#its ironic that what would make the whole thing interesting - the fact he could be hurt easier -

[badly-drawn-doflamingo]

Me and a friend read Thriller tonight in Japanese to do some Yorki digging, as usual, and some interesting things came up. Not enough to make a huge post but, enough to mention some interesting things that maybe folks would like to know that did not make it into the English, or translate well.

So lets start with his name. Calico Yorki is said as 'キャラコのヨーキ' which brings two very funny things into the light.

1. The space in Yorkis name, (ー is a space!) means that you would say it 'YOoooooooki.'

2. The phrasing is not Calico Yorki directly but more so 'Yorki of the Calico' or a possessive of the word, which brings me to my next point.

Calico Jack was called such for the indian calico cloth he wore, an expensive and rich fabric, which once again, brings me to a very strange fact.

'Calico Yorki' does not seem to be his real name.

( I am known by some people in this West Blue as 'Calico Yorki.')

The phrasing of 'Calico Yorki' implies this is a false title, such as Bellemy 'The Hyena' or Bartolomeo 'The Man-Eater.' His wiki even states this as a nickname title, however its debatable if it means the Calico part or the name as whole, however it APPEARS the entire name. Which... is strange.

This is only made weirder by the phrasing of 'some people' or 'some call me.' Who and why is this? If the theory of him being royalty is true, it means a bit more, however this is up in the air.

Back to the first topic of his coat, the funniest option of all is simply that it could imply he named himself AFTER HIS COAT. Ironic since HE DOES NOT WEAR A SHIRT.

Yorki speaks like a southerner in a sense, however also speaks quite strangely and admittedly a bit queerly. Very very colorful use of language, for example the Rumbar motto translates as “Even crying children can laugh!” (The English says here to put a smile on every kids face.) It’s nor eloquent, but it’s fitting of a musical crew. This could allude to something, but he also can be read as tired as if something weighs on him.

Brook does the same; very happy, but something bothers him.

Yorki does not call Bink's Sake by its title, only referring to it as 'that song.' He has no idea what it is it seems, just interested in knowing 'its the pirate song, Brook play me it.'

One moment for Madaisuki; he speaks like a child would. He speaks to Brook without any honorific, and this would not be notable if not for the rest of his language. He speaks much like a child to father might, or just a child/teen. This heavily implies he was maimed as just a youth...

('Your sword swingin' is amazing Brook! Teach me sword fighting!)

Madaisuki never says "your" moves. He says teach me HOW to sword-fight as a statement. He does not even know how to fight back. Making the swords in his brain casing and lung as useless as fighting back was... ough Maddy...

Yorki uses a big boy word; 無念だ…！

This cannot be utterly translated without a few statements. This is NOT a usual fun casual phrase. This is SUCH a large phrase that is is SHOCKING to Brook, who in the next panel goes "You... I ?! Uh!"

This can directly be read as "free them" technically, with enough weight that it’s almost biblical. It however is also usually used as a Buddhist term, a religious term to float about Brook.

This is like someone on their deathbed saying to you, who mind you has always spoken like a fucking sailor; "Free them of their heartache, cast their sin aside and save their hearts of that angst and inhibition." It’s still said slightly informal all things considered, but it is still scary to hear THIS CHAiRACTER say THIS heavy a phrase.

( Brook's anxiety is very clear, and it makes the phrasing of 'I have ingrained your words upon my heart/I have chiseled them upon my chest' make a lot more sense all things considered. I too would be fucking shocked if my partner just started saying scripture when before he threw beer bottles at me. )

Yorki and Brook share one symbol in common, and that is the ヨ. The 'yo' symbol is the exact same as the one in Brook's laugh, being 'ヨホホホホ!' This is the tattoo on Yorki's face, also being part of his name and a pun on 'sing-song.' However, this can also allude to something else, and that something is a mystery... for now.

[felassan]

Letters from Lovers

Transcriptions of the letters from the various gear store items. under cut for length.

Isabela:

“My dear Hawke, Do you know anyone with a flock of parrots? I'm trying to cheat on a bet with Varric and the stakes are exceedingly high. If you help me, I shall take you to that breathtaking beach you so crave. Free of ancient horrors, too. I think. I'd hate to take respite from all my adventures, but there are other ways to make the heart flutter. In fact I'm already imagining a few. Aren't you? Sailing there can be fatal, but Admiral Isabela will keep you safe. Are you interested? I would love to see you again. Yours, Isabela”

Morrigan:

“My love, Now before that grin reaches your ears, perish the thought that this letter was my idea. 'Tis Kieran who would not give me peace until I wrote to ask how you are faring. Regale us, if you please, with another of your tales that I might read to him in bed. He is particularly fond of those wherein you spur mischief whilst you save the day. Thank you for your most delightful gifts. I shall make certain to wear them the next time you come home. Dream of me until then, my Hero of Ferelden, and have a care. Morrigan”

Dorian:

“My dearest Amatus, Home is ever as it was: a glittering whirl of dancing, politics, and murder. I'm used to people staring daggers at me - I quite relish it, actually - but the glares seem to possess a new intensity since my return to Tevinter. Do they disapprove of House Pavus freeing its slaves while I work in the Magisterium to end slavery across Tevinter? Perhaps they simply covet my cheekbones, and who could blame them? Real reform will take time, but we're making inroads. I miss you terribly, Amatus, perhaps almost as much as you miss me. I treasure you and your belief in my work here. Yours always, Dorian P.S. I wouldn't take it amiss if you might send me another barrel of that dreadful Fereldan beer?”

Alistair:

“My love, How are you? Is it true that you recently killed darkspawn with only a mean glare and a pointy stick? Ferelden is ablaze with this rumor! You do give people so much hope. Tales of your heroism never fail to astonish me and almost ease the pain of going to sleep without you by my side. Almost. I can't wait to be with you again. I'd bring you some roses, you could give me a tour of the keep, we'd drink with the new recruits and then cuddle in a tent. Without the new recruits! Tent time is just for the two of us. I want to make that clear. Now excuse me while I practice my death glare and rummage through the dog's stash of sticks. I love you. Yours forever, Alistair.”

The Iron Bull:

“Kadan, You won’t believe what I did today. I got a guy to flip! Twice! So yes, all is well. Except for all the demons. And this whole thing in which I’m far away from the love of my life. Really keeps me up at night. Anyway, you hearing these rumors of a dragon on the loose? Yeah! The boys and I are on its trail. Last I heard, it was flying toward the Frostback Mountains. Can you join us? I hope you’re not uh… all tied up. Don’t worry, I’m fairly certain it’s not a Ben-Hassrath trap. And if it is, you know I’m prepared. Ataash varin kata! I love you, Kadan. See you soon. The Iron Bull.”

Tali:

“By the way, I left something for you up in your cabin. Go have a look.” - Tali’Zorah  --- “Dear Shepard,   As you may remember, I presented this picture frame to you as a gift on the Normandy. It was my way of expressing my admiration for you and our bond as comrades-in-arms. On the back of the metal frame, I've emblazoned a promise that will never fade - 'Shepard, wherever you go, I'm with you.'  I know it's not much, but...this is what I look like under the mask. I'm sorry if it's not what you were expecting. I know Quarian faces can be a bit...different. Every time you look at my picture, I hope you will be reminded of our adventures on the Normandy, from our battles against the Reapers to our intimate conversations in the privacy of our quarters.    I am not one to express my emotions openly, but thank you for being my friend, my confidante, and my inspiration. I look forward to many more adventures together.  Keelah se’lai,   Tali’Zorah”

Another letter from Tali:

"Whatever the galaxy throws at us, I'll be at your side. - Tali" --- "Shepard It's been a while since I last struggled to sleep. You must be dreaming of falling through a fish tank or starring in a hanar vid? I can hear you muttering about jellyfish. It's funny. I've spent my whole life hoping for the future, but these days nothing scares me more. Keelah, why can't we stop time? Even for just a little bit? No war, no Reapers, nobody counting on us. Just you and me, as free as the dust in the solar wind. When this is all over, will you settle down on Rannoch with me? I love you. - Tali"

Bonus:

Shepard's N7 acceptance letter, from Anderson:

“N7 Congratulations on your graduation From Captain David Anderson Shepard, When I graduated from the N7 program I had the honor of meeting Admiral Grissom, the man who inspired me to pursue a career in the service, and I never thought I’d feel prouder in my life. I was mistaken. Don’t get me wrong, it was a big day. An important day. But there’s something about welcoming driven young people like yourself into the ranks that’s also pretty damn satisfying. Your distinguished service record may have gotten you into this program - but it was your courage, integrity, and tenacity that’s enabled you to join an elite few. You represent the best of humanity, and I feel certain you’ll make the galaxy a better place. And I’m not the only one who feels this way. Becoming an N7 means the entire Systems Alliance is telling you one thing - we believe in you. Let me end by saying this. Welcome to the team Shepard. We know you won’t let us down. David Anderson Systems Alliance Interplanetary Combatives Academy N7 N7 Acceptance Letter”

[everythingpie]

OK SETTING THIS UP LIKE A NORMAL ANALYSIS CAUSE ITS WAY EASIER

Ok so, they both take place in an alternate universe, one where smilk spreads the truth (including the harsh truth(this is important...)) and another where hollyberry stays with suga. While sugas whole thing is still sloth, i would consider devotion as passion and suga is VERY devoted to holly as we know and smilk very outwardly is a truthsayer. So, suga is showing passion yet still represents sloth but takes no action in trying to hide her love, like, at all. So its completely possible that sage DOES believe now in the utmost truth and outwardly presents like that but considering that he puts emphasis on what hurts he could be using the truth as a cover for his true intentions (ironic) which is causing havoc, cause the whole reasons he turns away from truth originally is because of the pain it causes others (and himself considering he learned the ULTIMATE truth lol) what if after being with pv hes now become even MORE sinister?? Using the truth against people, like how suga uses her and hollys passions to keep them in the garden but also making her submit to sloth, and because of this pv stays doubtful, henceforth, staying truthless recluse, because after being constantly messed with he now has to bear witness to his enemy using his past morals to cause even moreee harm pushing him further into this like doubt yet cannot do anything against it due to the truth being "the right thing" no matter how harsh (even though that is not entirely true in and of itself...) so hes kinda just stuck watching, like kinda spiralling over how horrible all his beliefs have become not even able to turn truth OR deceit for any respite. This could also be heightened in the fact that hollyberry doesnt really turn to sloth OR passion aswell??? But just dawns the role of protector despite not protecting anything really? Actually saying this i think she embodies BOTH more than neither as she still has a passion or devotion to protect others yet spends all her time doing nothing just wallowing in the garden with suga. This is actually an AWESOME revelation cause i was a little dissapointed when like the actually sin of sloth wasnt included much in the latest ep but instead just slothful activity which is a major let down! But now that suga has given holly a new role that she will never be able to fufill forcing her into a position of sloth like how belphagor did in some holy texts!!!! Giving humans ideas soooo extraordinary that they could not possibly bring them to life making them spend most of their life just dreaming of how to properly enact this ideas or just giving up entirly knowing they will never be able to acheive such greatness. Tbh i really wish they did go more towards this and the dream aspects for this new upadateeee but i still think it was pretty good.... also i find it a bit interesting that sages outfit is way more mordern for his time?? Like its still old dont get me wrong but this was like so not the style in the like tudor/medivel era, which is the one im assuming hes from considering thats where most like jester information came from, plus this fit is like wayyyy more victorian which is like not medieval at all... SAME WITH SUGAS ACTUALLY greeks absolutely NOT have worse something so ECCENTRIC and ikkkk shes like more greco-roman and not just greek but the puffs n jewlery still seems a little past her time -`_-...

As previously stated, their costume stories do seem to be opposites in some ways with pv leaving sage while holly stays with suga, or smilk emboding pvs aspect more while suga just tries to push herself onto holly more. Also knowing that holly prolly accepted her invite before suga flooded her garden, suga is dedinetly priortizing herself more knowing holly has already "fallen for her" beliving she has less of a chance of leaving. But she definetly is still incredibly focused on hollyberry making sure shes at her "happiest" not really acknowledging her true emotions believing she is genuinely happier confiding in simple pleasures and hobbies instead of actually getting to help those in need providing real care for others. On the other hand sage definetly knows what he is doing antagonising recluse with his past self, as he probably once did TO HIMSELF which i find funny so im keeping the headcanon for personal use, using the truth to serve as a constant reminder of what he once was and how corrupt it can truly be. Knowing all this im gonna assume the story line was.

-Suga invites holly to her garden so she can be her partner basically but accidently causes her pain

-smilk leaves recluse behind after he succumbs to his mental fuckery, intentionally causing recluse suffering

Also given the title of smilks costume set "At the peak of truth, despair not" is obviously a lie, considering there is not a spec of hope in the peak or general story, could allude to how sage is still a deceitful person, and is using the literal truth to cover up the fact that hes doing this, ushhshshshs if any of this is SUPPOSED to be implied id be the happiest person on the planet cause that would make botb smilk AND sage liek 200% cooler.... also ive heard people say his souljam still being corrupt is an idicator of him being evil which is kinda cool i personally wouldnt sya taht but whatevs, i different thing i WOULD like to point out tho (and this is about to dive STRAIGHT into su territory so sorry) but sage is literlaly holding the head of awakened pvs staff that pv literally sees out of, which is hilarious considering sage literally steals pvs walking stick so that he has to rely on him in my au and that wasnt even intentional. But coming OUT of au territory this could totes be a metaphor for sage understanding the raw power of truth and still using it against recluse as its like a pretty key part of his like character considering hes had this staff litrally forever and now the new one is a shitty corrupted version and sage just has the new actually good version of it and isnt even using it to like help awaken pv or sum shit like that?? Reminds me of

Yk this also makes me think hes just telling people truths they dont want to really hear yet not allowing them to understand it fully leaving them coming back to him hoping one day it they may get an actual answer thats fucking helpful, holly is probably doing this with suga aswell but i barely got any proof for that just a blanket assumption as normally people in abusive relationships seek refuge in their abusers hoping they like have answers after being maniulated into believing whatever they say is true.

Imma just use this section to talk about sweetendmilk cause they have my HEART and i havent considered this SPECIFIC relationship dynamic (but if anyone wants any other versions of eternalmilk all you have to do is ask..... I WILL PROVIDE) anywho, i could totes see them encouraging eachothers behaviours like eachother yes-girlls, on the other hand i think suga still wouldnt trust smilk, she definetly knows somethings wrong cause why would smilk just suddenly change after years of brooding and rage??? Has he really changed or is he just telling another lie! If so i think she would attempt to change him AGAIN seeing other cookies potentially getting hurt seeing an opportunity to lure them AND smilk to her garden, smilk would be fucking PISSED i can feel it in my blood, he knows what shes doing and is extremely offened that suga would try to take this power from him after he like JUST got it, suga dont gaf and just wants smilk to think that all these silly things are futile and instead of spreading truth or deceit he should jsut succumb to sloth and stay with her. There is DEDINETLY a world wear smilk accepts this offer but still tries to kinda take over her garden swaying her people to his word with the truth and in return suga is now like SUPA PISSED and the 2 become like the bickering queen and queen of their now conjoined kingdoms,uhhhggg that would be so fucking hot like lowkey, thta would be SOOOOO fucking hot, n then holly n pv are just there,possibly even swap places while these bitches fight like after all this misery pv just succumbs to sloth cause all this is too fucking much bruh, but then holly is up listening to the sage kinda go against suga and is like "wait a second what if everything ive been protecting is literally a lie aswell" and i like how well both of these fit since both these charcaters were basically on the edge of doing this. Dude... this is like.... eternalmilk, hollysugar, sagerecluse, vanillaberry HEAVEN, if i ever expand on this au just know at some point they WILL be polyamorous... and alll hellllll will break loose. I realllllly wish i knew how to write fanfiction. One day yall gonna see me on ao3, TRUST

[cultkinkcoven]

GUYSGUYGUYS GUYS GUYS GUYS

VERY FUCKING COOL THING THAT HAPPENED TODAY

so my city was hosting a huge crystal show, and all day I’ve been looking for one specific rare crystal, Phosphosiderite, due to its containing Phosphate and Iron. I wanted to see if it would glow under UV light.

So all day I’m looking for this crystal and no one has it, most haven’t even heard about it. And then I see this staff member guy who is a geologist and ask him about it. He goes “hm! that’s a rare one! Ask this guy!”

and we go down the line from rock guy to rock guy trying to find even one specimen. Then I get to this one guy, the guy who knows all the rocks, and he looks a bit like Jesse Pinkman lol. And i’m like “I’m looking for Phosphosiderite” and he’s like “ah yes, we have only 3 examples. Here are some Phosphosiderite - opallite bracelets”- apparently this guy has an obsession with purple rocks specifically and knew the rock exactly BECAUSE it was purple. Really cool dude.

and I’m like FINALLY. The bracelets are like $70 so I can’t afford them, I’m just super interested to see if they’ll glow. And the guy is like “Honestly, I doubt they will but let’s see”

So we look at it under a UV light, and sure enough, it glows!!!!!! The dude is like HHOOOLY SHIT!!! and i’m like YYYEAAAA DUDE and he’s like showing all his other rock buddies this rock glowing and we’re all freaking out over how cool it looks. Then he’s like yknow what, just for that I’m going to make you a custom fully Phosphosiderite bracelet and you can have it for $30 just because you taught me something new today. I’m gonna run back to our shop and look at all of our Phosphosiderite under UV!!!”And i’m like WWWWOOOAAAHHH NO FUCKING WAY!!!!

and then my bfs mom is like “i’ll get it for you as an early birthday present because this is really cool” and I’m like WHATTT AAAA NO WAY!!!!

ITS SO FUCKING COOL!!!! AND IT GLOWS!!!!!!!!

The guy asked me why I was interested in Phosphosiderite and I didn’t wanna get into the whole Luciferian thing. So I was just like, “I’ve never seen it in real life and I wanted to see if it could glow or be magnetic at all because of the iron”

and he’s like “MAGNETIC?! OH SHIT” and I’m like “I AM WEARING MAGNET RINGS RIGHT NOW LETS CHECK!!!” and he was like HOLY SHIT!!!

They are extremely subtly attracted to the magnet!!! and he’s like “YOU’RE TEACHING ME SO MUCH ABOUT THIS ROCK!!!!”

having that moment of just like supreme excitement standing with all these super educated people looking at this crystal that does in fact GLOW, was so fucking cool and so fucking Luciferian I almost cried. I’m so happy I decided to ask, the fact that everyone was just as excited as I was to see it glow was just so amazing. aaaaa

I got my hands on some Phosphosiderite completely for free :)) It’s like he literally put it in my hands :))))

[scrapplescribbles]

Intro to Fairfable

second (prettier) edition :D (i took way too long to finally post this cause i did a lot of overthinking 😭)

You've heard the myths. Most of you just think they're made up.

Humans tend to neglect the wisdom that all legends are based in truth, that some things are beyond science. That maybe fairy tales aren't fantasy.

There is another world that exists alongside your own. Its name matters little. Its people are familiar. All that is required of you is to look into Those Places—you know the ones I mean—and let them take you there. However, since the Other Folk are not particularly fond of intruders, let this story suffice as your window into their lives. Things are changing in their world. In a realm of myth and magic, what better place to begin than the most ordinary?

If you've made it this far, I'm gonna hope you're at least a little interested. And prepared for a long ass yap. If things go the way I want them to and we get Fairfable off the ground, it will grow into a full-fledged indie animated series. Unfortunately, I can't animate, and even if I were to start learning several years ago, I can't animate a whole multi-season show by myself. The closest thing I have to a production team is my self-recruited friend to help write some episodes and my cousin who knows that at some point within the next couple years he's gonna get a text saying he's gonna help me make music for Not Hazbin Hotel. I would start getting more people together to work on it, but I just graduated high school and am using pretty much every cent I have access to to pay for college. Not optimal conditions for creating an entirely new show from scratch. But it has pages and pages worth of ideas in Google Docs, so we're getting somewhere, at least (I say, knowing full well that I spend most of my "writing" time watching youtube video essays and blasting music into my ears.)

I have a lot of goals for this. It's pretty character-driven, but it does have a bigger overarching plot tied to deeper lore (duh, I have a ton of mythology and magic stuff to work with.) This show is supposed to be fun but serious when it needs to be. It's also proudly queer (take one look at its creator 💀) and full of neurodivergent representation. Also, I want it to be a musical because I'm a music-loving theater kid. Fight me. (Actually don't I have the strength of an angry toothpick)

There's comedy. There's symbolism. Ironically, there's humanity, but art is supposed to reflect the world it's created in. There's love in every bit of this project, and if that ever fails to show through, I've failed as a writer. The cast is diverse in its stories and in its characters' flaws, and I'm doing my best to make them feel like real people in spite of the fact that they're fantasy creatures. Let it be known that I am a sucker for found family and any story about characters helping each other heal wounds from their past and grow into better people. I LOVE me some good wholesome healing. That's what this is. It gets serious because some characters deal with real serious trauma, and I do not plan on making light of people's trauma. But they find time to laugh, y'know?

There are still a lot of things I need to figure out. Any part of the story or the characters or anything could change at any time. I'm also always learning, whether it be through experience (after all, as of this summer I'll only have 18 years of it) or research. But, as I do with anything I write, I love to have fun with it. Jokes and shitposts always have a home on this blog and in my heart (as long as they're not offensive or maliciously ignorant, of course.) Anyway, I think I'm getting dangerously close to reaching a point where I don't make sense anymore, so let's move on.

Characters

the main focus of this project. for the people who have seen a million of these intros already im sorry lmao its for the new people. also i will add pictures when i get the motivation and im happy with the results (i do have some half-finished thumbnails so yippee!! let's see if i get any further with that!)

Nema (she/her)

Nema's always been different.

Over the years, her "gift" has earned her a reputation. Not that she ever went around telling everyone about it, but, when you occasionally mutter vague prophecies and randomly zone out in the middle of sentences, it's kind of hard to hide. No one has a clue why she's plagued by these visions. All she knows is that too many of them have come true, and people always focus on that instead of just plain old Nema.

But then again, sometimes she gets a feeling. Just like she did the day she popped her head out of the water and really took a look at the old abandoned treehouse. Just like she did the day she met Lynx, Sal, Zing, and Shailyn. And, for once, it didn't feel ominous and foreboding. She doesn't know where fate will take her. But maybe, for once, it's going somewhere good.

Lynx (she/her)

A cat with a mission and a patience that wears thinner by the day.

It's been months since Lynx began her search for somewhere to move out. Sure, of course she loves her family, but love doesn't give you Lynx's parents' seemingly magical tolerance for screaming children scurrying around an absolutely cramped den. She's glad she had the experience of living there, but it's high time for a less overstimulating change of pace.

The only problem is that the places with neon mold creatures stuck in the drywall and mandrake infestations are the only ones Lynx can afford on her own, and she'd feel bad asking her parents for money. She's gonna need a roommate or two to share the financial burden. Or three. Or four, if you want to count the fairy. But for the four of them who do know how money works, this tree seems weirdly perfect (aside from the overgrown-ness.) Only one question is on Lynx's mind: is this too good to be true, or has the bull finally stopped shitting?

Zing (pronouns? yeah those are cool)

Zing, shapeshifter, at your service.

Zing has always prided themself on their ability to make friends. It's easy when you're a walking party trick with the charm and impeccable sense of style to match. But even a free spirit has to settle down sometime. This ragtag band of individuals too broke to afford housing on their own seems like the perfect opportunity to set up a home base. And, of course, the individuals themselves are intriguing, to say the least.

Nema's quiet. Shy. But nice once you get her talking. Makes you wonder what she's hiding. Shailyn's friendly. She just seems curious. You have to be careful with your words around her, but that's nothing Zing isn't already on top of. Lynx and Sal will be tougher to crack—Sal especially. But nothing like a challenge! At least that's what Zing is telling themself.

Shailyn (she/her)

New people. Interesting.

The tree hasn't been inhabited for years—a long time when it comes to the shorter-lived creatures of this world. So one can imagine the fairy's surprise when she popped in one day to check on her plants, only to discover people there.

Typically, the fairy likes to keep to herself. She likes this tree—the old, abandoned, living building fascinates her, and she finds it a delightful place to spend her time. But she did always suppose it was only a matter of time before others came. They're curious little beings. And, while they're here, this seems to be as good a time as any to socialize.

Sal (he/him)

Finally.

For what seems like far too long, Sal has been looking for somewhere to go. He doesn't care where, how, or who with, as long as he doesn't have to deal with his mother constantly breathing down his neck anymore. All he wants is real independence, and now he finally has a chance to have it.

Of course, he'd rather not have to live with fairy tricks in his own home. She seems odd, even for a fairy. But, it's still a house, and at least the other people don't seem too bad. Lynx and Nema are cool. Zing seems like a bit of a wild card, but whatever. Things are different now. Sal can deal with it. Whatever may happen.

Content Warnings

these are here because they're important to the stories and development of the characters. even though i personally have not experienced many of these things, i still want to raise awareness and fight stigma around mental health issues and trauma. you'll see a lot of "non-graphic mentions of/allusions to" in this list. that's exactly what i mean—no more, no less. i will update this as i learn more and as the show itself changes. if there are problems with the way fairfable approaches any of these topics, i would appreciate constructive criticism in order to keep these depictions as respectful and realistic as possible. lots of love to anyone affected by these issues <3

cursing/strong language

a bit of non-gory violence

homophobia from society and from family

non-graphic mentions of the past death of a parent that happened when the character was young

emotional abuse/manipulation from a parent/family member

mentions of/allusions to past suicidal thoughts

non-graphic mentions of/allusions to past SH

past and current non-physical self-destructive behavior

non-graphic mentions of/allusions to SA

mentions of/allusions to past toxic relationships ranging from familial to platonic to romantic/sexual

Conclusion

So that's the gist of it, I think. Thanks for being here; it means a lot :)

Asks and comments are always welcome if there's anything you want to say or know more about. (Please guys I really like talking and the more specific the question the better cause I feel like every time I get a generalized question like "what are you working on?" or "free token to talk about your wips!" I just say the same things over and over again. Not that I don't appreciate the asks; I just don't wanna bore y'all and myself 😭)

Fairfable Taglist!

these are the real ones 🔥🔥 lmk if you want to be added/removed

@foxgloves-garden @novaluna7189 @generation-of-vipers @woodlandstarz13 @peculiardragon22

dividers from here :)

[nottswitch]

but daddy, I love him

summary: your choice of a partner doesn't leave your parents satisfied, seeing as it's Sirius Black, an infamous "blood traitor". does anything have the power to convince them? are you even willing to try?

pairing: sirius black x reader

warning: wizarding bigotry, teenage angst, smoking

wc: 3.8k

a/n: the first of the many inspired by taytay's ttpd. "but daddy I love him" is so sirius coded, I had to.

You wanted to love your family so badly, you truly did. Throughout your whole life your parents had been giving you whatever you needed and wanted – they had the money and they had the power to make your life as simple as the Accio spell. But no one ever stopped to think what it really meant to belong to one of the most ancient pureblood families in the Wizarding World. Everybody always saw the benefits: the new shiny textbooks, the perfectly ironed uniform, owls bringing you the most delicious snacks and rare books relating to your latest interests every week, your bed frame in the dorm decorated to the brim. You appreciated being that privileged, you never failed to thank your parents for the way they brought you up. However, you were fiercely shielded from any outside troubles that could possibly hinder your education and your innocence, as they put it. Ultimately, fate decided to perform its finest display of ruthless irony on you, and your parents’ endless disquietude became the very thing that led to the demise of your relationship with them.

You never expected your dating life to be of such interest to your family, simply thanks to the fact that it was never a question. You hadn’t had any serious partners before, partly due to your tender age, partly due to your own indifference to finding a suitable match.

But then Sirius Black asked you out, and your whole world had stars aligned in front of you in heart-shaped constellations; and it came down in shambles at the same time.

“Love, you alright?”

His delicately worried voice pulled you out of the misery that your parents’ letter promptly put you in.

“Uh, yeah, I guess,” you answered, shaking your head to temporarily kick the haunting unpleasantries out of your mind. “It’s just… this.”

You showed Sirius a thick envelope with a gold-encrusted seal, your family crest shining proudly and glaringly in the rays of the first summer sun. He barely glanced at the paper and snatched it from you, carelessly throwing it into the fireplace. You watched the flames hungrily devouring the carefully folded letter but leaving the seal perfectly undamaged. It stared at you like a glowing all-seeing orb, burning through your skull and serving as a reminder that everything you had just read was real and imminent.

“The school’s gotta give you props for all this rubbish to keep the fireplaces running.”

You chuckled at Sirius’ vitriol but it hardly lightened the thunderclouds gathering right above your head.

“You know words don’t burn, right?”

“Seems to me like they just did.” Sirius pointed at the seal that finally started to melt, stuck between pieces of firewood and piles of ash.

You let out a heavy breath and turned away from the fireplace to face your boyfriend. He was lying on the couch, head resting on a soft velvety cushion, looking at you with quite a joyful expression on his face. In your mind, it didn’t fit the situation at all, but you had gotten used to his nonchalance about your parents’… dislike of him. Or, better put, their vicious hatred that they never even tried to hide.

“Do you really not care?” you wondered for the umpteenth time, knowing that a no was a sure follow-up to your question.

“Why would I?” Sirius grinned and his hand safely covered yours, resting on the arm of the sofa. “The best part of your fam loves me, and others are a bunch of wankers.”

“I’m the only part of my fam that loves you, babe,” you pointed out, rolling your eyes but giving him a little smile. He smiled back, but stayed silent, noticing that you weren’t finished yet. “I’m already seventeen but I still feel like I’m a wee baby when they talk to me, or send me letters, or even look at me!”

“I know, love, it sucks. But you remember the plan, right?”

You nodded, and the smile on your face had finally turned genuine.

“The one where we come to my graduation dinner together even though my parents explicitly stated many times that there’s not a single universe in which they allow you to step on the property, and if you do, it would be over their dead bodies?”

“Merlin, the way you describe it! Might just be the best prank I’ve ever pulled!”

Sirius burst out laughing and you couldn’t help but follow his lead, his contagious joy making you feel whole again. The two of you came up with this madness of a plan as soon as you heard about your mother talking about a graduation dinner in your honour. They would never allow Sirius to attend, not in a million years; hell, they refused to even look at him when they saw you off at Platform 9 ¾ at the beginning of your last year at Hogwarts. They ignored his existence whenever he came into their sight, like during the holidays, when you got off the train hand in hand with your boyfriend and your parents greeted you, hugged you, kissed you on the forehead, but Sirius was frozen out completely, as if his existence was but a figment of your imagination. He never cared though; he would snicker at their theatrics and kiss you right in front of them, throwing a challenge directly in their stuck-up faces of the Wizarding nobility. Your parents came to know that their never-ending nagging wouldn’t stop you from dating Sirius Black, but they did hold specks of hope that you would grow out of your “immature phase” and give them what they wanted – a perfect little husband from another holier-than-thou household.

Never in a thousand lifetimes would you agree.

The time had come. You had to admit that you were somewhat nervous - never before had you defied your parents’ rules so explicitly and so shamelessly. You Floo’d to the Diagon Alley under the guise of last-minute preparations for the big event. Sirius was waiting for you right there, fully prepared: he was sporting a leather jacket, torn up jeans and a nearly finished cigarette in his mouth. This lad certainly went all out to look as much as a rebellious kid cliché as it was humanly possible, and you absolutely adored it. You couldn’t wait to see the reactions; your whole family was to be present at the dinner, even the most distant relatives, who might not have heard about Sirius at all – your parents hid the fact you were dating him like a dirty secret never to be uncovered.

“Love, you ready?”

Sirius took your hand in his, clearly feeling your accelerated pulse against his own steady heartbeat.

“I was less scared of our Transfiguration N.E.W.T., if I’m honest,” you admitted, hearing your voice tremble ever so slightly. “But then again, McGonagall isn’t a sanctimonious bitch.”

Sirius let out a short laugh, but his eyes were the most earnest when he gave you one last look before turning towards the fireplace, with a handful of Floo powder ready to go.

“Let’s show them, baby. You and I, against the world.”

With his encouraging words swirling in your mind, you let yourself get sucked into the labyrinths of the Floo Network, headstrong into what could turn out as the worst and the best moment of your whole life.

Your clumsy roll out into the main living room of the family manor was a perfect start for a spectacle that was inevitably about to unfold. As soon as you stood up, Sirius flew out right behind you, almost knocking you down to the floor again.

“Daughter? What is going on?!”

Your father’s voice sounded like a church bell above you. At last, you looked up at a crowd of people, all dressed up to bits, staring at you agape, their jaws on a synchronous road to meet the bristly carpet of the living room. The silence was so loud one could hear grains of sand pouring into the bottom half of an ancient hourglass adorning the mantelpiece.

“Mom, Dad,” you started, dusting off your ivory white Sunday best, “and you, Aunt Sarah, and you, Aunt Hannah, and, of course, you, Uncle Marcus! I’m terribly sorry if I’m forgetting some of you, it’s not often that you grace us with your presence!”

Sarcasm was spilling out of your pretentious speech, as you finally had the audacity to say what you had been wanting to express for the past year. Sirius’ presence gave you some much needed courage not to stumble on your words as you tore your heart out of your chest and pinned it shut on your sleeve.

“Merlin, you lot aren’t that suave for a bunch of sirs and madams!”

Speaking of the devil.

Sirius whistled, reaching your side and putting his arm around your bare shoulders. You had picked a dress like that specifically to piss your parents off a little more. They had always told you that any skin visible to the eye below the neck and above the knees was awfully indecent, very unladylike – so you just had to stick it to them.

“Daughter, what is he doing here?!” your mother tried to whisper, but in the deafening silence her voice could be heard as clearly as if she used the Sonorus spell. “Didn’t we tell you…”

“That you’d rather die than accept your dear daughter dating someone you deem undesirable?”

Your mother tried shushing you, giving desperate faux smiles to the guests around.

“What, you didn’t tell anyone?” you continued with a sneer. “Aunts, Uncles, cousins, meet Sirius Black! We’re in love!”

An array of ahs and ohs rang out in the air, and you could see Aunt Hannah clutching her chunky pearl necklace like it was her favourite childhood plushie. Sirius gave the crowd a way overly-exaggerated curtsy.

“Sirius Black, at your service,” he announced, taking out a cigarette out of the pack and popping it between his teeth, ready to light it. Before he had time to do it, the lighter was knocked out of his hands, hitting the wall on the other side of the room with a loud thump. You noticed your father’s moving hand hiding his wand back into the inner pocket of his jacket.

“Don’t you dare smoke inside this house!” the man shouted, wishing to incinerate Sirius right where he stood with his scathing glare.

Sirius barked out a laugh and another lighter appeared in his hand. He didn’t go for a cigarette this time, merely playing with the thing in-between his fingers.

“Rule number one when at a pureblood’s den,” he mockingly drawled the words, turning the lighter on and off, “always have a spare lighter.”

You couldn’t hold in a chuckle when you saw your parents ominously fuming at every syllable escaping your boyfriend’s mouth. Your father sighed so loudly, one would think he was on his death bed.

“Let us take this outside, shall we?” He motioned towards the field serving as the manor’s backyard. You looked at the innocent flowers quivering in the wind and thought that they didn’t deserve whatever mess was about to happen within family bounds on this beautiful summer evening.

“Don’t you think it’s unfair, Dad, to deprive our lovely audience?”

You gave the people around you the fakest brightest smile you could muster. No one returned it.

“Daughter, do not taunt me,” your father warned you. “We can use the dining room, if you so desire, but nothing happens here.”

You glanced at Sirius and caught his nod of approval. The dining room was close enough so that your parents couldn’t possibly hurt Sirius, or even you – you were quite sure they wouldn’t touch you with a tip of a finger, but a bit of discretion didn’t seem too excessive. Plus, and it was the only reason you agreed – you didn’t have to suffocate under the heavy stares of your kin.

The dining room wasn’t too different from the living room, the only obvious distinction being a long hardwood table stretching almost wall to wall. It wasn’t yet set – the meal itself was to start at a later hour. Your mother was the last to enter, struggling to dismiss a choir of what-a-messes from your pathetic aunts with desperate promises to deal with the whole situation as soon as they could. She cast a charm to silence you to the rest of the world and turned, at last, to face you. Your father slipped into one of the dining chairs, but you and Sirius remained standing, given some sense of dominance due to the now apparent height difference.

“I will not dance around the subject, daughter, we are terribly disappointed in you.”

Father’s words didn’t sting as much as you thought, and you almost let out a loud sigh of relief as this realization dawned on you. They almost had a tinge of freedom in them, a bittersweet taste of long-awaited liberty. All expectations burdening your fragile shoulders suddenly vanished and you could straighten your back and run, conquering hill after hill, mountain after mountain. They were disappointed. You had nothing to uphold anymore.

“Oh, I heard this one before.” Behind you Sirius laughed, almost grunting, which made you chuckle as well. “Trust me, babe, it only gets better from here.”

Mother shot a highly disapproving look at Sirius, but stayed silent. You always hated it; “A good wife lets her husband talk,” she once said in response to your childish question, and you never asked again.

“What about, Dad? Does my happiness look disappointing to you?” Your question sounded naive, but you knew you hit the exact spot. Your parents had been telling you since your earliest years that all they wanted for you was happiness. Apparently, they forgot to add “happiness that we approve of and scrupulously choose for you” at the end.

“Your happiness? What happiness, daughter? Him? He’s the happiness?”

Your father spat out each word as if it was poison he had accidentally drunk, as if it was a travesty to mention Sirius Black and happiness in the same sentence.

“You do not know what happiness looks like, daughter. You’re only seventeen. You do not know any better.”  

“And what do you know about happiness, Dad?!”

Your voice cracked as you felt it growing louder. At this point, the conversation couldn’t avoid turning into a full-blown fight, but it was destined to be exactly that from the beginning. You came prepared.

“Is this perfectly sleek suit of yours happiness? Are my Outstanding N.E.W.Ts happiness? Is having your whole life laid out in front of you from the day you were born happiness, Dad?!”

“You do not know what you are talking about!” Father shouted, his fist rapidly meeting the surface of the table. You flinched and Sirius was quick to jump in front of you, his wand squeezed tightly in his hand.

“Sir, just so you know, this wand has been used on authority figures before.” Sirius waved it in front of him, as if it was but another gauntlet thrown into your father’s face. The sarcasm in his “Sir” was flaming hot. “And for all I care, you’re no authority.”

Father took out his own wand from the same inner pocket and pointed it at Sirius.

“Boy, I will not bat an eye if you turn to dust right here and now,” he stated, his nose wrinkled in disgust, but his eyes slowly turning a shade of bloody red. It was your turn to step in between them, shielding your bold but reckless boyfriend from your father’s simmering rage.

“Dad, stop, I love him!”

It wasn’t the first case of you telling your parents that you loved Sirius, but as these words made an escape from you this time, they had almost acquired a new meaning. They felt more real, more pointed and firmer. Your father didn’t think so. He merely sneered at your proud declaration and rolled his exasperated eyes.

“Love, happiness… All this pointless charade just to prove that you are still a petulant child.” Father turned his head to look at his wife, who nodded in unconditional agreement.

“We did not raise you like that, daughter,” she finally spoke, her tone the same as your father’s.

“Your mother is right. You had everything, daughter, everything you did and did not need. And what do you do in return? Mess around with this blood traitor?!” Father spat out the last word with utmost repugnance.

Honestly speaking, the phrase had a way worse effect on you than on Sirius. He had time to grow some thick skin, dealing with bullshit bigotry from blood-purity lunatics for a while, but it was a first for you – hearing such venom from your parent, whom you still hoped to respect and to love.

“If you, sir, are dumb enough to think this was an insult – try the fuck again.”

Mother gasped and shouted “Language!”, but Sirius’ only response came in the form of a sly grin. As soon as he did it, Father jumped up from his seat and pointed his wand at Sirius with such force that it almost slid out of his hand. Sirius mirrored his actions in a relaxed, almost lethargic manner, as if he was calling Father’s bluff.

“STOP. RIGHT. NOW!”

You couldn’t hold it in anymore. With every single passing second, your boundaries were being stomped on by your parents, and even though you had the most pleasure doing it back, you wished for the mess to end. The two men lowered their wands and stared at you simultaneously – Sirius with pride, and Father – with fury.

“Dad, Mom, do you not understand?! You never saw me as a person, just a damn doll to dress up!” You completely ignored your parents’ shock at your straightforward use of a very simple curse word, because it was just a beginning. “You gave me everything, and for what? For me to follow your every fucking order to a T?! For you to bitch and moan about every single decision I make using my pretty damn sound mind?!”

“What has this blood traitor done to you, daughter?” your mother sighed, looking at you with forced sympathy. “You are swearing at your own loving parents who just want to save you…”

“If there’s something to save me from, it’s you!”

You didn’t buy Mother’s crocodile tears that were about to stream down her cheeks. Always the same shit, always her clutching her heart, or her head, or both at the same time. She wasn’t about to coax you again.

“Listen to your mother! You are carrying our noble family name, tracing back centuries. You cannot disgrace it with your outrageous behaviour!”

“Not for long!”

Sirius’ voice was a breath of fresh air in a viscous swamp of your parents’ soliloquies, but for the first time today you didn’t know where he was going. The only thing he gave you was a reassuring smile, which was nice but not helpful at all.

The next minute unraveled in front of you second by second, and you felt each one pass by like the Unforgivables barely missing you and whizzing through the room. Sirius hid his wand and instead took something out of his pocket – you couldn’t discern the thing, but it looked suspiciously similar to a tiny box, – simultaneously getting down on one knee. Three pairs of eyes widened at the same time, but with different emotions concealed in their depths: Father was enveloped with pure wrath and despair; Mother was simply shocked, covering her mouth with a trembling hand; you felt nearly hysterical, your brain vacant from any foreign thoughts except for the man kneeling in front of you with what you could already see was a ring peeking from the wooden box.

“My love,” Sirius began, fully content with every reaction he received so far, “my baby, my little nugget of joy…”

You didn’t want to interrupt him but couldn’t help laughing at the pet name.

“I’d be a bit wordier if it wasn’t, y’know…” His head tilted towards your parents, who still hadn’t evaporated the two of you for some reason. “But I hope to have a lifetime for that. Now, just one question, love.”

You were ready to nod your head away until it would fall off and roll into the corner, but you wanted to hear Sirius say the sacred four words. Most importantly, you wanted your parents to hear them, and maybe pass out at your enthusiastic agreement.

“Will you marry me?”

Your yelled out “YES!” could very likely pierce through whatever silencing charms your mother had put on the dining room. A second later the ring was already on your finger, and you were in your fiancé’s arms, spinning around in endless circles of sheer love and uninterrupted bliss. Your lips quickly found his. Your parents were furious. You didn’t care.

“Daughter?!”

Your father’s voice wasn’t a church bell anymore. It resembled a first-year getting caught up in the Whomping Willow for the first time – abnormally high, breaking and unequivocally frightened.

“Dad?” you mimicked his tone and were pretty damn good at it, if Sirius had a say. “You know what, Dad? If this is the blood running through my veins, I’m more than willing to betray it.”

Mother’s cheeks were wet from tears at last; the flood wasn’t sorrowful, not at all – it was filled with spite. Father clutched his wand, but something stopped him – maybe he was ultimately conscious of the fact that from that moment on he had no power over you. You thanked Merlin for his obsolete mentality that told him wives were their husbands’ properties – well, not yet husband’s in your case, but the premise remained. Oh, the irony! The thing that made him have a measly shred of respect for Sirius was the fact that he was about to marry you – not that he had been your choice of a partner for at least a year.

“Now, if you don’t mind, I’m taking my future Mrs. Black the fuck away from here.”

Sirius was a gentleman. He offered you his arm, chivalrously opened the door for you and proudly displayed your hand with a shiny stone on your ring finger to each and every nosy aunt willing – no, desperate to take a look. You parents had already left the dining room, but shifted along the wall to avoid the ever-inquisitive relatives. You swiftly reached the fireplace and grabbed a handful of powder each. You were so ready to finally leave the manor behind that your whole body moved by itself, without any input from your consciousness.

“And she’s having my baby!” you heard Sirius shouting just before you disappeared into the green fire of the Floo Network.

Both of you rolled out of the fireplace somewhere in the Diagon Alley, one after the other. You could finally let your guard down and burst into genuine, merry laughter; Sirius did the same, standing up and pulling you into his loving embrace.

“Love, you should’ve seen their faces!” he claimed, excitement washing over him and capturing you by association. “Bet they won’t forget us until the day they die.”

You secretly hoped they wouldn’t.

my masterlist

[danitheforeverdm]

ok so with the reveal that Heinrich comes from the thought of his existence, i really wanna try going through the whole series and seeing if and how this kind of origin could apply to other phenomenon we've seen. Starting with this post, im going to try and go through all the reoccurring monsters and see what we can conclude. Bonzo (my beloved): this one is actually quite easy. He's already ugly as sin and then a guy commited a murder dressed as him. Enough people combined the thought of Bonzo and brutal murder, to create the Bonzo we all know and love. Interestingly this does not explain why Bonzo seems to want to kill the serial killer who created him. Strange.

Ink5oul: This one is a little shaky, cause we kinda got two things going on? First, the Oscar Jarret tattoos. Tattoos that look so real that they are exactly that, real. But then all the other magical effects dont really seem to line up. yes Ink5oul picks up supernatural qualities, being the creator of supernatural tattoos, and i suppose their tattoo process being especially brutal could just come from the fear of pain, but why can they turn any tattoo real? Ink5oul also expresses a desire for mystery, just like Heinrich does. Maybe this middle ground between being unknown and known is what makes reality malleable?

The Magnus Institute: Obviously the truth here is going to be VERY COMPLICATED and will need more reveals to explain, but we'll try with what we have. We have Sam's description of being there, being asked questions he doesnt really understand, and being made to feel like her answers them wrong. Potentially they treated all the kids like this, specifically to gain this association as judges or as *interviewers who can pull information out of you*. The institute using kids is also interesting, seeing as kids perception also seems to play in with Bonzo and Heinrich. Perhaps, as they simply dont understand the interconnection of the world yet, their understanding occupies that middle ground much stronger, like how kids are more inclined to worry Frankenstein is after them, after hearing a story about him. As for the guy doing magic in his office? I have no clue. Notably none of this theory interacts with the alchemy part of this magic system, so we're still pretty far from anything concrete. I will add as a final note, The Archivist is quite a bit more then just a person who gets your info, also being an eye covered monster (this never happened in Arhcives, eye avatars either staying in human shape, or becoming those one eyed things). I think the archivists form isn't just from the interviews, but spending years trapped in a creepy place people like exploring, was further warped by being feared and non-understood.

The Computer System: this is a firm "i have no clue". There is still the x-factor of the alchemy side of things. Alchemy probably being a way to intentionally create the horrors, so maybe that's the computer systems origin. Alternatively, maybe it is just about how programmers hate old systems and see them as endlessly complicated? Maybe that, combined with knowing the horrors exist (due to being in the OIAR), caused the system to mutate? Ironically if the Perception Effect is its origins, Gwen denying its dangerous would actually make it safer. Or maybe not. Part fof me does have a feeling once thought becomes fact, those facts become far more immutable. Also Lena still exists. Her thorough understanding of the system should be holding its shape firm.

from here i cant think of any more. I do think theres actually a lot to this theory maybe. If im straight up right, build me a statue

[tanketorskk]

The Ancient and Most Noble House of Black names explained:

I’ve gotten a few asks about my thoughts on the Black family and specifically their names and the middle names I’ve assigned them so I figured I’d make a post and explain them all, along with how I see the meanings of their names translating to their personalities! I was originally going to do the Black sisters and brothers in this one too but it just got too long so you guys are getting Riddle era Black family until I return with the second installment vjnbjgnbj

tw: brief mention of rape in Lucretia's section

Walburga Irma Black:

Unlike most of her family members, Walburga is not named after a star. Her first name is an alternative spelling of Walpurga which comes from Saint Walpurga, a nun born in 710. Saint Walpurga was also given an annual feast day called Saint Walpurgis Night or Saint Walpurgis Eve. Ironically one of the things she was hailed for was battling witchcraft. She was said to repel witches and was known as a healer of illnesses and one of her only talents not fully related to her religion is noted to be very detailed embroidery. I like to pull things from things like this, especially when it comes to characters we know very little about, so what this tells me about Walburga is that she likely did not have a lot of (female) friends which fits with the fact that I generally think the Black family kept to themselves. She was a skilled healer, which is very interesting considering how she’s usually portrayed as a woman who ruins so much. Is she aware of this aspect of her personality and that’s why she decided to learn so much about healing? And at last, she’s talented at embroidery. This yet again fits with another headcanon of mine that the finer families in pureblood society showed their status through things such as embroidery or homemade lace, to show that the women in the family were so well taken care of that they could focus on nothing but raising a family and making said family look good. I would imagine Walburga was taught by her mother.

Speaking of her mother, Walburga gets her middle name from her mother, Irma Black (born Crabbe) which means she is once again not given a name with a connection to the stars. Irma means complete; entire and is derived from the Old High German word ‘irmin’ meaning ‘world’. One could argue that while Walburga does not have a star specific name she is named in a way that could be interpreted as someone’s whole world.

Alphard Pollux Black:

Alphard is named after the star of the same name, the brightest star in the constellation Hydra. Alphard comes from the Arabic al-fard which, if Wikipedia is to trust lol, means “the individual”. The star is also known both as “the backbone of the Serpent” and “the heart of the Serpent”. From this I like to pull a bit of personality. Alphard has a clear connection to his family, one with a noticeable connection to serpent imagery through the Black family’s consistent history of being sorted into Slytherin. He’s an individual, he’s got the backbone to stand out yet still in a way more acceptable to the family and he’s got the heart to still show love and kindness towards Sirius. I think, and I don’t know if this is an unpopular opinion, that Alphard values his family a whole lot. Which is ironic, because in part that’s what gets him blasted off of the family tapestry. Another name for this star is Soheil Solitarius, which translates to the bright solitary one. I interpret this to think he’s got some sort of loneliness to him, even within a family with so many people. That is what being too much of an individual in the Black family gets you. You can only push it too much before you become an outsider and I think Alphard is living right on the cusp.

Just like Alphard, Pollux is yet another star that is the brightest in its constellation, this time it’s the Gemini constellation. Just like how Walburga got her middle name from her mother, Alphard got his from his father. The name Pollux, albeit also the name of a star comes from the twins Castor and Pollux in both Greek and Roman mythology.

As a fun little extra thing, I think Alphard’s fun older guy that he seduces whenever he feels like it (Arvid Thicket) calls him Hydrae and occasionally he calls him Hydra’s Heart because he’s a sap lol.

Cygnus Phineas Black:

Cygnus was the third Cygnus in the family, being named after his paternal grandfather. It's suspected that Cygnus I was likely Cygnus's great-great-grandfather which would be the father of the second man he's named after, former Hogwarts headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black. Cygnus, the constellation derives its name from the Greek word for swan. Looking at the most common symbolism associated with swans, we can assume Cygnus has a certain amount of wisdom to him, which also works perfectly with the fact that he was named after a former headmaster at a respected institution.

Speaking of said former headmaster, Cygnus got his middle name from Phineas Nigellus Black, the most disliked headmaster of Hogwarts, at least believing the statement from Cygnus nephew, Sirius Black. The name Phineas does not come from a star but instead it is a name of Hebrew origin meaning “the mouth of a snake”/“serpent’s mouth”. From this we can pull that Cygnus not only shares the typical views of his family, but looking at a similar saying “having a serpent’s tongue” which means having a tendency to speak maliciously, we can assume that Cygnus might have been either particularly opinionated, a tendency to come off as harsh or negative or both. I would also like to note that Cygnus is specifically named after Phineas Nigellus and not Phineas Nigellus’s son of the same name (as he was disowned for supporting muggle rights).

Lucretia Elladora Black:

Upon first glance, one might think Lucretia is another Black not named after a star. That would technically be correct, though she is named after an asteroid known as 281 Lucretia, an asteroid belonging to the Flora family in the Main Belt. Lucretia also shares her first name with a noblewoman from Ancient Rome. Lucretia was raped by Sextus Tarquinius and subsequently committed suicide after confessing about the rape to her father and husband. It's said that this act was the/one of the first stepping stones in the rebellion that made the Roman government transition from a kingdom to a republic. While I won't go into details interpreting the fact that her namesake was raped, we can look into the fact that Lucretia was noted to be exceptionally devoted to her husband. I think this is especially interesting given how the Prewett family is connected to the Weasleys. They likely weren't at the time Lucretia married Ignatius but even if they were she probably walked the line of marrying someone too different from the Black family and yet she was so devoted to Ignatius that to her it hardly mattered.

Lucretia's middle name Elladora comes from Elladora Black, the sister of Phineas Nigellus. Elladora was actually alive when Lucretia was born (she died six years later in 1931) so it wouldn't be far off to assume that the two possibly had some sort of relationship. Elladora is another name not derived from a star or anything similar, though it is speculated on Elladora Black's wiki page that the name comes from Elladora's mother possibly being named Ella and Callidora Black (the character known as Callidora Black is born after Elladora of course, being the daughter of one of Elladora's nephews, but knowing how the Black family liked to name their children after previous relatives it does not seem completely unbelievable that there was a Callidora Black born before Elladora that she could have gotten the second half of her name from). There are two takes on "Ella", that it comes from the Norman form of the Germanic "Alia" which means "other" or "Aella", a Greek name meaning "whirlwind". Either way, looking at Lucretia one could argue that they fit in regard to her marriage to someone who is from a family that is not necessarily the most respected and in later years is very much considered an "other" to the Black family. The second half, "Dora" is derived from the Greek word "doron" and means "gift". It kinda follows a similar pattern to Walburga's middle name. Just like Walburga is "someone's whole world" Lucretia is "gift/a gift". Considering the usual take on the Black family I think this is kind of sweet.

On the opposite end, to talk a bit more about Elladora. She is noted as the Black that introduces decapitating house elves and hanging their heads on plaques when they're no longer useful. I think Lucretia would share a similar sentiment to her namesake and a more aggressive/demanding way of handling the elves does not seem far off.

Orion Regulus Black:

Orion is a constellation known for featuring a number of bright stars. It is also known for being a good star to navigate from. Looking at this I think it fits with Orion being the head of his family but also the head of Black family in general based off of the fact that he and his family were the ones to live and grow up in 12 Grimmauld Place, the ancestral home of the Black family. I’ve always found this very interesting with him being the youngest as well. In ancient Egypt the stars of Orion were regarded as a god and to me this tells me that this man holds himself in high regard, likely above others even his fellow Blacks. Ironically the bible mentions Orion three times, naming it “Kesil” which literally means fool. I think this perhaps speaks more to others perception of him rather than his own. I would suspect that perhaps due to his age there would be circumstances where he wouldn’t be taken as seriously, something that would surely infuriate a man who considers himself godlike. In Greek mythology he is described as unnaturally strong which one could pull from for a physical description though I don’t personally. What I find interesting is that he stood up to Gaia saying he could kill every animal on earth and was thus punished for it by Gaia sending a scorpion (the constellations of Scorpius) after him. He was later revived by Ophiuchus, the serpent bearer. He’s described as a hunter and a skilled one and while the best way I can think this translates to what we know of him in canon, it could be the way he protects his ancestral home with quite skilful magic. The fact that Orion is made up of so many stars, especially bright ones could also symbolise the Black family in general and how many not only came before him but also how tight knit the family is that he is literally made up of them. This could also be a nod to their incest tendencies, especially given how Orion is the only Black we actually know of (other than his wife of course) to marry another relative.

I am personally a big fan of Orion’s middle name being Regulus, no matter if it’s from a cis or trans Regulus standpoint. Either Orion named both his sons after himself which seems entirely on point with a man that likes himself so much, or Regulus looked enough up to his father and valued family naming traditions enough to name himself after the man. Obviously sharing a name with his son there's going to be some overlap when it comes to personality traits that you can pull from it. Regulus means "prince" and/or "little king" in Latin and this is another time where you see Orion with a name that means something of great importance/something that is generally speaking better than someone else. It is also known as "the king", "the great", "the mighty" and "the centre" as well as one of the royal stars in the Persian monarchy. Even if the whole "heart of the lion" does not fit with Orion in the same sense that some might think it fits Regulus, I'd argue that Orion values/possesses/wishes to possess a good amount of the things that a lion traditionally symbolise, such as courage, nobility, royalty, strength, stateliness and valour.

This ended up so much longer than originally planned which is why I'm saving Bellatrix, Andromeda, Narcissa, Sirius and Regulus for another post lol. Hopefully someone enjoys this ramble vjnfjbngjb I've already made multiple people listen to it as it was being made.

This was inspired by an ask I got from @starchildlazaro so I figured I'd tag you since it turned into a post instead of just a normal answer,,,

[sympathytea]

Spoilers for S2Ep3 of PVP Civilization

Alright! That was a lot in there. Gonna break down some fun details and major moments that I really liked and uh. Don't worry we're gonna be talking about. That. In a different post. I have. A few things to say regarding it. SO! Disturbing (and not so great) things aside. Things that happened. Iron axes are in fact being sent into the civilizations. Tabi and Clown are just there to get the Eternal weapons rather than doing the majority of genocide. Trident Civilization is again, very stone brick. But atl east there's actual water pools so i got SOMETHING right with my previous civ prediction. I'm still salty about the lack of high ground and cover for bow civ but. hey. it looks pretty neat

The maze inside of trident civilization is interesting. I do see what looks to be housing on the right, but below is a giant network of hallways that someone could easily get lost in. Glad to see that the trident is well guarded but clearly not guarded enough for say, a native to their own civilization who clearly doesn't have. very good intentions for their people.

Zam has infiltrated my brain and also, now has a way to kill Evbo and anyone else who uses that damn respawn armor stand. Scary!

And of course who is the first guy he thinks to use it on?

The whole scene with him and. Tabi is very sweet and unfortunately gets instantly ruined by the dandelion devil smiling behind his target. Tabi does mercy kill to of course keep Evbo safe, because she clearly DOESN'T want Evbo dead permanently. She could've done that herself if she wanted that. Clown also, spared Evbo so...maybe its rubbing off? Speaking of which...

When i tell you I. Wholeheartedly squealed irl. When I saw this. Its so cute. The implication that they wanted to y'know. actually understand. Why he video journals. I think Wemmbu got them into this, if I'm gonna be real. Traitor Wemmbu please. please turn out to be a good guy. You have friends don't do this to me man,,,,you were so good this episode,,, Also the flashback with Ferre meeting up with the other swords, they trust Ferre. I could honestly write a whole fic about just them meeting up, and figuring how to get down to the bottom with his help. Also. GAH. Clownpierce being the one to convince Ferre to give up his power. The implication that Clown is also, using the immortality? Maybe? Also bro got. so badly spawncamped that would make me give up too that's humiliating as fuck That guy that managed to get a diamond sword from Evbo's stupidity with the item frame...interesting. I wonder if thats gonna come up again later.. Prison situation part 2? Maybe. Maybe not. The guard friend is clearly proving useful for the bow civilization and well. guess someone is trying to get immortality for themselves. Good luck Toph.

But yeah. Thats...most of my thoughts. This is getting long lmao sorrryyy :333

[blackdigitalrose]

Thurs - TROPICAL-ROUGE! PRETTY CURE -EP 19 - 21

Its too warm, some one turn down the sun

EP 19

Ep starts with a finisher on a monster, which makes you confused as to whether you accidently started halfway into an ep @.@

Well you can't blame them for being confused, Manatsu has had the reigns pretty much the whole time.

And here we go again, monsters on the daily, that are a risk to your life, that's fine, Ghosts, that's too far... and once more its the Leader with the death crippling phobia.

Only the loudest member outside of Laura and why a count off? There was only five of you to start with, hardly big numbers. And that may be one of the most cliched answers possible but I suppose you are limited on excuses while keeping it kid friendly.

Cover blown and by a bad guy no less... will it actually lead to anything though?

It would have been nicer if it ended there, completely open ended and mysterious like but nope, they do reveal that Elde did in fact take the doll back with her. (along with the fruit gummy bottle off Manatsu, make of that what you will?)

EP 20

(っ- ‸ - ς) Speaking of, here we go again, our quiet, nerdy book lover is playing Sherlock again...

Define incidents now? It still doesn't read right.

Isn't that on the assumption Sango knew Manatsu hadn't eaten the bread when she walked past her? Otherwise, why would she dash in and get it? It isn't like you saw Mantasu tell her it was on the table when she went to fetch her wallet?

The gimmicky catchphrase before the group pose is gone and that is not so much a group pose, over a type of billboard looking advert?

Although ironically, this from the end of the new outro is actually a really good group pose!

How? (Nevermind, Kururun explains it all in the last few seconds, turns out he put in the fridge. In all fairness I expected him to be the culprit but they crossed that off very early in.)

Perfectly good of Chongire to wait while the Precure lot have their little moment of making amends; not like they were distracted and wide open or anything.

Ignoring the fact that she just pulled that out of her hair, despite having it in her hands seconds ago. That is not a colour! (¬_¬") Why not Lime or just Light Green or simply Green?

So, here we go again, with an ep which is clearly meant to be one of the others but instead ends up wrapping around Laura and the original character just gets lost and shuffled into the back ground?

On the other hand, slightly ironic that they make all this fuss over the bread and then Sango's mum shows up with the same bag and the school just gets it from a bakers a town over. Well wouldn't that make you feel daft.

EP 21

The only time Precure could really get away with a line like that; no kid ever would say such a thing. Being disappointed due to school breaking up, let alone the summer holidays.

Ok, seriously, where did Laura get all her clothes and stuff from? She's collected a lot that brief time she's actually had legs?

Manatsu just a natural bed head? Her hair looks odd down after seeing it in a ponytail this whole time. And Laura is no longer sleeping in the Aqua Pot? Or is it just this occasion because she packed it? (How does Kururun survive so long on land anyway? Because fairy? Because seal?)

Sango being a prime example of when the adrenaline rush dies off.

（´∇｀''）(oh the irony, it just hits too close too home these past couple of weeks.)

Completely forgot Heart Rouge Rod was a thing, it has been a while since any of them have used it. That they do in fact have actual Precure moves in their arsenal.

Everyone else seems casual enough but credit to Asuka's design, it's quite athletic, as if she could go for a run at any moment but casual enough not to look out of place to walk around town in, while the choker gives a subtle nod to her rougher/tomboyish side.

I dunno what it is, if I really just not that invested or the weather itself is making it a struggle... these were just hard to watch, they didn't hold my interest, heck I wandered off half way through one and came back to it. It feels like it is missing something to bring it all together because on this occasion, the slice of life approach is not cutting it?

[humbledragon669]

S2E2 - The Clue Write Up P4 - Land of Uz: Crowley speaks to Job to a little alone time in the cellar

I’m going to start with an incredibly quick note, just in case there’s anyone out there reading this who doesn’t know/hasn’t realised that the actor playing Job is Peter Davison, who is not only linked to David Tennant by way of having played the fifth Doctor, but is also his father-in-law (in real life). I think I’m probably preaching to the converted with that little nugget, but it pays to be cautious with these things.

Alright, let’s get going proper, shall we? And I want to give a little nod of acknowledgement for the camera work we see going “through” the book page into the scene beyond. Not the first time we’ve seen this technique used to transition the audience from one place (in time, mood, or location) to another, but it’s pretty smooth nonetheless, and achieves its desired effect effortlessly. There’s something utterly ridiculous about some of the script for this initial scene too - some random dude shows up in your newly destroyed barn asking for your children and you don’t stop to ask who he is and what he wants? In fact, why not direct him to your wife to be as helpful as possible? Don’t stop there though, why not start pouring your soul out to him in a keenly ironic speech about being delivered to demons. Sure. Very convincing. Still, I don’t suppose there’s much in the way of official records of this conversation to base the scene on, is there…

Miracle noise alert! This one definitely originates from Crawley and definitely differs from the one we most recently associated with Aziraphale.

This one is… “flatter” is the word that springs to mind when I hear it. I think it’s intended to sound closer to a snake hiss; of textural note we are missing the little choir vocalisation that we heard in earlier miracle noises. Swinging back around to the theory about miracle noises relating to intent rather than caster, this particular noise would prove both theories. I guess what I really want to hear at this point is the noise from a miracle definitely cast only by Crowley with good or neutral intent. That might put this theory to bed for me, but I think we’ll have to wait a while for that (off the top of my head I can’t think if we get one of those in these season, but I’ll be on the look-out).

I find the choice of words used in the opening arguments between Aziraphale and Crawley interesting:

Aside from the opportunity to revel in Aziraphale admitting he was wrong about something, I think the different uses of don’t have to/couldn’t/can/will in this wordplay are worth noting. To avoid this getting too wordy, I’m going to break this down into a table to demonstrate:

And all of this hammered home with a final plea from Aziraphale, returning to his original point, and making an explicit statement that he believes that being a demon involves the ability to exercise free will (let’s face it, it kinda doesn’t - Crawley has little official choice than to follow orders, just like the angel). This point of view will become interesting as the season progresses and we see Aziraphale’s beliefs about free will and how it ties in with humanity morphing - after all, it wasn’t all that long ago that he was trying to convince a bunch of archangels on the street that the whole point of being human (not a demon) is to exercise free will (at least in our chronology - this conversation with Crawley and the one with the angels on the street are actually separated by some 4500 years…). What’s interesting to me about his beliefs at this particular point in time, is that they suggest at least part of his understanding of the differences between the agents of Heaven and Hell isn’t to do with morality or intent, it’s the presence/absence of free will. Ergo, the opposite of “Good” isn’t “Evil”, but “Choice”. Oof, that one hits pretty deep, doesn’t it? I could get into a big discussion about how this does or doesn’t resemble major religions even today but I feel like that goes a bit beyond my qualifications, so instead I’ll just make one more point about this handful of lines between our hero couple, this one on another more word choice for Aziraphale:

AZIRAPHALE: Crawley… You don’t have to destroy Job’s children.

Notice the word “destroy” and not “kill”. I’m not sure why this distinction has been made, not least because Crawley has already told Aziraphale 500 years previously that killing kids is not something he can get onboard with.

Maybe the word choice has been swayed somewhat by Crawley’s supposed disposal of the goats, where they simply disappeared in a puff of smoke. Perhaps “destroy” was thought to be a stronger word than “kill”, though that’s not a stance I would agree with, and I actually feel like it offers the opportunity to distance the “destroyer” from their actions somewhat.

Before we get too deep into the weeds with the next mini-section of Aziraphale pleading, there’s something I want to lay on the table. The last time this pair saw each other was 500 years ago. We saw that meeting, and earlier in this episode they even went so far as to confirm that was the last time they saw each other. That meeting, filled with shocking revelations about Heaven’s actions as it was, was very friendly. VERY friendly. We’ve gone from Crawley looking at Aziraphale like this:

to this:

I mean… What happened? No, seriously, what the actual fuck happened? The tension between this pair is palpable in both scenes, but they are very different types of tension. I’ve always thought that there’s something off about the way their conversation starts at the beginning of the minisode: it feels like that awkward conversation you have with someone when you bump into them after having had a blazing row and neither of you has apologised and despite time passing, you’re both still sore about it. Almost like… unexpectedly bumping into your ex? I realise that was all really wordy, when all I’m really trying to say is that I’m not clear on why the relationship feels so strained at the beginning of the minisode, just like I’m not clear on why Crowley is so grumpy when we see him in Rome. It occurs to me that we don’t see the end of their encounters in Mesopotamia and Golgotha (the previous meetings to Uz and Rome, respectively), and once again I say: what the actual fuck happened?

If we consider the possibility that the meeting in Mesopotamia potentially did not end as amicably as it began, Aziraphale’s desperate pleading with Crawley to do the right thing in this Land of Uz scene feels perhaps a bit more understandable. And let’s just be clear about Aziraphale’s plan of attack at this point - he’s no longer asking a demon not to the “bad” thing, he’s appealing to Crawley to be the being that he has fallen in love with come to know in the years before - one that is incapable of doing the unspeakable things he’s been tasked with.

Wait, wait, did I say understandable? Because this is truly unbearable for me - I can’t watch this without choking back a sob, for real. The little gulp as Crawley’s words hit home, the slumping shoulders, the slight wobble in his bottom lip, the rasping breath he takes (OH BUT THAT INTAKE OF BREATH WILL KILL ME). He is absolutely, and completely, devastated. And who can be surprised, because that speech from Crawley (complete with background hiss noise as he removes his glasses) is pure venom (no snake pun intended). Everything the demon says at this point is said with the sole purpose of hurting Aziraphale (and I say again: WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED?!), prompting Aziraphale to use his ultimate weapon - it’s the forgiveness line. There is something particular about this usage though - on this occasion he doesn’t forgive Crawley personally, he asks for forgiveness on his behalf, which we’ve seen once before: on the bandstand. That encounter was very definitely a break-up and for a second it looks like this one might have been going the same way, and I think I speak on behalf of the entire fandom when I thank those goats for not being able to keep their mouths shut here.

As much as I am fully onboard with Aziraphale’s smugness in his response to finding out that Crawley was indeed the being he thought he was, I can’t help but feel like it’s slightly misplaced, and here’s why:

CRAWLEY: Doesn’t mean we’re on the same side. AZIRAPHALE: No, no!

You see, I don’t think Aziraphale has realised that his actions have actually gone against Heaven’s wishes at this point. So as far as he’s concerned, Crawley and him being on the same side (which is clearly what he thinks, given the vocal delivery) means that Crawley is also on Heaven’s side. Which he most certainly isn’t, and even though the demon has a much clearer idea of how things are progressing, it’s obvious that Aziraphale thinks that Crawley’s point of view is just a cover story for him actually being on Heaven’s side. I think this is the first time that the idea of third “side” (i.e. not for Heaven or Hell) is introduced, chronologically speaking, even if it was thought to be a temporary arrangement and not specifically termed as “their side”. I find myself wondering if Crawley’s acknowledgement that they are “temporarily not on different sides” is the reason he doesn’t protest being called an angel by Job’s eldest daughter (Keziah), but perhaps that’s just because he wants to lull them into a false sense of security for the grand finale coming up.

I will be preaching to the converted for the second time in this write-up now I know, but as I said, it pays to be cautious. The young man playing Ennon is David’s in-real-life son. This episode is quite the family affair! Having that little bit of knowledge makes Crawley’s reaction to this self-important, arrogant little shit all the more funny too.

And whilst we’re on the subject of Crawley’s reactions, I love this facial expression we see in reaction to Aziraphale deciding to throw his weight around:

I slowed it down a bit, but you can see his face twitch ever so slightly just after Aziraphale starts bellowing, like it actually took him by surprise. Pranked or not, I think it’s pretty obvious to see that he does not think this new strategy from the angel is a good one. The background acting doesn’t stop here either, with an adorable little squeak from him in response to Jemimah’s charming nature. It makes me feel a bit sorry for the kids in the scene really, who are (I hope) acting their little socks off being the most repulsive versions of children they can be whilst David just stands there pulling a few faces/making some noises and manages to steal the scene.

There’s no reason for that gif other than to watch a loop of David winking (extremely careful typing required with that sentence).

Alright, maybe there was a little reason, other than pure aesthetics. I know I’m not the only one to say I find the interaction between Crawley and Jemimah adorable, but outside of just being really cute, this relationship does serve a narrative purpose in the context of the storyline. This playful banter he establishes with the young child is what lays the road for some mischief. I’ve talked about it in earlier write-ups, but we don’t see an awful lot of the mischievous demon in this season. Well, all that’s about to change, and I’m pretty relieved because up to now everything Crawley has done in this minisode has felt very serious. I love seeing him getting joy in causing harmless mayhem.

I also find it interesting that this side of the demon has only been allowed out now that he and Aziraphale have found some common ground - the dislike of the two older children - which suggests that their relationship is getting back on track. On that note, it occurs to me that he hasn’t been wearing his sunglasses for any of this scene, which had been firmly glued to his face right from the beginning of the minisode, even when he was alone of the top of a mountain. Whatever happened to cause the angry tension between our hero couple (if anything happened), I think the lack of eyewear would suggest that Crawley is already well on the way to forgetting about it by this point.

I find this blustering from Aziraphale interesting. He refuses to name Crawley as what he physically is, choosing to believe that because the demon’s intentions aren’t malign, his demon nature is simply a technicality. By that same logic, that would mean Aziraphale himself is only “technically” an angel, yet you never hear him refer to himself as such. Ultimately, his motives behind this are honourable, desperate as he is to believe that Crawley is still one of the Good guys, and I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that there’s a double standard being applied here - that’s one of the motifs we see being applied to Heaven throughout the show (“one rule for us, another rule for everyone else”). He’s right in the end of course (at least as far as Crawley’s intentions anyway).

He knows Crawley has absolutely no desire to kill children, despite the fact that the house is blazing around them. The demon told him he couldn’t kill kids, remember?

There’s something about this exchange that niggles at me. On the surface it seems like we’ve gone back to an angry Crawley, challenging Aziraphale on his character judgement. I think there’s maybe a bit more to it though. There is a vague suggestion of Crawley asking Aziraphale if he really trusts him here, even though it’s not explicitly stated. And that trust theme is something we see developing, chronologically, throughout the minisodes of this season. The Agreement is a long way off into the future (about 3500 years in the future in fact), but I find myself wondering if this challenge from Crawley is its first iteration, because I think this is actually him asking Aziraphale if he’s sure he wants to be part of the plot to save the children. If that’s the case, and the angel understands the subtext, it would explain why he makes his declaration of surety so assuredly. And look at him making way for Crawley to deliver his coup de grace, united with the demon, and sure of his decision:

Side note: I love the fact that everything in that room falls through the ceiling to the floor below completely intact, including the table which is already laden with a whole ox carcass. The only sign of anything being disturbed is the noise of a metal pot settling.

Aziraphale’s response to this latest turn of events reminds me of what we see from him when he embarks on his journey to Edinburgh.

He’s so contented - he’s turned the whole thing into a game. One with a trail of clues he had to work out to solve the mystery of how the evil demon could still be an angel underneath it all. And he’s figured it all out, even though he knew it all along anyway, which Crawley is clearly not thrilled about. There’s another layer going on here though I think, because (if I’ve got my chronology right), this is the first time the demon has “rescued” the angel from a perilous situation. Never mind that the perilous situation was created by the demon in the first place. Besides, that might have been part of the game for all we know because it’s only now that Aziraphale starts to give Crawley a bit of slack for him to actually use the cover he’s trying to create for himself. And hold on, what’s this?

Is that a wink? Certainly looks like one to me. He also starts to use collective pronouns from this point, suggesting that he, just like Crawley, is getting comfortable with this relationship again.

We get some miracle noises in the cellar to have a quick look at here, although they are somewhat obscured by the soundtrack. Brief tangent: I’m not sure there are any miracle noises to be heard in the scene a moment ago where Crawley sets fire to the house, with the exception of the last one he does, opening up the floor to the cellar. That one, which is even more difficult to make out that the lizard-transformations, sounds more like the ones we heard from Aziraphale’s miracle in the pub, with that swelling noise that gets used so often in epic soundtracks. If that was the case, that definitely points towards the noise relating to the mindset of the caster, because that one would either have been driven by need or by the caster having good moral intent. The sounds we hear on the cellar on the other hand; they sound more like the snakelike versions we heard from Crawley earlier, although there’s something about them that sounds less ominous than previously.

In the last point of this part of the write-up, I find it notable that Aziraphale doesn’t try to interfere with Crawley’s transforming of the children, even though it’s clear he disapproves.

Perhaps it’s because he realises he’s pushed Crawley too far already to chastise him further for showing his true colours. Maybe it’s because there’s not really any harm being done in his actions. Maybe it’s because the angel was as disgusted with Ennon and Keziahs’ attitudes as Crawley is. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s because he’s actually pretty happy to be able to spend some time with the demon alone. I know which one of those theories I like the most.

This seems like as good a place as any to wrap up this part of the write-up, not least because we’re about to get to a pivotal moment of Aziraphale’s personal development and a fandom favourite in the relationship development, and I’ve already written far too many words on this tiny section to be normal. For now, and as always, questions, comments, discussion: always welcome and see you for the next one 😊

[weirdmageddon]

💿⚛️ davejade headcanons

sorry for leaving you guys waiting on this for like a week lol i kept being like “tomorrow for sure” but falling asleep but anyway here it is. i might add more to this if i think if anything but reblogs might not reflect the up to date source version so you can always find it here

most of these are pointing out stuff thats basically canon anyway but whatever lol. basically canon headcanons

dave tries to impress jade to get her attention because he likes her

this ones for you *misses hoop by 5 feet*

he doesnt mind jade’s inane riddles honestly. he isn’t perturbed by how she just knows things like rose is, because he doesnt think into it too far. he trusts her

he spends a lot of time indulging in her interests and showers her in his music and poetry

they draw things for each other a lot <3 jade has the pictionary modus and seems pretty good at drawing and of course dave sent her sbahj as furries in the mail. sending jpegs over the internet is BABY NONSENSE. real boys send their childhood friend/crush pictures they drew for them through the INTERNATIONAL POSTAL SYSTEM to an unspecified island in the middle of nowhere, pacific ocean that gets packages dropped by plane so the recipient can tangibly hold it and hang it in their room

actually i was going through the commentary and hussie addresses it as such:

“Also notice her SBaHJ furry poster, which was clearly a very thoughtful gift from Dave”

aww

jade would give dave a "cool" plushie of a tiger or something nd he keeps it on his desk . froot’s beautiful idea

he loves her plushie sensibilities. so much less unnerving than his bro’s phallic puppets. they're still soft but no cognitive dissonance this time about the softness coming from foam puppet ass hoorayyy

theyre still reading homestuck on act 4 but they understood them instantly

jade humors dave’s ironic cool facade because it makes dave feel more comfortable without feeling too exposed, but it’s because of this that he feels like he can open up to her because she isnt prying. (im still not over the smile here btw. only jade could make dave smile after a fucked evening where he spilled juice on his turntables and accidentally skewered an innocent crow with his sword and broke his window this mf is TYPING. also getting a bit of joy out of the fact that the only visible suit on his cards-themed bedcover in this panel is a heart)

but he knows that jade is not unaware of what he's hiding. couldnt even refute her lol

from the knight’s perspective, it’s “i’m not as [blank] as i appear. i want you know that about me if i know you well and trust you, or i DON’T want you to know that about me if i DON’T know you well. the reason is that i want to know that i can trust you to avoid turning my insecurity into a Whole Thing”

basically she allows dave to take initiative when HE feels comfortable and confident in sharing the things he’s self-conscious about. this really helps him be comfortable and form a strong bond with her

dave would wrap his arms around her to “ironically” imitate a pair of tangle buddy squiddles (while actually concealing genuine affection basically unbeknownst to himself) but he winds up looking just a little too into it for just an “ironic” bit yall……

jade is slower to realize her deeper feelings since she shows love to everyone (so long as theyre deserving of it!!!) it just hits her one day that she actually Likes him in a special way, while for dave it is more dynamic and gradual but very on the downlow, expressed in creative acts and services

once dave actually recognizes he’s really caught feelings for her down the line, dave and jade happily do the tangle buddies hug all the time. its like their handshake. its their weird couple thing

these two when together as a unit they do not give a shit about what other people think of them

this shit lol:

Creative Fucking Powerhouse the two of them

davejade ass song to me

jade is quite spacey and super appreciates dave’s level-headedness and steady pragmatism while at the same time not being a rigid stick in the mud about it. for example when they were acting as each others’ server players dave was advising her but it was appreciated by jade

sorry its just literally socionics duality LITERALLY THIS IS THEMMM (also i spent WAY too much time making these graphics and integrating texts from multiple sources please appreciate it)

fittingly with that, as ouroborista writes about the opposite space-time aspect dichotomy,

Space and Time are the fundamental Aspect pair. Their job is to make shit take place. To create novelty. Between them they span not only all of existence but also the inseparable twin approaches of any creative project. Space goes for breadth, for ideas, for expansive, holistic input, while Time goes for needlepoint focus and a rapid-turnover ability to pull through on the prompt. There’s a reason why these are the two Aspects necessary for any successful session of SBURB.

jade is literally always having a little giggle about him. dave is a funny guy. lame court jester ass boyfriend

he’d draw his post-ironic fursona and show it to her with the usual deadpan expression on his face, eyes obscured by his shades. but jade will look at it and when he sees her smile and laugh it makes it all worth it. his cheeks feel warm and he’ll smile slightly like “heh heh”. dave the type to smile like an idiot over anything jade does like his mouth keeps making a thin line and hes trying to fight it but . Jade

dave thought jade looked absolutely stunning in her 3 in the morning dress his mouth probably stupidly hung open the tiniest amount seeing her after swapping into it

of course she only wears it for what she considers "very special occasions"…..spending time with dave seemed to be a very special occasion :)

jade think dave looks sharp in his suits!!

imagine jade adjusting daves crooked bowtie and lapel and his palms start to sweat and he darts his eyes from behind his shades and chews the inside of his cheek she making him nervous bro 💯

jade is definitely the teaser and dave is the teased. still i dont think jade teases dave as much as john and rose which is why he feels more comfortable opening up to her about his shit. her teasings are much lighter and inconsequential

despite how funny and informal he is dave is a classy well-put-together romantic. he is responsible and harmonious in how he choses to present himself. remember when he got secondhand embarrassment from rose when she was drunk before her date with kanaya and he suggested to her and kanaya that the two reschedule? … he’d NEVER do something like that. sober. suit is ON. hair is neatly combed. he is right on time, not too early not too late, and his first words are “yo whats up”

dave has this designated driver energy about him

after dogtiering jade’s dog ears can perk and flatten, adding even more expressiveness

jade has so many hobbies and interests i think she’d get dave into horticulture somehow unironically

theyre both the kinda mf to ask “would you still love me if i were a worm”

dave’s hands are warm

jade’s skin can be cool to the touch in some places like the back of her arms or shoulders and dave places his hands there to warm them. or by rubbing them or something

idk just some associations space is cool and time is warm to me. the vaccuum of space is cold and time is associated with gears which are associated with generating heat and dave’s classical element is fire and jade’s is earth and her planet is initially covered in snow and daves is covered in lava idk…. just makes symbolic sense i guess but its also cute in its own right

dave would love going to the beach with jade on earth c cause the ocean is so boob i mean boob i mean boob i m,ean boob i mean SHIT . blue. blue

this Fucking animation bro

she infodumps about science and he sits his ass down to listen

jade does this (excuse the fact that the url is roselalonde)

[moodcrab]

Fixing Skyrim's Daedric Quests

Part II - Clavicus Vile

Honestly this was the most underwhelming Daedric Quest in Skyrim, but Skyrim is by no means unique in this as it's just the most recent in a long line of underwhelming Clavicus Vile quests in the Elder Scrolls franchise. Vile, the god of wishes, deals and dodgy monkey palm style tricks forms a natural counterpart to the Divine Zenithar, god of honest work and trade, but for some reason there isn't a Vile quest that isn't "Go to dungeon and kill X". Skyrim, to its credit, tried to make it interesting with Barbas, but still resorted to "go to this cave and kill this guy."

The whole story of Sebastian, the mage who wished for a lycanthropy cure for his daughter only for Vile to grant him an axe, is a truly boring misunderstanding of what Vile is all about. An axe isn't a cure, not even in an ironic double meaning of the word cure. Any axe, indeed any weapon or spell, can kill a werewolf, but he didn't wish for his daughter to be killed, something he could easily do without making a deal with the devil. There are several ways to cure lycanthropy in Tamriel, death is not one of them. If you have cancer but you die in a car accident you are not cured of cancer, literally the opposite in fact. This isn't a mind bending M Night plot twist, it's bullshit. Not only is a dead werewolf not a cured one, he didn't wish for his daughter to be killed, so there's nothing stopping him from just throwing the axe in the sea and going to find a Glenmoril Witch. Vile gains nothing from this arrangement, and Vile doesn't enter into arrangements that don't benefit him.

A true Vile wish would have cured the lycanthropy in such a way that causes unforeseen consequences that end up killing the daughter, dooming her soul to The Fields of Regret, his realm of Oblivion. The wish would be technically granted, but it backfired horribly. The only thing remotely Clavicus Vile-ish was the big "rug pull" at the end of the quest where he offers you the axe if you kill Barbas, and like, no. No thanks. I have access to better axes, I'm not killing a dog for this *two handed 🤮* one. I never wanted this axe, there is no reason in the quest to even use the axe yourself let alone grow attached to it, unlike Barbas who has now accompanied me all through the quest. This isn't a choice.

Quest: Best Wishes

The quest opener is being moved from Falkreath to Morthal, because vanilla Morthal has no general store. Well, now it does. Compared to all the other stores you visit it will have a unique look, very mysterious and quirky with oddities on the shelves, and the owner will be an eccentric character with a cute dog. For the quest to activate you must have traded at the store a few times and reached a level. On entering, the owner will be distraught and refuse to trade unless you agree to find his dog who has gone missing.

You go on a bit of a dog hunt. Asking around Morthal gets you little useful information. In fact, if you ask certain people, they will say some curious things; like they have no idea who you're talking about, or that there isn't a general store in Morthal at all, "Oh that old place? That closed down when I was a child after old man whatever died"...

You eventually track the dog down outside the city and, surprise, it talks! Barbas explains the situation, that he is the somewhat loyal side kick of Clavicus Vile, who has an offer for you. He also makes it clear, this offer is an invitation only, you would walk away right now if you were wise. Assuming you aren't a pussy, you of course return Barbas to the shop and hear the offer.

The shopkeeper transforms into Vile, in all his jovial Skaafin glory. He tells you about a wish he has recently received, one that he would like your help in granting. There's this would be merchant in the city of Whiterun named Ysolda, who you have likely already met as she is a very popular wifu, she has been a devout Zenithar worshipper for years, but has become impatient with waiting for her hard work to pay off. She really wants to be a trader, and has prayed to Vile to make it so. If you agree to take care of it for him, he will reward you. As Barbas has recommended, you can quit the quest right now. Or...

You head to Whiterun and start investigating Ysolda. It's up to you how the wish gets granted, depending on what you discover about her:

1. She would like to buy the Bannered Mare of her friend Hulda, who isn't ready to sell. So you could ruin the business to make Hulda desperate to sell, but Ysolda would get a ruined inn. Or you could forge Hulda's will and stage an "accident", so Ysolda inherits the inn at the expense of her friend's life.

2. She has done some work with the Khajiit caravans, learning what she can about mercantile skills, but expressing how hard and horrible their lifestyle sounds. Investigating this will lead you to a secret meeting between Ysolda and an Orc. The Orc hands Ysolda a "the goods" but Ysolda complains there isn't enough. The Orc explains how dangerous getting it is. Ysolda doesn't care, she tells him he needs to go get more. If you follow the Orc to Sleeping Tree Camp you'll witness his death at the hands of the giants there. On his body there is an incriminating note, which you could show to the Whiterun guard captain, who will banish her from the city as punishment. Ysolda will spend the rest of her days with the Khajiit caravan, living as a vagrant and exiled from her home, but a trader, just as she wished.

3. As Barbas, who will accompany you, advises, you could warn Ysolda and break your side of the bargain. She believes your story (how else could you have known about the wish?), but depending on your speechcraft and personality attribute - because a fixed Skyrim would obviously have attributes - you either strike the right amount of fear into her that she flees to the temple to seek sanctuary, or you miss your mark and she decides to go check out this shop in Morthal for herself. When she gets there Vile will reluctantly let her take over the store, but if Ysolda repents she will one day become a Priestess of Zenithar, and convert the shop into a fledgling temple.

Just Deserts

When you return to the general store in Morthal it will have transformed into an abandoned ruin.

Any outcome of options one or two will please Vile, he will award you his Masque which will be light or heavy armoured dependant on which skill is higher for you and it will have a powerful speechcraft, personality and price discount enchantment. You also have the opportunity later on to take over and run the shop yourself.

If Ysolda comes to Morthal to take over the store, Vile will be annoyed at you and Barbas for being boring, but will accept that the wish is technically granted and Ysolda, now his devotee, will be spending her afterlife in his realm. You get the Masque but she gets the store ( unless you marry her...)

If you break your deal and save Ysolda, you get a curse; permanent debuffs to speechcraft, personality and prices. The cost of being a hero is high, especially when it comes to the Daedra. (Maybe Ysolda can lift the curse once her temple is up and running, but that will be a while).

[ordinaryschmuck]

Okay, with Phase Five of the Multiverse Saga DONE, here's the obligatory ranking...

Secret Invasion is at the very BOTTOM of the list, no doubt about it. It looked interesting in the first episode, but quickly lost its momentum as it became a BORING slag to watch with the WORST CGI a Marvel TV show had and the WORST finale any of these bullshit shows had. This is the absolute bottom of the barrel, right there with Iron Fist and Inhumans as a show I do NOT want to see again. I'm not kidding.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania's biggest problem is its consistency. It's trying to be this SUPERHERO EPIC, with great battles and threatening villain that our heroes just can't seem to stop...And also an Ant-Man movie with goofy humor and silly characters. Honestly, if it chose to be one or the other, this movie wouldn't be so bad. Just cut out most of the jokes and have this be a serious showdown with the MCU's new (And quickly forgotten) big bad, Kang. Or, alternatively, cut out KANG and make it a lowstakes movie where Scott teaches Cassie to be a great hero as they face off against MODOK. Either option would have worked well, but because the movie tried to be BOTH, it ended up falling short in the process. It also doesn't help that the best thing about the movie, Kang himself, is tainted by the actor being a not great person. Overall, I don't hate the movie as much as everyone else did, but I can't really call it GOOD.

Captain America: Brave New World is the most OK movie the MCU has ever had...and that kind of makes me hate it a little more, BECAUSE IT DIDN'T NEED TO BE! This is a movie that could have been the BOLDEST film Marvel could have ever produced in this year alone. It's a movie where the president turns into a giant, red rage monster who could have burned the whole world down, all while being guided by his tech-bro "super genius" to get the position he has in the first place. THE UNIVERSE SERVED THIS FILM WITH THE BIGGEST POLITICAL STATEMENT OF THE CENTURY ON A SILVER PLATTER...And it did NOTHING with it! It's actually FRUSTRATING how scared this movie is to make a SINGLE claim about ANYTHING. It gets so PAINFULLY close to doing so, yet it feels like some Disney executive is holding a gun to the film's head and DARING it to make those connections. I mean, does it still have some epic fight scenes and some solid performances? Yeah, it does, but so does a LOT of MCU movies. This one doesn't offer much outside of that, despite how CLOSE it does to doing so. I WANT to like movie more, it IS awesome to see Sam Wilson as Captain America fighting the mother fucking Red Hulk of all things, but it doesn't offer ENOUGH substance. It TRIES, but trying isn't enough at times.

Echo...is a show I keep forgetting exists and that's not great for it. I respect the attempt to bring more mature story telling to the MCU again, and it was actually cool to see someone gruesomely bleeding out for the first time in years...as sick and twisted as that sounds. But as far as this show goes, it also doesn't go far ENOUGH, as its big climax is this...sort of BS about seeing the good inside someone foul (Really glad Daredevil backpedaled on that idea...). Also, there's the fact that the show made a big change in adapting Echo by giving her the powers to have the same abilities and strengths of her ancestors as they echo through her. Cool idea on paper, I guess, but I went over this with Ms. Marvel: If you change the heroes' powers, you might as well make them a new superhero. It doesn't help that the showrunner/director/WHOEVER said that the reason for this change was because they didn't think Echo's comic accurate powers were COOL enough, so they decided to give her this mystic nonsense instead. And I don't think anyone really care for it...Or maybe they did? I don't know, this show flew under the radar and I haven't heard anyone talk about it since. And it came out a YEAR ago! We forgot a show that's over year old, people!

What If...? Seasons Two and Three might as well be lumped together, and I will forever stand on the hill that says they're NOT the worst thing the MCU has put out. Only weirdos who have this intense hatred towards Captain Carter (for reasons that boggle my mind). We have Secret Invasion RIGHT THERE, a show so lazy it relied on an AI Generated intro, yet you'll see people SHAME What If...? for being...I guess not living up to expectations? People were expecting HIGH concept adventures and FASCINATING new universes that the MCU could never explore. Only to get a show with twenty-six episodes of dumb fun that's the equivalent of someone mashing their action figures together. And, truth be told, I'm fine with it being the ladder. Don't get me wrong, I would LOVE the high concept adventures, but this is a series where you get to see Iron Man go on a drag race with The Grand Master and see Howard the Duck fight every big bad in the MCU to protect his surprisingly powerful egg. Oh, and also watch the big buff lady kill nazis and body slam beings of pure infinity. That's either your cup of tea or it isn't, but it surely was mine. I enjoyed a lot of it, and I will never understand the hatred it got. It's NOT that bad, it's just...fun. Nothing more.

Ironheart is a show that exists. There, I said the thing. And truly...it's accurate. I have nothing more to say about the majority of this show other than it being something that...exists. Is it fun? Sometimes. I guess it's kind of cool to see Iron Man-like action again after a good few years without it. Though, that comes with the fact that the CGI isn't always the best at times. When it's good, it's like movie levels of quality. When it's not, it's like watching a Red vs Blue CGI shot, cheap-looking and very out of place. As for the characters, they're also fine? I guess? Weirdly enough, I find every character fascinating...except for the titular Ironheart. There are too many lines that TELL us how great and brilliant Riri Williams is, but never enough scenes that SHOW us. I mean, the girl BIT INTO live wire and would eventually make a deal with a clearly evil man and that same man's little bitch. She's not exactly BRILLIANT, and I think it says a lot where I am WAY more invested in the identity crisis her AI is going through more than Riri trying to find herself. Not to mention the show suddenly throws in some magic bullshit that is WAY too jarring to just take in for six episode season. A lot of it really wasn't hitting for me...until those last two episodes. THAT is when things get really fun, fascinating, AND engaging. We're not only introduced to a character fans have been hoping to see since WandaVision, but the show also ends on a cliffhanger that REALLY makes me hopeful for a season two. Or, at the very least, a continuation at SOME point before the universe soft reboots itself if those rumors about Secret Wars are true. We'll see what happens when it happens, but for now I'll say that I don't entirely mind this show. The last third of it was REALLY amazing, even if the first two thirds could use a little more polish...And a LOT more time for the CGI (I really hope those animators weren't killing themselves with this one...)

The Marvels is...fun. It's not SUBSTANTIAL, but it's got a lot of fun moments with solid chemistry between the cast and some pretty cool fight scenes. It's one of those movies you put on if you just want something to kill the time...Basically, it's an airplane movie, but I'm fine with that. Not every MCU film needs to be a masterpiece that reinvents the wheel, it just needs to be OK at worst, and that really is The Marvels. At its worst, it's just...OK.

Oh, Deadpool and Wolverine, weirdos on Twitter could NEVER make me hate you. Are you the very best the MCU has to offer? Not even close. Your story is messy and your themes could use a bit more polish. But are you a super fun, mildly hilarious, and wonderfully awesome movie that I don't really see myself getting sick of. This is the movie that has Ryan Reynolds as his most Deadpooliest and Hugh Jackman arguably at his most Wolveriniest. It is so much fun seeing these two interact and bounce off each other, while still giving it their all to make sure the humor and serious moments are as effective as possible. Jackman may not top his performance in Logan, it's still so much fun seeing him cuss, kill, and drink for a big final ride with Reynolds' Deadpool, all with a comic accurate suit for the first time in twenty fuckin' years. It's awesome, mildly rewatchable, and some good comic book fun that I will not get over. Some may have moved on, but I'm sure as hell not ready to get off the ride this movie consistently offers.

I. Was. NOT expecting to like Agatha All Along as much as I did, but holy SHIT was it good! Not OUTSTANDING, mind you, but still a really well-performed, strongly written, and surprisingly compelling mini-series that acts as a spiritual second season to WandaVision. We watch as Agatha Harkness and her Coven of Chaos travel a world of insanity and try to survive to get what they all desire. What follows is a fun enough adventure that's often delightfully dark with characters I can't help but admire. There's this one character who has what's best described as reverse Alzheimers as her oracle magic leads to her mind constantly drifting to the FUTURE instead of the past. That is just ONE of the brilliant ideas that Agatha All Along has, and that's not getting into the two big twists at the end. I'm not kidding when I said I was IMMENSELY impressed by both, more so about how the show reveals it really WAS Agatha all along. I'm NOT going to explain HOW that makes sense, trust me when I say it's for the best to see it for yourself as it's up there as one of the best twists an MCU project has had. Even if the finale itself floundered a bit past that major reveal. Still, solid ending to a surprisingly solid show.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Season One is part of the Multiverse Saga. Disney+ says so. Fuck you. And also FUCK ME for having doubts in this...Okay, the doubts were warranted with a bad trailer, choppy animation, and a leading actor who I HOPE gets replaced by Season Two. Not a lot of hope to work with when going into this series, and those supremely low expectations is what hurt my enjoyment going into the first episode. I saw nothing but faults through most of that first episode, thinking it was going to be exactly what people who HATE MCU Spider-Man THINK MCU Spider-Man is like. The cracks showed immediately...but then we got to that final few minutes that showed us MORE the direction this show was going to go in. And from there, the show got better and better with every episode, making it feel like a show that lines up more with what Spider-Man fans WANTED the MCU to do with the character. We have great drama, a compelling cast of side-characters, and the slow burn of seeing some of Spidey's iconic foes becoming the sinister threats we know and love. In some cases, with characters like Lonnie, it's tragic, seeing someone GOOD go down a darker path. It's surprisingly compelling stuff with scenes that kind of make me wish that THIS is what MCU Spider-Man was like from the start. It's filled to the brim with some pretty clever writing, including this one twist to Spider-Man's mantra that hit me RIGHT in the SOUL. Like, HOLY SHIT, what was said and WHO said it was a case of brilliance that I will NOT get over. This is another one of those Spider-Man projects that has fans PRAISING it nonstop and telling others it gets the character better than anything that came before. And...things MIGHT be hyperbolic at this point, as Season Two can easily change that the second it makes ONE decision fans hate. Plus, as great as everything is, it is often held back by shoddy animation and sometimes the restraint to make this an alternate timeline in the MCU CAN get in the way. Still, as a Spider-Man fan, I found myself loving the hell out of this first season way more than I thought I did. If you're not hooked in immediately, stick it with it. Trust me when I say it is WORTH it.

Daredevil: Born Again is NOT Daredevil Season Four. That is a harsh truth that people need to understand as this is NOT a direct continuation that matches the highs and lows of the original series. Instead...it's more like Daredevil comic run ended and Marvel switched writers and artists for a new one, trying to match what made the work of the last team good while still making it their own story with its own identity. That being said, though, while Born Again never matches the high of Daredevil Seasons One and Three, it is still a GREAT season of television. This is a season that shows all you need are great actors to give performances that can take even the most mediocre writing and ideas and turn them into GOLD. Every actor in this is giving it their all, with the ones from the original series feeling like they've never left the roles they played for four years. And while it IS a little obvious that the show is a Frankenstien monster of a new cast and crew trying to rework a HORRIBLE first draft, what they make is still really great with strong performances and some amazing action that, at times, rivals the original with its intensity and violence. Daredevil's first fight with Bullseye was the perfect return to form to draw audiences in, with the rest of the season...admittedly taking a while to match that same greatness. But when it does hit, it really fucking hits, with those last two episodes being the strongest of the season and giving high hopes in Season Two being even BETTER. Plus, everything else isn't entirely without merits. Kingpin treating his duties as Mayor the same as his job as THE Kingpin is a brilliant idea and that bank heist episode still remains one my favorite episodes due to how good it felt seeing old school superhero shit again. People act like the last two episodes are the ONLY parts of the show that are good, but I disagree. The rest of the season IS great due to its direction and performances. It never reaches the same level of perfection, but for a starting season to bring back the character and his dark stories, it's not too bad. I look forward to season two, and all the bloody mayhem that will surely follow.

Thunderbolts* was the movie that restored faith in a lot fans in the MCU. I think it's just...pretty good. It has a solid script, incredible action, a fun cast with great chemistry, decently handled themes about depression and suicidal ideation (YES, really), and a fair mix of humor and heart that feels perfectly balanced. In other words, it's...an average MCU movie, BUT a good one. REALLY good, I can't stress that enough. For a lot of fans, it felt like watching the MCU at its best and brightest again, taking characters no one really cared much about and making them EVERYONE'S favorites. Only instead of ripping comic characters and giving them a coat of fresh paint, Thunderbolts* takes MCU characters and gives them a better chance to shine brighter than they did upon their introductions. I have seen so many people give more of a shit towards Red Guardian here than they ever did in Black Widow, and that's the power of this movie. It dared to ask fans to CARE about what's basically the scraps of the MCU, and it did it well. Fans LOVED this film and these characters, but I feel like all this hype Thunderbolts* got is because...it's been too long since fans saw a GOOD MCU movie project like this? I mean, we've had a lot of good ones, three in particular that rank HIGHER, but things HAVE been inconsistent for a while. Thunderbolts* just happened to have the right amount of sauce at the right time, and fans aren't willing to give up on how...GOOD it is yet. I mean, they might after a while (They always do), but for the time being, this DOES feel like a film that's worth its praise. It's everything that's fun about the MCU with the tiniest bit of substance to make you appreciate it all the more.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 3 is definitely going to be up there as one of the best in the MCU, not just in the Multiverse Saga. It's highly emotional, actually FUNNY, and a perfect final swan song for all of these characters and James Gunn's inclusion to the franchise before peacing out to fix DC (Don't let me down, Superman...). I'm SO glad that this wasn't a rushed job made out to make a deadline, as it really feels like a movie people wanted to get RIGHT, and they succeeded in spades. I mean, it made us cry over a talking CGI raccoon. COME ON!

Loki Season Two was the show that renewed my faith in the MCU after Secret Invasion downright squashed it into peaces. I was about ready to call it quits after that absolute MESS of a mini-series, but was willing to give Loki Season Two a chance because, well, I liked the first season and was hopeful for the second to at least be just as good. And it wasn't...it was BETTER, introducing more fun characters, getting into even WACKIER nonsense with time travel and multiverse shenanigans, and somehow having even STRONGER emotions. That ending--That FINALE--remains as the only time this saga has given me CHILLS that match the ending of Infinity War. It's beautiful as it is tragic, and don't you DARE think I'm going to spoil it. It is THAT good.

X-Men '97 Season One is ALSO in the Multivers Saga, according to Disney+, so you better BELIEVE it counts! And good thing too, HOLY SHIT is X-Men '97 awesome! Controversies involving the showrunner aside, this was the show that made me think, "Oh, that's RIGHT! The X-Men are COOL!" After the FoX-Men movies that focussed more on making Wolverine awesome, and ONLY Wolverine, I knew X-Men '97 was on the right track the second they made Scott Cyclops Summers have the coolest opening fight scene imaginable. And the momentum from that just never stopped as we got some INCREDIBLE action, some heart clenching tragedy between these characters and their relationships, and some LARGER THAN LIFE scenes that can only be conveyed through animation. The best part being that all of this happens in ONE season! One season alone, and this show already feels like a modern Marvel Masterpiece! Now, Seasons Two and Three CAN change that, especially with What If showrunner replacing this show's due to...valid reasons (That Rogue and Magneto subplot feels so uncomfortable now...). For now, though, I'll take this super epic and emotional first season for all it's worth.

All in all, this is definitely a MUCH better phase than Phase Four. Phase Five has much higher highs, even the lows are almost unforgivable at times. It really feels like everyone involved has heard the critiques the MCU has been getting the last few years and are trying to do better. Sometimes they succeed, other times they almost miss the mark, but when things work, they REALLY work. Let's just hope that Phase Six ends this MESS with a bang instead of a whimper...

[animatedapostasy]

Persona 4 has been bouncing around in my brain even more than usual and I wanna complain about it.

I think the main problem with Persona 4 is that it has nothing to say. Despite being a game that is dealing explicitly with topics like gender, sexuality, queerness, and identity, the game has absolutely nothing interesting to say about any of it. In fact, its viewpoint is pretty conservative. Nothing upsets the status quo.

Almost all of the character’s shadow selves are rooted deeply into the character’s insecurity and fear around their gender and/or sexuality and how it fits in with society’s norms. The exceptions are Teddie and Yosuke (ironic I know). Despite this, in the individual character arcs: all of the characters make decisions and end up almost exactly in line with what society expects of them. No one dares to go against the grain.  Yukiko ends up running the inn just as she was expected to her, only now she’s happy about it. Rise returns to being an idol just like everyone wanted her to only now she’s happy about it. Naoto sheds their gender non-conformity in favor what society expects. Chie, despite seeing firsthand the incompetence and corruption of the police, still wants to be a police officer (Makoto Niijima also says hello here)

Yosuke’s cut romance is a pretty good microcosm of this and I don’t think you need to be particularly yaoibrained to see it. With his romance, he could have had an arc of “boy in search of someone who makes him feel special overcomes his internalized homophobia to fall in love with his best friend”. At the very least, you have to admit it would have been transgressive when it was released. But it was cut and nothing remains except ash, homophobia, and fujoshi tears.

Ironically, I think Kanji with all his discourse around him has the arc with the most to say. Honestly in my opinion, his arc was never about being gay but defining a healthy definition of manhood that includes having “feminine” interests. But in the end he ends up conforming too. Just look at his epilogue outfit. They did away with all the visual things that made Kanji unique to look “normal”. The same applies to Naoto whose gender non-conformity is completely erased in their epilogue look.

For a game whose whole theme is “Pursuing Your True Self”, it pretty much says that “true self” shouldn’t be anything that challenges the status quo.

[familyvideostevie]

october twenty-eighth

day twenty-eight: sirius black will a haunted house finally bring you and sirius together? | pre-relationship, friends to lovers, some fake gore | 1k

You swear you're going to tell him one of these days.

You're an adult. You can fess up to a fancy. Even if you're worried it'll rock your entire friend group if Sirius isn't interested in you. Even if you'll be a bit more heartbroken than you'd like to admit because of it. You're going to talk to him about it.

Just…not tonight. Tonight, you're doing your best to maintain your composure as scare actors and regular people alike scare the shit out of you at every turn of this stupid haunted house theme park.

You don't know how but someday you're going to get James back for this whole idea.

The park is teeming with people when you all arrive and you decide to walk around a bit and get some food before you get in line for a real haunted house. You like this kind of stuff, to a point. The most fun part is being with your friends and being scared together, not so much the actual being scared part. Your heart might beat out of your chest by the time this is over.

The only thing that seems to be working in your favor is the fact that Sirius has taken it upon himself to stick by your side. He moves between you and the scare actors, shoulder bumping yours as he takes the brunt of each fright.

“You alright?” he keeps asking you.

It's infuriating. It should not be allowed for one person to be so handsome, so kind, and so…tempting. It's properly cold tonight but he's in his usual leather jacket, though for once it's actually zipped up all the way. He keeps his hands in his pockets and you wonder what it would be like to hold one.

“Oi!” Remus calls. “One of you help me with drinks, yeah?”

“I will,” you say quickly. You need to remove yourself from Sirius's side before you do something silly.

But your plan backfires, as no comfort is to be found in your friend as you wait for everyone's hot drinks.

“So,” Remus says, casually. 'You going to make a move tonight?”

“Oh, piss off.”

He laughs. “Just asking!” He narrows his eyes over your shoulder and you know he's looking at Sirius. “I just think its's worth telling you that it's on you, darling. He's a bit of an idiot.”

“I know,” you mutter.

“He'd be fucking thrilled, though,” Remus assures you. “He's utterly besotted.”

You see what you think might be proof of that when you hand Sirius his mulled wine. He beams at you like you made it yourself. “Thanks, love,” he says.

“Alright,” James says. “Gather round, my dear friends.” Everyone groans.

Sirius presses your arms together and sips his wine.

“Once we're all properly warmed and armed with some liquid courage, we're going to go into that house.” He points to…the biggest one.

“Oh, bloody hell,” Sirius mutters.

“Yes, yes, I know it's the scariest one. But you're all brave, are you not?” James looks far too pleased with himself.

“You're the one who screams loudest,” you tease. James narrows his eyes at you and Sirius and you sense trouble.

“We'll see about that.”

The line for the house moves faster than you'd like.

“You alright?” Sirius asks again.

You raise an eyebrow at him. “Are you alright?” He grins crookedly at you.

“Course,” he says. “Nothing like a bit of adrenaline, right?”

If only he knew. Being close to him gets your heart going almost as much as the jump scares you've had tonight. “Just don't think too badly of me when I scream bloody murder.”

He winks at you. Good god. “As if I could ever think badly of you.” Your group reaches the front of the queue. A bored teen stands at the door, waiting to let you in. You can hear the screams of other patrons already. “It's not too scary, is it?” Sirius says. He sounds like he's trying to convince himself.

The teenager looks unimpressed. “Good luck.”

James and Lily lead the group, Remus on their heels, you two last.

The scary shit starts immediately. A dark, dismal alleyway is littered with bones and lined with iron cages and rag-covered prisoners jump out at you and rattle the bars.

“Oh, fuck,” Sirius cries. It takes a second for you to realize that he's grabbed your hand. Out of fear, maybe? You wait for him to pull away but…he doesn't.

You remember what Remus said. Well, looks like this is your time to make a move. You lace your fingers together and squeeze. The house is dark but you see the flash of Sirius's teeth.

Okay. You can do this.

“Sirius,” you say as you walk through the hall, trying to be on your toes for people jumping out at you and failing to anticipate them every time. “Where did the rest of them go?”

You both realize that your friends, who were in front of you, are…not there anymore.

“They've abandoned us,” he curses. “Very funny. No way out but through then, love.”

The alleyway turns to a creepy hospital turns to a dungeon turns to haunted woods.

At some point, you start trying to make each other laugh.

“Bet he's got indigestion,” Sirius whispers in your ear when a guy covered in fake blood fists his hands in his fake intestines.

“She's actually very good at blackjack,” you say of a woman with her eyes gouged out.

You don't call him on it when he screams, and he never lets go of your hand.

“How big is this place?” Sirius mutters.

Just as he says it, there's a literal light at the end of the tunnel.

You spill out into a street-lamp lit holding area where plenty of people are recovering, hands on their knees to catch their breath.

Your friends, however, stand at attention, eyes on the two of you.

“Oi,” Sirius yells. “Don't look so pleased with yourselves. See if we stick with you when we're chased by a serial killer.”

James starts clapping.

“Oh, do shut up,” Lily says. “Glad you two made it.”

Sirius squeezes your hand. Oh. You should probably let go now, right?

“Should we do another?” he asks instead.

You let yourself look at him, really look at him. His eyes are bright, face a bit flushed. He looks like a man who knows exactly what he's doing.

“Okay,” you say.

He doesn't let go for the rest of the night.

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