#it's my least fave of the series but that still puts it in my top games ever list

[matan4il]

Hello hello, sending hugs as always!

I was hoping you maybe be able to give me some inspiration for a small series of food photos I'm assembling for Channukah! I'm doing an 8 part series celebrating the different groups within Judaism to 1. Be loudly and proudly Jewish at this current time, and 2. raise awareness for non-ashki Jews. In the UK it's super hard to find many non ashki peeps which makes it hard to chat to people about other classic Channukah foods, but I was wondering if you knew of any particularly good ones (that aren't latke or sufganiyot)? Would hugely appreciate any suggestions you have!!

Hi darling, sending you the biggest hugs right back! <3

Oooh, Hanukkah foods! I'm not gonna lie, some of my fave Jewish foods come from this holiday. With your permission, I'll give a small introduction, just for anyone reading, who might be unfamiliar with Hanukkah, and curious... and also talk about some of the lesser known Hanukkah food traditions among European Jews, too.

So during Hanukkah, we celebrate a miracle that happened with the oil at the Temple in Jerusalem. After the Jews defeated the occupying Greek forces that had desecrated our Temple, we wanted to light again the eternal flame of the Menorah (the Temple candelabra) with olive oil, but after the destruction caused by the Greek forces, there was only enough left for one day, and it would take 8 days to get more oil. The miracle is that somehow, that small amount of oil lasted for the whole 8 days, meaning the light didn't go out again. To remember this miracle, we eat food fried in oil! Being Jewish is so good for your health. XD

In shops and bakeries around Israel, there are already sufganiot being sold. They are YUMMY, and while some people call them "the Jewish donuts," I can say that after having eaten American donuts, I def think sufganiot are way yummier (in part 'coz they're not as "heavy" because the dough it's made of is fluffier? More... airy? Not sure how to say it, but I hope you get the idea). Also, you don't get robbed, because someone made a hole in the middle of the sufgania, taking out nearly half of it. The traditional type has strawberry jam injected inside, and sugar powder on top, but in Israel there are some crazy fancy kinds, and every year they seem to become more extravagant.

Traditional sufganiot (you can see a bit of the jam on top, but half the fun is biting and getting to the "treasure" of lots of jam at the center of the sufgania):

Fancy sufganiot:

Then there's the latkes, or as they're called in Hebrew, levivot. They're like savoury pancakes made out of potatoes, and obviously they're fried in oil.

In many Jewish communities, there was a custom of giving kids special pocket money for Hanukkah. In Israel, this "money" is given in the form of chocolate "coins." I freaking loved this as a kid! It was fun unwrapping the "coins," eating the chocolate, and then (assuming I was careful when peeling them off), make a collection of the different "coins," or just play with the wrap.

Greek Jews used to make a bread from potatoes and yogurt:

Georgian Jews made levivot out of corn flour (sometimes filled with cheese), or out of potatoes AND nuts, giving it the shape of a big omelette. Here's the corn flour version:

Czech Jews had a custom saying goose is the best meat, so for Hanukkah, they often ate goose related dishes. For example, they would make levivot from potatoes, eggs, sugar, lemon and goose fat.

French and Swiss Jews would make levivot out of apples.

The Jews of Iraq, Algeria and Buchara (which is in Uzbekistan) used to put the Hanukkah pocket money for the kids inside honey cakes. In Algeria and Buchara they also sometimes made levivot with meat added inside.

The Jews of Romania and Austria used to light potato Hanukkah candles! This was likely because they were so poor. Still, a pretty cool thing, when you can light your candle, and eat it (or at least a part of it), too.

In northern Africa, Jews used to make a type of cookie called Debla (sometimes nicknamed "dough roses"), which originated in Libya. They're usually eaten with a sweet syrup. It's more of a Purim dish (the equivalent of Hamantaschen), but was sometimes prepared for Hanukkah as well. Traditional Debla:

And a slightly "fancier" Israeli version:

Okay, maybe my fave Hanukkah dish! It's called sfinge (the 'ge' is pronounced like in "sponge"), and it's basically the Moroccan sufgania, which later became popular among Tunisia and Libya Jews, too. It can be round with a hole in the middle, it can be in the shape of a ball, while Libyan Jews make it flat. It's eaten with either honey or sugar powder, but again, in Israel fancier versions developed... I'm not a great cook, so IDK to explain why, but it's even fluffier than the sufgania, and that's why it's my personal fave.

Traditional sfinge with honey:

With sugar powder:

Israelis always having to make everything fancier:

They even made a savoury version of flat sfinge...

I hope this helps! Have a wonderful day, darling! xoxox

[voidboymads]

Fic Authors Self Recc!!!

When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Spread the self-love ❤ I saw this post by @beaconfeels and had to join in!

This is the recc for my Teen Wolf fics (I might make another one later for my non-TW ones :3 )

Dick and Drugs Scotty Boy (Sterek. Rated E. WC 66k+)

Top fave of my Sterek fics but I warn that it’s pretty dark. Like most of my fics, I plan a general layout of chapters and then veer of script and change everything. Themes of violence and self harm are present but also healing for both our boys!

Some Kind of Human Contact (Steter. Rated E. WC 56k+)

Top fave of my Steter fics! This one was very fun to write because I felt like I could write both of them in just the way I see them :3 It’s a fun, raunchy romp/slice of life!

How it Begins (Steter. Rated E. WC 12k+)

This is the start to a three part series. I originally planned to finish this one right after the other but my attention span waned a little >.> I’m still working on the third part so it will be completed evenatually! I will warn there is death and unhealthy ways of dealing with grief in the fic.

Darker the Weather//Better The Man (Stackson. Rated E. WC 9k)

One of those moments caught in the rain. I love writing when it’s raining and storming so this one-off is just filled with rainy-smexy goodness <3

Gunshots (Steter. Rated T. WC 3k)

This small one-off has a special place in my heart. I wrote it on a whim on my phone and uploaded it with little editing but the response to it was astounding! :3 I plan on writing out a fleshed out one-off (maybe chaptered fic, its up in the air atm) to it at some point.

Not going to tag anyone but if anyone sees this and wants to put their fics up be sure to tag me so I can see it too! :3

[yichens]

edits i made in 2024 ✨

thanks for tagging me krish @i-got-the-feels [x] ♥ am also trying to incorporate the tumblr top ten posts into this bc i don't want to do that as it is, so thank you for tagging me into that antania @riggerbison [x] and zey @fadelsburger [x] ♥

Post your most popular and/or favorite edit/gifset for each month (it’s okay to skip months!)

tagging: @forcebook @thamepo @chezlalune @ruanbaijie @luna-lina @srnileforme @wanderlust-in-my-soul no pressure and if you've done this or something like this already, please send it my way or tag me into the post's replies! i'd love to look at everybody's creations and give them some love :')

JANUARY: morkday + holding hands [x]

the most popular and tbh my personal favorite was this morkday edit i made based on a quote that is from the damn city of bones (2007) by cassandra clare. i didn't know that back when this quote punched me in the face and made me think about it for a couple of days but i honestly laughed when i finally googled it... worked out very well tho! i love hand symbolism, especially in last twilight, and the golden colors are lovely for them ♥ i also ended up loving the last image in this set even if i first struggled with the composition.

this was my number 1 post on my tumblr top ten.

(also gotta add that it still feels insane that last twilight was still going on in 2024... it feels like it was ages ago. i barely remember most of it anymore, probably bc of the heartbreak and trauma. i'm a changed person in january 2025)

rest of the months under the cut bc i ramble!

FEBRUARY: valentine's day vice versa rewatch [x]

my best decision for last year was to rewatch both my school president and vice versa during the time before valentine's day. it healed me, held me gently, filled me with love and warmth. am happy that the set i made after that to show love, once again, for the romance show and soulmates couple of all time was both my most popular and personal fave ♥ i love how the set turned out and how the colors work in this. i will forever be thankful to vice versa for its colors and overall brilliance.

this was my number 8 post on my tumblr top ten.

MARCH: 23.5 episode 3 [x]

it's a close call between several of my 23.5 episode edits but this happens to be the most popular one during this month. i never finished 23.5 which somehow saddens me, but towards the end, i just lost interest, and so this edit series was also left unfinished. i liked the concept tho and loved playing with the colors each week!

tribute to mork methas [x]

personal favorite cannot be any other edit than this bc i put all my heart into creating it. i am still so angry about what last twilight did to mork as a character; how all his trauma and pain was pushed aside, how the story never gave him the space and time he needed, how on top of all else they managed to butcher this amazing man. i don't even want to look at him in episode 12 bc i cannot recognize mork there. he is no that person, at least not to me. mork my beloved, i wish the writers didn't hate you so much </3

(btw i have this whole explanation/essay written under this post in my drafts. it's mostly me sharing in detail the thought process behind me making this edit and going through the several elements in it. if anyone is curious, i can post it, just holler haha)

APRIL: us / thamepo pilot crossover [x] [x]

the most popular edit for this month deserves to be the edit i made for the us pilot that was revealed during gmmtv 2024 part 2. i am still very excited to see the show itself and follow their filming journey occasionally on twt. i am just soooo ready to break my heart over the tragic lesbians woven together with strings of comfort, self-discovery, and heart ache.

this was my number 2 post on my tumblr top ten.

i picked the thamepo sister set as my personal fave bc i cannot separate these two. it was fun to connect them together and switch around the dialogues we hear in these pilots bc they just worked. they had very similar vibes and both talked about somewhat forbidden love. no wonder am currently so into thamepo (i hope it stays that way, am done with all the disappointment i've experienced with shows lately).

this was my number 4 post on my tumblr top ten.

MAY: 23.5 episode 9 [x]

the most popular set of the month. not much else to comment. i love the shot of ciize in this one, she's so cute :(

puentalay k-i-s-s-i-n-g [x]

my favorite for this month! a very impulsive edit that happened solely bc this ear worm of a song (that puen would def listen to) wouldn't leave me alone. it's silly, it's fun, it's cute, it's sexy, it's passionate. it's everything i could ask for! i honestly had a ton of fun with this edit despite having to edit a bazillion (26) separate images for this. the fact that those images are mostly of puentalay kisses makes it worth it.

JUNE: we are episode 12 [x] / 11 [x]

during summer, i was deep in my we are era. i honestly loved each set i made for the series bc for the longest time, i've wanted to make sets like this. i had my struggles with some of them but they all worked out in the end! episode 12 was the most popular one and episode 11 is just my personal favorite bc i love the purple + hints of yellow/golden -combo.

JULY: we are final episode [x]

to honor this show and all its relationships, from romantic to platonic, i decided on a rainbow set. it worked super well and i am happy it was so popular ^^ i miss this whole bunch and the amazing summer we had together. (sorry about the quality of this screenshot, the set is too long to fit it on my screen hhh)

this was my number 10 post on my tumblr top ten.

morkday + pvris songs [x]

probably my favorite set i've made this year overall. my whole year was defined by pvris's music (my spotify top artist) and it felt appropriate to link it together with morkday (and puentalay). i love the layout of this set, the colors, the noise. getting into the lyrics and choosing fitting parts for each image was the best part. my favorite image in the set is the last one that i started from while creating this set. i love the background image for that so much. another one i like is the green one for anywhere but here, bc of the image itself but also bc of the song and its message.

AUGUST: we are couples [x]

due to traveling around a lot in august and being exhausted from that, i didn't create much. but i am extremely happy with this set that is both the most popular and my personal favorite! everything about this one just worked out. i feel like it really summarizes all of these couples and shows their different sides.

as a fun fact, i have to say that i never put too much thought into choosing the animals for each couple, other than picking the bird for chainpun (for obvious reasons). cat for phumpeem came through peem more than phum who is very dog coded to me. instead, dog (or wolf?) ended up with tanfang bc of tan's puppy-like nature. qtoey getting the bunny feels like a stroke of genius given to me during the making of this set bc looking at it now, it's perfect. they have that sweetness and energy in them i connect with rabbits.

SEPTEMBER: sanvee + moon phases [x]

ok i might have lied in the july part bc this might be my overall favorite edit i made in 2024. creating it was a battle tho, and i felt like screaming for the best part of the process bc nothing felt like it was working out and i had a ton of problems while figuring out the aesthetic and the typo and the texts. but it all came together better than i ever expected and i just love this set now. i was happy to see ppl liked this too, so this is the most popular edit of this month.

(oab)plawan + hurt by sleeping at last [x]

it's hard to pick a favorite for this month – despite the sanvee edit already being my obvious FavoriteTM – bc i also love my set for miss mhon (day's mother) [x] that let me went my frustration towards her and my puen x phum parallels set [x] that makes me feel wrong in the head. but i loved this love doesn't have long beans a crazy amount compared to how short and silly that show was. there's just something about oab and plawan - about sailub and pon. they dragged me deep into places with this show and this edit is my ode to that. it was fun to make in its simplicity, i love the colors in it, and pon as plawan is just too pretty (especially when he cries).

OCTOBER: pluto episode 1 [x]

considering how popular pluto has been and how desperate we all are for gls, am not surprised this set is the most popular one for this month. tbh all my pluto edits have been doing quite well in my standards. i love making these so am just happy you guys like looking at them ♥

pit babe pairs + cartomancy [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]

never thought 2024 had a sudden pit babe obsession in its sleeve for me but i decided to embrace it. they've talked that the second season would start airing in april, after boys' journey s2 has ended most likely, and i am so very normal about all thi. i've fallen in love with all these boys, both the characters (more than i already was) and the actors, and this edit series only made everything worse. i haven't spent this much time researching things for an edit in a while and i just loved all the analysis i got to do. the process had its ups and downs but overall, i have to say i had a blast.

(picture chosen purely bc i vibed with this kim picture today, tho the kentakim edit might also be my favorite in the set bc the yellow is so good)

NOVEMBER: pluto episode 4 [x]

absolutely deserves to be the most popular set of this month! it's also my personal favorite out of all the edits i've made for pluto. the colors for this one just worked super well and the scenes are perfect, too. let's see how the series ends in two days, i hope i manage to find some fitting colors for the last episode, too :'D

this was my number 6 post on my tumblr top ten.

DECEMBER: yuanyi + you can love him, but you can't keep him [x]

the most popular set and also my favorite of this month, all bc i've gone down the rabbit hole with fangs of fortune. i spent an embarrassing amount of time making this set with all its details; starting from screenshotting the whole damn show and then picking the pictures for this edit from the over 400 images i got, to drawing the golden lines by myself on my drawing tablet so i got them just like i wanted. i shall be making so many more edits for this show, be warned.

this was my number 7 post on my tumblr top ten.

top 10 posts of 2024 then are:

morkday + hands (381 notes)

us pilot (295 notes)

last twilight episode 11 (285 notes)

thamepo pilot (283 notes)

jimmysea for starry magazine (271 notes)

pluto episode 4 (252 notes)

yuanyi + you can love him (231 notes)

vice versa rewatch 2024 (222 notes)

last twilight episode 10 (211 notes)

we are final episode (207 notes)

(you can check your top ten posts here)

it was fun to look back into my year in edits like this and see how i've gone through so many phases in 12 months. i cannot even recognize the person i was in around, let's say, last february. or during summer. it's insane how the night changes or however that thing goes.

thank you if you read this far, and if you've liked my creations or left nice tags under them, i thank you even more! it's an honor to be creating to everybody here and i am grateful that others keep enabling me even when i usually create for myself and maybe two other ppl. it is very important to me tho that i get to be part of this amazing community and don't need to just yell into the void by myself ♥

[writingwhimsey]

Hello! Congratulations on your milestone!! For the prompt, i thought it would be interesting the one with the suitors reacts to mc wearing a bikini, with Shingen and Motonari!

Thank you my dear! And thank you for asking for my top two faves! This one is definitely spicy! And it was fun to write!

400 Follower Celebration

Smut/NSFW Headcanon: Suitor reacts to MC/reader in a bikini

Suitor(s): ikesen Shingen & ikesen Motonari

NSFW 18+ content

Shingen:

Shingen’s gray eyes are always on you. You are his favorite person to look at and the most beautiful sight he has ever beheld. But when you step out onto the beach, wearing a bikini… his eyes are glued to you…and so are his hands.

“This is the clothing you wear to swim in this time? I like it.” He says, his hands sliding over the bare skin of your curves. “So…revealing.”

You giggle and do a little turn, holding up a bottle of sunscreen. “Can you help me put this on?” You ask.

“With pleasure, my goddess.” He answers. He then gladly lathers you in the sunscreen., his hands moving sensually over you bare skin…even the parts you could actually reach yourself. His fingertips “accidentally” slip under your bikini, caressing your breasts and the curve of your butt.

You will spend your time at the beach, laying out or playing in the water, Shingen unable to keep his hands off of you. And when you get into the water? Oooh…those hands get to wandering, knowing no one can see what is going on beneath the water.

He holds you, your back to his front, allowing him to place kisses along your neck and nip at your ear. His hands will be fully under your bikini, playing with your breasts before one of them slips down beneath your bottoms, fingers playing with that sweet spot between your legs. He will keep going until he has you cumming at least three times…or until you’re begging for him to take you back to your room, which he will happily do.

Once you two are back in your room and alone, he is spending the night properly worshiping his goddess and telling you just how stunning you look in your bikini. He mentions wanting to bring the bikini back home when you return to the Sengoku so he can enjoy you in it more.

Motonari:

Man goes from zero to horny in an instant upon seeing you in the bikini. He hadn’t anticipated that your swimming clothes would be THAT revealing! You had tried to warn him, but he didn’t think the warning was enough. It wasn’t any different than the underwear you had been wearing since you guys had arrived in the modern day!

You give him a playful smirk as you look at him. “You like it?”

Motonari blinks as he looks at you, his face heating up. “Ya really hafta ask?”

You do a little spin, going slowly to make sure he gets the full view. Hips shaking a little when your back is to him. “What? I still want to hear it.”

Motonari doesn’t let you finish turning around before his hands are on your hips and he’s pulling you back against him. You can feel that familiar hardness pressing against your ass. “LIke ain’t the right word fer it.” He growls into your ear, before leaving a stinging kiss on the side of your neck. You KNOW there is a red mark there now.

“M-Motonari…”

“There’s others here.” He said. “Gotta make sure they know yer mine.” He says before leaving a series of love bites over your neck and shoulder.

Your face heats up…but you can’t be upset. Enjoying his possessiveness. “Come on, let’s go for a swim.” You say, pulling away from him and heading towards the water.

Motonari quickly chases after you…and realizes the bikini only gets sexier once wet. You’re not in the water for long before he is pulling you out and then throwing you over his shoulder. He gives a playful smack to your ass. “We’re goin’ back. I ain’t waitin’ any longer.”

You gasp and then giggle. In this position, you are able to return the smack with one of your own. When you make it back to your room, he is tossing you down on the bed and climbing on top of you. He is not letting you go for the rest of the night and you are not walking the next day… or the day after that either.

Taglist: @limonzu @zulablaise @kisara-16 @tele86

@lovely-bubb1es @lucyw260 @selenacosmic

[redleavesinthewind]

elliot's 2023 fic wrap up

2022 version

alright friends it is once again time for me to review the (many) fics i read in the previous year and try to write a more or less concise rec list of my absolute faves (i wish i didn't have to chose but heh i'm not gonna subject anyone to 332 fics in 1 post - also wait only 332 fics? that's like. over 100 less than last year, what the fuck. anyway)

okay now first the part that interests no one but me (yes you may skip this) and that's the numbers part! i'm not making a whole elaborate spreadsheet to then not throw around cool numbers. anyway.

i've read around 4,932k words in 332 fics across 18 fandoms. that is much less than last year, and yeah, i've been generally less productive in 2023 but we don't have to talk about it. at least i have more variety of fandoms this time (let's ignore that it's only 2 more and also that from fandom 13 on there's only 1 fic per fandom)

i started out the year strong with 847k words across 72 fic in february (followed by 753k across 42 fics in january, and 621k words across 63 fics in march). it goes downhill for the rest of the year. eh it wasn't my year so what! 2024 is gonna be more filled with fic reading again!!!

my top 3 fandoms are so entirely unsurprising to me i am almost disappointed in myself. when did i become so predictable. top fandom is young royals with 166 fics! congratulations young royals, you are a very persistent hyperfixation, you didn't peter out after 2 months like i expected. Spot number 2 is taken by avatar the last airbender with 41 fics! giant leap there, but it's also funny because i fell into an atla rabbit hole late 2023 (as i do every few years) and it still got up to 41 fics despite uni not allowing me to read last semester (uni is evil). Same as last year, spn takes third place with 38 fics. speaking of persistent hyperfixations.......... *big sigh*

and that is it the boring part is over let's go to the fun section LET'S REC SOME FIIIIIICCCCSSSSSSS (under the cut)

JANUARY

bet you you'll ... (noraverse) (series) by @gh0sthugs | young royals, wilmon | teen&up | 52k words

a kid fic!! and such a sweet one too! i'm kinda weak for kid fics ngl, and nora is so sweet and wonderful, and the relationship that slowly forms between wille and simon is beautiful and comfortable. this whole series is just such a good time

spreadsheet notes: ah to fall in love with the dilf next door who also happens to be the ex crown prince of the country

A Royal Intervention by AnxiousAnaconda | young royals, wilmon | teen&up | 18k words

erik is being such a dumbass in this one. like, he means well, but he's kinda messing up and pissing people off (understandably). it's nice to get a view on erik that's not portraying him as this perfect guy though, and the fic is actually so much fun to read. and hey, the prime minister of luxembourg gets mentioned, which i was kinda waiting for in yr fic ngl

spreadsheet notes: big sigh... erik you fucking idiot. stop listening to august. also shoutout to xavier bettel apparently (edit: this aged poorly, fuck xavier bettel)

and each slow dusk by @if-fortunate | young royals, wilmon | mature | 49k words

okay. ooookay how do i even begin with this one. ohhh boy. okay. so. world war three. wille gets stuck in bjärstad with simon, many many things happen, it's about finding hope in a horrible situation and trying to live life despite everything falling apart around you. it's incredibly well written and something about it just has me in awe

spreadsheet notes: i don't know what it says about me that this is without a shadow of a doubt the best fic i have ever read in my life

Put Me Back Together and Take My Heart by @notalotgoingonatthisinstant | young royals, wilmon | mature | 50k words

i once again don't know what to say, this one is sooo good. simon is suffering and both wille and i hate it, but... but wille is there for him and ugh, they just... they just can't be apart. a story of reconciliation and healing from both physical and invisible wounds, and of making the right decisions for yourself

spreadsheet notes: ugh. UGH. my guys. MY GUYS. yeah let's go blackmail the queen

Department Six by @thisdiscontentedwinter | teen wolf | gen | 4k words

a fun short one about stiles and danny working for the fbi and being delightfully weird and mysterious

spreadsheet notes: HILARIOUS i'm in love with outsider pov always

FEBRUARY

There Are No Wolves in California by @thisdiscontentedwinter | teen wolf, sterek | gen | 5k words

you know, sometimes you see a fic you know is going to hurt you, and you've never clicked on anything faster. this is definitely one of those fics

spreadsheet notes: let's be wolves today yeah well derek what if i just break down and cry instead

you got my body, i got your body by @prince-simon | young royals, wilmon | explicit | 9k words

this one's technically part of a bigger series (which, definitely read that one too), but i'm highlighting this one cause... damn... this made me feel things... like, gender things... which is really weird cause wille's gender in this is very much different from mine BUT STILL

spreadsheet notes: how almost 9k of pwp gave me so many gender feelings i will never understand

Changing Channels: Queer Premiere by @emeraldcas, @fellshish | spn, deancas | gen | 27k words

this might actually be one of the funniest fics i've ever read. dean and cas are so stupid (affectionately) and all the crossovers are delightful (bonus that i knew all the other shows). everyone go read this it's gonna be the best time

spreadsheet notes: mel and fells have genuinely outdone themselves this is the most hilarious shit i've ever read

Catalyst by @stretchoutfics | young royals | teen&up | 3k words

a backstory for boris! this fic is within a series of other side character ficlets, but this one has a soft spot in my heart

spreadsheet notes: AAAAHHHH HE KNEW ABOUT THE RECKLESS DRIVING BUT DIDN'T BRING IT UP but also... him being a gay man trying to help the queer crown prince navigate his sexuality that's kinda nice actually, like boris understands at least a bit

The most beautiful boy by lovelysarcastic | young royals, wilmon | teen&up | 88k words

there's something incredibly grounding about this fic. the way it develops, the way wille rationalises his thought processes, the way the relationship between wille and simon develops... this fic just kinda sucked me in and spit me out again feeling... content and calm and... it's just... this fic is so beautiful

spreadsheet notes: dude i love this so much??? they're both so stupid??? i love them???

MARCH

All's Fair in Love and Hunting by @badjoices | spn, deancas | mature | 20k words

they're playing gay chicken but also are being incredibly competitive and stupid about it, and i'm just sorry about the shit sam has to witness. so many shenanigans in this fic

spreadsheet notes: they are both so stupid omg

["mi cotufita" started sharing their screen] by @omar-rudeberg | young royals, wilmon | explicit | 60k

so... this is a follow up to one of my favourite fics and it is a delight. very horny but also very sweet? and also for some reason there's porn. fun times! oh, and this fic made me cry. it really has the range

spreadsheet notes: how are they so horny it's so funnyyyyyy, but also if i were wille i could never look linda in the eyes again

A Light To Guide You In The Dark (Warmed By The Fire's Glow) by 80shairmetal | stranger things, harringrove | teen&up | 19k words

this is just... people taking care of each other out of the kindness of their hearts. finding comfort in strangers who become family. growing and helping each other. there's such a beauty to this one

spreadsheet notes: this is just..... comfort

did you see the love in my eyes, oh were you gazing through this disguise? by @tooindecisivetopickaurl | young royals, wilmon | mature | 67k words

fake dating my beloved. they're so in love with each other but they're pretending not to be while pretending... to be? i'm obsessed with them. but they're so respectful with each other and cautious of boundaries and they really are best friends who also happen to be obliviously in love

spreadsheet notes: love a good fake dating au they're so stupid i love them

flash like a setting sun by @playedwright | 911, buddie | explicit | 22k words

because you only realise you're in love with your best friend when you're scared you're losing him. that's the fic. and it's beautiful

spreadsheet notes: oh this is sooooo beautifully written and ugh just <333

Other people's secrets by @sflow-er | young royals, walty & wilmon | mature | 239k words

yooooo hello? so first off this is an outsider pov on wilmon which i am always obsessed with anyways but the focus isn't just on them, this is henry's story. it's a beautiful story about how friendships form and warp and change, how feelings manifest in different ways, how decisions and actions have consequences. it's an incredibly mature take on post-s1, and it's probably my favourite of the year. also ace representation!!!!

spreadsheet notes: ace henry my beloved <33 also love seeing wilmon from an outside perspective! such a good, well thought out fic with lots of healthy comminication <33

APRIL

if i stare too long by @brawlite & @toast-ranger-to-a-stranger | stranger things, harringroveson | explicit | 191k words

i haven't seen st s4 (and probably won't watch it) but that definitely won't stop me from reading harringroveson fic. i mean, who wouldn't look at those three and immediately want to see them together. the way their dynamic is written in this fic is peak, i don't even know what more to say. i also very much trust these authors with billy, and again i wasn't disappointed. there's just something in his head that's intriguing.

spreadsheet notes: this whole fic is such a vibe it makes me feel of hot summer chillin

MAY

Rewrite the Stars (series) by @in-amor-veritas | young royals, wilmon | mature | 137k words

definitely one of the highlights of the year, simon's whole life in new york... those scenes, they just show such a wonderful life simon has built for himself, and his relationship with wille doesn't change it, but he manages to fit in (after, you know, fun rom-com drama shenanigans). also. this is a kid fic. kid fics are my weak spot. rasmus is my new favourite little guy. also shoutout to luis best side character ever

spreadsheet notes: YELLING i love this fic sooo much it is everything

Where The Wind Will Carry Me by @1-life-to-give | young royals, wilmon | teen&up | 49k words

AND THEY WERE ACTORS PLAYING LOVE INTERESTS. do i have to say more? the tension guys the TENSION. also erik's side-plot i'm in love

spreadsheet notes: hopping up and down like a hyperactive chihuahua EN I LOVE THIS

Your love is my turning page (the t4t wilmon as girldads au) (series) by @willesworld | young royals, wilmon | teen&up | 17k words

i know i know another kid fic BUT!!!! t4t wilmon. makes it automatically superior. i'm not even kidding, add trans characters and i will like your fic (that i probably already like a lot) aroun 300000000 times more. but also this series comes for your feelings. it hits

spreadsheet notes: i am weak for t4t wilmon AND them having a biological child there's something so beautiful about it like that could be meeee ; siiimon i need to hug him and i need to hug wille they're gonna get out of this i prommy ; recovery and one step forwards a hundred steps back, but they made it there in the end ; they were so happy :((((

JUNE

A trace of dew by nuncflore | elden ring, this is too complicated | gen | 13k words

very elden ring-esque writing style, wonderful representation of whatever the hell is going on in the lore. hehehehehhe fucked up family ehhehehehe DIVORCE. my friends are so talented :))

spreadsheet notes: CAP I AM EATING YOU

Hanging from the Ceiling by @spicymiilk | spiderverse | teen&up | 6k words

for like. a week after i saw the new spiderverse movie i made miles 42 my entire life. that also meant reading this fic. and damn did this fic hit. i am still thinking about it

spreadsheet notes: i need more miles 42 content he is my favourite guy ever

The Darkest Little Paradise by @yourdemiurge | young royals, wilmon | explicit | 79k words

*holding you at gunpoint* read this fic. read it now, in this moment. you are not gonna regret it. believe me when i say you NEED this fic, you really do. doesn't even matter if you've seen yr or not. you're gonna thank me later

spreadsheet notes: THIS IS INSANE I CAN'T BREATHE MADY WHAT THE FUUUUUCK

JULY

Protected (series) by bastuba | young royals, wilmon | explicit | 69k words

hey do you ever read a fic and you just feel. so incredibly grounded because something about the characters feels grounded? like, they aren't grounded, but they still give off that vibe? idk how to explain this properly but that's this fic. also wille and simon cook together (i haven't read all parts of the series yet btw)

spreadsheet notes: incredibly grounded very mature how is wille like this ; i'd be like wille, always complaining about the heat ; they're soooooo. idiots. getting tattoos for each other ; i too would come out on a podcast about food ; SAFE SEX

AUGUST

The Season of Rebirth by @notalotgoingonatthisinstant | young royals, wilmon | mature | 30k words

part of a series, but i'm picking out this one specifically because it's soooo sweet!!! the title fits the fic so well, like yes it is the season of rebirth, but simon and wille's relationship is also rehashed in a very cool way, this fic is like one giant easter egg, i love it so much!

spreadsheet notes: wille taking the season of rebirth to recreate their early relationship, i am obsessed with him he's such a dumbass romantic

The Upgrade by @groenendaelfic | young royals, wilmon | explicit | 13k words

it's about the moment simon realises who wille is. that's why this fic is here. i mean of course also because it is very good, but mainly because of that moment

spreadsheet notes: the moment simon realised who wille is i am wheezing

Right Where You Left Me by @armandgender | spn, deancas | explicit | 94k words

if you're wondering why this fic is on my 2023 list instead of the 2022 list.... well that's because it took me almost a year to read the last chapter, and in terms of how my spreadsheet works, that makes it a fic i read in 2023. anyway. if you haven't read this fic yet, what are you even still doing here. click on that link right now. you want complex emotional situations? intricacies of ill-advised marriages? you wanna pick through abusive behaviour and encourage infidelity? well you're at the right place! also this has one of my favourite jack characterisations ever. it also made me go on multiple rants

spreadsheet notes: I FINALLY FINISHED IT AAAAHHHH I LOVE THIS FIC THE CABIN THE CATS JACK!!!!!

Alejito y Marimar (series) by th0ughts | red, white, and royal blue | teen&up | 18k words

OBSESSED WITH THIS DYNAMIC YOOOOOO. seriously the friendship between alex and martha is an expansion of the rwrb universe that is much needed, trust me

spreadsheet notes: the friendship i didn't know i needed in my life <333 ; they're just chillin!!!

SEPTEMBER

Change of Address (series) by hearmerory | avatar: the last airbender, zukka | mature | 134k words

okay. oooookay. strap in for this one, it is a lot. emotionally. like yes zuko is autistic, yes yes yeeees, i agree, also azula is treated like an actual person with actual mental issues, she deserves to be treated with care and this author definitely does that! this is the kind of series that makes me want to disappear in it, but it's also the kind of story i need breaks from, because it is so heavy (definitely check the tags for this one). zuko's relationship with sokka is written so thoughtfully and iroh is characterised incredibly and the author even included ursa in a way that didn't undermine everything that happened in the series before she appeared again. i can only recommend this one!

spreadsheet notes (there's lots of parts to the series, so this one is long): hhhh if i were ms jamieson i would have snapped after two days probably ; be nice katara!!!!! he's nervous ; i need to murder ozai ; and i need to murder zhao as well ; iroooohhhhh he should have just. taken the kids with him that first time he noticed something off ; yeah i think there was a reason why iroh never took zuko to the movies ; ozai needs to suffer ; i need to destroy ozai. violently and painfully ; iroh is the best uncle ever, zuko deserves all his kindness ; azula...... you don't have to fight for affection, it's not a competition..... they love you ; iroh should have taken her with him the first time around, she was like. 10, he could have just picked her up or sth ; ..... hakoda you idiot ; IROH BACKSTORY IROH BACKSTORY ; sokka and the plan that changed his life <3333 ; they are so soft with each other ; they all deserve all the therapy and support and yes sokka obviously you have adhd get with the program ; URSA??????? also i am living for sokka and azula's dynamic they are everything ; i don't. i don't understand her. i don't fucking understand her how could she not want her own children. how can she talk about them like that. like she knows them she doesn't know them she LEFT

Every night my teeth are falling out by @sulkybender | avatar: the last airbender, zukka | mature | 9k words

i was in need of some good zuko angst and oooohhh boy was i lucky to find this author. PEAK zuko angst. this fic in particular is very dear to me because it explores how mental illnesses would be handled in a world where there's practically no resources to help. i think we need that more

spreadsheet notes: yes well. how DO you deal with a schizophrenic fire lord in a fantasy world? (you stay with him and support him that is how)

OCTOBER

for years or for hours by @ghostinthelibrarywrites | the witcher, geralt/eskel/jaskier | explicit | 52k words

listennn i love myself some good polyamory fics, and this is the first fic i read for this ship and now i am OBSESSED with them. but this fic in particular.... the concept alone, like. what do you do when you thought the man you love was dead for 800 years, and then when he comes back you have another man you love. the answer is simple. polyamory. the two men you love also love each other. perfect coincidence.

spreadsheet notes: YO the concepts of witchers in modern times alone is sooo cool but adding in everything else? hello yes?

this is a love story by @achillestiel | supernatural, deancas | mature | 3k words

listen, i've never seen fleabag, but that's not the point. this is intriguing and funny, that's the point

spreadsheet notes: fucked up families and you want to fuck the priest hell yeah

The road not taken looks real good now by @stretchoutfics | young royals, wilmon | explicit | 90k words

it's not even the wilmon part i love about this fic (i very much enjoy it of course don't get me wrong) but wille and his kids. like, i don't want to spoil anything but like. wille's interactions with his kids are so important in this fic, and they're written so well. like, emilia is my favourite character in this, i kinda wish there was more with the kids honestly. this fic is definitely a highlight of the year, and to get back to wilmon, i do love how they're portrayed in this fic, how their dynamic plays out, and specifically how certain decisions do not depend on simon

spreadsheet notes: no but. the care put into this story. i can't--

NOVEMBER

Averno (series) by @sulkybender | avatar: the last airbender, zukka | mature | 12k words

a fascinating take on a fire lord zuko that was never part of the gaang

spreadsheet notes: HE JUST DESERVES KINDNESS but also he's a little fucked up WELL NO WONDER GIVE HIM KINDNESS ; i mean.... what makes a monster really ; well then let's get him out of his cell shall we (also hiiiii suki hello <3333)

Half Awake in Our Fake Empire by @hmslusitania | 9-1-1, buddie | teen&up | 34k words

another kid fic!!! but in a different fandom this time!!! seriously, giving buck a child fills so many of my life's needs it's ridiculous

spreadsheet notes: THEY'RE A FAMILY (thank you for giving that man a child)

a soldier (who carries a mighty sword) by @ghostinthelibrarywrites | the witcher, geralt/eskel/jaskier | explicit | 92k words

everything about this fic is wonderful!! the world(kaer morhen!!)building, the developing dynamic between geralt, jask, and eskel, ciri and yenn, the conflict, jask as a teacher!!!! aaahhhhh!

spreadsheet notes: they're my new favourite guyssss this whole fic is so cool, what they've done with kaer morhen <3333

Will We Last the Night by CSHfic & VSfic | avatar: the last airbender, zukka | teen&up | 143k words

this fic asks what if sokka had been stuck with zuko since the end of s1 and delivers a delightful answer. this is the adventures of zuko and sokka (and sometimes iroh) travelling through the earth kingdom. shenanigans ensue

spreadsheet notes: i am obsessed with this i'm just. i know it was only shortly but their life in ba sing se. obsessed

DECEMBER

Grudge Match by @catcas22 | elden ring | gen | 17k words

i'm not entirely sure how to explain this. it sure is an elden ring fic

spreadsheet notes: i don't even know what to say. this is ridiculous and brilliant and stupid and genius all at the same time. hell yeah suburban demigods

Lonely Digging by @toast-ranger-to-a-stranger | stranger things, harringrove | teen&up | 3k words

this is hilarious. go read it to unlock intense life-threatening flirting

spreadsheet notes: best way to flirt billy's doing everything right

***

(quick note: i’ve tried to find everyone’s tumblr handle, but i’m aware that not all the authors have tumblr/have it on their ao3, however if i somehow missed someone, i can go back and rectify that!)

if you’ve made it all the way down here i am giving you a kiss <3

[mildmayfoxe]

big fan of your romance novel complaint posts (love to see a fellow hater living it up) but i’m also curious if there are any you would recommend? not looking for anything in particular, just would love to hear your thoughts as someone else with nitpicky reading habits and a taste for trash

ok hello. i left you hanging for a FULL week and for that i am sorry but i wanted to be able to have some time to sit down and type out a real answer to which the short version is YES of course there are several that i have enjoyed!! my disclaimer is that i almost solely read gay romance so if you are looking for lesbian or even straight reccs i don't have much for you (although i will put a couple at the end anyway). hopefully something in this list is interesting to you or at least interesting to someone else! links are mostly to goodreads. break bc i'm gonna write too much

-kj charles is one of my fave authors in this genre bc they're all pretty reliable and there's a ton of them. they're all historical fiction and usually there's at least one murder- she's good at keeping a plot going while developing a romance. often supernatural or magical elements. sometimes cults! i've read almost all of the books she's written and have enjoyed them all

-charlie adhara wrote a really incredible werewolf series that i loved, the first of which is the wolf at the door. this is one of the only series i've read which keeps the emotional stakes up through the whole thing & kept me interested in a relationship after it was established bc sooo many series get boring the second the leads get together. i actually read the first book of the spin-off series (a pack of lies) first which is technically possible but i don't recommend bc i was like "wow they're really throwing me in here. i love it" and then i read the first series and i was like "oh i was supposed to know all this stuff." but i actually liked the dynamic between that couple better and i'm suffering every day because the next one still doesn't come out til 2025 and i read it in 2022. also worth noting that this (the original series) is cops-ajacent (~federal special agents~) and one of the characters is really prejudiced at the beginning & imo doesn't have enough character growth before it's waved away but if you can ignore that it's really good. mysteries! werewolves!

-speaking of werewolves (i could suggest several but i'll keep it to two) tj klune's wolfsong ends up at the top of a lot of gay werewolf novel lists (i'm keeping tabs) and there's a good reason. i enjoyed it a lot. made me kind of sad which is always a good sign to me. the writing voice was very fresh and novel at first but i did find it a little grating by the end so i've put off starting the second book in the series (it's also about a different couple which was disappointing) but i will get around to it. i enjoy tj klune in general although his recent stuff has a very different vibe than this and lightning struck heart is very 2015 in a bad way imo

-bone rider by j fally is a standalone that really delighted me. the russian mob? aliens? vaguely western? possession? throuple? it's got it all. very fun

-ok speaking of westerns there's this other series called magic & steam (yes it's steampunk. sorry. it's very silly) that starts with the engineer. a federal agent is sent to a town to apprehend a ~madman engineer~ except he runs into an infamous outlaw in the process. and the outlaw is really sexy. and probably why i enjoyed the series so much. the series also keeps them apart a lot in a way that i enjoy- i love when things take a long time. it's ongoing so this is another one that i keep checking for updates on

-i've read a lot of stuff by nr walker and they tend to be VERY hit or miss for me but one of my faves is evolved which is almost pure smut. it's about a sex robot that gains sentience. what more do i need to say. she also wrote a three-book series about an amnesiac that made me cry cry cry. and her cowboy (australian rancher) series is pretty ok. i could go through a list and tell you which novels of hers aren't worth it and which ones are good; i've read most of them

-salt magic skin magic by lee welch was a big surprise to me. cool magic, good folklore, fairies in there too. historical. big kj charles vibes which makes sense bc she edited it. welch also wrote a book called seducing the sorcerer which i had more mixed feelings about but had magic in it that i think about OFTEN (the horses)- that one's about an imposing sorcerer and a rundown groom cum handyman. and they're in their FORTIES!!! 🥳🥳🥳 (i love when books are not about 23 year olds)

-another one with a magic system i enjoyed was magician by kl noone. this was the first book i read by this author and i liked it but generally i find their books are too "nice" for me. i'm in the middle of one right now that i started months and months ago that i keep trying to go back to and it's sooo rough for me. but this one and the twelfth enchantment are pretty ok

-emily tesh wrote a duology of silver in the wood and drowned country that i loved because i am suuuuch a sucker for a wild man/green man story. really good. haunting! evocative! kj charles has a green man story too which was actually the first thing i read of hers (spectred isle)

-i complained about the monsterfucker book i was reading a while back but despite that i will also recommend the series it's from: lily mayne's monstrous, which starts with soul eater. are they messy? yes. are they repetitive? yes. are the monsters usually disappointingly humanoid? yes. are a lot of them about the military? also yes. so we're starting off on a bad foot. but the world building is interesting and there's LOTS of kinds of monsters and most of them were pretty fun. the one i just read (#7) was the worst one of the bunch though imo. and i have problems with #6. but 1 2 and 5 were good

-ok i should do a quickfire round. honeytrap: about two enemy agents during the cold war. put it off for a long time bc i didn't love that but it takes place over a VERY long period of time which is always interesting to me. zero at the bone: about a hitman who needs to protect a witness to a mob hit. really strong start but fell off a bit in the middle to the end imo.

-you'll notice a lot of these have subgenres of like fantasy historical supernatural etc but here's some regular contemporaries. a lot of these are about sad guys bc those are my favorite. best laid plans: hardware store owner helps a guy fix his house. in the middle of somewhere: same author actually. guy moves to small town to work at a college. mr jingle bells: this is a christmas one. bad title. fake dating. part of the reason i think i liked it so much is because i expected it to be awful but it was actually pretty good. good emotional stakes. published 2021 but feels very 2014. ignore that part. work for it: i rated this five stars but actually don't remember much what it was like. i think they were both really sad which i love. give me big emotions and i eat them right up with a spoon. i should read it again

-OK now i've got some straight & lesbian options. talia hibbert's brown sisters series is good and cute. she also wrote work for it, above. the unhoneymooners is the first real Romance Novel that i read and it really surprised me because i had fun! previously i had kind of written off romance novels as not for me but this kicked off a reading habit that is still going strong (primarily reading romance novels). i read this in 2020 so it might not be as good as i remember. as for lesbian options olivia waite has a series that i enjoyed that's also historical, and a friend of mine really enjoyed delilah green doesn't care (but i haven't read that one myself). and while not really romances i will always be a sarah waters fan: you may recognize her as the author of fingersmith, which is the novel park chan-wook's movie the handmaiden is based on. if you haven't seen the movie or read the book i recommend both. her books are very dramatic lesbian historical fiction; they don't always have happy endings but they're all very good

ok i think that's the end! regular disclaimer that romance is generally not a genre notable for Good Writing so a lot of these are just things i had fun with or just stuck out in my memory for having fun conceits etc. i can't guarantee that any of these are actually good, especially because this is a list solely based on my own taste and bad memory. would love to hear anybody's thoughts and/or if anybody has recommendations for ME!!! this post took me over three hours to write! crazy!

[dynafight]

I just realized I never shared my genius idea for Todoroki’s hero name, even though I was super excited and proud about it! The last chapter of bnha revealed that Todoroki never chose a hero name. Or, rather, chose to use his given name as his hero name. Which I think is pretty disappointing ngl, so I wracked my brain trying to come up with a better name, one that fits his personality and his quirk, and came up with:

Pro Hero “Soba”

waitwaitwait hear me out, I actually put a lot of thought into it!!!

Undoubtedly, soba is Todoroki’s fave food, right? When trying to relate to/get to know Inasa, he asks him how he feels about soba. (and is disappointed when Inasa says he likes hot soba lol). I like to think that it isn’t the first time that he used the topic of soba to alleviate tension. And it’s my opinion that asking what Touya’s fave food was, and finding out it was soba, was a very choice to show that the two brothers have more than Endeavor in common lol

But taking it a step further, Todoroki comments that he prefers cold soba, even though soba can be eaten cold or hot. Todoroki can also use his quirk to be both cold and hot, although he prefers to use cold. (or he used to, at least. unsure if he still holds that preference but w/e. His ice wall move was a classic go-to for a good chunk of the story). The comparison between his fave food and his quirk is pretty funny imo. (using this logic, it’s also pretty ironic that Inasa used to admire Endeavor and prefers his soba to be hot)

Finally, I find the juxtaposition of a guy who looks like -_- all the time yet has a deeply unserious hero name to be hilarious. It also feels like another way to spite Endeavor, whose hero name and whole personality showed how seriously he took being #1, only to have his prodigy be a top hero with the hero name ‘Soba’. And as my friend pointed out… the big three having the hero names “Loser”, “Narcissistic Keyboard Smash*”, and “Noodles” is really fucking funny

(*don’t @ me, I love Bakugou, but the guy has the longest hero name in the entire series. I could write a whole post about ‘great explosion murder god dynamight’. I might do that another time ngl)

[rise-my-angel]

Rhaegar and Lyanna shippers and their stans are their own worse enemy. If they stopped being so weird about both they would probably not get that much shit from the fandom, but instead they have to write dumb metas/essays about how Rhaegar isn't problematic and RxL isn't problematic. But they are so weak that they can't even admit it, it's honestly pathetic.

People ship so many wack pairings and stan so many insane characters, that their dedication to forcing Rhaeyla to be romantic, ended up shooting themselves in the foot. It could easily be a gross ship that most people ignore, but they are so passionate about Rhaegar being the best guy protagonist that it ruins it.

Rhaegar was an emo loser who had no friends and was obsessed with prophecy. He put his wife through 2 dangerous back to back pregancies then kidnapped a child and impregnated her by force. Then he got crushed to death with a hammer by a guy with antlers on his helmet. He is a creepy asshole loser.

But if they just admitted that, then I wouldn't care as much. I love Euron Greyjoy but I would be the first person to sprint full speed and drop kick him off the top of the Wall. I've never defended him and I never will, but he's still one of my favorite characters. I'd rather beat him to death with my bare hands before pretending he isn't a complete irredeemable monster. Which makes my discussions about him not really offensive because I have never pretended his flaws are defendable.

People still get away with shipping Sansa and Sandor, another child girl/adult man pairing, so why do Rhaelyas stand out? Because they refuse to agnowedge a single thing about their ship being gross and problematic.

I get the idea of Jon being born from rape is an undesirable thing to think about, but at least if the shippers owned that fact as horrible, I could look passed their cringe fanart posts.

This is a series full of horrible people who should never be shipped together, but still are. Its the common denominator of trying to white knite for indefensible characters that bothers me.

Rhaegar sucks. Its okay to still like him though. But he shouldn't be defended. I make fun of Euron Greyjoy every single chance I get and hes one of my favorite characters.

I challenge Rhaegar/Rhaeyla stans to unironically do the same. It's fun dunking on characters you like.

I literally refer to Jon Snow as a caught in the rain wet dog asking to come back inside. Its not a compliment, I'm making fun of him. Its fun to mock things you like.

I just want them to understand it's fine to not defend things you like to the point it drives everyone else away from your ship or character.

I HAVE TO LIVE WITH THE REALITY THAT SHOW ONLY FANS THINK THE EURON GREYJOY I LOVE WAS MR HOT TOPIC BIG COCK MAN. I LEAN INTO IT THOUGH BECAUSE ITS FUNNY. JUST OWN WHEN YOUR FAVES ARE GROSS AND PATHETIC.

[paeliae-occasionally]

Writeblr interview!

Thanks for the tags @drchenquill and @theink-stainedfolk.

Short stories, novels or poems?

I am currently only working on novels, but I consistently have to write little short stories when parts of the world come up that aren’t relevant to the story. I haven’t written a poem in a while, I might do that.

What genre do you prefer reading?

I read fantasy, sci-fi, the usual but then the other half of my bookshelf is physics and psychology books. I also read lots of books about Ancient Greece and Rome and have recently purchased one on Venice.

What genre do you prefer writing?

The world I am currently writing starts high fantasy then falls, so in the time of the main plot it is more of a general fantasy.

Are you a planner or a write-as-i-go kind of person?

I do plan because otherwise my vague concept of a story will never become a plot, but the outline can change as I go if I feel like another idea would be better.

What music do you listen to while writing the story?

I can’t listen to music while writing. It distracts me. I do however have a constant internal playlist and while working on Kell in the Xaeren WIP I have she used to be mine playing. It is not consistent.

Fav books/movies

Ooh, ok favourite books include: Strange the dreamer, Babel, Piranesi, The wind singer series and The mistborn series. I don’t really watch many movies.

Any Current WIPs?

Yep, They don’t have titles yet but the two I work on the most are Xaeren and Paeliae.

If someone were to make a cartoon out of you, what would your standard outfit be?

Dark blue cloak with many pockets for runes or spell components. I also hide trinkets in there. I would have a flowy blue starry top and black leggings. It would be very breathable and easy to move in and would blend in well with shadows.

Create a character description of yourself.

You look over to the side of the room, and there was nobody there. It was confusing, like a vacuum in space where you knew person should be but they just weren’t. They didn’t break the silence so you couldn’t hear their offer to join them at the table, yet you accepted all the same and sat down. Despite their absence they filled the chair opposite you and didn’t smile because they weren’t there. Still you could feel the amusement that managed to escape them.

Do you like incorporating people you actually know into your writing?

No. It feels weird to write real people. I do steal names but that is about it.

Are you kill-happy with the characters?

I don’t like killing heroes without good reason. I will do it to show stakes or for tragedy but for it to mean anything you have to use it sparingly.

Coffee or Tea while writing?

Neither. Lemonade sometimes.

Slow or Fast writer?

Depends on my mood. If I can focus I can write quite quickly but if I am not on task it takes ages to write anything.

Where/who/what do you find inspiration from?

daydreams, other people’s writing.

If you were put into a fantasy world, what would you be?

I would have magic even if I have to study for another 10 years to get there. Whoever I have to bribe or kill, I will get magic.

Fave book cliche?

Hmm… I love magic/action prologue then cut to our main character on a farm or in regular life somewhere. I use it all to much just to set a tone but it is a bit cliche.

Least fave book cliche?

I hate miscommunication. It can work in comedy settings but if you want a dramatic story and the threat to the characters could be resolved by a short conversation then I get frustrated.

Fave scenes to write?

Conversations. Especially conversations where something new is implied about a character. I love getting a vibe from a character’s dialogue and then seeing it come true later.

Most productive time of day for writing?

Whenever the motivation hits. I schedule writing for the morning around 8-10 I have to get stuff done.

Reason for writing?

The people have to go somewhere. I have had stories before that I have forgotten and it is so sad, I just want to put them somewhere more long lasting than my mind.

Tagging @illarian-rambling, @phoenixradiant, @kaylinalexanderbooks, @leahnardo-da-veggie and @the-golden-comet

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

Favorite and least favorite Blazblue characters?

Yay~ finally getting to this ask. I’ve got a lot of really cool asks (thank you everyone so much) that I’ve been wanting to get to, but my health is Rather Poor, and when I do answer these things, I want to be able to put a lot of energy and attention into them.

Now, getting to the ask! I had a lot to say, and it all came out messy... and somehow, I only ended up talking about one character, Nu 13. Who fits as both one of my favorite and one of my least favorite characters, for reasons detailed below. To not make this an entire fucking novel, I'll cut the post off here and consider it an early birthday post for her.

That said, here's a quick run down of some other stuff I didn't get to talk about, relevant to your question.

My other Hated Fave is Nine/Konoe. One of those “I love the character but if we were stuck in a room together I’d maul her” situations. I consider her to be a misandrist, and I have a very charged history of like, generational reactive sexism in my family, so her generational reactive sexism (relationship with her father coloring her relationship with men overall) enrages me. On the other hand, it’s so well written, SHE’S so well written, she’s an incredible character and I adore her as an art piece. She is like a cathedral to me. The most beautiful symphony in a key you hate.

Touched on briefly in the post below, my all time absolute favorite is Terumi/Susano'o. That's a story for another day. I like him in a very particular way where he's like, the best character ever, but also he's constantly on probation. Or reverse probation? I need to see him try to kill/maim/ruin someone once a month or he's at risk of being evicted. Being the champion is a title you have to defend, y'know?

I think the character I study the most and talk about the most is Noel, although to my tastes, she's very middle of the road. I feel neutral about her. I just use her as a guinea pig for all my BB related project. You know Dangan Ronpa? How they used Sayaka and Leon as a starting point/beta test for everything? It's kind of like that, except I haven't gotten so sick of her yet that I'm killing her off or anything.

With all of that covered, allow me to get into the actual post! Thank you for your patience!

Off the top of my head at least, I can’t honestly think of BlazBlue characters I dislike. Every character that comes to mind shares something that makes me hesitant to actually claim I dislike them. That is, the characters I like the least are the characters I understand the least. Spinner Superior and the entire Bloodedge Experience cast make the list… but I haven’t read BE. Valkenhayn makes the cut- another character I really don’t pay attention to. Bullet, Hibiki, maybe Amane- all characters I really just… haven’t paid much attention to yet.

I don’t really want to claim I dislike them at this point, because when I really think about it, I’m like 99% sure that I lack interest in them BECAUSE I haven’t taken the time to look at them.

One of my hobby/goal/things in my free time is working on these BB character documents, analyzing everything I can about each character in the series for my own personal work. I have a feeling that when I get to really analyzing and writing about these characters, I’ll find things I like about them.

Here's a quick look at my files, to see what I'm talking about. Have mercy, it's very WIP.

There are two characters that stand out to me in an… almost “love to hate” way, but not quite. I have a lot to say about these characters, but I’m still tired, and this post is going to be LONG as is, so I’ll try to keep it brief.

Author's Note: I fail to keep it brief.

Before BBDW, my least favorite character was DEFINITELY Nu13. Ironic, because she almost got me into BB back in the Continuum Shift days. I saw her and some of her crazy behavior and thought... well, not much, just kind of an error message in my head going “hot woman spotted.” So I looked into her, and her story!

And got bored immediately. At first I was intrigued- I love violent characters that could arguably be described as “rabid” or “feral,” but upon further inspection, she had one of the few character flaws I just can’t look past. She was absolutely static. Immutable. The only character she was willing to interact with was Ragna, and even when interacting with him, she couldn’t hear a thing he said. In my interpretation, at the time, this made her a character that couldn’t connect with the outside world in any way. To me, she was an island. Absolutely remote. And completely useless to my interests.

A fear years later, a few months before the launch of Chronophantasma Extend, I ended up getting into BlazBlue anyway powered by sheer Terumi thirst. Are you guys starting to get a picture of my type yet? From then on, BB has remained my all time favorite series, and Terumi/Susano’o continues to be in my top three favorite characters, usually comfortably wearing the “#1 all time fave” crown. I suppose that answers the other half of your question.

Throughout this time, Nu still didn’t appeal to me at all. Locked in as my least favorite, definitely. Eventually, I got my college roommates into BB. One of the girls fell in absolute love with Nu. I couldn’t understand it at all. In hindsight, she’s right on every point about Nu that she likes, and I really appreciate those traits now too- but I couldn’t see it at the time. She was able to see Nu as an incredibly tragic character for the same reasons I saw her as inert. In the C-Series, Nu is alone, horribly alone, locked in her pain and her delusion. I saw that and ultimately felt she was beyond saving, but my associate felt that made her into a beautiful tragedy, a princess more worth saving than any other. Maybe I’m getting a little abstract out of nowhere here, but I now feel that’s the best way to look at Nu’s story- she’s locked away in this fairy tale delusion. Ugh, I have more to say on it, but look at how long this has gotten already!

Anyways, then BBDW came out, and Mori gave us a glimpse of what he intended to be the next step in Nu’s story. Juusan, XIII, Thirteen. And hooooooooooooly shit my guys, I absolutely love Nu, XIII, and her arc now. It’s her fucking healing arc! It’s her fucking growing arc! She’s finally able to start becoming a person, fleshing out, interacting with the world!

I’m not the type who really needs or even WANTS redemption arcs for characters, but Nu DESPERATELY needed this chapter. My biggest gripe with her, as mentioned, was that it seemed impossible for her to have any kind of relationship with ANYONE. I guess I was a little close minded- I needed to see evidence that Nu could be reached, that she could wake up from her fairy tale slumber and start really living. And we have that now, in XIII.

Looking back on the writing from the earlier games, when I hated Nu so much, I see those scenes in an entirely different light. Her first fucking scene in every route is waking up, our sleeping beauty. But she wakes up to the same dream every time. She’s put right back into her coffin, death, to dream and dream and wake and be killed again. Isn’t that kind of beautiful??? Her CT story mode IS a dream, it’s a desperate dream, the one she holds most dearly but doesn’t even understand- Nu is a character who THINKS what she wants more than anything is a romantic love with her prince charming, but we see in her story mode there, and in the relationships that finally save her, that what she really wanted was a full relationship as a real person. Platonic relationships, with no expectations, just someone seeing her and maybe offering her a smile. She craved, needed, the ability to connect with others, but that was a dream so far out of reach she couldn’t understand it. I KNOW I’M RAVING AT THIS POINT, I DIDN’T MEAN TO, BUT C’MON IT’S BEAUTIFUL.

And, and!!! As I mentioned, the relationships that finally save her, finally wake her up from the dream the same way the BB world is being woken up from ITS looping dream (WHICH IS ANOTHER AWESOME CONNECTION AND GREAT WRITING, THE WAY NU AS A CHARACTER CAN BE SEEN TO EMBODY THE LOOPING WORLD, NEW AND BROKEN AND UNABLE TO CHANGE WITH NO HOPE OF TOMORROW)

Ahem, ahem-- It’s familial connections. She so badly wants that romance with Ragna, but it isn’t the love of a prince that saves her- it’s when he accepts her as his sister. It’s when he accepts her as a victim and her own person and not a bastardization of Saya, and comes to save this lonely girl. An echo of his little sister he couldn’t save. HIS ENTIRE JOURNEY WAS TO SAVE HIS SISTER AND HE FINALLY DOES. IN SO MANY WAYS, INCLUDING IN THAT MOMENT OF REACHING OUT TO NU.

And then it’s Noel. And Lamba. Her sisters. Again, people who once saw her as a disgusting representation of what they feared the most, a replacement or a copy- when they let that go, see past it, and really face her, they take Nu in as their little sister. And its their patient love that heals her. Just like Ragna, when they first met Nu, her connection to Saya and themselves terrified them, infuriated them, but now they look directly at that connection and don’t see it as a threat. It fills them with compassion. It can be a lovely thing, to share something so fundamental as your creation with someone else. There’s love in that. They see it now and are able to offer it to her.

This answer has been very messy and very long, but hey, let’s pretend it isn’t that bad. Give me some mercy, I’m on so much cough syrup.

[loregoddess]

1, 4, 19 and 36 for the Ace Attorney ask list!

1. Favourite Ace Attorney game? Technically AAI2, but I got so hung up trying to divine the mysteries and unresolved plot threads of AA4 to a point where honestly it looks like my fave game (you know that post something about "you will eventually run out of things to say about something that is very good and completed, but something that is mediocre and incomplete--but has the potential to be good--will haunt you forever?" yeah).

4. Favourite prosecutor? I'm basic and boring and Miles Edgeworth is still my fave prosecutor, and honestly he's one of the few characters who's character arc feels complete and was really well-written and fleshed out. I was and still am to some degree very unhinged about Klavier Gavin though (re: the mysteries, Capcom give me the forbidden Gavin lore I need to know if my 500 thousand insane theories are right or not). Also technically Kazuma Asougi bc he's my favorite DGS character and I was and to some degree still am also very unhinged about him.

I also really like Blackquill and just never talk about him, but he's such a weird and wild character, like, the exact inverse energy of Victor Frankenstein archetypes (saw a scene that would have made several other fictional characters go "oh god, what a monster this child is" but instead of reacting that way was like "oh yeah, based on her life experiences so far, that is what she would do, I now have to die to protect her bc everyone else is going to think she's a monster if they know the truth"--insanely gallant but unhinged thing to do sir).

19. Least favourite witness? Honestly can't remember off the top of my head? Maybe Moe the Clown? But dunking on Turnabout Big Top seems like the easy way out...

36. Do you like where the franchise is heading or did you prefer the atmosphere in the original trilogy? Well, considering Capcom hasn't done anything aside from port games for the past few years, I would like it if the series got literally any new content at this point.

But all that aside, while I think the overall writing of the original trilogy is very strong overall and more cohesively tied-together than later gams, I do still hold a lot of love in my heart for the newer games and like, the story/characters would have to be butchered a lot worse (than anything I've ever seen Capcom do with any of its game series I'm familiar with) to really put me off.

I mean, I'm a huge fan and have lots of love for far more poorly written/executed games than anything in AA (and have also put up with far worse or more frustrating developments in other game series despite actually not liking the new story/character direction; not AA, completely different series, don't worry about it). So really, all my quips or jokes about the current state of the series mean nothing. I know in my heart I will probably enjoy anything new. Unless it's an open-world game, then I would be a bit disappointed probably.

[dudeyuri]

only friends episode 2 thoughts

is it a mockumentary now?? i'm rolling with it, it gave us some good lines (mostly ray's) and some more p'yo

boston, alleged drama-hating pot stirrer that you are, please get progressively scummier each episode until we break you open. like a fucked up skanky geode. in the dark room by himself smiling deviously at a picture of mew and ray (apparently his best friends?). does he realize he is going to hurt them? does he even care? why are they friends with him in the first place? as always i'm seated and neo is delivering

fave moment honorable mention is boston just shoving nick's face aside to kiss his neck as they hook up. blurrily captured below

also nick needs to chill with the big sad hopeful brown eyes we GET IT this is going to hurt for you, it's already hurting, please stop. and give him his curly hair back wtf

another fave moment: the puff of smoke leaving sand's mouth before their first kiss. VISIONARY POETIC SEXY KIND OF GROSS. i'm here for a fuck first then feelings slowburn. though you can tell sand, a personality man, is kinda already almost there. the threesome tease in this ep was sooo good btw and i'm always here for a bi4bi pairing. sandray is the most compelling relationship to me so far and unfortunately have soiled all the fun for me because now i want them to make it

ray is needy and endearing and troubled and lonely and at his core very sweet and very sad and very ill. this is evident. i don't know what the fuck is in boston's core

actually the mew/ray/boston trio get more and more interesting to me the more i watch. i'll hold my thoughts for now though i think next episode is going to start to put them to the test

april and cheum are very cute, if they don't get in on much of the drama i hope this is at least setting them up for a GL in the future... still holding out hope though the series is young

i like the constant reassurance that mew is not about to get played, that he's going to keep his wits about him. (also lol boston checks zero items off of mew's list.) top has yet to cross off that last item on the list btw (doesn't keep secrets, doesn't lie to him)

still want more friend group backstory. and i wanna know more about ray's feelings for mew and boston's fixation on top. eager for what nick and sand becoming roommates will bring re: ray and boston drama

another extremely fun episode and it seems like the scheming is picking up next episode. let's see let's see

[messydiabolical]

Mass Effect Tag Game

I was tagged by @illusivesoul, thank you! <3 I'll tag in @shadowthehedgehog1 @angstyastro @zet-sway @stormikins @bluerose5 @jtownnn @yellingaboutmasseffect @callista-curations @impishbiscuit @spookyvalentine @skittidyne @jadevakarian But I could be tagging all day so please everyone join in if you'd like and no worries if you don't!

Here's the blank questions, and my answers are below the cut!

I am a fan since: Favourite game of the series?: MShep or FShep?: Earthborn, Colonist or Spacer?: Biotics or Tech: Paragon or Renegade: Favourite Class: Favourite Companion: Least favourite Companion: My squad selection: Favourite In-game romance: Other pairings I like: Favourite NPC: Favourite Antagonist: Favourite Mission: Favourite Loyalty Mission: Favourite DLC: Control, Synthesis or Destroy: Favourite Weapon: Favourite Place: A quote I like:

My answers:

I am a fan since:Legendary Edition release (better late than never!)

Favourite game of the series?:2 wins overall, due to how much I loved learning about the new companions and all their little side quests and the excitement of prepping for the big mission. 3 has the best overall mechanics though, and the npc’s being able to banter is top notch.

MShep or FShep?: Both, but I tend to create themsheps anyway.

Earthborn, Colonist or Spacer?:Keahi is a colonist, Blaise a spacer AU. I think all the backgrounds have juicy potential but find the idea of growing up out there in this big new galaxy exciting. 

Biotics or Tech:Probably tech for my sheps, but I love having a biotic in the squad as backup. I’ll usually have 1 biotic ability as my Shep’s bonus and chalk it up to funky side effects of how they resurrected Shep in 2.

Paragon or Renegade:Generally paragon but some renegade interrupts.

Favourite Class:Infilitrator. Sniper Rifles are always my fave (or archers in fantasy games).

Favourite Companion: Such a tough question. As there’s a romance question later, i’ll save Thane for then. I’m also going to answer as me rather than who my shep’s would pick. I think Mordin is honestly the companion I got most excited about going to chat with or hearing unique lines from. And while not ‘companions’, I have such soft spots for Traynor and Cortez and consider them honourary squaddies.

Least favourite Companion:I mean there are plenty who I think have questionable morals/ideas/attitudes, but it doesn’t make me dislike them, it makes them interesting and gives fresh perspectives, so this is also a tough question. I feel bad for saying it, but I guess Liara? Only in that she gets so much priority in 1 and 3 but I don’t find her as interesting to chat with compared to others and also found her going from nerdy excitable anxious dork in 1 to ‘flay your mind’ corpo bad bitch in 2 gave me whiplash. The fact she sold shep’s body is another point deducted. And the way she let Shepard drop like hot shit in shadowbroker too, oof. I really don’t dislike her though and still find her overall character interesting.

My squad selection:I change it up a lot so I get to hear all the different things they have to say

Favourite In-game romance:Thane, followed by Steve Cortez and Samantha Traynor. Is anyone surprised?!

Other pairings I like:Feron x Kolyat, Thane X Cortez (why romance them separately when I can put them together instead!) Femshep x Miranda. I tend to headcanon my shep’s as older than the in game age so Jack feels too young for them, but I do love the Jack romance generally. 

Favourite NPC:That one completely chill smoking salarian in the citadel DLC. Dandenbo’s icon always makes me grin reminding me of him. Also the salarian Thane rescued who had his whole world rocked and wrote an email about it. You go you funky little horny guy.

Favourite Antagonist:TIM is interesting because you get that having to work together and resenting the hell out of it aspect in 2. And look he’s by no means an effective antagonist, but Donovan Hock is objectively very funny.

Favourite Mission:The suicide mission. It isn’t the best mechanically, but it’s very satisfying after working towards it the whole game and getting yourself as ready as can be.

Favourite Loyalty Mission:Thane, i’m biased. Grunt’s rite of passage is also just fun.

Favourite DLC:I’ll go with 1 from each game. Bring down the sky- I just find something pretty satisfying about pootling around shutting the 3 rockets off and finding all the little out the way side bits. And that view! Lair of the Shadowbroker- Feron my beloved. Gotta save my boy. Leviathan- felt like a breath of fresh air with the piecing together clues, and such a great creepy atmosphere. You really finish it feeling like ‘this may help, but at what cost?’ and it feels significant.

Control, Synthesis or Destroy:So funny story, I got so confused the first time I played and kind of panicked, completely missed that you could choose to run a different direction and just ran full pelt forwards yeeting shepard to the centre. When that activated synthesis I spent the next 40 odd minutes watching my computer in growing utter horror/confusion. Anyway destruction is the actual choice but fuck that whole ‘this has to genocide the geth and Edi’ thing fuuuuuck.

Favourite Weapon:Upgrading to the widow is nice but I am quite fond of the M-97 Viper in earlier/lower levels, the 6 shot mag is especially favourable.

Favourite Place:I really love the brutalist architecture of Port Hanshan.

A quote I like:

I dare to assume you ignorant jackasses know that space is empty. Once you fire this hunk of metal, it keeps going til it hits something. That can be a ship, or the planet behind that ship. It might go off into space and hit somebody in 10,000 years. If you pull the trigger on this, you are ruining someone’s day, somewhere and sometime!

[duskandcobalt]

Hiii, Santa here! Sorry for disappearing, it's been quite a few busy days, but I'm back with my questions hehe

Btw the anon ask about Elain wasn't me, but thank you for using the acotargiftexchange tag anyway because the more I know, the better! 🤍

Since you've mentioned it in that post, my first question is, Earth magic witchy Elain? Could you elaborate? I'm not sure I've ever heard that one before and now I'm curious 👀

Here's what I already wanted to ask:

1. Since last time I asked this about Elain, now I gotta ask about Azriel to make it fair. What's your favorite thing about him and is there anything you don't like?

2. How are we feeling about Christmas vibes in the fic? Or would you prefer a more everyday kind of vibe? And since we're on the topic of vibes, I was thinking of going with a fluffy fic because, well you know, it's Christmas. But if you'd rather read something else, please let me know 🙏🏻 I'm here to please

3. Is there anything you think you have in common with either Azriel or Elain? Passions, hobbies, personality traits… anything

4. How did you get into the ACOTAR books and fandom?

This time they're all acotar related, I'm sorry 😭 I have so much I'd like to ask but I don't want to flood you with questions, so I'll stop here since there are already so many (but I'll be back soon 😈)

Hope you have a lovely weekend!

-🎅🎅🎅

Hi Santa!! I’m so sorry it’s taken me five years to reply to this but I’m here now 😊

Okay re: earthy/witchy Elain… I am obsessed with the idea of Elain have some sort of witchy powers and working with herbs etc and I think she may also have some sort of power of life if that makes sense? I’m honestly horrible at explaining things but if you want to know what I’m on about, @wingedblooms has incredible theories that they’ve put heaps of time into explaining beautifully!

Onto your questions…

1. My toxic trait is that I loooove a quiet, mysterious man that doesn’t say much and is lowkey terrifying and Azriel ticks all those boxes. They’re like a little puzzle to solve and I love a challenge that has major potential to hurt me …. But!! I love that he really sees and understands people and you can tell that he genuinely cares for the people around him and even though he doesn’t talk much, he’s always listening and learning. One of my favourite things in the world is Azriel’s relationship with Nesta - the way I cried when he gave her the book light for solstice and she hugged him should be studied 😭😭😭 it’s one of my favourite parts of the whole series.

There’s not much I don’t like about him, to be honest - at least nothing that I can think of off the top of my head! I guess regifting the necklace wasn’t his brightest moment but in the words of Lana Del Rey, 🎵you’re just a man… it’s just what you do 🎵

2. I LOVE a fluffy, Christmas vibe!! Azriel canonically loves a holiday, who am I to deny him of a fluffy moment 🎄

3. I have so much in common with them, I think that’s why they’re my faves bc I feel like I know them personally 😭 I looove baking and cooking and I love to do things for people. I love a grandma craft. I don’t think we know much about Azriel in way of hobbies but I’ve decided he loves music and so do I. I am also a big time quiet friend (in real life, idk why I can’t shut up online), listener not talker, and so will dole out advice when necessary a la the spymaster so we’ve got that in common

4. I don’t even know!!! I’m so late to the game, I was a big lit fic girlie (still am) but my friend was reading the first one and I’d seen it all over TikTok and I am SO easily influenced… I picked it up July 8th last year and I’d finished all of ACOTAR and ToG by August 15th 😅 it’s a high I’ve been chasing ever since and it reignited my long lost love for reading so I’ll forever be thankful to it… plus it led me back to writing and this amazing community

I’m sorry I’ve yapped again!! Hope you enjoyed this novel lol

ILY!!!

[crehador]

quickfire thoughts on fall 2023 now that everything i'm watching has had at least three eps out

EXCELLENT

sousou no frieren: still very easily anime of the season, beautiful in visuals and in story. a quiet, subtle look at loss and grief, and life continuing beyond that. the structure is working perfectly imo, it never feels like there are too many or not enough flashbacks, i feel connected at all times to both the present day party and the himmel-era party

migi to dali: still doing an exceptional job of balancing creepy and funny, i said before that the only thing i can think of with a remotely similar vibe is the movie hot fuzz and while i think there's a different flavor of comedy here, i still stand by that (and that's a compliment bc hot fuzz is an excellent movie)

kamonohashi ron no kindan suiri: although i wouldn't say this is mind-blowingly outstanding in any single way, it's very well-done in just about every conceivable way and comes together as an extremely solid series

BORDERLINE EXCELLENT

overtake: after four episodes i'm so tempted to put it with the 'excellent' shows but have to admit it's just not objectively on that level, it is subjectively one of my current favorites of the season though. silly at times, fairly simple story, but really effectively done so far

ADORABLE

s rank musume: feel like this one is largely going to slip through the cracks because it looks like your typical fantasy-action/adventure series, but doesn't stand out in that genre. the cute/soothing family moments are what stand out to me, but understandably that's not what most viewers of the genre are looking for. remains to be seen if a more action-y plot will build up, have doubts about how effective that will be

yuzuki-san chi no yon kyoudai: VERY CUTE with some very real moments and struggles, the cr subs debacle in the first ep however did it no favors

atarashii joushi wa dotennen: VERY CUTE i almost wish they'd cast literally anyone except umechan for shirosaki bc with him the similarities to cool doji danshi are just too much lmao however umechan is in fact perfect for this character so why not let him play it twice i guess

hoshikuzu telepath: moe yuri that isn't afraid to say rocket science is for autistic lesbians, what could be better?

wataoshi: YURI OF THE SEASON SORRY HOSHIKUZU TELEPATH HERE'S SOMETHING THAT COULD BE BETTER i actually would put these two on a similar tier but wataoshi gets the edge for me because rae is so unapologetically, exuberantly gay and that is just so nice to see

SEQUELS

houkago shounen hanako-kun: tragically only four half-length episodes but it's nice to see these kids again, ogata megumi's hanako voice just hits in a way the jjk yuuta voice doesn't, for me, so very glad to hear it again

arknights s2: i'm liking the art even more than i did in s1? not sure if it's actually changed/improved, and imo s1 was already good, but anyway just really enjoying seeing all the faves moving and speaking!

spy x family s2: still cute of course what more can i say

b-project s3: MAN I'M TORN i don't dislike this season (we are getting so many kitakore shots) but i am so stressed out for tsubasa and i just want to see her catch a break! i'm sure the season will end in an uplifting way, but all the stress she's under right now makes me want to punch things

dead mount death play s2: it was good and is somehow still getting better, s2e3 which just came out is one of the best yet imo

GOOD FOR THE ACTION BUT NOT TERRIBLY MUCH ELSE

undead unluck: i kind of... don't like anyone here lmao but the over-the-top, high-octane action is not badly animated, it's just not gripping me on any level beyond that. it does however have the op of the season

ragna crimson: again it's failing to get me really invested in the story/characters but the action is not bad i guess, cast for this one is absurdly stacked so i'm not going anywhere

shangri-la frontier: this one's doing a GREAT job with its pacing and action imo, it's introducing the game mechanics in a way that doesn't feel too fast or too slow. only issue is there really... doesn't seem to be any stakes? like at all? which is not a problem for me personally, it just feels a bit like we're waiting for another shoe to drop

WATCHABLE BUT...

bullbuster: i'm kind of vibing with this after three episodes but i really can't imagine it finding an audience, it's not mech enough to really appeal to mech fans and it's not... typical office drama enough to appeal to typical office fans. it's a strange little combo that just happens to work for me, personally

NOT GOOD BUT I LOVE IT

kawagoe boys sing: this is a ridiculous series, i would say not as wild as number24 but kind of getting there. like number24 but more vanilla, less homoerotic. i loved number24 and I'M LOVING THIS TOO there are some genuinely interesting characters already and though i still currently want to punt kick that teacher into the sun i remain cautiously optimistic that he'll see some character development. at some point. maybe

NOT GOOD. JUST NOT GOOD. SORRY.

bokura no ameiro protocol: really feels like some late-2000s/early-2010s male wish fulfillment dramedy. lots of weird and unnecessary het nonsense going on. honestly would consider dropping if it were 24 episodes but since it's only 12 i guess i'll stick it out. for kimuryo. who is unfortunately playing such a rancid character

[invisiblegarters]

OF Character Rankings and Ramblings - Ep 10

Last week, everyone decided to be mature and actually talk to each other for a change and it was very jarring. Mew boomeranged back to being sensible, Nick and Sand tried to feel the power of love with each other and failed spectacularly (and were very adorable about it), Top and Ray did some boundary pushing that the people they were infringing on were into in spite of their protests, and Cheum was back to her usual MO of having three lines if she's lucky. Atom was very creepy and I looked at him and said oh boy you're gonna cause all the trouble. Boeing showed up to prove that Top has a type and also to make us all understand exactly why Sand's still pissed. I get it, Sand. Also, Nick decided to move on with Daddy Dan but still made time to stalk Boston and a hookup to the toilets and give him a heartfelt speech that was actually really sweet and clearly got to him, and Ray and Mew finally fucking broke up thank all the gods in every universe. They had a great conversation that was my second favorite thing about the episode. There was lots of great communication happening.

So of course we had to make up for it this week with a lot of people being very stupid.

And be forewarned, I am very ornery today and also frustrated. So maybe don't read if you don't want to see that frustration expressed. That said, if you continue and you want to talk about any point, that would be a lot of fun. I'm always up for a friendly exchange of views.

So let's get to it, shall we?

Character Rankings (Fave to Least fave atm)

Boston. Nope, nope, and nope. Fuck you show. Fuck you for having your characters imply or outright state that Boston's sluttiness means he's on par with being a sexual predator. And fuck you for the "Atom likes girls. What did you do to him?" line. I really hope that this isn't going to be left at that, because I'm incredibly over the constant conflation of Boston's promiscuity with deviance or some sort of moral failing. He's an asshole. He likes to sleep around. The two things aren't actually related and I'm SICK of seeing them treated like they're one in the same. STOP IT. And don't think I don't see parts of fandom doing the same, because I do. People really need to stop treating promiscuity or lack thereof as though it has anything to do with morality.

That done with, I have to say that I've been super impressed with Neo and with Boston as we've gone on. I don't need or want some big sob story to be the reason that he's an ass, and I am tentatively hopeful that it won't be the case. But I have been enjoying the way we're seeing him grow by increments. Boston's not nice, he's not a very good person generally, and I think that he's been coming to terms with that and with how he feels about it as the series has gone on. It hasn't been flashy - in fact it's been subtle enough that I almost didn't notice it - but the Boston that he was in episode one is not the one we're looking at in episode ten, and I love it to bits because the type of reflection he's doing is the type I've done with myself. I really really REALLY hope they don't pull the "reformed character is now monogamous" thing because as I've said, that's not actually a problem and shouldn't be considered one. But I do really love that he's clearly reflecting on some of the choices he's made and trying to decide if maybe he doesn't want to keep making some of them in the future.

Also his reactions when he realized that his friends really believed he could do what Atom was accusing him of...just great work.

Simply put, I adore him.

Sand. My ride or die baby, this one. I've already said it, but I'll say it again. I do not care what this man does. I support him. Every stupid decision, every misstep, every ridiculously misguidedly noble thing. I will just be like "you do you baby, because you are amazing."

Was he dumb to not keep Ray's daddy's money? YES. Did I actually expect him to? Lol no. That's just not my man. Not even a little bit. It's not just limited to Ray, either. Sand has some noble ideas about money that I really would like to smack out of his beautiful dumb head because that kind of thinking only really works for people who can afford it, but I love him anyway. That said, I will maintain until that I am blue in the face he did nothing wrong (maybe that's my bias showing but let's be real here, whatever Ray's dad said Sand's desire to help Ray was always going to come from caring for him first and foremost). Honestly he should take the money as reparations for all the shit Ray's put him through. Putting the blame on him for Ray's hurt boggles my mind, because something hurts you it doesn't automatically make the other person wrong. That's a lesson a lot of people could stand to learn, frankly. But I half expect Sand to blame himself for it anyway, because that's what he does. He internalizes, blames himself, subsumes whatever he may be feeling in favor of the other person. I no longer think he's going to snap (although who knows a lot can happen in two episodes in this show) but I still think the man could use a good hug, and for someone to tell him that his constant care for people who like to throw it in his face is appreciated. You know. To him, and not an imaginary version of him that can only be full of calm acceptance.

Now, when it comes to the alcohol business. While yes, that is a source of income for him, if he's serious about helping Ray and it's going to be a real problem for him to do that (and there's every indication that it is), if he chooses to get rid I will not blame him or consider it particularly stupid. To me, it's different from dad's money because one hurts Ray's feelings, the other could legitimately fuck with his road to recovery. If he wants to stay with Ray (and there is no indication given by him that he doesn't, even after that fight), then that is a step he might need to take to help him, if he can safely do it. And to be fair, we've been given no indication that he can't do that, either. Although it would be interesting to explore what might happen if he couldn't, I don't think we have enough time for that.

Mew. God help me, I love a petty bitch.

Look. I don't do the OF tags anymore because I've found it's better for my peace of mind overall, but I've seen enough around here and elsewhere to know that a lot of people are now sick of him (although a lot of people were sick of him from episode one, lol). They think that this episode he took the petty shit too far, and that if he's not going to just take Top back he should tell him and let him move on. There's also a lot of annoyance with the way he acted during the confronting Boston scene.

To all that I say I hear you, but I'm going to have to disagree. I get him a lot with the Top thing, in fact. He was hurt, but worse, he was humiliated, and all this is because he doesn't want to be fooled again. He still doesn't trust his own judgment. He's back to testing everything Top does and says now because he wants to believe him, but if he believes him and Top does it again, then it's no longer Top who's to blame. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. And Boeing is really really good at playing with those fears.

I do feel a little more iffy about the Boston thing, though. The little pat on the shoulder amused me at the time, I won't lie, but the more I think about it the more annoyed I get. He had no right to open his mouth, and he wasn't really there to give moral support to Cheum or even because was concerned about Atom. He was there to watch Boston suffer. Not cool, my dude. I'd be more amused by the whole thing if not for the SA subject, and for the constant slut shaming that goes along with it.

Boeing. Speaking of petty bitches. This man is out here doing the most for this episode at least, I'm not mad about it (he hurts Sand though and all bets are fucking off, did you not read what I wrote about him?). I wish that he'd been brought in a little earlier, mostly because he feels extremely plot devicey, but I can't say I don't like looking at him or don't admire just how petty he can be. I genuinely don't know if he actually wants Top back or if he just wants to break him, and that's kind of fun. Also his little digs at Mew were hilarious. I kept trying to manifest a threesome between him, Mew and Top but I guess I wasn't doing it right because the show did not oblige. There's always Ray and Sand or my personal favorite, a flashback to one with Top and Sand. And that's why Sand doesn't do threesomes.

Ray. Oh, Ray. Raymond. Here's another one that I came out of the episode with initial thoughts and then the more I sat on them, the more they changed. Or not changed but. Sigh. Okay, let's try to be coherent here.

I want to start off by saying I do not blame Ray for going off the way he did when he thought that Sand was taking money from his dad. I know that sounds contradictory when I have also said Sand was stupid for not taking the money, but being able to see why Ray was upset doesn't mean I think Sand should pretend he couldn't use the money. And as I already said he kind of deserves it for all the shit Ray puts him through.

Anyway, I don't blame Ray for his upset, mostly because I really do think he was coming at it from a place of hurt, because look. I am not Ray's biggest fan and probably never will be since he is constantly hurting my personal favorite, but it seems extremely clear to me that what went down with Ray is the same thing that happened with Sand in episode 5: he found out a piece of information that made him recalibrate his entire relationship with Sand, and he came some very unhappy conclusions. The fact that he's wrong doesn't change that. Because from Ray's POV Sand went and made him fall in love with him, convinced him he cared, and now Ray's doing this huge thing for him (which is part of why I love that first therapy session - Ray treats it like a chore, like something he has to get over with so that he can appease Sand and fulfil his end of a bargain he half thought Sand would back out of, and that's EXACTLY how he should have treated it because that's how he felt about it then) and the whole time Sand wasn't doing any of it because he cared like he made Ray believe, he was just doing as his father paid him to do. He was always gonna find a way to get out of it initially anyway, but this was delicious to me personally because god help me, I love the kind of anguish that comes with caring so much for someone and then having to suspect that every time they claimed to feel the same they were doing it under false pretenses. Sue me. Only don't because I don't have a lot of money.

And I do think deep down he probably knew better. But when has rationality ever gotten a look in with Ray? He's a live wire, he's too fucking reactive to sit down for two seconds and think. Which is where my issues come in but just a sec, we're not there yet.

I really liked his second therapy session. I liked how different it was from the first, how obvious it is that he's now determined to at least try, even if he still doesn't think that he needs to be there. He's still doing it for Sand, but less in a "I'm going to tick this box so he'll shut up" way and more in a "I want to try to be better for him" way, which to me does make a difference. As the therapist said, people go to rehab for all kinds of reasons. Sometimes it's for themselves. Often it's for someone else. And that's okay. Sometimes it's easier to fight for someone else than it is to fight for yourself.

The entire last scene with Ray breaking down was painful to watch, and like everyone else I have to commend Khaotung for his performance. He really went all out and that's what makes the scene so powerful. I commend First as well, because I can't imagine how hard it was to walk the line he had to walk as imaginary Sand, and also not start crying in sympathy. I mean, it got me and I wasn't even in the same room, and we all know how First gets whenever Khaotung cries. They've certainly talked about it enough. I swear, this drama is a crash course in forcing First not to cry.

The scene was raw and painful, and I really felt Ray's desperation and sadness and remorse.

That said, I can't help but have trust issues. Ray is very good at apologizing and then demonstrably learning nothing. With one exception (Sand told him to stop throwing money at him because it makes him uncomfortable, and to my knowledge Ray has not made a habit of doing so since), Ray seems to think that apologizing means that he can go right back to the same behavior. This one does seem different in that he's way more devastated, and it was clear enough that he was apologizing for a lot more than going off at Sand in his apartment, but I can't help but worry that he'll just retreat back to form when Sand inevitably forgives him as he has so many times before (and that we'll never hear him say even a fraction of that to Sand's actual face, which if he doesn't I really hope bites him in the ass later).

I want to believe in Ray, I do. Despite myself I like the guy and I would really love to stop seeing him take one step forward, two steps back all the time. But as I said I have trust issues.

Ray's Dad. I knew he actually gave a shit. He's horrible at expressing it and he's clearly at his wit's end with Ray and his self-destruction, but he cares. And I believe him when he says that he wanted to pay Sand because he admires him. Here this dude is out here doing so much for his unappreciative son, and he clearly doesn't have the same resources that this man has. It'd impress me too. And frankly for that much alone he should have offered him money. I get that he thinks that Ray will be more likely to listen to Sand than him but also he's asking a twenty something year old to do something that he apparently can't. Hell yeah he should have put money on the table. I appreciated him setting Ray straight. I can definitely see why his way of dealing with Ray doesn't work, though. Still, it's nice that he's not the stereotypical only cares about his reputation guy he appeared to be at first, especially when seen through Ray's eyes (although I already suspected he wasn't, since Sand was so adamant that Ray's dad gave a shit. I loved the "I don't want him to end up like his mother" line, too - it made me think that maybe her death haunts him just as much as it does Ray).

Top. Still rooting for him, like I am every week. Would love to know why he's so damn passive with all of his exes. Think he's aware of exactly what Mew is up to and has decided to weather it out. That's about all I got for him this week, though.

Nick. For some reason he just didn't work for me this week, which is weird because I think his scene on the roof with Boston is one of the best of the episode. I think I wanted him to make Boston work for it more but well, that's not my pathetic dude at all. It'll never be in him to make Boston work for it, lol. Oh, Nick.

Cheum. Okay, before I say anything else I want to say that I get where she was coming from, going at Boston. I also get her not being able to calm down enough to register that not only is Atom not nude in any of those pics, he also looks the complete opposite of coerced. She's already mad (whether fairly or not) at Boston for what happened with Top, and now she's got her baby bro telling her that Boston not only sexually assaulted him, but that he's trying to continue doing so via blackmail. It's no surprise that she's so mad she can't think.

That all said, I'm still not pleased with some of the things coming out of her mouth. I can understand where she is coming from and still not like the way she's expressing herself, and boy howdy is that the case here. I've said it before, but I am SO done with the slutshaming. And I was really not down with that "Atom likes women. What did you do to him?" line. Fuck all the way off with that shit, too. I am actually really worried about what she's going to do about this, because I actually don't think she's gonna calm down and have a think before she does something really fucking stupid.

Atom. Oh, this little fuck. I knew he was gonna pull some shit, I could feel it in my bones, but I didn't expect him to go quite that low. More fool me. I don't care how upset he is, going around accusing Boston of SA because he wouldn't fuck him again is vile. Just gross. And he knew what he was doing. This shit was planned and purposeful. Vile. Just vile.

Relationships (Most to Least Fave atm)

There weren't really any friendship moments this go around (well, I guess you could say the core group had a moment, but uh), so I'll just be doing the couples this time.

TopMew. What can I say. It's still the one. I've already explained how I see things above, and I still think that these two are definitely end game. I do think that by next ep they'll be actually working things out though, as opposed to Mew paying lip service to it while he tests the fuck out of Top to see what he does. I appreciate that this ship isn't for everyone but it is for me, apparently. Come on, guys, I believe in you.

Threesomes - the order in which I crave these is TOPSANDBOEING followed by TopMewBoeing, but honestly SandRayBoeing will do in a pinch, even though I'm still in camp "Ray says he wants the threesome but what he really wants is to scare the third party off." Boeing is the last person to be scared off by that though, I feel, so. We'll see what happens. That said, Sand really doesn't appear to be Team Threesome nowadays and hopefully his opinion matters, hence my desire for a TopSandBoeing flashback.

SandRay. Yeah, I know. I'm surprised too. Still think they're made to break, but I liked their stuff this time. Everything about it was really good from an angst lover's perspective. Preview wants me to think that Sand and Boeing have a chance (and honestly I would not say nay) but let's be real here, Sand ain't going there. He might have conflicted feelings about Boeing but he's far too focused on Ray now to be with anyone else. If anything, we'll see Ray fuck Boeing first. And Boeing does seem to like going after the love interest...

BostonNick. I don't know why it wasn't firing for me this ep, but it wasn't firing for me this ep. Still think they deserve each other. Still rooting for them. But for this episode only, they did less for me than Ray and Sand.

SandBoeing. The way I need these two to kiss on the mouth. Look, my GramYok heart wants what it wants. I thought they were gonna kiss in Not Me and I was denied. Actually, they denied me a lot in Not Me. Asshole show (not really). But now that Mond's here and actually kissing guys instead of faking me out this needs to happen (and I think it will. Via flashback, most likely).

BoeingMew. What? I could get behind this. That one brief moment where Mew kissed him back really worked for me, although I don't think Mew could go through with it.

In Conclusion

I really liked this episode. The apartment fight and Ray's end scene were particular standouts, but so were both BostonNick scenes. I will appreciate it if Boeing has more to do than just cause stupid mess, but I'm guessing that he's mostly here to cause mess and either kiss or try to kiss every one of these dudes. There are worse things to exist for. Plus he's pretty.

I'm kind of glad that we only have two weeks left. I suspect that this is a show that might do better on binging overall, so if the ending is good (and by good I mean something that I personally find satisfying - I'm not claiming any objectivity here) I will probably do that. A week between episodes leaves us all with too much damn time on our hands to come up with dumb shit (ask me about how I have convinced myself Ray and Boeing are gonna do the do).

If you made it this far, thanks for reading. See you next week.