshots on ao3 along with 5 fics only on my kofi! i also added at least one chapter to 9 other fics that were already posted. and i started and completed 1 long stand alone fic this year (if you love me let it remain unnamed, clocking in at 37k)

what are you most proud of fic-writing wise in 2023? i finished foolproof, foolhardy! it took more than a year to write, from first published to last updated, but i think the lion's share of the work happened during 2023; it's sort of rare for a fic of mine to get that long (72k), so it was fun to write through all the developments. truly a cracky premise that grew legs and ran away from me, but i'm really proud of how it turned out. the last 4 chapters contain some of my best writing in my opinion and the whole story is a love letter to padawan obi-wan, who will always be my beloved lol

what is the fic you had the most fun writing? this is a tough question because i'm torn between two fics; sun, sun, sun here it comes is probably my favorite oneshot that i've ever written. it sorta incorporates everything that makes a silly little au in my mind, from miscommunication to banter to bonus babies. but then there's i pray the same, but my gods have changed, aka the democratic fic- now that's such a fun fic to write, and i'm going to get more into it this year again. it's the one where tumblr votes on what should happen next, which i absolutely enjoy - especially when people send me propaganda about which option should win....thought the amount of ties that have happened is mind-boggling lol

what is a fic you didn't expect to write? hahaha well this is easily 'a more perfect union' which has been sooo fun to write so far but also definitely has had a very short gestation period from nascent tumblr au post to 25k on ao3 lol and still one more chapter to go!!!

what fic surprised you when you were writing it? oh hands down this is 'hand me down dreams got me high in the rafters', aka the pool boy au from tumblr. the adaptation of it from tumblr au to a fic on ao3 has a crazy tone shift where the obi-wan in that fic is much, much darker than the one in the tumblr au - i really ended up leaning into the unequal power dynamics of a boss/employee relationship and exploring how unhealthy it could be while keeping it consensual -- but only because anakin would allow obi-wan to do whatever he wanted to him

what's a fic you wanted to write but didn't? my poor neglected hunger games au!! i really want to get the first chapter of that posted because i am so excited about this fic and writing it as a new big, long project -- i'm excited about the dark anakin, the differently dark obi-wan, the hunger games set in the gffa, etc etc etc

what is something you learned this year that you'll take into 2024? set is the only acceptable name for anakin to use undercover <3 we will be taking the set cinematic universe into 2024 <3

what's a project you're excited to carry into the new year? um all of my wips lol but especially time & tide and the couples counseling au - i have about half of the next chapter of t&t written, and before i got sidetracked by a more perfect union, i was on track to get that posted by christmas....obviously that did not happen lol but i'm expecting to get back to working on a few more chapter updates at the beginning of this year!

[sapphic-agent]

I think the biggest thing I've learnt from the more critical side of MHA is: don't let your favoritism affect your story. I think it's natural that you're gonna like more characters than others. But if it's like noticeable to a point where the audience sees it, it's a big problem. Or if the character is a fan favorite, they'll praise it to sky heaven. The fact that Izuku VS Shigaraki has been oddly side lined so much in favor of Bakugo VS OFA or him rescuing All Might is... weird to me. Like, I get it. He was dead for a year in our time. But... this IS Izuku's story not Bakugo's. Even if Bakugo is a deuteragonist, he's still not the MAIN protagonist. Shouldn't we be shifting more or less to Izuku VS Shigaraki? MHA has been building up their final fight for 8-9 years, and we're oddly all focused on AFO and Bakugo? And for AFO's backstory, I care less for the potato man. Shigaraki is the villain of MHA, not potato man. Such as Izuku is the protagonist of the story, Bakugo isn't. And it's so baffling to me to see MHA twt praise this series to high heaven and just don't oddily notice that Izuku is just oddily fucking quiet through out this fight?? I know he's focused on stopping Shigaraki, but nothing???? Like the Toga and Uraraka and Todoroki Family arcs got all the attention they deserved, so why tf isn't Izuku and Shigaraki?? I understand they were gonna be last, it IS the final battle after all, but it just seems it's gonna go downhill from there.

Plus, how tf is Izuku gonna be able to save Shigaraki?? Izuku is at his witt's end, and Bakugo said he would take care of AFO. Because if it's ACTUALLY Bakugo & Izuku VS Shigaraki. I'll just- I'll be so done. I get the whole "Izuku doesn't have to do everything on his own" but like- Shigaraki literally KILLED Bakugo and got revived from his goddamn blood exploding. (That shit is still funny to me.) like good Lord, can Izuku just have HIS moment??? If all of the cool power ups and cool moments go to Bakugo instead of Izuku, and Bakugo somehow saves the day.

The fucking ending is gonna be ruined by favoritism. Again, this is just an IF. But I felt crazy reading twt's and no one noticing Izuku hasn't said anything of a) Bakugo being brought back to life b) or just reacting to anything. It just seems like Izuku is just there as a device to carry us towards the ending, at this point.

You're right and you should say it.

Mind-boggling how people will look at this shit and still say Horikoshi doesn't favor Bakugou. Like, what? He is 1-v-1-ing the big bad of the series. The villain who killed almost every past OFA user (would also like to add that these are the same users he insulted and looked down on, so if he is the one to finish AFO, that's a slap in the face to every single one of them). The man who incapacitated All Might. The Demon King who's ruled the underbelly of Japan for the past 200 years.

And you mean to tell me that Katsuki Bakugou of all people is his final boss? That's just embarrassing for AFO tbh.

But the fact of the matter is, yeah Izuku's fight with Shigaraki should have been the main event. Instead, it's being treated as a side quest. Hell, it's being treated as less than a side quest as both Uraraka & Toga and the Todorokis & Dabi were given more attention.

It's sad, not only for Izuku but for Shigaraki too. Horikoshi was so close to making him a complex villain, only for all of his character progression from Deika to go down the toilet. He can't be saved because he's been written to be so completely detached from his humanity.

In general, Izuku and Shigaraki should have had more moments together throughout the series. This interaction between them is meaningless because Izuku doesn't understand Shigaraki enough to save him. It's why he's getting frustrated because there's really no feasible way for him to save Tomura. He isn't Eri or Kota who were just kids in danger and who wanted to be rescued.

I hate to say it, but Izuku hasn't had enough development to be able to save Shigaraki. It's not his fault (it's Hori's), but it's true. For him to understand Tomura, he needed to broaden his worldview and Horikoshi hasn't allowed him to do that.

It's an utter disservice to both characters

[drowninginships]

An Ask Game for Writers to Procrastinate Working on Your WIP(s)

First of all, thank you soooo much to @monbons and @valeffelees for tagging me, I nearly had a whole breakdown over how nice this fandom is and how good it feels to be included in something like this. Yall are the sweetest, thank you <3 1. 🦈Tell us the name of your/ one of your WIP(s): Uhhhh, yall name your WIPs beforehand? I currently have two documents titled "nose ring simon" and "wing fic" and I typically title it just before I post it.

2. 🍄Describe your WIP/one of your WIP(s) in the format of “___ + ___ =___” I think you'll find this is a pretty easy formula for most, if not all, of my fics. Simon + Piercing + Baz Horny. Alternatively, Simon + Wings = Baz Horny. Sensing a theme?

3. 🌍What tags or warnings will one of your WIP(s) need if you intend to share it? Explicit tags, for sure. It'd be pretty funny to tag the wingfic as monsterfucking, so I'll probably do that, but otherwise, nothing crazy going on here. Just boys very much in love.

4. 🧭An alternative title to one of your WIP(s)? "wing fic" often affectionately gets called "how the fuck do wings work" or "goddamn motherfucking physics"

5. ⚠️Which WIP you're most likely to finish or update next? Definitely the piercing one. The wing fic isn't cohesive or coherent at this time, and it's more of a collection of scenes rather than a whole fic, anyway. I'm having a lot of fun writing the piercing one!!!

6. 💾What is your document of your WIP/ a WIP called? (not the stories actual title but what you’ve saved it as) Please see answer #1. It's truly mind boggling to know that some of yall are out here naming WIPs.

7. 🖍Post Any sentence(s) from your WIP.

Of course it's gold. Everything about Simon is gold. His mind, his body, his soul. The color of his skin and his hair when the sun shines through it from behind. The small loop now adorning his nostril.

8. ♻️A scrapped idea for your current WIP. For wing fic, I was trying to figure out a way to make an au scene where everyone has wings, and I could do a little, like, wing caretaking session? But I couldn't find a solid enough reason for everyone to have wings, and also I realized I just didn't care enough about that scene to pursue it further.

9. 🤔What’s a story you’d love to write but haven’t even started yet? I find this question particularly difficult. I don't know that there are any stories I want to tell, right now. Usually when I want to write something, I schedule it in and I do it. Right now, there's nothing on the back-burner.

10. 🤡How many WIPS are you actively working on? Only the 2! I'm not usually one to work on multiples at a time.

11. 🛠Is there a scene or anything in the WIP you are struggling with right now? Re: "goddamn motherfucking physics," I've never been super into fantasy or a fandom that particularly liked wings, so I genuinely have no clue how these things work. I took on this project as a gift for @valeffelees after he lamented the lack of wing fics for him to devour, and while I'm not an expert, I'm certainly trying my best. But like, the anatomy??? of a wing???

12. ❤️Not a question, just a second Kudos to send. Again, thank you both so much for tagging me. You're exactly who I would have tagged here, so instead of tagging you both again, I'll tag @thewholelemon even though I know you've already filled this out <3 Also, I'll tag @chaoticgaywitch @iamamythologicalcreature @youarenevertooold @beastmonstertitan and @brilla-brilla-estrellita because you all played our stupid little poetry game and brought me a lot of joy!

[spinef0ryou]

Q and A interview with Will Ramos in Metal Hammer Magazine. Transcript under the cut.

ARE LORNA SHORE BRINGING DEATHCORE BACK?

Lorna Shore's growler-in-chief, Will Ramos, answers your questions on goblin screams, dream collabs and singing with a camera down his throat

SINCE WILL RAMOS joined Lorna Shore in 2021, the US deathcore band have been on a mission that's seen them leapfrog to the forefront of their scene. Will's mind-boggling vocal abilities have turbocharged them, and Hammer crowned last year's sprawling symphonic fourth record, Pain Remains, "the most essential deathcore album of the decade". Last summer, Will sang with a camera down his throat so we could all see what the hell was going on in there, but now, in his biggest challenge yet, he takes on your questions...

What's your favourite type of scream to do? - N4turalbornkll, Twitter

"They're called 'tunnel screams, like if you're going through a tunnel. But I like calling them 'goblin screams'. It's like two different tones going on at the same time. It sounds really cool."

What bands got you into metal? - Ben Ryan, Facebook

"Linkin Park was definitely one of them. Meteora... freaking Hybrid Theory! I listen to albums from my childhood all the time - I still love them and they still hold up; Bullet For My Valentine, Lamb Of God, AFI... I had a couple of friends that listened to metal that I used to play videogames with, and one of the bands they played me was AFI. One song, Affliction, was just straight-up screaming the entire song. I was like, This. Is. Crazy?' Then my friend said, 'Dude, here's a bunch of bands that you should check out?' It was Lamb Of God, Whitechapel, Linkin Park."

How long do you think you'll be able to maintain your iconic screaming voice? Ten years? Thirty? Forever - Nettels_, Twitter

"I haven't fallen off yet. I don't know. Hopefully forever, but every day I make a joke, I'm like, This is the one. This is going to be the last one, this is it!"

What other genres do you love? - Jordan Bonvicino, Facebook

"I don't listen to a lot of metal so much anymore. I was looking at my Spotify Wrapped from last year... It was ap, psychedelic rock, indie music, and metal was fourth. I love bands like [Japanese singer-songwriter] Joji. I love Mac Miller. I love Drake. And I love sad music, so stuff like (post-hardcore artist] Bilmuri. They're metal, but they're also very sing-y. And I like that because now that I've been doing so much screaming in my life, I want to get better at something that's not screaming - so, singing. That's the next tier for me right now."

Are Lorna Shore bringing deathcore back? - Ed Burns, email

“I don't know if we're 'bringing it back'. We're doing really good for ourselves, and I love that people are hopping onto the train. That's incredible. Ilove that it's inspiring other people to even do more metal music. I just do what I do and I can't think about what I'm doing. I still can't look at myself in the mirror and be like, 'That's one of the big guys."

Hammer: Who were 'the big guys' to you?

“The ones that inspired me were late Suicide Silence vocalist] Mitch Lucker, Phil Bozeman (Whitechapell and Trevor Strnad (late Black Dahlia Murder vocalist]."

Do you avoid certain foods before singing, and if so, which ones? - Matt Doherty, Facebook

"I'd say eat light foods - if you eat something crazy heavy, you're going to feel very tired. I have maybe a slice of pizza, but you won't see me eating five or six slices. Ilove ramen and ramen is something that I'd have all the time when I'm on tour just because it's spicy, so it clears your nasal passages and it's soup, so it's good for your stomach."

What's your favourite Lorna Shore breakdown? - Undeado8, Twitter

"I think it would be Hollow Sentence off Immortal (2020 album, featuring ex-vocalist C] McCreery]. If we're talking about the newer stuff, Sun//Eater is definitely my favourite breakdown. It's the hardest song in the set. We have a sample of a katana [samurai sword] coming out and slicing something open. This specific sound is the unsheathing of the sword. It's halfway in, where the breakdown gets even heavier, so I just imagine a moshpit of people with inflatable swords killing each other."

Would you ever re-record Immortal? - Corey Hunter, Facebook

"I have, and I'm doing it for myself. I made a Patreon, and I told myself, I'm going to start redoing all of the old Lorna Shore albums."

Hammer: Would the band ever re-release the older albums with you on vocals?

"As a band we wouldn't - we want to have forward momentum. Art is always going to get better as long as you don't go back and start fixing things. We're like, 'What's the next thing? I'll put out Immortal on my own, but that's it."

What is your favourite song on Pain Remains? - Alex Chiczewski, Facebook

"Pain Remains I: Dancing Like Flames. It's the saddest one. I told you, Ilove sad music! You get to a point where you listen to breakdowns so many times, you become a little numb to them. For me, the only thing that holds me onto music after the breakdowns, is how do I feel about it? It's not about the melody or the breakdown. It's hearing the lyrics and I feel what this person is feeling and that it feels real. That's why I love Pain Remains I - it's the most genuine."

What is your best advice for dealing with crippling depression? - Zare Ralf Karadzin, Facebook

"Distract myself. Everyone alwavs sees me as Labradoodle Will. That's great, but I'm just like everybody out there and everybody gets sad sometimes. I dealt with depression a lot when I was a little kid, and if there's anything that's helped me, it was trying to distract myself with things Ilike to do, whether it be screaming or my little RC (remote control] cars, or playing Minecraft. Take everything day by day... conquer this day. Then you know tomorrow is another day, and you beat that day. Eventually you start putting yourself in the cycle where you'll have more good days than you have bad days."

What bands would you like to collab with in the future? - Notabumbleb88, Twitter

"Id love to collaborate with Sleep Token. They're my favourite freaking band right now. They are so incredibly good; Vessel and I have very similar singing ranges, too. Also, I Declare War, because they're just so incredibly heavy... In Flames... and Ilove Oceano - their vocalist Adam Warren is so good."

Hammer: What do you think a Sleep Token/Lorna Shore collab would sound like?

"It’d be insane. I don't know if our fans would love it, but I would. Let's go!"

What does it mean to you to be the Latino/Hispanic representation of deathcore and heavy music in general? - Shaun Fontanez, Facebook

“It's incredibly stressful. I don't speak Spanish, so a lot of Hispanic people will come up to me just like, 'Yo, dude, I'm so happy that you're here; you're Hispanic, I'm Hispanic!' I'm like, 'Thanks, man, appreciate that. I'm going to tell you right now I don't speak Spanish' and see that shock on their face. I do wish to speak more Spanish. I am a bad Puerto Rican... Or maybe I am the perfect Puerto Rican, because if you know anything about Puerto Ricans, half of them also don't speak Spanish. So, shout out to Puerto Rico."

How does it feel to have such a sudden and rapid growth in notoriety? - Christopher Andrew Ryan, Facebook

"It has been very big. Honestly, it's an incredible thing to see. We're very happy that we're all able to live off the art that we're putting out, not a lot of people can sav that. We're so caught up in the race, though, we're focused on what's next so that we can stay up here. If we fall off, you can only get to this point once, and then you lose it. We're trying to ride it for as long as we can."

How difficult was it singing with a camera down your throat? - Andy Pierce, email

"I didn't think it was going to sound good at all because I was so numb and mucus-y. When you’re doing vocals, you don't want mucus because it gets in the way and you can't even feel anything down there. It's almost like if you sang out loud and you just covered your ears, and you couldn't hear what you're putting out. That's what it felt like! Hopefully it'll be better next time (now I know what to expect!)”

PAIN REMAINS IS OUT NOW VIA CENTURY MEDIA. LORNA SHORE PLAY DOWNLOAD IN JUNE

[ikosburneraccount]

okay so

i am fairly new to your blog and understand the anti ts stuff and i just wanted to say that even with all the racism (i only know the recent stuff and im appalled, who knows what has been going on for years) poc from asian countries still love her. im indian and i have SO. MANY. FRIENDS. who absolutely eat up everything she does and follow her blindly even though theyre willing to call out other forms of racism and bigotry by other people and get so hurt if you try and call ts out. they organise ts events and are a really huge and vocal fandom in india as well. their hypocrisy and obsession is so weird and annoying.

I wish I could tell you how many times I read this over Anon. This is INSANE TO ME!! I completely understand why you're annoyed with their hypocrisy, because this is boggling my mind. Like I cannot stop reading this over I am so confused by their actions 😭

I've heard that they're a lot of Asian Swifties but I've never met them IRL or really seen them online either (IS is the only person I can think of), so thank you for letting me know that they do in fact exist and unfortunately in large numbers as well.

I'm also struggling with how PoC Swifties rationalize liking her music despite TS's own explicit racism. Especially since so many PoC Swifties in my life (they are not my friends. I simply know them) are like your friends who aren't afraid to call out racism, sexism, homo/transphobia, etc. yet will openly stream and yearn to TS.

(Although, I will say, ALL of them fetishize white people. Like they only go after and want to date white people. It's the weirdest and most unsettling phenomenon I've witnessed specifically among PoC Swifties.)

I think it's a demonstration of how flawed their own ideological commitments are if they can push aside and ignore racist actions of their favorite artist because their music is just "so good." It shows who and what they're willing to sacrifice to continue justifying their love for this racist musician, and them getting defensive just shows that they know liking her is inconjunct with their proclaimed beliefs.

When I see people act like this on social media, I often question their ulterior motives when they call out racism and bigotry. To what extent does their solidarity apply to, and to who? Why do they present themselves as left leaning politically when their actions say otherwise?

It undermines their actions and commitment and shows their internalized racism that they can continue supporting a racist artist like this. I have dealt with PoC like this, who present themselves as an ally, who say all the right words and right things and yet their actions consistently undermine their actions which led me to distancing myself from them and in my experience, unfortunately reinforcing my skepticism with other PoC :(

It's why people say PoC solidarity is a myth, because your friends are an example of how they would rather continue stanning a racist white artist knowing she's dated someone who's consumed and masturbated to pornographic content that explicitly showed torturing Black women. (here's a link to a reddit post that explains it (sfw)).

It's easier for them to ignore what she did than it is to hold themselves accountable knowing that she dated someone like this and what it means for them and what it says about their beliefs. You're right; not only are they hypocrites, but they display blatant cognitive dissonance by stanning TS.

tl;dr you're not crazy, they really aren't down for their beliefs like they say/act like they are if they continue defending/stanning a blatant racist white woman like her. they should work on their internalized racism and not bother calling themselves allies to other PoC (esp. black women) as long as they stan her.

I hope this is a satisfactory response to your ask, anon (also I really hope this makes sense) 😭 Thanks for sending this in!

[beauzos]

20, 21, and 22 for the ask meme. i'd love to hear some mother series hot takes 🔥

🔥 choose violence ask game 🔥

20. Part of canon you found tedious or boring

Oh, I don't know... I think the entirety of Mother 1 is tedious but I kinda like it anyway. The grinding in that game is actually mind-boggling. It's hard to get into it because of that, though I think it has some fun ideas in it.

Earthbound has some tedious parts but nothing is jumping to mind.

Mother 3 gets kinda tedious around chapter 5. It's kind of my least favorite chapter... it's not bad, but it kinda feels like filler to me, I don't know.

I also think the shipping in the games is tedious.

21. Part of canon you think is overhyped

Am I allowed to say it. I'm going to say it. I think the ending of Mother 3 is overhyped LOL. Like it's really good but I do think the emotional impact of it and the writing of it is kind. Drastically overhyped. I have mixed feelings on how Claus is handled at the end, always have, but I do love the way Nowhere just gets utterly destroyed and you have to hope for the rebirth of a better world.

But to me it's overhyped. It's not that sad to me personally because it doesn't entirely add up to me, I don't know. I respect Itoi's choice to have Claus commit suicide, it's bold as hell and I get it, but the actual mechanics of it leave a weird taste in my mouth, and I don't think it entirely makes sense basically.

I think it's an overall cohesive, logical, and fine ending, I just don't know if I entirely like it. And after a certain point I feel like people exaggerate the emotional impact of it for effect or because they think that's the reaction they're supposed to have, and it makes me resent the ending more because people get sooo aggressive if you're not sufficiently upset about it or whatever lol.

Also, the shipping is overhyped. lol

22. Your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

You damn well know what the answer is KRKF I love the Tazmily villagers, they're extremely underrated, profoundly lovable, and one of the most important background elements in the game. Mother 3 could not be Mother 3 without them. They contribute an astronomical amount to the world but are easy to ignore. You could name like half the villagers and most people wouldn't remember them.

But aside from that, I also really like the Minch family and feel they're underrated. Not Porky, the rest of his family lol. I find his parents particularly compelling and fascinating since they explain a lot about why Porky is the way he is, and I feel like people don't pay enough attention to them, or don't want to because they don't want to deal with the horrible, ugly, abusive people. But I do. Before I got crazy into Mother 3 I was really obsessed with his family and wrote a lot about them. I find them VERY interesting. Super underrated part of canon.

I connect really hard with toxic family dynamics and I pulled a lot of my own family stuff when I was writing them (at least with Lardna, I don't know, maybe a bit for Aloysius as well). I'm really big on messy, terrible dynamics like that, I guess. You don't see me writing positive dynamics with characters' parents often LMAO

[agc4doie]

(Fanfic) Friendly Advice

Taeyong whines, "I don't know what else to do."

Johnny doesn't look up from the game he was playing. "You're gonna have to be more explicit, TY."

Taeyong pouts, "Doie won't take me seriously."

Johnny doesn't know why Taeyong thinks coming to him with this was in any way going to be helpful. He was straight, for fuck's sake. How was he supposed to know how men navigated relationships with other men? He tells Taeyong as much with a lift of his brow.

Taeyong gets that stubborn look. "You know him better than any member."

"Hate to break this to you, dude," Johnny really just wants to win this game. He's been at it the whole morning. But he also knows Taeyong wouldn't have come to him if he wasn't desperate. "You've been best friends for seven years. Kinda sad to hear someone else knows him better than you."

Taeyong leans forward. "I know all his habits. I know what he likes and dislikes. I know who he likes and dislikes. I know he cares about me, or we wouldn't be best friends." His frown deepens. "He likes me. A lot. I like him. So why won't he take the next step?"

Johnny glares balefully at the smoking remains of his race car for a full minute before sighing and putting his phone down. "Have you asked him?"

"I've told him I love him countless times, you know that." Taeyong says, totally unembarrassed. "During interviews, during vlives, during concerts! All our fans know how I feel about him." He grins suddenly. "I even kissed him on national tv during the New Year countdown."

"I remember." Johnny says drily. The bold move had shocked the members, not to mention caused an upheaval across fandoms. He recalls thinking that Taeyong was either drunk or insane. Turns out he was just in love. "Do you remember how your fans crucified him for corrupting you?" Taeyong's fans had all but painted Doyoung as a modern-day, male Lilith, out to seduce an innocent, gullible Taeyong, especially since Doyoung was also linked to Jaehyun, Jungwoo, and him, for fuck's sake. It was unfair, but fans saw what they wanted to see. "Is it any wonder Doyoung is afraid of going beyond BFFs with you?"

"We don't have to announce it to the world." Taeyong argues. "I just want us to be for real, y'know?"

Johnny eyes him consideringly. If Doyoung was a girl, he'd advise Taeyong to take her out to someplace romantic, hold her hand, and present her with a ring. But Taeyong and Doyoung had gone and done everything in reverse. They had gone with the rings first. It boggled the mind. He pursed his lips. "TY, have you told him how you feel? In private? Without the cameras and the members around?"

Taeyong blinks, then turns progressively pink. "I can't." He mutters. Fuck knows he's tried, but whenever Doyoung's liquid, dark eyes focuses on him, he ends up either tongue-tied or stupid. How was it that confessing his love to the world was easier than confessing to the one he loved?

Johnny sighs. "And that's why he won't believe you." He points a finger at Taeyong. "You know Doyoung values words more than actions. The things he does for you and the members, he does because he wants us to feel supported. But we know he loves Jeno the most because he tells Jeno that every time they're together. We know he cares about Jungwoo like a mom, because he tells Jungwoo exactly that, even in private. Words matter to Doyoung." He paused. "If you can't tell him to his face how you feel, he'll always have doubts that you're only doing it for the fans and the camera."

Taeyong stares at him like he's the crazy one. "Johnny, I've been doing it for years. No promotion runs that long!"

Johnny shrugs. "Dude, I don't make the rules. Words are Doyoung's sacred rock. Doesn't matter what you do if you can't verbalize the feelings behind it. Or your intention." He picked up his phone. "Now go away. I have records to beat."

Taeyong gazes at him uncertainly. "You really think it'll work?" He was dreading it already. Serious Doyoung was as sexy as it was terrifying.

Johnny's eyes are already on the screen. "I know Doyoung best, remember?"

-o0o-

[withleeknow]

NI-KI 🥺 our resident baby chick but looking like that?? and being so game-savvy w/ major big brain energy?? unreal. ngl I don't let myself ponder too much bc the sunghoon rabbithole has the potential of a black-hole - he's defo written by the same author of mimo bc it's that blunt extraverted introversion sprinkled w/ random outbursts of unhinged unbothered chaos 🥰 jake- he put his heart & soul into that “FORTNITE” 😭😭 the biggest noob with not a single thought behind his boba eyes: tinyurl.com/ymha78tb their babygirlism here is so strong they have me giggling

NAUR WAYY imagine the 🌱 x 🍙 crossover: madrid edition my mind boggles thinking abt the stars that would've aligned for that one 😶‍🌫️

y'know how we were saying the ate-glow-up was a smack in the face bc of how unreal they are? yeah I can't stop scrolling tour vids THEY'RE GLOWING AND HAVING THE BEST TIME LIKE tinyurl.com/bdz3n3rj seeing this is a form of mental preparation to battle for future tickets 🫡 i had a look at their merch- shut the front door that's the cutest shit I've ever seen- the way they can hold hands 😭😭 and the stress balls are SO ROUND and the eyebrows for their "🥺" faces I can't

hahahahahahok- this .5 chapter is a work of art (ik you wanted it to be more sad and whilst im supporting you here regardless, I will yeet my phone out of sheer frustration) + that last line? you're sick for that <3 I'm genuinely a sucker for non-linear/cross-character narratives and having this mimo pov is heart- and gut-wrenching GAWD the reader is so black cat-coded with her emotional constipation PLS i'm just word-vomiting atm this is what your writing does to me jfc

the last pic 😭 look at them they're getting more and more precious to me by the day :( but onigiri fr i'm not even kidding, ever since i started watching en-o'clock i've been having sunghoon tunnel vision :/ slipped and fell right down the rabbit hole now i can't get out. he is SO mimo coded it baffles me. and he's so lanky... i am so into lanky dudes... this is getting BAD i am kinda very much in love

gosh if we were both at music bank madrid and... and... and... and if we actually met up i think i would explode on the spot no jokes. but i still want to go to the uk next summer saur... idk... maybe...? 🥹👉👈

they are so happy it makes me so emotional 😭 i will for sure cry when (WHENNN) i get to witness it all on tour. they're having the time of their lives gosh i love them :((( thinking about queueing for tickets makes me hella anxious tho lol i've been seeing reels of people queueing for svt tickets and it was crazy. but yeah the merch for this tour is CRAZY cute i want all of the uppie skzoos 😭 i caved and ordered a foxiny stress ball lol i cannot wait until i get my grubby lil hands on it !!!

the last line of 7.5 was the first thing i wrote for that chapter lmaooo hehe. thank youuu :((( i love writing from the dude's perspective bc the yearninggg just hits different 🤌 i def feel like it could've been executed much better but i'm still glad you liked it 🥺 i will try to do better with the next chapters!! i love you very much <3

[mindajane-blog]

Christmas in August

Today I feel it. It's August 5'th, I know it's MONTHS til Christmas. I just feel it inside: love.

I am SO so grateful for life! I'm SO grateful for how God provides for me and looks after me. I am so grateful for this day!

The trees were clapping their leaves lightly in the breeze high up against the bright blue sky. It felt like they were just so grateful, too!

Crazy, too, because these trees are deciduous and soon will lose all their leaves to the cooler weather.

Jesus provides. He looks after us. He LOVES us SO MUCH! He looks after us.

That love BLOWS my mind!

That GOD would first take on a human form to live a human life. I mean come on, if you were not limited by a human body and were not bound by anything why would you CHOOSE to be SO limited by a human body? That is TOTALLY mind boggling!!

Then He purposely allows himself to be tortured and killed-- for US, for YOU, for ME!

Romans 5:6-8 "For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person--though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die-- but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

And you might be like, but... life isn't good for me, look at this situation or that situation. Life here on earth, unfortunately is far from Heaven, it's far from perfect. It's far from what God wants for us. He is preparing Heaven which is SO much better, best, beyond comprehension to our limited human minds. Heaven has no sin/death. SIN is the separation from Jesus. If we don't accept Jesus' offer to save us from heaven we are ALL headed the same place- ALL sin separates us from Jesus. Pride or murder, both separate us from Jesus. Both are imperfect. God is perfect.

Perfect CANNOT be mixed with even a tiny bit of imperfection without also becoming imperfect.

Let's add a wee metaphor: you're washing dirty dishes by hand and there are two dish sinks. One has clear hot water for rinsing and the other has soapy water to wash. If you put the dirty dish (i'm picturing some sort of sauce and maybe bones, maybe rice remnants, maybe ketchup...) into the clear hot water and then want to still rinse other clean dishes in it after they've gone through the scrubbing and soapy water. Will all the dishes be clean after going through the wash water and rinsed in the clear hot water that had one dirty dish rinsed off in it? Will that clear hot water still be clean to use for rinsing?

It doesn't matter if we want to be "nice" to accept imperfect. We can definitely be friends with fellow sinners and we're not becoming imperfect for it, because we ARE imperfect, but God IS perfect and He CANNOT change. (and I know not changing is something we don't really grasp because everything we know changes). He did ALL that He could to allow us to come to Him and be in relation with Him. He came HERE to earth and He let Himself be tortured and killed so we could reach Him again. Only a wholly perfect sacrifice and shedding of blood would do.

You might read or skim this and think-- well, that doesn't even matter or there she goes again on that topic. I'm alive and I have a great life. Perhaps you do, but are you more than your body? Is there more after this life here? If there's not you're dandy... but if there is more. You're betting your WHOLE life here (for sure) and potentially even eternity that there isn't more. What if there IS more?

I believe with all of me that there IS more. How I have seen God provide for me and my family. I look at my life presently. I look back on my childhood. How He's loved me. Yes, bad things, horrible things happen here on earth. In those times, I've never been alone. He gives me peace and comfort. He listens to me. He answers my prayers-- even when it's not what I want. I feel that LOVE, HIS love within me and around me. He is with me always. I'm SO grateful. And, as it's now less than half a year until Christmas again- I'm here today with Christmas songs in my head all about how Jesus came down to earth for us!

Matthew 28:20b And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

[bustyasianbeautiespod]

Episode 96 Transcript: Brainstorming with Castiel

[intro guitar music]

G: Hello, it's Grey.

C: Hello, it's Crystal.

G: And this is Busty Asian Beauties, a Supernatural commentary podcast where I, someone who has seen this show many, many times...

C: And I, someone who only knows the show through social media, discuss every single episode of Supernatural from start to finish. Also, we are both Asian.

G: Both Asian! For today's episode, we will be discussing Season 5, Episode 14: "My Bloody Valentine," written by Ben Edlund, directed by Mike Rohl. [C: It was okay.] Air date February 11, 2010, so near Valentine's.

C: Ah, quite close to Valentine's, yeah. Nice of them to time it like that.

G: Yeah. I liked this episode. I thought it was fun. I think it's like, they do some character stuff in it, which is fun. [C: Yeah.] Cas is here. Like, he's in the episode, which is so wonderful, and they're only able to do it because they power him down, [C: Yeah.] which is, I mean, fine. I mean, whatever gets Cas to actually be in the episode. And also, it's fun because Cas is here and is interacting with Sam and Dean, so that's wonderful. [C: Yeah.] Also, like, did you notice how like- I don't think the Supernatural writers at this point, or honestly at any point in the show, actually knew how to write, like, the three of them together. [C: Mm.] Because like, the moment they were like, "Okay, Cas, you're coming with us," they, like, they put Sam in a bank vault. [C: Yeah, they did.] And like, I understand that it's important to Sam's journey, but like, I don't know, it's just kind of wild to me. Because like, I feel like we just don't ever see them, at this point, be the three of them, even last episode, where they established Team Free Will.

C: Yeah. Yeah, it is odd. They've done trio-ish hunts before. Like, Sarah came with them for the last part of "Provenance," for example, and I feel like she was incorporated into it, like, pretty okay, so it's not just that they don't know how to write groups of three working together. I don't know. I guess they haven't figured out the individual dynamics between them yet?

G: Yeah, I think because with Sarah, there's like, a very clear dynamic of like, it's Sarah and Sam who are, like, connected.

C: Yeah. And then it's like, "Haha! I hope my brother gets fuck a woman." Yeah. [G laughs]

G: Versus here, where those lines are less established- or like, more established but like, between Cas and Dean, so their response is just, "Let's get Sam out of the way!" or whatever.

C: Yeah. Maybe we'll see more of the three of them in the future. I don't know about that, though. It is my understanding that the Sam and Cas relationship always takes a backseat to the Dean and Cas one because Dean is just the main guy who has friendships with other characters.

G: You know what? It's crazy to me this episode is like- This is like- something happens to Sam.

C: Mm-hm. And it ends on Dean. And the episode ends on Dean being said. Like, I don't care that he's depressed! [G laughs] Like, we knew that already. Like, whatever. Like, we're all depressed! [G laughs] Get over it. [laughs]

G: Not only does it end on Dean, but like, everything is about Dean this episode.

C: Yeah, it sucks.

G: It's so mind-boggling because, like, there's actually a guy here where something is happening.

C: His entire thing in Season 4 was like, this, and you bring it back, and the only point is for Dean to be like, "Oh, I'm so sad." Like, okay, whatever.

G: Okay, well, 5.14, "My Bloody Valentine." Crystal, what did you know about this episode before you watched it?

C: My notes on what I know are like, longer than my actual notes on the episode because [laughs] I didn't care that much throughout it. But yeah, it's- They go to a town where Famine is, and everyone is prey to their hungers, and Sam really wants demon blood, and Cas really wants to eat raw meat off the ground, but Dean is unaffected because as Famine tells him, he's empty inside and wants nothing. They tie Sam up, and he drinks a bunch of demon blood and kills all of Famine's demon friends. Earlier, Cupid comes and is naked and hugs Cas, and then we get the reveal that the Mary/John relationship was a setup by Heaven. There's also the Destiel phone call scene [G laughs] where Cas asks Dean where he is, and he's like, "The basement of this hospital," and Cas says, "I'm there now" right in front of his face, and Dean says, "I can see that." [G: Love that!] And also, it opens with a couple biting each other to death. I wish that was me.

G: You know, I forgot about the phone call. I only realized it was happening when Sam was like, "It's Enochian." And I was like, "Oh my god! They need to call Cas! Oh my god! [laughs] It's the phone call scene!" [both] Yeah. Bless the fucking telephone, I guess, but [laughs] this is a different vibe. [laughs] This is a different vibe from that.

C: I think that clip is still in the AMV, though. [G: Well, that's wonderful.] Or I'd assume that it is, yeah.

G: This like- I feel like this is like, the first actual, like, queerbait. [C laughs] Because 5.03 was not queerbait, I don't think. Like, I think that one, they were like, making fun of Cas. Like, that's a different thing. And this one's like- I suppose it can be that they're also just making fun of Cas, but what about [laughs] that look Dean gives him later, where he's like- [laughs]

C: I don't know what you're talking about. Sorry. What?

G: I'll point it out later. But like, at the end of that scene, like, Cas says something, and Dean like, goes like, "Mm-hm. Mm-hm." and like, checks him out? It's so odd! I thought it was so odd. And again, I forget that it happens here. Because like, to me, like, the essential Destiel that you should remember are, like, the story arcs, right? Like, the plots, and like, the actual, like, meaningful shit, not the queerbait. [C laughs] But I don't know. I was like, "Damn. They really are queering this bait." [C: Huh!] Or baiting these queers.

C: I really don't remember anything like that happening, but I trust that your Destiel senses are more sensitive than mine in like, the correct direction, so alright.

G: What is the wrong direction of Destiel sensitivity?

C: Oh, just like, reading too much into things that weren't like, intended as bait or whatever.

G: Ah. Yeah, I think this is the first Destiel queerbait. [C: Yeah.] And it will not be the last.

-

G: We start the episode with a couple who just got- like, you know, the guy just delivered the girl home after their first date, and they seem to like each other, I guess. I actually wasn't sure. I was like, "Is she gonna let him down easy?" but apparently, they want to fuck each other raw.

C: But not even in the street. Famine's not powerful enough if, like, they made it to the apartment. [G laughs] [G: Yeah.] They should have been like Aziraphale and Crowley.

G: [laughs] You know what's so funny is the moment, like, the girl bites the guy, and she goes, "Oh, I think I bit you!" I was like, "Aziraphale and Crowley should do this." [C laughs] Like, they should do this 100%.

C: Yeah. They won't die from it, yeah.

G: Yeah, exactly. So they should do it. They're like, "So like, are we gonna meet again?" Or the guy was like, "Are we gonna meet again? Because I don't wanna be alone on Valentine's Day." And she's like, "Yeah, I get what you mean." And then they, like, kiss, and then they go to her place, and then she takes a bite out of his neck, [C: Yes.] and he's like, "So hot," and then [laughs] they have this talk about, like, "I'm so empty! I'm so empty!" [C: Yeah.] which is so fun. And then, yeah, they just bite each other to death. [C: Yeah.] Not bite. They bite off-

C: Like, yeah, they bite and chew. They eat each other to death.

G: Yeah. Wonderful. Love this scene!

C: So good.

G: So good.

-

G: We go to like, the actual episode, and Sam is interviewing somebody who, I guess, lived in this house, and he's like, "So what happened?" And she was like, "Yeah, I found them, and, like, so much blood. And other things." And, you know, she was like, "My roommate was dead already, but the guy was still chewing a little bit." [C: So true.] And she talks a little bit about how the girl is actually quite- like, doesn't do this. What did she say? Like, "She never drank, never even swore. She was a nice girl. Like, she still had her promise ring, if you know what I mean." And [laughs] then Sam just goes, "She was a virgin?" [both laugh]

C: Well, I guess that's relevant for like, demon stuff, right?

G: For Sam. It is. It's relevant for Sam. It's just extremely funny that, like, the roommate was, like, trying to be subtle about it, like, you know, speak in innuendo. And Sam's like, "Oh, so she has never fucked in her life." Yeah, they establish that it was her first date in months, and then, you know, they ate each other to death. Yeah.

-

C: So Sam enters the motel room, and he's got food, and he's like, sipping from like, a straw and a drink or something, which I think was fun. Like, we don't get to see Sam eat as much as we see Dean eat. I hope it was pink lemonade. But yeah, so-

G: What's the relevance of pink lemonade in Sam's life?

C: Oh.

G: Nothing? You just like it.

C: Yeah, I think it's a fun drink to be into because it, like, does taste the exact same as regular lemonade, but [G: It's just fun.] you're like, "I want something, like, fun in my life." Like, it feels like it's a different flavor, even though it isn't.

G: Yeah, it's essential.

C: Yeah, yeah, and it's nice if Sam gets to indulge in sugar in some form.

There was no EMF, and also no sulfur, so there was no possession involved. Dean has been at the coroner, and, I don't know. He just didn't really find anything. So Sam's like, "Okay, I'll do research tonight, and you can go out and unleash the Kraken." And by this, he means that [G: "You're gonna fuck."] on Valentine's Day, Dean loves to go out and fuck and suck because of all the bars full of lonely women. And Dean's just like, "I'm just not really [G: Interested.]- I don't want to. I'm not interested." And Sam is like, "Um, what?" He goes, "When a dog doesn't eat, that's when you know something's really wrong," which I find quite funny, and Dean calls him patronizing. And they move on. We get another scene of people in the town. Wait, do we discuss the last scene? I don't know. I don't really give a fuck. I feel like people like, what is- what is my point? I think people first have the- You know the people who are like, "Dean only has sex with women because he's trying to maintain an image for Sam specifically"? [laughs]

G: I don't agree with all.

C: I don't agree with any of those things, yeah, but it's just very funny.

G: You know what's so fascinating is recently, I have been exposed to more Deangirl content for some reason [C: Why?] than I usually- Yeah. And sometimes, I will read these takes, and I'll be like, "That's completely wrong!" [both laugh] Like, I understand that Supernatural is a complex show, and we've talked about how you're able to interpret many things about how many things, but like, sometimes, it's just like, I think you're just ignoring things! Like, you know, if you believe that Dean is gay, good for you, I think. [both laugh] That's so condescending. How do I word that better? If you think Dean is gay, that's fine. I think that's better. But I do find like, a lot of the evidence people put out to be like, "Well. I don't know. I don't know about that."

C: I think he's just a misogynist, is what you're pointing out.

G: Yeah, I think he's just misogynistic. And like, you know, I know Supernatural is never beating the so misogynistic it turns gay allegations, but like, I feel like maybe, as fan interpretations, we don't need to do all that, maybe. I think a lot about- we have a mutual friend who once said that like, "I don't want to think Dean is gay, because it's just so sad!" [both laugh] Like, if Dean's gay, that's just so sad! And I find that so funny. And I think I have, like, that kind of perspective as well. Like, I don't know. Why did you bring that up like? Why did you bring up the question of like, Dean is performing masculinity for Sam.

C: Well, we just had a scene where Sam's like, "You don't want to go out and fuck and suck women? Like, something's deeply wrong with you," but, like, as a joke. [laughs]

G: Yeah. We know that Dean has fucked and sucked [laughs] even when Sam wasn't around to know of it. Like, Lisa was a not when Sam was around thing. Cassie as well. So like, I don't know. I don't think it's true.

C: It's a very simplified view- simplified and incorrect view of Dean's [G: Yeah.] relationship to masculinity.

G: I mean, definitely, Dean has, like, a complicated relationship with his father. [both laugh] But like- and, like, masculinity in general. But I don't think- I know we said we won't be mean to, like, the fanworks, but I do think constantly about that fic, the "Beat Sheet" one, where it's like, the evidence for Dean- or, like, not the evidence, but like, people are like, "Oh, maybe he's gonna be gay because he doesn't like, fuck girls. He just eats them out." [both laugh] which I always thought was so funny.

C: [laughing] It is.

G: [laughing] That's so funny! He's not gay, he's a hero! [both laugh] Yeah, well.

C: Well. Honestly, I think "Beat Sheet" is famous enough that it can be discussed in the podcast.

G: Yeah. [laughs] Do you think so? Well.

-

C: Yeah. So we're in the office or in a office in this town, and there's two coworkers, and one of them is telling the other one that, like, the way that he is getting texted by his new girlfriend of one week constantly and constantly keeps texting her back immediately means that he's whipped. The girl shows up- The woman shows up. Her name is Janice, the guy who she's dating is named Jim. And she's like, crying with like, runny mascara, and she's wearing like, this evening gown/cocktail dress. I don't know what the difference between them is, but she's wearing like, this fancy dress. Like, where was she before this? What was she doing? I don't get why she's dressed like this. But she says that, like, "I can't believe you chose work over me," and like, the coworker is like, "Wow! You're like, so whipped," and then [laughs] she shoots him dead. Real! Yeah. And then, like, Janice and Jim are like, standing close-

G: I actually find the like, gag of, like, when they were talking, and Janice is like, "Oh, we're going to be separated. We're always separated by something. By work, [C: By family.] [both] by sleep. And now, even jail!" [both laugh] And then like, it pans to the guy who's like, still flailing around a little bit. It was so funny.

C: Yeah, pretty good. But yeah, basically, the two of them are talking. They're just like, obsessed with each other, and they're like, "Well, we can never be like, truly, fully, 100% together the way that we want to." And then Jim suggests that they just kill themselves in order to stay together forever. And they do.

So we cut to Sam and Dean in a mortuary. They're on pretty friendly terms with Dr. Corman, who works down there. They just are left to their own devices.

-

G: They start like, examining, I don't know, the heart and the insides of the guy who just died. Which one are they looking into? The one where they like, ate each other, right? I did find this quite charming, but like, at some point, there's this, you know, heart, and Dean, like, goes to Sam and like, shoves it to Sam a little bit, and goes, "Be my valentine?" [C laughs] which is like, very siblings of them. I thought it was so funny. [C: Yeah.] Sam finds an Enochian sigil in one of the hearts, and they seem to match to the other heart, so he's like, "Oh, no! We need to call- I don't know. An angel." So they call Cas, and specifically, Dean calls Cas, and yeah, he is telling Cas where they are, and like, you know, what basement level, etc. But before he gets to finish, Cas is already in front of him, and they're standing quite close to each other. And yeah, the music is like, that silly, goofy music that Supernatural plays when there's silly, goofy things happening. And Cas is like, "I'm there now," and they're still on the phone! And Dean goes, "Yeah, I get that." And Cas goes, "I'm gonna hang up now," and he goes, "Great." [C: So cute.] They're cute, I suppose. They are. The thing is like, my feelings for Destiel really like, wavers so back and forth so intensely. [C: Mm.] Like, sometimes, they're like, "They're the most horrible pairing in the world! I can't believe Dean does this to Cas ever!" And then, you know, sometimes, you're like, "Well, I get why I was obsessed with these two for forever." Yeah, but this is queerbait. We must admit. Cas explains that the marks are that of, quote, "Cupid," which is actually a cherub, which is a lower order of an angel.

C: And it's for a man and woman who are intended to mate [G: Ugh.], specifically, so like, angel bloodlines?

G: Yeah. And it seems to be like, a bloodline thing primarily, as, you know, the Cupid or the angel cherub explains later on. And Cas is like, "Well, there must be a Cupid that has gone rogue, and [laughs] we need to kill him. [C laughs] We need to attacka and killa that guy." And Sam goes, "Naturally." And this is the scene that I'm talking about. Dean, like, looks at Cas and nods a little bit and goes, "Of course we do." And it's like, a certain look, and I'm like, "What the fuck is- What are they doing?"

C: I think it's just a "Dean thinks that the situation is ridiculous" look. I didn't get anything else out of it.

G: Are you looking at it right now?

C: No, I remember it, though.

G: Ugh. Okay, fine. I thought it was- I mean, I'm not saying that this, like, evidence that they're gay or whatever. I'm just like, "I think they're queerbaiting us." [laughs] What do you think about that like, statement that like, Supernatural doesn't count count as queerbait anymore because-

C: Oh, no, it does.

G: I think it fully does count as queerbait. I think queerbait is- Yeah, like, they queerbait first-

C: It's about their intentions when they were writing it.

G: Yeah. And then they queerbaited too close to the sun, and that's how we got what we got at the end, but it was a queerbait. [laughs] They just did it so so so much, and then they couldn't back out.

-

G: Anyway, now they're at a diner, and- Did you see what Sam orders here? Just a salad, right? And Dean orders a cheeseburger. And he is putting ketchup on the burger, and Cas is looking at this quite intently. And yeah, Cas is like, "This is a place where the Cupid would be, and he would come here to pollinate." He's so fun. And Dean finally settles with his burger, but as he's about to take a bite, he puts it back down. [laughs] And it's so, like, in your face. [C: Yeah.] It's quite funny. But yeah, Sam is like, "Wait. So like, you're not hungry?" [C laughs] Does anyone else think that Sam is kind of annoying with all these questions in this episode? I mean, I know he goes through a lot-

C: I mean, the point is to point out, like, that Dean isn't engaging in things. [G: I know.] Like, we don't know that Sam for real would say this, but yes, he is being a bit annoying. I don't know.

G: Yeah. They are using him as a pawn in this scene. Like, I don't think he would say this. I think he'll raise his eyebrow, maybe, but like, he won't be like, "You're not hungry." Anyway, Cas is like, "OMG! You're not gonna eat that?" [laughs] And then he takes the burger, and he almost takes a bite, but then he's like, "Oh, the Cupid's here." And yeah, we see some fluttering of wings, fluttering of the Cupid's bow, whenever. And yeah, Cas is like, "He's there now," and there's a couple that are making out in a booth. And Cas just goes, "Meet me in the back." and then he disappears! [C: Yeah.] And then, you know, they go to the back. Cas is like, holding his hand up to like, something we can't see, and he's like, "I have him tethered," and then he does some Enochian- he says something in Enochian, and he goes, "Manifest yourself." And then the Cupid appears, and like, it's a gag. It's a gag bit where the Cupid is like, a naked man and he's like, hugging Dean and like, almost picking him up off the floor. And he's very excited, very happy. And yeah, he hugs Dean, and then he picks Cas up next, and then he picks Sam up next. And, you know, like, there's this- I did find the lines between Dean and Cas, like, quite charming. And Dean just goes-

C: What lines?

G: No, I just think they're cute this episode. Leave me alone! [both laugh] I'm so defensive. I'm so sorry.

C: I mean, it'd be helpful for us to know which lines, as listeners.

G: No, I'm about to say it. Dean goes like, "Is this a fight? Are we in a fight?" which I did think is like, so indicative of Dean Winchester. [C: It is.] And Cas is like, "No, this is their handshake," and he goes, "I don't like it!" and Cas goes, "Well, no one likes it." And yeah, Cas confronts the Cupid on like, "Oh, the people you're pairing up, they're fucking killing each other or whatever." The Cupid is like, upset with Cas would think this, and he starts crying. And like, there's this bit where Sam and Dean are like, "So like, are we supposed to like, talk to him? Like, I think maybe somebody should." And Dean just goes, "Yeah, good idea. Go get him, Cas!" [both laugh]

C: "Give 'em hell, Cas." [G: Yeah, "Give 'em hell, Cas."] [laughing] Which is truly a phrase to use when you're telling someone to go comfort somebody else.

G: Love that. And Cas, you know, can't say no, I guess because obviously, Sam doesn't want to do it either. I do find it so fascinating that like, Sam is often like, you know, like, "Ugh, Dean, I can't believe you're treating me like your younger brother," but every time Cas is around, they do, like, in tandem, treat Cas as like [both laugh] the third brother. As they say in the last episode of Supernatural, he's the third brother of the show. [C: Yeah.] I mean, of course everyone is thinking about that scene in "Hunter Heroici" where they put Cas in the backseat. But yeah. I think it's so cute. And Cas, you know, very awkward, is like, "Um," and then he starts walking towards the Cupid, and then he goes, "We didn't mean to... hurt your feelings."

C: Before "hurt your feelings," he says, "We didn't mean to-" and then he turns around to Sam and Dean, [both laugh] and they both thumbs-up him, or they nod. [G: So cute.] They're like, "Yeah, yeah, you got this."

G: So cute! And then yeah, the Cupid turns around, hugs Cas. And the Cupid is like, "Love is more than a word to me. You know, I love love! I love it, and if that's wrong, I don't want to be right!" which is a line that I remember very well. I think because of the delivery. But yeah, Cas is like- Cupid is hugging him, but he starts, like, raising his hand, like, to like, tap the Cupid's back, and then he goes like, "Yes, yes, of course. I..." [laughs] And he's really trying, but he just goes, "I have no idea what you're talking about." and he's so cute. I feel I have forgotten how much I like Cas in these past few Season 5 episodes just because he's not around a lot and like, when he is, it's like, it's so serious, like, it's so serious. But he's here, and like, I wuv him! Everybody knows this. Everybody listening to us, including me and you, knows this. But like, Cas is like, [laughs] actually, like, my favorite character, [laughs] like, in all of media, and it always takes me aback when I remember because, like, I don't know, I feel like I've loved many other characters in the world, but Cas is still- He's still number one.

C: Yeah. Wait, where do we do the "The portrayal of the Cuban is probably homophobic" part?

G: Oh. Is it? Why is it homophobic?

C: Okay. Well, okay, I think first is just the general, like, "unmasculine man" thing where, you know, he cries, and that's supposed to be ridiculous, and he loves love, and that's supposed to be ridiculous. But then there's also the fact that he first appears naked, hugging Dean from behind, and I feel like that is meant to be a gag of the homophobic nature.

G: I think what I just saw it as is actually like, infantilizing. [C: Yeah.] And I don't know. Maybe fatphobic, but like, I didn't read it as like, homophobic, really.

C: Yeah, I guess that is another route to go. Either way, when Supernatural makes a joke, it usually comes from something that is not pleasant.

G: I mean, I don't know. I wouldn't- I guess I just didn't think of this as homophobia. [C: Mm-hm.] Yeah, the Cupid tells Cas to like, read his mind, which I did like because it, you know, implies that Cas doesn't usually do that. Like, he needs to put an effort or like, do it consciously to read minds, which I do like. I like that. Anyway, there's like, close up shots of, like, Cas's eyes and the Cupid's eyes, and then Cas slowly turns around and goes, "He's telling the truth."

C: Dean asks what orders Cupid was following when he was making all the marks on the hearts, and Cupid says that he was following Heaven's orders, and most of the time, Heaven doesn't interfere in romantic matters, but there are certain bloodlines and certain destinies that they do. And he says, "Like yours. The union of John and Mary Winchester, very big deal upstairs. Top priority arrangement." And Dean asks like, "What do you- Like, you fixed up our parents?" And the Cupid says that it wasn't him directly, but it wasn't easy because "They couldn't stand each other at first, but when we were done with them, perfect couple." Soo fucked up. Love it!

G: I do also love it.

C: And yeah, as as we know, he says that it was because Dean and Sam needed to be born, and their parents were "just meant to be."

G: I think this is so interesting. [C: Yes.] I do. I think the concept of like, especially because like, Mary comes back, and John, like, shows up. John is there for a day. And they're still in love. The idea of something like love being at the hands of someone else, but like, you're still the one who's experiencing it. [laughs] I think that's the aspect of the John and Mary story that I find the most interesting and fascinating. I think there's so many like, conceptualizations of Mary where she's like, when she realizes this, she's like, you know, "Eugh! I don't love John anymore," whatever. But I personally find more interesting the idea of, like, knowing full well that this is like, out of your control, literally because somebody else is controlling it, and but like, what do you do? You still love the person. Like, it's still like, a real emotion that you're feeling, even though you're manipulated to it by Heaven. And I think that kind of like, idea cascades really well to the rest of Supernatural. Obviously, I don't think Sam and Dean are like, manipulated, feelings-wise, in the duration of the show, but there are aspects of it I feel like, I don't know. Like, especially with Sam later on with regards to like, Lucifer, and how, you know, like, in that episode where Lucifer brings him back from the dead, and like, I feel like that's like, the opposite of this, right? Like- well, I don't know. I just think it's such an interesting concept, and it's one of my biggest gripes when they did The Winchesters [C: Yeah.] that like, I know full well that they're not gonna engage with this with any of the complexity that I want them to. Actually, I've not watched The Winchesters, so maybe they did, but I highly doubt it.

C: I don't think they would.

G: I was gonna say maybe I would have seen more of it on my timeline if they did, but like, I literally have every single thing about The Winchesters blocked, so like, probably not, also. [laughs] If The Winchesters acknowledge the complexity of fate and free will and how love is affected by that in the TV show The Winchesters, let us know. We'll be happy to hear about it. Or maybe not. I don't think I'll be happy. But we'll hear about it. [both laugh] [C: We will.] I think there's an AMV of like- I'll try to find it- of John and Mary "Fireproof" One Direction, and I do think about it a lot. And I think about it specifically in this context of like, well, you know, it's been so long, it's been so long, baby, we're fireproof. Also, everybody in Heaven and all of our lives are like, completely manipulated so that we're here together. It's kind of crazy.

C: And okay, Dean reacts by punching Cupid, and Sam-

G: First, you know, I find what Dean said of like, when the Cupid was like, "They're a perfect couple," and Dean was like, "Perfect? They're dead!" I think that is an interesting reaction to it.

C: It's a very interesting way to think of what makes a couple "good." I don't think of their survival rate as part of it, but Dean does.

G: Yeah, every couple dies, Dean. I don't know if you know this, but. [C laughs]

C: Yeah, I hate to break it to you, but like, the thing about couples-

G: Immortality is not something that exists for humanity, yeah.

C: It's not that like, she died, and then, like, left him, like, a far worse person than he was before. It's that they're both dead is what he has an issue with. So like, yeah, I don't know. I don't know what it means. He assumes that like, people who are chosen by Heaven for a specific fate would have a form of protection? Is that what he means?

G: I mean, definitely not. I think it's just like a "you messing with their life led to them dying."

C: Mm, yeah, that is true.

G: I don't think it's about like, "Well, when you shot the Cupid's arrow, you should have made it so that-"

C: "- shot the immortality arrow too!"

G: Yeah. I think it's more of like, "That is actually what directly caused their death. Me and Sam being born."

C: This is true. I mean, I guess this is right after "Song Remains the Same." [G: Yeah.] Sam and Dean, literally like, probably two days ago, to Dean, tried to get Mary to leave John, and she was like, "No, I can't, and it's because of this." and then, like, he tried to get Mary to at least leave the nursery alone the night that Sam gets fed demon blood, and, once more, Heaven swoops in and prevents that from happening. So it's- yeah, it's a good buildup of the ongoing "You can't escape your fate, etc etc" thing, and it goes back even further than you thought every time you look. Yeah. But this just feels like- This never ever comes up again in the entire show, right?

G: I'm not sure. I don't think so.

C: Yeah. So I don't know. It's kind of fun that- I feel like Bedlund just made like, an executive decision to throw this lore in, and like, everyone else ignored it. But like, I'm not ignoring it.

G: Also, in the future, when we get, you know, Cupid stuff again, it's never treated with, you know, this idea anymore.

C: There's more Cupid stuff?

G: Yeah, Cas is transphobic in that episode, remember?

C: Oh, yeah. I didn't know that was a Cupid episode.

G: It was. The plot is like, they need to get a Cupid's bow, so they need to find the Cupid, so they need to find a couple that a Cupid will attack, and then like, they thought it was like, the bartender, who's a woman, and like, her customer, but turns out the bartender woman is Cupid, and the two male customers are like, in love, and so- [laughs]

C: Oh, I've seen gifs of this. Probably in like, one of the compilations of Dean reacting to gay people.

G: Yeah. So that's a Cupid scene, and it's not, you know, it's not treated with- But how's that work? I thought it was like, male and female to mate or whatever. [C: Yeah.] Well, maybe one of them is transgender. [C: Yeah.] Trans-inclusive controlling of your fate and free will!

C: Exactly. But yeah, so Dean's reaction to all this is to punch Cupid, who disappears. And Sam just doesn't react at all. The only thing Sam goes is like, [G laughing] "Dean, are you okay? You've been acting weird! I can't believe you punched that guy!" Like, does he not feel anything about this?

G: Not the time and place!

C: Like, does Sam not- What does Sam think about this? Hello? Can anyone hear me? What? Like, we get that Dean's upset. Like, does Sam just not give a fuck?

G: It is so funny [laughs] that the conclusion is like, "I can't believe Dean punched this fucking guy," and it's like, I feel like we have experienced a reveal that is pretty substantial, I believe.

C: Yeah, it seems like a pretty big deal. Like, it's the reason that John and Mary are dead, and like, one could argue it's the reason that they experienced so much abuse because, like, they made John so dependent on Mary in a specific way. So like, does Sam not think anything about-? He's just like, "Dean, focus on the case! Are you okay?" Like, whatever! Whatever! Sam, do you have thoughts about this? You're like, very angsty about being Lucifer's vessel. Like, this is more regarding that. Nothing? No? [G: No.] I guess not.

G: I guess not!

C: Dean's just like, "I don't wanna talk about what's been up with me recently."

G: Yeah. I mean, the way Sam asks it is like- What's that? "So are we gonna talk about what's up with you or not?" And Dean goes, "Or not." And I was like, "Sam, you set yourself up for that. You really, really did." [C: Yeah.] You should have just said, "Let's talk about what's up with you." [C: Yeah.] It's like you've never even had a talk with Dean before.

C: Okay, wait, we didn't talk about the "Then" sequence.

G: Was there one?

C: Yeah, there was a "Then" sequence.

G: What's it?

C: It was like, Sam drinking demon blood, blah blah blah, and then Dean being depressed, blah blah blah. The Dean depressed stuff was like, I mean, there was him looking at the picture of him and Jo burning, and then there was- I don't remember the rest of it, mostly. But what I do remember is that it ends on Dean in 4.20. Sam's like- This isn't in the "Then" sequence. But the context of that the line is that Sam's like, "You know, like, please let me explain about the demon blood," whatever, and Dean's like, "IDGAF." And then the line that they keep in is like, "I'm just tired, man. I'm done. I am just done." And they took that so completely out of context [G laughs] and ended the "Then" sequence on that to be like, "Wow! Dean's depressed!" Like, that's a different thing!

G: That was a season ago!

C: That's a completely different thing that was a season ago, and it was about a completely different thing than Dean not having desires, or like, being sad or whatever. And I just think that's a really good example of the way that Sam gets completely trodden over for Dean character development this episode.

G: Yeah, exactly.

-

G: Anyway, there's like, more people who are dying from stuff.

C: Well, I guess what's important is that these people are clearly not dying from love. Like, this guy died from eating. [G: From food, yeah.] Yeah.

G: Anyway, Sam is on a phone call with Dean, and he's like, "Well, it's not just, you know, the Cupid stuff. It's also food, like, people OD-ed and stuff, so it's probably a lot bigger than we thought." And then Sam sees a guy in the street. Oh, we forgot to mention, like, earlier, Sam also does this too.

C: Yeah, he saw him earlier at the hospital.

G: And you know he is able to feel, pretty much immediately, that this guy is a demon! And he says later, when he attacks the guy and has Ruby's knife against his face that he could smell him. Pretty fun! [C: So true.] The demon is carrying a briefcase, which he drops and Sam picks up. And, you know, there's also a moment where Sam slices, like, the demon's face, and now there's blood on the knife, and we see him like, look at it, and, I don't know, feel something, but he cleans the blade off, and he goes back to the motel room.

C: Sam and Dean are talking about this, and Dana asks, "You okay?" And Sam says, "Yeah, yeah, I'll be alright," which I think was a nice moment, I suppose. So-

G: "[aggressively] What's up with you, Dean? Are we gonna talk about it?" "[flatly] I'm alright." [both laugh] [laughing] Literally that post that's like, "The entirety of Supernatural is just Sam going, 'Dean, you need to talk about your feelings.' and the moment Dean does, Sam's just like, 'Okay!'" [both laugh] So true.

C: Anyway, so they open the suitcase, and there's like, this blinding, bright white light that comes out of it, and Cas shows up and says-

G: He's eating a burger!

C: - it's a human soul, and yeah, he's got a burger in a bag. It doesn't very good. The bread looks like, really pale.

G: They say it's a White Castle, which I know that brand from Good Mythical Morning.

C: Do White Castles have pale- No, I mean, the bread is is, like, golden brown on top [G: Yeah.] in some of these pictures. Yeah, the burgers that Cas eats this episode all look so undercooked, but yeah.

G: Yeah, I guess he loves it raw, so.

C: The bread, too? [G laughs]

G: Yeah, he's not even baking the bread.

C: But yeah, so he's chowing down on the burger and saying-

G: The entire time he's talking, he is chowing down on this, which is pretty fun!

C: Mm-hm. And he's saying that his hunger is a clue and Famine, the Horseman, is in town, and it's not just starvation for food, It's for anything that you're metaphorically starving for, such as sex, attention, drugs, love. And on "drugs," I think he kind of looks at Sam. But then, like, after he says "love," it does cut to Dean, and I think people do think about this sometimes, and it does seem like it may be set up in this way. I feel like this is probably just another small Lisa precursor thing.

G: Yeah, probably. [C: Yeah, so.] I have seen an analysis of this episode that leans on like, "Yeah, they're saying Dean doesn't crave anything, but like, [laughs] him and Cas are in love!"

C: Like, he craves Cas's company or something? That one?

G: [laughing] Which I just don't think is true. Like, I just don't think that's what the episode is doing. [C: Yeah.] Love is love, I guess.

C: Happy pride month. [G laughs] If we get this out by then.

G: We will! Don't denigrate my ability to get an episode out [C: No, you're right, we will.] even though I have proven time and time again that I cannot get an episode out on time for the love of God.

C: And then Cas says that his burger thing is from Jimmy because he has an appetite for red meat. I love that like, Jimmy's, had, like, the world's most miserable life for the last few years, [G laughs] like, separated from his family, shot in the stomach, like, daughter threatened to be murdered in front of him, and like, ridden by this angel who keeps putting him in danger, and apparently, the main thing that Jimmy still craves is borger. Like, [laughs] that's so right of him.

G: He wants a borger. He's American! [C laughs] [C: He is.] He ate Five Guys once, and he's like, "I fully understand the American experience," completely removed from the fact that he's an American citizen! It's just from the Five Guys.

C: Yeah, exactly. Cas starts reciting, I think, fake Bible lines over clips of Famine, where, you know, Famine, "Then will come Famine riding on a black steed. He will ride into the land of plenty, and great will be the horseman's hunger, for he is hunger. His hunger will seep out and poison the air," and as this is happening, we see Famine exit a black car. He's like, a very thin, very old man, and he's in a wheelchair because I think I think the idea is just that he's so hungry and like, malnourished that he can't really walk. And yeah, he has a group of demons that are all helping him out, and he goes into a Biggerson's, and everyone immediately starts like, stuffing themselves with food or like, having sex, or like, stealing money and all that shit. How do you die from stealing money? Where's that waitress gonna go after this?

That's Famine. He's in there, and he goes, "Hungry." [laughs]

G: "Hungry!" like a baby, yeah.

C: Yeah. Is there anything to say about Famine being a wheelchair user?

G: I don't know, probably, but.

C: Yeah, I feel like probably, but I don't know what it is to be said.

G: I have been thinking about it of like, what are they trying to say here? Like, what are the implications? But I can't, really. I can't surmise.

C: Yeah. When's the last time we saw Bobby?

G: Oh my god, you're right! When was the last time we saw Bobby? Let's see. "Abandon All Hope"? But he doesn't like- he barely shows up for that one. Like, Dean calls him. Oh, no! They have the pre-going out. So yeah, "Abandon All Hope" is the last we see of Bobby. Been a while!

C: Yeah. I feel like the Famine thing would be worse if he was the only wheelchair user on the show. But I don't know, I feel like the wheelchair, it's meant to be part of the creep factor of him?

G: The wheelchair is, you know, they are trying to do like, a "What is his horseman- or like, his horse?" And I guess the wheelchair is his horse, that's how they do it.

C: But he's in a black car, and they show the black car when Cas is saying the black steed line.

G: Did they really? Well, I guess so.

C: And it was a- I think in the "Then" sequence, they mention- Oh, yeah, they have War in there, too with the ring cutting off, and yeah, they mentioned the thing about the red car. So I think it is cars for the horses in the show, [G: Yeah.] so I don't think that that's what the wheelchair is supposed to be.

G: I don't know. I really-

C: 'Cause he's the only horseman who's in a wheelchair also, right?

G: Again, I'm not sure. I know Death isn't, and I know War isn't.

C: Yeah, I don't remember what Pestilence- or I don't think I've seen anything about Pestilence on the Tumblrs.

G: I just know that Pestilence is the episode where Cas took a bus. [C: Aww.] You know that one? "Cas, you're here." Or- "How are you here?" "I took a bus." I love him. And he tells Dean that "You are not the hollow shell of a man that I thought you were," [both laugh] and Dean goes, "Thank you." Love that!

G: Cas is kind of like, a comic relief, huh? [C: Yeah.] And that's so nice to me. Even though he's Blue Steel-ing his way through this episode for a lot of it.

C: Cas is?

G: The scene where it's Sam and Dean, and they're talking to the mortuary people, and Cas is just, like, in the back, scrunching his face.

C: Aw. I guess I still am not quite sure-

G: What a Blue Steel is?

C: No, [G laughs] what they're doing with the Famine in the wheelchair, which was what we were talking about before we got distracted. [G: Yeah.] Yeah, I do think that, like, wheelchaired villains are like, a trope, though, right? Like Doc Ock?

G: You know what-? I don't know who Doc Ock is. Oh, it's Spiderman.

C: From Spiderverse. But okay, I mean, okay, disabled villains is a trope. And I think that villains who use wheelchairs are part of that, though usually, they're like, I don't know, like, high-powered wheelchairs in some way. Like, [laughs] there's guns in them, and that's part of the fight, or whatever. I mean, okay, like, War was clearly- like, he was portrayed as like, a regular guy who was kind of annoying. [G: Yeah.] And I think Famine, you know, with the, going like, "Hungry," and all that, I feel like they are attempting to portray him as more-

G: Senile?

C: Yeah, senile, he is, like, an old man, and like, he has all the demons here to take care of him because he's like, a feeble old man. But Death is also an old man, and he's like-

G: He's not feeble.

C: He's not feeble. It's like, it's a malnutrition thing that they're trying to portray with Famine?

G: I think I realize that now. After you mentioned it, I was like, "Oh, yeah, I suppose that's what they're doing." But yeah.

C: Yeah. I don't know. I don't know.

So Cas says that Famine needs to devour the souls of his victims. So I guess this demon goes to the morgue [G: Yeah.] and then gets the souls that are still in the bodies-

G: I don't know how that works.

C: Like, isn't that guy, like, in Heaven or Hell by now? What is the soul?

G: Like, why is it tethered to the body? I guess if, like, you know, they can explain their way out of this, or at least I can. They don't bother.

C: God, this is so dumb. Cas is like, "Lucifer has sent his demons to care for Famine, to feed him, to make certain he'll be ready." And Sam goes, [both] [ditzy voice] "Ready for what?" Like, bro! Is this not the Apocalypse season about how the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are gonna do the Apocalypse? [laughs] Whatever. But yeah. Cas goes, "To march across the land." To march across the land. Is the implication that if he eats enough souls, like, Famine can walk?

G: Huh! I mean, I don't know.

C: Yeah. I mean, I'm just glad- I feel like many times, when they introduce the character who's in a wheelchair at some point, especially if they're the villain, they're like- they stand up at some point, and it's like, "Oh my god! Like, gasp! This fight has just gone to a whole new level!" and it just feels quite ableist, so at least that didn't happen in this episode. But yeah, I don't know what "to marsh across the land" means exactly here. So maybe Sam wasn't asking a stupid question.

G: Yeah, [laughs] 'cause we also don't know what the fuck Cas is saying.

C: Yeah. And then we get a scene of the demon that Sam attacked earlier coming to Famine, and he tells him that Sam is here, and that he got Sam's motel room key, so they know where he is. And Famine's like, "Awesome, great. But like, can I have my soul now for lunch, please?" And it's like, very desperate, hungry, the way it's being played. The demon is like, "Sowwy!" And Famine, like, shouts, "Hungry! Now!" and then he does the thing where he takes the black smoke out of the demon and then he eats it. And apparently, it's delicious.

G: Does that work?

C: Yeah. So demon souls can also be eaten by Famine. The black smoke is a demon soul. A human soul is a bright white light.

G: Why not just eat demons?

C: Yeah, I just don't- Yeah, like, what's the point of all this, then? He's surrounded by potential food.

G: We can surmise that, like, Lucifer is sending these people, so like, I don't think Lucifer gives a shit about the demons. Why not just feed the demons to Famine?

C: Yeah, if the point is to feed him up to a certain, like, level, so that he can do the Apocalypse, like, yeah. Just feed him some demons. Maybe human souls are more powerful or whatever, but if that was the point, then like, instead of going, like, "Delicious," Famine should have just been like, "Eh." [G: "Eugh!"] about it, you know?

G: Yeah. I mean, they could have easily explained this, I guess. I mean, you literally just did, [C: With one change, yeah.] just as they could have explainedp They literally could have also explained why, you know, the souls stay, which is like, when they're ravaged by Famine, like, the soul sticks to the body or whatever. It's literally like, you can just make shit up.

C: Yeah, like, the hunger of the body is drawing the soul in or whatever, yeah.

G: And, you know, there's what Famine says later that, like, hunger isn't just in the body, it's in the soul, blah blah blah. I don't know. It's like- yeah. I mean, again, I like this episode, but the Famine stuff specifically is like, I couldn't quite figure out what they were trying to do.

-

G: We're back in the motel room, and Sam is having a moment. He is in front of the mirror. He is obviously, like, sweaty and like, feeling terrible. The three of them are talking about what they ought to do, and Cas is like, "How did you stop the last Horseman you met?" and Dean talks about the ring. And so Cas is like, "Yeah, we just need to-"

C: Wait, earlier, when Sam goes like, "This whole town is gonna eat, drink, and screw itself to death?" And Cas goes, "We should stop it." [both laugh] That was so funny.

G: He thinks we should [British accent] stop it! Just an idea, you guys, like, I think we should!

C: Yeah, like, shut me down if like, this is a bit too much, but like, do you think we should stop it? [G laughs]

G: I'm just throwing, you know, I'm throwing something at the wall, here. Let's see if it sticks. Should we-? [C laughs]

C: Yeah, yeah, you know, this is a brainstorm. Like, I mean, let's just let all the ideas come out and percolate. Like, please don't- [G laughing] I know that this is, like, kind of dumb, but, like, maybe we should stop it!

G: We can circle back to it later, but like, I'm just putting it forward now. [C laughs] We should maybe consider stopping it. [C laughs] But yeah. [C: So fun.] Sam continues looking at the mirror, and, like, the sound, the background, like, starts zooming out. We start to hear it from Sam's perspective, and we can see, like, you know, his heavy breathing. We can hear it and everything. And Dean and Cas are in the background, and [laughs] I thought that was cute, which is really funny, because, you know, as everyone says, Sam's going through a moment.

C: Sam's going through something, yeah!

G: But, you know, Dean is like, "What are you? The Hamburglar?" And Cas just goes, "I've developed a taste for ground beef." [laughs] And Dean goes, "Well, have you even tried to stop it?" And Cas goes, "I'm an angel. I can stop anytime I want." So true! [C: Yeah.] So important. Just as Dean is about to tell everyone that they should get going now, Sam comes out of the bathroom and says, "I can't go. It got to me, Dean. I think I'm hungry for it." And Dean goes, "Hungry for what?" [C laughs] And Sam goes, "You know." And yeah, it's demon blood, baby! And the way Dean reacts to this is so annoying to me. [C: Yeah.] Shut the fuck up! I don't know. I understand that, like, Dean thinks Sam's demon blood addiction was a choice and everything, that he chose for himself, blah blah blah, but like, this is explicitly not his choice? [laughs] Like, if that is the reason why Dean is mad at him, which Dean has reiterated to be the reason why, then he does not get to be mad at this. Not at all. I think what it is is that it's Jensen Ackles. Because the script doesn't- like, the dialogue doesn't suggest that much animosity coming from Dean.

C: Yeah, it's just "You gotta be kidding me," and that can just be directed as like, "Oh, like, we need Sam to be part of this mission, so it sucks that Famine got to him."

G: Or it could be like, "It sucks that Famine got to you," period, you know? Like, it doesn't have to be, like, blaming Sam. But the way it was acted, and the way Dean does his face, it's like, yeah, he's pissed at Sam for some fucking reason. Ungodly annoying. He tells Cas to bring Sam to Montana. [laughs] So true! "Anywhere but here." And Cas says, "Yeah, it's not gonna work because he already is hungry, and he's just going to, like, spread the hunger there or something." And Sam is like, "Yeah, just fucking get the ring." But Sam says, "Before you do that, you need to lock me down. But good." And yeah. They handcuff Sam to the bathroom sink.

C: To the pipe of it.

G: Yeah. What's with the pipes? Like, why are they outside? But whatever.

C: Sometimes, they are.

G: Yeah, it looks bad, though. And I'm assuming it's like, awful, too, for cleaning because that's so many crevices, right? [C: True.] Well, they go, they leave, and like, Sam's position is so uncomfortable! [C: Yeah.] Like, his head is, like, leaning against the sink itself because, like, the cuff is not long enough for him to be any further. [laughs] I don't know. I feel like he should be in a more comfortable place for this, but whatevs.

C: Yeah. Poor guy.

G: I like also this- I like the shot of Cas, like, pushing the cabinet with the, you know, and it's like, super easy for him, over the bathroom door. Lovely!

-

C: They go to the hospital, and they find out that the doctor, Dr. Corman, is dead. He drank himself to death this morning. And we did start to see some of that when Sam was talking to him last time, he was drinking on the job.

G: Yeah, he gets a flask out, yeah.

C: Dean goes, "Crap. I really kind of liked this guy. That was my best friend, and I just let him go!"

G: Literally! [C laughs] Like, every single time someone dies on Dean, he's like, "But that was my bwestie!" [C laughs]

C: Are we continuing "bwestie"?

C: Yeah, I love bwestie. [C laughs] We are, in fact, in the podcast Busty Asian Beauties, so it's only appropriate. [C: True.] I always forget that that's our name. [C: You do?] Why did we name ourselves Busty Asian Beauties?

C: [laughs] 'Cause I thought it would be funny!

G: I know! And every time someone asks me, like, "What do you do?" and I somehow, for some fucking ungodly reason, mention I have a podcast and they ask me the title, I'm like, "I can't tell you." [C laughing]

C: Yeah. The demons haven't harvested Dr. Corman's soul yet, so they are hanging out to see where it goes. And we cut to later, and they're in the Impala. Well, Dean is in the Impala, and then Cas shows up with another burger. [G: Love that!] So true. And when Dean goes, "Are you serious?" Cas goes, "These make me... [both] very happy." And he does a little smile! And it's very nice. It's a nice line. It's good to see Cas. Apparently, he's had a low hundreds number of burgers so far.

G: He goes, "What I don't understand is, where's your hunger, Dean?" Why is even he therapizing Dean? Like, why are we doing this? Leave him the fuck alone.

C: Dean says that the reason he is unaffected is that when he wants to drink, he drinks. Same with sex, a sandwich, or a fight. So fascinating that a fight-

G: I love that a fight is like, here.

C: - is a need for him sometimes. Like, yeah. Yeah. It's interesting. They probably just mean hunting being, like, a need, which is already interesting, but this just sounds like he starts shit at bars for no reasons "'cause the guy was hot and I want him on me" like that post says. So Cas goes, "So you're saying you're just well-adjusted?" And Dean goes, "God, no. I'm just well-fed." Finally, they see a demon come out of the hospital with the soul, and they follow him.

-

C: Meanwhile, Sam is in that motel room, and he hears somebody coming in and moving the dresser. And he goes, like, "Guys, what happened? I don't think it worked." Which is cute.

G: It's so cute. Aww, Sam!

C: Yeah. Two demons come in, and one of them breaks the handcuffs, and they're like, going like, "Oh, like, we can't kill you. But probably we can, like, chop off a few parts." But Sam, no longer restrained, attacks both of them. He stabs the first one in the neck with a shard of glass and then starts drinking from it, [G: Love it.] which is real fun. Sam, who now has powers again-

G: Another demon was about to attack him, and then he turns around, like, puts his hand out, like, a la power mode [C: Flings him against the wall.], and the demon flies against the wall. [both] And then Sam goes, "Wait your turn." [screams] [C: Kinda hot.] So wonderful! I started clapping. It's so good!

C: Yeah, no, it is good.

-

G: Cas and Dean are still in the car, and Dean is just like, "Okay, shall we go over the plan, Happy Meal?" But like, Cas is not paying attention, so Dean had to, like, call him again. And then Cas is like, "Oh, well, I take the knife, I go in, I cut off the ring hand of Famine, and I meet you back here in the parking lot." And Dean's like, "Well. Okay!" And then Cas disappears but doesn't, you know, reappear immediately. So Dean goes out and looks for him, and as he comes in, he sees, like, you know, people who are dead, like, in the restaurant, and then Cas is kneeling on the floor, shoving ground meat that is raw into his mouth! [C: Soo true.] I love him!

C: You know that post about wanting to take Cas on a date where he eats raw beef?

G: So important. Well, we should do it. [C: Yeah.] Call us, Cas!

C: Wait, but, like, you've seen the post, right?

G: I have seen, of course, yes.

C: Yeah, of course. Okay, it's famous to me.

G: I think you reblogged it semi-recently.

C: Yeah, I did. [laughs]

G: Yeah. You don't use that account much anymore. [C: Not at all, yeah.] So every time I see you on my timeline I'm like, "Wow, Crystal's going well today. [both laugh] Crystal's having a moment." Yeah, Famine comes in, and he calls Dean "the other Mr. Winchester," which I quite like, and he asked about what Famine Dean did to Cas, and Famine said, "You sicced your dog on me. I just threw him a steak," which I did like. And Dean goes, "This is your big trick, huh? Making people cuckoo for Coco Puffs?" [C laughs] He thought about this line for so long, I bet. [laughing] He thinks he's so fucking cool and not corny and also charismatic. Famine does some incredibly tepid takes on like, American consumerism. [C laughs] And yeah, he says, "Hunger doesn't just come from the body. It also comes from the soul." And Dean's like, "Well, doesn't seem to be coming from mine," and Famine goes, "Yeah, I figured." And then he goes and like, touches Dean's chest. It's apparently painful because Dean looks like he's in pain, but for a second, I thought it was like, he was anticipating pain because the acting was pretty terrible. So like, I thought he was, like, bracing himself for pain to come, and then it never comes, except apparently, it has already came, [C laughs] which is so funny. Famine does his little speech of, like, "Well, you have this deep, dark nothing in you. You can't fill it, not with food or drink, not even with sex." [C laughing] Yeah, "You have this hole in you, and you just can't fill it" or whatever the fuck Sam says in Season 2.

C: "You can't just fill it with whatever you want" or something like that?

G: Yeah, [laughing] "You have this giant hole." [both laughing] I don't think he said "giant hole," but he should have! He should have said, "You have this giant hole, Dean." And he says that, "I can see inside you, Dean. I can see how broken you are, how defeated. You can't go win, and you know it." I don't know. I just literally saw that line right now and thought about the ending of Cas's arc in the show. He does say, "I know how you see yourself, Dean," right? But I guess it's different.

C: I think so. It's very different, yeah.

G: "You're not hungry, Dean, because inside you're already... dead." So fucking corny.

C: Dumb. I know people care about the scene, but like, whatever. Like, he's not special. [laughs Like-

G: Yeah! Talk to literally anyone.

C: Like, whatever! Is there anything interesting to be gleaned from this?

G: I just am not interested in it. I'm sure there's something interesting in it, it's just not for me. It's not for me.

C: Yeah. The implication is that Dean doesn't even like burgers? [both laugh] Like-

G: How is he? Is he not an American?

C: - you're just going through the motions of eating burgers because you don't actually want burgers. [laughs]

G: Yeah. Maybe if he ate some "ethnic food," like a burrito that he microwaved, [C laughs] maybe he'd change his mind.

C: Maybe. So- [both] God.

G: Just for clarity, that's like, a joke about Cas calling microwaved burritos "ethnic food." I'm not doing a racism. [both laugh]

C: But yeah. I guess it's like, this is a recent development because of how he doesn't think he can beat the Apocalypse, so he's just [G: Has accepted- yeah.] been in, like, recently, he's just been, like, pretending to eat burgers [G laughs] and like, think women are hot and things, but his heart hasn't really been into it.

G: [laughing] He's pretending to eat burgers! [both laughing]

C: [laughing] He's actually eating burgers! You're right. [G: God.] They do go in his mouth.

G: I feel like it's very difficult to pretend to eat a burger. You have to commit to that bit.

C: Well, maybe he's like, a very skilled magician like Aziraphale will never be.

G: Exactly. He does that thing of it, like, when you're like, taking handkerchiefs out of your mouth and so many, so many of them, but with food. And the opposite. So it's a completely different thing, [both laugh] but that's the only magic trick I know. [C laughs]

C: Yeah. Yeah, okay. I guess this is something. It's just supposed to recontextualize Dean's actions during this season that are relating to his usual hungers, as like, caricatures that he's putting on. Okay. I still don't see why that would mean that Dean would no longer feel the need to keep it up when Famine is in town, right? Like, it's not like- 'cause it's just like, if you have a hunger, he'll increase it. If you don't have a hunger, does he amplify the fact that you don't have a hunger? Do you know what I mean? Like, [G: Yeah, it doesn't follow.] everyone is affected, and Dean shouldn't be affected at all, but he is affected in the way where he's like, "I don't want to eat this." I don't know.

G: I mean, it could be that, you know what? Maybe he's hungry to not feel something.

C: Yeah, that's true.

G: So, I don't know. Which I think is like, the only follow-through wherein this works.

C: Yeah, okay. I believe it. Whatever. [G: Yeah.] But then Sam shows up. [G: Yeah!] And we hear his voice go, "Let him go." [G: Just like Elsa.] And he's all bloody. Yeah, just like Elsa. He's all bloody, and Dean goes, "Sammy, no!" [both laugh] And Famine tells the demons not to attack Sam, who he calls a "sweet little boy." Real.

G: I know. I loved that! And he was like, "You know, no one can leave a finger on you," and I was like, "Just like me for real, maybe," except I think that disqualifies me from being a Samgirl, honestly, 'cause I feel like all Samgirls-

C: Want to see him bloodied and beaten up, yeah. Yeah, and he goes, "Sam, I see you got the snack I sent you."

G: There's this poll recently that I saw that I was like, "If Samgirls, Deangirls, and Casgirls fought each other, who would win." And everyone was like, "Everyone would lose." And I was like, "You guys are in the wrong because the Samgirls are definitely gonna win." [laughs]

C: Yeah. They mean a physical fight?

G: Yeah, I think so.

C: Yeah, Samgirls got it. It's just, in order to remain a Samgirl in the fandom and not be like, turned by the fact that there's like, no content outside of, like, Wincest stuff, like, [G: Yeah.] you do have to be very strong. [G: Yeah.] Like, it's a selection thing. Yeah, he tells Sam that the demons that he sent over were on purpose so Sam could eat them, and he also says that Sam will never die from drinking too much. "Just the way Satan wanted you to be." And he's like, "Yeah, go eat all the demons here also. Please." What does he- Why? Just to feed Sam up to be ready for possession?

G: Yeah, I guess so. For Lucifer.

C: But doesn't he need the demons to bring him souls to eat? Like, I guess he can just get more.

G: Yeah. He has no self preservation skills, it seems.

C: And Dean's like, "Sammy, no!" [G: "No!"] And there's a moment, and then, instead of drinking their blood, Sam uses all of his powers to pull the demons out of their vessels, and he goes, "No." Proud of him! [G: Love it.] And yeah, I mean, Sam has very strong self-control, I suppose, which like, we see in the greatest form in "Swan Song," how he's able to, like, battle Lucifer in his mind, or whatever. I guess- I don't know. What was I gonna say? Whatever, it's fine that he's super super special in that way, and all the other people in the town immediately gave in and died. But, you know, whatever. So Famine eats all of the souls that Sam pulled out, and then Sam, you know, has his hand out in his exorcism, or like, demon-killing posture at Famine, and Famine's like, "Well, I'm a horseman, so that doesn't work on me." And Sam says, "You're right, but it will work on them." And then he pulls all the demon souls out of Famine, and somehow that kills him.

G: It's so- I don't know what the fuck they're trying to do.

C: I don't get it. Like, they don't even take the ring?

G: Yeah, I have no idea.

C: What is this? I don't understand how this worked. Like, yeah. I don't understand why Sam seems so confident that it would work, also, 'cause I don't see how it would work even after I did see it work, so. I mean, it's a fun visual. Like, the souls are, like, punching out of Famine's abdomen and stuff too, not just his mouth, but like, I don't get it. I don't get it.

-

G: We go to Bobby's house, and Cas and Dean are standing outside of the panic room, and we can hear Sam inside, and he's screaming, and I think this is really such an embodiment of who this episode is about.

C: Yeah. Fucking hate that shit.

G: We don't even go into the panic room, like, we don't see into it. [C: Yeah.] And also, like, the fact that Cas is trying to comfort Dean [C: Dean!] in this scene. Sam is literally-

C: You have healing powers. Can't you, like, soothe his mind, or do something?

G: It's so wild!

C: Yeah. I hate it. And then Cas says, like, an awful line.

G: Yeah. Cas says, "That's not him in there," and I went, "Boo!"

C: It's so bad! I just- Okay, there's some utility to a line like that regarding addiction when like, someone says something really horrible to you, but it's because they're going through withdrawal, and like, they normally wouldn't say that like. Like, I think there's like, some utility to the like, "That wasn't really them." part of that in like, that situation. But when you're doing it- like, when you're applying it to like, "This person experiencing so much pain and suffering isn't actually the person you love, so you shouldn't worry about all of the pain and suffering that they're experiencing during withdrawal," like, that's fucked! [G: It is.] Sam's going to remember it. Like, that is him. That's his mind and his body, and they are going through this, and he's going to remember it, and it's going to feel the same as any other pain that you remember. And currently, he's experiencing it, and it feels like any pain you're experiencing. I don't know why this was said, [laughs] or I do know why, and it's because Supernatural is a terrible show.

G: Yeah, Supernatural is so horrible. Anyway, Dean is like, "Okay, I just need some air." He goes out, and he starts praying, basically. And he goes, "Please, I can't. I need some help. Please."

C: Okay. Whatever.

G: Okay. Who knows? [unhappily] I mean, it's setup for what happens through the rest of the season, I guess. [C laughs] Well, that's it for this episode- [both laugh] Wait, no!

C: - of Busty Asian Beauties? [G: Exactly.] Next week- No.

G: Well, what do we think about this episode?

C: It was fine.

G: Yeah, it's fine. It's fine.

C: It's like, a lot of people are like, "This is the best episode of Supernatural," and it's not, so.

G: Well, I wouldn't say it's the best, like, at all. I think it's middling between a plot episode and a case episode, and not in a good way, but I did enjoy it mostly because I enjoyed seeing Cas be Cas again on my screen. [C: Yeah.] Yeah, Best Line/Worst Line. Well, we all know [both] our worst line.

C: Yeah, the "That's not him in there. Not really." Best line...

G: I really like when the woman from, like, the eating each other goes, "Your neck! I think I bit you!" I thought it was so wonderful. It's so romantic! [laughs]

C: Yeah, like, there's blood in her teeth.

G: Yeah, and she's like, "Sowwy!" And he's like, "No, it's fine!" [C: Yeah.] Whoever said romance is dead?

C: Exactly. My best line-

G: Well, I suppose I also like a lot of Cas's lines this episode.

C: Yeah, I'm trying to think which Cas line I like.

G: I think I like the "I'm an angel. I can stop anytime I want." Oh, Cas!

C: Yeah. That was cute. Okay, this episode, Cas was going through a form of, like, something that is akin to an addiction because of Famine, and that does not- like, when he comes back from that, there's like, absolutely no compassion for Sam that he's newly found from it. And I guess it's because his whole burger thing was just comic relief the entire episode, but come on!

G: Yeah. Also, like, Famine says to Sam, like, "You're the exception that proves the rule because your hunger is not going to kill you." And it's like, Cas's hunger is also not gonna kill him, I'm pretty sure, so like, I don't know.

C: Yeah. [laughs] He's had hundreds of burgers, and he's fine.

G: He's the second exception that proves the rule. [both laugh]

C: Yeah. Okay, does he just vanish the burgers after they're in his stomach, or is he, like, in Jimmy's body, just like, shitting every time we don't see him on screen?

G: I don't know. He slowly digests it through the years, and it's where he gets enough protein to bulk up in the later season. [C laughs]

C: But like, does he store it? Just the volume of the burgers that he ate, they can't all be in his body.

G: This is true. It's in his pussy, I guess. [laughs]

C: [laughs] Yeah, labia lips dragging along the floor. You just don't see it 'cause it's under the trenchcoat.

G: Yeah, it's not relevant to our journey.

C: Anyway, best line. [both laugh] I mean, I think the "We should stop it" was really funny.

G: [laughs] It was. I love Castiel.

C: Spread those sheets?

G: Yeah!

G: Is there a woman this episode that they talk to or anything? I don't think so. The demons, I guess.

C: No, I mean, there's the women in the town.

G: Yeah. Did they do a misogyny?

C: I don't think the dialogue about being whipped is really meant to be anything that we agree with.

G: Yeah, how about the virgin one?

C: I don't think so.

G: I also don't think so. I think it's just that it's trying to establish that-

C: Yeah, this is a Ben Edlund first.

G: Wow. Who'd have thunk?

C: Who would have thunk? Racism, I mean, there's like, one character of color, and it's the "whipped" guy, and then he gets shot, but I guess that doesn't really- Does that fit into what we count as racism points?

G: I don't think so, yeah.

C: Yeah. Oh, wait! And there's another person of color, the doctor who tells us that Dr. Corman is dead is Asian!

G: Hell yeah!

C: I guess I made an argument for the Cupid thing, but I think that that can be ambiguous, so I'm fine not.

G: I would say it's a 0. Wow, Ben Edlund! Proving himself to-

C: Is this the first 0s one [G: I bet.] of the season? It is. [G: Yeah.] Wow.

G: Wow! IMDb rating.

C: People like this one.

G: Yes, they do.

C: I don't know if they like it more than "The Song Remains the Same."

G: I highly doubt it.

C: Yeah. But people on Tumblr really like this one, though, like, to like, a ridiculous extent.

G: Is that true?

C: I feel like I've seen that people really really like it. But I don't know. Maybe I'm just seeing a subset of people. Uh, 8.9, 0.1 below "The Song Remains the Same," shall be my guess.

G: Okay, mine would be 8.6, actually. I don't think this is highly rated. Okay, let's do it. Okay, so the IMDb rating for this episode is... Oh my god, where is it? It's an 8.8! You're closer.

C: Okay, so I was closer once more.

G: But I was right in my estimation that it's not highly-rated.

C: Yeah, it's not "Song Remains the Same."

G: Yeah. The title of this review is "One more reason to hate Valentine's Day." The review: "This episode gave me another reason to hate no to fear valentine's Day." [both laugh] So true! So true. Oh. "I was prepared for a gory episode. Come on the title's My Bloody Valentine, and with supernatural you know that they have to include something with a real heart somewhere in the show. But I have to admit I was not prepared for them eating on each other." Love it! I can't believe that people didn't love that scene. It's so wonderful. Well, I guess this person did, because they did give it 10 out of 10. This one says that it packed a lot into the 40 minutes. I do agree. Like, I think this has a full 40 minutes with just enough of a pacing to still not feel like they're really, really just doing plot at you, which I liked.

C: "One of the best episodes and so underrated of the season. The scene we get to see Jensen's vulnerability and pain. He is such a diverse actor." [both laugh] Don't know about that one.

G: Just like Freckle said in The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo, [both] "It's diverse!" [C laughs] So true. Well, I think that's it for this episode of Busty Asian Beauties. Next week, we will be discussing Season 5, Episode 15: "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid." Is it played or plahd? I still don't know. I should know. I watch Supernatural.

C: It's plaid.

G: It's plaid? Okay. "Don't Wear Plaid."

C: This one mentions that they're surprised that they didn't see Dean drinking in this episode. [G: Huh.] That is true. Like, they have made a bit of a point that he has an alcohol problem, like in "Sam, Interrupted," so that does seem like the natural hunger to go off.

G: Maybe just like that girl in the One Direction song, he's addicted to the feeling of letting go. That's why he let go of all his proclivities. [C laughs]

C: Maybe so.

G: Love that song! [laughs] It's so bad.

C: I don't know what song this is.

G: I'll play it for you [laughs] after we stop recording. [C: Okay.] It's called "She's Not Afraid." Ah! [C: Okay.] So corny! I hate One Direction, but I love it. I can't help it. Just like Dean Winchester.

C: What does he love that he can't help?

G: His mom. [laughs]

C: His mom? [G laughs]

G: Yeah, he tells Mary, "I hate you, but I love you. I can't help it," which, I like that scene.

C: What a mean thing.

G: They were going through a moment, and also it was, like, in a dream. [laughs] Like, I'm not sure-

C: Okay, that's fine, then.

G: But that was Mary. Like, he was in fact saying it to Mary, but like, in a dream. Like, Mary's like, just stuck in a dream, and he's trying to get her out, and he tells her-

C: Oh, never mind. Like, he knew it was her for real?

G: No, yeah. They both knew they were each other, but he was, like, trying to explain his feelings, and he was like, "I hate you, but I love you. I can't help it." I actually- you know what? I will defend that line. Don't insult, don't denigrate. You don't even know Season 12 of Supernatural yet. Or maybe you do, I don't know.

C: Okay. She did join the Men of Letters and then sleep with the person who killed Magda and Eileen, so.

G: Yeah. So maybe, you know, you can hate her and love her and can't help it.

C: Maybe so. Follow us on social media! We are on Tumblr at bustyasianbeautiespod.tumblr.com. Our official tag is #BABPod, B-A-B-POD. Thanks to everyone who's donated to our Ko-Fi at ko-fi.com/bustyasianbeautiespod, which is where our outtakes live, and check out our merch at babpod.redbubble.com.

G: You can email us any feedback, comments, or inquiries at bustyasianbeautiespod@gmail.com. See you guys next time! [both] Bye!

[guitar music]

[subtle-revolt]

letter to REDACTED

i miss you. those three words haunt me, day in and day out. i feel like my world has been put on pause. i find myself craving your touch, your company. i look through our photos all the time but I can't seem to let go. it seems you have already let me go. i miss waking up to you in the morning, caressing your back as you peacefully snore and dream. i miss hearing about your crazy mind-boggling dreams and laughing at their ridiculousness. I miss the kisses we'd give each other on the cheek. such small sweet gestures. i truly believe that we were meant to be. i guess for you it was not true. i can't wrap my head around the fact that we are not together. you were my lover, but above all, my best friend.

everytime I think about you I cant stop myself from crying. you were, and unfortunately still are, my world. i can't sleep at night. I stay up thinking about you. wondering if you think about me too. I've stopped listening to music because it all makes me think of you. i know you've been trying to distract yourself from the hurt, as am I, but I still cant get you out of my head. believe me I've tried. i cant seem to shake this feeling that I am happiest with you. I thought about it a lot, first, how to stop loving you, second, what we could change to start fresh.

i miss you so dearly. im not sure what I hope to achieve by sending this letter. i just want to scream from the mountain tops about how much I love you. i don't know what's wrong with me. why can't I just leave you alone? why cant I just move on? the thought of you with someone else makes my heart wilt. i don't expect a response from you REDACTED. I'm so angry at myself. why do I still love you? after everything? all I want is to be by your side. I cant keep lying to myself. because I don't hate you. i don't think you're ugly, selfish and vain. as much as I keep trying to convince myself. i see you. i see you as you are and I understand. i always thought that love is a choice. but only now do I realise my error. if I could stop loving you, I would. in a heartbeat. but it wont go away no matter what I do.

i feel helpless. i wish it would stop

[avauntus]

This is a bit random, but I feel like it's something that urban natives assume everyone knows, but isn't that common outside of big cities, and important for pet owners, especially this time of year, when there are so many closures and "special hours":

Did you know- there are emergency vet clinics, even 24-hour clinics?

(I'm U.S.-based, so obviously this might differ in other countries. And if you live in a city, you're thinking "of course there are," if you live in a small town you're thinking "you mean the phone line," but no, I do not!)

It does take time-- in our case, something like 3-4 hours total, and it was a fairly minor issue that just needed some medication and confirmation nothing worse was wrong --my cat threw out his knee like a dad trying his first layup in 15 years at the family half-court game and needed anti-inflammatory and painkillers-- but there are options available that would have never occurred to "rural me."

One of the "24-hour emergency clinics" in my region is called "Blue Pearl," to give an example-- several years ago, I had to take my dog there when I brought her to my normal vet who was horrified I'd brought her to him when she couldn't breathe-- apparently city vets aren't used to dealing with emergencies; you always bring your pets to the "urgent care" vet in that case?

(The mind boggles-- in my smaller towns, there were 3 options: (1) you were fortunate enough to have your emergency during the clinic's open hours and could get to the (singular) vet; (2) You called the after-hours hotline and got some version of "try this and hope nothing else goes wrong"; (3) you were dealing with an expensive enough problem that the vet would come to you, e.g. a whole herd / $x00000 livestock problem)

In larger cities, there are also vets who work as "drop-in" ONLY-- when I went to find treatment for one of my cats today, the local vet who couldn't make an appointment for us for anything less than a couple of weeks out recommended it; you're seen first-come, first served, and (in the case of this vet) you don't go inside at all-- they take your pet from the car and bring them back to you when finished with the exam.

So, no big moral or anything, just...if you're from a smaller place and the city vet is like: "yes, obviously you take your allergic-reaction dog to..." they're not being crazy; it's a legitimate thing. Also, you're not crazy for thinking it all sounds a bit off-- yes, in smaller towns, the vet is the vet is the vet...cityfolk have just specialized a bit, apparently.

And if you're a city-person who just moved to a smaller town and are thinking "What do you mean my options are 'wait until Tuesday' or 'watch my dog and hope they remain steady?!' ...sorry. That's just how we roll out here. Consider it a life lesson, along with "carry paper maps in your car; no really, we mean it"

[casspurrjoybell-27]

Claimed by the Beast - Chapter 22b

*Warning Adult Content*

MINE - Part 2

"Five minutes."

"What?"

"We're waiting five more minutes and then we'll go in there together if the Doc hasn't already come out with some news," Josie says, softening her tone. "I got your back, okay? Always."

Knox nods and bites the inside of his jaw to keep from getting choked up.

It's been a long time since he's felt this... low.

This worthless.

This hopeless and utterly exhausted.

Like nothing will ever go right no matter how hard he pushes himself.

The last time he felt like this had been when his mother passed away and that was several years ago.

He'd felt whatever it is that was beyond numb, and the support that he desperately needed was nonexistent.

These days, he feels like he's barely holding on but he's grateful because he doesn't have to go through life's dips alone anymore.

His brothers are great but they're also the opposite of sensitive.

Their advice usually falls along the line of 'You'll get over it, bro. Drink a beer and stop stressing.'

By far, Josie is the best at providing comfort and encouragement.

Knox would always joke about how she should go back to school to become a therapist.

"Oof. Somebody just woke up," Josie giggles, reaching for Knox's hand.

She places it where hers had been on her stomach and his eyes light up when he feels a little kick.

"It still boggles my mind that there's a human being growing in there."

"You ready for them to come out?" Knox asks.

"I don't know. Some days I think I'm ready for motherhood, and some days... I... I feel like a hot mess who doesn't deserve to be anyone's mother," Josie confesses, tears welling up in her eyes. "Sorry. My hormones are all over the place right now."

Knox doesn't have a therapist hat that he can put on, so he's shit at giving advice.

He does the only thing he can think of and pulls Josie in for a brief hug, allowing her to have her moment.

They separate when the door to the bedroom opens and the doctor steps out with his supplies.

"How is he?" Knox blurts out.

"Stressed," Keith answers. "And mildly dehydrated but Mr. Robinson will live to see another day. I gave him my wife's card..."

"Great. You think he's going crazy," Knox mutters, growing uneasy. "This is bullshit."

"No, it's real life. My wife is a licensed psychologist who specializes in trauma, which he exhibits symptoms of," Keith clarifies, defensively. "She can help him. I told Mr. Robinson the first five sessions will be free. She's spoken with a few of you before, so of course everything will be kept off record. Whether Mr. Robinson reaches out or not is up to him but in the meantime, keep fluids in him and... uh, try to keep your 'club business' out of his sight."

Feeling unrightfully judged, Knox narrows his eyes and steps forward with clenched fists.

"Thanks for coming out on such short notice, Doc," Josie moves to stand in front of Knox while waving for Keith to hustle his ass down the hall. "Your money is waiting for you in the kitchen with Gavin. Safe travels back home. Goodbye."

"You all take care now," Keith nods, then speed walks down the hall without looking back.

"I know you're itching to get in there, so tell Everett I'll check on him later," Josie squeezes Knox's arm, pulling his attention back to her. "If you need anything, you know where to find me. And don't forget about what I said earlier..."

"Your sermon is saved, Red," Knox taps at his temple.

They share another hug before she turns around and leaves.

A good portion of the tension that'd been wrecking his body dissipates when he enters his bedroom and sees Everett sitting up going through one of his many shopping bags.

"Hey. You should be resting, not... doing whatever the hell you're doing."

"I've got to find it."

Everett ignores him and continues with his search.

He doesn't hear the door close or the lock switch.

He doesn't acknowledge Knox's presence when he sits on the bed, not until the bag gets snatched away from him.

"Hey. I was..."

"Not resting," Knox interjects, his voice soft but firm. "You should shower and get some sleep. It's been a long fucking day for the both of us."

Everett nods in agreement, breaking eye contact as he nervously fiddles with his hands on his lap.

"I'm sorry," he whispers. "For sneaking off like I did. Today wouldn't have... Everything that happened today is all on me. I almost got my friends killed. I almost got you killed," his voice cracks and his pretty brown eyes glisten with fresh tears.

He quickly wipes them away before they fall.

"I'm sorry for being such a pain in the ass. If you... If you want to send me back home, then I'd understand. I wouldn't hold it against you, I swear."

"Look at me, Everett."

"I am not sending you any fucking where. The thought has never crossed my mind," Knox places his index finger underneath Everett's chin, gently forcing his head up until their eyes meet.

"You're mine, do you hear me? Mine to protect. Mine to care for. Mine to..." the four letter word dies in Knox's throat.

He swallows hard before continuing.

"You're mine, kitten. I'm not letting you go."

'Not Yet.'

"Do you believe me?" Knox asks.

"Yes," Everett responds, reaching for Knox's hand.

He pulls it away from his face to kiss Knox's bruised knuckles.

"Are you in pain right now?"

"I..." Knox's heart swells with emotion at the tender gesture.

He shakes his head.

"I'm fine. How are you feeling?"

He can deal with a few bruised knuckles.

What he can't deal with is Everett's pale appearance and the absence of his smart mouth.

"Doc said you're stressed out, which I get but also dehydrated."

"Yeah, I'm a little lightheaded but other than that, I'm okay. I drank a bottle of water but I probably need to drink a few more before I go to sleep."

Knox nods in agreement.

"I was going to suggest the same thing."

"Also, I don't want to sleep in that other room anymore," Everett confesses. "Want to stay in here with you. Can I?"

Knox smirks.

"I planned to move your shit back in here after you went to sleep, so we're on the same page."

They share a laugh.

"Need you to be honest with me, kitten. Will you?"

Everett nods.

"What's on your mind?"

"I want to know what you and Finn argued about."

Everett doesn't hold anything back as he tells Knox about the argument he had with Finn.

Knox sits quietly and listens, his blank expression giving nothing away.

"I get it now. He was just looking out for you," Everett finishes. "Please don't be pissed at him whenever you see him again, okay? We've already apologized to each other through text. I'm over it."

"I'm not. He never should have let you out of his fucking sight," Knox grumbles.

"I almost knocked his head off with a hot frying pan. I would've let me leave if I were him," Everett laughs.

Knox grunts in response, softening a little.

"Can I have my bag back now? I was looking for something important before you rudely snatched it away."

"Looking for what?" Knox raises a brow, curious.

"I'm not telling you... yet," Everett grins, mischievously. "Now give me the damn bag."

Knox responds with a playful eye roll but does as he's told.

Everett resumes his search, soon letting out a high-pitched squeal when he finds the item that he had been looking for.

"Close your eyes," Everett orders. "Now."

Knox sighs.

"What the hell are you planning?"

"Just close your damn eyes, man."

Knox huffs and obeys, then Everett proceeds to rummage through his pants pockets.

When he finds Knox's keys, they jingle for several seconds and then Everett grabs Knox's left hand to give him the keys back.

Knox can't tell the difference in them until after Everett tells him to open his eyes.

"I saw it and immediately thought of you." Everett holds his breath as he watches Knox inspect the small keychain with a mixture of amusement and affection. "I-I know you're not really an accessories kind of guy, so you don't have to keep it on there if you don't..."

"I love it," Knox lightly traces his thumb along the tiny panda's head, unable to stop the blush from settling in his cheeks. "Can't even remember the last gift I received, so this is..."

A cute little panda with a beaming grin and one paw lifted in greeting.

A simple gift to some but a priceless gift to Knox.

"It means a lot. Thank you."

"You're welcome," Everett can't help but feel a sense of warmth spreading throughout his body.

He figured Knox might get a kick out of the silly keychain and laugh.

Nothing could've prepared Everett for this type of vulnerable reaction.

"There's one more thing I want to give you, though."

Knox finally looks up.

"What's that?"

"Me."

Everett places a hand on Knox's cheek, his heart pounding in his chest as he closes his eyes just before leaning in to press their lips together.

[weirdunclegamer]

I feel like doing A Thing. I'm gonna rewatch the N Direct (watched it at work originally) and comment on... I dunno, everything? For funsies.

Y'know I totally forgot it opened wit the Sploon3 DLC thing. I don't play splat myself but absolutely lovin the aesthetics here, that octoling in the elevator is dressed saucy I must say. The whole thing looks delightfully cartoon creepy, the clear overuse of flat white had me guessing at something to do with color right at the point "put this color chip in" was said. Gonna hafta paint that blank canvas.

Mario vs DK. Another series I never really played, but I know lots of people love it. One of those beloved side games. A friend commented on being glad it was going back to the original style rather then the psuedo lemmings thing where you just had the toy Marios. I hadn't thought of that myself but there you go. I love how when DK gets hit with the... box, pipe, whatever, that Mario throws at him, it really does feel like just a cartoon clonk on the donk, absolutely non-violent.

Ooooooooh here we go. I'm not a Prince of Persia fan specifically, did love the... 2006? 2009? That one stand alone entry with the prince with the orange and purple head wrap. But THIS PoP game looks fuuuuuuun, this is exactly my kind of 2D platformer, with a good combat system baked in too. Also you're not actually the prince this time! Or maybe that'll be the twist later. The prince was inside you all along.

Okay so I never even knew there was a Horizon Chase 1? So no clue as far as sequels go, but I have always enjoyed a good arcade racer on the side. This one gives me "slightly less wacky Cruisn' game" vibes. Also I like the little random dialogues you see coming from the cars a few times. Adds flavor.

Super Crazy Rhythm Castle... I uh... I dunno, I got nothing. It's a musical party game! When they said well known songs from other Konami games but it was a Beatmania track I'm not familiar with that landed like a wet sock. Sorry. Hope its fun!

Okay I haven't read/watched SPYxFAMILY but holy MOLY Anya is just pure distilled weaponized CUTE AS HECK. How do you be so cute like that? And now she's gonna have a game that's just about making memories with her family? I have diabetes now.

Woo, man, I have feelings about an SMRPG remake. But if I'm being blunt... any concern I have is just for shitty bad faith fandom deciding to shit all over the game after it comes out for not being some BS they made up in their heads. The game looks super cute and I appreciate how they kept the funny proportions of the characters from the SNES game. While everyone else is analyzing the changes to the battle system (or that train attack from Boomer that did max damage woah there), I noticed they snuck in a shot of the party seemingly opening the door to... will it be Culex again? Or will there be a new secret boss there? Boggles the mind it does.

Oh geez this one. Some people I follow have been flooding my dash with love for the Another Code game announcement(s) here. It makes me remember how much I have NOT played my copy of the DS game XD crud. I don't have the Wii sequel at all so I may get this just to cover my bases. I HAVE however, played Hotel Dusk, and would love to see some kind of port of that to the Switch. But more then anything I'm just glad to see this series not be forgotten.

HHHNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN NEW PEACH GAME. I loooooved Super Princess Peach on the DS, and I admit, I was... concerned, after the original announcement of a Peach game from the last general direct, that a new game would be... plain, flat even. But OH HOWDY I was assuaged of my concern! Also YES, give her LOTS OF OUTFITS PLEASE. I am def getting this.

Man the SaGa series... that's one I always see and like... want to go play, then I just never get around to it. I think I have the SaGa game on PS2? I almost got the super beloved PS1 entry not too long ago but it was like... over a hundred dollars. I gotta say though... I am actually LOVING the characters in this one. Like, the guy who would be the default sword warrior in any other RPG of this ilk is some kind of puppet master? We got robots? Magical girl witch? A... cowgirl and hijab wearing lady duo with guns? I AM SOLD ALREADY. WHAT EVEN IS THIS SETTING.

HD remake of Lara Croft games. ...that is all. (I don't really care one way or the other, hopefully they do right by the originals)

Detective Pikachu 2. I didn't play the first game, and despite how much you'd think I'd have a connection to pokemon given the original Blue was the first game I ever bought with my own money as a kid, and I legitimately caught all 151 mons... I don't actually have any strong connections to pokemon. Sorrynotsorry.

Trombone Champ... cough... that was a meme from last year I think? I dunno. I think people only care because it was a meme, if it had been some random Wii game it would've been called shovelware and nobody'd give a shit. Shrug.

Battle Crush looks serviceable, but I'm actually just surprised something that feels generic as of like... two or three years ago, is just showing up now. Seems like its riding an outdated wave.

Wartales feels like something that is gonna become the obsession of a tiny cult fanbase.

Remake of Contra 1... hm... okay so like, I actually am a Contra fan. Like... half the reason I would ever care about having a partner irl is someone to play Contra with. But the only thing in this trailer that really made me sit up was hearing that Wayforward was making it. It otherwise looks... just... plain. I guess. Nothing about it really leaping out at me from this trailer. The graphics feel too "clean", Contra should always look kinda grungy you know?

It is actually hard for me to express how HAPPY I am to see a new Vanillaware game (god I needta go finish 13 Sentinels...), but HOLY CRAP the title of the game... UNICORN OVERLORD. Is such a funny goddamn name. I want to tell you how pretty the game trailer is, how interested I am in the gameplay, or maybe how its giving me vibes to a Vanillaware game on the PSP that never got released in the US... but all I can imagine is someone's Megaman X OC Maverick. UNICORN OVERLORD! At half health they jump into the background on a throne and you evade attacks from a legion of lesser unicorn soldier bots. I am so getting this game though. (ALSO THE GAMEPLAY LOOKS LIKE OGRE BATTLE SO I AM QUADRUPALLY INVESTED no not TACTICS OGRE, OGRE BATTLE you peasant)

...wasn't the game called Luigi's Mansion DARK MOON? Was that only in the US maybe? Oh well. I suppose it was time enough for this. I've only played 3, but it was def a lot of fun. Also POLTERPUP, that is all.

Okay so... gotta be totally up front about F-Zero 99... I think its a hilariously fun idea to "99" up the original F-Zero, the way they 99'd up tetris and mario 1. But also, I am right there with all the fans who are grumbling about not getting an actual new F-Zero game, like a proper one not just a gimmick. Still, the game is gonna be a chaotic silly mess. Not bad, but not quite enough either.

Okay Bandle Tale and Nunu or whatever; what is it with everything related to LoL being better then the actual LoL game?

New Wario Ware! ...I don't play Wario Ware games! GIVE ME A NEW WARIO LAND GAME YOU COWARDS. (this is not meant as a sleight against WW games or the people who love them, they're legit cool, funny, colorful, have a ton of great characters, and I just don't personally play them so new ones go solidly into "tell that one friend of mine a new WW was announced" category)(also inb4 all the people complaining about "motion controls" or something, I dunno, I hope the fandom is better then that but I dont trust the internet)

Eiyuden Chronicles! This is one of those things where the original games this is a successor to (which I cant remember the name of off the top of my head because my brain hates me) isn't something I ever had, but I've spent more then enough time immersed in that old PS1 culture and the people therein that I totally get it, and I hope nearly as much as any fan that the final product of this game is everything they want it to be.

Ah, here's one that's virtually impossible for me to comment on because I know nothing of Eastward other then that art style. It looks nice! And I don't know how this is similar or different or fits in at all with the original game! I would 100% become immortal somehow despite the ramifications just to play every game, but alas, I am a mere mortal, and have a limited amount of time, lots of which I lose to depression, so I have not played Eastward. Sorry.

Wargroove 2! Well that's not something I was expecting. I def liked Advanced Wars back in the yonder time, but never stuck with the genre going forward (also I suck at it!). When the original Wagroove became a thing (I actually played a prelease demo of it at PAX one year) I was def excited for fans of the genre (pretty much how I feel about Eiyuden Chronicles even). But I also remember hearing that people fell off the first game kinda fast? Here's hoping 2 does all the good sequel things and really ups its game then.

I admit I'm not much for the huge plethora of (usually cooking focused) crafting-one-side-selling-on-the-other style games. But I do like seeing a game randomly have a POC player character. Just, in general. Doesn't even seem to be a factor of the story either, just is a thing. Glad to see it. (Love the mantis shrimp with the boxing gloves, gotta get that out there)

I haven't played MK8 since it was on the WiiU! Moving on!

I have never played Among Us. I'm not gonna be playing it. ...was there only ever one map in that game? Trailer's cute. Is it mushroom themed because they're basically wanting to hand people a "fungus among us" joke?

Let see... quick reel of already announced stuff... and... oh right...

Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door remake. I uh... I never got into TTYD. Oh I played it. A little. Something about it just didn't feel quite right to me? I dunno. I know people fucking LOVE it. And, sweet deal then. But this is another one I'm just kinda shrugging at. I will not be getting it. Oh well.