#it's hilarious because we have other flavours

[electricea]

lmao this popsicle thread just got me thinking - lately every time my nieces come over my mom is like 'who wants a banana popsicle??'

...does anyone actually find banana flavoured anything good?

[queerfables]

A dash of nutmeg...

Look I feel a bit like I'm throwing soup at a dart board and calling it analysis, but I have some thoughts about Aziraphale's magic words in episode 4, and it's going to kill me if I don't share.

The thing is, these words have been nagging at me since I heard them. They sounded familiar, and I've been trying to figure out why. Today, it finally clicked.

Banana. Fish. Gorilla.

Those initial three words are all key words from Crowley and Aziraphale's drunken conversation about Armageddon. It's right at the start of things, when Crowley convinces Aziraphale to help him stop the world from ending.

We'll start with the fish, because they come up first.

"The point I'm trying to make," [Crowley] said, brightening, "is the dolphins. That's my point." "Kind of fish," said Aziraphale.

Their entire exchange here is hilarious and iconic but I'll try to keep this to the point. After some banter about the difference between fish and mammals, Crowley argues that dolphins don't deserve to be caught in the crossfire when the kraken rises and the seas boil. Which conveniently brings us to:

"Same with gorillas. Whoops, they say, sky gone all red, stars crashing to ground, what they putting in the bananas these days?"

Banana. Fish. Gorilla. It got me curious, so I searched for other places these words show up in the book. There's nothing I think is really significant: a couple of things are described as banana flavoured, fish show up in rains that herald the impending doomsday, gorillas aren't ever mentioned again. If I'm on the right track at all, I think this part is here to signpost a connection between this string of words from the show and the specific moments in the book.

If that's true, it must be pointing to something. What's left? Shoe lace and nutmeg.

Shoe lace.

The word "shoelace" isn't actually in Good Omens. Neither is "shoe lace" with a space in between. There's a couple of unremarkable descriptions involving shoes, and one miraculously conjured lace handkerchief, and then - and then. Right at the very end of the story, we have Adam, grounded by his parents, being described as "a scruffy Napoleon with his laces trailing, exiled to a rose-trellissed Elba". It's tenuous. I could dismiss that as nothing. Except Adam's laces show up again, and it's the very last passage of the book.

If you want to imagine the future, imagine a boy and his dog and his friends. And a summer that never ends. And if you want to imagine the future, imagine a boot . . . no, imagine a sneaker, laces trailing, kicking a pebble; imagine a stick, to poke at interesting things, and throw for a dog that may or may not decide to retrieve it; imagine a tuneless whistle, pounding some luckless popular song into insensibility; imagine a figure, half angel, half devil, all human . . . Slouching hopefully towards Tadfield . . . . . . forever.

I'm not ready to say much about what I think the significance of this passage might be. But an allusion to the book's ending does feel significant, doesn't it?

The one thing I will say, for people who may not know, is that this passage is riffing on a line from Orwell's 1984. The line it's playing on is a lot darker: "If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face – for ever." I think it's probably relevant that this is referencing a book about a totalitarian regime. I also think it's probably relevant that it's taking that reference and twisting it into something much sweeter, more optimistic and empowered.

I'm still thinking through all the connections and implications, though.

Nutmeg.

And that brings us to "nutmeg". I have to be honest, I wasn't hopeful. I didn't remember any references to it and if I were betting, I wouldn't have put money on it appearing in the book at all. But the word does show up, and it shows up exactly once. Crowley is reminiscing about a cocktail he had once, made out of fermented date-palms. It's part of a conversation with Aziraphale, where they discuss losing the Antichrist. And here's the really interesting part:

"You said it was him!" moaned Aziraphale, abstractedly picking the final lump of cream-cake from his lapel. He licked his fingers clean. "It was him," said Crowley. "I mean, I should know, shouldn't I?" "Then someone else must be interfering." "There isn't anyone else! There's just us, right? Good and Evil. One side or the other." He thumped the steering wheel. "You'll be amazed at the kind of things they can do to you, down there," he said. "I imagine they're very similar to the sort of things they can do to one up there," said Aziraphale. "Come off it. Your lot get ineffable mercy," said Crowley sourly. "Yes? Did you ever visit Gomorrah?" "Sure," said the demon. "There was this great little tavern where you could get these terrific fermented date-palm cocktails with nutmeg and crushed lemongrass-" "I meant afterwards." "Oh."

Book Aziraphale differs from his characterisation in the show in a few ways, and this is the big one. In the book, Aziraphale is much more cynical about his own side, and much more aware of heaven's flaws. Here, he's convincing Crowley that the threat heaven poses is just as serious as any threat from hell.

If I'm right about any of this, if these nonsense words mean anything at all, I think they are saying that heaven and hell are two sides of the same very nasty coin, and more to the point, that maybe Aziraphale is more aware of it than he seems.

I need to think about this more, still. I'm not sure if I really think this connection is something, and if it is, I'm still figuring out what sorts of conclusions we might draw from it. But if the script is trying to point us to these three sections of the book, maybe there's a deeper analysis to be had here.

I do think it's interesting that the last two words each only show up in one section of the book. It's not like I'm skipping around trying to decide which passage involving shoe laces is most relevant - it shows up twice, only in the last few pages of the book and only in relation to Adam (and in particular, humanising Adam. He's Napoleon in exile, but he's a kid with trailing laces. His future isn't a boot stamping on a human face, it's a sneaker with those same trailing laces - and a stick that his dog can choose whether or not to chase).

I could talk myself in circles on this point, so I guess I've got to open it up to the floor. Am I making something out of nothing with this? Or do you think there could be something here?

[hummingbee-lievable]

Song of the Day #24:

'Mile Magnificent' by Molly OfGeography (released 2019).

An apartment when it's empty echoes lovely, bright and clean

Sing odes to green-blue water that we stole so it comes free

All things end, it's part of living; forest fires feed the trees

Lift your glasses full of sunshine, sing a toast to gasoline

Track #4 on 'Myths'.

Fun fact: Molly refers to this song as 'The Song My Producer Said I Was Not Allowed To Name “CHICAGO IS BETTER THAN NEW YORK”'.* Honestly, her descriptions for so of the songs on this album are hilarious:

'1) The Song That Made My Producer Go, “Wait, What Was That Bit About Worms?”

2) The Song My Producer Said I Had To Append A Parenthetical To So That People Would Be Able To Find It Because The Lyrics Never Mention The Title Once But I Was Raised On Fanfiction So Joke’s On You, Pal! I Love A Long Title With A Parenthetical In It!!!

3) The Song That Is Sad'

Pretty dang accurate, honestly. Also, I think she has a Tumblr!!! *Gasp.* What if I...tag her???

@ofgeography Hiiii and thank you, your music is amazing.

I did it bees and knees (yes, this is my hip modern way of including every kind of person, fight me or provide more hilarious options; I'm content with either option).

I have had a fun time perusing this flavourful dose of humanity's wild website and I think my fun fact today should be her story where she becomes a donut god:

You're welcome, singular entity that reads this blog (that entity being my sister and/or the rogue bots, doesn't matter, we're all friends here).

Personal blurb: Alright, full disclosure time: I discovered this artist because of the 'Good Omens' fandom. Someone said we were missing out on feelings and shared this song, and when I tell you I felt those feelings, I certainly don't mean that I danced to this on repeat for several months (and her 'Hanahaki (Bloom)'), often at 3 in the morning in the bathroom. Of course not.

Pro tip: dancing with your toothbrush in your mouth is a choking hazard, but in the spirit of Alanis Morissette, I recommend doing it anyway:

One of my favourite books in the world is 'The Overstory' by Richard Powers. In it, one of the themes that arises often is the concept of pyrophitic serotinous plants (it's okay, I won't remember it either). They are plants that need fire to open. (There are actually different types of pyrophitic plants, from passive to fire-activated but I probably shouldn't start talking about that because you'll need to pull out the duct tape.)

(Technically, 'serotinous' plants are a category in which plants release seeds over a longer period of time, and it doesn't matter how they are released, but the seeds that open by fire fit into this category.) The eucalyptus tree, the lodgehole pine, and other trees encase their seeds in resin that can only be melted by fire (thereby releasing the seeds).

The thing that I love about this concept is this: we need to burn to grow. I recently read this book called 'Life in Oil' about the Cofàn tribe in Ecuador who were drastically impacted by oil companies. And the thing was: Yes. They were impacted horribly (physically, psychologically, environmentally, the works). They also survived. They figured out, through tumult and trial and falling apart, how to keep going.

This song screams to me of that same instinct. I mean, look at us. This is what we do, isn't it? We fight, we fall, we continue. We're just like every other aspect of nature in that we are born, and in our fight to continue, we impact everything around us. We're just a part of the cycle and eventually we will decay back to where we belong and serve as soil for our children. And all we'll be? A story. And after a while, not even that. Just a whisper of what was.

In a way? I find that freeing. We might as well live the life we want to live; how little it will matter. (This isn't absolution, please don't go murdering people.) I just mean that I don't have to put so much weight into every little thing. Not everything has to be joyful or depressing (and if we really think about it, everything is always a balance of both). It can just be what it is.

We are as we are. And we don't have to love ourselves for it, but we don't have to hate ourselves either.

I love the lyrics to this song. For a long time, I misheard 'We're animals of love/ the city never makes us beg' as 'the city never makes us pay' and I don't know why? But I kind of like that image.

We are animals of love. And that's okay.

We are the cogs in a continuous cycle and we always will be.

I think often of this monologue (content warning for the video, it's gory, but you don't need to watch it, you can just listen) from 'Midnight Mass' so often, in regards to this:

We just are. Everything just is.

[artsy-waffle19]

Rating dynamics between characters in Dead Boy Detectives that never actually interacted that much or at all, for absolutely no reason.

- Starting off with probably the most reasonable as number one: Charles and Monty.

I absolutely adored the quiet bitchiness between these two. Not a word was said and everyone could see they can't stand each other now make them solve a case together. Bonus points if they actually bond over shitty parents or the fact that they're basically different flavours of the same person. Solid pairing I give it a 7/10 and I would love to see more of them in s2.

- Up next we got number two: Jenny and The Cat King.

I genuinely don't know why everyone is sleeping on this pairing, this is a comedic goldmine and i will not take any criticism on it. I mean...goth & slut is such a funny concept for a duo and I REALLY want the two of them to be forced into solving some kind of minor case. If we want to ramp up the chaotic energy we should absolutely add Maxine into the mix (bonus points if she's a ghost and becomes besties with CK) 9/10 i love it.

- After the strong one let's go with a chill one for number three: Tragic Mick and the dandelion sprites

Just imagine them, in their silly jar on the counter of the shop and trying to insult him and cussing out his customers. Imagine people entering the shop, trying to buy something and being forced to listen to his tragic backstory while getting roasted for their haircut at the same time. Fun concept but not my fav so I'll give it a 5/10.

- For number four we've got: Edwin and Kashi

I feel like this could actually be an incredibly funny combination. All-time-trauma-olympics-winner and Guy-who-got-swallowed-by-a-giant-fish-and-refuses-to-let-it-traumatise-him. The more thought i put into this, the madder i get that this wasn't actually in the show this could have actually had some super interesting influence on Edwins character development and it's a comedic goldmine. Confident 10/10 would love to see it.

- Next up is number five with: Monty and The Night Nurse

Either they would get along great or one of them would start crying. Generally I think they would be a team that Gets Shit Done and I, for one, would love to see it. All in all it's pretty similar to the Niko and NN dynamic tho so I give it a 7/10.

- Number six iiiiisssss (drumroll pls): Night Nurse and The Cat King

I know both of them were mentioned before but fr this is hilarious. Either he would end up dead or she would quit her job immediately, no inbetween. They don't have much conflict besides annoying each other to the death so there aren't that many possibilities to elaborate on the dynamic but it would have been a funny side dialogue in the show. I give it a 7/10 (bonus points if we throw crystal into the mix, simply because she would enjoy frustrating the shit out of the other two and I need that kind of content in my life).

- Last but not least with number seven, we've got Esther and Maxine

I feel like they would become best friends. They would get along ✨flawlessly✨. Not necessarily because they have much in common but simply because they match each others freak and would feel very validated. Imagine them, having a girls night and gossiping about crazy shit they did due to a relationship gone wrong. Honestly flawless I would have loved seeing Maxine as an evil goon. (Bonus points if she ends up getting a crush on Esther, who thinks it's incredibly entertaining). Can't find any minus point in this so I'll give it a 10/10.

feel free to add ur own to this

[suzannahnatters]

Historical inaccuracy is not bad, historical inaccuracy is not good, historical inaccuracy is a TOOL.

The reason you DON'T want to use historical inaccuracy? Is if it WEAKENS the story.

The reason you DO want to use historical inaccuracy? Is if it STRENGTHENS the story.

There are in fact a ton of ways that you can use anachronism and historical inaccuracy to strengthen a story!

Obviously, sometimes historical inaccuracy is a dramatic liberty necessary to fit a piece of history neatly into a book, movie, or television show. Sometimes characters, timelines, and events need to be consolidated or telescoped. Literally no one should complain about this.

But you can also use historical inaccuracy for fun! Stephen Sommers' THE MUMMY and VAN HELSING add mummies, vampires, Kate Beckinsale in a bustier and tight pants, flesh-eating scarabs, and fully automatic crossbows to nineteenth century history. Is this realistic? No. Is it a whole hecking lot of fun? You bet. I wrote multiple stories where Tsar Nicholas II of Russia is a failpire with a lisp, because I thought it would be hilarious, and it was. A huge part of why this works is because nobody is going to go away from these stories believing that a word in them is true. The bigger and sillier you get, the better off you are.

Use it for relatability! A KNIGHT'S TALE is a justly beloved classic that works better than almost any other movie I can think of at conveying a realistic flavour of actual medieval life. It does that despite being riddled with historical inaccuracies. I am pretty sure that medieval people did not party to David Bowie, for instance. But the music they did dance to would have been as much fun for them as David Bowie is for us. That's the point of the anachronism, and the same technique works gorgeously throughout the movie in a host of different ways, from dialogue to fashion.

Use it for the aesthetic! Anna Bright's beautiful book THE HEDGEWITCH OF FOXHALL is set in a version of early medieval Wales that definitely never existed, for example with modern style pubs in every village. This works because the story isn't meant to teach us history - it's a cosy adventure story that's meant to evoke a timeless, fairytale ideal of Welshness. Bright's inaccuracies aren't a mistake - they are a feature of the setting. And while badly handled historical inaccuracy will make a setting feel blurred, indistinct, or unconvincing, properly handled anachronisms like the ones in this book will sharpen and enhance the sense of setting.

I'm sure that this is not an exhaustive list - but the whole point is that historical inaccuracy is a FEATURE, something that can be used to achieve a desired artistic effect.

There's one kind of historical inaccuracy that I can't forgive, however. Let's talk about my nemesis, Ridley Scott. The reason I can't even with that man is that he so clearly imagines that he is making Serious Movies about Serious History. All his historical movies are pitched as the stories of great historical people whose lives created the world we live in today. The problem is that none of the stories he tells actually happened that way. His characters are imaginary. Middle Eastern nobleman Balian of Ibelin wasn't raised as a blacksmith in France. Legendarily faithful Queen Sibylla didn't cheat on her husband. Famed peasant hero Robin Hood wasn't a champion of BARONIAL rights. I could go on, but I won't. Ridley Scott wants us to think that he's teaching us Real History…and that's the one case where I really cannot excuse the rank historical inaccuracy.

[murderedbyhomework]

I don't think we're emotionally ready for this, but can Li Lianhua eat spice?

Okay so we know the Bicha/Verdtea poison neutralises the allergens in peanuts so it doesn't affect Li Lianhua. That implies a certain level of personalisation to Li Lianhua's immune system in general, but also shows that any sort of "toxin", even the kind of allergen that seems to only affect Li Xiangyi relatively mildly, gets neutralised by the poison. Presumably, his body can't absorb that allergen.

So peppers are spicy because of something called capsaicin, which burns your tongue and creates the feeling of pain. That's probably classified as a "toxin" by the poison, right? So can Li Lianhua taste spice?

If he can't, it would absolutely explain why, to Fang Duobing's horror, he added red peppers to the lotus seed dessert he made him for during the Cailian Manor case. Li Lianhua was a street kid, which means he doesn't really have a very solid grasp on what most people consider tasty food and suitable flavour combinations. Then he's poisoned, and if the poison causes him to be unable to taste spice, it absolutely stands to reason that he doesn't think chillies don't belong in deserts. He probably thinks "oh the color is pretty, I don't get why people low key die when they taste them. Let me add them to this dessert for my new friend and see if he reacts as hilariously as other people do to it".

Actually now that I think of it, what other foods would the poison affect?

[philtstone]

title: we close our eyes and dream (the world has turned around again)

in the year of our lord 2024 i wrote psych fic ... wow there was this hilarious list of reverse prompts floating around tumblr a little while ago and one of them, instead of high school au, was "nursing home au". something somewhere fundamental in my brain clicked and i thought "this would be perfect for shules. i just know it" and then after many years of being generally too terrified to try my hand at the very unique narrative flavour that is psych, i wrote this. title is from "we close our eyes" by the oingo boingos which plays over the final scene of the series finale and always makes me cry. i hope u enjoy reading this as much as i enjoyed writing it!

Juliet is sitting alone by the couches when she meets him. 

They’re in the dining hall at Glorious Pines, and she’s chewing her lip and staring impotently at her fancy-looking plate of risotto. She hates that risotto is making her feel so weird and insecure. Dinner with Sarah was usually a lot simpler than this; Juliet has never really been a good cook, and her granddaughter was often too busy with work to manage anything more than a mis-mash of premade Trader Joe’s delicacies. Now she’s in this big beautiful building, surrounded by vibrant and dynamic old people who’ve been living here long enough to all know each other and have interesting hobbies and be in on the latest gossip. Juliet’s always loved making new friends, but the risotto is reminding her how out of practice she really is. Up until four days ago she had been taking her meals with Sarah, who’d moved Juliet to Santa Barbara in May so she wouldn’t be all alone in that old house of theirs. And before that – well, she’d been alone. Her hobbies have gotten progressively more old ladyish over the last five years, and while it’s true that she sewed her own pajamas while in her twenties, too, that wasn’t all she spent her time doing. She’s pretty sure her glamorous neighbors by the lemonade bowl who still have the guts to wear red lipstick won’t be too interested in her recent return – for nostalgia purposes only , and not because she likes solving the mysteries before the book does – to her ancient childhood box of Nancy Drew novels. And, gosh, the last time a man flirted with her was … oh, twenty years ago, now.  

She’s pushing the sticky, fragrant rice around and trying not to think too hard about the prospect of socializing with strangers when he materializes into the armchair beside her.

The sudden and graceful materializing is on its own impressive, considering most of the residents of this place have had hip replacements.

“Oh – hello,” Juliet says, mostly just to be polite

“Hi!” says the man. “You’re in my seat.”

Juliet freezes with one spoonful of risotto finally halfway up to her mouth. She narrows her eyes at him from behind her bifocals. “Excuse me?”

“My seat,” he explains. “I was sitting right there. I had, in fact, just gotten up to go grab Gus some orange juice – you know Gus –” Juliet doesn’t “-- And now I am back, and, so, as you can see, that was my seat.”

Juliet blinks. He’s around her own age, early seventies, with a full head of thick grey hair, bright hazel eyes that crease liberally at the corners, no glasses, and a big nose that probably gave him a striking profile in his youth. He’s wearing a garish red polo shirt that says FASHION! on the front in block letters, and house slippers.

READ MORE ON AO3

[aidiscoursebingo]

the bingo card template ^^

(breakdown of each box under the cut)

IP brain: several arguments against AI art hinge on IP and copyright law: e.g., accusations of plagiarism or copyright infringement, navel-gazing wrt "ownership" of art, etc. this means nothing to anyone who doesn't believe in the virtue of copyright lol

all art is hobbyism: anti-AI types frequently pretend that all art is something done solely for fun and/or personally meaningful to the artist and/or not labour

the hands/teeth!!!!: a common argument against AI art is that the hands or teeth look uncanny or unrealistic (even though that's one of the coolest things about AI art lmao)

we NEED overworked animators. To Save Human Artists: many argue against the use of AI to automate more menial aspects of creative labour (e.g., background art in animation), even when the work in question is famously backbreaking. (animation is only an example, and this box can apply to other art-related jobs)

art requires intentionality: a bizarre and common argument--"AI art isn't art because real art is 'intentional'." ignores (a) that there are intentional aspects of AI art (even setting aside the formation of prompts, the decision to choose a generated result and share it publicly is an undeniably intentional one) and (b) that several other art forms (photography, documentary, collage, etc) also preclude artists from having that flavour of foundational "every-brush-stroke" control over the piece

art requires a financial transaction: "it's only real art if someone got paid for it" (in other words, the opposite of the all art is hobbyism argumetn. thank god for the consistency of the anti-AI movement o7)

hyper-conventional conception of what makes "good" art: the manner in which opponents of AI target perceived flaws in AI art (blurriness, spatial abnormality, "count the fingers!", etc) tends to betray deeply reactionary values wrt "good" art as art that pursues representational realism.

"techbros": "-bro" is a commonly used, ill-defined pejorative that generally means "any person the speaker doesn't like." opponents of AI tend to cast what they call "AI advocates" as "techbros" interchangeable with NFT shills. besides being implicitly gendering, it's also hilarious--which side in this debate is closer to saying "i own this image so you can't right click it"?

"soul"/"humanity": there are frequent pseudo-spiritual appeals to art (even corporate art, apparently!) as having an essential "soul", "humanity", or even "godliness" that AI art lacks. this is of course meaningless to people who don't see any value in spiritualism

motte & bailey/strawman: opponents of AI frequently switch gears whenever they get cornered--when they realize that "we need stronger copyright law" is an indefensible position, they say "well REAL art requires effort!!", and when they're defeated on THAT front too they switch to "well AI is making artists lose their jobs!" and they keep doing this ad nauseam instead of acknowledging the flaws in their arguments. really it's less motte & bailey and more bailey & bailey & bailey & bailey &

ableism: people critiquing AI frequently choose to be ableist for some reason. the most common trick is inspiration porn (i.e., "so-and-so disabled person learned to paint with their teeth, what's your excuse?!")

"stolen"/"theft": two of the three favourite words of the anti-AI crowd. even if you accept the fundamental IP-brain premise (which, to be clear, you shouldn't), a baseline knowledge of how training datasets work should still make claims of theft fall flat.

reactionary BS (free space): arguments against AI tend to rely on several foundationally reactionary concepts, be they luddism, copyright, or the ~essence of humanity~

(in)directly insults collage/readymades/photography/etc: a massive portion of diatribes against AI include arguments that also lock several other mediums (the above plus music sampling/covers, choreography, film direction, etc) out of "counting" as art. frankly, a massive portion of them are indistinguishable from the reactionary outrage against duchamp's fountain

"you know it's not even ACTUALLY AI right??": people love to point out that "AI" is a buzzword and that computer programs are not actually sentient, and then pretend they've done something

AI artists are immoral/lazy/etc: several pejoratives tend to come out. see also: stupid, talentless, heartless, abusive, etc

"collage": the third favourite word. to be clear, AI image generators are NOT "collage machines", and if they were, that would be a good thing

classism: another thing that jumps out frequently. right-wing ideas about labour and poverty abound

art requires effort: another bizarre idea--the implication that more effort = better art. surely by this logic the amount of labour hours behind Avengers 16 must make it the ultimate opus

"just commission an artist": an annoying adage

stealing jobs from artists: same argument as self-checkouts

childish insults directed at AI: lots of people love making juvenile jabs at the AI. there's no sweeter irony than seeing someone write a diatribe about how AI is Not Really A Person then act as if they've just humiliated it

petty bourgeois artists = underdog: a lot of commission fanartists are convinced that aligning themselves with (petty-)bourgeois interests is going to help them in the long run

acting like AI operates independently: everyone seems to think that no humans are even involved in the process and that AI generators just sit in a dark room operating themselves, spitting images into the void

no understanding of how machine learning works: self-explanatory. opponents of AI don't seem to even know the bare minimum about the subject they argue about

(also yes i do consider diagonals to be a bingo, i dont care if it's not proper lmao)

[vanmarkus]

i swear seeing how mean and hateful some people in this fandom makes me want to cry in such a. dejected way. i'm not sad i'm scared?? maybe it's silly but i feel like i'm walking in the street holding my girlfriend's hand instead of just scrolling through a supposedly queer friendly space. because this isn't about tommy really. like it is but it's what he represents and what people are saying so unashamedly and seeing all the people either agreeing or replying like "omg so funny ur so hilarious" oh my fucking god. they're talking like the bigots we hate it's impossible to talk with them and also yeah. scary. idk

yeah it's wild... like, i feel like this entire thing; the behaviours, the vocabulary, the community around it is very layered

but at the core it's nothing but entitlement — "i have the right to diminish others based on what they look like, what things they like, how they speak, what's their gender, who are they attracted to, etc."

and it's basically right wing rhetoric, but these people think they are being progressive. "i'm a feminist so i hate men" "i'm a lesbian so i hate men" are two things that have been around for a really long time in radfem circles and it was always a vile thing to believe and that didn't change.

what's different is that it's now spewed by kids who grew up glued to their tablets and phones, hanging out in supposed queer-centric online spaces which made them forget or never even realise what being homophobic really means, what being beaten to death for something that you couldn't change about yourself even if you wanted to means, having your rights taken away and always debated... it's just a cute online identity for them, i bet most of them never even had to consider holding their girlfriend's hand in public...

there is also the non-american aspect of it all, cuz yk, i'd say there are places where the situation is better in general (for example the UK, despite how shitty our last gov was) or much worse (for example anywhere in eastern europe).

but people who come out and say with their full chests that they are homophobic and it's their right because they are another flavour of queer have zero real life experience with homophobia.

anyway this was just a longwinded way of saying that if you're a bigot online, you're a bigot irl and your progressivism is nothing but a performance of moral superiority and you deserve nothing for making other people feel unsafe around you <3

(also just for clarity and context: the latest person who acted this way was actually using a slur for Eddie not Tommy, then all the above was their "defense" for "reclaiming it")

[holylulusworld]

So Y/N is almost done preparing her world famous pie which the whole gang loves. She puts the portion on different plates and goes to the kitchen table and puts one in front of charlie, one for Sam, one for Cas, one for Jack who looks at the plate like a 5 year old looks at disneyland for first time in real. And finally she puts the final plate in front of Dean with a little more thud and takes her seat.

Y/N- Oh Guys plz dig in…I hope you all like it!!

Cas- Yes Y/N, i must say it is very delicious, i would like to share the recipe with my fellow angel friends in heaven.. If you don’t mind ofcourse

Y/N- Yes ofcourse Cas, thank you, well i hope everyone in heaven atleast likes it and not like on earth!

*she gives a annoyed side look to Dean and goes back to eating*

Dean on other hand is staring at her plate, a plate which has a burnt toast on it rather than a pie. He looks at Sam giving him an expression with Sam reciprocating him with only an apologetic look. It is now he realises he was in huge trouble.

“Oh god dean , plz don’t stop” says Y/N as he makes her way down to her body, now ascending peppering kisses up her thigh.

“Can i take these off babe?” he asks tugging at hem of her shorts.

“Yes plz” she says whimpering, her whole body on her but also because she has a surprise planned underneath those shorts for him.

Finally after dragging her shorts off her body, agonisingly slow whilst no taking his lust blown eyes off her, he keeps on sucking his way till he reached to his prize. Kissing on top of her soaked panties “ Baby”, he goes in again and smells something fruity, well it is a fruit for him, that he loves to eat *wink wink* but why does her panties smell like his favourite apple pie. “ Babe?” he asks Y/N who has her eyes closed and fists balled in pleasure “Yeah Dean” she replies with a low voice. When he doesn’t reply she open her eyes and looks up to caught him staring confusingly between her legs . “ Babe , not that i mind, but why do my 🐱smells like apple pie.

She sits up nervously, “Oh Actually Dean, these are edible panties, and i, actually i ordered them in this flavour just for you…you know because apple pi…” before she could complete her sentence, Dean starts laughing “ Oh my God Y/N, an apple pie edible panties, that’s so fucking hilarious” . He continues to laugh not noticing how Y/N’s face drops in embarrassment. He didn’t mean to make fun of her, i mean his favourite pie and her 🐱, it was like a Heaven for Dean, but he was so caught up in the moment, he didn’t even notice Y/N get up and get dressed. His laughter dies out when he sees her finally.

Dean- Hey, why are you dressed babe?…i haven’t eaten yet..like literally

And he burst into laughter again which only stopped when he heard the door slammed shut and Y/N no where to be found

And the realisation dawned upon Dean

“Bollocks”

Charlie’s voice brings him back to current

“oh my god Y/N, this is so fucking delicious, damm girl, you are so good”

“thanks charlie, i have got some left in the fridge and since you appreciate it so much, it’s all yours”

Y/N replies to charlie hugging her, while giving Dean her death stare.

Dean looks down at his well Burn Toast Pie and knows he has to do something. FAST!!

🤓🤓🤓🤓

Oh Shucks!!!

Who is gonna help Deano

Sam?

Charlie?

Cas?

Jack…uhm no i guess

Or maybe Lulu?🤔🤔

Aw, I loved it. ♥♥♥ It was so funny seeing Dean pie-less.

He only got burned toast...OMG. My beloved pie enthusiast didn't get pie.

Dean, you fool. You don't laugh if your girl tries to do something sexy/naughty for you.

How can we fix this?

---

The only way to get back in your good graces is to apologize and do something special for you.

So, Dean was looking online for eatable thongs for him to wear. 😈

He placed candles all over your shared room, and put on your favorite romantic music.

Dean will try to make things up to you tonight. And maybe, you'll get to taste his eatable thong too...🥵

[actual-changeling]

you’re the only person i feel comfortable saying this to. but i feel like a fake fan for not wanting to/not engaging with tlou2 content. i don’t like the story and i don’t like the characters/characterizations. it makes me really sad and uncomfortable at times. i won’t be watching season 2 when it comes out. i’m sure the making of it and the actors will all be incredible it obviously has nothing to do with them.

i know there’s like a whole thing where you don’t have to engage with content you don’t like blah blah but it just feels like *some* (emphasis on some, not generalizing here) tlou fans really get mad with people who don’t like tlou2, they think that they don’t understand it and are just mad there isn’t a happy ending and just hate abby. which, idk, i would never expect a happy ending of an apocalypse story. but there are so many problems with the story that i cannot get over. and yeah. i don’t really think **** should have died (asterisks for spoiler). honestly these people make me want to engage with tlou2 even less.

i love tlou1 and it’s been such an outlet for me and for so many others with parental trauma. i think it’s okay to want to protect that.

i wonder if you think it’s okay and still good etiquette (for lack of better word) to not engage with tlou2 for these reasons?

i know you’ve spoken about tlou2 before and your take on it. i wouldn’t ask you to go through this all again, but i just felt like this was a safe outlet to say all this. i’m sorry if this was a bother!!!

It is completely fine to send me asks about this, don't worry! I'm glad you feel comfortable enough to do so.

I've watched the show and played both games, and it is always okay to dislike any aspect of a canon universe, no matter what your reasoning is.

A tiny part of me is still riding the denial train and hopes that Craig will at the very least vastly improve the plot if not change it, but since Neil is also involved I doubt it. The first game was perfect as a stand-alone, and just like you, the characters and the world helped me work through a bunch of issues.

It didn't need a part 2, especially not one that demolished everything they had built. The one we got also destroyed some of the comfort the first game had simply because once you know how the story ends, you will never be able to see it again like you did before.

Pedro and Bella will be amazing in season two, that am sure of, and I hope Kaitlyn can shield herself from the hate she will undoubtedly receive.

The fandom is, like you said, very. sensitive about part 2 opinions that aren't "I loved it and want Abby to rail me", and it would be hilarious if it weren't sad and didn't involve those people harassing others. After playing part 2, I realised that 90% of the tlou content I see anywhere is so removed from what is actually happening in the game that I cannot take anyone who praises it seriously.

For some reason, many seem incapable of separating themselves from people's opinions about the game. If you told me you liked the game and constantly talk about it, sure, fine, I am not a toddler, I can co-exist or even be friends with someone who has a different opinion on a video game. 99% of the tlou2 fandom just cannot do the same and I have no idea why, they take any and all non-positive takes and treat them like I personally insulted their mother.

The pure game mechanics of it, the infected, the environmental designs, the details—all of that is beautiful and I genuinely enjoy playing Ellie's Seattle Days because of that; I just try not to think about why she's there. But for a story-driven game, good mechanics and nice graphics aren't enough to balance out the shit writing.

Even if we ignore the Death tm, there are so many other issues, including various flavours of homophobia and transphobia (that I also never saw anyone talk about??? and I mean transphobia in the writing itself, not the characters), plot issues, pacing issues, horrible character development, and much, much more.

Not liking the game and feeling uncomfortable watching/playing it makes perfect sense, and you 100% have the right to block any and all content related to part/season 2. I know you know that, but sometimes it really does help to have someone else tell you something you technically already know (half of my therapy sessions consist of me and my therapist talking about stuff I already know).

No one—and I mean no one—gets to decide that for you. Anyone who demands you expose yourself to something that makes you feel like shit is an asshole and has no validity.

I hope this wasn't too rambly and turned out somewhat coherent. My inbox is always open for you (or others) to talk about anything tlou related. I've weathered several waves of hate from those people and I couldn't give less of a fuck about it.

[castlebyersafterdark]

yeah finn's humour is deffo bizarre but its also got this flavour where we often see that he's not mimicking the jokes with a crowd that would get it. i myself have what most people might call niche references but you usually have a couple of close friends who totally vibe that with you and you don't really whip that humour out for others. or if you do, you kind of tailor it to be unique to the context and situation, in order to make others laugh and feel included. or maybe to reveal your taste and humour. but shared humour in conversation and groups is usually there to sort of build on the situation. whereas with finn i find that a lot of what he says and does kind of doesnt make sense or it's a closed circle of references that some people wont get, which is really interesting as a choice for him to make those jokes. to me it speaks of anxiety and filling spaces by making people laugh, which, no shade, i mean most comedians started that way lol. he's got this specific its kind of like 'im going to joke about this even though no one here will get it' which is what makes him awkward and funny to me lol. ofc sometimes it lands and he's hilarious, but i think a big part of being a funny person is reading a room and making the comedy fit into the space, either in a normal humour way, or by taking people by pleasant surprise with something a little left field.

all comics take risks that don't work and i do think finn sees himself as a comedian perhaps before an actor. so its just learning and growing. i really remember a clip of him squinting with big buggy fake joke eyeballs in, just sitting there casually and asking everyone 'what? WHAT??' in this really genuine way, and you can just hear/see millie and noah and everyone pissing themselves in the background, it's amazing and so funny. thats classic humour, though, im not sure how alt that is. it works because he himself isnt normal though. i think the best comedy is in friction and surprise, so finn could make lots of 'normal' gags funny and fresh just by way of who he is. im really curious to see his movie he directed because its always been clear to me that he wants to break into comedy but keeps getting put into horror or dramatic roles, and i think... even though the industry often sleeps on people's potential, there's a reason for that lol

This is really great, thank you for the analysis and insight!! I don't have much to add again because this is spot on and thorough. Very accurate. Even as seemingly elusive as he is - he's not quite the prototypical enigma. He has a way about him, and I totally kind of get it. I think this read has it down. Fun!! 😁

[dirtydragonthoughts]

Transformers Yuletide Literary Fest - Day 10

Welcome to the Transformers Yuletide Literary Fest! I’ll be recommending one or two fics every day until Christmas. Feel free to join in if you’d like (I’m using the tag #tylf2023 for this.) All fics are complete!

(If I can easily find a Tumblr account for the author I’ll tag them. If you know of an author who has a Tumblr account and I didn’t tag them, please let me know so I can add it! )

Fics in my recommendations will come in two different flavours: tangy and spicy. 😄 As always, curate your own online reading experience, and mind the tags if necessary for your own safety. ♥

Tangy

Title: Spec Ops Mission 98: Jazz's Interrogation at Soundwave's Pedes

Author: @kc-anathema

Rating: Teen (contains plug-n-play interfacing)

Wordcount: 195, 290

Summary: Surrounded by the torrid fiction of his fellow Autobots, Jazz uncovers a Decepticon plot hidden amidst their written fantasies. Can the Spec Ops commander turn this plot of high treason into a narrative…of love? OR Jazz is surrounded by a bunch of perverted writers, and wouldn't you know it, one of them is a Decepticon.

Why I love it: This story left me stunned... in a good way. I started reading it as a WIP because the premise sounded hilarious (hahaha, the bots and cons are writing RPF fanfic about each other, hahaha). But as the story went on, it turned into a LOT more. It became a story about love and trust, and forgiveness and boundaries, set against the backdrop of a brutal war. And then when it ended and we got the wrap-up of all the threads that we hadn't even known existed... Wow. This was an amazing story, and I will definitely read it again someday.

Spicy

Title: The Angel Breaker

Author: @altraviolet

Rating: Explicit

Wordcount: 62,452

Summary: Mysterious, deadly creatures descend on the population of Cybertron, spreading a disfiguring, brainwashing disease. The wealthy retreat underground while the rest try to survive a dangerous and disrupted aboveground society.

Years after suffering a great personal loss, Drift works for Flatline doing menial tasks. But when Flatline sends him to find someone who has done the impossible – survive an attack – Drift finds himself swept up in a continent-spanning plot. To save the Cybertron they love, Drift and his allies must find out what these creatures are, who made them, and if they can be stopped.

Why I love it: One thing that I've always loved about Altraviolet's work is the worldbuilding. (If you've been paying attention at all to my recommendations over the past 10 days, you'll know that I LOVE me some good worldbuilding. 😄) This story has a wonderful amount, specifically focused on geology and botany, and their relation to culture. BUT ALSO it has a gripping story that sits on top of all that worldbuilding, with a "rare trio" that I never would have thought of myself, but it really works well here. The author has an excellent way of making sure each character has their own voice, and motivations, and hopes and fears, and then wraps it all up in story that somehow wouldn't feel out of place in a Mythology of Cybertron collection.

[sillywormz]

garak for the character ask game! Qs 4, 6 and 12

HOORAY IT'S HORRIBLE LIZARD TIME!!!!

4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in?

that's a toughie.......... 🤔 i think there are a lot of extremely funny crossovers you could do with him in it. but ngl i think it would be hilarious to see him in st prodigy. can you imagine how funny it would be for the writers to have to try and manage him in a kids show lol. idk if that's cheating since it's technically still star trek but the thought lives in my head rent free. i would love for him to fill in the spot of campy antihero cartoon character that a lot of shows have

6. What's something you have in common with this character?

if the wire is anything to go off of, we both don't like cold temperatures and bright lights. for him it's because he's a cardassian for me it's sensory issues lol. we're also both kinda chubby and have Scary Eyes 👁👁

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

semi-related to the last answer but fat garak is Real. to Me. in canon he's just average with some slight softness to him but i like to exaggerate it in my art and i appreciate it when others do as well.

kind of an obscure one but that one fic andy and sid read where him and bashir are married (sorry i forgot the name) featured garak having arthritis once he gets older and that's a headcanon i have for older garak now as well.........

other misc headcanons: mila is DEFINITELY his biological mother. garak and dukat had a messy horrible situationship as young men and they both mutually prefer to pretend it never happened. garak is definitely some flavour of queer but that one was obvious. probably a whole lot of other stuff i'm forgetting lol

[sharpth1ng]

Fun fact tho: we can't taste spice it basically only affects our pain receptors. So does that mean it's just another but of painplay? 😭🤣

Sorry, I'm not trying to be a dick but I'm going to nitpick because I teach this and the full story is hilarious.

So basically, taste receptors are chemoreceptors, which means they respond to the presence of specific chemicals. "Pain" as the nervous system experiences it is actually managed by a number of different kinds of receptors because they basically react to anything that could cause damage to your body. That means that there are pain receptors designed to respond to temperature, pressure, different kinds of motion, and also, chemicals (as well as some other things). Yes, that means that you can taste some things with your skin, your brain just doesn't process it the same way.

Capsaicin (the chemical that causes that spicy flavour) activates chemoreceptors and also some thermoreceptors that respond to heat. So actually you're tasting pain, and you can taste pain with your skin as well as your tongue. Cursed fact: you also have those same receptors on your butthole, so you can taste at least some things with your ass as well.

Theres a similar response to menthol (which tastes like mint basically) it activates chemoreceptors and also the same receptors that respond to cold.

Tl;dr- Spicy is both pain and also a taste, and you can taste that pain with your mouth, your skin, and your butthole (also some other parts of your digestive system too).

Conclusion: Yes, eating spicy stuff is absolutely painplay lmao.

[mishkakagehishka]

hello !!! sorry this is v random but i just got into enstars recently and i was wondering about that funky little mika guy . just in general . seknots-izumimir said ur absolutely insane about him (compliment) and to go ask u about it so 🧍‍♂️

LMFAOOO my MikaP slay when I get rec'd as the person to ask ab Mika.

In general? I'll keep this relatively bare, in that case, so you don't feel overwhelmed :3

Mika is just a lil guy. A lil dude. His full name is Mika Kagehira, the "Mika" is written in hiragana (he disliked it bc it was "feminine", a different character compared him to Michelangelo for it, etc etc), and his last name is written as 影片 - "shadow fragment". He grew up in an orphanage where he is heavily implied to have been parentified (he speaks often about being in charge of "taking care of the lil ones" when explaining why he's good at doing household chores or taking care of others). There are a few stories where he mentions his parents, and his bio even states "parents" in his bio, but he has a lot more moments where he implies he was never actually adopted, so it's kind of up in the air, but I lean towards "never adopted" bc it comes up more often and in situations he is less likely to lie in. (Like, he mentions parents when he talks to the MC, but the entire tone of that conversation was him being lowkey annoyed with her prying, whereas when talking to his unitmate whom he idolises, he mentions stuff like "at one point I stopped wanting to be adopted" and "you know I can't meet my parents even if I wanted to").

Anyway. He speaks the Kansai dialect, and I talked a lot about how beautifully they subvert the "country accent = idiot" trope with him, but in short, he does call himself stupid, but he is actually kind of a genius. He met his unitmate, Shu, when they were kids, and idolised him since then. He enrolled into Yumenosaki just because he wanted to see Shu again. Yumenosaki has famously difficult entrance exams - that he was able to pass. He also found a copy of the Mabinogion, as it was an English manuscript, it was very likely written in Middle English, and he went and read it using only a dictionary. I could barely even read parts of Canterbury Tales, and I'm, like, fluent. Anyway. He joined Valkyrie when he was a 1st year💅 Although back then, Nazuna was also a member, but along came the War and uh. I suggest reading Reminiscence * Marionette bc it's really good :)

After Shu's execution (which is to say, when Valkyrie's reputation was killed on-stage, Nazuna left the unit and Shu had a mental breakdown), Valkyrie became inactive. While Shu was recovering, Mika was the one taking up odd jobs to keep Valkyrie afloat, as well as taking care of Shu. He's a hardworking lad :] He had a tsundere phase that I feel we don't talk often enough about, but when he was a 2nd year is when the story begins and the player character arrives - due to her association with Trickstar and fine (?), Shu didn't trust her and often said things like, "We don't need a producer" to get her to fuck off. Mika took up the same attitude of calling her an enemy of Valkyrie, but he also very obviously wanted to befriend her, so you're left with some hilarious scenes. Such as in Toy Box, when he was doing a part-time job washing the dishes, and the Producer tries to talk to him because he was there sobbing about his money problems. I have these lines burnt in my memory because of how funny they were to me, but he starts off by saying, "oh, you want me to tell you my problems so you can find my weakness, huh, you fiend?!", then he gets startled and almost drops a plate - says he could have "started hating you for real", and quickly adds, "not that i'd have a problem with hating you". He warms up to you later, though, and by the current timeline, will often offer you candy :) Because he's normal and alwaysss carries candy on him. He likes fruity flavours :]

Anyway. His character development is really neat. During the start of the story, he was pretty much a doll to be manipulated, he let Shu control him and all he did, and he didn't mind it as Nazuna did, in fact he was very happy to play into this role. But as of the current stories, they're both developing past that, with Shu becoming more open to accepting his opinions and individuality, and Mika learning to be more independent and assertive. In Hermitage, he changes the entire concept of a new song very last-minute, which is something he would never have dared to do in the early stories, for example.

I think that's like. The biggest things about him? So for more minor lil fun facts - he has a lower sense of pain and will often not realise if he's pricked himself while sewing (he's also pretty good at sewing! The wikia has a section for clothes he's made), he makes art that leans into eroguro and grotesque (he's also a big fan of horror! He and Ritsu watch horror movies together, and he has a collection of scary posters and images he puts up in his room, apparently to sleep better, whatever he meant by that). He's blind as a bat in the dark <3 He has a twin sister that was featured in Ensemble Girls! They've met in an enstars story, Milky Way, but they didn't know they were siblings, however in EnGirls, she mentions having met her brother. EnGirls takes place during the current year of enstars, so i'm hoping for a crossover story. And you'll immediately notice he's the token heterochromia character - he actually used to hate his eyes and would blame them for why he was abandoned as a child. He had some form of social anxiety for a while where he was too scared to look people in the eye or talk to people at all for fear of his eyes "creeping them out". But he's still very anxious about going on radio and talk shows🫶 Another way of subverting the trope for his dialect, and directly mentioning it, is that people expect him to be extroverted and funny because of the way he speaks (Kansai is the dialect spoken by manzai comedians), and he feels that he disappoints people by being an introvert because of that. (And this is why i headcanon him calling himself stupid as an act - he can't make himself funny or extroverted, but he can make himself seem stupid, which plays into the stereotype, to "avoid disappointing people") Magazines describe him as cool, mysterious and "frail-looking".

I think I failed at making this succinct. If anything opened more questions, feel free to ask me to elaborate tho :) i love talking ab Mika!!!!